Tefl

ENS Constantine Soulef Boulmerka TEFL 1 st Year LMD Lecture 1 Learning Objectives

I Definitions Aims- Goals- Objectives (A.G.O)

In everyday English we incline toward the use of the terms aims,

goals,

or

objectives

interchangeably.

Within

the

educational lexicon, curriculum scholars, have aimed to standardize terms so that they refer to very specific curricular components. The following definitions are broadly accepted.

I.1Aims General

statements

that

give

direction

or

intent

to

educational action. Aims are usually written in shapeless terms using words like: learn, know, understand, appreciate, and 1

these are not straight measurable. Aims may serve as organizing principles of educational direction. Indeed these organizing principles may include the scale of educational direction for entire programs, or subject areas. Example: Students will understand and become proficient at identifying the different types of spoken English.

I.2 Goals

Statements of educational intention which are more specific than aims. Goals too may encompass a whole program, or subject area. They may be in either amorphous language or in more specific behavioural terms.

Example: Students will be able to identify and use American slang terms and phrases. (This example is a subset of the aim above, but the area becomes more specific. This goal moves from generic spoken English to the more detailed area of American 2

slang. ( slang is informal language) . One verb used is still identify, although this goal does not specify how students are to identify, and the verb use has been added. The objectives related to this goal should specify how the students will identify and use new knowledge.) I.3 Objectives Objectives are usually specified statements of educational intention which outline either general or specific outcomes. Objectives can be written in a number of ways. At present most objectives are written in behavioural terms. Behavioural objectives usually employ observable words and can be divided into specific domains - cognitive, affective, and physical. Samples: Cognitive: Students will identify and list 7 slang terms they have heard from their classmates. Affective: Student will choose 5 of the most offensive slang terms from a list developed by the entire class.

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Physical: Students will make expressive gestures to go with their best slang terms.

2- The significance of Learning Objectives Learning objectives help in: 1-Providing a mechanism in selecting content 2-Developing an instructional strategy. 3 – Developing and selecting instructional materials 4-Conducting assessments and evaluating learners. 4- Writing Learning Objectives In writing learning objectives, emphasis is placed on: 1- Learner performance not teacher performance 2- Intended result, not the instructional process. 3- Terminal behaviour ,not subject matter 4- Each objective incorporates only one general learning outcome. 4

A learning objective is a statement which typifies competency or performance capability to be learned and developed by the student. Learning objectives are clearly stated if they : 1- Describe the competency to be learned in performance terms. The verb used in stating an objective identifies an

observable learner behaviour. 2-Make clear how well the learner must perform to be considered adequate. This is usually done through a statement indicating the degree of accuracy, a quantity, or a proportion of correct answers , etc 3- Describe conditions under which the student will be expected to perform in the evaluation situation. I t is essential to make clear what tools or references will be supplied or refused. I t is sometimes necessary to specify in detail each element of the objective, though, sometimes one or two the characteristics stated above are implied in one statement.

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5 Checklists for Writing a Specific Instructional Objective

1 – Each statement a specific learning outcome begins with a verb that describes definite observable behaviour. 2-Each statement meets the criteria of good learning objective stated above. ( section 4 Writing learning objectives) 3- Each statement includes complex objectives( problem solving- appreciation, etc) 6 – Guides to Writing Learning Objectives Many psychologists ,interested in the learning theory, produced considerable research on the different types of learning in schools. Undoubtedly, Benjamin Bloom’s Taxonomy is the most known description

of educational objectives.

Bloom’s taxonomy gives a coherent means of developing the most powerful tool in instruction and the assessment of the learner learning outcomes. The taxonomy differentiates between three important groups of objectives called The Cognitive

Domain,

the

Psychomotor

Affective Domain. 6

Domain,

and

the

The following list of process –oriented behaviours related to the six categories of the taxonomy serve as a useful guide to preparing objectives. Basic Knowledge

To recall and memorise- Assess by direct

questions. The object is to test the students’ ability to recall facts , and to identify and to repeat the information provided. Recall- identify- acquire- distinguish Comprehension Ton translate from one form to another. Assess by having learners 1- restate material in their own words, 2-Reorder or extrapolate ideas, predict or estimate. Assessments

must

prove

that

learners

have

some

comprehension of what they are saying. Translate-

extrapolate-convert-

transform

–interpret-

abstract. Application To apply or use information in a new situationAssess by presenting the learners with a unique situation (different to the one used during the instruction) and have them apply their knowledge to solve the problem or use the same procedure . Apply- operate- sequence –generalise- carry out –plansolve –repair-prepare- explain 7

