Particular
Approaches:
Local Perspectives on
English Language Instruction
Structure & Sequence
for Individual Chapters
(For Prospective Contributors)
| Time
Line
Initial
"Letter to Contributors" Website
| Preface
quote from William Blake
jmmurphy@gsu.edu
| patbyrd@gsu.edu
The 10 "required" sections are listed below in the larger font size
(sections 1-7, 10, 12, & 14). The four additional sections (8,
9, 11, & 13) are optional (at contributors' discretions):
Introduction
| A General Principle
Link to a Skeleton
(more concise)Version of this Website
------------------
(1)
Setting | (2)
Conceptual Underpinnings
(3)
Goals-Objectives | (4)
Syllabus Design
(5)
Activity Types | (6)
Learners'
Roles
(7)
Teacher's Roles | (8)
Affective Concerns
(9)
Culture | (10)
Instructional
Materials
(11)
Assessment | (12)
Minute Particulars
(13)
Caveats, Final Thoughts |
(14)
References
for further reading
Introduction:
This website presents the target
organizational structure for individual chapters. To help ensure
the coherence of the volume overall, we ask you to stay as close to the
target structure (e.g., the sequencing of the various sections) as possible
. . . with the following caveats: (a) The location of section 12
(devoted to a presentation of "minute particulars")
is at the discretion of the individual author, (b) Sections 8, 9, 11, and
13 are optional. Since section 12 represents an opportunity to provide
a snapshot of specific lesson behaviors, a contributor might prefer to
introduce it relatively earlier or later in the discussion.
All of the section descriptions
are presented as aids to contributors (i.e., as possibly useful writing
prompts). While they reflect general themes aimed for in the various
sections, you are welcome to use the prompts, or to ignore them,
as you prefer. However, substantive discussions tied to each of the
ten required section headings are essential to the coherence of the volume
overall. The suggested length of each section is flexible, though
we are aiming for a workable balance across sections. A less flexible
constraint to keep in mind is that the maximum number of pages for a completed
manuscript can be no longer than 20 double-spaced pages or 5,000 words
(conventional 12 point font size, one inch margins).
As a general
principle, we would prefer you avoid making references (unless you find
them essential to your discussion) to the theory, principles, and specifics
of "global" or "designer" L2 methods (e.g., ALM, Silent Way, CL-CLL, Grammar-Translation),
or even to more contemporary frameworks such as Communicative Language
Teaching (CLT). As reflected in the collection's title (Particular
Approaches), this volume is an effort to provide less experienced
teachers with a window into the thinking, decision-making, and instructional
strategies of individual scholar-teachers. One of our purposes is
to get away from more global or generic discussions of what language teachers
do. It's fine to make brief reference to well know theories and/or
teaching practices as needed, but such references should not become centerpieces
for your discussion. We would prefer that readers come away from
your chapter with a reaction such as, "Oh, that's how Jane Doe thinks
about, plans, and actually goes about teaching that specific course in
that particular kind of a setting," . . . rather than a reaction such as,
"Oh, that's how a teacher who professes CLT, ALM, or TBLT principles would
go about teaching that kind of a course." Since the starting point
for your chapter already focuses on a significant aspect of your professional
life, the more "personal" and "individualized" you can make your description
of what you do as a language teacher . . . the better.
Each of the section descriptions presented below is
organized into:
(a) section heading, (b) whether "required" or "optional,
(c) suggested length.
(1) "Setting,"
(required), 375 words:
Describe the setting in which the course is offered.
In what part of the world? What type of institution? Private?
Public? Intensive English program? EFL? ESL? ESP?
Adult Ed.? Secondary School? . . . etc. Representative characteristics
of learners. What are they like? Ages? Ethnic backgrounds?
Their proficiency levels ( link to ===>ACTFL
guidelines, if appropriate, please). Representative needs?
Length of the course. How would you characterize the institution
and/or the language program? Hours of instruction per lesson,
per week, etc. Physical characteristics of the classroom, etc.
