UNIVERSIDAD NACIONAL ABIERTA Y A DISTANCIA – UNAD
Escuela de Ciencias de la Educación – Licenciatura en Inglés como Lengua Extranjera
Módulo del curso Didactics of English – 551026
551026 – DIDACTICS OF ENGLISH
ANA SILVIA DIAZ BELTRÁN
NELIDA CARDENAS VERGAÑO
Accreditor
OPEN AND DISTANCE NATIONAL UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
2012
UNIVERSIDAD NACIONAL ABIERTA Y A DISTANCIA – UNAD
Escuela de Ciencias de la Educación – Licenciatura en Inglés como Lengua Extranjera
Módulo del curso Didactics of English – 551026
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................... 1
UNIT 1
DIDACTICS AND MAIN SKILLS IN LANGUAGE TEACHING................................. 3
Chapter 1. The Language Teaching..................................................................... 4
Theories of teaching in language teaching ....................................................... 4
The nature of approaches and methods in language teaching………………
5
Language learning strategies ............................................................................ 6
Chapter 2. Motivational strategies in the Language Classroom ........................... 7
Making learning stimulating and enjoyable ....................................................... 8
Presenting tasks in a motivating way and setting specific learner goals ......... 14
Protecting the learners’ self-esteem and maintaining a positive social image .. 9
Creating learner autonomy .............................................................................. 9
Promoting self-motivating learnes strategies ................................................... 9
Chapter 3. Teaching Language Skills ................................................................ 11
Listening ......................................................................................................... 11
Speaking ......................................................................................................... 12
Reading .......................................................................................................... 12
Writing............................................................................................................. 13
UNIVERSIDAD NACIONAL ABIERTA Y A DISTANCIA – UNAD
Escuela de Ciencias de la Educación – Licenciatura en Inglés como Lengua Extranjera
Módulo del curso Didactics of English – 551026
UNIT 2................................................................................................................ 14
CURRICULUM, LESSONS AND EVALUATING DESIGN IN LANGUAGE
TEACHING ........................................................................................................ 14
Chapter 4. The ELT curriculum: A flexible Model for a Changing World ............ 15
Curriculum: A definition ................................................................................... 15
Models of curriculum planning ........................................................................ 15
Syllabus, design, methodology and evaluation ............................................... 16
Chapter 5. Lesson Planning .............................................................................. 16
Why plan? ....................................................................................................... 17
Models of lesson planning .............................................................................. 18
How to plan a lesson? .................................................................................... 18
Chapter 6. Approaches to Evaluation in Language Teaching ............................ 19
Purposes of evaluation .................................................................................. 21
Issues in program evaluation .......................................................................... 22
Procedures used in conducting evaluation ..................................................... 23
Discussion questions, activities and examples of program evaluations .......... 23
REFERENCES ...................................................................................................... 25
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Módulo del curso Didactics of English – 551026
INTRODUCTION
Today's society is faced with the challenge of projecting and adapt to a
constantly changing process that is aimed at the construction of knowledge
societies, hence the importance of developing capabilities and potentials in
students that allow generating and appropriating knowledge the best tool to acquire
the theoretical and practical skills necessary for English language instruction and
curriculum design.
The study of Didactics allows the student the discussion of classroom
objectives, curriculum development and pedagogical methods for teaching English.
Practicing teachers will be able to update, enrich and extend their knowledge of the
English as a Foreign Language and its application in the classroom.
This course is designed for students concerned with their practices in the
contexts of teaching and its impact in the classroom interaction when performing
the activities proposed. The Didactic in Teaching and learning is one of the
disciplines that has relation with different elements in the classroom and with the
formal aspects of teaching, methodology and all elements that interact within the
classroom.
Hence this didactic material of the course Didactics of English aims to
become a valuable tool and guidelines to enhance the practice of language
teachers through two units, each one consisting of three chapters:
• Unit 1 – Didactics and Main Skills in Language Teaching
• Unit 2 – Curriculum, lessons and Evaluation Design in Language Teaching
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The first unit presents the overall context and importance of different theories
and philosophy conceptions about the language teaching, some useful strategies
to maintain and protect the motivation and as well as how the students can
improve their skills through a combination of extensive and intensive material and
procedures.
