Task-based needs analysis is a professional, in-depth inquiry into the tasks and language associated with them that second or foreign language learners need to perform. the focus of this paper will be the transfer from needs analysis to actual design and how NA may inform all dimensions of task and syllabus design.
Task-based needs analysis is a professional, in-depth inquiry into the precise language and communication needs of a community. Task-based needs analysis uses tasks as the organizing principle and aims at informing task design in such a way that it achieves maximum efficiency in the face of limited time and resources. While we have seen an exponential growth of needs analyses (NA) worldwide, an insufficiently addressed issue in TBLT is that of transferring what we learn from needs analysis to actual task design. What aspects of NA can directly inform our design? Can NA inform all areas of syllabus design? The aim of this talk is three-fold. Firstly, the basic principles of task-based need analysis will be briefly discussed. Secondly, the talk will analyze the dimensions that are typically addressed during needs analysis (task descriptions and procedures; task features and task complexity; participants and spatial settings; pragmatic and discursive dimensions; psychosocial aspects; competences, attitudes and values dimension; linguistic dimension; performance standards, among others) and it will associate them with direct decision-making during task and syllabus design (selection and sequencing, pedagogic design, methodological implementation, assessment and program evaluation). In the third place, the talk will focus on examples of the interesting and growing body of work done on task-based needs analyses and will highlight crucial gaps and potential future directions in the field.
