From http://www.myngle.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/language-arts-reading-material.jpgChapter 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
I believe recycling teaching materials is very important in respect of integrated learning. For example, when a teacher develops a listening material and applies it to the class then, recycles or reuses the material in a writing class or a speaking class as a way of teaching integrated skills. In this respect, the teachers can maintain the sequence of the learning cycle efficiently and the students can get engaged an activity easily and comfortably. Have you ever reused or recycled a teaching material that was used before to implement an integrated skills learning class such as a listening with writing class?
ReplyDeleteI agree with your thought. I'd like to integrate listening, reading, speaking and writing all in one. However, in reality, I must follow the regulations which my institute has already set, and as you know among the materials for high school students in Korea, there is little connection, for example, between reading books and listening books.
ReplyDeleteAnd I teach English grammar, and reading comprehension parts, so I don't have enough opportunity to integrate all four skills in English. But I've tried to integrate English grammar an reading.