On demystifying L2 learner goal differences in task-based production

The cognitive approach to task has caught the attention of language learning scholars for the past two decades despite some orthodoxy in its dependency on a cross-sectional format confined to instant task effect and pedagogical agenda that suppress any role for individual differences. The study reported here was designed to add a longitudinal element to the extensively researched task effect on speaking performance. It also sought to examine whether learner differences, in the case of goal orientations, might affect language learners’ attentional distribution and, eventually, their developmental pathways. Thirty lower-intermediate undergraduates performed narrative tasks during a five-month period, and some were subsequently interviewed. Analysis of the data suggested that goal orientation and task conditions have a combined, yet varied effect on speaking performance and development. In view of that, this paper questions the validity of findings accrued by processing-based research in light of eclipsing language learner variability.