Instructional resources (e.g., blackboard, technology in the classroom),
etc. As a part of the course, do they have access to (and use) a
library or other resource facilities? A reader should complete this
section with a clear appreciation for relevant institutional, societal,
physical (etc.) setting characteristics of the course. We need to
know as much as you can share about the setting/context within which the
course is realized.
(2) "Conceptual Underpinnings
for the Course," (required), 875 words:
Provide for the reader your understanding of the learning
theory specific to the course. This is the most directly "theory-focused"
section of the manuscript. Some writers might prefer to divide their
discussion into subsections such as "language theory," "learning theory,"
"teaching philosophy," etc. The idea is to provide readers with a
discussion of your understanding of why you do the kinds of things
you do when planning and teaching the course (i.e., your own conceptual
rationale, or what N.
S. Prabhu (1990, p. 172) terms your own "sense of plausibility" about
teaching). On the possible subtopic of "language theory," for example,
what theory of ______ underpins your efforts ( where _____ =
reading, writing, speaking, listening, grammar, pronunciation, survival
skills, academic literacy, basic literacy, business communication, genre,
etc.)? What does the ____ process involve? What are some of
your beliefs about the _______ process as reflected in the course?
What are some of the sources of your beliefs? On the subtopic
of "learning theory, what learning principles are reflected in the course?
Why do you provide particular types of learning opportunities in
the classroom? What are some of your beliefs about the SLA process
(or even more general learning processes) and how are they related to the
course you are describing? This section is devoted to what your theory
of learning within the course might be. The challenge is to tie your
conceptual understanding of relevant theory to the specific area of language
learning (e.g., language skills, criterion tasks, topic foci, etc.) targeted
by the course. For anyone intersted,
here's a link to an internet site I've created titled, Theory
to Support Instruction.
(3) "Goals/
Objectives," (required), 250 words:
What are the goals/objectives of the course.
How were these determined? As part of the course, do you implement
Needs Identification procedures? What are you aiming for students
to be able to do as a result of having participated in the course?
What are some of the learning outcomes you have in mind? Such goals/objectives
need to tied to what you envision learners are able to do as a result of
having completed the course. Upon finishing this section, a reader
should have a clear idea of what learners are expected to be able to do
as a result of having successfully participated in the course.
(4) "Syllabus
Design," (required), 375 words:
How is the course organized? What is its overall
structure? For example, are there characteristics of what Long
and Crookes (1992, pp. 28-30) term an analytic, synthetic, or hybrid
syllabus (or R. B. White's type A, type B syllabus types) . . . Or some
other syllabus type? Do you follow principles of structural, lexical,
task-based, content-based, theme-based, genre-based, or some other principle
of syllabus design? This is an opportunity to discuss whatever are
the syllabus design principles you follow for the course. How are
these principles reflected in what you do? How do you set about organizing
the course? Does a textbook serve as the course syllabus (or to anchor
the syllabus)? Are most components of the course organized ahead
of time? If not, are there any features that ARE preplanned ahead
of time? What features emerge as the course is unfolding? Do
students participate in organizing the course? . . . etc. What
elements does a written syllabus for the course include? Illustrate
the overall structure for your (either explicit or implicit) syllabus.
Upon completing this section, a reader should have a clear sense of how
the course is organized and a better sense of why you organize it the way
you do. Both a skeleton outline of the "meatier" components of your
course syllabus (i.e., not office hours and such) and accompanying prose
discussion might be included in this section.
(5)
"Activity Types," (required), 500 words:
What are the representative types of learning activities
(i.e., learning tasks, instructional techniques, classroom procedures,
etc.) commonly incorporated into lessons. What kinds of learner interactions
occur during lessons? What interactional styles are favored
within the course? If it's a writing class, do you use peer
response groups? If so, provide a label heading and briefly define
what your version of peer response activities entail. If it's a business
communication course, are 'simulations' or situational 'cases' used?
Again, provide both a label for the learning activities and discuss what
your versions of such 'simulations' or 'cases' entail within the course.
Do you use either closed or open-ended information-gap tasks? . .
