Department of Linguistics Page 1 of 15 Department of Linguistics Faculty of Human Sciences Macquarie University APPL601 Programming and Planning in TESOL ASSESSMENT GUIDE Semester 1, 2017 https://ilearn.mq.edu.au Department of Linguistics Page 2 of 15 Assessment at a Glance Task Description Weight Due date Task 1: Review of teaching context Research an English Language Teaching context in Australia or overseas, providing a 1000-word outline and critical review of its key features. 20% End of Week 5 (COB Friday 31 March) Task 2: Lesson plan with essay Prepare a detailed plan for a 2-hour skills-based lesson (lesson aims are to practice specific skills) for a specific group of learners. Make sure it has all four skills integrated. Write a 1200-word essay outlining the rationale for your decisions (based on the reading content of the unit) and explaining how the lesson’s features will support the students’ language learning. (Do not use the same activities submitted to APPL600) 35% End of Week 9 (COB Friday 12 May) Task 3: Unit of work with essay Create a unit of work (between 5 to 12 hours) including 2 sample lessons (one skills-based, one language-based). Write a 1500-word essay outlining the rationale for your decisions (based on the reading content of the unit) and explaining how the features of the unit and lessons will support the students’ language learning. 45% Week 13 (COB Friday 9 June) Please always check the assessment rubric used for marking and feedback uploaded in iLearn. You can use it as a guide before starting the assessment task and as a checklist before submitting it. Department of Linguistics Page 3 of 15 Assessment Task One Name: Review of teaching context Summary: Provide an outline for a chosen specific ELT context (preferably one that you may be working in in the future) and mention any relevant feature that may affect English language teachers working in it Due: End of Week 5 (COB Friday 31 March) Length: 1000 words Total weighting: 20% Identify an English Language Teaching context in Australia or overseas pointing out any potential implications that its features may have for teachers working in that context. Explore the ELT context and organise your information in a report format – please find a list of ideas below. In the assignment you only need to cover what you consider to be the most important features of the ELT context and give reasons why they are the most important. You will need to cite your sources and use and cite unit readings. Feel free to research as many aspects of the context as you would like, but make sure your report covers only the most important ones (only a few!) Please make sure to keep the word limit! Use referencing as required (APA or Harvard). [Here is an example: a private language school in a developing country (be specific) where English is taught in private schools and mainly for the reason to obtain a certificate to get a better job or extra credit at university. This affects student motivation, and teaching: exam-centered and not much value attached to group work, for example. What this means to teachers is... etc. There aren’t many up-to-date resources, so teachers may need to produce their own materials, which increases their work load etc. You will need to explore more factors regarding the teaching context and choose the most important ones to include in your assignment, and elaborate on those.] To those who already know the school and class they teach/are going to teach: your observations do not need to be referenced, of course, e.g. there are x number of students all from a refugee background. But the discussion of the issue, i.e. teaching refugees, can or needs to be referenced if there is literature available on it, to show that you have read up on the issue and have considered the implications. If you find it hard to find a context, consider the bigger sector you are likely to teach in or do your practicum in, e.g. private colleges in Sydney (ELICOS), and choose one or two specific colleges and find info on them and the broader sector. Possible ELT context features: ▪ Location of the school/country ▪ The role of English within the country Department of Linguistics Page 4 of 15 ▪ Significant issues related to culture and education from the perspective of teaching and learning ▪ Language policies related to language teaching ▪ The kind of English language teaching institutions in the country ▪ Approach to teaching English and methodological concerns ▪ Political system and other contextual factors that might impact on your teaching ▪ Typical class sizes ▪ Facilities and resources in the school ▪ Time devoted to teaching English per week ▪ The role of English native speaker teacher with relation to non-native speaker teachers ▪ The role of materials ▪ The nature and weight of assessment ▪ Opportunities for professional development A suggested structure for your report would be the following (you may cover more features): The ELT context (identify the context and summarize the features you will discuss) Feature 1 (outline the situation and reflect on what this means for teachers/for you as a teacher, cite sources) Feature 2 (outline the situation and reflect on what this means for teachers/for you as a teacher, cite sources) Feature 3 (outline the situation and