English Language Curriculum Foundations (EDUC 2200) 2nd Semester (2016-2017) Instructor: Dr. Sadek Firwana

What is Curriculum? Curriculum is a focus of study, consisting of various courses all designed to reach a particular proficiency or qualification.

What is Curriculum? Curriculum refers either to all of the courses offered by an educational institution or to the courses offered in a specific program.

What is Curriculum? For example, you can refer to the “English Language curriculum" when you are talking about the series of courses that English Language Teachers must take as undergraduates in order to become teachers.

What is Curriculum? Curriculum can also be used to describe the courses that a student at a given school or university MUST take in order to complete a degree or qualification, whereas other courses that he/she simply chooses to take may be called "electives."

What is Curriculum? A syllabus is an outline/plan/list of a specific course prepared by the instructor. It includes the topics to be covered, their order, often the required and suggested reading material, and any other relevant information.

There is a wide range of factors to consider when designing a curriculum. These include: the learners’ present knowledge and lacks, the resources available including time, the skills of the teachers, the curriculum designer’s strengths and limitations, and principles of teaching and learning.

If factors such as these are not considered, then the course may be unsuited to the situation and learners for which it is used, and may be ineffective as a means of encouraging learning.

In the curriculum design process these factors are considered in three sub- processes: - environment analysis, - needs analysis - the application of principles

The result of environment analysis is a ranked list of factors and a consideration of the effects of these factors on the design.

The result of needs analysis is a realistic list of language, idea or skill items, as a result of considering the present proficiency, future needs and wants of the learners.

The application of principles involves first of all deciding on the most important principles to apply and monitoring their application through the whole design process. The result of applying principles is a course where learning is given the greatest support.

Types of Curricula Horizontal curriculum - Basic curriculum taught within a year or a semester.

Types of Curricula( Contd.) Vertical curriculum - Curriculum taught from year to year.  

Types of Curricula (Contd.) Spiral curriculum – a curriculum where certain concepts and skills are taught every year, but in an upward spiral of difficulty.  

Types of Curricula (Contd.) Intended / Explicit / Planned / Formal / Approved curriculum is usually written in the form of curriculum guides or lesson plans.

Types of Curricula (Contd.) Hidden curriculum is not written anywhere but is still pervasive.  It varies from teacher to teacher, depending on individual values and interests.  Teachers can teach the same lesson plans but teach very different lessons depending on their values, subject knowledge and interests.

Types of Curricula (Contd.) Null curriculum is whatever the teacher deletes or omits because of lack of time, interest or knowledge.  

Types of Curricula (Contd.) Delivered / Taught / In-use curriculum may differ greatly from the intended, planned curriculum.  Each teacher plans different lessons and delivers the intended curriculum in a unique way.

Types of Curricula (Contd.) Experienced / Received / Learnt curriculum is what the children receive and it differs with each child due to differences in aptitude, interests, and preexisting knowledge.

Types of Curricula (Contd.) Concomitant (naturally accompanying or associated) curriculum What is taught, or emphasized at home, or those experiences that are part of a family's experiences, or related experiences sanctioned by the family.

Types of Curricula (Contd.) (This type of curriculum may be received at religious institutions, in the context of religious expression, lessons on values, ethics or morals, molded behaviors, or social experiences based on the family's preferences.)

Types of Curricula related to Language Teaching & Learning Structural-lexical curriculum is one where the principal objective is for the learners to acquire the grammatical structures and vocabulary of the language they are learning.

Types of Curricula (Contd.) Situational curriculum the principal organizing characteristic is a list of situations which reflects the way language and behavior are used everyday outside the classroom. The content of a situational syllabus is a collection of real or imaginary situations in which language occurs or is used.

Types of Curricula (Contd.) Notional/Functional curriculum The content of the notional/functional syllabus is a collection of the functions that are performed when language is used, or of the notions that language is used to express. Examples of functions include: informing, agreeing, apologizing, requesting; examples of notions include size, age, color, comparison, time, and so on.

Types of Curricula (Contd.) Skill-based curriculum: The primary purpose of skill-based instruction is to learn the specific language skills. A possible secondary purpose is to develop more general competence in the language, learning only incidentally any information that may be available while applying the language skills.

Types of Curricula (Contd Types of Curricula (Contd.) Theme-based Curriculum A theme-based curriculum provides students with opportunities to develop deeper knowledge of a few “big ideas = themes”. It also enables teachers to link different disciplines meaningfully. It reinforces concepts and vocabulary in an ongoing manner. Example: Dining in a Chinese Restaurant.

Ralph Tyler (1949) Basic Principles of Curriculum and Instruction stressed four basic questions for teachers to use when developing curriculum that are still appropriate today: What shall we teach? How shall we teach it? How can we organize it? How can we evaluate it?