Author: Andre Coleman

Issues in Physical Education

Examine the implications of the various philosophical justifications for Physical Education for the teaching of the subject.

The philosophies of the philosophers

Within a traditional context, Physical Education (PE) has been perceived as a non-academic subject in comparison to more well established subjects such as mathematics and the sciences. Different philosophers and commentators conjure various justifications by which PE can be placed within the National Curriculum (NC) and how the subject itself should be approached and delivered. This essay attempts to highlight and examine these philosophies, their implications and how they affect the perceptions and delivery of PE in this country.

Education is essentially associated with attainment of valuable knowledge. This knowledge, according to Hirst (1974, 1992, 1994) and Peter (1966), is that of theoretical and intellectual attainment. It is knowledge in this context which has an impact on our everyday lives. This is what is often termed as ‘orthodox’ education which arguably excludes PE. Reid (1998) supports this view stating that education must comprise (of) an acquisition of valuable knowledge. (Taking this into account) From Reid’s perspective, it follows that (it can be argued that) PE (does in fact) can be considered to develop valuable knowledge on its particular subject matter.

(Moreover) In addition to this, Reid (1998) reinforces his hypothesis by highlighting the link between the theoretical concept and the resulting practical knowledge. This is as a result of a ‘new orthodoxy’ construct within PE, (developed from attempts) which developed from a perceived need to justify PE’s intellectual properties. These include the increase in academic PE through examinations and the establishment of PE degrees and Sports Science degrees.

Reid (1998) (believes) suggests that PE fulfils the criteria that education demands, simply by practical knowledge through experience to develop ‘knowing how’. (So) When this is reinforced with theoretical knowledge relating to PE, educators of the subjects are arguably (overstepping) exceeding the currently accepted educational requirements as practical knowledge is deemed a satisfactory justification for inclusion within the NC. You need to put a reference to support this statement. One example of this type of educational justification can be seen in Sport Science degrees where physiology is complementary to pedagogy. This point made in Hoberman, J. (1992). Add the quote if you wish

Reid (1998) in fact, states that practical knowledge should not be either linked with or (lessened) reduced to ‘simple’ ability, where a student is able to strike a ball for example. “It is not the status of PE which is problematic then, but rather the academic view of education” (Reid, 1997, page 21), which is perhaps a little uncertain. It is this indecision which hinders the perception of PE within the subject itself and their resulting arguments of justification of NC status.

Reid (1997) further argues that education is not simply an academic endeavour but also the endorsement of personal and social assistance. This hedonistic approach somewhat further blurs the boundaries as to what is and what is not considered to be educational, as it suggests enjoyment is a precondition for education. Enjoyment is totally subjective and what may be perceived as enjoyable by one individual may not necessarily be enjoyable (for) by another.

This continued difference in opinion is echoed by Parry (1998). It is suggested that Reid (1998) fails to validate practical knowledge and to justify just how the skills learnt are worthwhile in nature. Where Reid (1997) states that the source of educational value of PE is in fact the pleasure extracted from the subject, it has been suggested that he has fallen (prone) prey to the perhaps arguably misleading notion of hedonism (Parry, 1998). As suggested earlier, pleasure, by definition, is (found) derived only from something a person enjoys. Should an individual fail to enjoy PE, (than) then this contradicts Reid’s (1997) concept.

Carr (1997) however states that as much as Reid’s (1997) work challenges some of the standard perceptions of education, it does contain some inaccuracies and misconceptions. It would be sensible to state just what you think these misconceptions are. Although Carr (1997) accepts that PE has certain levels of knowledge acquisition, this does not necessarily mean a concurrence with all of Reid’s (1998) opinions. This is rather messy, and the point is not clearly made. What are the specific points that Carr disagrees with? – state. You might find it useful to put parts of the next paragraph in here. The implications of this are that Reid (1998) believes that PE can alter your perception and comprehension of the world. However, people can be perceived as less educationally proficient should their experiences in the sciences and maths for example, be less than others. This is not the case with regard to PE as individuals are seen as ‘non-sporty’ rather than educationally deficient. These differing view points again further obscures the boundaries of PE’s educational worth. This point is made in Andy Clark (1996), I suggest that you put in the reference!

Carr’s (1997) opinions differ in that his paper raises the prospect of a distinction between education and teaching of ‘life skills’ (or schooling). The implications of this are that Carr (1997) believes that education provides valuable knowledge and understanding, which is the predominant culture within schools, but schools also aim to provide vocational knowledge. It is suggested that sport falls into this appreciation as it teaches skills and abilities that can be applied directly or adapted for life after school and beyond.

These abilities can include communication and team work. Parry (1998) has expressed the opinion that education is not purely the quest for ‘valued’ knowledge but is coupled with enhancement of personal virtue due to “philosophical anthropology and the promotion of Olympian ideas” (Parry, 1998, page 65). (In other words) The implications being that, as a result of philosophical perspectives upon the human race, the promotion of the Olympian ideal that occurs through PE (which) has a lasting effect upon the individual in that it alters their values, goals for excellence, and their relationships. This is supported by McNamee (2005, page 16) who states a less restricted overview of education which is “the initiation into a range of cultural practices that have the capacity to open up the possibilities of living a full and worthwhile life”. (Yet) Again the implication of this viewpoint is that it supports the notion that PE can help provide and establish ‘life skills’, thus supporting its educational value. McNamee (2005, page 15) feels that Peter and Carr (1997) remain too ideological due to their “traditional liberal distinctions” even though McNamee (2005) states his belief that education is a vessel for dispensing cultural customs.

McNamee (2005) continues to highlight some oversights in the work of both Reid and Parry, suggesting that the (forma) former does not describe important epistemological aspects within PE as a subject. Although Reid does cite examples of practical knowledge application, there is a distinct absence of examples that are relevant to PE itself, thus providing evidence to support his view point but not with particular clarity in regard to PE. In fairness, I don’t think that Reid’s paper was specifically about PE as such, it was about education in general although certainly it featured PE – do you want to rephrase this point? Additionally, McNamee (2005) believes that Reid’s hedonistic (standing) view point that simply pleasure alone is justification for PE’s place on the NC is not entirely plausible. A point made in: Pekka Elo & Juha Savolainen (2000), . Do you want to cite the reference?

In comparison, McNamee (2005) draws attention to the cultural (practices) roles sport can play. These include, as Parry (1998) suggests, the formation of identities and the development to values which (is) are suggested to be closely linked to education.

People “have the capacity to develop, evaluate and live out their own life plans based on a combination of projects, relationships and commitments” (McNamee, 2005, page 16). Sport and PE, according to McNamee (2005), (has) have the ability to meet these potentials through a unique assortment of internal, and in turn external values, that are somewhat unique to sport and PE. One example could be teamwork experience from team games. Teamwork blankets many subdivisions including communication. The skills learned and finely developed within PE lessons can help in the attainment of employment, not necessarily only in a sporting context. So it would appear that PE contains the valued principles that Hirst and Peter suggest are key to education. The implications are therefore, according to McNamee (2005, page 17), that the educators of “cultural rituals” should ensure that “the values PE has and gives, are kept in good health”. The implication here being that , this argues that PE should remain within the curriculum as it teaches and enriches ‘life skills’.

(So) It appears therefore that there is much debate with regard to the implications of the conflicting elements of various philosophies regarding a unified perception of just what PE is and the resulting justification of its place within the NC. Reid argues that practical knowledge alone is in fact as valued as intellectual knowledge. Moreover, Reid also states that the gratification taken from PE further enforces this validation. Carr believes the contrary because philosophers have failed to differentiate between schooling and education. In contrast, Parry takes the view that a more Olympian standing point should be taken, in that PE can be used to promote achievement and excellence. Furthermore, McNamee states that PE contains many cultural values and can be used as a vessel to deliver these. In doing so, PE has an effect on our everyday lives, (therefore) thereby becoming educationally noteworthy as it contains ‘valued’ principles.

These somewhat contradictory philosophies and the resulting confusion in the implications derived from them, highlight the fact that (through) by selecting one philosophy as a standard conception of PE’s justification within the NC and not another, will inevitably lead to a dispute as to why it was selected in the first place. Clearly this is a matter of personal evaluation. What must be taken into account are the philosophies and ideologies of the PE teachers themselves. They are the administrators and deliverers of the subject and their opinions and ideologies can greatly influence the notion and (conception) implementation of PE. You could cite Tannsjo, T. and Tamburrini, C. (Eds.) (2000) As a reference on this point

The philosophies of the Physical Education teachers.

The ‘philosophies’ of PE teachers are generally considered to come about as a result of the culmination of experiences within sport, education, and everyday life (within and outside school). Included within these is ‘sport for all’, education for leisure and the continued development of the academic principles within PE (Green, 2000, 2001, 2003). Although these greatly influence the philosophies of PE teachers, health related exercise and enjoyment of the subject appear to be the central focal point of their lessons.

According to Green (2000), enjoyment and pleasure formed the basis for PE teacher’s lessons. One could say that a happy classroom is a learning classroom. It is through this that PE offers enjoyment, which acts as a catalyst for increased control over students and in turn heightens learning (Green, 2000). (Their) His justification of this is that PE can often be a ‘release’ of stress and pressure from other academic aspects of school, yet still maintaining its own promotion of the academic virtues in itself (Green, 2000). However, as discussed previously, enjoyment is not considered a prerequisite of education. With teachers adopting a more hedonistic approach to their lessons, the educational value of their lessons arguably become questionable. Do you want to justify this comment? Suggest using reference Savolainen J & Elo P 2000

In fact, many PE teachers perceive their subject as secondary to other subjects as they consider PE inferior in an academic sense (Green, 2000).

In Green’s (2000) study, many PE teachers associated enjoyment with sport. Understandably, sport is seen as the chief characteristic for the delivery of PE. The implications being that this often falls under a competitive sports bracket, largely in the form of team games. The main emphasis for PE teachers was development of skill acquisition and the resulting competence in performance (Green, 2000). However, this focus on competition within sport (is) can be contradictory to PE teacher’s slant towards hedonism. Many students dislike competitiveness and some even dislike sport in a ‘traditional’ sense (e.g. rugby, cricket, hockey etc.). This is particularly the case with girls (Green, 2001). The implication therefore appears that students can associate a distaste for something which PE teachers perceive as the very essence of their subject, something which they feel (is) should be enjoyable.

Another justification for inclusion on the NC from a PE teacher’s perspective is the promotion of health related fitness. One could question whether one hour of PE a week has an effect upon a student’s fitness, but rather highlights the fact that PE lessons themselves do not endorse healthy living but create an association with physical activity which can be carried into life after school. This in turn develops a healthy lifestyle (Green, 2001, 2003). PE teachers see sport as the main conduit for endorsement of a healthy lifestyle (Green, 2000). However, it is important to note that it is an assumption that PE actually has an impact on students and therefore affects their behaviour later in life, although this is perhaps a rather logical assumption. Kirk (2002) suggests that there is little evidence to suggest that PE lessons in secondary schools actually successfully promote lifelong participation. Therefore, it is important to establish what PE teachers are doing, and can do, to reinforce their hedonistic approach to establish current and future healthy living (discussed later).

