Module #7: Evaluation of Curriculum Materials 2

Based on chapter 10 of the textbook (summary is on the previous page of this blog), I made a curriculum evaluation rubric, and the checklists: one is for generic language art checklist and the other is for grammar curriculum checklist.

I've used this book, Grammar In Use intermediate, in my grammar and reading comprehension class for students from 8th to 9th grade. This book consists of the main textbook, CD-ROM, and an adjunct workbook.



For ninety minutes of each class, I allot about 30 minutes for grammar using this textbook and the CD-ROM. I usually teach about 3 to 4 units at one time, but it depends on the characteristics of each unit. For example, if a particular unit is difficult and relatively more important for the EFL students, I let them know just one unit thoroughly. During the class, I use the main textbook and the CD-ROM as a material, and I use the exercises of the textbook as a way of formative assessment at the end of grammar section in each class. And I use the workbook as a tool of summative assessment at the end of each month. This grammar book is so well-organized for EFL students that I can save my time to prepare for the tests.

Here are my rubric, checkllists related to curriculum evalation.

Module #7: Evaluation of Curriculum Materials

Chapter. 10 Designing An Assessment Plan

There are three roles in course design, which are interrelated with one another: assessing needs, assessing students’ learning, and evaluating the course. Among three roles in this chapter I will summarize only the third roles: evaluating the course since the third is directly connected to the topic of the Module # 7 assignment: Evaluation of Curriculum Materials.

Evaluating the course

Who evaluate the course?
“In formative evaluation of the course, it is usually the teacher and the students who evaluate its effectiveness. In summative evaluation, in addition to the teacher and students, the institution may have an official means of evaluating the effectiveness of a course” (Graves, K. Designing Language Course. p. 214)

What is evaluated?
1. The goals and objectives
Are/ were they realistic? Appropriate? Achievable?
How should they be changed?

2. The course content
Is/ was it what the students need/ed? at the right level? comprehensive enough? focused enough?

3. The needs assessment
Did it provide the needed information? the right amount of information? in a timely way?
Did the students understand it?
Was it appropriately and effectively responded to?

4. The way the course is organized
Does it flow from unit to unit and within units?
Do students perceive a sensible progression?
Is the course content woven together in a balanced way?
Is material recycled throughout the course?

5. The materials and methods
Are they at the right level?
Is the material engaging?
Do the students have enough opportunities to learn what they need to?
Is the material relevant?
Are the students comfortable with their roles? the teacher’s role?

6. The learning assessment plan
Do students understand how they will be assessed and why? Do assessment activities assess what has been learned?
Do they help students diagnose needs? measure progress or achievement?
Are they timely?

Why evaluate the course?
In formative evaluation, it is to evaluate effectiveness and to change ineffective things, which don’t meet students’ needs, to give students the chance of participation in their class, and to provide information for redesign of the course.
In summative evaluation, it is for making decisions about whether the course will continue or not, assessing the success of the course, and offering information of redesign of the course.

How can you evaluate the course?
“I can evaluate through systematic observation, feedback (oral or written, individual or group), questionnaires, dialogue journals, ranking activities, and so on” (Graves, K. Designing Language Course. p. 215).

When can you evaluate the course?
“You can evaluate the course periodically, at natural intervals; at the midterm, or at the end of the course; when problems arise” (Graves, K. Designing Language Course. p. 215).

What is done with the results of evaluation?
It help you make decisions on both an ongoing and final basis about the course.

Some ways to design an assessment plan

1. David Thomson’s Assessment Plan
Student letter, error correction symbol sheet, self-rating forms, portfolios, grammar/vocabulary log, teacher-student dialogue journals, end of course letter, a final self-rating, and read aloud

2. IE7 Class Assessment Plan
Attendance, Participation, Teacher assessment

3. Denise Maksail-Fine’s plan
Assessment Plan- Learning assessment tool #1: New York State Comprehensive Regents Examination, assessment tool #2: Portfolios, assessment tool #3: Situational Role Plays, course evaluation tool #1: Student Feedback Questionnaire

Module #6: The Third Blog Post Response

Chapter 5. Formulating Goals and Objectives

From http://www.valueprism.com/images/StratReview.jpg

What are goals and objectives and what is their relationship?

