The aim of this part of the curriculum design process is to decide how learning can be encouraged.

Chapter 4Principles

The aim of this part of the curriculum design process is to decide how learning can be encouraged.

Chapter 4Principles

Assumptions = theoretical underpinnings/basicsEclectic approach Elect = chooseCurriculum designers may recycle the same old material.

Chapter 4Principles

Definitions

Term Definition

Principles Fundamental norms, rules, or values that represent what is desirable and positive for people, groups, organizations, or communities, and help them in determining the rightfulness or wrongfulness of their actions. Principles are more basic than policy and objectives, and are meant to govern both.

Chapter 4Principles

Definitions

Term Definition

Approach A set of assumptions dealing with the nature of language, learning, and teaching

Method An overall plan for systematic presentation of language based upon a selected Approach.

Chapter 4 Principles

Methods and Principles

Very view teachers or researchers now follow any particular

method or approach in their language teaching. Practitioners of a

method soon find a remarkable similarity between methods that

are supposed to be quite different from each other, particularly in

the selection and sequencing of the items that make up a course.

Chapter 4 Principles

Methods and Principles

This same similarity leads us to suspect that the various

published courses are either drawing on the same findings

of research and theory or are unquestioningly repeating

what other courses have repeated from some previous

poorly based piece of curriculum design.

Chapter 4 Principles

Methods and Principles

A “method” approach to curriculum design seems to

result in some aspects of curriculum design being

well thought out and well founded on research but in

many aspects being ignored or not well thought out.

Chapter 4 Principles

Methods and Principles

Educational theories and models should be treated with caution.

They are all narratives. They each tell a story, but only one story.

They may shed light on one aspect of teaching and Learning but,

in the process, cast other aspects into the shadows (Rowland,

1993: 16).

Chapter 4 Principles

Methods and Principles

One single method of teaching cannot suit all types of

learning; common sense indicates that different methods

are required in order to achieve different types of learning

objectives. Methods of teaching should be selected

therefore according to their fitness for specific purposes.

Chapter 4 Principles

Methods and Principles

When we find, for example, that a “modern” course is

using a syllabus that differs in only minor detail from one

used in the 1890s and that does not agree with the findings

of substantial research in this area on the frequency of

grammar items, then our worst suspicions are justified.

Chapter 4 Principles

Methods and Principles

The basis of the problems described above is that all the various

aspects of curriculum design have not been systematically based on

research and theory. This is not because of an absence of suitable

research and theory. It is more because of an unwillingness to look at

what is already known and to apply it to curriculum design without

being distracted by the need to adhere to a method.

Chapter 4 Principles

Methods and Principles

The purpose of this chapter is to show that a sensible basis to guide

teaching and to help in the design of courses rests on following

principles. These principles must be based on research and theory, and

must be general enough to allow variety and flexibility in their

application to suit the wide range of conditions in which language is

taught.

Chapter 4 Principles

The Twenty Principles

The principles described here are based on a pedagogical perspective,

focusing on curriculum design and teacher training. A similar list could

be made from a learning perspective. It would also be possible to take

a more philosophical stance on principles considering the nature of

language, the nature of learning, and the role of culture.

Chapter 4 Principles

The Twenty Principles

Each principle in the list is there because it is supported by research and

theory in any of three fields: second or foreign language learning, first

language learning, and general educational research and theory. None of

the principles is unique to language teaching, but could equally well apply

to the teaching of mathematics or motorcycle maintenance. Their

application, however, must draw as much as possible on research and

theory within their field of application.

Chapter 4 Principles

The Twenty Principles

The principles have been divided into three groups. These three

groups represent the three major divisions of the central circle in

the curriculum design diagram. The first group of principles deals

with content and sequencing. That is, they are concerned with

what goes into a language course and the order in which language

items appear in the course.

Chapter 4 Principles

The Twenty Principles

The subdivisions of principles

Chapter 4 Principles

The Twenty Principles

The aim of these principles is to make sure that the learners

are gaining something useful from the course. It is possible to

run a language course which is full of interesting activities and

which introduces the learners to new language items, but

which provides a very poor return for the time invested in it.

Chapter 4 Principles

The Twenty Principles

This poor return can occur because many of the lessons do

not contain anything new to learn, because the new items

have very little value in the ordinary use of the language, or

because they set out interference conditions which result in

a step backwards in learning rather than a step forwards..

Chapter 4 Principles

The Twenty Principles

The second group of principles deals with format and presentation.

That is, they are concerned with what actually happens in the

classroom and during the learning. Most practically, they relate to the

kinds of activities used in the course and the ways in which learners

process the course material. It is in this aspect of curriculum design

that teachers may have their greatest influence on the course..