The principal difference between teacher’s philosophies and philosophers philosophies is that teachers are frequently (somewhat) adamant their hedonistic approach is justification enough, where as, by contrast, philosophers are more inclined to persevere a more ‘orthodox’ educational justification. The implications of this statement being that PE teachers tend to feel a greater need to justify their position within the NC, and arguably this is justly so as they perhaps fail to acknowledge the perspective of some philosophers. It could therefore be argued that the philosophies of PE teachers are in fact more ideological in nature, as their attitudes towards justification within the NC, when compared to research by philosophers, are paradoxical. This may be due to the fact that PE teachers are more engaged than removed with their ideas (Green, 2001).

Green has suggested that the implications are that these ideologies are suggested to have been formed by what they (the teachers) are accustomed to (i.e. learned practices). This may have stemmed from individual’s (e.g. their own PE teachers) and experiences that have influenced their belief. Green (2000 Pg 79) states that “It is somewhat unsurprising to find that PE teachers’ philosophies as well as their practices represent something of a compromise (Green, 2000, page 79) between these influences as they perhaps, in terms of opinions and view points, pull them in distinctly assorted directions.” However, Green (2000) does argue that some relationship is present, connecting both philosophers’ and PE teachers’ opinions, although this is perhaps more through coincidence than mindful analysis by PE teachers.

The practical implication of this philosophy in this link can be seen in a more leisure-based PE programme. Sport England (2003) note that that the most frequently taught sport within schools is athletics. This is followed by gym, tennis, rounders, hockey and netball. It can be seen that these sports are consistent with the competitive team sports which PE teachers are accustomed to and with those sports in which many students are disinclined to participate (in). There is a stark contrast between this statement and a survey detailing of what sports students enjoy the most. You need to quote the source of this survey. These include basketball, badminton, swimming, cycling, roller skating and bowling (more ‘lifestyle activities’). As it stands, PE lessons are dominated by more ‘traditional’ sports. These appear to be the sports which students find less enjoyable. It is therefore contradictory of their hedonistic approach for teachers to persist with these sports. Promotion of lifelong participation is one of their (the teachers) justifications for position within the NC, and as it appears ‘carry over’ of these sports into adulthood is negligible, it would be illogical and contradictory to fail in the inclusion of more ‘lifestyle activities’, even if this goes against their ideologies. These activities are often carried out after school as extracurricular PE, as normal school time and budgets restrict the ability to run them.

Fairclough, Stratton and Baldwin (2002) state that under 50% of schools offer lifestyle activities as extra-curricular PE. This is supported by Penny and Harris (1997, cited in Green, Smith and Roberts, 2005, page 28) who state that extra curricular PE is “more of the same”. This is being of reference again to ‘traditional games’ PE. It is clear that some teachers are taking (into) account of the (findings) beliefs of the philosophers that we have cited above. They understand the importance of ‘carry over’ into life after school as (this is) being best achieved through more ‘lifestyle’ activities. However, more is needed as only half of schools run these activities within their lessons or as extra curricular options. Ideally you need a reference to back up this statement

So, it therefore appears that the implication of the thrust of these arguments is that the majority of PE teachers position enjoyment at the forefront of their lessons. This compliments Reid’s argument that PE is, and should continue to be, more hedonistic. A more leisure orientated education has developed, as suggested by McNamee, which runs parallel with, and encompasses, valued cultural practices philosophy (Green, 2003). (However), This is not always the case however, as some teachers are restricted to their ‘comfort zone’ in terms of what sports and activities their lessons include. This is seen in the findings of Sport England (2003) where only 50% of schools offer a more leisure based, ‘lifestyle’ option. By remaining within their ‘comfort zone’, teachers are contradicting their justification of NC status by pleasure, as many students do not enjoy more ‘traditional’ PE. (Moreover, their (the teachers)). Teachers may consider that another justification of life long participation is also challenged as those who fail to enjoy PE lessons are more inclined to sever ties with physical activity.

In contrast, the view of Carr that PE should perhaps be dissected and analysed separately from the other aspects of the NC has implications that coincide with the view that teachers have formed of their subject. They (consider) regard it in a different way to other more overtly academic subjects, as it is more of a release of pressures from those other subjects. There are various philosophies and ideologies which have formed for, and have formed as a result of, the justification for NC status. This is a bold statement. Can you justify it? Some contradict one another, and some support each other. This is messy and nebulous. If you have a clear point you need to make it overtly. (However,) what is clear however, is that there is much debate on the subject, and a topic which demands so much deliberation must, in itself, justify its importance solely through the vastness and time spent on arguing its case. No. I don’t agree. It must justify itself on the strength of its arguments or the evidence base supporting it. The philosophical justification has nothing to do with the length of time spent arguing about it! This applies whether the argument is for or against NC inclusion.

References

Carr, J. (1997) Physical Education and Value Diversity: A Response to Andrew Reid. European Physical Education Review, 3(2), page 195-205.

Fairclough, S., Stratton, G., and Baldwin, G. (2002) The Contribution of Secondary School Physical Education to Lifetime Physical Activity. European Physical Review, 8(1), page 69-84.

Green, K. (2000) Exploring Everyday Philosophies of PE Teachers from a Sociological Perspective. Sport, Education and Society, 5(2).

Green, K. (2001) Physical Education Teachers in their Figurations: A Sociological Analysis of Everyday ‘Philosophies’, Sport, Education and Society, 6(2).

Green, K. (2003) Physical Education Teachers on Physical Education: A Sociological Study of Philosophies and Ideologies. Chester: Chester Academic Press.

Green, K., Smith, A., and Roberts. (2005) Young People and Lifelong Participation in Sport and Physical Activity: A Sociological Perspective on Contemporary Physical Education Programmes in England and Wales. Leisure Studies, 24(1), page 27-43.

Hirst, P. (1974) Knowledge and the Curriculum. London, Routledge, Kegan and Paul

Hirst, P. (1992) Education, Knowledge and Practices. Papers of the Philosophy of Education Society of Great Britain, April 26-28.

Hirst, P. (1994) Keynote Address, National Conference for Physical Education, Sport and Dance, Loughborough University, 1994.

McNamee, M. (2005) The Nature and Value of Physical Education. in Green, K. and Hardiman, K. (Eds.) Physical Education: Essential Issues, page 1-20. London: Sage.

Parry, J. (1998) The Justification of Physical Education. in Green, K. and Hardman, K. (Eds.) Physical Education: A Reader, page 36-68. Meyer and Meyer: Verlag.

Penny, D. and Harris, J. (1997) Extra-curricular Physical Education: More of the Same for the More Able. Sport, Education and Society, 2(!), page 41-54.

Peter, R.S. (1966) Ethics and Education, London, Allen and Unwin.

Reid, A. (1997) Value Pluralism and Physical Education. European Physical Education Review. 3(3). Page 6-20

Reid, A. (1998) Knowledge, Practice and Theory in Physical Education. in Green, K. and Hardman, K. (Eds.) Physical Education: A Reader, page 17-35. Meyer and Meyer: Verlag.

Sport England (2003) Young People and Sport in England: Trends in Participation 1994-2002. Sport England: London.

Generally a good piece of work. I have made changes in grammar and syntax directly but have left some changes for your discretion. You must get out of the habit of starting paragraphs and sentences with adverbs!!!

In commenting on this piece, I have tried to follow your own thought train and arguments – which are largely sound, and have not tried to substantially alter the thrust of your submission. It is important to put in overt references to “the implications” of the various philosophies, as many of your comments are relevant but rather tangential and do not therefore directly relate to the question.

You have spent a fair bit of time arguing that the NC is essentially pivotal in the justification of the various philosophical schema outlined and I’m not sure that the authors would actually agree with you. It is surely the viability or justification of the NC that is secondary to the philosophical outlines. You might want to reconsider some of your stronger statements on this point.

The references that I have suggested that you include are:-

Andy Clark (1996), ‘Connectionism, Moral Cognition, and Collaborative Problem Solving’, in May & Friedman & Clark (eds), Mind and Morals. Essays in Cognitive Science and Ethics, The MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts, pp.109-128.

Pekka Elo & Juha Savolainen (2000), ‘Just Learning’ in Acta Philosophica Fennica vol. 65: New Ethics – New Society or the Dawn of Justice, Hakapaino Oy, pp. 149-187.

Savolainen J & Elo P 2000

Philosophy Teaching As Cultural Heritage: From Bildung Und Urteilskraft To Communities Of Inquiry

Bulletin of the Russian Philosophical Society (2000)

Hoberman, J. (1992) Mortal Engines: The Science of Performance and the Dehumanization of Sport, New York: The Free Press

Tannsjo, T. and Tamburrini, C. (Eds.) (2000) Values in Sport: Elitism, Nationalism, Gender Equality and the Scientific Manufacture of Winners, London: Routledge.

I think you should do well with this as it is certainly well above the standard of many that I have seen.

If you wanted to expand the arguments further you could move into the area of virtue theory as a philosophy and the implications for teaching – which are huge

Here is an extract from Lumpkin, A.; Stoll, S.K.; & Beller, J.M. (1999) Sport Ethics: Applications for Fair Play, (second edition) Boston: McGraw Hill.

In the recent past, there has been a revival of virtue theory in mainstream and applied ethics. This has usually taken the form of a resuscitation of Aristotle’s work. Here ethics is based upon good character and the good life will be lived by those who are in possession of a range of virtues such as courage, co-operativeness, sympathy, honesty, justice, reliability, and so on and the absence of vices such as cowardice, egoism, dishonesty, and so on.

Sport’s traditional function as role modeller for youth is premised upon virtue theory. Russell Gough’s (1997) admirable book is a user-friendly application of virtue ethics in sports. This language has an immediate application in the contexts of sports in theory but in practice, spitefulness, violence, greed often characterise elite sports. Moreover, we often question the integrity of certain coaches or officials just as chastise players who deceive the officials

Ref: Gough, R. (1997) Character is everything: promoting ethical excellence in sports, Orlando: Harcourt Brace.

The correlation of a good parent and teacher relationship

Parents and teachers constitute two of the most important information sources of young children’s social skills. However, Parents and teachers often are very influential adults in children’s lives, and thus they can provide important perspectives and information concerning children’s behavior. Parents are unique compared to other adults in that they often have observed their children’s behavior across time and across diverse situations.

