University of Lethbridge Faculty of Education

Teaching English as a Second Language EDUC 4272 Section A

Summer Session II  July 4-22, 2005

Course meets daily: 15:00-17:10 hrs. in Room B 730 (& Ed. Curriculum Laboratory)

Course Plan

University Calendar description: Foundations, approaches, methods, techniques, programs, and issues pertaining to instructing and evaluating English as a second language. Prerequisite: Professional Semester I.

Course content: Themes, topics, & objectives for participants

Alberta’s increasing linguistic diversity means that TESL skills are becoming a necessity. Overseas, there is an insatiable demand for qualified ESL teachers. This particular iteration of Ed 4272 can do little more than adumbrate the complex disciplines of TESL or TEFL or TEAL or TESOL. (In other words, we’ll only be able to scratch the surface, guys!) However, we will speed through Teslandia in the company of an experienced guide: Jeremy Harmer. He’s a Brit who’s been training teachers for a long time, and we’ll be using one of the best of his excellent manuals. (You’ve gotta have your very own copy, so that you can highlight the important bits, and scribble your brilliant insights in the margins.) This course is a mixture of instruction, observation, action, discussion, and reflection on the teaching of English as an additional (second, third, etc., or foreign) language, or English to speakers of other languages (ESOL). The themes and topics covered will not be limited to the contents of the 13 chapters of How to teach English, but a glance at their titles will give a good indication of our hectic itinerary.

By the end of this course, you will be able to:

—describe some of the attributes of successful teachers and learners of ESL;

—analyze the basic components of spoken and written English: phonology [sounds]; morphology [word forms]; syntax [grammar]; lexicology and semantics [meaning];

—describe the meaningful sounds of English (using articulatory phonetics), and decode simple, phonemic transcriptions of connected speech;

—make informed decisions about praxis [teaching the fundamental skills of listening, speaking, reading, and writing (particularly with regard to methods and materials)];

—plan simple lessons for learners of various ages and at various levels of ability.

Depending on your timetables, it may be possible to arrange one or more opportunities to interact with ESL learners at the University or the College.

Absolutely required materials (& obtainable in the University Bookstore)

1) Jeremy Harmer. (1998). How to teach English: An introduction to the practice of English language teaching. Harlow, Essex, UK: Longman. ISBN 0582 29796 6

Cost $38.95 in 2004. Full of practical tips for actually teaching stuff to real learners.

2) Bloom, Diana. (Ed.). (2004). Sparkchart: ESL and EFL grammar. USA:

3) SparkNotes LLC, Barnes & Noble. ISBN 1-4114-0060-7 Costs $7.95. Platicized.

A better replacement for a similar BarChart 4-page guide to ESL grammar used last year.

4) Coursepack

Assignments & Evaluation

1) Participation (= 15% of final mark).

Given that the total amount of time for this course is only 19 days (15 days of classes and two weekends), participation in ALL the class activities is key to your success. Each time you arrive punctually and participate actively throughout an entire class (i.e. you don’t sneak out early), you will earn one mark. So, arrive on time and join in!

2) AutobioExpo Details provided separately (= 5% of final mark).

3) Complete 6 quizzes/short assignments (the best 5 x 10% = 50% of final mark).

The quizzes are unannounced, short achievement tests, providing feedback to both of us about your mastery of the most important aspects of the course. If you are unable to take a quiz for proven medical reasons (physician’s note required), a substitute quiz may be taken at a mutually agreed-upon time. Note that only your best five marks will count.

4) Submit one book review between classes #11 and #15 (= 30% of the final mark).

Details of this assignment are provided at the end of this course description.

U of L Grading Scheme (Effective 2002-05-01)

Course Schedule (subject to revisions en route)

HTE = How to teach English TF = Task File

Book Analysis and Review

Worth 30% of final grade. Due no earlier than 07/18; no later than 15:00 hrs. 07/22.

A lateness penalty of 1% deducted for each hour that it arrives after the deadline.

You will select one of the following twokinds of book (A or B):

A: A textbook to be used in teaching English as a second or foreign language to actual learners. This could be a comprehensive coursebook, or one which focuses on a particular aspect of TESL, e.g. pronunciation, reading, writing, etc. Some photocopied examples (in an appendix) of what you are commenting upon are needed to supplement this review

B: A book intended to help ESL/EFL teachers in their teaching (but not the required course text) or to inform them about an aspect of the field on a theoretical level (e.g. methodology; English or general linguistics; phonetics; syntax; semantics; etc.)

OR C: One (or twosimilar) reference book(s) for either learners or teachers of ESL (e.g. an L1 or L2 dictionary, grammar handbook, or style manual). You will choose two books if you wish to do a comparative review. In either case, some photocopied examples (in an appendix) of what you are commenting upon are needed to supplement the review.

The book(s) chosen will be at least 75 pages long, including front matter. It will have been published (preferably) during the last 10 years or no more than the last 20 years.

Your review will be wordprocessed, doublespaced, with 1.5” margins all around the page. Edit your work carefully to avoid spelling or grammatical errors. There is no need for a fancy binder, but you should have an unnumbered cover page with your name; course title and number; assignment title (Book Review); date; and my name. The review will contain the following sections:

1)  At the beginning of the review, give a complete bibliographical reference, following APA, MLA, or other standaard guidelines: E.g. name(s) of author(s)/editor(s); date of publication; title in italics; place of publication; and publisher.

2) An analytic summary of the contents of the book (chapter by chapter, or section by section), together with your evaluation of the contents. You will go far beyond a mere “objective” description, and subjectively comment upon the utility of the suggested practices, or the apparent well-foundedness of the theories, or the book’s strengths and weaknesses for its stated or implied clientele(s). This section will be between five and eight numbered pages, exclusive of any illustrative, photocopied extracts, collected together in one or more appendices.

3) A conclusion, with a reasoned recommendation that your peers consider using the book(s), or a warning that the book(s) has/have serious shortcomings. This section will be between one half and one complete page.

Grading Rubric for the Book Analysis and Review