Unit two describes the interaction of the different elements in the teaching
and learning process in a foreign language classroom such as the importance of
working with a flexible curriculum, the use of some models of lesson planning and
some approaches to evaluation in teaching language.
The main sources of the six chapters that comprise the didactic material of
this course (Didactics of English) are the online books: Methodology in language
Teaching and Curriculum Development in Language Teaching by Jack C.
Richards, Motivational Strategies in the Language Classroom by Zoltan Dörnyei
and A Course in Language Teaching Trainee Book by Penny Ur. At the end of
each chapter you will find the instructions to login in UNAD virtual library and the
links to the corresponding chapters in the e-books.
In completing the reading of this didactic material, it is intended that
teachers will renew their ideas about teaching, value the importance of teacher
development as well as identify new strategies to apply in their daily work. So, we
are all invited to begin reading and enjoying it.
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UNIT 1
DIDACTICS AND MAIN SKILLS IN LANGUAGE TEACHING
The first unit seeks to provide an overview of current approaches, issues,
and practices in the teaching of English. This unit provides a particular focus on
issues related to the teaching of English, also it offers a source of teaching
principles and classroom activities which teachers can refer to in their work.
Teaching and learning are processes which have happened from ancient
times. One of the disciplines in charged of the description of these processes, and
the relation of them to different elements in the classroom is didactics.
According to Gutiérrez (2001), didactics is a discipline which studies the
relationship between teaching and learning. Pansza (1986) also comments that
didactics approaches differently to the classroom work.
It can be said that didactics may be defined in two ways, as the art of
teaching or as the discipline about teaching. In the first sense, it is the teacher’s
ability to communicate knowledge to others, to make easier for students to
understand the content they are learning. In the second sense, didactics as the
science refers to “clear, ordered and supported concept in theory” (Gutiérrez,
2001). From this perspective, it can be stated that this discipline has two objects of
study
• The teaching – learning process
• The teaching – learning techniques and methods
3
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Escuela de Ciencias de la Educación – Licenciatura en Inglés como Lengua Extranjera
Módulo del curso Didactics of English – 551026
Therefore, didactics studies the teaching – learning phenomena related with the
formal aspects of teaching, methodology and all elements that interact within the
classroom.
Chapter 1. The Language Teaching
The language teaching can be conceived in many different ways – for
example, as a science, a technology, a craft, or an art. Different views of language
teaching lead to different views as to what the essential skills of teaching are, and
to different approaches to the preparation of teachers. The purpose of this chapter
is to examine conceptualizations of teaching and to consider the implications of
different views of teaching for language teacher education.
In order to reach the goal and to clarify some aspects about the didactics
and its impact in the classroom interaction it is necessary to consider the following
topics:
Theories of Teaching in Language Teaching
Science-research conceptions of language teaching are derived from
research and are supported by experimention and empirical investigation. Zahorik
includes operationalizing learning principles, following a tested model.
This approach involves developing teaching principles from research on
memory, transfer, motivation, and other factors believed to be important in
learning. From this perspective we are also able to review the history of language
teaching methods and to see different innovations that have prompted modern
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methods as the recent example of attempts to develop a teaching methodology
from learning research is referred.
In an important paper on the relationship between theories of teaching and
teaching skills, Zahorik (1986) classifies conceptions of teaching into three main
categories: science-research conceptions, theory-philosophy conceptions, and artcraft conceptions. It will examine how each conception of teaching leads to
differences in our understanding of what the essential skills of teaching are.
The nature of approaches and methods in language teaching
The changing rationale for foreign language study and the classroom
techniques and procedures used to teach languages have reflected responses to a
variety of historical issues and circumstances.
Tradition was for many years the guiding principle. The GrammarTranslation Method reflected a time-honored and scholarly view of language and
language study. At times, the practical realities of the classroom determined both
goals and procedures, as with the determination of reading as the goal in American
schools and colleges in the late 1920s. At other times, theories derived from
linguistics, psychology, or a mixture of both were used to develop a both
philosophical and practical basis for language teaching, as with the various
reformist proposals of the nineteenth century. As the study of teaching methods
and procedures in language teaching assumed a more central role within applied
linguistics from the 1940s on, various attempts have been made to conceptualize
the nature of methods and to explore more systematically the relationship between
theory and practice within a method. This chapter will clarify the relationship
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between approach and method and present a model for the description, analysis,
and comparison of methods.