Goals are a way of putting into words the main purposes and intended outcomes of teachers’ course. Objectives are statement about how the goals will be achieved. A goal is broken down into learnable and teachable units. That is, each goal will be reached by implementing each objective one by one (p.75).

What are ways to formulate and articulate goals and objectives?

* Formulating Goals
1. List all the possible goals you could have for your particular course from content of your course to assessment of students’ needs.
2. Eliminate redundancies, and identify priorities of the list.
3. Organize a list of goals into a coherent plan by using the categories such as communicative functions, topics, tasks, and so on.

! Different conceptual frameworks
1. KASA (developed by the faculty in the Department of Language Teacher Education at the School for International Training)
1) Knowledge goals address what students will know and understand including language itself, culture and society.
2) Awareness goals address what students need to be aware of when learning a language including self-knowledge, understanding of how the language works and others’ use of the language, and extralinguistic factors in communication.
3) Skills goals address what students can do with the language, which is the broadest area.
4) Attitude goals address the affective and values-based dimension of learning such as self-confidence, respect, valuing community.

2. ATASK (developed by David Thomson)
A: Awareness T: Teacher A: Attitude S: Skills K: Knowledge

3. A framework developed by H. H. Stern (1992)
1) Proficiency address what students will be able to do with the language
2) Cognitive include explicit knowledge, information, and conceptual learning about language and about culture.
3) Affective includes achieving positive attitudes toward the target language and culture as well as to one’s own learning of them.
4) Transfer includes learning how what one does or learns in the classroom can be transferred outside of the classroom in order to continue learning.

4. A frmawork developed by F. Genesee & J. Upshur
1) Language goals
2) Strategic goals
3) Socioaffective goals
4) Philosophical goals
5) Method or process goals


* Formulating Objectives
1. According to Robert Mager’s 1962 book, objectives should contain three components: performance, condition, and criterion for useful objectives.
1) Performance illustrates what the learners will be able to do in class.
2) Condition means the circumstances where the learners are able to do the given tasks
3) Criterion describes the degree to which the learners are able to do the tasks

2. Saphier and Gower’s Cumulative Framework for Objectives
1) Coverage: the material that will be covered in the unit
2) Activity: what students will do in the unit
3) Involvement: how students will become engaged in what they do in the unit
4) Mastery: what students will be able to do as a result of the unit
5) Generic thinking: how students will be able to problem solve or critique in the unit

* Guidelines when formulating goals and objectives
1. Goals should be general, but not vague.
2. Goals should be transparent. Don’t use jargon.
3. If the goals have been reached, a course is successful and effective.
4. Goals should be realistic.
5. Goals should be relatively simple.
6. Goals should be about something the course will explicitly address in some way.
7. Objectives should be more specific than goals.
8. Objectives should directly relate to the goals.
9. Objectives and goals should be in a cause-effect relationship.
10. Objectives should focus on what students will learn and processes associated with it, not simply on the activity
11. Objectives are relatively short term.
12. There should be more objectives than goals.
13. Don’t try to pack too much into one objective.
14. The goals and objectives give a sense of the syllabus of the course.
15. A clear set of goals and objectives provides the basis for evaluation of the course and assessment of student learning.
16. Both goals and objectives should be stated in terms of the learner.
17. Your course may have tow or three layers of goals and objectives.

The author of this book says that goals and objectives are not cast in cement because teachers have the opportunity to examine the goals and objectives, and if it is not appropriate, they can modify and adapt them. It means that goals and objectives should be dynamic and flexible (p. 93).

I think this book introduce each class’s goals and objectives. Here is an interesting relatively broad goals and objectives.
http://www.browardschools.com/pdf/strategic_plan.pdf


References:
Graves, K. (2000). Designing Language Courses: A Guide For Teachers. Heinle: Boston, MA.Booward County Public Schools. (2008). Strategic Plan Goals and Objectives. Retrieved from http://blackboard.csusb.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=/bin/common/course.pl?course_id=_38168_1

Module #5: Annotated Bibliography 2

Citation 5:
Bruton, Anthony. (2009). Grammar in not only a liberating force, it is a communicative resource. ELT journal, 63(4), 383-386.