. etc. Describe how the task types you use are organized. It
is important (a) to provide labels for the task types you incorporate during
lessons (i.e., give them names), (b) to describe your versions of them
and, (c) to discuss the function(s) they serve during lessons. What
kinds of grouping arrangements do you use? If appropriate, provide
several sentences each to describe a series 6-8 (fewer or more as space
limitations permit) representative activity/tasks types. What are
some purposes of such activities/tasks? This section should provide
readers with some cognitive pegs (e.g., labels and prose descriptions)
for envisioning the representative learning activities you use in the course.
(6) "Learners'
Roles," (required), 375 words:
What do you expect of learners during lessons?
What kinds of contributions do you expect them to make to individual activities,
whole lessons, and the course overall? How do you expect them to
interact and "get along" with their classmates? Do they assume leadership
roles? Do they negotiate themes and topics with others in the course?
Do they engage in peer-teaching or other forms of collaboration?
Do they become learner-researchers? Are they involved in endeavors
such as syllabus negotiation, peer- or self- assessment, or self-directed
learning? Are they relatively active or passive during lessons?
Are there opportunities for them to contribute to the content of the course?
What kinds of contributions do learners seem to be expecting of themselves
and of their peers?
(7) "Teacher's
Roles," (required), 375 words:
What kind of a teacher are you during lessons?
Provide some description and discussion of your actual behaviors during
lessons. What do you do inside the classroom? What actions
do you take? How might learners be perceiving your role as their
teacher? How do you prepare students to learn? What are
the kinds of decisions you make? How do you make spontaneous instructional
decisions during lessons? What are the kinds of events that might
cause you to deviate from earlier teaching decisions? This section
should provide readers with an appreciation for your role as the teacher
of the course.
(8) "Affective
Concerns," (optional), 250 words:
How are affective considerations incorporated within
the course? For example, are there course features helping to ensure that
learners remain open and receptive to (a) your way of teaching, (b) course
content, (c) teaching materials, (d) you as their "teacher," (e) you as
a "person," (f) the kinds of learning opportunities highlighted in the
course, (g) the idea of working constructively with other members of the
class, (h) the idea of performing successfully in the course, etc.
Do you take deliberate steps to put students at ease? If you decide
to include discussion of affective concerns, a reader should become aware
of ways in which you try to address the emotional/affective well being
of learners.
(9) "Culture,"
(optional), 250 words:
Is building awareness of culture issues or themes
an integral aspect of the course. If so, how are such issues reflected
within the course? How are they defined? How do you envision
them? Do culture-related issues play a significant role in the course?
For the purposes of the course how is culture defined? . . . and
how do you treat culture-related issues/topics?
(10) "Instructional Materials,"
(required), 250 words:
What kinds of instructional materials do you use?
Do students buy anything? Is there a textbook or coursepacket "anchor"
for the course? If a coursepacket, what do you include in it?
If not, what alternative kinds of materials do you use? . . . other
forms of realia? Student-generated materials? Internet resources?
How important are they? How do students respond to them? Do
the materials reflect particular learning principles? For example,
are they content-based? Theme-based? Commercially published?
Locally generated? Why do you use the kinds of materials presented
in the course? Are alternative sets of materials available?
This section should give readers a clear sense of the kinds of materials
you incorporate, as well as some sense of how and why use use them.
(11) "Assessment,"
(optional), 250 words:
How is assessment incorporated as part of the course
(and/or as part of lessons)? How do you monitor students' efforts
as learners? What are some representative assessment procedures you follow?
What purposes do they serve? Do the assessment procedures you use
impact the realization of lessons? If you decide to include this
section, readers will benefit from an understanding of how you assess learner
progress during the course.
(12) "Minute Particulars,"
(required), 625 words, (link
to W. Blake).