Language learning strategies
This chapter reviews theory and research in the realm of language learning
strategies and provides implications for teaching and future research. Learning
strategies are 'operations employed by the learner to aid the acquisition, storage,
retrieval and use of information, specific actions taken by the learner to make
learning easier, faster, more enjoyable, more self-directed, more effective and
more transferable to new situations '.
In order to get a deeper understanding of this chapter, The Language
Teaching, let’s read it in the e-book Methodology in language teaching by Jack C.
Richards and Willy A. Renandya, the topic to emphasize about Theories of
Teaching in Language Teaching. In the e-book: Approaches and Methods in
Language Teaching by Jack C. Richards and Theodore S. Rodgers, the topic: The
nature of approaches and methods in language teaching and the e-book: The
Cambridge Guide to Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages, edited by
Ronald Carter and David Nunan, the topic about Language Learning Strategies.
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Directions to Download Cambridge Online Resources from eBiblioUnad
1.To download the chapters in PDF, click on the following links:
http://bibliotecavirtual.unad.edu.co:2193/popups/pdf_viewer.jsf?cid=CBO9780511667190A010&ref=tru
e&pubCode=CUP&urlPrefix=cambridge. Jack C. Richards and Willy A. Renandya, (2010). Chapter 2:
Theories of Teaching in Language Teaching. Cambridge University Press.
http://bibliotecavirtual.unad.edu.co:2193/popups/pdf_viewer.jsf?cid=CBO9780511667305A009&ref=fal
se&pubCode=CUP&urlPrefix=cambridge. Jack C. Richards. (2001). The nature of approaches and
methods in language teaching. Cambridge University Press.
http://bibliotecavirtual.unad.edu.co:2193/popups/pdf_viewer.jsf?cid=CBO9780511667206A034&ref=fal
se&pubCode=CUP&urlPrefix=cambridge.Ronald Carter. (2001). Language Learning Strategies.
Cambridge University Press
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3. Or you can read the whole e-book at
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Chapter 2. Motivational Strategies in the Language Classroom
The motivation to learn, just like the ability to acquire language, is an innate
characteristic of the human species. Therefore, in an ideal world where the
learners' curiosity and inherent motivation has not as yet been curbed or
diminished by a student-unfriendly school system, all learners are eager to learn
and the learning experience is a constant source of intrinsic pleasure for them.
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Making learning stimulating and enjoyable
People are usually quite willing to spend a great deal of time thinking and
learning while pursuing activities they enjoy. That learning does not necessarily
have to be a boring and tedious chore (which it very often is). If we could somehow
make the learning process more stimulating and enjoyable, that would greatly
contribute to sustained learner involvement.
Motivation is the psychological quality that leads people to achieve a goal
and it is also an affective factor that usually concerns teachers because they must
give clear explanations to create the basic motivational conditions to protect the
interest in the class.
Presenting tasks in a motivating way and Setting specific learner
goals
The motivation can be regarded as the key issue in language learning
processes, thus student motivation must be preserved, elaborated or even
heightened. The motivational techniques related to how to present and administer
tasks come in particularly useful. It is important to find the way to present tasks in
order to make a huge difference in how students perceive and approach them.
Besides, it is important to evaluate the student’s performance and which mark their
progress to energize the learning just as well.
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Protecting the learners' self-esteem and maintaining a positive
social image
This section concerns a crucial aspect of motivational teaching practice, yet
one that is very often ignored or played down in the classroom. The main message
of the following pages can be summarized in two words: `Build confidence!'.
On the other hand, students' attempts to create and maintain a positive
social Image, which is one of the most basic human needs, therefore, it is
important to apply more specific strategies concerning what we should, and should
not, do if we wish to make our classes socially desirable.