Summary:
The author is currently focusing on language teaching and research methods with his academic profession and also directing a group researching the learning of EFL in state secondary schools. From his professional backgrounds, he argues, in this article, his considerably different points from Richard Cullen’s on the essay of Widdowson (1988) ‘Grammar, and nonsense, and learning’, which may attractive enough to who are interested in communicative language teaching (CLT).

The author wants us to consider grammar as a meaning not as tedious rules or constraints, which indicates contrast between grammatical and lexical meaning. During a language acquisition process, the grammatical meaning will be expressed specifically with highly frequent rate of usage in real contextual or contextualizing situation by putting emphasis on formulating meaning choice into utterances to express meaning not based on a given lexical content or text, according to the author’s counteroffer against Cullen’s perspective.

With these obviously distinct opinions, the author really urges the readers to rethink about the slot-fillers or pattern practices emphasizing the forms or structures without appropriately contextualized communicative drills.

Review:
This article shows that how much inefficient effort Korean English teachers make to have their students successful in learning English. Even though the text is a little bit short of practical examples of implying his opinions to a real classroom, it will be very helpful for Korean English teachers to read this article for their better implementing with innovative thoughts about teaching English involving grammar, especially when they design a curriculum in the beginning.

Citation 6:
Scheffler, P. (2009). Rule Difficulty and the Usefulness of Instruction. ELT journa 6(1), 5-12.

Summary:
From the professional experience the author has had by writing books related to English grammar teaching and doing researches on modern English grammar, second language acquisition, and corpus linguistics, this article contains a refreshing approach to teaching grammar in regard to learners’ perception and expectations about L2 learning.

The author practiced a questionnaire-based study to find out how learners perceive relationship between rule difficulty and the usefulness of explicit instruction, on the basis of the assumption that implies adult L2 learners can be more successful with the structural syllabus and analytical procedures applying explicit code-focused instruction rather than mainly implementing meaning and communicative lessons because adult learners use the domain independent mechanism not like child L1 acquirers. The outcome of the questionnaire that was answered by two Polish adult learner groups with a college academic background shows that the degree of the candidates need for ‘usefulness of instruction’ is almost match with that of perception for ‘level of difficulty’ among the categories of English grammar, i.e., tenses, modal verbs, etc., if just two from eleven categories are excluded in the result.

The fact that the research was performed in limited conditions, including a geographically restricted area, participants’ background and age, and subjective notion to objective one is admitted by the author. However, the author asserts that the respondents requires explicit grammar teaching particularly in difficult grammar areas, and that teachers should take into account what learners feeling about the target language in general.

Review:
Even if the article has to be complemented with further researches and broader investigations, the result of this research indicates that the needs of learners cannot be disregarded when teachers design their lesson plan or syllabus to make the class fruitful. The over 20-yesr-old adults participants of L2 learners’ characteristics might be applied to, at least be helpful for understanding middle and high school L2 learners’ SLA process because adolescents, almost like adults, have already developed their L1 system in their brain.

Module #5: Annotated Bibliography

This is a collaboration work of Park, Ji Hae, Yu, Tae Jong , and Yun, Seock Hyoun in order.

From nextup.wordpress.com

Annotated Bibliography

Citation 1:
Nunan, D. (2001). Syllabus design. In Celce-Murcia, M. (2001), Teaching English as a second or foreign language. (pp. 55-65). Boston, MA: Heinle&Heinle.

Summary:
This author introduces a variety of syllabus like grammatical syllabuses, notional-functional syllabuses, content-based syllabuses, task-based syllabuses, and integrated approach to syllabus design. And the author briefly illustrates the background that how each syllabus comes into the world.