Analysis

To examine a concept and to break it down into its

parts. Assess by presenting a unique situation of the same type but not identical to the one used during the instruction, and have them analyse the situation and describe the appropriate procedure or solution to the problem. Analysediscover-

classify-distinguishcatalog-

determine-

recognise-estimatecompare-

investigate-outside-observe-identify-

discriminate-

breakdown-detect-

explore-order. Synthesis To put information together in a unique or new way to solve a problem. Assess by presenting learners with a unique situation not of the same type used during instruction and have them solve a problem by selecting and using appropriate information. Write-

specify-

build-plan-produce

–systematise-

integrate-organise- formulate-theorise-propose- design. Evaluation To make quantitative and qualitative judgments using

standards

of

appraisal.

Assess

the

learners

by

presenting a situation which includes a problem and a solution to the problem and have them justify or critique the solution.

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Evaluate-

rank-

verify-measure-assess-

select-judge- check.

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appraise-test-

Lecture 2: Content Selection and Organisation

1- Definition Historically, the word content has changed its meaning in language teaching. Content used to refer to the methods of grammar-translation,

audio-lingual

methodology,

and

vocabulary or sound patterns in dialog form. Recently, content is interpreted as the use of subject matter as a vehicle for second or foreign language teaching/learning. Three major features make up content: -Linguistic

competence: phonetic knowledge, phonological

knowledge, morphological knowledge, syntactic knowledge, semantic knowledge and pragmatic knowlege - Cultural knowledge about the foreign language culture - The objectives to be attained by the learner at the end of the course. 2- Finding Content The following tips help teachers decide about the time – consuming task of finding the content to be taught. -

Check in your department for past syllabi if you are offering a pre-existing course. Be sure to check your 10

institution’s

course

calendar

and

read

the

course

description to ensure that your course meets that stated description. -

Locate similar courses at other institutions if your course is new ( or would like some new ideas). Talk to your colleagues in your discipline area

-

Review textbooks in your discipline area . This can be a very easy way to locate not only possible content to cover but also ready-made organisational structures. Keep your students in mind when choosing texts-not only their abilities and past experience with the topic areas but also their time limitations.

-

If texts are not available or not appropriate, you may need to create a reading package or

course notes. It

will take more time to compile this type of resource, so set aside a few months for this activity . 3- Selecting Content Course design literature suggest the following criteria to help select appropriate content for your course. Course content should : -Fit with your course learning goals. 11

-Have importance in the discipline -Be based on or related to research - Appeal to students interests -Not overlap excessively with student past experience or knowledge -Be multi –functional( help teach more than one concept, skill, or problem) - Stimulate search for meaning -Encourage further investigation - Show interrelationships between concepts 4-Organising Content Many variations on concept mapping techniques exist to help decide on the organisational structure of the content. The key idea is to name, in a word or two, the major topics or concepts of the course, then try to visually place them on the page. You can use a hierarchical approach or put the concept in the centre of the page and workout from there. Put the words into boxes or bubbles and connect them with lines or arrows to show how the material connects. You may also want to put the verbs on the connectors to clarify the relationships

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between ideas. For more linear thinkers, creating lists of headings and subheadings is equally effective. The following suggestions help the teacher to order the topics or concepts: Topic by topic There are no set relationships among the topics, so the ordering is not critical. This works well for courses that revolve around current issues, for example. Chronological Moving from past to present is a very common and easy to implement organisational pattern. Causal The course presents a number of events or issues that culminates in some final effect or solution. Cumulative Each concept builds on the previous one (s) Problem- centred

problems, questions, or cases represent

the principal organising features of the course. Spiral

Key topics or concepts are revisited through the

course, with new information or insight developing each time. Within each class, consider how to organise you material so that learners can both learn and retain it. Different philosophies of

learning are represented. Some ideas to

consider are:

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-

Start with what students already know and then move to the abstract model or theory.

-

Start with concrete examples, such as cases, new items, or other real- world situations, then generate the abstract concepts.

-

Start with a solution, conclusion, or model and work backwards to the question.

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Give learners time to reflect, individually or through discussion, on what and they are learning.

-

Build in practice time, with feedback, either in class or assignments so that students learn to work with the concepts and can receive assistance with problem areas.

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