It declared that parents often are aware of subtleties in their children’s behavior and are able to observe them in different contexts, and, therefore, they should be included in the assessment of their children. Inclusion of mothers, fathers, and teachers as assessors allows for comparisons regarding their agreement about children’s behavior across situations with consideration of physical location as well as with sensitivity to differential behavioral values. (Mouly, 2000)

In research it has been found that teachers benefit from involvement with parents. Teachers who had high involvement with parents indicated that they were more proficient in instructional and professional activities, devoted more time to instruction, and maintained better parent relationships than did teachers who had little contact with parents. As a result of these reciprocal benefits of parent-teacher relationships, others have encouraged the use of home school collaboration programs to help modify children’s academic and social behavior in school. (Slavin, 2005)

Parents play an important role in an exceptional child’s life and must inform teachers of their special conditions since no two children are alike. (Mouly, 2000) “Teachers can be very helpful in supporting a child’s treatment …once parents inform them about the disorder.” Parents can provide information to the teachers and school personnel about their child’s medication or other special needs. From here, teachers can provide parents with occasional progress reports. “Even if a child …is not active at school, teachers should be informed that …treatment can improve the child’s ability to learn.”

However, misunderstandings between student, parent and teacher are common, but can be lessened with early communication between parent and teacher. The first contact between parent and teacher should be made before problems arise with the student.

Parents can get involved in school activities in many ways, they can assist teachers with class once a week, volunteer to talk to the class on a particular topic, help with field trips or donate supplies for special events or projects.

Some techniques that have effectively been used when working with parents of exceptional students are as follows, effective use of home liaisons, teachers who go on visits with home liaisons to enhance communication between school and parents, treating the parents with respect, encouraging their continued assistance with their child’s education, and complimenting them on participation in their child’s education. Some other suggestions for improvements that could be made are, training parents specifically in their roles in Individual Education Plans and School Evaluation Teams; obtaining through interviews and observations, viewpoints and feelings of parents; communication through media forms (announcements about appropriate meetings); guest speakers for parent meetings who would give in depth training concerning parental rights, early intervention, and transition plans; all teachers should be required to make personal contact with parents even if there is no apparent intervention needed, this will keep the door of communication open; activities taught at school that would have a parent participation component included at home.

It is very important that teachers help the parents of exceptional children to learn their rights. (OCD, 2005) Some of these parents don’t know them at all and some only know bits and pieces that seem misconstrued. Teachers are required to have the parents sign their parental rights at all the meetings with the Diagnostician that would be concerning the child’s education. It would be helpful for the parents to know and understand what they are signing for them to feel more comfortable. Most parents are kind of scared to sign things that they are unsure about, and then they are tense and unable to really make the best decisions about their child. (Slavin, 2005)

In conclusion, I feel that working with parents of exceptional students will cause a mix of emotions. You are required to be on your toes at all times and they expect you to know everything, but as long as you treat them with respect and follow the simple guidelines from this paper, you shouldn’t have a problem. You just have to keep in mind that you are teaching their pride and joy exceptionalities and all.

References

Mouly, G. (2000). Psychology for effective teaching. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.

OCD Resource Center, (n.d.). Child & adolescent ocd. Retrieved Mar. 20, 2005.

Slavin, B. (2000). Learners with exceptionalities.

Ford, D. (1996, Aug 05). Good parent-teacher relationship benefits children. College ofAgriculture and Home Economics, Retrieved Mar 20, 2005

Jones, D. (1997, Mar ), Working with navajo parents of exceptional children.

Communication is the key. Retrieved Mar. 20, 2005, from Children, Youth and Family

Establishing a parent-teacher relationship. (1998).

Paraprofessional for Special Needs Children

For the past eleven years I have been a paraprofessional for special needs children. During those years I have learned about the different treatments and intervention techniques used for the various disorders among children. Through hands-on activities at work, various workshops , seminars and my own research, I have acquired knowledge about the different disabilities. I now feel I know what to expect from a student and can make the right judgment calls in different situations in order to facilitate learning. I have learned to manage children in both groups and individually, clerical responsibilities, organizational and creative abilities, , written and spoken communication skills, following instructions given by the teacher, and classroom management.

Children with special needs have certain deficits, which warrant special support to “survive” a day at school. Room preparation and preparation of class materials is very important. The classroom should be set up so that there is a smooth “flow” to it. From the moment the child arrives in the morning, the daily routine should start. An example of a classroom for special needs children will be found at the end of this paper. Preparation of classroom materials is also important. Children should have a “bin” of some sort filled with materials to use for their programs and tasks. For example, if John is working on counting, alphabet and colors then the flash cards, manipulatives and picture cards should be in the bin labeled with his name on it. This way,when it is time for him to work everything is ready. Also, if there is an art project scheduled, all necessary materials should be ready. Children with special needs find it very difficult to wait for any lengthy period of time. It is very important to have the day flow as easily and as smoothly as possible.

The daily schedule is important aspect in having a successful day. Each child has his own schedule due to the different services that each one has. Not all children receive all services, which may be OT (occupational therapy), PT (physical therapy), or speech. Some schedules may be in pictures and other in words. Not all children are capable of reading and therefore some children may be more adaptable to pictures. The classroom teacher would determine this.

All of these supports and organizational aids help in supporting children with special needs especially those with ASD (autism spectrum disorder) and AD/HD (attention deficit/hyperactive disorder). Their information processing difficulties and auditory weaknesses require much support. In addition, their problems in the areas of social understanding make it difficult for them to distinguish between what is important and what is not. Their problems with organizational skills sometimes make them look lazy which is another reason why they need visual supports such as pictoral or written schedules. An example of a child’s schedule is as follows:

Independent work
Work session 1
Work session 2
Lunch
Group work
Work session 3
Speech
Music All done
Pack-up
Go home

A piece of construction paper is laminated as well as all the instructions. Each instruction is velcroed onto the construction paper. When the child enters the class in the morning he removes the first instruction over to “Time for”. Then when that task is done the child goes back to his schedule and places the completed task into the pouch marked “All done” and moves the next task over to “Time for”. This is done throughout the day.

Directing and facilitating attention to the teacher and/or task is another responsibility of the paraprofessional. Children who are more able – those with mild learning disabilities and attention problems – can basically take in and process information that the teacher is presenting and just need to be refocused toward the teacher. Less able students are less capable to take in information successfully so in this case the paraprofessional needs to take a more directive role with regard to instruction. The Para also needs to take on a greater responsibility for using the modifications and supports needed to promote the student’s attention. This is where the role of the Para is extremely important. He/she needs to make effective decision-making in selecting the best supports to aid in the student’s understanding and which promote learning.

Another important aspect, which I have learned, is pre and post-teaching. They are the backbones of direct Para support for students with significant disabilities especially in the inclusion classroom, which is at a much faster pace that a self-contained class. (A self-contained class is a class which has only special education students in it.) Pre-teaching is a concept or lesson that helps the student to become more familiar with the materials and activities at their own pace. Therefore when the lesson is given in a group the student will have already become familiar with the topic. It would be like going to Spain without any knowledge of the Spanish language. Your anxiety level would be very high when spoken to and you would have no idea what was said. However, if you had taken a few Spanish speaking classes you would at least be familiar with some of the conversation and able to put the whole idea together. Post-teaching is also very important because it reinforces any question the student may have. It also promotes generalization, which is one area in which children with ASD have great difficulty. Many children with ASD can learn in one setting but when taken out of that setting they can’t seem to know what was taught in the original setting. The importance, which I have learned, of pre and post-teaching cannot be over-exaggerated because it can help the student become more comfortable and more responsive in the learning environment.

In working with ASD children I have also learned that breaking down tasks into smaller units is very helpful because then the task will not be so overwhelming. For example, during a math lesson the teacher will instruct the students to do the twelve problems on a certain page and when they are done the whole class will go over it. For a child with ASD these twelve problems may look like 100 problems. Not able to verbalize what the problem is, the student may act out and become disruptive in the class. It may appear that the student just didn’t want to do it. There may be several solutions to this problem. One may be to cover half the problems with a sheet of plain paper so that visually there are fewer problems that need to be done, or have the student do them at intervals throughout the day. This will result in the student being successful with the task and will also eliminate any behavioral disruption.

As a Para, I learned that there are countless ways to adapt and modify the curriculum to help the special needs child perform and participate more effectively. Appropriate materials and the correct environment can also support the child in the learning process. There are long-standing supports such as daily schedules and short-term supports which would be direct instruction modification. The math example, as stated above, is short-term. For the most part, adjustments regarding teaching materials and modifications are the responsibility of the Para. However, it is the duty of the Para to review any adaptations with the certified staff member. We, as Paras, are the support staff. We are under the direction and supervision of the classroom or special area teacher. Any curricular modification directly affects the content of the student’s educational program.

I learned data taking is another important responsibility of the Para. Many times, because of frustration, anxiety and the lack of being able to verbalize what the problem is, children with ASD will have problem behaviors. It is important to understand that problem behaviors are different than a behavior problem. If you consider a student a behavior problem than you look no further than the student himself. However, if you view the student as having problem behaviors, you are more likely to look for causes either from the environment or within the student himself. When a Para recognizes that there is a problem behavior, the certified staff member and the psychologist should meet to discuss what behavioral supports may be necessary. You, as the Para, will be asked to take data. This data is called ABC; A-antecedent, B-behavior exhibited and C-consequence.

ABC DATA

Antecedent Behavior Consequence

Math lesson fell to the floor removed from room

When the behavior occurs, the Para will write down what occurred before, what the behavior was and what consequence was given for the behavior. How long you take the data is at the discretion of the certified staff and psychologist. Once the data is taken, it is reviewed and a behavioral support plan is put into place. One type of plan is “if-then” support. For example, “If you throw your worksheet on the floor, then you will lose time on the computer.” It is very important that the child understands and knows what the targeted behavior and consequence is in order for the behavioral support to work. Another type of behavioral support is a token system. The child is told that when he/she gets five tokens (pennies, stickers, smiley faces, etc.) he gets to choose a preferred activity for a certain amount of time. This type of behavioral support reinforces good behavior. There are many other types of behavioral support plans and it is important to know that no two are the same. The type of plans and how it is implemented depends on each child. If implemented correctly it can have a significant impact for positive behavioral change. One important aspect in problem behaviors is to watch that the inappropriate behavior not be inadvertently reinforced. Some children act out for task avoidance. In reality the student is acting out to be removed from the situation. When this occurs the Para needs to work through the behavior. However, there are circumstances in inclusive settings where the child must be removed because it is too distracting to the typical peers. If this occurs, the child should be removed but the task must be completed in order to show the child that his behavior will not be rewarded and “get him out of doing his work”.