According to the author, syllabus is based on the broader concept of curriculum and syllabus design means the selection of the content of the curriculum. At first, content selection in curriculum includes linguistic features, and it is reflected in a grammatical syllabus. In 1970s, however, notional syllabus appeared opposing the previous syllabus. Then more recently, with the need of the adoption of a process approach, there has emerged task-based syllabus and content-based syllabus. Most recently, an integrated approach has been prevalent.

The author investigates each syllabus one by one chronologically. First, grammatical syllabuses, which is underlain that language comprises a finite set of rules combined in various ways to make meaning, are yet popular today. During the1970s, it was put in attacks on two aspects; one was the linear of sequence of grammar, which was not represent the complexity of language, and the other was revealed by the development of the field of second language acquisition: the questioning about the necessity of the sequential enumerating of grammatical fragments. Notional-functional syllabuses express various criteria on content of the syllabus: situational, contextual, and extralinguistic factors. The next flow of the designing syllabuses is the content-based syllabus, in which learners acquire the target language in the course of doing others, not direct teaching of language itself. It emphasizes that learners can acquire language in active engagement in communicating. Task-based syllabuses consist of two tasks. One is target tasks, which the learner might do outside of the classroom, and the other is pedagogical tasks, which is for pushing the learner into practicing with each other in the target language to prepare the learner for the real world. In the last part of this article, the author argues for integrated syllabus, which incorporates all of the key experiential and linguistic elements from grammatical syllabuses to notional-functional, to task-based, and to content-based syllabuses.

Review:
The article presents the variety of the syllabus types chronologically. And the author details one by one to make readers understand the flow of the trend in syllabus design in the second language education. In curricula, syllabuses are so important and essential part that this article is helpful for second language teachers. However, it could be more beneficial if this article would present each example syllabus at each explanation of syllabus because some conception of syllabus is abstract without the detailed description and showing the examples.


Citation 2:
Jensen, L. (2001). Planning lessons. In Celce-Murcia, M. (2001), Teaching English as a second or foreign language. (pp. 403-413). Boston, MA: Heinle&Heinle.

Summary:
This article investigates planning lessons. A lesson plan serves as a guide for novice teachers who should make formal lesson plans, and as a convenient tool for experienced teachers. The author of this article first defines what is a lesson plan, and then explains why teachers should make lesson plans, and when and how teachers create lesson plans. Next, the author describes what traits are needed to be a good lesson plan. Moreover, by attaching five brief sample lesson plans at the end of the article, the author shows what is a lesson plan to help readers to understand.

The author insists that all teachers whether they are novices or experts should get into their classrooms with their own lesson plan. This lesson plan can be a form of mental checklist, but a form of written formalized lesson plan is recommended because teachers usually plan lessons from their viewpoints, and yet they sometimes create lesson plans in the terms of an observer or supervisor. According to the author, there are a few reasons why teachers should create lesson plans. First, a lesson plan guides teachers for what to do next and these sequences of activities remind teachers of the goals and objectives for the students. Next, a lesson plan tells teachers what they did in class and this is valuable in that teachers can give students proper assignments and they can use it for regular assessment. In addition, teachers can avoid the repeated same situation, which could occur if teachers do not have a record of lesson plans. There are, moreover, some incidents, which teachers cannot come to class, so their students cannot help meeting an unfamiliar substitute teacher. In this case, if there is no prepared lesson plan, the substitute teacher and the students would be in chaos altogether. Finally, teachers should prepare for their class just as their students should walk into class with their complete assignments. Then when and how teachers plan? Teachers should create both macro planning and micro planning. That is to say, teachers’ lesson plan is a mirror of a philosophy of each teacher and this macro planning affects the micro planning such as methodology, syllabus, texts, and specific lessons. And consulting with colleagues is sometimes needed.

