The present study examines and classifies learning activities found in teaching materials of Spanish as a foreign language produced for a Swedish context with the aim of determining to what extent they conform to the functional, action-oriented language view advocated by the Swedish curriculum. Both the distribution of learning activities within receptive, productive and interactive skills, the activity types within each skill, and the theoretical underpinnings of the activities have been studied in four popular coursebooks and two websites for teaching Spanish as a foreign language. The activities analyzed have shown a dominance of the written language even in oral activities. The results have also shown a bias towards more controlled, non-communicative activities with an explicit focus on forms at the expense of freer communicative activities with a primary focus on meaning, known to support language acquisition.

Orientador: Paula Tavares Pinto / Resumo: A relação da Linguística de Corpus com o Ensino de Línguas, apesar de receber foco mesmo antes do advento dos computadores, se intensificou por volta da década de 90, momento em que pesquisas em corpora de aprendizes e em Aprendizagem Direcionada por Dados foram enfatizadas. Considerado esse estreitamento, esta pesquisa objetiva compilar quatro corpora de aprendizes a partir do uso autêntico da língua com o intuito de desenvolver atividades didáticas direcionadas por dados dos próprios alunos que promovam nos discentes um perfil autônomo de investigação linguística (mais precisamente das preposições with, in, on, at, for e to). No tocante à fundamentação teórica, destacam-se Prabhu (1987), Skehan (1996), Willis (1996), Nunan (2004) e Ellis (2006) a respeito do Ensino de Línguas por Tarefas, Jenkins (2012) e Neves (2014) que discorrem sobre as ficções de fã. Já sobre a Linguística de Corpus, tem-se Sinclair (1991), Berber Sardinha (2000) e Viana (2011). Granger (1998, 2002, 2013) mais relacionado a Corpus de Aprendizes, e Johns (1991, 1994), Berber Sardinha (2011) e Boulton (2010) no que diz respeito à Aprendizagem Direcionada por Dados. Como metodologia, levantaram-se textos escritos pelos alunos a partir de uma tarefa de produção escrita em que eles redigiram uma ficção de fã. Em seguida, esses textos formaram dois corpora de aprendizes iniciais, que foram analisados com o auxílio da ferramenta AntConc (ANTHONY, 2018) no intuito de observar a presença ou não de inadequações ... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: Although the relation between Corpus Linguistics and Language Teaching has been emphasized even before the advent of computers, it has been highlighted around the 90s. This was the moment when research on learner corpora and Data-Driven Learning was focused. Having said that, this study aimed to compile four learner corpora based on the authentic use of the language. This was done in order to develop data-driven teaching activities that could promote, among the students, an autonomous profile of linguistic investigation (more precisely about the prepositions with, in, on, at, for and to). Concerning the existing literature, we highlight the works of Prabhu (1987), Skehan (1996), Willis (1996), Nunan (2004) and Ellis (2006) about Task-Based Language Teaching, and Jenkins (2012) and Neves (2014) about fanfictions. In relation to Corpus Linguistics, this study is based on Sinclair (1991), Berber Sardinha (2000) and Viana (2011). Granger (1998, 2012, 2013) is referenced to define learner corpora, and Johns (1991, 1994), Berber Sardinha (2011) and Boulton (2010) to discuss Data-Driven Learning. The methodological approach involved the collection of the compositions from Language Teaching undergraduate students who developed a writing task in which they had to write a fanfiction. These texts composed two learner corpora, which were analyzed with the AntConc tool (ANTHONY, 2018) with the purpose of observing the occurrence of prepositions in English and whether they were accurately ... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre

Due to an educational system that tends to prioritize receptive reading and listening skills and a concomitant lack of opportunities to engage in meaningful spoken production in the target language outside of the class, many English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners in Japan struggle to develop their English speaking abilities even after many years of study. For many of these learners, post-secondary coursework presents a first opportunity to engage in consistent active oral production of the language in interactive communicative situations, but how language abilities develop in this context over time is not well understood. This longitudinal, mixed methods research study explores the development of interactive second language (L2) speaking proficiency of Japanese university students throughout their first year of post-secondary study. The participants were 92 female students from five sections of a required oral communication course of which I was the instructor: 34 from two mid-proficiency sections and 58 from three low-proficiency sections. In addition to the standard curriculum for this course, these participants also completed a series of ten 10-minute discussion tasks in groups of three to four participants on personal information topics of general interest over the course of two 15-week semesters that comprise the academic year. All of the group discussion tasks were video-recorded and carried out under the same procedures: without any pre-task planning time but with a post-task transcription and reflection assignment. The first group discussion task was administered for training and instructional purposes and excluded from the data analyses leaving seven tasks conducted roughly