reflect on what this means for teachers/for you as a teacher, cite sources) Conclusion: summary of implications for teachers References Department of Linguistics Page 5 of 15 Assessment Task Two Name: Lesson plan with essay Summary: Design a skills-based lesson plan for a group of learners and justify the choices you have made in an essay (do NOT use the set of activities you have submitted for APPL600), attach materials in the appendix Due: End of Week 9 (COB Friday 12 May) What to submit and Length: Lesson plan + 1200-word essay Total weighting: 35% This task is the opportunity for you to showcase your developing skills and understandings of TESOL methodologies by developing an integrated skills lesson plan for a specific group of learners. In this task you will plan one 2-hour lesson for a specific group of learners (if you teach young learners please refer to Question 5 in the FAQs below). The lesson is skills-based, which means that the lesson aims to practise a specific skill(s)/sub-skills. Write a 1200-word essay outlining the rationale for your planning decisions and explaining how the lesson plan will support the students’ language learning. The lesson should be skills-based, which means the main aims should be to practise/develop a skill/sub-skill, and any grammar included should serve only as necessary input for student to practise that skill and should not ‘take over’ the lesson. The overall lesson plan document you submit should include: • A brief profile of the learner group, highlighting any student characteristics which need to be taken into account when designing your lesson. An outline of any factors which need to be considered either in relation to the immediate context (where the lesson will take place) or the target context (the future context in which the students will be using the English they are learning). • The detailed lesson plan, which should include: o the aims and objectives/outcomes o the teaching and learning activities in sequence, o the classroom configurations at each stage, o texts used (resources attached in the appendix), o what structure/ genre/ vocabulary etc will be the focus, o and timings. • You can use your own template (or the school’s you are doing your practicum in) or one of those provided in iLearn • An indication of where assessment and evaluation procedures might be included within the lesson (formal/informal). • Any other points you feel you would like to include to help the marker understand how the lesson is organised and how it would work. Department of Linguistics Page 6 of 15 • It is intended that the lesson plan should be a practical, useable document which you might be able to implement at some stage (for example, during the Practicum). Essay In the essay, you will need to provide a rationale for the lesson plan. You should discuss such aspects as: • why you designed it the way you did (refer to the specific learner group too); • why you selected certain exercises and activities, why you decided not to include certain exercises and activities, and why and how you have had to modify some; • how you see the various components relating to each other; and • how the lesson plan was informed by your views of language learning. To substantiate the points you are making, you will need to demonstrate that you have undertaken reading in the area, including the weekly readings as well as your own external reading of journals and books. Remember to use APA referencing in your text and to include a reference list at the end. FAQs Assessment Task 2 1) Do the lesson aims need to cover all four macro skills? No, ‘integrating skills’ does not mean you need to aim to practice all four macro skills, but to design activities during which students use more (macro) skills e.g. get students to discuss the topic before a reading activity; get them to read each other’s essays after a writing task etc. 2) Do we have to design all of our own original resources? No, but you need to show that you can adapt pre-existing materials to the context if you need to. 3) The tasks that we include, for example a worksheet or a listening task, do you want those included in the appendix? Yes, please. 4) Do I need to use a set lesson plan format? No, as you all teach in different settings, there may be certain requirements regarding the format of your lesson plans. What you need to think about is to Department of Linguistics Page 7 of 15 include all the necessary information in it so that the plan is clear enough for another teacher to just pick it up and teach your lesson. There are some lesson plans uploaded in Topic 8 to show you various formats and some to show you . Please note which ones are there to look at the format only - they are not all skills-focused - and which ones are samples of good skills-based lesson plans (EAP and general English ones). I have also uploaded a word file with a possible template for you to use if you need one. 5) If I teach children (who have shorter attention span), can I break up the 2-hour lesson plan into two manageable lessons? Yes, you can. 6) The teaching resources and the cover sheet increase the similarity index in Turnitin. Should I be worried about it? No, what you need to focus on is to acknowledge the academic sources in your essay and paraphrase these ideas