To create a good lesson plan, teachers must consider the students, goals and objectives, methodologies, materials, activities, time constraints, and each lesson plan must be staged as a beginning, a middle, and an end. Lesson plans should begin with a brief description of the class and students, the review of the previous class, the day’s goals and objectives, the list of materials and equipment. The middle section consists of the lesson’s content including procedures with warm-up and review activities, time management, and sequential activities for satisfying the day’s objectives. Teachers should anticipate where a lesson might break down in the middle of the lesson plan. The final component has to mention about summary of the lesson and assignments, and brief next class. It is also good idea to include space for lesson evaluation by the teacher at the very end of the lesson plan for showing what is good or not explicitly and improving the next one. On the whole, good lesson plans show coherence, exhibit variety, and possess flexibility.

Review:
The article presents the overall of lesson planning and helps readers to understand what is a good lesson plan briefly but exactly. It is also show lesson plan template for a 50-minute class, course overview for ten weeks, module overview for five weeks, weekly overview, and sample lesson plan as a form of appendix, so that this article looks helpful and concrete, otherwise, it could be abstract. This article seems helpful especially for novice teachers, who do not know what they should do in class and how they should create a lesson plan in reality even though they know them in theory.


Citation 3:
Graff, G (2001). Hidden intellectualism. Pedagogy 1 (1): 22-36

Summary:
This article explores the field of hidden intellectualism, which can be explained as two: “Street smart” and “academic smart”. Street smart – that does not deal with schooling – can be described as anti-intellectual interests. This is the opposite concept of what the school seeks which is described as “intellectualism”. The author asserted that there is a converge or channel between them, and the connection has to be made.

As a connection between hidden intellectualism and non-hidden one, the author found that argument could play a good role to bridge the gap. Schools are ,however, reluctant to try it concerning with developing violence. It is described “the school maintains an appearance of harmony and choice that denies the realities of conflict”. As opposite, the author asserted argument will make students stronger. However, all the importance and need of argument, students do not see it as. Although schools often bring it to the curriculum, it would be much less valuable if children do not develop an intellectual and public voice about subjects given.

In this context, the author suggested that bringing it right into the class would be the best way. As the way, questioning about intellectualism can help by uncovering the differences between terms using in intellectual and non-intellectual situations. Debate is another tactic given in this article. It does not only intrigue students but also help understand the distinction by contradictions and ambivalences. Students will be led to express their opinions over the issue in debate. While arguments and answering questions over the issues, students would reflect them, and recognize the distinction between street smart and intellectualism. As a teacher, the author will try student to find out the hidden intellectual.

Review:
In this article, the major concern is how to bridge the gap between “Street smart” and “academic smart”. The author suggested the way of argument and questioning in order to contrast and understand the ambivalence between vernacular and intellectual discourse. Through argument, students are able to close to intellectual discourse by contradiction and analyzing. Through questioning, the differences are uncovered between “street smart” and “intellectualism”. However, there are more studies to be taken.


Citation 4:
Ronald, K. (2001). ‘Befriending’ Other Teachers: Communities of Teaching and the Ethos of Curricular Leadership. Pedagogy 1.2: 317-327.

Summary:
The author was a writing-across-the-curriculum (WAC) administrator at Miami University. She mainly depend on the Gregory’s ethos when facing problems. She explained the importance of ‘befriending’, teachers, curricular, and so on by storytelling her experiences at Miami University.

She emphasized on the link between teaching and curriculum. Curriculum often changes with hard working, and the teachers seem to take the changes difficult because of more things to do to catch up with. The author asserted that it is necessary for teachers to be passionate and committed to the changes in order to succeed the curriculum. In the context, teaching and curriculum are not separate.

The relationship between content and pedagogy was also mentioned in this article. Content seems to be powerful in curriculum but also pedagogy does. She agreed with Gregory that content rarely draws person’s imagination but teachers can do it. She also stressed content and its coherence among courses.

Lastly, but not least, she suggested the concept of ‘befriending’ which could mean giving overviews of curriculum in interaction with other teachers. She also termed ‘curricular leadership’ which might mean aiding each other to do well in their class. To befriend other teachers, ones have to bear charity, love, tolerance, just, and so on. Plus, there are problems with curriculum such as disconnection which means that classes are separated and under controlled by teachers so that it is possible to disconnect to curriculum. Therefore, teachers should be befriended to achieve the new curriculum.

