Conceptulizing Content
You may have experiences of thinking about getting through lessons without thinking about content. The product of conceptualizing content is a kind of syllabus in that it delineates what you will teach. It is still important to go through the process of conceptualizing content so that on the one hand you can understand how the syllabus is constructed, and on the other hand can become aware of your own priorities with respect to your students. One of the question which can guide you to conceptualize content is to figure out who they are, their needs and the purpose of the course. When designing a language course, there are a number of features which you can choose to highlight or to include in your map. You can consider of who your students are, their needs, why they are taking the course, and whether and how the course has been described to students or the public, as well as your own experience and preferences. Choice is a key, because you cannot explicitly focus on or do everything. Conceptualizing content, then, is a matter of articulating what you will explicitly teach. It also involves choosing the organizing principle or principles that will help to tie the content together.
Developing Materials
Materials development is the planning process by which a teacher creates units and lessons within those units to carry out the goals and objectives of the course. It is the process of making your syllabus more specific. When a teacher design a course, materials development means creating, choosing or adapting, and organizing materials and activities so that students can achieve the objectives that will help them reach the goals of the course. the process of materials development involves deciding how to put your teaching principles into practice.
Adapting a Textbook
There is the difference between writing a textbook and teaching from a textbook. Once textbook is written, it is fixed, whereas when you teach with it, you can make changes in how you use it. We need to consider the advantages and disadvantages of textbooks for minimizing disadvantages. There are two facets to understanding how to use a textbook. The first facet, getting inside the textbook, is important so that you know what you are adapting or supplementing. The second facet helps you to be clear about what you are adapting it to.
"We need to consider the advantages and disadvantages of textbooks for minimizing disadvantages. There are two facets to understanding how to use a textbook." I agree with this point,this chapter makes me remind Korea's educational environment. Teachers here in Korea normally choose textbook as a teaching tool and main material in course. This chapter talks about advantages and disadvantages in order to use textbook as a tool in course design. Some teacher simply skipped it other one considers about it. Textbooks can be totally fitted to the teachers’ and students’ objectives and the context of course.
ReplyDeleteHello Soo Hyun!
ReplyDeleteI like what you had to say about knowing our students. Through experience I have learned that no lesson works the same way twice. It is important that we allow students to feel empowered enough to say what their needs are. Japanese students are often very shy about expressing their needs, which can be frustrating as a teacher. I have found students are more likely to be open in writing then face-to-face. Assessment questionnaires thus work really well for me. One problematic area is that sometimes students needs run contrary to the established curriculum and my personal philosophy as a teacher. There have been cases in my teaching experience when students have not wanted a communicative class with applied critical thinking. Even when I have explained the purpose of what I was doing, students were resistant to it. In that type of situation it is difficult to decide to what degree class aims should be compromised. Often there is a gap between what students want and what students need. Not every learner is mature enough to understand the difference. There have also been cases when I was faced with an established curriculum that I knew would not work well for students and have had to alter in practice. I was limited, however, as to the degree I could alter it. As instructors, we must continuously consider to what degree we are willing to bend. The goal should not be about pleasing everyone because that is impossible.
In regards to resources, it is often difficult for novice instructors to know how to effectively utilize an assigned textbook, let alone know what supplementary materials would be beneficial for students. It is only after years of experience that I have familiarized myself with much of the material that is out there and can create additional materials. In essence I have developed a repertoire of materials I know work well. It took time, however, to do that. So often I see new teachers struggle as they reinvent the wheel. It is imperative that more dialog occur between new teachers and veterans to ease the stress of this transition period. Moreover, to help teachers, schools should keep a variety of materials at hand that instructors can freely use. Good teaching is not about finding a perfect textbook. Such a textbook does not exist. It is about being able to skillfully piece together a variety of resources to suit the needs of the class.