In addition to all, which I have learned, clerical tasks are another aspect of being a Para. One clerical task is to provide a written record of the student’s daily functioning. These records are a part of the student’s programming. Giving the team important information regarding progress, setbacks and an insight into future planning is critical. Another part of the clerical tasks is also keeping data on IEP (Individualized Education Plan) goals. A Para should be proactive in consulting with the teacher to find out the goals and keeping accurate records regarding them. One example of an IEP goal would be: John will initiate game playing with a peer with 80% accuracy. A data sheet with data will show if John is reaching the goal over a certain period of time. The data will also show whether John is having difficulty accomplishing this goal and if so, adjustments should be made to the way in which this goal is being addressed. The daily record and the data on IEP goals are very crucial parts of supporting the student and should not be taken lightly. They are essential because they provide records for meetings and will aid the child’s next teacher, and possibly a new Para, in the event you are reassigned.

All of the supports, which a Para gives to a special needs child, serve an important purpose. The support given promotes understanding, minimizes anxiety, gives a positive influence on behavior, promotes independence and competence and strengthens the overall student learning. Without these supports, students with special needs are left to help themselves. Under those circumstances stress and anxiety increase and the learning process is compromised. The proper support can mean the difference between success and failure.

Through the past eleven years the knowledge that I acquired is endless and ongoing. I’ve learned about different learning disabilities, child development, instructional process for different special needs children, and most of all, working together as a team with the certified staff. As a Paraprofessional I know my role is critical to the successful school experience of the student. When a child has accomplished even the smallest goal it gives me great satisfaction and pleasure to know that I played an important part in making a difference in the life of a special needs child. These are positive steps and make me feel proud of the particular child. What happens as a result is that they themselves become encouraged by their achievement. There are days when it is particularly challenging to help a student complete a task, but these challenges are usually overcome by meeting with the team and following specific suggestions. From the Author Unknown “…it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove… but the world may be different because I was important in the life of a CHILD.”

Netiquette and Student Learning Experience on Blackboard – Reflective essay

Communicating by email and other methods on the Internet such as online message boards and chat systems has become very common these days. It is almost impossible to pursue a course of study in higher or further education without using computers, and without communicating with other people online. Yet it can be safely said the most of us have never had any type of formal training in communicating online.

The increased use of Virtual Learning Environments such as Blackboard and Moodle put an additional imperative on students to learn how to communicate online. This means that students now not only need to learn the content of the course, they also need to use a new tool properly prior to studying the subject matter. At our University, the Blackboard is used for various courses. Most students today are already familiar with the Internet and have already communicated with others via various methods on the Internet; hence there isn’t a steep learning curve when they learn to use this new tool. Additionally, support is provided in various ways for students who require it. Firstly, students can approach the online learning support officer if they require any general help with the system. Secondly, they can approach the module leader or teacher if they have any problems with any specific course they are taking on Blackboard. Thirdly, they can approach their personal tutor with any problems that cannot be otherwise resolved. Practically, however, students often find peer support invaluable. I always found myself asking or being asked about specific issues with Blackboard. Some of the common questions are about where are the buttons one would require to perform certain tasks, for example the upload button when submitting an assignment, what happens when the system ‘hangs’ – this often creates a lot of anxiety, especially when it happens close to the deadline for the submission of an assignment! I have often found that the people who are able to readily answer these questions have often faced the same problem themselves, and found it out either by trial and error on their own, or were in turn helped by some others. Although technology is often (dis)credited as the cause of an increasing loss of personal contact in every aspect of modern life, ironically, the use of an unfamiliar tool such as the Blackboard actually helped me communicate better with some other students, as we faced a shared problem and being compatriots somehow brought us closer.

Netiquette was something I decided that I had to learn before I was ‘brave’ enough to add my comment in the discussion forums. This was mainly because I was very used to the ‘Internet slang’ of using the short form of words such as CUL8R and I wasn’t very sure these would be acceptable and did not want to get on the wrong side of the lecturer unnecessarily. I did some reading on the topic and found a great deal of material on the Internet regarding Netiquette. In particular, I read the RFC 1855 (Hambridge, 1995), which was a sort of bible on netiquette. On reading it the reasons behind many of netiquette rules that I didn’t think were important, most of it seemed to be common sense and polite. The WIRED article by Leahy (2006) cited one good example of an email communication that had this sentence “Don’t’ work too hard”, which could be interpreted in a variety of ways – had this been addressed to me, I would have wondered, was the writer sarcastically implying that I was working too hard, perhaps trying to impress someone, in which case I probably would have taken offence, or was it just a joke? Either way, it’s difficult to interpret. I read the general rules for posting on Blackboard and saw that they weren’t very different from the RFC 1855. There were only minor differences, some recommendations adapted to keep in view that this was an educational discussion board in an educational institution.

Going back to my interaction on Blackboard, I monitored the comments on the discussion board for while before I decided to post a somewhat inconsequential comment to test the waters. I had given a great deal of thought before deciding to participate in the discussion online. Initially, I thought that since participating in the online discussion forum wasn’t compulsory, I need not participate; it would only take me more time to learn the rules, and then engage in a discussion that didn’t really earn me any marks in my final score for the module. However, I spoke to some of my peers, and got the view that participating in discussions not only helped you clear your doubts, it also helped others; most often, someone else had the same question, but was just too scared to post it, and when you did, they were grateful to you; sometimes that made them bolder to start posting too. Then, one of the lecturers for one of the modules that was using Blackboard encouraged us to continue a discussion that took place in class online, and that was what spurred me on to leave me comment; however, having thought out my first post for very long before posting it, I feel that I somehow ‘killed’ it and it had the desired effect: it was so inconsequential, no one posted a reply to it. Funnily, I found this was somewhat disheartening, however, resolved to take part in the discussions better and managed to follow through. The main benefit I obtained from the discussion boards is that if there are some strands of thought running on your mind about a topic that is being discussed, the discussion board offers you the opportunity to actually post those thoughts anytime, anywhere. On hindsight, communicating on the Blackboard discussion board did not have very different rules from communicating face to face in the classroom. One just has to remember that when posting on an online forum, the readers cannot see your face to gauge your expression and therefore are more likely to misinterpret your statements. Using ’emoticons’, if these are acceptable, can help convey the tone of the message to a certain extent. Also, if you are always prepared to offer a clarification and apology if necessary if your message has been misinterpreted then you cannot go very much wrong.

There are indeed some excellent positives to the use of Blackboard (or any other Virtual Leaning Environment) in the university. The use of the VLE allowed us to work at home (or as a group in one person’s home) and enabled us to avoid spending the time travelling to university, and also the stress. We were able to discuss group assignments at a place convenient to the entire group, and as for individual assignments, there is a great deal to be said for sitting on one’s own room with a pizza and coke and typing up an assignment. While it took some getting used to, once I got used to the system, I greatly appreciated the availability of all the information that was made available on an anytime, anywhere basis. However, I think that I would not like to pursue course of study that was conducted wholly through the VLE. This is because I felt that the face to face interaction I had with the lecturers of most modules was important, even if it consisted of me simply sitting passively in class listening to the lecture. This is because I felt I could understand much more when it was the lecturer explaining a certain point in person, not reading the written word; additionally, during face to face interaction, I had the opportunity of clearing any doubts that popped into my mind, and one once occasion, the teacher drew a simple diagram which allowed me to grasp the concept quickly; this would not have been possible if we were discussing the topic on the discussion forum on Blackboard. If all the convenience of using a VLE in additional to face to face teaching can be made available in a cost-efficient circumstance, then I would definitely recommend the use of Virtual Learning Environments. As for discussions on Blackboard, with my experience, I am now a bit confident at posting my comments on discussion topics. Perhaps the next semester I may even be bold enough to start up discussion on new topics if the opportunity presents itself.

References

Hambridge, S. (1995) RFC1855: Netiquette Guidelines (Available online at http://rfc.net/rfc1855.html – last accessed Aug 2007)

Leahy, S. (2006) The Secret Cause of Flame Wars Wired (Available online at http://www.wired.com/science/discoveries/news/2006/02/70179 – last accessed Aug 2007)

Objective of Curriculum

The main focus of this curriculum is to incorporate elements of children’s developmental domains which contribute to the holistic being. Our activities are designed by taking into consideration the children we have observed for our child study. Although we recognize the concept of play in the curriculum, we feel that it is also important to provide pupils with a structured curriculum that would supplement their developmental needs. The curriculum aims to develop the children’s socio-emotional development, cognitive – language development and physical development through the integration of play as well as the inquiry, project and thematic approach.

In doing so we have ensured that children are provided with an avenue for aesthetic and creative expression, language and literacy development, practice for numeracy skills, motor skills development along with creating an awareness of the self, the environment and the social sphere.

As part of our design objective, we aim to ensure continuity from what children have learnt in preschool to the primary school curricula. We feel that this would ease pupils into making the transition from an environment which they have developed a sense of familiarity (i.e. the kindergarten setting) and the one which they are being initiated into. Partnered with the other key approaches, our team firmly belief that by encompassing our curriculum around play, it would supplement children’s developmental needs which in our view have been neglected in the current school curricula.

Our Curriculum

Having observed the children at the various kindergarten settings, our group have decided to build our curriculum around the concept of “learning through play”. We recognize that play is an integral part of a child’s holistic development and it should not be omitted as the child progresses into the primary education system. From our child study we observed that each of these children displayed varying interests and abilities which can be extended through a curriculum centered on the concept of play. Play, as we know it, has been defined in many ways by various theorists. One of the many definitions is by Van Hoorn (2007) who affirms that “[p]lay plays a big part of young children’s development and expression of the child’s developing personality, sense of reflect, intellect, social capacity and physicality.” (p. 4). The activities that surround our curriculum are aimed to address these vital domains of the developing child. Van Hoorn (2007) also theorizes that the concept of play exists in a continuum which ranges from “spontaneous” to “guided” to “teacher-directed play”. We have adopted this concept throughout the entire design of this curriculum. Through the integration of both individual and group activities, we are taking into consideration each child’s learning needs as we acknowledge their different learning styles.

In our planning, we aim to invigorate this concept of play into our curriculum by integrating other key approaches used in the current school curricula. The curriculum is designed such that it is centered on the concept of “learning through play” while at the same time utilizing the thematic approach, inquiry approach and the project approach. We have developed the following tripartite diagram to illustrate how we have incorporated the various approaches in our curriculum.

Thematic Approach

We have chosen to implement the thematic approach as it keeps our curriculum design focused. In view of what has been stated by Wortham (2006), we agree that since the “thematic curriculum is completed over a period of time, there is opportunity for exploration, investigation, and representation of learning in an unhurried environment” (p.299). Ideally, the curriculum should be executed through a span of eight weeks, within a term. This is to ensure that children would be given ample time to develop skills and knowledge surrounding the adopted theme. We felt that the thematic approach would also aid in children’s learning as they build up experiences based on an ongoing theme which stimulates children into meaning-making as they acquire skills and develop in the different domains.

Inquiry Approach

The inquiry approach has also been interwoven into this curriculum because we believe that pupils should be given the opportunity to explore for themselves the learning possibilities through inquisitive questions. Much of the activities designed in this curriculum has been targeted at children in honing their inquiry skills. Pupils are encouraged to seek solutions using the open resources made available to them.