Review:
The author explained the importance of understanding the relationship between teaching and curriculum, and bearing characteristic such as charity, love, tolerance, just to befriend each other. Of course, the change is hard, but the success of the curriculum depends on teachers. Teaching and curriculum are not separated so that teachers should help each other to deliver and understand the curriculum by befriending.

Module #4: The Second Blog Post Response 2

From http://www.myngle.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/language-arts-reading-material.jpg

Chapter 8. Developing Materials

I can understand what the author means and describes, but the problem would be that the adaptation this theory to my curriculum design.

On first reflection, one might say that materials are what a teacher uses, and techniques and activities are how she uses them. While that might have been true for language materials twenty years ago, it is no longer true (Graves, Designing Language Courses, 2000, p.149). For the purpose of this book, materials development encompass decisions about the actual materials you use such as textbook, text, pictures, worksheets, video, and so on, as well as the activities students do, and how the materials and activities are organized into lessons. In this respect, the process of materials development involves deciding how to put your teaching principles into practice (Graves, Designing Language Courses, 2000, p.151).

On what basis does one choose, adapt, or develop materials?
Three factors are composed of the goals for teachers’ course, teachers’ view of how students learn and what they think their role and teachers’ should be in the classroom, and consideration the types of activities they will do.

The most frequent consideration is that: Activities should draw on what students know (their experience, their current situations) and be relevant to them, focus on students’ outside of class needs if appropriate, build students’ confidence. And it should allow students to problem solve, discover, analyze, help students develop specific skills and strategies and also specific language and skills they need for authentic communication and integrate the four skills of speaking, listening, reading, and writing, enable students to understand how a text is constructed, enable students to understand cultural context and cultural differences, enable students to develop social awareness. Moreover, it should be as authentic as possible, vary the roles and groupings, be of various types and purposes, use authentic texts or realia when possible, employ a variety of materials.

Sequencing: Building and Recycling
Step A is simpler, step B is more complex. Step A is more controlled, step B is more open-ended, requires more initiative. Step A provides knowledge or skills required to do step B. Step A uses receptive skills such as listening and reading, step B uses productive skills such as speaking and listening. Step A uses productive skills to activate knowledge, step B uses receptive skills to consolidate knowledge.
Here are other approaches to sequencing. Go from the other to self, the subjective. The steps could be reversed, from personal experience to universal experience.
Recycling means that something that has been introduced is then learned in connection with something else, so that it is both reused and learned in more depth: recycling something using a different skill, in a different context, using a different learning technique.

How does one develop materials?
Decisions about developing materials are rooted in your beliefs, understandings, and experience. They also depend on your goals and objectives, the way you conceptualize the content of the course, the way you organize and sequence your course, and your understanding of your students’ needs (Graves, Designing Language Courses, 2000, p.166).


Chapter 9. Adapting A Textbook

What are the advantages and disadvantages of using a textbook?
Here are advantages. It provides a syllabus for the course, security for the students, consistency within a program across a given level, supporting materials such as teacher’s guide and worksheets, and a set of visuals, activities, readings, and it saves the teacher time in finding or developing such materials. And it provides teachers with a basis for assessing students’ learning.
Here are disadvantages. The content or examples may not be relevant or appropriate to the students, and the sequence is lockstep. Also, the activities, readings may be boring and go out of date, or unrealistic.

How can you use a textbook as a course tool?
There are two facets to understanding how to use a textbook. The first is the textbook itself, and the second is everything other than the textbook like the context, the students, and the teacher. The first step is using a textbook as a tool is a series of steps including conceptualizing content, formulating goals and objectives, and organizing the course.According to the ppt reading material, teachers should understand the textbook content, goals, and organization, and then decide how to adapt to your context like teacher’s belief, actual course, and students, and finally adapt a textbook on the activity, unit, or syllabus level.