one month apart throughout the academic year as well as one additional repeated task with the same group assignments completed at the end of each semester. In total, nine discussion tasks were carried out for analysis in this study. A number of quantitative measures were collected for this study at various points throughout the academic year. First, all of the group discussion performances were rated using an adapted rating scale consisting of criteria dedicated to complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF) as well as interactional engagement and overall communicative effectiveness. Additional measures consisting of participant ratings assigned to topic difficulty and group member familiarity were collected via questionnaire after each discussion task. Furthermore, measures of extraversion and English-speaking self-efficacy were collected along with the three repeated tasks that spanned the entire year. Finally, initial and end-of-year scores on the TOEIC-IP test consisting only of listening and reading sections were used as measures of general English proficiency. To provide a richer understanding of the participants’ perceptions of their development as well the social and individual difference factors considered most directly relevant to the research questions, an embedded qualitative component consisting of two focus groups and one individual interview was also carried out. The results indicated that the participants in this study made small but significant improvements in their mean interactive English speaking abilities across both the three repeated tasks and between the most temporally distant earliest and latest new tasks administered in the first and second terms, accounting for relatively large amounts of the variance in the measures. Furthermore, the social and individual difference factors investigated were found to jointly predict 56% of the variance seen in the interactive English speaking measures for the three repeated tasks. Of these factors, the participants’ initial general proficiency scores, English speaking self-efficacy ratings, and averaged group member initial proficiency scores were found to be much stronger predictors than their topic difficulty, group member familiarity, and extraversion ratings. When the ratings given along the five rating scale dimensions were inspected, strong relationships were revealed among all of them, though particularly among the CAF rating measures. Tracking these relationships over time revealed that they tended to strengthen from one task to the next with the most readily identifiable changes found among the relationships between accuracy, interactional engagement, and overall communicative effectiveness. Finally, the qualitative component of this study revealed that the participants interviewed perceived changes in their conscious attention during the group discussion tasks shifting from accuracy concerns to speaking fluently/effectively, a general lack of concern for and attention to complexity throughout, and improvement in their interactional engagement over the course of the academic year. Furthermore, the interviewees were found to generally ascribe a high degree of influence on their resulting group discussion task speaking performances to both the topic prompts assigned and their group members’ personalities as well as to the complex interplay between group member proficiency and familiarity among other factors. Although a number of limitations should be taken into account, it is believed that the results of this study provide new, important insights into the longitudinal development of interactive English speaking proficiency in an EFL university context where learners have little engagement with target language beyond limited classroom contact hours. / Teaching & Learning

This study was an examination of the effects of explicit form-focused instruction on the English development of Japanese university students during a seven-week intervention. Speaking proficiency development is a continuous challenge for most EFL learners who have limited exposure to the target language outside the classroom. Within the communicative language teaching paradigm, task-based language learning (TBLT) has been considered an effective approach for developing students’ speaking proficiency. However, while TBLT has been increasingly implemented in English language classrooms, investigations in which explicit form-focused instruction has been integrated into task based speaking tasks are limited. This longitudinal classroom-based study had five purposes. The first purpose was to examine the development of speaking proficiency in terms of syntactic complexity, syntactic accuracy, and oral fluency. The second purpose was to examine the development of speaking proficiency by comparing learners who received form-focused instruction with those who did not receive form-focused instruction by examining differences in their syntactic complexity, syntactic accuracy, and oral fluency development. The third purpose was to quantitatively and qualitatively examine the week-to-week trajectory of changes in speaking proficiency development. The fourth purpose was to examine learner affective variables. The final purpose was to examine the participants’ perceptions concerning the development of speaking proficiency based on their self-assessments. The participants were 104 first-year students enrolled in a Japanese university. All of the participants narrated a different four-picture cartoon in English once a week for nine weeks. The participants were divided into one comparison group and two intervention groups: form-focused instruction (FFI) and form-focused instruction and peer feedback (FFI + PF). The form-focused instruction intervention included ten minutes of grammar