Project Approach

The project approach was also adopted in this curriculum as a way of assessing pupils’ learning. Through this mode of assessment, where pupils are given free reign of the project that they could work on, pupils would be exposed to a variety of activities that taps on their various abilities. Both Vygotsky and Piaget believed that it is through personal manipulation and discoveries that children are able construct an understanding of their learning experiences. Additionally with this project approach pupils will be able to work in a social context where they can learn through a partnership with the teacher.

Suggested Activities

As an illustration the suggested activities in the framework we have included is based on the theme of Occupation. We planned these activities with the assumption that it is theme which the children have collaboratively decided on as a whole class. The activities incorporated in this curriculum development takes into account the interests and strengths of the children we have observed during our child study. For instance, we have given pupils the choice of their mode of presentation for the role play which can be done through dramatization or a musical performance. Moreover this would encourage pupils to form a self awareness of their personal strengths and interests.

The Career Day is essentially a whole day event where children will be given an opportunity to exhibit the product of the projects in which they have undertaken within their groups. We have implemented this concept of a career day as we feel that this would encourage children to take responsibility and pride of their achievements and what they are capable of creating.

Introduction:Medical ethics became one of the most important teaching modules in most of the medical schools especially in the last three decades particularly in US7 . Ethics defined as the study of morality, careful and systematic reflection on and analysis of moral decision and behavior4. Hence the medical ethics is the study of ethics related to medical practice. There are four primary principals for medical ethics where all basic medical teaching teaches to medical students. These are non-malfeasance, beneficence, justice and autonomy with sub sectional principals like truth telling and confidentiality.12 Now a day’s doctors are facing more ethical questions and dilemmas in day to day clinical practice, this can be partly attributed to the increase in the knowledge of patients about their health from the media and internet . Studies showed that there is a strong relation between resolving ethical issues and medical errors especially in the area of informed consent and end of life care8. In addition, the court compensation for medico legal cases opened the door for public to find faults for doctors or the health systems to earn some wealth from it! All these made the teaching of how to handle an ethical issue and resolve it very essential to produce a competent skillful physician.

Medical schools adopted different styles and methods for teaching medical ethics, it included didactic lecturing, small group seminars, case based discussion and simulated patient but without uniformity or consensus as to method or content7. This could be as a result of lack of agreement about what shall we teach in medical ethics7.

At sultan Qaboose University, medical students have a one interdisciplinary activity (IDA) week for medical ethics during their mid of fifth year. During this week speakers from different medical and surgical specialties present to the students a common ethical issues encounter. This week is also attended by Islamic scholar (Professor Albar) to comment on Islamic perspective in selective cases like abortion and end of life care . As co-organizer of the course I introduced the presentation of clinical cases by the student to the entire group. I asked each subgroup of the students to select a case where there is an ethical issue and reflect on what was done and how can we improve it.

I found the reflect practice theory is very suitable for teaching of medical ethics because it stimulates the thinking and give the students the opportunity to analyze the ethical dilemma and how to resolve it.

The Theory:
The theory of reflective practice is attributed primarily to Donald Schon3, 5. In life and based on our knowledge and experience we take decision easily to events that we are expecting and used to experience. However when surprise or unexpected event take place, based on Schon theory, people develop two types of reflection to that event. The first one is “Reflection in action ” and it occurs immediately.”It is the ability to learn and develop continually by creatively applying current and past experiences and reasoning to unfamiliar events while they are occurring”5. The second, “reflection on action,” occurs later. ” It is a process of thinking back on what happened in a past situation, what may have contributed to the unexpected event, whether the actions taken were appropriate, and how this situation may affect future practice” 5. The reflection in action can be considered as an emergency decision in which the physician should take the risk of being mistaken, however, this type of decision should be appreciated by people in authority if later turned to be not the perfect way of handling it and that is because it was taken based on the inputs of that situation and surrounding circumstances unless it is clearly odd approach. In contrast, the reflection on action comes later when the physician finished all duties and started re-calling cases seen and decisions taken. At this point s/he will start to bring other options and thoughts that could serve the situation better than the ones taken. This extremely important because it enables us to spend time exploring why we acted as we did, what was happening in a group and so on13. In addition if this type of reflection done in group (Peer) will lead to even more reasonable and appropriate reaction to the surprise14.

Since this paper discusses the teaching of medical ethics, the following example will illustrate this approach. A 32 years old pregnant lady in her 3rd trimester involved in car accident and sustained severe head injury , brought to the casualty and treating physician confirmed her death but noticed that the baby still kicking !. Limited experience and lack of awareness about the regulation of such the situation made it a surprise for the physician. He used his basic knowledge of saving life and decided to perform postmortem caesarian section (PMCS) and a second surprise came when the husband arrived to refused PMCS!! . Reflection on action for such case is extremely crucial to reach to an approach which is ethical, legal and satisfy the patient. It is usually reached when the case is presented to the peer and each one is discussing different perspective of the case. In the previous example the reflection on action could be asking a senior physician on duty be a good option for the case.

Application:
At college of medicine in sultan Qaboose University, medical students are divided in group each composed of about 10 to 15 students (Boys and Girls). Each group will be asked to prepare a clinical case seen in practice where there was an ethical issue (e.g. breaching confidentiality) and one or two of the group members will present the case to whole group during the medical ethics week forum. Students will be informed in advance about the objectives and strategies of this approach and each group will linked to a facilitator who is usually senior medical/paramedical faculty with experience of making difficult medical decisions6. The group will keep in touch with facilitator either in person or online (e.g. email) to show the contents, structure and suitability of the case for presentation and discussion. The facilitator will guide the students in selecting the case and how to formulate the ethical issue and its resolution and use steps in table-1 adopted from Catherine Myser.9, 11

S/he will also teach them some basic ethical principal like doctors should refrain from being judgmental, patronizing or minipulative2. S/he will direct them to the appropriate resources and personals whenever required. In Oman, many decisions of ethical dilemma are driven by Islamic teaching and this is very prevalent in medical field, hence students will be directed to Islamic scholars who have some medical background in order to help them understanding Islamic teaching in medical field. During the medical ethics IDA week forum, each group will present their case to the entire group in the presence of the facilitators. The presentation will be briefing about the case, the ethical issue, what was done, and how can we do better? More time will be given for discussion and comments by other students who are not member of the presenting group. The discussion will be regulated and guided by the facilitator supervising the presenting group. At the end of discussion the facilitator will resolve any argument and give the final comment summarizing the ethical issue and the best way to deal with it.

Discussion:
Medical schools around the world used different models in teaching medical ethics; the variation in selection of teaching model could rise from the availability of resources, number of students and curriculum design. For example, both university of Pennsylvania and university of Washington used small group facilitation and peer interaction while uniformed services university introduced a novel model called ” SCOOP ” which stand for Students’ Clinical Observation Of Preceptors11 . A SCOOP reverses the process of evaluation by giving the students evaluation form and ask them to evaluate the teachers. This gives them the opportunity to identify the teaching skills and methods reflect on them and hence acquire the appropriate one and avoid the other one. Shaheen and his group wrote in commentary about time to unified approach to medical ethics where he advocated for unified framework of ethics education justifying that ” it will ensures measurable and accountable basis for the complex of far-reaching ethical issues present in the medical field”7 . However, it is difficult and impractical to unify the contents and materials of medical ethics for different parts of the world where there is a diversity of culture, believe and traditional values. That is because most of the ethical decisions are driven by these factors. For example, In Oman (and other Muslims countries) it is forbidden to drink any amount of alcohol as per the Islamic teaching, hence it is unethical to advice patient to drink alcohol as part of heart protection advice while the same advice can be carried out normally in non-Muslim country. However, I support the statement of Rameshkumar in his paper “Ethics in medical curriculum ” when he said “The structure of ethics education has to be closely monitored and the curriculum goals have to be well defined”.10

The strength of this proposal is that there is national and international move toward teaching of medical ethics to both pre and post graduates students. Most of the senior physicians who did not have training in medical ethics realized that it made a gap in their qualification and they urge the new generation in order not to miss the chance. In Oman the support of the current and previous deans of college of medicine at sultan Qaboose University along with other many medical faculties will make this proposal overcome any obstacles. In addition, there interest of health care providers from different medical disciplines in any activities in medical ethics (workshop, seminars and lectures) will prepare the ground and the environment for the proposal to grow up at the university. This interest always clears during our annual medical ethics week where we get several requests from different institutes and departments asking for registration to the event although the week primarily designed for medical students.

The challenges that this proposal might face is the limited resources that include trained personals and teaching material. The later is easier to overcome since it merely financial and the college is ready to provide any recommended teaching material as long as there is a clear vision and mission of its utilization. In term of training personals, there are already two faculties sent abroad for master in bioethics. In addition, there are several faculties who has special interest in teaching of ethics, all these will make the overcome of human resources obstacles more feasible.

Recommendation:
In order to implement this theory in teaching medical ethics to medical students I recommend the college to consider the following points:

Identify and train people interested in teaching of medical ethics. The training should be for high degree ( Master , PhD ) and it is preferred to be in a center where culture and value of people are close to Oman.
Provide teaching resources and materials to students. It should include textbooks, journals, video … etc.
Instruct the clinicians to integrate teaching of issues related to medical ethics in their daily patient care.
Include assessment of medical ethics in the standard summative and formative methods of assessment in the college.
Regular evaluation and audit of the program in order be developed farther .

The role of grammar in English language teaching

For many teachers, grammar plays a central role in their classroom methodology. However, in 1980s there was an anti-grammar movement which was influenced from the idea of Krashen that ‘ grammar can be acquired naturally from meaningful input and opportunity to interact in the classroom: in other words, the grammartical competence can be developed in a fluency-oriented environment without conscious focus on language forms. For Hymes, said that

… rules of use without which the ruled of grammar would be useless. Just as rules of syntax can control aspects of phonology, and just as rules of semantics perhaps control aspects of syntax, so rules of speech acts enter as a controlling factor for linguistic form as a whole…

( Hymes 1972 : 278 )

From his suggestion, the grammar is one of the most important factors in language teaching and learning, especially it is the ‘ communicative’ element to communicative language ability. The components of communicative language ability are linguistic competence, pragmatic competence, discourse competence strategic competence and fluency. The linguistics competence is composed from a knowledge of spelling, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammatical structure and linguistic semantics.

Meaning, form and use : The past
Course description

This course is involved the past tense which refers to the meaning of the tense, the form of the tense and the use of the tense. The learners must know the rules of the tense and can form the patterns of the tense and can use it correctly. The learners are able to apply the tense in the real situations.

Content

The past tense is divided into 3 categories which are:

Past simple tense
past continuous tense
Past perfect tense
Past perfect continuous tense

The four types have their own forms, meanings and uses.

