Michael Thomas is Senior Lecturer in Language Learning Technologies at the School of Language, Literature and International Studies, University of Central Lancashire, UK

Hayo Reinders is TESOL Professor and Director of the doctoral program at Anaheim University, USA and visiting Professor at Chulalongkorn University, Thailand

Over the last decade task-based approaches to language learning and teaching (TBLT) have become a global focus of increased levels of research. Governments around the world have turned to TBLT as a potential solution for curricula that lack authentic and meaningful engagement with language learning and are failing to motivate students as a result. This book focuses on Asia, where this shift has been particularly in evidence. TBLT has often been implemented in top-down approaches to curriculum development, which presents a huge range of challenges at the cultural as well as the pedagogic level.
Contemporary Task Based Language Teaching in Asia looks at the drivers, stakeholders and obstacles across the region. Some countries have adapted TBLT to deal with the local constraints, others have found it hard to apply and many are still in the process of investigating its implementation in their specific contexts. This collection is important to all involved in language development, from curriculum reform to materials development. It assists from programme evaluation to the setting of assessment standards. The chapters cover all aspects of language education across Asia, from primary to tertiary, private and public education, as well as innovations at local, regional and national levels.

Foreword, David Nunan
1. Introduction, Michael Thomas
PART I: THE SOUTH-EAST ASIAN CONTEXT
Introduction, William Littlewood
2. Task-Based Language Teaching in the Asian Context: Where Are We Now and Where Are We Going?, Chun Lai
3. Exploring Ways to Accommodate Task-Based Language Teaching in Chinese Schools, Shaoqian Luo and Yafu Gong
4. Bridging Communicative Language Teaching and Task-Based Language Teaching in Cambodia: Learners' Reactions to an Integrated Program in the Non-Formal Education Sector, Nicole Takeda
PART II: FOCUSING ON THE LEARNER
Introduction, Phil Benson
5. 'Old Wine in New Bottles': Two Case Studies of Task-Based Language Teaching in Vietnam, Nguyen Gia Viet, Le Van Canh and Roger Barnard
6. Task-Based Language Teaching in the Primary Schools of South China, Yuefeng Zhang
7. Significant Task-Based Learning: Empowering Students with Position Search Skills in a University in Singapore, Brad Blackstone and Radhika Jaidev
8. Teaching the Teachers: Task-Based Teacher Training in Asia, Marilyn Lewis
PART III: TEACHERS' PERSPECTIVES
Introduction, Jack C. Richards
9. Teachers' Perceived Difficulty in Implementing TBLT in China, Shaoqian Luo and Jiaxin Xing
10. Gaining Acceptance of Task-Based Teaching During Malaysian Rural In-Service Teacher Training, Stephen J. Hall
11. Preparing for Tasks in Vietnamese EFL High School Classrooms: Teachers in Action, Bao Trang, Thi Nguyen, Jonathan Newton and David Crabbe
PART IV: TASKS AND TECHNOLOGY
Introduction, Glenn Stockwell

12. Language Learning Performance Using Engineering-Based Tasks via Text Chat, Nik Aloesnita Nik Mohd Alwi
13. Employing Online Chat to Resolve Task-Based Activities: Using Online Chat to Promote Cultural Language Exchange between Japanese and Taiwanese Learners, Mark R. Freiermuth and Hsin-chou Huang
14. A Digital Shift is Not Enough: Cultural, Pedagogical and Institutional Challenges to Technology -Mediated Task-Based Language Teaching in Japan, Michael Thomas
15. A Trade-off in Learning: Mobile Augmented Reality for Language Learning, Hayo Reinders, Onuma Lakarnchua and Mark Pegrum
PART V: MATERIALS AND CURRICULUM DESIGN
Introduction, Nigel Harwood
16. A Needs Analysis for a Korean Middle School EFL General English Curriculum, Moonyoung Park
17. Materials Design for TBLT in Thailand: Balancing Process and Content, Pornapit Darasawang
18. Contextually Framing Task-Based English Language Pedagogy: Vocational English
Materials Development in Indonesia, Handoyo Puji Widodo
19. The Effects of Input on Output-based L2 Tasks in a Japanese University Setting, Wataru Suzuki and Nobuya Itagaki
20. TBLT Materials and Curricula: From Theory to Practice, Brian Tomlinson
PART VI: ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION
Introduction, Ali Shehadeh
21. Task-Based Assessment for Young Learners: Old Meets New Cultures, Yuko Goto Butler
22. Teachers' Adaptations of TBLT: The Hong Kong Story, David R. Carless
Epilogue, Rod Ellis

Index