instruction focused on three past tense forms: simple past, past continuous, and past perfect, as well as ten minutes of peer feedback. Between the pretest and posttest, the FFI and FFI + PF participants received seven weeks of instruction before their weekly cartoon narration. Participants in the comparison group did not receive any weekly interventions. The pretest and posttest narration data of all participants were transcribed and analyzed using six CAF measurements: mean length of T-unit, clause/T-unit ratio, percentage of error-free T-units, percentage of accurate past tense usage, speech rate, and self-repair. Moreover, the pretest and posttest narrations recorded by all of the participants were analytically rated by three raters. From the sample of 104 participants, nine participants (three representatives from each group) were chosen for a week-to-week trajectory analysis in which their six CAF performances were qualitatively and quantitatively analyzed. All of the participants completed two questionnaires after taking the pretest and posttest. I developed both questionnaires based on previous literature related to second language speaking proficiency development. The English Speaking Learner Affect Questionnaire was used to examine differences in participants’ classroom English speaking anxiety, English speaking self-efficacy, and desire to speak English. The Self-Assessment of Speaking Task Questionnaire was used to examine changes in the participants’ self-assessment of their own performances in terms of syntactic complexity, syntactic accuracy, and oral fluency. The results indicated that form-focused instruction was effective at improving the participants’ global syntactic accuracy and their accurate use of the simple past tense. However, form-focused instruction did not lead to improvements in syntactic complexity or oral fluency. However, explicit form-focused instruction did not lead to detrimental effects on syntactic complexity or oral fluency; thus, form-focused instruction did not appear to stimulate trade-off effects between syntactic complexity, syntactic accuracy, and oral fluency. The analytical ratings provided by the raters indicated that form-focused instruction did not lead to significant improvements in terms of syntactic complexity, syntactic accuracy, or oral fluency. The results also indicated that the form-focused instruction intervention was effective at quickly improving syntactic accuracy because participants who received both form-focused instruction and peer feedback improved more quickly in the simple past compared to the participants who only received form-focused instruction. However, the participants who improved syntactic accuracy quickly might have experienced trade-offs with oral fluency ability, as improvements in speed fluency were not noted until their syntactic accuracy reached a ceiling effect where their global accuracy and accurate use of simple past tense stopped to improve. The results indicated that form-focused instruction did not influence classroom English speaking anxiety, as there was no significant difference seen between participants who received form-focused instruction and participants who did not. However, an excessive amount of form-focused instruction might have negative impacts on speaking anxiety because the participants who received both form-focused instruction and peer feedback showed an increase in their classroom English speaking anxiety. On the other hand, form-focused instruction had no impact on English speaking self-efficacy and it had positive effects on the desire to speak English because the participants who received both form-focused instruction and peer feedback exhibited a significant increase in their desire to speak English compared to the participants who did not receive form-focused instruction and the participants who received only form-focused instruction. Finally, based on the learners’ self-assessment, form-focused instruction had no effects on speaking proficiency development as there was no difference in self-assessed syntactic complexity, syntactic accuracy, and oral fluency between the participants in the three groups. Participants who received form-focused instruction interventions did not assess themselves to having higher syntactic accuracy despite their improvements on the CAF measures. / Teaching & Learning

Denna studie undersöker genom en kvalitativ innehållsanalys språksynen i två förlagsproducerade läromedel för spanska i årskurs 9, Colores 9 och Gracias 9. Kursplanen för moderna språk i grundskolan har en uttalad funktionell och handlingsorienterad språksyn som utgår från den Gemensamma europeiska referensramen för språk (GERS). I denna studie har lärandeaktiviteterna i övningsböckerna Colores 9 och Gracias 9 samt deras tillhörande digitala material klassificerats i olika aktivitetstyper utifrån kursplanens förmågor (lyssna, läsa, skriva och tala) dels för att ta reda på hur fördelningen mellan lärandeaktiviteterna inom förmågorna ser ut, dels för att ta reda på vilken typ av aktiviteter som representeras i materialet. Dessa aktiviteter har sedan analyserats utifrån Littlewoods kontinuum i syfte att undersöka vilken språksyn som speglas i materialet, samt om denna språksyn överensstämmer med kursplanens. Resultatet visar att majoriteten av lärandeaktiviteterna inom alla förmågor fokuserar på explicit inlärning med fokus främst på språkets strukturer där aktiviteter som övar uttal, översättning, grammatik och högläsning dominerar. Det framgår av denna studie att lärandeaktiviteterna i läromedlen speglar en traditionell och strukturell språksyn med inslag från grammatik- och översättningsmetoden och den audiolingvala metoden och därmed inte överensstämmer med kursplanens handlingsorienterade kommunikativa språksyn.

