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It is assumed that language education can gain considerable profit when more attention is given to the process of language learning and processing. In other words, it is not enough to look at what pupils are doing, but also at how they are doing it. More attention to the process means a shift towards a strategic approach of language education which tries to enlarge the strategic competence of students: they must become aware of language strategies (directed at the communication process) and learning strategies (directed at the learning process) which can be applied for problem solving. Within such a strategic approach proper exercises must comply with at least three important features: an educational goal in which the function of the task is indicated, assignments for monitoring the problem solving process, and explicit criteria for evaluating task output. In this article we report the results of an analysis of exercises -in particular exercises for the oral skills- in Dutch textbooks for mother tongue and foreign language education pointed to the presence of these relevant features.