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Much current interest is focused on the nature of classroom activities (tasks) learners are asked to undertake, and on the possibility of using these tasks as the basis for syllabus design. Prabhu's work (1987) on the procedural syllabus is a major attempt at task-based teaching, one of his motivations for the approach being to achieve true message-focus in the classroom. Others like Skehan (1992) are led in a similar direction through belief in the importance of interaction to language learning. There is a growing literature classifying task types (for details see Nunan, 1989 ) and also on identifying criteria for grading task difficulty (see Skehan and Foster, 1995 ; also production processes ). Criteria for deciding on task content for a teaching programme differ: Long (1985) uses needs analysis, a procedure which is entirely contrary to the spirit of Prabhu's work. For general discussion on tasks, see Crookes and Gass (1993a , b). ( 1993a ). Tasks and Language Learning: Integrating theory and practice . Clevedon : Multilingual Matters . * ( 1993b ). Tasks in a Pedagogical Context: Integrating theory and practice . Clevedon : Multilingual Matters . * ( 1985 ). A role for instruction in second language acquisition: task-based language training . In ), Modelling and Assessing Second Language Acquisition . Clevedon : Multilingual Matters , 77 – 100 . ... log in or subscribe to read full text