References:
Graves, K. (2000). Designing Language Courses: A Guide For Teachers. Heinle: Boston, MA.
Antoaneta Bonev. (2008). Module 4 content.ppt. Retrieved from http://blackboard.csusb.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=/bin/common/course.pl?course_id=_38168_1

Module #4: The Second Blog Post Response 1

From http://pkab.files.wordpress.com/2009/03/mind-skills-mind-map.jpg

Chapter 4. Conceptualizing Content

I think in this chapter the author of this book introduces the various concepts of conceptualizing content, so I just cite the conception on this blog. I will keep these conceptions in mind and then use them when I make my curriculum.

What does it mean to conceptualize content?
The process of conceptualizing content is a multifaceted one which involves thinking about what you want your students to learn in the course, given who they are, their needs, and the purpose of the course, making decisions about what to include and emphasize and what to drop, and organizing the content in a way that will help you to see the relationship among various elements so that you can make decisions about objectives, materials, sequence and evaluation (Graves, Designing Language Courses, 2000, p.37).

What makes up the content of language learning?
Three of Stern’s concepts (1992)
1. Language
1) linguistic skills - a structural syllabus or a formal syllabus
This consists of pronunciation, grammar, and vocabulary or lexicon.
2) Situations - a situational syllabus
Situations are the contexts in which one uses language. They typically include places where one transacts business, or places where one interacts with others.
3) topics or themes – A topical syllabus or a thematic syllabus
Topics are what the language is used to talk or write about. Topics and themes are often used interchangeably. The differences are that themes are broader relative to topics, although topics can be very broad, and that a theme may tie a group of topics together.
4) communicative functions - A functional syllabus
The purposes for which one uses language are called language functions such as persuading, expressing preference, and apologizing. Functions were initially paired with notions, and notions include concepts such as quantity, distance, smell, and texture.
5) Competencies - A competency-based syllabus
Competencies unite situations, linguistic skills, and functions. Competencies are an attractive way to conceptualize content because the elements can be specified and their achievement can be measured. Competency-based syllabuses are particularly popular in contexts where the sponsor or funder wants to see measurable results.
6) Tasks - A task-based syllabus
A simple definition is interactions whose purpose is to get something done. Tasks were seen as a way to promote classroom learning that focuses on the process of using language rather than language products, and on meaning as apposed to form.
A task-based syllabus is in the family of process syllabuses, which are those in which there is no predetermined content or outcomes for the course.
7) Contents - a content-based syllabus
Content is subject matter other than language itself. Courses in which students learn another subject (content) such as history or math or computer science through the L2 are organized around a content-based syllabus.
8) Four skills: speaking, listening, reading, and writing – A skills-based syllabus
The four skills are the channels or modes for using and understanding the language, and they are called the macro skills of language. Conceptualizing language as discourse means moving beyond language at the sentence level, and beyond inventories of functions and learned dialogues.
9) Genre
Language at the discourse level can also be viewed in terms of genre, communicative events or whole texts which accomplish certain purposes within a social context.

2. Learning and the learner
1) affective goals
are concerned with the learners’ attitudes toward themselves, learning, and the target language and culture.
2) interpersonal skills
involve how one interacts with others to promote learning.
3) learning strategies
focus explicitly on how one learns. They are the cognitive and metacognitive strategies we use to learn effectively and efficiently.

3. Social context
1) sociolinguistic skills
involve choosing and using the appropriate language and extralinguistic behavior for the setting, the purpose, the role and relationship.
2) sociocultural skills
involve understanding cultural aspects of identity, values, norms, and customs such as those underlying kinship relationships, expectations of men and women, or gift-giving. Such understanding enables us to interpret explicit and implicit messages and behave and speak in a culturally appropriate way.
3) sociopolitical skills
involve learning to think critically and take action for effective change in order to participate effectively in one’s community. Sociopolitical skills also involve learning to be critically aware of how both spoken and written language are used to help or hinder a given social group.

References:Graves, K. (2000). Designing Language Courses: A Guide For Teachers. Heinle: Boston, MA.Antoaneta Bonev. (2008). Module 4 content.ppt. Retrieved from http://blackboard.csusb.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=/bin/common/course.pl?course_id=_38168_1

Teacher Curriculum Interview

http://saecompjh.podOmatic.com

It was not easy for me to find an English teacher who is willing to allot his or her time for my interview concerning his or her curriculum on the whole. I have wanted to know the curriculum of the Gwanak camp of Seoul English Village near my house. There are three English Villages managed by Seoul Metropolitan City. And the Gwanak camp is the third one, which was opened in May, 2010.