properly. You do not need a cover sheet. Department of Linguistics Page 8 of 15 Assessment Task Three Name: Unit of work with Essay Summary: Design a unit of work for a group of learners with 2 sample lesson plans (one skills-based, one language-based) along with a justification of your decisions in an essay, attach resources and materials in the appendix Due: End of week 13 (COB Friday 9 June) What to submit and Length: Unit of work document with 2 sample lesson plans and resources attached + 1500-word essay Total weighting: 45% For this assignment, you will be developing a unit of work for a specific group of learners to show that you can integrate lesson content into a coherent unit that spreads out to about 5 to 12 hours of lessons. You will need to provide a unit of work document, two lesson plans (one skills-based – NOT the same one you submitted in Task 2 - and one language-based) along with an essay that explains how the features of the unit and the lessons will support the students’ learning. The unit of work document The unit of work is a coherent set of lessons ranging between 5 to 12 hours. Depending on the teaching context you chose or work in, you might teach 2 two-hour lessons a week, so you may cover 3 two-hour lessons spread out to two weeks. Alternatively, you may be working or planning to work in a typical Australian ELICOS setting and you teach 4 hours each day with 3 consecutive days on the same class (12 hours). Timetabling can be different at each institution, so the lesson setup may be different too, but in general keep to the 5 to 12 hours covered. Please note that because each context is different, there is no set minimum length for the lessons you cover in this assignment, i.e. the sample lesson plans might be 50 minutes long each, or perhaps 2 hours each depending on your context. If in doubt, consult your lecturer. The unit of work document you are to submit will consist of the following components: • A brief profile of the group of learners: they can be the same group you described in Assessment Tasks 1 and 2, but the lesson plan you have submitted for Assessment Task 2 cannot be part of the unit of work here. Again, it is important to provide info on your learners so that you demonstrate how your unit of work can contribute to their learning. • A brief discussion of the contextual factors that needs to be taken into account with regard to the immediate context (e.g. resources in the Department of Linguistics Page 9 of 15 classroom) and the target context (e.g. a migrant class so they need language for everyday use). • An outline of the unit of work including aims and outcomes/objectives in a format that shows the main components and their relationships (how they build on each other, how they are related). You can design your own template or use a sample provided, but do not copy from previous work submitted. (You need to consider what can be covered in the given time frame e.g. introducing and practicing four new verb tenses in a week may be too much for the learners – the plan needs to be realistic with enough time left to practice skills and language) • An indication of where assessment and evaluation may be included in the unit of work. Sample lesson plans You need to submit two sample lesson plans, which can be any lesson in the Unit of Work: one skills-based – NOT your previously submitted one - and one language-based containing all the information you were required to include in Assessment Task 2, but the length of each lesson is up to your teaching context, e.g. they can be 1-hour lessons. Please note that a skills-based lesson has skills-related aims and a languagebased lesson has grammar-focused aims. This doesn’t mean that skills cannot feature in language-based lessons (as grammar is quite often taught from a reading or listening text, for example), but the focus is not on the development of skills, and vice versa. The essay In the essay, you will need to provide a rationale for the design of the unit of work. You might like to discuss such aspects as: • why you designed it the way you did (refer to your specific learner group too); • why you selected certain exercises and activities; why you decided not to include certain exercises and activities; why and how you have had to modify some; • how you see the various components relating to each other; and • how the design of the unit was informed by your views of learning. To substantiate the points you are making, you will need to demonstrate that you have undertaken reading in the area, including the weekly readings and Department of Linguistics Page 10 of 15 your own external reading. You may also like to include an element of critical evaluation. FAQs Assessment Task 3 1) Would the unit of work be a collection of lesson plans (just like the one we submitted for Assessment Task 2)? No, it is an outline of a series of lessons that form a coherent unit – have a common aim. Please check the assessment description what you need to include in the outline. You only need to provide two lesson plans (any two lessons from the unit) and resources for those two lessons. 2) Can I submit a zip file? No, please submit one file only. And there is no need for a cover sheet either. 