The Crashcourse to Syllabus Design - Essay Example

Running Head: DESIGNING A SYLLABUS Designing a Syllabus Ludet Gopalan May 5, 2008 Sentence and Kinds of Sentences According to Function or Purpose Course Specifications Rationale: The sentence is the basic unit of the English language which is used to express an idea, ask a question, express a command or wish or express an emotion. Learning how to construct the different kinds of sentences is essential to learning of the language. Description: This 4-hour course teaches the student what an English sentence is and the different kinds of sentences according to function or purpose. It teaches the student how to construct simple complete English sentences. The course is composed of 4 parts: (1) The Sentence, (2) Constructing Sentences, (3) The Different Kinds of Sentences According to Purpose, (4) Constructing Different Kinds of Sentences According to Purpose Audience: This course is designed for beginners in an ESL/ EFL program. Objectives: Upon completion of the course, the student should be able to construct complete simple sentences to express an idea, ask a question, express a command or wish, or express an emotion. Upon completion of Part 1, the student should be able to define what a sentence is, identify the parts of a sentence, and determine whether a group of words is a sentence or not. Upon completion of Part 2, the student should be able to construct simple complete sentences. Upon completion of Part 3, the student should be able to know what the different kinds of sentences are, their function and punctuation used. Upon completion of Part 4, the student should be able to identify kinds of sentences used in the reading and construct different kinds of sentences. Evaluation: Student rating for successful completion of this course shall be based on recitation (30%), short quiz at the end of each part (30%), comprehensive written test (40%). Sentence and Kinds of Sentences According to Function or Purpose Course Content Part 1 – The Sentence Discussion Notes: Introduce the topic on sentences with a short discussion regarding words, group of words and sentences. Have the students identify whether your examples are mere words, mere group of words or sentences. (Examples: bag, bushel of fun, wait, I am working, when she arrived, etc.) Note that there are one-word sentences. Proceed to define what a sentence is. Explain the definition by enumerating what a sentence should have for it become a sentence. Have students give their own sentence examples and let them identify the subject, the verb and whether or not the sentence can stand alone. Give the students a short quiz before the end of the hour for this topic. Concepts for Highlighting: “A sentence is a group of words that expresses a complete thought.” “A sentence has at least 3 things - a subject: what we are talking about, a verb: tells that the subject does something or is something, a characteristic: can stand alone, can be independent.” (What is a Sentence?) Quiz: Write an S for “sentence” or NS for “not a sentence”. Sample items: (1) The quaint town of Aringay in the Philippines, (2) Aringay is 250 kilometers from Manila, (3) The town was born in the 1700s, (4) A city within a town Part 2 – Constructing Sentences Discussion Notes: Review the parts of a sentence. Have the students identify subject and predicate in your sample sentences. Have the students provide their own sentence examples and have them identify subject and predicate in each. Give the students a half-hour quiz by completing phrases into sentences. Quiz: Test I – Provide subjects and let the students provide the predicates. Sample items: (1) The ball, (2) Martha with her big hat, (3) The computer. Test II – provide predicates and let the students provide the subjects. Sample items: (1) went to the market, (2) is beautiful, (3) are playing in the garden. Part 3 – Different Kinds of Sentences According to Purpose Discussion Notes: Show examples of different sentences expressing different things – an idea, a question, a command or request, or an emotion. Define the different kinds of sentences according to purpose and the punctuation used with each. Discuss the purpose of punctuation at the end of each sentence. Have the students give examples of different kinds of sentences. Before the end of the 1-hour session, hand-out a paragraph for the students to read and let them classify the sentences in the paragraph according to function or purpose. Concepts for Highlighting: “A sentence may be classified according to function or purpose.” “A declarative sentence states an idea or a fact and ends with a period.” “An interrogative sentence asks a question and ends with a question mark.” “An imperative sentence expresses a command, a request or a wish and ends with a period or an exclamation point.” “An exclamatory sentence conveys a strong emotion and ends with an exclamation point.” Part 4 – Constructing Different Kinds of Sentences According to Purpose Discussion Notes: Review the different kinds of sentences according to purpose. Have the students identify the purpose in your sample sentences. Have the students provide their own sentence examples and have them identify the purpose. Give the students a half-hour quiz. Quiz: Provide an appropriate response using the kind of sentence called for. Sample items: (1) Use a declarative sentence. What Asian country do you like to visit? (2) Use an interrogative sentence. I had a hard time with a taxi driver in Thailand. (3) Use an imperative sentence. I’d like to see the different Buddhist temples in Japan. (4) Use an exclamatory sentence. The cable cars at Mt. Faber will take you to Sentosa. Comprehensive Written Test This course ends with a comprehensive written test that covers all the four parts of the course. The test repeats the format of the quizzes using other sample items. Rationale for Syllabus Design The psychologist and educational theorist Howard Gardner said in his “Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences”, there are four discrete uses of language but “one obvious use for public language is to communicate one’s thoughts to other people. In fact, this may seem like the only, or at least the most important, use of our linguistic abilities.” (Knezek 1997) One of the broader objectives of this course on Sentences and Kinds of Sentences as part of a second-language program is to achieve just that, help the learner communicate thoughts. Language learning refers to the "conscious knowledge of a second language, knowing the rules, being aware of them, and being able to talk about them." (Krashen 1981) As opposed to language acquisition, wherein the acquirer acquires the language in a subconscious manner and develops a feel for correctness of the grammatical rules without consciously being aware of them, this course in a second language learning program teaches