Like almost English institutes, the Gwanak camp of Seoul English Village has classes only after about 3 p.m. because elementary schools usually end their classes after 3 p.m. during term-time, so I cannot visit and meet the native teachers because I had to go to work around this time.
Before the interview, I searched the curriculum on the whole in advance.

The Gwanak camp of Seoul English Village has many various programs and they are almost for pre-schoolers and elementary school students, but there are some programs for middle school students. This is going to manage morning classes, which will be more various during vacation.
They have four kinds of curriculum on the whole: regular program, weekend program, library program, and after-school program. Regular programs are made up of theme English programs and world culture English programs such as world tour, world leaders & heroes, cooking, virtual fitness using wii, world cultural events, save the world, disability experience, and so on. Weekend programs are the programs, which students enjoy with their parents altogether, and which is managed only on Sundays. Library programs consist of two parts; one is literally about book rental services and the other is providing reading and discussion clubs. And the last after-school programs give students opportunity to acquire English every day in natural way.
Each class has one native teacher and a Korean sub teacher. And one class consists of about ten students, and this depends on the type of the class.

Here is the website of the Gwanak camp of Seoul English Village.
http://gwanak.sev.go.kr/

I interviewed one of the coordinators. Her name is Ronda Rose. She is teaching students and taking charge of managing curricula on the whole. Here are questions, which I asked.

* Would you introduce yourself briefly, your name, nationality, major in college, and so on.

Teaching context
1. Could you tell me about your teaching career? How long have you taught? How long have you been in Korea as an English teacher? And which institute are you teaching now?
2. Which grade and level do you teach?
3. What kind of materials and equipment or technology do you usually use in your class?
4. What kind of teaching methods do you use in your class?

Vision of teaching and learning
5. What do you think teaching and learning is and should be?
6. Do you want to remain as a teacher in the future? If so, what kind of teacher do you want to be?
7. What do you think of Korean English education on the whole?

Curriculum knowledge
8. What do you think the curriculum is? Do you think the curriculum is necessary to every teacher in class?
9. Do you organize your curriculum by yourself? Or do you follow the curricula, which are fixed? Or both?
10. Have you ever undergone the difficulties concerning curriculum in your class? If so, how have you dealt with them?
11. If you are taking charge of designing the big picture of curricula, what kind of curriculum do you want to make?

Assessment
12. How do you assess students’ learning? Paper-based tests, observation?
13. What aspects do you think teachers should assess students?
14. What do you think the relationship between curriculum and assessment is?

She was very busy since as I mentioned she is teaching and also managing the curricula on the whole as a coordinator as well as teacher, so she said to me she could allot only ten minutes for me. Actually I waited almost one hour because I had to wait hoping that the meeting would be ended as soon as possible. Her answers are so clear to understand, so I would like not to enumerate one by one. She is a qualified teacher majoring education in college and she is attending graduate school in Korea, and she has taught various levels and grades of students more than thirty years, so she is really experienced teacher. She thinks curriculum is really important to teachers whether the teachers are novices or quite experienced because the curriculum is a guideline for students. And the curricula of the Gwanak camp of Seoul English Village is designed by the team, so their curricula have fabulous varieties. And she considers students’ needs as the most important factors to design curricula. English village wants students to learn English in natural ways and to enjoy their learning, so they do not make students take a test at the end of each level. And she thinks that curriculum and assessment are different from each other, but through assessment teachers can adjust their curriculum.

I was sorry that she was very busy, so she could not allot her time to interview. Actually, all staff looks very busy since the Gwanak camp of Seoul English Village is brand new so they must have something to do a lot. I am sure that the Gwanak camp of Seoul English Village will develop and be prosperous because of their exciting and interesting various programs and curricula, which have a distinction from other curricula of the institutes.