Creating learner autonomy
Learner autonomy is "a capacity for detachment, critical reflection, decision
making, and independent action" (Little 1991:4). Even in this simple definition it is
clear that "autonomy" is not any one specific thing - it is a capacity, and like any
other capacity, it will grow with practice, or be lost through inactivity. The
autonomous students take responsibility for their own work and actions, they know
over what, how and when they learn.
Promoting self-motivating learner strategies
To motivate students to learn English requires the use of motivational
strategies in order to improve students’ achievements. The purpose of motivational
strategies is consciously to not only maintain ongoing motivated behavior and
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protect it from distracting or competing action tendencies but also generate and
increase student motivation. That means such motivational strategies are used to
increase student involvement and to “save” the action when ongoing monitoring
reveals that progress is slowing, halting or backsliding. (Dornyei, 2001).
What if we apply the same self-regulating principle to the control over one's
motivation? Is there a way of getting learners to take personal control of the
motivational conditions and experiences that shape their own commitment to
learning? In other words, can we envisage ways of getting the learners to motivate
themselves? A positive answer would be of considerable practical importance
because most of the discussion in the motivation literature tends to focus on the
teacher's responsibility and role in stimulating student motivation and, therefore, by
enlisting the students' help, the range and effectiveness of motivational strategies
could be greatly increased.
Directions to Download Cambridge Online Resources from eBiblioUnad
1.To download the chapters in PDF, click on the following links:
http://bibliotecavirtual.unad.edu.co:2193/popups/pdf_viewer.jsf?cid=CBO97805116673
43A024&ref=false&pubCode=CUP&urlPrefix=cambridge Zoltan Dörnyei (2010).
Chapter
4 - Maintaining and protecting motivation pp. 71-116. Cambridge University Press.
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Chapter 3. Teaching Language Skills
This chapter is dedicated to strengthening the contribution of the different
skills used in English Language Teaching, to provide a better communication.
The integration of all four skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing) can
contribute towards a more-life environment for both teachers and learners, as well
as more meaningful and motivating.
Listening
The term listening is used in language teaching to refer to a complex
process that allows us to understand spoken language. Listening, the most widely
used language skill, is often used in conjunction with the other skills of speaking,
reading and writing. Listening is not only a skill area in language performance, but
is also a critical means of acquiring a second language (L2). Listening is the
channel in which we process language in real time - employing pacing, units of
encoding and pausing that are unique to spoken language.
As a goal-oriented activity, listening involves 'bottom-up' processing (in
which listeners attend to data in the incoming speech signals) and 'top-down'
processing (in which listeners utilize prior knowledge and expectations to create
meaning). Both bottom-up and top-down processing are assumed to take place at
various levels of cognitive organisation: phonological, grammatical, lexical and
propositional. This complex process is often described as a 'parallel processing
model'of language understanding: representations at these various levels create
11
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activation at other levels. The entire network of interactions serves to produce a
'best match' that fits all of the levels (McClelland 1987; Cowan 1995).
Speaking
Speaking involves the development of a particular type of communication
skill. Oral language, because of its circumstances of production, tends to differ
from written language in its typical grammatical, lexical and discourse patterns. In
addition, some of the processing skills needed in speaking differ from those
involved in reading and writing. This chapter outlines the place of speaking in oral
methodology, the conceptual issues involved in oral language pedagogy, and it
reviews relevant research and pedagogical implications.
Reading
Depending on the perspectives of different fields of study, it is possible,
broadly speaking, to see reading as practice, product or process. The first has
been the interest of anthropologists and social psychologists whose concern is with
reading and writing practices as linked to their uses in everyday life, not merely
within schooling. The second orientation focuses on the form and meaning of
written texts and their constituent parts. The third perspective pays relatively
greater attention to the role of the reader in the ongoing processing of written
language and the strategies that she or he draws on in constructing meaning from
text.
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Writing
Writing differs from teaching other language skills in two ways. First, even as
late as the 1970s, L2 writing was not viewed as a language skill to be taught to
learners. Instead, it was used as a support skill in language learning to, for
example, practice handwriting, write answers to grammar and reading exercises,
and write dictation. In fact, while graduate programmes in TESOL regularly offered
courses in other skill areas, virtually no coursework was available in teaching L2
writing.