3) The assessment description says the following should be part of the assignment: "A discussion of the contextual factors that needs to be taken into account with regard to the immediate context and the target context." Could you please explain what these mean? Immediate context means whatever features of the teaching context you think are relevant for the organisation of the unit of work e.g. ss are teenagers, so need topics directly related to their interests and tasks that involve technology because maybe they love computer games; or the lessons follow a long maths class, so ss need to get up and moving, be taken outside etc. These are just examples, of course. The target context is the context in which the learners will be using the language e.g. an EAP class will use it at university. 4) Can I use an ESL textbook for resources? Yes you can, but you need to indicate how you have adapted the resources/texts to your student’s needs. 5) Can I use lesson plans we have used during our practicum? I’m afraid, not. Assessment policy states that an assignment cannot be submitted more than once. Lesson plans are assessed as part of the Practicum portfolio. Department of Linguistics Page 11 of 15 NB Assignment due dates are fixed and it is expected that all work is submitted on or before the due date. Requests for extensions are usually NOT granted. 4c. Assignment Submission You must keep a copy of each assignment as proof that it was completed and submitted in case the submitted assignment is misplaced or damaged. Assignments for this unit must be submitted through the iLearn Assessment Submission portal, which is indicated on the iLearn home page for this unit. Please do NOT submit assignments by email directly to the Lecturer/Unit Convenor. Assignments will normally be returned through the same iLearn Assessment Submission portal. For each assignment, you must: • submit the assignment as one document in Word, Pages or PDF format with your name and student number indicated at the top, no ZIPs, please • fill in and include the cover sheet provided on the Linguistics web site: o http://www.ling.mq.edu.au/support/coversheet.htm • type double-spaced Following these procedures significantly reduces our administration time, and helps us to record receipt and despatch of your assignments accurately and efficiently. Thank you Department of Linguistics Page 12 of 15 4d. Assignment extensions and late submission Requesting an extension to assignment due date Extensions are only given in special circumstances, by the unit coordinator either by email before the due date, or by completing the Special Consideration request at ask.mq.edu.au. For more information on Special Consideration, see http://www.mq.edu.au/policy/docs/disruption_studies/policy.html Late submission of assignments If assignments are submitted after the due date without an approved extension, they are deemed late. Late submissions will receive a 5% per day penalty and will not be marked if more than 2 weeks late. All assignments submitted after the deadline, regardless of the reason, will be marked and returned at a date determined by the unit convenor. Extensions cannot continue beyond the start of the following semester, and students should be aware that long extensions may impact graduation dates. 4e. Return of Marked Assignments Students’ marked assignments will, in general, be returned to them within 3 to 5 weeks of submission. Assignments which are received late for whatever reason will typically be marked and returned later, and it is not possible to give a timeframe for the return of such assignments. Please note that assignments cannot be accepted after the return of marked materials. Feedback is normally uploaded to iLearn or in some circumstances sent to students by email to your Macquarie University email address. 4f. Student Support Services Macquarie University provides a range of Academic Student Support Services. Details of these services can be accessed at http://students.mq.edu.au/home/ There is a range of other resources available for Macquarie students, including: • electronic access to a variety of book chapters and journal articles • electronic access to journals • a mailing/fax service where book chapters and journal articles can be sent to distance students. See the following url for more information: http://www.ling.mq.edu.au/support/postresources.htm Learning Skills: this page gives you information on how to approach assignments, features of academic writing, resources, and you can book a session with a Learning Adviser for face-to-face and personalised help Department of Linguistics Page 13 of 15 http://www.students.mq.edu.au/support/learning_skills/ 4g. Department of Linguistics News To keep in touch with the latest learning and teaching news from the Department of Linguistics at Macquarie, please read LINGLINE. LINGLINE is a regular department newsletter specific to the interests and concerns of postgraduate students and departmental staff within the Linguistics Department of Macquarie University. LINGLINE aims to help students and staff members stay in touch with the Department and its news, as well as with one another, whether they are currently in Sydney or elsewhere in Australia, New Zealand or any of 25 countries in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, North America and South America. LINGLINE has regular announcements related to your candidature, positions vacant, scholarships, awards, conference and seminar information. LINGLINE welcomes contributions from all students and staff in the Linguistics Department. Go to: http://www.ling.mq.edu.au/news/lingline.htm and follow the link to the latest edition. You can also follow Applied.Linguistics.at.MQ on Facebook, join the AusELT Facebook group, and follow TESOLatMQ on Twitter. 