Making Sense of Programming

COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS • There are too many ingredients; we have to plan for 5 outcomes plus 13 cross curriculum areas, individually. • Outcomes A and B are what I program for. C,D and E can be taught incidentally as they come up. • The new syllabus is just going back to the old thematic approach.

Outcomes ??? In simple terms outcomes A and B are the skills of English (Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening, Spelling, Grammar) that we have always taught and which remain the corner stone of English development. Outcomes C,D and E are the thinking of English. When implemented in conjunction with A and B students are being exposed to and utilising the concepts of English that develop deep knowledge and deep understanding.

Concepts as the Focus By focussing on the key concept of a text, we are then able to establish the relationship between it and other concepts within the text and how these are connected to content. By doing so, we are creating meaning from the text and a purpose for the learning. Approaching the study of English from a concept perspective should also establish a link between the students’ prior knowledge and future learning. The focus is on where the students are going with their learning, not where they are now.

When you select an English Concept as your big idea when programming; the next step is to look at the outcomes. When you look at the outcomes you should be able to identify the threads within the outcomes which apply to the concept of English which you have selected. These threads will be apparent through all outcomes A – E.