Ms Eve Chan Ms Gladys Wong School-based Curriculum Development (Primary) Section School-based Support Services Office EDB 小學校本課程發展組  English KLA Briefing Session for Joint School Recruitment Exercise 20 April 2013 Ms Eve Chan Ms Gladys Wong

The SBCDP Team We render on-site support services to primary schools in: English Language, Chinese Language, Mathematics, General Studies, and cross-curricular learning areas. This facilitates the feasibility of curriculum development across different KLAs in a school. We have provided this whole-school approach since September 1998. We serve over 200 primary schools in Hong Kong each year.

Curriculum development Pupil Learning School Development Teacher Development

Our Work School-based Curriculum Development Teachers’ Development Collaborative Lesson Preparation (CLP) Whole School Development Vertical Progression Class Visits Horizontal Coherence Evidence-informed Learning Reflection Data collection Analysis Diversified learning materials & teaching pedagogy School-based Sharing External Sharing

• School-based Curriculum Development P6 P5 P4 P3 P2 P1 Scaffolding the knowledge and skills vertically Task scaffolding in a module & across the levels • Design quality tasks P6 P5 P4 P3 P2 P1

Horizontal coherence - from module planning … P.5 Accidents Longman Elect 5A Module 3: Accidents (Unit 5, 6 & 7) Principles of adaptation Four evaluative processes: CARS Changing Adding Rejection Selection

P.5 Accidents – scaffolding the learning tasks into a module Skills / knowledge The flow of scaffolding CARS 1. News headlines Reading Get to know different types of news Adding 2. News headlines Reading + Listening Learn related vocabulary in different news Adding + Changing 3. News article + Grammar item Reading + Use of past continuous tense Visit useful vocabulary to describe an accident Changing + Selection 4.Diary + Grammar item Get to know a new text type: Diary Selection + Changing 5. Diary + text type analysis Reading + features of diary entries Analyze the features of a diary entry 6. Diary writing Writing a diary entry Use vocabulary & sentence structures learnt to write a diary entry in a correct format Changing

Horizontal coherence – … to compiling school-based English task books…

Horizontal coherence – … to forming a year plan Text types + features 4 language skills Forms & functions Module themes Evaluation

Vertical progression – A Reading Curriculum Categories BC descriptors Primary 1 Primary 2 Primary 3 CG -Basic conventions of English -Construct meaning from texts … SB -Word know-ledge - Exam skills work out the meaning of unknown words Dictionary skills Exam skills Understand different questions recognize base word within words suffixes and prefixes on base words create new words from base word order of words in an English dictionary locate words & check meaning word meanings part of speech WH Qs Who What Where How How old / many Why Which Y/N Qs Is/Are there do you … Revisit all WH & Y/N Qs learnt Others May I ? How much

Vertical progression – A Writing Curriculum

Our Work School-based Curriculum Development Teachers’ Development Collaborative Lesson Preparation (CLP) Whole School Development Vertical Progression Class Visits Horizontal Coherence Evidence-informed Learning Reflection Data collection Analysis Diversified learning materials & teaching pedagogy School-based Sharing External Sharing

Collaboration among teachers What do we do in CLP? Design and evaluate curriculum materials with focuses on enhancing teaching and learning with reference to language learning theories, practical experience, student needs and school context Identify students’ learning problems and work out plans and strategies to resolve them Tap on teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge, subject matter knowledge, curriculum knowledge, teaching skills and strategies to improve students’ learning as a team TEAM SPIRIT Collaboration among teachers

Putting Theories into Practice: Listening Content schemata Process schemata Knowledge about newscast process (Process schemata ) and specific themes of the news report (Content schemata) helps comprehend news information Dunkel (1991)

Stages of Radio Program Interviews

Using Organizers to Help Students Understand Information Text More able students Less able students

What do we do for class visits ? Understand students’ learning problems in real classroom context with teachers Attempt new and different teaching and learning strategies with teachers to raise the overall English teaching and learning standard Our class visits are different from lesson observation for appraisal purposes We are Not inspectors !!!