Second, as the theory and practice of L2 composition teaching gradually
developed, it followed the path of US native English speaker (NES) composition
theory. Only recently has English L2 composition theory and pedagogy begun to
offer English first language (LI) researchers and teachers insights and pedagogical
practices (Silva et al. 1997). This chapter focuses mainly on L2 academic writing,
although broader issues are also highlighted.
Directions to Download Cambridge Online Resources from eBiblioUnad
1.To download the chapters in PDF, click on the following links:
http://bibliotecavirtual.unad.edu.co:2193/popups/pdf_viewer.jsf?cid=CBO978051166720
6A011&ref=false&pubCode=CUP&urlPrefix=cambridge
http://bibliotecavirtual.unad.edu.co:2193/popups/pdf_viewer.jsf?cid=CBO978051166720
6A012&ref=false&pubCode=CUP&urlPrefix=cambridge
http://bibliotecavirtual.unad.edu.co:2193/popups/pdf_viewer.jsf?cid=CBO978051166720
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http://bibliotecavirtual.unad.edu.co:2193/popups/pdf_viewer.jsf?cid=CBO978051166720
6A014&ref=false&pubCode=CUP&urlPrefix=cambridge Edited by Ronald Carter, David
Nunan. (2010). Listening, Speaking, Reading, Writing. Cambridge University Press.
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UNIT 2
CURRICULUM, LESSONS AND EVALUATION DESIGN IN
LANGUAGE TEACHING
The second unit provides the characteristics of the curriculum, the lesson
planning and the evaluation in order to help students be successful in the learning
process.
The 'curriculum' is taken to mean all the factors which contribute to the
teaching and learning situation, in the EFL class, planning becomes important
because it guides teachers about their performance in their professional practice to
reach their course goals. Evaluation is an important part in this process because it
let us know how much the course objective was fulfilled. Evaluation is also used as
an instrument that provides information not only about students, but also about the
course organization itself.
Thus, this unit is divided in three chapters: The ELT Curriculum: A Flexible
Model for a Changing World, Lesson Planning and Approaches to Evaluation in
Teaching Language. These are elements that may have an impact in the teaching
and learning process.
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Chapter 4. The ELT Curriculum: A Flexible Model for a Changing
World
It is clear that it is no longer enough to teach merely the structures and rules
of a language –the myriad approaches to curriculum design which have sprung up
in the last four decades under the umbrella of ‘the communicative approach’ have
illustrated the shortcomings and lack of relevance of the grammar-systems model
of language teaching. Language is communication, and as teachers we must
develop in our learners the ability to communicate effectively in a wide range of
professional and social contexts.
In this chapter, It will study briefly three dominant models of curriculum
design which are rooted in educational traditions and see how they relate to the
field of English language teaching (ELT).
Curriculum: A definition
One of the basic components of the Didactics is the curriculum which
provides the teacher the security of a coherent framework within which there is the
flexibility to respond to the changing needs of learners and which recognizes
learners as active participants in the language learning process who acquire the
theoretical and practical skills necessary for the curriculum design.
Models of curriculum planning
Both Clark (1987) and White (1988) refer to the framework developed by
Skilbeck (1982) to explore the ‘value systems’ underlying educational traditions,
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and relate it to language teaching. The three traditions are identified as Classical
Humanism, Reconstructionism and Progressivism, which they relate to the
structural grammar/systems approach, the notional functional syllabus, and the
process-procedural approach, respectively.
Syllabus design, methodology and evaluation
To design a syllabus is to decide what gets taught and in what order. Course
content and procedures will usually be expressed in the form of goals or learning
objectives; within language teaching there are a number of different ways of
expressing objectives, and indeed considerable debate on the role and nature of
objectives.
Directions to Download Cambridge Online Resources from eBiblioUnad
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0A018&ref=true&pubCode=CUP&urlPrefix=cambridge Edited by Jack C. Richards,
Willy A. Renandya (210) The ELT Curriculum: A Flexible Model for a Changing World.
Cambridge University Press.
