BRIDGING THE GAP: EVALUATING TASK-BASED LEARNING AS A FACILITATOR FOR ORAL COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE IN PAKISTAN

Abstract

The English language classroom in Pakistan is often faced with a rather unusual dilemma. In one regard, society and institutions are under a great deal of pressure to churn out graduates who can speak fluent English to be able to work in multinational companies, call centers, and government jobs. But on the contrary, what happens in pedagogy is that the English language classroom sticks to its grammar translation method and students only learn about the rules without being able to order a meal or argue their point of view orally. This research tries to find out whether TBL could help bridge the gap between the two realms. Results show that there was a statistical difference in terms of the level of oral fluency and strategic competence of the experimental group; however, grammar accuracy still posed difficulties. From this paper, one can infer that although TBL cannot be considered as a magic pill, its application, namely the concepts of “task repetition” and “schema building,” helps to break down affective filters that inhibit the Pakistani learners.