Chapter 4 Principles

The Twenty Principles

The third group of principles deals with monitoring and

assessment and to some degree evaluation. In each of these

groups, the principles have been ranked in order of their

importance, so that the first principle in the group is the most

important of that group, the second principle is the next most

important and so on..

Chapter 4Principles

The Twenty PrinciplesContent and Sequencing

Principle Explanation

Frequency A language course should provide the best possible coverage of language in use through the inclusion of items that occur frequently in the language, so that learners get the best return for their learning effort.

Strategies and autonomy

A language course should train learners in how to learn a language and how to monitor and be aware of their learning, so that they can become effective and independent language learners.

Chapter 4Principles

The Twenty PrinciplesContent and Sequencing

Principle Explanation

Spaced retrieval Learners should have increasingly spaced, repeated opportunities to retrieve and give attention to wanted items in a variety of contexts.

Language system The language focus of a course needs to be on the generalizable features of the language.

Keep moving forward A language course should progressively cover useful language items, skills and strategies.

Chapter 4Principles

The Twenty PrinciplesContent and Sequencing

Principle Explanation

Teachability The teaching of language items should take account of the most favourable sequencing of these items and should take account of when the learners are most ready to learn them.

Learning burden The course should help learners make the most effective use of previous knowledge.

Interference The items in a language course should be sequenced so that items which are learned together have a positive effect on each other for learning and that interference effects are avoided.

Chapter 4Principles

The Twenty PrinciplesFormat and Presentation

Principle Explanation

Motivation As much as possible, the learners should be interested in and excited about learning the language and they should come to value this learning.

Four strands A course should include a roughly even balance of meaning-focused input, language-focused learning, meaning-focused output and fluency activities.

Comprehensible Input

There should be substantial quantities of interesting comprehensible receptive activity in both listening and reading.

Chapter 4Principles

The Twenty PrinciplesFormat and Presentation

Principle Explanation

Fluency A language course should provide activities aimed at increasing the fluency with which learners can use the language they already know, both receptively and productively.

Output The learners should be pushed to produce the language in both speaking and writing over a range of discourse types.

Deliberate learning The course should include language-focused learning on the sound system, spelling, vocabulary, grammar and discourse areas.

Chapter 4Principles

The Twenty PrinciplesFormat and Presentation

Principle Explanation

Time on task As much time as possible should be spent using and focusing on the second language.

Depth of processing Learners should process the items to be learned as deeply and as thoughtfully as possible.

Integrative motivation A course should be presented so that the learners have the most favourable attitudes to the language, to users of the language, to teacher’s skill in teaching the language, and to their chance of success in learning language.

Learning style There should be opportunity for learners to work with the learning material in ways that most suit their individual learning style.

Chapter 4Principles

The Seven Learning Styles

Learning Style Explanation

Visual (spatial): You prefer using pictures, images, and spatial understanding.

Aural (auditory-musical): You prefer using sound and music.

Verbal (linguistic): You prefer using words, both in speech and writing.

Physical (kinesthetic): You prefer using your body, hands and sense of touch.

Logical (mathematical): You prefer using logic, reasoning and systems.

Social (interpersonal): You prefer to learn in groups or with other people.

Solitary (intrapersonal): You prefer to work alone and use self-study.

Chapter 4Principles

The Twenty PrinciplesMonitoring and Assessment

Principle Explanation

Ongoing needs and environment analysis

The selection, ordering, presentation, and assessment of the material in a language course should be based on a continuing careful consideration of the learners and their needs, the teaching conditions, and the time and resources available.

Feedback Learners should receive helpful feedback which will allow them to improve the quality of their language use.

Chapter 4Principles

Using the List of Principles

The previous discussion of the twenty principles has attempted

to explain the principles and to indicate their application in

curriculum design. The list of principles however has a much

wider range of uses.

Chapter 4Principles

Using the List of Principles

❶ It can be used to guide the design of language teaching courses and lessons.

❷ It can be used to evaluate existing courses and lessons.❸ It can be used to help teachers integrate and

contextualize information gained from keeping up with developments in their field. For example, when reading articles from a journal, teachers can try to decide what principle is being addressed by the article and how the article helps in the application of a principle.

Chapter 4Principles

Using the List of Principles

❹ It can provide a basis for teachers to use to reflect on their practice

and professional development. It may provide a basis for action

research within their classrooms. It can help them answer questions

like “Is this a good technique?”, “Should I use group work?”, and “Do

my learners need to speak a lot in class?”.

❺ It can act as one of many possible reference points in teacher

training courses.