Past Simple is used to indicate the actions which already happened in the past and finished at the specific time in the past. The actions might be long or short. And there are some kinds of rules should be remembered about this tense : regular verb , irregular verbs, questions and negative sentences.
Past Continuous is used to describe the past actions in progress.
Past Perfect is used to talk about the situations which begin in the past and continue to the period of time in the past and then finish at the time.
The Model of teaching grammar: the PPP model

There are 3 stages to teach grammar: presentation, practice and production.

The first stage is presentation. These are some kinds of activities of teachers to apply in their teaching, for example, the teachers present new language in context so that meaning is clear. The teachers may present the new form in a natural spoken or written text so that students can see its use in discourse. Then, he/ she links the new form to what students already know. Next, he/ she checks comprehension. The teacher elicits the form from students where possible and exploit their existing knowledge.

The second stage is practice. The teacher helps the students memorize the form and produce the word order. Then, he/she give intensive practice through repetition and provide opportunities for feedback and error correction. Next, the teacher develop confidence of the students.

The last stage is production. The teacher reduces control and encourage students to find out what they can do. Then, the teacher encourage the students to use the forms in expressing their own content and teacher helps students see the usefulness of what they have learned and then to check what has been learned and diagnose problems.

Example of the lesson plan

This is a good example of the lesson plan which is a very interesting one and can help all language teacher to teach and try new way to teach grammar through narrative.

Narratives in the Simple Past

Teacher: Catherine Eslinger

Class: Linguistics 577

Date of Explanation: October 14th, 1997

Proficiency Level: Beginning

Age of Learners: High School Age and Above

Objectives:
Students will be able to compliment others’ past actions.
Students will be able to describe actions in the past using the simple past tense.
Students will be able to understand and recognize the simple past forms in a folktale. They will be able to supply some of these forms when asked.
Materials Required:

A simple folk tale, colored markers, 11?17 paper, a personal photograph, photographs that students have brought from home.

Warm up/Review:

Model giving compliments in the present tense, which students have recently studied. Give several examples and write them on the board, such as “I like your smile” and “I like the way you read aloud.” Have students move around the room giving compliments to each other, following this model (in addition to listening to Students as they practice, give class members compliments).

Presentation Practice Evaluation:

Stop the fluid pair activity and model giving compliments that use the past tense: “I appreciated the way you helped return papers to the class yesterday” or “I loved the food you cooked for our class party last week.” Write these forms on the board, underlining the time expression. Write some of the compliments students gave each other that use the same verbs in the present tense. Underline the verbs. Have students induce the rule. Include auxiliaries in the past, particularly in question formation. Play “Alibi.” Have two students leave the room, pretending to be suspects of a crime. Model the types of questions students could ask of a suspect, writing some patterns on the board. One “suspect” returns when called and students ask questions about his or her whereabouts at the time of the “crime.” When they have exhausted the questioning possibilities, the first student again leaves the room and the second is asked the same questions to see if their alibis match. Pay attention to students’ use of the past tense. Are they able to use it correctly? Note any irregular verbs for which students have overgeneralized the rule for putting in the past tense.

Present patterns for types of irregular past tense verbs that students have used in “Alibi.” If students have used these and overgeneralized, present categories like feel-felt, steal-stole, bring-brought and begin-began. Preview “Llama and the Great Flood” by talking about legends and folk tales in other cultures, finding Peru on a map, etc. Read it aloud, leaving out regular and irregular verbs the students have just studied in the past tense. Ask them to supply those verbs. Cue them with the present tense of the verb. Listen to the students. Are they able to supply the correct form of the verb in the simple past tense?

If other irregular forms have come up in the folktale, present these exceptions to the rule. Show students a personal photo of some interesting past event. Describe it using the simple past tense. Have the students write a short description of their own photo in the simple past. In pairs, they will share their description and photo with another class member.

Contingency plan:

If some students have forgotten photos, have them imagine the scene of a photo they have at home. Listen to the pairs practice. Are the students able to use the past tense fluently and accurately? Note any new irregular past tense forms that come up. If other irregular verb forms have come up in the descriptions of photos, present those exceptions to the rule. If not, I will not present any new material at this time. Although this activity provides more practice, it is primarily intended to evaluate students’ learning. Post six pieces of 11 x 17 paper around the room. Each page has a different sentence prompt on it. These include: “When I was a child. . . ,” “When I first started to learn English. . . ,” “Last week. . . ,” “After my last birthday . . . ,” “Yesterday. . . ,” and “This morning . . . .” In teams of three, each team with a different colored marker, students go around the room to the various papers and write narrative endings to these prompts. To correct serious errors, send a student from a team that is doing that aspect of the activity correctly to help the struggling team for a moment. Note the names of team members using particular colors and examine the papers after class to see which students are struggling with the forms.

If students have again overgeneralized the rule for the simple past in other categories of verbs, present those verbs to them. Allow students to add to the sheets of paper with prompts on them using the irregular verbs they have just learned. Pay attention to how students are forming all past forms, particularly the irregular ones. Again, note who is struggling by identifying teams using particular colored markers.

Application:

Assign students to find a picture from a magazine or book of a fashionable item of clothing people wore in the past. It can be from any time period in the past, whether the nineteen sixties in the U.S. or the fifteenth century in their own countries. Students will show the class the picture of this clothing, tell who wore it, in what time period, and in what place. They must also tell the class for what occasions they believe the clothing was worn, and any other information they know or have found out about the clothing.

Finally, they should tell the class whether or not they would like to wear it, and where and when they would wear it. Self-evaluation: This lesson is too long and has too little focus on narratives to really be effective. I have underestimated the time required for students to induce rules, be able to apply them in the story, and especially write and then tell their own past narrative about a photograph. I don’t want to have to rush that; I’m hoping it will be interesting and important enough to them that they will want to tell the full story, and tell it well. I have decided that although “Alibi” is a good game for practice of the past tense, it doesn’t belong in this lesson. It can come in a later lesson.

How can effective teachers best engage students in learning?

Why is developing positive communication skills important for effective teachers?

References

THE CONTRIBUTION OF LINGUISTICS AND PSYCHOLOGY TO LANGUAGE TEACHING

Since the beginning of the 20^th century investigations in the fields of psychology and lingusitics have paved the way to new concepts of language teaching. On the basis the acquired empirical evidence, linguists, researchers and scholars have developed certain methods to improve the process of child and adult language acquisition. According to Stern (1992), “One of the main features of the development of language pedagogy has been the continuous attempt to renew language teaching through changes in teaching methods” (p.6). To a great extent, these new approaches “have reflected changes in theories of the nature of language and of language learning” (Richards & Rodgers, 2001 p.1). The aim of this essay is to analyse the impact of linguistics and psychology on language teaching; such an analysis has been a topic of increasing importance over the last years, as the recent reforms and educational standards are considerably based on both disciplines. These reforms are introduced to account for individual differences of language learners and to diversify the process of language acquisition. Although many language teachers take psychology and linguistics courses in universities, only some of them can effectively apply their knowledge of psychology and linguisitics to language teaching. This inconsistency can be explained by two key factors: firstly, there are many controversies in research findings and, secondly, the received results are not tested within the classroom environment. Thus, the role of a modern language teacher is to fill the gaps between theoretical assumptions of linguists or psychologists and practical usage.

Linguistics as a discipline investigates the structure of language and different processes of language acquisition. The gradual shift from structural to generative linguistics reveals the linguists’ attempts to establish a new taxonomy for language teaching. Structural linguisitics initiated by Ferdinand de Saussure (1966) at the beginning of the 20^th century delves deeply into word forms and their meanings. In Brown’s (1980) viewpoint, “Structural linguistics had provided tools for dissecting language into its smallest parts and for contrasting two languages” (p.242). This school of linguistics is more interested in modern speech patterns rather than in diachronic language changes. Withdrawing from the traditional historical-descriptive analysis, structural linguistics (together with behaviouristic psychology) has challenged the efficacy of the Grammar-translation method and has generated the emergence of the Audio-Lingual Method. As Larsen-Freeman (1986) states, the Grammar-Translation Method prevailed in language teaching up to the middle of the 20^th century. This method provides learners with an opportunity to acquire grammar and vocabulary skills; however, this is not the case with communicative skills. The fact is that the Grammar-Translation Method “views language learning as consisting of little more than memorising rules and facts” (Richards & Rodgers, 2001 p.5). In light of this, the method satisfies the needs of those learners who perform standardised tests or translations, but it is inappropriate for those learners who want to speak a foreign language.

In contrast to the Grammar-Translation Method, the Audio-Lingual Approach puts major focus on continual repetition of different language patterns and listening. Applying this method to language teaching, educators help learners recognise phrasal verbs and other language structures that were fully neglected in the Grammar-Translation Method. The obvious advantage of the Audio-Lingual Approach is that error correction is reduced, while motivation of learners is increased. In this approach, as Stern (2001) points out, imitation of speech is more crucial than understanding of the meaning. Although the Audio-Lingual Approach is certainly more effective for the formation of learners’ linguistic competence than the Grammar-Translation Method, it is unsuitable for the formation of learners’ communicative competence. However, in the Total Physical Response Approach proposed by Asher (1969) more heed is paid to learners’ comunicative competence. Integrating the concepts of structural linguistics and behaviourist psychology into his approach, Asher (1969) implies that both the first and second language is easily acquired if the balance between action and speech is achieved.

Unlike structural linguistics, generative/transformational linguistics proposed by Noam Chomsky (1966) deals with the analysis of learners’ unconscious cognition rather than with the language production. In other words, generative linguistics specifies that there are certain natural rules with the help of which a learner constructs sentences. In the 1960-1980s the Natural Approach emerged on the basis of the concepts proposed by Chomsky (1966) and Krashen and Terrell (1983). According to Krashen and Terrell (1983), both children and adults use their innate LADs (Language Acquisition Devices) in the process of language learning. But unlike children, adults possess problem-solving skills that allow them to acquire language in conscious and unconscious ways. Two important conclusions can be drawn from theoretical assumptions of Krashen and Terrell (1983): firstly, in childhood a language is acquired, in adulthood it is learned; secondly, communication is the major element of adult language learning.

