The origins of language curriculum development

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Framework of this bookWhat procedures can be used to determine

the content of a language program?What are learners’ needs?How can learners’ needs be determined?What’s the objectives in teaching?What factors are involved in planning the

syllabus?…Q&A

Historical backgroundSyllabus design - description of the content of a

course of instruction and lists what will be taught and tested

Ex: Syllabus for a speaking course

Curriculum development is a more comprehensive process than syllabus design.

- processes that are used to determine the need of a group of learners - to develop aims or objectives for a program to address those need - to determine an appropriate syllabus, course structure, teaching methods, and materials - an evaluation of the language program

Twentieth century- changes in approaches

Teaching methods - theory of language and language learning Grammar Translation Method Direct Method Structural Method Reading Method Audiolingual Method Situational Method Communicative Approach

Teaching Method

Specifications for the processes of instruction in language teaching—questions of how, what need to be taught, and the content of instruction.

Principles of language teaching methodology

Initial preparationHabit-formingAccuracyGradationProportionConcretenessInterestOrder of progressionMultiple line of approach

Time is limited - “Selection” is important

Teacher need to choose the appropriate units of a language for teaching purpose and also should be “useful” for learners.

Mackey (1965)

Vocabulary selectionWhat words should be taught? - depend on the objectives of the

course and the amount of time available for teaching.

How many words should students set out to learn?

-- native learners? -- foreign learners?

Vocabulary selectionWords of highest frequency should be

taught first.What kind of material should be analyzed? children’s book ﹥Time MagazineWord frequency are important in planning

word lists for language teaching. -- depend on the types on the types of

language samples -- relevant to the needs of target learners -- frequent in a wide range of samples

Criteria are used in determining word lists

TeachabilitySimilarityAvailabilityCoverageDefining power

Grammar selection and gradationA. The need for grammatical selection 1. some structures of “asking permission”

B. The grammar items included in a course 1. the teaching method in use 2. many variation in what items were taught and when

C. Different grammatical items 1. decided by the intuition of the authors

D. Gradation 1. grouping and sequencing of teaching items

E. Grammatical syllabus specifies both 1. the set of grammatical structure 2. the order of grammatical structure

F. Palmer’s principle of gradation 1. grade the grammatical material according to a. degree of importance b. strict order of necessity 》 lists of rules and exceptions

G. Vocabulary selection based on 1. intuitive criteria of simplicity and learnability 2. accessible and gradual introduction to the grammar

H. Basis for developing grammatical syllabuses 1. Simplicity and centrality a. simple b. central to the basic structure of the language 2. Frequency - frequency of occurrence a. little progress because of the difficulties of 》 deciding on proper grammatical units to count 》 coding grammatical structures for analysis b. real language examined by computer corpuses c. McCarthy & Carter (1995) report 》 some features of spoken grammar

3. Learnability a. take in account the order in 》 the grammatical items in L2 learning b. Dulay & Burt (1973, 1974) proposed the order 》 interviews with different L2 proficient learners

》 little reliable information in planning a syllabus

I. A syllabus consists of 1. decision about grammatical items 2. the sequencing of grammatical items 3. the gradation of grammatical items

J. Approaches to gradation 1. Linguistic distance a. similar to mother tongue 2. Intrinsic difficulty a. simple structures taught first 3. Communicative need a. needed early regardless of difficulties 4. FrequencyK. Designing a course 1. a linear gradation a. introduce and practice intensively 2. a cyclical gradation a. reintroduce the items throughout the course 3. spiral gradation

4. i+1 – learn new things related and integrated old onesL. Grammar syllabus as the core of a language course 1. Wilkins noted a. grammatical syllabus as the conventional approach b. vocabulary content as a secondary M. Until the grammatical system been learned 1. hold down vocabulary load a. what is pedagogically necessary b. what is desirable for 》 ensuring enough variety in the content of

learning

Assumptions underlying early approaches to syllabus designA. Basic units of language 1. vocabulary & grammar 2. main building blocks of language development 3. more rational and sound basisB. Learners’ same needs 1. focus on “general” EnglishC. Language needs identified exclusively 1. to master EnglishD. Learning language determined by textbooks 1. primary input – textbooks 2. facilitating language learning a. the importance of selection and gradation

E. English as a foreign language 1. no immediate need outside of the classroom 2. the goal of syllabus developers a. simplify and rationalize this input 》 through selection and gradation