English is the second language of almost 89,9% of all South Africans (Bull, 1990:3). A concern about the low levels of proficiency in English in South African primary schools prompted this study. The majority of pupils (both in schools that use English as medium of instruction and schools that offer English as a subject only), as well as many teachers of English are not proficient in English. The aim of this study is to design a task-based syllabus for English in South African primary schools that will address this problem through its potential to provide extensive support for the teaching and learning of English. The syllabus is the single most influential document all English Second Language (ESL) teachers receive, as it directs and guides teaching. In order to propose a syllabus for ESL in primary schools, the following aspects were investigated in this study: the teaching and learning of ESL in the primary school approaches to syllabus design, task-based approaches to syllabus design, current language syllabuses and the present situation in South African primary schools. Task-based approaches to language learning are increasingly proposed as a viable option for syllabus design. There is a firm theoretical rationale for task-based approaches to language learning. Task-based models proposed by Prabhu, Breen and Candlin and Long and Crookes have been influential in the design of task-based syllabuses for language learning. A survey was undertaken to ascertain to what extent language syllabuses from various countries can be regarded as task-based, and what information they specify. Seven representative task-based syllabuses were studied, namely Graded Levels of Achievement for Foreign Language Learning (GLAFLL), the Alabama Course of Study - English Language Arts and the Alaska Model Curriculum Guide: Language Arts (both for English as L1), and the Dutch Syllabus for ESL, the Botswana Syllabus for ESL, the Australian Language Levels (ALL) Project and the Target Oriented curriculum (TOC) of Hong Kong. The Target Oriented Curriculum (TOC) of Hong Kong is regarded as the most suitable model on which to base a task-based model for language teaching and learning in South African primary schools. Not only does it provide firm support for classroom practice in a teacher-friendly and concise manner, but it also provides examples of how the various components of the syllabus can be integrated in the planning of a scheme of work. A core task-based syllabus for English in South African primary schools is proposed. It consists of a situation analysis, the aims and objectives of the course, its content, teaching-learning opportunities and guidelines for assessment. / Proefskrif (PhD (Vakdidaktiek))--PU vir CHO, 1997

English is the second language of almost 89,9% of all South Africans (Bull, 1990:3). A concern about the low levels of proficiency in English in South African primary schools prompted this study. The majority of pupils (both in schools that use English as medium of instruction and schools that offer English as a subject only), as well as many teachers of English are not proficient in English. The aim of this study is to design a task-based syllabus for English in South African primary schools that will address this problem through its potential to provide extensive support for the teaching and learning of English. The syllabus is the single most influential document all English Second Language (ESL) teachers receive, as it directs and guides teaching. In order to propose a syllabus for ESL in primary schools, the following aspects were investigated in this study: the teaching and learning of ESL in the primary school approaches to syllabus design, task-based approaches to syllabus design, current language syllabuses and the present situation in South African primary schools. Task-based approaches to language learning are increasingly proposed as a viable option for syllabus design. There is a firm theoretical rationale for task-based approaches to language learning. Task-based models proposed by Prabhu, Breen and Candlin and Long and Crookes have been influential in the design