Curriculum and Syllabus 1 The weeks ahead syllabus

Curriculum and Syllabus 1. The weeks ahead (syllabus and assessment plan) 2. What are they? 3. What will you have to do? 4. Sample syllabus (modelled) 5. Guided Practice 6. Independent (Assessment)

What are these things?

Curriculum Refers not only to the official list of courses offered by the school “official curriculum” but also to the purposes, content, activities and organisation of the educational program created in schools by teachers, students, and administrators. (Walker & Soltis, 1997)

Curriculum can be defined as an educational program which states: 1. “The educational purpose of the program. (ends) 2. The content teaching procedures and learning experience which will be necessary to achieve this purpose. (means) 3. Some means for assessing whether or not the educational ends have been achieved. ” (Richards, Platt and Platt 1993: 94)

Curriculum “Curriculum is a very general concept which involves consideration of the whole complex of philosophical, social and administrative factors which contribute to the planning of an educational program. ” (Allen quoted in Nunan, 2000: 6) “Curriculum theory encompasses philosophy and value systems; the main components of the curriculum: purposes, content, methodology and evaluation; and the process whereby curricula are developed, implemented and evaluated. ” (White, 1993: 19)

Syllabus • “Is essentially a statement of what should be taught, year by year – through language – syllabuses often also contain points about the method of teaching and the time taken. ” Lee (1980: 108) • A “syllabus is a more detailed and operational statement of teaching and learning elements which translates the philosophy of the curriculum into a series of planned steps leading towards more narrowly defined objectives at each level. ” Dubin & Olshtain(1997: 28)

Syllabus Design • Syllabus design is a subsidiary component of curriculum design. Narrow focus on content and grading of content. • A syllabus is more specific and concrete than a curriculum, and a curriculum may contain a number of syllabi.

Government / Societal needs Tyler’s model of curriculum design: 1. What’s to be accomplished? 2. What learning experiences will help accomplish the purpose? 3. How can these learning experiences be effectively organized? 4. How can the effectiveness of the learning be evaluated? Administration Teachers Curriculum (educational plan) Course Syllabus Course/syllabus Outline: 1. What the learner is expected to know? 2. What is to be taught during the course? 3. When it is to be taught? 4. How it is to be taught? 5. How it is to be evaluated?

Function of a syllabus “… A language teaching syllabus involves the combination of subject matter (what to teach) and linguistic matter(how to teach). ” (Mohseni, 2008) - Guide for teacher and learner -> goals - Deals with linguistic and learning theories and how they are utilized in the classroom.

Type of Syllabus Focus / Aim Procedural Focus on meaning will lead to structure being learned. Eg. Information and opinion-gap activities. Cultural Knowledge, interest, intellectual curiosity and empathy. Comparative. Understanding socio-cultural implications of language. Situational Language in different situations. E. g. At the Bank, supermarket. Skill based Language skills are acquired for use in context(situ. ) Merges grammar, vocab, pronunciation etc with a purpose. Structural (formal) Traditional approach that focuses on language form. Through highly controlled, tightly structured and sequenced pattern practice drills (grammar). Multi. Dimensional Flexibility with structure and situation. Changeable. Responds to various needs of learners. Task Based Application and practice of language through tasks that should have real world appeal. Process Designed and reorganised according to student wants or designed in an ongoing way. Provides alternative procedures. Learner led Syllabus is a guide, but the learner create and modify according to motivation. Has potential to fail. Proportional Emphasizes what will be taught rather than learned. Learner centred. Content / Topical Teach content using the TL. Subject matter is more important, language learning occurs along the way. Content more important than Grammar, which is not practiced as much. Notional / Functional Emphasis on purpose of communication and meaning of language. Needs analysis. (requesting, offering, directions etc)

Types of Syllabus Product Vs. Process – Product focus on the knowledge and skills which learners should gain whereas process focuses on the learning experiences. Synthetic (limited sample of whole language)Vs Analytic (purpose) Focus on specification of learning activities that learners will undertake.

What should you choose? It depends on how you teach. Choose one that fits your style. But don’t forget to use multiple types. Questions for you. What Method or approach to teaching do you have? • Given the different syllabus types, which do you think would be beneficial to language learners? • What combination of types would you use in creating a syllabus? What type would be dominant? • How would you connect the two types you chose together? • Do you feel it is more beneficial to have the course outlined in whole or a more flexible approach that allows for planning in process as you go? Or is it situational?

Materials Are the materials compatible with the syllabus and objectives? Do they provide alternatives for learners? Levels? Which language skills do the materials cover? Do they scaffold? How authentic are the texts? How teachable and learnable are the materials? Other considerations: classroom, equip, class size etc

Guided Practice Develop a syllabus / course work for one of the following: Realistic situation (emails, advertising, news paper, letter writing). Paragraph writing or sentencing. Diary or weekend planner. What syllabus approach would you take? What are your aims? What type of classes would you teach?