The location of this section
is at the author's discretion. Some writers might prefer to introduce
it at the very beginning of the discussion (i.e., after their description
of "setting"), immediately after a discussion
of "theory," or elsewhere. Though we
think it would be complicated to pull off well, some writers might prefer
to intersperse "minute particular" excerpts throughout a number of different
sections of the manuscript. (note: if you decide to follow
this last possibility the same length considerations apply (i.e., a total
of 2 & 1/2 pages) and the excerpts would have to be indicated clearly
within box/windows or by indentations straddled by conventional prose format,
. . . for example:
| One option for the "minute particulars" section
is to provide a prose-narrative synopsis of specific behaviors and events
representative of a portion of a typical lesson. Another option is
to provide a synopsis through a list of descriptive sentences that illustrate
the sequence of events encompassed by the lesson segment. What might
a polished (readable) version of an observer's ethnographic field notes
of a representative lesson include? This is an opportunity to provide
readers with a feeling for the atmosphere and specific events of at least
one lesson segment. What events and behaviors would a "fly on the
wall" see in the classroom? This section provides readers with a
descriptive account of what a portion of a representative classroom lesson
would be like. The portion presented should reflect the broader
tone and style of the course overall. A recent depiction of such
"minute particulars" is provided by Morgan (1997,
pp. 440-443) and a second "classic" depiction appears as the "blackboard
composition" section of Clark
(1984, see bottom of page 578-582). |
One way to generate this section is to audio tape a
whole lesson and select a lesson segment that captures the spirit of what
you are aiming for in the course overall. Working with the audio
recording as an external memory device, it may be easier to reconstruct
a narrative account of "minute particulars." Collaborating with a
3rd party who takes field notes might be another way to gather data for
composing this section. Sitting down immediately after teaching (what
you consider to have been) a representative lesson and writing out
your first hand recollections of classroom events as fully as you can,
is another way to begin composing a retrospective account of lesson events.
Still other writers might be able to compose a credible "minute particulars"
narrative from memory without the necessity of additional support.
Whatever procedure you follow to generate this section, it must be both
believable and representative of what actually happens within the course.
(13) "Caveats,
Final Thoughts, Reflections,"
(optional), 125 words:
Anything else you would like readers to know about
(e.g., lessons you have learned about your own teaching; complications;
future directions; issues they should keep in mind if they ever have an
opportunity to teach a similar course). Things you wish you were
able to accomplish but as yet have not been able to do, etc.
(14) "References
for further reading," (required), 125 words
(0.5 pg)
In the form of a bibliography. Background readings
you would want less experienced teachers to be familiar with if they are
interested in adapting, applying, or extending some our your ideas for
purposes of teaching a similar course on their own. For example:
Clarke, M. A. (1984). On the
Nature of Technique: What Do We Owe the Gurus? TESOL Quarterly.
18(4), 577-594. [For a classic illustration of "minute particulars"
see the blackboard composition" section from the bottom of page 578 to
582].
Long, M., & Crookes, G. (1992).
Three approaches to task-based syllabus design. TESOL Quarterly,
26(1), 27-56. [see pages 28-30, for a concise discussion
of syllabus types].
Morgan, Brian. (1997).
Identity and intonation: Linking dynamic processes in an ESL classroom.
TESOL Quarterly, 31(3), 431-450. [For
an illustration of "minute particulars" see pp. 440-443].
Prabhu, N. S. (1990). There
is no best method---Why? TESOL Quarterly, 24(2), 161-176.
[see discussion of "teacher's sense of plausibility" on page 172].
Prabhu, N. S. (1992). The Dynamics of the language
lesson. TESOL Quarterly. 26(2), 225-241.
[further discussion of underlying conceptual reationale, "sense of plausibility"].
Introduction
| A General Principle
(1)
Setting | (2)
Conceptual Underpinnings
(3)
Goals-Objectives | (4)
Syllabus Design
(5)
Activity Types |
(6)
Learners'
Roles | (7)
Teacher's
Roles
(8)
Affective Concerns | (9)
Culture | (10)
Instructional
Materials
(11)
Assessment | (12)
Minute Particulars
(13)
Caveats, Final Thoughts | (14)
References
for further reading
Questions? email: jmmurphy@gsu.edu
and/or patbyrd@gsu.edu
Initial
"Letter to Contributors" Website
Skeleton
Version | Time
Line
John
Murphy's Home Page |
JMMurphy@gsu.edu |
Pat Byrd's Home Page
Other
contact information | Preface
quote from William Blake
Reload
and Return to the Top