Psychology as a discipline examines the functions of the human mind and their relation to human behaviour. The move from behaviouristic to cognitive psychology in the middle of the 20^th century signifies that psychologists became interested in scientific research and analyses of intellectual processes. Behaviouristic psychology supported by Skinner (1984) adheres to the idea that language teaching should be based on observations of learners’ behaviours rather than on the examination of inner factors. Seen from this viewpoint, the process of language teaching occurs under the constant control of a teacher with the minimal use of reinforcement strategies. While the behaviouristic school of psychology has inspired the use of computer-based materials in language teaching, the cognitive school of psychology has generated the spread of discovery learning programs. Cognitive psychology has contributed much to the spread of the Communicative Language Teaching Approach supported by Widdowson (1978) and the Silent Way Approach proposed by Gattegno (1976). Special attention in the Communicative Language Teaching Approach is given to interaction, communication in a foreign language and use of authentic reading materials (Nunan, 1991). Taking into account the research on human cognition, the Silent Way Approach has changed the direction of language teaching. This approach allows learners to devise their own language hypotheses and verify their validity in practice. Unquestionably, the Silent Way Approach shapes learners’ freedom of thought and helps them “develop their own inner criteria for correctness” (Larsen-Freeman, 1986 p.62). As communication in the Silent Way Approach and the Communicative Language Teaching Approach occurs in the target language, learners’ communicative skills are formed in a rapid pace. Contrary to the Grammar-Translation Method, these approaches pay much attention to phonetics and phonology and introduce different “problem-solving activities” (Richards & Rodgers, 2001 p.27). While in the Grammar-Translation Method many parallels are drawn between the native language and the target language, such parallels are not employed in the Communicative Language Teaching Approach and other recent methods.

The idea of communicative competence is the core principle of other emerged methods, in particular, the Community Language Learning Method and the Suggestopaedia. These approaches reveal inconsistencies of prior methods, implying that there is a close connection between language and context. The Community Language Learning Method is quite popular in today’s language teaching due to its learner-oriented ethics. The Suggestopedia Approach concentrates on relaxation as an integral part of successful language acquisition; the widespread activity of this approach is listening to music during language lessons. Overall, all methods that have been developed under the impact of linguistics and psychology highlight group working and the use of individual approaches to every learner. Group working shapes learners’ communicative skills and problem-solving abilities; individual approaches are crucial for the formation of learners’ identities and recognition of factors that affect language acquisition. Many variables are juxtaposed in culturally or socially diverse learning environment; hence, individual approaches allow to reveal all obstacles to language learning. Linguisitics and psychology have demonstrated that the principal goal of any teaching method is to help learners use a language in everyday situations and in different settings rather than construct gramatically-correct utterances. The Task-Based Language Teaching Approach is developed for these specific purposes. Designing versatile tasks, an educator teaches language learners to respond flexibly to the given activity and co-operate with peers.

As the essay suggests, linguistics and psychology have significantly reinforced the need for efficient teaching methods. Under the impact of these disciplines, language teachers have started to experiment with approaches, making an attempt to reconcile theory with practice. The structural school of linguistics has provided educators with valuable insights on the process of language acquisition. The generative school of linguistics has revealed that language acquisition in children occurs on an unconscious level, while language acquisition in adults occurs on both conscious and unconscious levels. The behaviouristic school of psychology has reduced the importance of meaning in language acquisition, but has stimulated the implementation of computers in schools and universitites. The cognitive school of psychology has rejected settled opinions and has defined the concepts that are successfully used in teaching culturally diverse learners. Taken together, linguistics and psychology have revealed that different methods should be used in language teaching, methods that integrate such techniques as reinforcement, individual approaches and communication (Kumaravadivelu, 2003). As new teaching methods came to the fore, the role of an educator in language teaching was changed. In the Audio-Lingual Method, the Suggestopedia or the Natural Approach a teacher is treated as an instructor; contrariwise, in the Communicative Language Teaching Approach or the Community Language Learning a teacher is an assistant to language learners.

Bibliography

Asher, J. J. (1969) ‘The Total Physical Response Approach to Second Language Learning’. The Modern Language Journal, 53 (1), 3-17.

Brown, H. D. (1980). Principles of language learning and teaching. Englewood Cliffs, N.J: Prentice Hall Regents.

Chomsky, N. (1966) Topics in the theory of generative grammar. The Hague: Mouton.

Gattegno, C. (1976) The Common sense of teaching foreign languages. New York: Educational Solutions Inc.

Krashen, S. & Terrell, T. (1983) The Natural Approach: Language acquisition in the classroom. Oxford: Pergamon Press.

Kumaravadivelu, B. (2003) Beyond methods: Macrostrategies for language teaching. New Haven, C. T.: Yale University Press.

Larsen-Freeman, D. (1986) Techniques and principles in language teaching. New York: Oxford University Press.

Nunan, D. (1991) Language teaching methodology: A textbook for teachers. London: Prentice Hall International.

Richards, J. C. & Rodgers, T. S. (2001) Approaches and methods in language teaching. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Saussure, F. de (1966) Course in General Linguistics. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company.

Skinner, B. F. (1984) ‘The operational analysis of psychological terms’. Behavioural and brain sciences, 7 (4), 547-581.

Stern, H. (1992) Issues and options in language teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Stern, H. (2001) Fundamental concepts of language teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Widdowson, H. G. (1978) Teaching language as communication. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Part 1. Examine the treatment of lexis in two course-books. How are the items introduced, practised and tested? Take into account the authors intentions and illustrate your account by close reference to one unit/chapter from each book

“…we need to see English language teaching as located in the domain of popular culture as much as in the domain of applied linguistics.”

(Pennycock, 1998, p162 cited in Harmer, 2001, p94)

For the purpose of this essay, lexis is defined simply as the words that make up a language. It includes all levels from morphemes to lexical phrases (Nattinger, 1988 cited in Harmer, 2001. It also includes the manner in which we ‘recast’ and reframe words with those that are similar, equivalent or alternative in order to fix, or negotiate (McCarthy, 1990), our understanding of the meaning.

The two selected course texts, Cutting Edge (Cunningham & Moor, 2004) and Matters (Bell, Gower & Cunninham, 1998) both integrate elements of a lexical syllabus into their approach. In the following two sections – Module 8 of Cutting Edge and Unit 6 of Matters (see Appendix 1) – lexis is introduced and expanded through a number of methods. Whilst Cutting Edge expounds an engage- practise – activate style (Harmer, 2001) of learning cycle (see Walmsley, 1979 cited in Els et al for a exploration of unit based teaching cycles), both combine a discovery learning style with more traditional grammatical constructs.

For example, Unit 6 of Matters is entitled Are You Green?. The subject area is the natural world and the subheading is the environment. The language focus of the unit is:

“…sentence structure, in particular defining relative clauses (sometimes known as ‘identifying’ or ‘restrictive’ clauses); clauses of purpose and clauses of result and reason.” (Matters, Bell & Gower, 1998, Unit 6)

This unit introduces a range of vocabulary and contextualises both its language style and content initially through a magazine article. These are then expanded through an intentionally inflammatory ‘interview’. The exercises, although sometimes appearing initially divorced from the previous exercise, conform to a learning cycle approach. They relate to earlier learning as well as serving to re-enforce the meaning of the vocabulary and its contexts. The focus on relative clauses, as with lexical phrases, aims at acquiring a familiarity that enables the students to specific forms more naturally and correctly. In both texts, the material is introduced through oral presentation, discussion, reading and written work. Brainstorming serves t is similar to Greens (1993) word wall in that it provides the vocabulary and offers the opportunity for visual and oral re-enforcement.

Cutting Edge has a Language Focus Section. This follows the same practise of building language familiarity through building ‘comparisons and talking about similarities’ (Cunningham & Moor, 2004). Both use individual pictorial comparison followed by group discussion to re-enforce vocabulary and make connections to specific situations. As with Matters the same language is used in several formats – a listening and a reading activity.

It is worth nothing that both texts recognise how age and culture affects the contexts of a lexicon. Matters warns that:

‘ In multinational classes, be careful: not all countries have the same level of sympathy for and awareness of environmental issues and scientific jargon’ (Bell & Gower, 1998, Introduction).

They acknowledge that, as Bowerman (1978) states, ‘Lexical rules are language – and culture – specific.’ (cited in Larsen-Freeman & Long, 1991). However, both programs aim to move a student away from lexical over-generalisations (Backhouse, 1994) and increase depth of knowledge and breadth of vocabulary. Backhouse (1994) relates lexical development to intra and extra – lingual processes ie the “semantic relations which hold between lexical items in a given language.” (p.19) and the “paradigmatic relations” or the specific fields that define meaning within that context. Assessment of student understanding looks at how individuals develop vocabulary around a subject area through discussion, class response and exercises.

In essence, it appears that both texts use a ‘field theory’ approach that allows for lexical compartmentalisation and a hyponomic (see McCarthy, 1990, p19) focus on developing associated meanings (Carter & McCarthy, 1988). However, they do not limit themselves to associating specific vocabularly within specific fields.

“Lexical phrases or ‘language chunks’ are like prefrabricated building units.” (Lewis, cited in Harmer, 2001, p.21)

Part 2. How effective is the treatment of lexis in the two chosen units for a group of learners with whom you are familiar? What changes would you make in using these units with the learners you have identified?

Class Profile

This class consists of seventeen males and five females, all L1 Arabic speakers. They come from six countries throughout the Middle East and North Africa. It is an intermediate level class. 30% are students, 40% are supervisory/managerial levels of employees in Government departments or from private businesses. 20% are self-employed private businessmen and the remaining 10% are homemakers. The age range is 20-58 years. They are currently about half way through a twenty week English course.

Whilst the treatment of lexis in the two chosen units is efficient and effective, it does benefit from some individual tailoring towards the above class. For example with some of the students I would perhaps encourage a move towards a more self directed learning plan (Pemberton et al, 2001). Others need more scaffolding. I have also tried to cater for learning styles so that a variety of exercises are supported by a variety of materials and presented in more than one way. I have not simply repeated specifics, but changed the way they are communicated. Clearly, cognitive tools vary according to each individual and the situation so no assumptions should be made (see Papademetre & Scarino, 2000 for an exploration of class and culture) based on ones own parameters. However, the attached are two lesson plans that I have adapted to suit this class.

These are adapted to work on this classes particular understanding of certain collocations. Common patters are re-iterated:

verb + noun (fly a kite) adjective + noun (a light snowfall) adverb + verb (to boldly go) adverb + adjective (totally different) adjective + preposition (similar to) noun + noun (a collocation dictionary)

(adapted from http://www.eli.ubc.ca/teachers/lexicon.html)

However, as Schmitt 2000) and Thornbury (1999) both stress, idioms, idiomatic phrases and expressions – especially those with different meanings – are further developed. The aim is to provide the students with an all round lexical confidence supported by a good knowledge of vocabulary as well as lexical phrases. Where specific lexical approaches have been used, they are mentioned in the lesson plans and sequences.

Class of 22. Level

Intermediate – 02

TITLE: ARE YOU GREEN?