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Chapter 5. Lesson Planning
Teachers may wonder “which way they ought to go” before they enter a
classroom. This usually means that teachers need to plan what they want to do in
their classrooms. Most teachers engage in yearly, term, unit, weekly, and daily
lesson planning (Yinger, 1980). Yearly and term planning usually involve listing the
objectives for a particular program. A unit plan is a series of related lessons around
a specific theme such as “The Family.” Planning daily lessons is the end result of a
complex planning process that includes the yearly, term, and unit plans. A daily
lesson plan is a written description of how students will move toward attaining
specific objectives. It describes the teaching behavior that will result in student
learning.
This chapter addresses the daily planning decisions that English language
teachers make before they enter the classroom. Included in this discussion are the
interactive and evaluative decisions teachers make during and after the lesson.
Richards (1998) stresses the importance of lesson planning for English language
teachers: “The success with which a teacher conducts a lesson is often thought to
depend on the effectiveness with which the lesson was planned” (p. 103). For the
purposes of this chapter, lesson planning is defined as the daily decisions a
teacher makes for the successful outcome of a lesson. This chapter discusses the
following issues associated with lesson planning:
• Why plan?
• Models of lesson planning.
• How to plan a lesson.
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Why Plan?
A lesson plan is very important to describe in a detailed form the guide of a
class where the details will vary depending on the preference of the teacher,
subject being covered, interests and needs of the students. There are also internal
and external reasons for planning lessons (McCutcheon, 1980).
The creation of a plan involves setting realistic goals, deciding how to
incorporate course textbooks and other required materials, and developing
activities that will promote learning.
Models of lesson planning
There are a number of approaches to lesson planning. A teacher will need
to make decisions about the models that relate to the needs of his or her specific
class, adapting the lesson from the book in different ways to make it better suit the
class. This process of planning and adaptation is a crucial dimension of teaching
because during this process the teacher makes many decisions that are essential
for a successful lesson.
How to plan a lesson?
Lesson planning involves decisions about the pedagogical dimensions of the
lesson. Another important aspect in a lesson planning concerns the management
of learners during the lesson. Different aspects such as the development of the
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plan with effective, appropriate and clearly written objectives, the Implementation of
the lesson plan and the final part of daily lesson planning happens after the lesson
has ended, it is the evaluation of the plan, which can take place during the lesson
too.
These phases provide a clear plan will also maximize time and minimize
confusion of what is expected of the students, thus making classroom
management easier.
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Chapter 6. Approaches to Evaluation in Language Teaching
Once a curriculum is in place, a number of important questions still need to be
answered. These include:
• Is the curriculum achieving its goals?
• What is happening in classrooms and schools where it is being
implemented?
• Are those affected by the curriculum (e.g., teachers, administrators,
students, parents, employers) satisfied with the curriculum?
•
Have those involved in developing and teaching a language course done a
satisfactory job?
•
Does the curriculum compare favorably with others of its kind?
Curriculum evaluation is concerned with answering questions such as these. It
focuses on collecting information about different aspects of a language program in
order to understand how the program works, and how successfully it works,
enabling different kinds of decisions to be made about the program, such as
whether the program responds to learners' needs, whether further teacher training
is required for teachers working in the program, or whether students are learning
sufficiently from it.
Evaluation may focus on many different aspects of a language program, such
as:
• Curriculum design: to provide insights about the quality of program
planning and organization.
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• The syllabus and program content: for example, how relevant and
engaging it was, how easy or difficult, how successful tests and assessment
procedures were.
• Classroom processes: to provide insights about the extent to which a
program is being implemented appropriately.
• Materials of instruction: to provide insights about whether specific
materials are aiding student learning.
• The teachers: for example, how they conducted their teaching, what their
perceptions were of the program, what they taught
• Teacher training: to assess whether training teachers have received is
adequate.
• The students: for example, what they learned from the program, their
perceptions of it, and how they participated in it.
• Monitoring of pupil progress: to conduct formative (in-progress)
evaluations of student learning.
• Learner motivation: to provide insights about the effectiveness of teachers
in aiding students to achieve goals and objectives of the school.
• The institution: for example, what administrative support was provided,
what resources were used, what communication networks were employed.
