Creating and Adopting Humanistic Tasks to Enhance Learners’ Engagement in L2 Learning and Interactional Skills

Abstract Book of the 10th World Conference on Future of Education

Year: 2026

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Creating and Adopting Humanistic Tasks to Enhance Learners’ Engagement in L2 Learning and Interactional Skills

Sakae Onoda

ABSTRACT:

The presenter will demonstrate effective use of humanistic tasks recently developed for university English majors. L2 research shows that humanistic interactional materials and tasks motivate learners to experience enjoyment, achievable challenge, and intrinsic interest, encourage them to become involved in L2 learning both intellectually and emotionally, and improve their interactional skills and self-efficacy (Onoda, 2024; Tomlinson, 2023). The presenter will introduce humanistic interactional tasks, including issue log tasks, analyzing an academic article advocating effective vocabulary teaching techniques, critiquing an academic article on EFL motivational profiles and effective teaching interventions, and discussions of jobs vulnerable to AI. These materials and tasks reflect the basic principles of Task-Based Language Teaching. With scaffolding and active learning used appropriately, they focus on meaning, allowing learners to use language naturally and contextually by mimicking authentic, real-world situations. The presenter will review each task and discuss its contribution to improving learners’ interactional skills along with affective aspects of language learning and discuss positive effects reported by learners along with practical applications of some of the humanistic interactional materials and activities covered in this presentation. If time allows, the presenter will show a video depicting learners actively interacting with their peers to give the audience a good feel for the benefits of the effective use of humanistic teaching materials and tasks.

Keywords: Humanistic Interactional Materials; Intrinsic Interest; Emotionally; Task-Based Language Teaching; Self-Efficacy