Context and Nature of the Course
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I have chosen my teaching context in Taiwan for this ten-hour lesson plan project; this project is designed for those who have had at least nine years of English learning experience through the school and have intermediate level proficiency. English had been traditionally taught from middle school (7th – 9th) to high school (10th – 12th) in the public education system in Taiwan until 2001, when the Education Reform Action Plan changed the former way of approach. The result of this reform was that the National Nine-year Integrated Curriculum was implemented and English was introduced to the Grade 5 curriculum in 2003, and then the Grade 3 in 2005. This is a fascinating phenomenon in that both public and private kindergartens had been offering the EFL class even before the reform in 2001.
If one wants to get a decent job, learning English is a must in Taiwan. There are many private cram schools (Bu Si Ban) tailored to young English learners, ranging from the ages of 4 to 18. The reality is that a different kind of private school is needed as not everyone is pursuing academic achievements or planning to go abroad to work or to live. Through conversations that I had with friends in Taiwan when I went back to visit last year, I learned that many young adults and parents would like to keep their English up before they completely lose it. However, they preferred a meaningful learning environment without any grading system.
The grammar-translation approach of learning is what they have experienced for years; the ability to read and write is more advanced than the ability to speak and listen. A good class size for teaching speaking and listening is to have no more than ten students. An overview of a ten-hour lesson plan project and the texts from the book (Kwok, 2010), Girl in Translation, are provided in appendix. I designed the course with the intention of making this an ongoing course. The book has fourteen parts; therefore, the class will meet for fourteen weeks. What I have for this project is the first five classes with two hours each.
If I were to teach this course in Taiwan, I would offer at least two different timeframes: one is in the morning for those who are not working or parents whose children are at school and another evening class for those who are working during the day or prefer the evening timeframe. I would consult the holidays in Taiwan to set the calendar for this course. Appendix B (“Create calendar,” 1995) is an example, and the dates of these five classes are shown on the overview of these five classes, appendix E. The flow of each lesson plan is from input to output and combined with top-down and bottom-up approaches. It starts with activating their background knowledge with what they have read and researched at home, and then practicing their listening comprehension through controlled listening. Speaking opportunities are intentionally offered throughout the class. However, they are also able to practice their speaking at the beginning of each class to report what they have learned through their research during the past week, towards the end of each class while they are paired up, and during the question-answer section while the class is addressing current hot topics. Hot topics will be offered by the teacher from the beginning. Once students are used to this section by the third or fourth week, they will be invited to provide current hot topics related to the subject planned for the next ten-hour lesson plan from the sixth week to the tenth week. The hot topics provided in the overview of a ten-hour lesson plan are shown as an example, appendix E.
If one wants to get a decent job, learning English is a must in Taiwan. There are many private cram schools (Bu Si Ban) tailored to young English learners, ranging from the ages of 4 to 18. The reality is that a different kind of private school is needed as not everyone is pursuing academic achievements or planning to go abroad to work or to live. Through conversations that I had with friends in Taiwan when I went back to visit last year, I learned that many young adults and parents would like to keep their English up before they completely lose it. However, they preferred a meaningful learning environment without any grading system.
The grammar-translation approach of learning is what they have experienced for years; the ability to read and write is more advanced than the ability to speak and listen. A good class size for teaching speaking and listening is to have no more than ten students. An overview of a ten-hour lesson plan project and the texts from the book (Kwok, 2010), Girl in Translation, are provided in appendix. I designed the course with the intention of making this an ongoing course. The book has fourteen parts; therefore, the class will meet for fourteen weeks. What I have for this project is the first five classes with two hours each.
If I were to teach this course in Taiwan, I would offer at least two different timeframes: one is in the morning for those who are not working or parents whose children are at school and another evening class for those who are working during the day or prefer the evening timeframe. I would consult the holidays in Taiwan to set the calendar for this course. Appendix B (“Create calendar,” 1995) is an example, and the dates of these five classes are shown on the overview of these five classes, appendix E. The flow of each lesson plan is from input to output and combined with top-down and bottom-up approaches. It starts with activating their background knowledge with what they have read and researched at home, and then practicing their listening comprehension through controlled listening. Speaking opportunities are intentionally offered throughout the class. However, they are also able to practice their speaking at the beginning of each class to report what they have learned through their research during the past week, towards the end of each class while they are paired up, and during the question-answer section while the class is addressing current hot topics. Hot topics will be offered by the teacher from the beginning. Once students are used to this section by the third or fourth week, they will be invited to provide current hot topics related to the subject planned for the next ten-hour lesson plan from the sixth week to the tenth week. The hot topics provided in the overview of a ten-hour lesson plan are shown as an example, appendix E.
Appendix E