What is evidence-informed culture What is evidence-informed culture ? Why do we have to nurture this in schools? Research (Black and William 1998) has shown that assessment for learning is one of the most powerful ways of improving learning and raising school standards. Recent research from psychology of learning and studies of learning motivation has further added support to this claim. External Assessment Data (TSA) Internal Assessment Data (Formative Assessment, Tests, Examinations) Student Work (Writing, reading, homework, speaking data) Evidence collected during class visits Confidentiality of student and school data is strictly observed.

Assessment for Learning Discussion on students’ performance in assessments, class work, homework etc. Reflections on student learning Improvement on curriculum design, implementation, and evaluation

Entry points in curriculum development Enhancing existing capacity in developing modules of learning for reading, writing, speaking and listening skills Integrating curriculum initiatives: reading to learn creative writing language arts project learning cooperative learning structures School-based English curriculum (GE, intervention and enrichment programs, and reading workshops) Assessment for learning – TSA, internal assessment Addressing feedback from ESR report and focused inspection

among school colleagues Dissemination of good practices for consolidating and synthesizing knowledge External Sharing: ‘Learning in Action’ Seminar Internal Sharing among school colleagues

Themes shared in the seminars 2009 2010 2011 2012 How to use classroom questioning and feedback effectively in English KLA Are There Better Ways to Teach the Past Tense ? Supporting Student Writing—teachers’ effort, patience and co-operation One step further – integrating reading strategies into the curriculum Catering for inter-class diversity Teaching reading and writing using cooperative learning structures in English KLA Working together – necessary conditions for productive group work Who can write – teaching and learning the complexities of process writing Taught, not caught – the teaching of reading strategies Building blocks for language learning – Unfolding the process of vocabulary teaching Making peer discussion work for primary school students From Old MaDonald to an animal farm in the classroom – promoting learning through peer collaboration and Teacher-pupil interaction Nurturing Our Students to be Competent Presenters From Quantity to Quality: Kei Tsz’s road in helping students to improve their English writing Working together: experience sharing on incorporating group discussions into the General English Programme Walk our Talks: Using classroom assessment to inform learning and teaching Developing a integrating both school-based English writing curriculum: grammar and skills in the writing process From understanding to renovating – optimizing the KS1 English reading and writing programme Weaving thoughts into action: creating space through a curriculum initiative How Directed Reading Thinking Activity (DRTA) promotes understanding of reading texts in GE lessons? Catering for the needs of low achievers in the writing classroom The magic of words: a learning programme to enhance pupils’ vocabulary building strategies

Our expectations Regular quality meeting time (bi-weekly) Teachers’ readiness and commitment Involvement of panel chairs and A/PSMCDs Developing teacher capacity as curriculum leaders Support from school administration (arrange 1.5 hrs CLP time, meeting before summer holiday… etc) Corresponding changes in organizational practices Time frame (around 3 years) for continuity and sustainability throughout KS1 and KS2 timetabling

Your expectations Question Time Quality school-based curriculum Teacher development and readiness Student learning and …. Question Time

School-based Curriculum Development (Primary) Section, SBSS, EDB http://www.edb.gov.hk/sbss

Online Application Online application commences on 15th April, 2013 Online application deadline 2nd May, 2013 Result announcement (online notification & by post） June, 2013

Online Application System for School-based Support Services How to apply Online Application System for School-based Support Services online application <http://sbssapplication.edb.gov.hk/login.php> manual for the online application <http://www.edb.gov.hk/attachment/tc/edu-system/primary-secondary/applicable-to-primary-secondary/sbss/manual.pdf>

School-based Curriculum Development (Primary) Section Further enquiries School-based Curriculum Development (Primary) Section 小學校本課程發展組  Ms Eve CHAN Tel: 21584920 evechan@edb.gov.hk Ms Gladys WONG Tel: 21584902 kitmeiwong@edb.gov.hk