UNDERSTANDING AND INTERPRETING THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE CURRICULUM

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UNDERSTANDING AND INTERPRETING THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE CURRICULUM

• English Language Education Section

• Curriculum Development Institute

• Education Bureau

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BY THE END OF THE WORKSHOP, YOU WILL HAVE

 a better understanding of the design and the features of the three-year senior secondary English Language curriculum;

 explored strategies for curriculum planning and implementation; and

 designed task-based activities for senior secondary

students.

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Major Updates of the ELE KLACG (P1-S6) Major Updates of the ELE KLACG (P1-S6)

Catering for the Needs of SEN and Gifted Students in the Mainstream English Classroom

Learning and Teaching of Text Grammar Extending from Assessment for Learning to Assessment as Learning

Integrative Use of Generic Skills Literacy Development

Values Education

STEM Education (including entrepreneurial spirit) & Reading across the Curriculum e-Learning & Information Literacy

Examples

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THE SENIOR SECONDARY

ENGLISH LANGUAGE CURRICULUM

S6

S5

S4

Elective Part (25%) Compulsory

Part

(75%)

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THE COMPULSORY PART

Meaningful use of:

through the task-based approach and the organising structure of Modules, Units and Tasks by adopting a range of approaches and strategies

Reading / Writing Listening / Speaking

Vocabulary

Text Types

Grammar Forms &

Communicative Functions

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ENGLISH LANGUAGE CURRICULUM AND ASSESSMENT GUIDE (SECONDARY 4-6), P.54

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FEATURES OF A TASK

Involves learners in thinking and doing

Requires learners to draw upon a

framework of

knowledge and skills

Product Purpose

Context

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Adapted from Enhancing English Vocabulary Learning and Teaching at Secondary Level (2012)

ADOPTING A TASK-BASED APPROACH IN LESSON DESIGN

Module

Cultures of the World

Task 1

Reading an email from the teacher-

in-charge of the

“Hong Kong’s Heritage Excursion”

Task 2 Listening to an interview with the

Executive Secretary of the

Antiquities and Monuments Office

Task 4 Making

recommendations for the heritage

tour

Final Task

Writing a proposal and designing a poster Unit

Heritage Conservation

Task 3

Reading leaflets about some heritage sites in

Hong Kong

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 Provides contexts for:

• integrated use of language skills

• meaningful and purposeful use of English for communication

 Facilitates effective grammar and vocabulary learning and teaching

 Uses learning and teaching resources of a variety of text types

 Promotes a learner-centred approach

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Building on the strengths of students and considering their future learning needs, plan for a Junior Secondary English Language curriculum to gear students towards the learning targets and objectives in the English Language curriculum

EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES TO ENHANCE THE INTERFACE

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Junior Secondary

•Exposure to a wide range of print and non‐print texts

•Extensive reading and viewing

•Further development of reading skills and strategies

Senior Secondary

•Exposure to a widened range of more complex text types

•School‐based

Assessment: critical and imaginative responses to texts

•Comprehension of more complex messages in more formal texts

Primary

•Exposure to a range of text types

•Incorporation of Reading Workshops into the School‐based English Language

Curriculum

•Development of basic reading skills and

strategies

LEARNING EXPERIENCE ACROSS KEY STAGES

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Junior Secondary

Senior Secondary

Primary

•Incorporation of Reading Workshops into the School‐based English Language

Curriculum

strategies

LEARNING EXPERIENCE ACROSS KEY STAGES

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T

EXPOSURE TO A WIDE RANGE OF TEXT TYPES

Text Types for Key Stage 1

Additional Text Types for Key Stage 2

• Advertisements

• Captions

• Cards

• Cartoons/comics

• Charts

• Diaries

• Fables/fairy tales

• Forms

• Illustrations

• Leaflets

• Lists

• Menus

• Notes and messages

• Notices

• Personal letters

• Poems

• Postcards

• Announcements

• Autobiographies

• Biographies

• Blogs

• Brochures

• Children’s

encyclopaedias

• Discussions

• Emails

• Formal letters

• Informational reports

• Jokes

• Maps and legends

• News reports

• Plays

• Questionnaires

• Recipes

• Book

reviews/reports

• Encyclopaedias

• Film reviews

• Interviews

• Itineraries

• Letters to the editor

• Manuals

• Memoranda

• Newspaper/

Magazine articles

• Presentations

• Short films

• Short novels

• Social media texts

• Talks

• Trailers

• Abstracts/synopses

• Agendas

• Debates

• Documentaries

• Editorials

• Essays

• Feature articles

• Films

• Minutes

• Novels

• Proposals

• Speeches

• Resumes

• Thesauri

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Junior Secondary

Senior Secondary

Assessment: critical and imaginative responses to texts Comprehension of more complex messages in more formal texts

Primary

Curriculum

strategies

LEARNING EXPERIENCE ACROSS KEY STAGES

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Listening

Speaking Writing

Reading Language

across the Curriculum

• Reading across the curriculum (RaC) is a component within Language across the Curriculum

