"GETTING REAL" WITH ACTION RESEARCH IN TECHNOLOGY-MEDIATED TASK-BASED LANGUAGE TEACHING (TBLT): A PROPOSITION, A MAP AND THREE CASE STUDIES

This paper argues that the methodological framework known as "Action Research", on the one hand, and a technology-driven, task-based approach to language teaching (TBLT), on the other hand, can be matched with a mutually beneficial effect. The cornerstone of any sound TBLT practice is an authentic, motivating, relevant and purposeful task with a real-world (i.e. primarily non-linguistic) outcome. However, the recent, and perhaps rather univocal embrace of technology in TBLT circles could potentially lead to a diluted interpretation of the concept of "task", as technology could literally "screen off" the learner from the real world. The framework of Action Research, with its insistence on socially relevant, inquiry-based interventions, redirects task design towards real-world conditions. At the same time, AR benefits significantly from the introduction of technological tools. Onto a model of the AR process, several apps and tools were mapped that release the typically community-embedded AR practices from the limitations of time and space. The paper is concluded by three case studies taken from diverse fields in higher education (engineering education, psychology and teacher training), in which an innovative AR approach is enabled by technological tools, and which illustrate that AR-inspired task design can lead to simultaneous acquisition of language, research and technological competencies.