• Learning environment: to provide insights about the extent to which
students are provided with a responsive environment in terms of their
educational needs.
• Staff development: to provide insights about the extent to which the school
system provides the staff opportunities to increase their effectiveness.
• Decision making: to provide insights about how well the school staff –
principals, teachers, and others – make decisions that result in learner
benefits.
(Sanders 1992; Weir and Roberts 1994)
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In order to reach the goal and to clarify some aspects about the evaluation,
it is necessary to consider the following topics:
Purposes of evaluation
Weir and Roberts (1994) distinguish between two major purposes for
language program evaluation, program accountability, and program development.
Accountability refers to the extent to which those involved in a program are
answerable for the quality of their work. Accountability-oriented evaluation usually
examines the effects of a program or project at significant end points of an
educational cycle and is usually conducted for the benefit of an external audience
or decision maker. Development-oriented evaluation, by contrast, is designed to
improve the quality of a program as it is being implemented. It may involve staff
who are involved in the program as well as others who are not and may have a
teacher-development focus (Weir and Roberts 1994, 5). The different purposes for
evaluation are referred to as formative, illuminative, and summative evaluation.
Issues in program evaluation
The aim is to discuss the implications in a program evaluation. Weir and
Roberts (1994, 42) propose a broad view of evaluation that is characterized by:
• a need for both insider and outsider commitment and involvement to ensure
adequate evaluation
• a central interest in improvement, as well as the demonstration of the
“product value” of a program or project or their components
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• an associated commitment to a deeper professional understanding of the
processes of educational change, as well as the results of that change
• systematic documentation for evaluation purposes both during
implementation and at the beginning and end of a program or project’s life
• a willingness to embrace both qualitative and quantitative methodology
appropriate to the purpose of the evaluation and the context under review.
These principles will be emphasized in this topic: The audience for evaluation,
participants in the evaluation process, quantitative and qualitative evaluation, the
importance of documentation and the implementation
Procedures used in conducting evaluations
Many of the procedures used from the perspective of needs analysis may
have different purposes in conducting evaluation. Here we will consider their role in
evaluation and possible advantages or limitations of each procedure:
Tests,
Comparison
of
two
approaches
to
a
course,
Interviews,
Questionnaires, Teachers’ written evaluation, Diaries and journals, Teachers’
records, Student logs, Case study, Student evaluations, Audio- or video-recording
and Observation.
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Discussion questions, activities and examples of program
evaluations
This topic examines some questions, activities whose fundamental purpose
is to guide the evaluative process of students and programs, obtain useful
information, transmit them to know whether or not learned, know their strengths
and weaknesses, to plan strategies for improving the teaching English.
Besides, this topic shows some examples that can guide the learning
process of students, gather useful information, transmit them to know whether or
not learned, that is to say, a reflective analysis of the practices that are involved in
planning and teaching a language course. This has involved an examination of the
context in which the program occurs, of the goals, syllabus, and structure of a
course, and how these can be planned and developed during the course.
Directions to Download Cambridge Online Resources from eBiblioUnad
1.To download the chapter in PDF, click on the following link:
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667220A111&ref=false&pubCode=CUP&urlPrefix=cambridge By Jack C.
Richards. (2010). Approaches to evaluation. Cambridge University Press.
2. Log in the virtual library of UNAD with your username and password of
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3. Or you can read the whole e-book at:
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REFERENCES
Jack C. Richards, Theodore S. Rodgers. (2010). Approaches and Methods in
Language Teaching. Cambridge University Press.
Jack C. Richards. (2010). Methodology in Language Teaching. An Anthology of
Current Practice. Cambridge University Press.
Jack C. Richards. (2010). Reflective Teaching in Second Language Classrooms.
Cambridge University Press.
Jack C. Richards. (2010). Curriculum Development in Language Teaching.
Cambridge University Press.
Ronald Carter, David Nunan. (2010). The Cambridge Guide to Teaching English to
Speakers of Other Languages. Cambridge University Press.
Tessa Woodward. (2010). Designing Sequences of Work for the Language
Classroom. Cambridge University Press
Zoltan Dörnyei. (2010). Motivational Strategies in the Language Classroom.
Cambridge University Press.
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