of task-based syllabuses for language learning. A survey was undertaken to ascertain to what extent language syllabuses from various countries can be regarded as task-based, and what information they specify. Seven representative task-based syllabuses were studied, namely Graded Levels of Achievement for Foreign Language Learning (GLAFLL), the Alabama Course of Study - English Language Arts and the Alaska Model Curriculum Guide: Language Arts (both for English as L1), and the Dutch Syllabus for ESL, the Botswana Syllabus for ESL, the Australian Language Levels (ALL) Project and the Target Oriented curriculum (TOC) of Hong Kong. The Target Oriented Curriculum (TOC) of Hong Kong is regarded as the most suitable model on which to base a task-based model for language teaching and learning in South African primary schools. Not only does it provide firm support for classroom practice in a teacher-friendly and concise manner, but it also provides examples of how the various components of the syllabus can be integrated in the planning of a scheme of work. A core task-based syllabus for English in South African primary schools is proposed. It consists of a situation analysis, the aims and objectives of the course, its content, teaching-learning opportunities and guidelines for assessment. / Proefskrif (PhD (Vakdidaktiek))--PU vir CHO, 1997

Depuis l’avènement de l’approche communicative, puis actionnelle, en enseignement des langues secondes (L2), des chercheurs comme Ellis (2003) ont relevé les différences individuelles entre apprenants, notamment concernant le désir de communiquer (DDC), défini comme « une disposition à entrer dans un discours à un moment spécifique avec une ou des personnes spécifiques, en utilisant la L2 » (MacIntyre et al., 1998, p. 547). Il a ainsi été suggéré de faire du développement du DDC de plus en plus une priorité en enseignement des L2. À cet égard, la recherche indique que la communication assistée par ordinateur peut permettre d’augmenter le DDC (Rankin et al., 2006; Gonzalez-Lloret, 2017), en influençant l’anxiété langagière et le sentiment de compétence communicative perçu (SCCP), qui sont les deux antécédents directs du DDC. L’émergence récente de la réalité virtuelle 360 (RV360), qui peut être définie comme un environnement immersif s’appuyant sur des photos ou vidéos reproduisant le monde réel et fournissant à l’utilisateur un fort sentiment de présence, ouvre un nouveau champ d’expérimentation en DdL. Nous proposons que la RV360 permettrait aux apprenants de L2 de prendre part à des simulations quasi authentiques diminuant leur anxiété et augmentant leur SCCP, améliorant ainsi leur DDC à l’extérieur de la salle de classe. Pour répondre à notre questionnement, nous avons créé puis mis en place trois courtes tâches de simulation RV360 présentant des situations communicatives similaires à celles de la vie quotidienne des apprenants, comme payer son épicerie en français. Ces tâches sont ancrées dans la réalité sociolinguistique de l’environnement d’apprentissage : dans cette étude, Montréal, une métropole bilingue français-anglais ayant une variété régionale de français distincte. Les 19 participants à cette recherche exploratoire sont des étudiants universitaires internationaux de FLS au niveau débutant. Une méthodologie mixte (prétest et posttest quantitatifs, journaux de bord et entrevues de groupe semi-dirigées) a été adoptée pour suivre l’évolution de leur SCCP, anxiété langagière et DDC, ainsi que pour cerner leurs défis quant à la pratique du français à Montréal et leur perception des tâches RV360 en tant qu’outil d’apprentissage préparant à la communication authentique en L2. L’analyse des données indique que les défis à la communication en FLS dans le monde réel proviennent principalement d’une perception négative de son vocabulaire et de sa prononciation, combinée à l’anxiété liée à l’anticipation de ruptures de communication avec des locuteurs francophones. Face à cet écueil, les participants estiment globalement que les tâches RV360 sont un bon outil pour créer un pont entre la salle de classe et le monde réel et ainsi préparer aux