5. POLICIES 5a. University Policy on Grading Academic Senate has a set of guidelines on the distribution of grades across the range from fail to high distinction. Your final result will include one of these grades plus a standardised numerical grade (SNG). The following descriptions apply to assessment grades: HD High Distinction 85-100: denotes performance which meets all unit objectives in such an exceptional way and with such marked excellence that it deserves the highest level of recognition. D Distinction 75-84: denotes performance which clearly deserves a very high level of recognition as an excellent achievement in the unit. CR Credit 65-74: denotes performance which is substantially better than would normally be expected of competent students in the unit. P Pass 50-64: denotes performance which satisfies unit objectives. F Fail 0-49: denotes that a candidate has failed to complete a unit satisfactorily. Please note that 1. The above grades and descriptions apply to undergraduate degrees, postgraduate coursework degrees, diploma and graduate certificate programs Department of Linguistics Page 14 of 15 2. Marks assigned in assignments are raw marks. These are subsequently converted into Standard Numerical Grades (SNG) in order to determine letter grades for the unit. On occasion the SNG which you receive may not be the same as the total of your marks for each assessment item. Under the Senate guidelines, results may be scaled to ensure that there is a degree of comparability across the university, so that units with the same past performances of their students should achieve similar results. The process of scaling does not change the order of marks among students. For an explanation of the policy see - http://www.mq.edu.au/policy/docs/grading/policy.html http://senate.mq.edu.au/rules/detailedguidelines.doc 5b. Plagiarism Plagiarism is considered to be extremely serious by the Department and the University. Students who submit plagiarised material will most likely receive zero. All assignments are scanned on a database and compared with other assignments (past and present) and with content on the internet. Please refer to the Linguistics Department’s policy on plagiarism at http://www.ling.mq.edu.au/support/policies_plagiarism.htm and to Macquarie University’s policy at http://www.mq.edu.au/policy/docs/academic_honesty/policy.html It is expected that you will be familiar with the department’s policy before you begin work on the assignments. 5c. Appeals Against Grades If a student has a problem with the mark given for a particular assessment, the student should first speak with the marker to discuss the matter. If difficulties and differences continue, a student can apply for a remark of an assessment by contacting the Unit Convenor/s directly. A fresh, unmarked copy of the assignment will need to be submitted for the new marker. The request for a remark must be lodged within two weeks of the date of receipt of the assessment. The Unit Convenor/s will arrange for the assignment to be marked by another relevant staff member teaching that Unit and the assignment will be returned to the student via the Linguistics Postgraduate Office. The final mark will be an agreed mark by the first and second marker and the Unit Convenor. The final mark can be sustained, raised or lowered. If a student wishes to appeal against a final grade for a unit, then the student should see the Unit Convenor first. However, formal appeal must be lodged with the Head of Division by the date stipulated on the Handbook of Postgraduate Studies. Failure to follow these procedures is likely to result in a request/appeal being disallowed. Department of Linguistics Page 15 of 15 5d. Student Email Account All Macquarie students have been issued with a University email account. It is University policy that the University issued email account will be used for official University communication. All students are required to access their University account frequently. Email can be automatically forwarded from your Macquarie account to another account but each student is responsible for the information sent to a non-Macquarie account and for managing mailbox size to ensure that account remains active. • You must check your Macquarie email account • Messages sent to all students in your unit by the Unit Convenor will only be sent to your University email account. • Your Macquarie email account can be accessed via the portal, myMQ at https://my.mq.edu.au • To Sign On to the portal use your Student Number, and your original MQID password (i.e., 2 random characters followed by your date of birth in ddmmyy format). • Your Email Address can be viewed in portal. • The student email format will be [email protected] e.g., [email protected] (any other students also named Jan Block will be [email protected], [email protected], etc.)