English Language Syllabuses: Definition, Types, Design, and Selection

2017

Chronologically speaking, the view to syllabus design has been changed over the decades of development of the phenomenon of second language learning and teaching, as we go through from language centered methods to learner centered methods and to learning centered methods. An attempt was made in this paper to revisit the concept and the types of syllabus approaches in the realm of second language learning and teaching. Topics analyzed included, the definition of syllabus, the categorization of syllabi types, the introduction of an integrative approach to syllabus design and the presentation of the proposed model to syllabus design. In this paper, I focus on the traditional and critical approaches to syllabus design and introduce an integrative approach and finally I present the proposed model to teachers and syllabus designers to apply in practical contexts.

A Monthly Double-Blind Peer Reviewed Refereed Open Access International Journal International Journal in Commerce, IT &social sciences http://www.ijmr.net.in email id-irjmss@gmail.com Abstract Designing a syllabus has always been a challenging task for the language teacher. Contemporary syllabus design covers all seven stages of a language operation-right from identifying the learner and his needs to evaluation.The present paper is an attempt to understand the many factors that need to be considered in the framing of a syllabus. An attempt is also made to highlight the different types of syllabi available for the teacher to explore given a particular teaching – learning situation.

This theoretical paper aims to highlight the four syllabus types which represent most syllabuses currently in practice and offers an account of the major theoretical insights that have contributed to the conceptualization of them in the field of language teaching. It also points out the major flaws involved in them and provides alternatives to deal with. This is followed by a discussion on the current thinking related to what a syllabus should be in terms of planning and implementation and the various alternative types available in the literature of syllabus. Prior to the conclusion, a section of this paper presents the place of these syllabus types in the three value systems.

The Modern Language Journal, 1989

Syllabus design plays an important role in the life of every teacher, however its centrality has become overshadowed by mainstream language teaching. A syllabus helps think systematically and coherently about what and how is being taught. Learning about the principles of syllabus design as well as being informed about the complexity of language teaching helps develop a more critical awareness of what a good syllabus actually is as well as review current practices. Are students being taught what they need to know? Are they being provided with meaningful and relevant pedagogic tasks? Is accuracy being focussed on at the expense of fluency or vice–versa? Is one aspect of language being privileged at the expense of others? These are just some of the questions that most teachers are concerned with. Finding appropriate answers is difficult. This book makes an attempt to give sufficient theoretical background that, combined with our own beliefs and assumptions about language teaching and learning, will help think about these issues systematically and overlay the whole pedagogical process with coherence.

History Research Journal, 2019

The English Language holds primacy in several levels of employment. This has drawn appeal towards the language as a valuable tool towards having an edge in ones skill set. Capitalizing on the image that English builds for ones employability and career advancement has become a trend set by employer and employee alike. It does indeed have its appeal in a global market, but its demand is due to the inability of educational institutions to provide verifiable and considerable output in students who are proficient in the English Language. Therefore the search for candidates with quality English skills is rather sparse in number. Attempts are of course made by academicians to change this reality but not to the level of a massive turnabout.

2014

The planning of courses including designing curriculum and syllabus is often ignored in English language teaching and teacher training. Harmer (2000) states that decisions about course content are very often not taken by teachers, but by some higher authority. Even many institutions present the syllabus in terms of the main textbook to be used - by a certain date, teachers are expected to have covered a certain number of units in the book. At the same time teachers are often provided with a list of supplementary material and activities available. Yet, the graduates of such programs as English teacher training are often required to carry out course design task without having received sufficient training to do so. As a matter of fact, course design requires specialized expertise which can be gained through learning and practice. Designing courses is unlike preparing one's own teaching as it should be understood by others who will use the design. Therefore, it is very urgent ...

Use of English and Communications courses are part of the curriculum of virtually all tertiary education programs in Nigeria. The need for such courses is especially relevant in a country like Nigeria where the language of instruction at the tertiary level is a second language in which students' proficiency levels are often disappointing. In this paper an attempt is made to make relevant generalizations about the effectiveness or otherwise of existing approaches to the teaching of these courses, concluding that the existing situation falls short of expectation. The paper proceeds to take a look at relevant scholarly insights into the leaching of English as a second language, and drawing from these, prescribe emphasis on reading as the only viable alternative, in view of the problems identified. Introduction The teaching of English language courses has become a permanent feature of all or at least, most courses or programmes in tertiary institutions in Nigeria. The compulsory teaching of such courses, of course, is necessitated by the need to enhance the competence of the students in English-the sole language of instruction at the tertiary level in Nigeria. It is clear that this imperative is made more pressing because English is a second language for the overwhelming majority of those studying in institutions of higher learning in Nigeria. It is very obvious that in recent times, there has been a decline in the ability of our students to communicate effectively either in written or oral media, regardless of what kind of pass in English they came in with. Also, some considerable degree of drop in communicative ability is also obvious among many graduates of our institutions regardless of whether they passed our English and communication courses. Obviously, the low quality of intakes from secondary school must be the dominant factor operating in this situation. However, when we consider the fact that our Use-of-English and communication courses are supposed to serve as opportunities for communicative skills improvement, especially for academic and post-graduation occupational purposes, we need to assess and take stock of our methods. In this regard the frank question, which we need to sincerely address, is whether our efforts are yielding the desired result. It is the belief of this writer that the answer to this question must be negative in view of what we can easily discover from the general observation of our students and the products of our academic programmes. Where there is a problem with the products, we must, among other things, scrutinise our methods. In the words of Cook (1991) "the proof of the teaching is in the learning" (P.3) In view of the above, this paper summarizes problems with the objectives and the content of most use of English courses, with additional insights into problems associated with the teaching methods. Thereafter, an attempt is made to give insights into past and present approaches to language teaching (especially seconds language teaching) and, drawing from these, the paper brings in the relevance of reading. General insights are also given into the salient question of selection of materials for a reading programme. This paper does not contain the technical nitty-gritty of syllabus design. It is simply an attempt to provide food for thought aimed at forming a general theoretical background for the subsequent design of relevant syllabuses for Use of English course in our institutions of higher learning