interactions en L2 dans le monde réel, même si leur faible degré de difficulté et leur manque de flexibilité nuisent à leur authenticité. Les tâches RV360 ont ainsi contribué positivement (mais à degré variable selon les apprenants) à l’amélioration du DDC, principalement via le renforcement du SCCP. La discussion des résultats fournit un nouvel éclairage sur les bonnes pratiques d’enseignement et sur l’élaboration de séquences didactiques intégrant la RV360 pour favoriser le DDC au niveau débutant. Ces séquences devraient en priorité intégrer l’enseignement stratégique et mettre l’accent sur la complexification progressive des tâches et la rétroaction, tout en doublant la réalisation des tâches RV360 d’une interaction humain-humain. / Since communicative approach and task-based language teaching have placed communication at the centre of second language (L2), researchers such as Ellis (2003) have underlined the importance of individual differences between L2 learners, regarding their willingness to communicate (WTC), which is defined as "readiness to enter into discourse at a particular time with a specific person using the L2" (MacIntyre et al., 1998, p. 547). These researchers have suggested that the development of L2 WTC be made a priority of L2 teaching. In this respect, the literature shows that computer-mediated communication has a positive effect on increasing L2 learners' WTC (Rankin et al., 2006; Gonzalez-Lloret, 2017), by lowering language anxiety and increasing self-perceived communicative competence (SPCC), which are the two main antecedents of L2 WTC. One avenue for research that has not received much attention is the pedagogical use of 360 virtual reality (VR360), a promising medium for teachers hoping to increase their L2 students' WTC. VR360 can be defined as an immersive digital environment relying on 360 photos/videos from the real world and providing the user with a strong feeling of presence in “real life” situations. We propose that VR360 has the potential to provide learners with semi authentic simulations designed to lower their anxiety and increase their SPCC, leading to increased WTC. To assess this potential, we designed and implemented three short communicative VR360 tasks presenting learners with communicative situations similar to the ones they could encounter in their daily life, such as paying for groceries using L2 French. The tasks are anchored in the reality of the learning environment: in this case, Montreal, a French-English bilingual metropolis with a distinct regional variety of French. The 19 participants to this exploratory study are international university students learning L2 French at a beginner level. Mixed methodology (quantitative pre/post tests, reflective journals and semi-structured focus groups) was used to measure and probe their level of SPCC, anxiety and WTC, and to shed light on the challenges they face while trying to interact in French in Montreal and their perception of the RV360 tasks as a learning tool preparing for real-life L2 use. The data analysis indicates that the challenges to communication in L2 French in the real world mainly come from a negative perception of one’s vocabulary and pronunciation, combined with anxiety due to the anticipation of breakdowns in communication with native French speakers. Faced with this pitfall, participants generally argued that RV360 tasks are a good learning tool to bridge the classroom and the real world and thus prepare them for L2 interaction in the real world, even if the low level of difficulty and the lack of flexibility limit task authenticity. The RV360 tasks thus contributed positively (albeit to varying degrees among learners) to the improvement of their WTC, mainly via the strengthening of their SCCP. The discussion provides new insights into good teaching practices and the development of learning scenarios incorporating the RV360 to promote WTC at a beginner level. These scenarios should focus on strategic instruction, task complexity and feedback, while relying on a human-human interaction in addition to the completion of the RV360 tasks.

No description available.

