These six essays discuss the use of tasks as pedagogical tools in second language instruction, particularly in the contexts of curriculum and syllabus design. The essays are: (1) "Units of Analysis in Syllabus Design: The Case for Task" (Michael H. Long and Graham Crookes); (2) "Task-Based Syllabus Design: Selecting, Grading and Sequencing Tasks" (David Nunan); (3) "The Name of the Task and the Task of Naming: Methodological Aspects of Task-Based Pedagogy" (B. Kumaravadivelu); (4) "Towards an Educational Framework for Teacher-Led Tasks" (David Berwick); (5) "Critical Episodes: Reference Points for Analyzing a Task in Action" (Virginia Samuda and Patricia L. Rounds); and (6) "Evaluating Language Learning Tasks in the Classroom" (Dermont F. Murphy). Each chapter contains a reference list. (MDM)