• RaC

– reading as a fundamental mode of learning

– explicit teaching of reading to be integrated with teaching the curriculum

– students learning to read

• the subject matter of pedagogic texts

• the associated language patterns

(Martin & Rose, 2005) Academic

content Awareness

+

Academic language awareness

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Liberal Studies

READING ACROSS THE CURRICULUM:

ENTRY POINTS

English

Language

Content

Reading‐related strategies

Text structure/grammar

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Rhetorical functions Language features (e.g.) ^LS ^Maths ^Sci

Comparison However, on the contrary, despite, whereas

* *

Procedure Imperatives ^* ^*

Recount Past tense ^*

Explanation Due to, because, since; therefore, so, as a result

* * *

Description Adjectives, passive construction ^* ^*

Conclusion To summarise, to conclude ^* ^*

Suggestion Can, may, suggest ^*

Understanding instructions Wh-words, imperatives ^* ^* ^*

Presentation of facts Present tense ^* ^* ^*

Assumption Future tense, If, let, suppose ^* ^*

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Reading strategies:

• Identifying main and supporting ideas

• Working out the meaning of

unfamiliar words Content:

Overpopulation

Language features:

• Nominalisation

• Describing consequences

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SUSTAINABLE HOUSING

Task 1:

Understanding the Housing Issues in Hong Kong

• You will identify the housing issues in Hong Kong based on the information collected and discuss possible solutions to the problems identified.

Task 2:

Exploring the Issues of Country Park Conservation and Residential Development

• You will read a fact sheet and letters to the editor to identify arguments for and against utilising country park areas in residential development, and present your own views on the issue.

Task 3:

Examining an Argumentative Essay

• You will study a winning essay of the essay writing competition last year and analyse its language features and structure.

Task 4:

Writing an Essay for the Competition

• You will write an essay FOR or AGAINST the topic “Developing country parks into residential areas does more good than harm to Hong Kong”.

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FOLLOWING AND EVALUATING

POINTS OF VIEWS

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D. City planners claim that there are options other than using the readily available country parks to increase land supply. Nevertheless, these options are entirely infeasible. Reclamation, creation of man- made islands or even development of underground homes may sound fabulous, yet they do not appear with a swing of a magic wand. Can we afford any more delays in providing for the numerous hopeless children and elderly now living in tiny cages and coffin-sized subdivided flats?

Kowloon City

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DEVELOPING CONVINCING ARGUMENTS

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Introducing counter-arguments

• It is said/thought/believed that …

• Some people/Opponents/

Those who disagree may argue/claim that …

• One might object that …

• It seems true/possible that …

Presenting refutations

• Yet/However/Still/

Nevertheless/Nonetheless/

• While the claim may be widely supported, it is

indeed impractical/it is not necessarily true because …

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UNDERSTANDING THE SALIENT

FEATURES OF ARGUMENTATIVE WRITING

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Junior Secondary

•Exposure to a wide range of print and non‐print texts

Senior Secondary

Primary

Curriculum

strategies

LEARNING EXPERIENCE ACROSS KEY STAGES

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Depth of Processing

Range and application of reading strategies

Text complexity

Abstractness

Organisation Density of information

Understanding

‐ Locating information

‐ Working out meaning of words and phrases

‐ Connecting ideas

‐ Identifying main ideas and supporting details

‐ Distinguishing facts from opinions

‐ Organising information and ideas

Inferring

‐ Inferring feelings

‐ Deducing information and ideas

‐ Comparing information and ideas

‐ Working out main ideas and themes

Interpreting

‐ Analysing information and ideas

‐ Synthesising

‐ Evaluating

‐ Justifying

Cognitive processes involved in reading

‐ Activating learners’ prior knowledge and experiences

‐ Selection of a wide range of texts of appropriate lengths and different topics

‐ Interplay between texts and tasks

‐ The provision of teacher support and the need to promote learner independence

Underlying principles

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COMPLEXITY OF TEXTS

Easier texts More difficult texts Abstractness  Ideas and information explicitly

stated

 Straightforward & factual information

 Ideas and information implicitly stated

 Meaning hidden between lines or beyond lines

Organisation  Well‐defined text structure

 Organisation of paragraphs following sequence of events, logical progression (general to specific)

 Use of short paragraphs,

subheadings & cohesive devices

 Lack of well‐defined text structure, mix of text‐types

 Organisation of paragraphs not following a common pattern (problem‐solution)

 Lack of signposts to facilitate understanding of texts

Density of information

 Most sentences/paragraphs containing one piece of information

 Sentence structures and

language largely simple, with occasional use of complex structures

 High lexical density – with a large amount of information‐

carrying words

 A wide range of complex sentence structures and language

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IMPLICATIONS FOR LEARNING AND TEACHING

• To teach reading strategies explicitly

• To review the reading assessment items (e.g. levels of difficulty, range of reading skills)

• To ask appropriate questions for different pedagogical purposes

• To provide feedback to students on their reading

skills development

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Planning and Implementing

the Senior Secondary English

Language Curriculum

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THE SENIOR SECONDARY

ENGLISH LANGUAGE CURRICULUM

S6

S5

S4

Elective Part (25%) Compulsory

Part

(75%)