Adapted from Matters- Intermediate (Bell & Gower, 1998) Unit 6

Date

31^st January 2006

Lesson duration

60 minutes

Resources: handouts, cassettes, audio-player, white-board, OHP and transparencies

Course text books

Lesson Aims:

Reading skills: magazine article on the ‘ungreen’ Moore family
Comprehension check.
Vocabulary and pronounciation skills
Develop familiarity with colloquial and informal spoken and written English.
Develop language for use both in and out of classroom.
Develop language around a major current topic – environmentalism – that is widely relevant
Awareness of word fields
Contribute to discussion
Contribute to brainstorming sessions
Work independently with confidence
Work confidently with lexical variations eg the ‘schwa /?/
Familiarisation with colloquial English publications (newspaper, magazines, journal excerpts etc)
Contact with everyday English
Teacher modelling
Raise student awareness eg of pronounciation and meaning changes through stress syllabuls.
Phrasal words
Language ‘chunking’.
Awareness of expression and collocations, their usefulness and frequency
Develop OHP transparencies or posters of mind maps and word fields

Anticipated Problems

problems with reading new vocabulary
technical problems eg OHP, audio-player
timetable fit
have a ‘hit list’ of potential problem words and definitions ready
elicit and drill (time allowing) problem words where possible
encourage students to develop a ‘power word’ list (Cary, 2000) of their own.
Have English/Arabic dictionaries ready but use to note and refer to later
Stand-by handouts if OHP fails
Stand-by audio player
Ensure good time keeping

19.00

19.05

19.05

19.15

19.25

19.30

19.35

19.45

19.50

20.00

Introduction and warm up. Small talk, humour or anecdotes etc

Elicit the word green and discuss culturally specific colour associations eg in the UK blue can mean sad, yellow cowardice, red danger and green innocence, jealousy or environmental issues. Discuss and support with modelling and writing on white board.

Lexically this exploration of meanings associated with colour will help students understand language extension, engage through subject matter, encourage higher order thinking and build vocabulary necessary for the lesson.

Pairwork. Set the theme: two environmental problems facing the world presently ie global warming, loss of wildlife and habitiat etc. Elicit words and write on board. Set students to work together on this.

The connotations associated with environmental issues eg wildlife, habitat loss, global warming are real and relevant to most students. This exercise requires students to develop a lexical framework to support both facts and opinions and know which areas they wish to find more language to fill.

Ask students if in their countries they have an equivalent of the Green/Environmental Party? Explain what the Greens are and stand for. Set a discussion of this again in pairs.

This has the same lexical aim as the previous section.

Display a picture or poster of the Green Party on the white board. In pairs of threes read Are these people criminals? When finished reading, complete the exercise matching the paragraph number with the figure or object on the right of the page (see appendix 1) Read through the answers with the students.

Matters, p42/43. Set exercise 2 p.43. to do individually or in pairs.

Lexical rationale – aim for students to use and apply new language.

Go through answers a to e with the students, giving a verbal explanation of each and support on the white board.

Ask students to work in pairs and make a list of verbs on handouts eg: save, recycle, buy, ban, use, prevent. Show the students how these can be used in collocations and phrasal words from the text.

Lexical rationale – starting to extend vocabulary into actions associated with environmentalism and using a discursive exercise to encourage their recognition and usage.

Handouts Set exercise 3, a practise in relative clauses, and give out handouts. Students read through the test and complete it. Go through the answers with students answering one by one.

Lexical rationale – aims towards students developing referencing skills by looking up words either individually or in pairs.

Listening and speaking skills: pronounciation focus on the schwa. Students listen to the recording and take notes. Go through the exercise marking the syllables and stress in word pronounciation. Go through the answers on the white board.

Lexical rationale – as part 1 explored, pronounciation and stress hightens student awareness of how intonation affects meaning.

Second tape recording. Listen to the second recording and go through the rubric with the students. Students give answers back around the class and then practice in pairs the sentences in exercise 2. Matters p.45.

Lexical rationale – extension of pronounciation focus.

Wordspot focus. A lexical exercise to recap, re-iterate and re-enforce.

FINISH. Issue handouts of target text. Put a transparency of the “Something” word-field flow chart on the OHP. Divide the students into A’s and B’s. A reads the instructions on p.135 and B on p138. (answering each others questions.) Issue handouts f the word-field for homeword and ask students to add at 4-5 new phrases with ‘something’ in them. Follow up first thing next lesson.

Develops autonomous lexical growth at students own rate of learning ie with no time pressure

Class of 22. Level

Intermediate – 02

TITLE:

Adapted from Cutting Edge – Intermediate (Cunningham & Moor, 2004) Module 8

Date

04^th February 2006

Lesson duration

60 minutes

Resources: handouts, cassettes, audio-player, white-board, OHP and transparencies, Course text books

Lesson Aims:

To reinforce reading and listening skills
To reinforce comprehension.
Vocabulary and pronounciation skills
Develop familiarity with colloquial and informal spoken and written English.
Develop language for use both in and out of classroom.
Awareness of word fields
Contribute to discussion
Contribute to brainstorming sessions
Work independently with confidence
Establish preparation for next class
Reading and listening exercises
Vocabulary building exercises
Excerpts taken from Cutting Edge follow on from previous reading and listening exercises but focusing on how to use words (nouns, verbs, adjectives) in phrases and collocations used in everyday English
Teacher modelling
Phrasal words
Language ‘chunking’.
Awareness of expression and collocations, their usefulness and frequency
Develop OHP transparencies or posters of mind maps and word fields
Set grammar/language points, p44 (Matters), for home work reading (using scanning and familiarisation) in readiness for the next class

Anticipated Problems

Some problems with reading and pronounciation
problems with reading new vocabulary
technical problems eg OHP, audio-player
timetable fit
have a ‘hit list’ of potential problem words and definitions ready
elicit and drill (time allowing) problem words where possible
encourage students to develop a ‘power word’ list (Cary, 2000) of their own.
Have English/Arabic dictionaries ready but use to note and refer to later
Stand-by handouts if OHP fails
Stand-by audio player
Ensure good time keeping

Rationale for lesson focus

Students need to practice their reading, listening and speaking skills more.
They need to further their informal vocabulary
In the previouse lesson (Are you Green?) issues were featured and discussed at some length. This lesson aims to restore a balance and put into perspective the alternative view featuring some of the benefits of the modern world so it is not always perceived as a wholly negative experience as can be construed by ‘Green/Environmentalist’ action groups. This could be important to avoid confusion in some students minds. (The fact that alternative opinions exist regarding the controversy surrounding this subject across the world.

Timing

19.00

19.05

19.10

19.15

19.20

19.25

19.30

19.40

19.55

20.00

Introduction and warm up. Go over points from previous lesson. Small talk, humour or anecdotes etc (if time permits!) Review homework exercises concerning phrases and collocations from ‘Something.’

Appoint one student to write the answers on to the chart of white board.

Go around the class an dget their answers and their explanations from each student. Tell students to note down answers. Brief review of work then move on.

Flip chart of ‘somethings’ word-filed attached to white board.

Focus and elicit upon the words inventor and successful. Get associated words too – invent, invention, succeed from the students. Ask students to predict/guess what kind of advice/information will be found in the text from comparing pictures on the left to those on the right.

Handouts. Issue reading excerpts ‘How to be a successful inventor.’ Tell students to scan through the reading in 2-3 minutes. Read text individually. (Cutting Edge Teaching notes and coursebook.)

Check for understanding especially words and phrases like light bulb, to be patient, purpose, to understand the porential of something, a dot, a s screen, a button, a know.

Lexical rationale – re-enforcement of vocabulary plus the added re-pronounciation of read words, explanation of phrases indicates a development allowing for lexical phrases as well and comparative meanings.

Put the answers on the OHP and go through these one by one.

Handouts and transparency.

Group work. Set students to discuss this task in groups of four or five. Apoint one from each group and get their feedback in turns.

Listening and vocabulary skills (Cutting Edge, p.81) Handouts.

Pronounciation and pair work. Emphasise with the students beforehand that they only have to identify which machines are being discussed in the tape. Do one example for the students in A. Press tehbutton down then play cassette 1 stopping after each phrase is used to check answers. Discuss the answers to B in pairs.

Pair work. Set task 3, p81. Give students a few moments to think it over, preferably ones their partner is unfamiliar with students can draw it to explain it to the, Use examples each student is familiar with personally. Go around the class helping and prompting as needed. Explain using examples what a compound noun is. Go through the two rules – noun + gerund and gerund/noun + asdjective on the whiteboard. Repeat a couple of examples showing where the stress is to be found in both words ie laptop computer. Etc

Lexical rationale – as covered in part 1, stress is extremely important for realisation of language variability and meaning. In this case the lexicon is integrated with a grammatical function. Pair work and individual response help to focus students on the task in reinforce the lanaguage learning.

Give the students a little time to work this out then play cassette 2.

Listen and practise pronouncing the words before giving out the answers to the pronounciation task.

Set home work task (reading to familiarise only) Cutting Edge p81 handout.

FINISH read ahead of time p44, Unit 6, Matter’s Intermediate Unit 6. Go over again also the reading and pronounciation work taught in class today in preparations for the next lesson’s review of this. Check students again for clarification and understanding of these.

References

Backhouse, A.E. (1994) The Lexical Field of Taste: a semantic study of Japanese taste terms. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press

Bell, J., Gower, R. & Cunningham, G. (1998) Intermediate Matters. Harlow, Essex: Longman.

Carter, R., & McCarthy, M. (1988) Vocabulary and Language Teaching. Harlow, Essex: Longman.

Cary, S. (2000) Working with Second Language Learners: answers to teachers top ten questions. Portsmouth, USA: Heinemann

Cunningham , S. & Moor , P. (2005) Cutting Edge – Intermediate (14^th Impression) Harlow, Essex: Pearson English Language Teaching, Longman.

Green, J. (1993) The Word Wall: teaching vocabulary through immersion. Ontario, Canada: Pippin Publishing Ltd.

Harmer, J. (2001). The Practise of English Language Teaching. Harlow, Essex: Longman

Krause, K., Bochner, S., & Duchesne, S. (2003) Educational Psychology for learning and teaching. Southbank, Victoria: Thomson.

Lewis, M. (1993) Implementing the Lexical Approach. UK: Language Teaching Publictions

Larsen-Freeman. D., & Long, M (1991) An Introduction to Second Language Acquisition Research. Harlow, Essex: Longman

McCarthy, M. (1990). Vocabulary. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.

Papademetre, L. & Scarino, A. (2000) Integrating Culture Learning in the Languages Classroom: a Multi-perspecitive Conceptual Journey for Teachers. Melbourne, Australia: Language Australia

Pemberton, R., Toogood, S., Ho, S. & Lam, J. (2001) Approaches to advising for self-directed language learning. In Learner Autonomy (Leni Dam, Editor) The AILA Review 15, pp. 16-26

Schmitt,N (2000) Vocabulary in Language Teaching. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press

Thornbury, S (1999). How to Teach Vocabulary Harlow, UK: Longman

Websites

Parallel Processing. JamesL.McClelland & TimothyT.Rogers. Accessed 7 February 2006. http://www.nature.com/nrn/journal/v4/n4/abs/nrn1076_fs.html;jsessionid=98854A4BE16819AEB3B2C4220B9A470D

Lexicon http://www.eli.ubc.ca/teachers/lexicon.html accessed 9 February 2006