the rules to improve communication. (Reid 2000) According to resources prepared by Bank Street College, there are three stages of second language learning, first is the observation and imitation stage, second is the single word and phrase use stage and the third is the initial understanding of grammatical rules stage. The course on Sentences and Kinds of Sentences According to Purpose seeks to contribute to a second language learner’s initial understanding of grammatical rules. It uses the Direct Approach where each lesson begins with a discussion or dialogue between the teacher and learners using the second language and the Audiolingual Method where new material is presented in a dialogue. “Grammar is taught inductively--rules are generalized from the practice and experience with the target language… Structures are sequenced and taught one at a time. Structural patterns are taught using repetitive drills.” (Mora 2002) The course assumes that students have already passed the first two stages in second language learning. The learner already knows words and phrases from observing and imitating others using the second language. The learner has also started to use these words and phrases in conversation. It is now time to equip the learner with the means to complete the thought of spoken or written words and phrases. Such a complete thought requires the understanding of the concept of sentences, the basic unit of language. The course objective of being able to construct complete simple sentences to express an idea, ask a question, express a command or wish, or express an emotion was particularly chosen so that the learner would be able to speak or write in the second language in clearly understandable form. This ability when learned also provides the learner with the skill for understanding spoken or written sentences in the second language. The course starts with an introduction of the sentence as a basic unit and in its simplest form, yet having a complete thought. Students are engaged in a dialogue for identifying which are sentences and which are not. By the process of inductive learning, students realize the reason for the grammatical rule even before it is spelled out. This approach is used repetitively in the other three topics. As one topic is completed, the next topic builds on what has already been learned in the first. In Part 1 – The Sentence, the learner gains a broad understanding of what a sentence is, what it looks like, what it sounds like and definitely what is not a sentence, therefore merely a word or group of words that do not express a complete thought. Broadly knowing what a sentence is, Part 2 moves on to teach the learners how sentences are constructed so that they may use this skill to speak or write the thoughts they already have and understand, in a clearer form. The objective of this is for the learner to be better understood when he/she speaks or writes as well as for the learner to better understand what he/she hears or reads. The next two parts tackle kinds of sentences according to purpose. These topics were particularly chosen to demonstrate the purpose of using sentences with different thoughts, again for better understanding. The activities for each part of the course consist of repetitive drills: drills during the teacher-learner dialogue, drills during learner recitations when the teacher poses a problem or initiates a task that the learners have to accomplish and finally, the drill presented in the written quiz. The drills contribute to an inductive appreciation of the concept. The evaluation of learning as divided into recitation, quizzes and comprehensive written test. Grading of performance during recitation may be somewhat subjective, so the teacher should take care to ensure that all learners are given the chance to recite. Recitation and quizzes are given equal weights in order to balance out the subjectivity of grading recitation as well as to give allowances to learners who do not perform well in written tests. Poor performance in recitation or quiz should be immediately addressed by the teacher. The comprehensive written test is to help ensure that all topics have been understood and learned well. It is suggested that this test should not be timed. The general syllabus design is patterned after Breen’s concept of focusing on how something is done, how to communicate in the classroom and how to learn how to communicate. “In essence, each of the four types of syllabus offer alternative answers to the question: What does a learner of a new language need to know, and what does a learner need to be able to do with this knowledge?" Breen breaks this question down into five sub-questions: (1) "What knowledge does it focus on?" (2) "What capabilities does it focus on and prioritize?" (3) "On what basis does it select and subdivide what is to be learned?" (4) "How does it sequence what is to be learned?" and (5) "What is its rationale?" (Breen 1987) The role of the teacher in this course is to be a learning facilitator. The teacher implements the strategies to effect change in students attitudes. “Positive attitudes toward speakers of another language and realistic beliefs about learning a second language increase the learners motivation and improve the quality of second language instruction.” (Wimsatt 2002) Moreover, the teacher plays the role of the native speaker who initiates conversation with second language learners. And since the teacher holds the position of control, he/she can engage learners in interactions that have specific benefits for second language acquisition using strategies of repetition, restatement, and request for clarification. (Hirschler 1994) Reference List: Breen, M.P. 1987. Contemporary paradigms in syllabus design, part I. Language Teaching, 20/2. Gardner, Howard. 1983. Frames of mind: the theory of multiple intelligences. New York: Harper Collins Hirschler, Julie A. (1994) Preschool children’s help to second language learners. The Journal of Educational Issues of Language Minority Students, v14. Retrieved May 5, 2008 from Knezek, Malia. (1997.) Nature vs. nurture: the miracle of language. Retrieved May 5, 2008 from Krashen, Stephen D. 1981. Principles and practice in second language acquisition. English language teaching series. London: Prentice-Hall International (UK) Ltd. (March 30, 2003.) What is a sentence? Online Writing Lab. Retrieved May 5, 2008 from Mora, Jill Kerper. (July 26, 2002.) Principles of second-language teaching methods. Retrieved May 5, 2008 from (n.d.) Stages of Second Language Learning. Bankstreet. Retrieved May 5, 2008 from Wilson, Reid. (2000.) A summary of Stephen Krashens Principles and Practice in Second Language Acquisition" Language Impact. Retrieved May 5, 2008 from Wimsatt, Joy. (August 7, 2002.) Exploring attitude and attitude change in second language learners. Retrieved May 5, 2008 from Read More