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THE ELECTIVE PART

• Adds variety to the English Language curriculum

• Caters for students’ diverse needs and interests

• Broadens students’ learning experiences

• Provides them with opportunities to apply

what they have learnt in the Compulsory

Part

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Language Arts Non-Language Arts

8 Elective Modules

Learning English through Drama

Learning English through Short Stories

Learning English through Poems and Songs

Learning English through Popular Culture

Learning English through Social Issues

Learning English through Debating

Learning English through Sports Communication Learning English through Workplace Communication

THE ELECTIVE PART

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Choices of module, considering:

 Learners’ background, needs, interests and abilities

 Teachers’ expertise and readiness to teach the module

 Learning objectives and content of the modules

 Resources available, both inside and outside school

THE ELECTIVE PART

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Compulsory Part

Reading/ Writing Listening/ Speaking

Vocabulary

Text Types

Grammar Forms &

Communicative Functions

Speaking Skills

• pronunciation

• stress

• rhythm &

intonation

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN

THE COMPULSORY AND ELECTIVE PARTS

(AN ILLUSTRATION WITH THE DRAMA MODULE)

Elective Part (Drama module)

Dramatised Reading

Role play / Drama performance Text Types

• dialogues

• stories

Extension, application and consolidation of what has been learned

• stress &

intonation

• expression of emotions and feelings

• short scene writing

• production of an original script

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PLANNING THE ELECTIVE MODULE IN CONTEXT (KEY CONSIDERATIONS)

• Approaches to implementing the elective module (as a standalone module or integrated with other curriculum and assessment components)

• Adaptations of the S.O.W.

(e.g. selecting appropriate learning focuses)

• Sources of learning and teaching materials

(e.g. textbooks, school-based materials, resource packages, the media)

• Teacher deployment

• Interface with the JS curriculum

• Timetabling

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TIMETABLING

Example 1: Module-specific lessons in a single block

CYCLE 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Lesson 1 Lesson 2 Lesson 3 Lesson 4 Lesson 5 Lesson 6 Lesson 7 Lesson 8

Example 2: Module-specific lessons in two or more smaller blocks

CYCLE 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Lesson 1 Lesson 2 Lesson 3 Lesson 4 Lesson 5 Lesson 6 Lesson 7 Lesson 8

CYCLE 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Lesson 1

Lesson 2

Lesson 3

Lesson 4

Lesson 5

Lesson 6

Lesson 7

Lesson 8

Example 3: 2 periods on the module per cycle

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INTEGRATING VARIOUS CURRICULUM COMPONENTS

Compulsory Part and Elective Part Elective Part and SBA

Elective Modules

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COMPULSORY PART AND ELECTIVE PART

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ELECTIVE PART AND SBA

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Examining the content, language and stylistic features

of advertisements

-Examining an issue from different perspectives

-Using language functions that signal

cause and effect

Producing a leaflet giving advice on how

to be a wise and sensible consumer

INTEGRATION OF ELECTIVE MODULES

Popular Culture

Social Issues

Final Product

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ACTIVITY

• In groups, design three tasks set against a particular context to develop or consolidate the target

knowledge and skills pertaining to any two modules

in the Elective Part.

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EXPERIENCE SHARING

In your group, share with others your experience in planning and/or implementing the senior secondary curriculum. You may want to talk about:

• if your school integrates different curriculum components;

• the challenges you encountered/you anticipate in planning and delivering the curriculum; and

• how you overcame the challenges/you think the challenges could be tackled.

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USEFUL RESOURCES FOR THE

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE ENGLISH

LANGUAGE CURRICULUM

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USEFUL WEBSITES

• Professional development programmes (PDP)

 Information on PDP by Curriculum Development Institute, EDB http://www.edb.gov.hk/en/curriculum-development/kla/eng-

edu/professional-development-programmes.html

 Application and Details http://tcs.edb.gov.hk

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USEFUL WEBSITES

• Learning and teaching resources

 Curriculum Documents http://www.edb.gov.hk/elecg

 One-stop Portal for Learning and Teaching Resources http://minisite.proj.hkedcity.net/edbosp-eng/eng/home.html

 References & Resources

http://www.edb.gov.hk/en/curriculum-development/kla/eng-edu/references- resources.html

 ETV Programmes

http://etv.edb.gov.hk/home.aspx

 Radio Programmes

http://www.edb.gov.hk/index.aspx?nodeID=4034&langno=1

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USEFUL WEBSITES

• Other useful websites

 Central Resources Centre by Curriculum Development Institute, EDB http://www.edb.gov.hk/crc

 Language Learning Support Section, EDB

http://www.edb.gov.hk/en/edu-system/primary-secondary/applicable-to- primary-secondary/sbss/language-learning-support/index.html

 NET Section, EDB

http://www.edb.gov.hk/en/curriculum-development/resource- support/net/index.html

 The English Campus of HK Education City http://www.hkedcity.net/english/

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