L’enseignement des langues par la tâche est une approche d’enseignement des langues secondes de plus en plus adoptée dans différents contextes. Toutefois, la place de l’enseignement de la forme au sein d’une tâche fait toujours l’objet d’un débat. En plus de savoir si l’enseignement de la forme devrait se faire de façon préventive ou réactive (Ellis, 2017; Long, 2015), le moment auquel il faudrait procéder à un enseignement de la forme ne fait pas consensus, que ce soit au début de la tâche (Dekeyser, 1997, 2007), pendant la tâche (Lightbown, 2008; Long, 2015) ou après la tâche (Willis et Willis, 2007). Cette incertitude mène les enseignants à se demander s’ils devraient intégrer ou non un enseignement de la forme à une tâche et à quel moment ils devraient le faire (East, 2017). La présente étude quasi expérimentale vise à mieux comprendre le rôle lié au moment de procéder à un enseignement de la forme dans le cadre d’une tâche et à contrôler certaines variables qui peuvent moduler les effets du type d’enseignement, dont le niveau de connaissances initiales et l’aptitude langagière des apprenants. Huit groupes, six groupes expérimentaux et deux groupes témoins, d’étudiants de français langue seconde (quatre groupes de niveau B1 et quatre groupes de niveau B2) ainsi que leurs enseignants respectifs ont participé à l’étude. L’intervention expérimentale consistait en une tâche de hiérarchisation et une tâche de prise de décision. Six groupes ont reçu un enseignement explicite du subjonctif soit au début de chaque tâche, soit pendant la tâche, soit après la tâche et deux groupes ont réalisé les deux tâches sans recevoir d’enseignement explicite. Les participants (n = 165) ont effectué un prétest, un post-test immédiat et un post-test différé mesurant les connaissances implicites (test d’imitation sollicitée) et explicites (test de jugement de la grammaticalité) et ont effectué un test mesurant l’aptitude langagière (LLAMA). Le degré de connaissances des apprenants a été déterminé en fonction de leurs résultats aux prétests. Les participants dont les résultats étaient en dessous de la médiane ont été attribués aux groupes de niveau faible et ceux dont les résultats étaient au-dessus de la médiane ont été attribués aux groupes de niveau avancé. Les résultats d’ANOVA à mesures répétées montrent que les apprenants moins avancés semblent bénéficier d’un enseignement pendant la tâche, alors que les étudiants plus avancés semblent bénéficier d’un enseignement au début de la tâche. Par conséquent, le niveau des apprenants est à prendre en considération au moment de planifier un enseignement de la forme. Par ailleurs, les résultats de régressions multiples montrent que l’aptitude langagière est davantage sollicitée dans les conditions d’enseignement de la forme avant ou pendant la tâche et que différentes composantes interviennent à des stades d’acquisition différents. Cette étude offre des répercussions pratiques et théoriques au regard du moment de procéder à un enseignement de la forme en fonction du niveau des apprenants et de leur aptitude langagière. / Task-Based Language Teaching is an increasingly popular approach used in a variety of second-language learning environments. There is debate, however, on the incorporation of form-focused instruction and, more specifically, regarding when precisely it should be integrated in the execution of a task. Beyond determining whether a form should be taught proactively or reactively (Ellis, 2017, Long, 2015), the lack of consensus as to whether form-focused instruction should occur at the beginning of a task (Dekeyser, 1997, 2007), during a task (Lightbown, 2008; Long, 2015), or after a task (Willis et Willis, 2007) drives language instructors to question whether they should integrate form-focused instruction at all and creates uncertainty as to when it is most beneficial to do so (East, 2017). The present quasi experimental study seeks to better understand the effects of the timing of form-focused instruction in the task-based teaching framework while controlling for moderating variables such as the degree of learner knowledge and learners’ language aptitude. Eight groups, six experimental and two comparison, of French as a second language students (four groups of B1 level and four groups of B2 level) and their respective teachers participated in the study. The experimental intervention consisted of two tasks, one hierarchical task and one decision-making task. Six groups received explicit instruction on the subjunctive at the beginning, during, or after a task while two groups completed the tasks without explicit instruction. The participants (N = 165) completed a pre-test, an immediate post-test and a delayed post-test assessing both implicit knowledge (Elicited Imitation Test) and explicit knowledge (Grammaticality Judgment Test). Participants also completed a language aptitude assessment test (LLAMA). Learners’ degree of knowledge was determined based on their pre-test performance. Participants whose mean scores were below or above the median were assigned to the low or advanced knowledge groups respectively. Repeated-measures ANOVAs show that lower-level learners benefit from instruction during a task while more advanced learners benefit from instruction at the start of a task. Consequently, learner readiness is a factor to consider when planning and executing focus on form instruction. Additionally, multiple regression results demonstrate that language aptitude plays a more significant role when form-focused instruction is given before or during a task and that different components are drawn upon at different acquisitional stages. The study concludes by offering theories and practical recommendations regarding the inclusion of focus on form instruction that considers the level and aptitude of learners.