Understanding and Interpreting the New Senior Secondary English Language Curriculum

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Understanding and Interpreting the New Senior
Secondary English Language Curriculum
Session One
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Course Objectives

• Introduce participants to the NSS English
  Language Curriculum
• Develop participants knowledge and skills in
  planning and developing the curriculum at school
  level
• Familiarise participants with teaching
  strategies/ learning activities with which to
  implement the new curriculum
• Enable participants to produce an action plan on
  implementing the NSS Curriculum

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Underpinnings of the New Senior Secondary (NSS)
Curriculum in the Context of the 334 Academic
Structure
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The Need for Change

• The changes we are about to embark upon
  represent a landmark in our education history. We
  hope to provide all students with the opportunity
  to receive a higher standard of education, and to
  provide them with a more suitable curriculum
  catering to their individual needs and abilities,
  so as to help them to pave their way to success.
• Professor Arthur K.C. Li, A Message from the
  Secretary for Education and Manpower, The New
  Academic Structure for Senior Secondary Education
  and Higher Education, Executive Summary

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The Core Challenge

• The key challenge in this context is to raise the
  level of participation in senior secondary
  education so that all students will leave school
  with the capacity to
• understand the world in which they live
• operate effectively in that world and
• manage themselves as individuals and in relation
  to others.

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Changing Expectations

• Most surveys on workplace requirements converge
  on a list comprising
• Ability to communicate
• Adaptability to change
• Ability to work in teams
• Flexible human relations
• Preparedness to solve problems
• Ability to analyse and conceptualise
• Ability to reflect on and manage oneself
• Ability to create, innovate and criticise, etc.
• (Professor Kai-ming Cheng, Inaugural Professorial
  Lecture, 2004.)

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How Knowledge is Built or Learnt

• Knowledge can be gained through
• theoretical and applied/practical learning
• collaborative and self-directed learning

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Conditions for Knowledge Building in 334
Aligning Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment
Curriculum
what is worth learning
Alignment for student learning
how to know students have learned
how students learn teachers teach
Pedagogy
Assessment
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Similarities and Differences between the Existing
Curriculum and the New Senior Secondary Curriculum
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Similarities in Terms ofI) Classroom
Practices

• Task-based Learning
• Grammar in Context
• Language Arts
• Assessment for Learning
• Integrated Skills, etc.
• which are based on

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• II) Learning Targets
• Learners are to develop an ever-improving
  capability to use English
• to think and communicate
• to acquire, develop and apply knowledge
• to respond and give expression to experience
• and with these contexts, to develop and apply an
  ever-increasing understanding of how language is
  organised, used and learned

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• III) Learning Objectives
• The learning objectives for English Language at
  senior secondary level are built on those for KS3
  and are organised under the following general
  areas
• Subject Knowledge and Skills
• Generic Skills
• Attitudes

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The Difference Lies inThe Structure of the
Curriculum
The New Senior Secondary Curriculum
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• With the New Curriculum
• There will be more time and opportunities for
• broadening and deepening learning experiences
• developing and applying language skills in a
  variety of contexts

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Rationale for Introducing the Elective Part

• Cater for learners diverse abilities, needs and
  interests
• Extend and enrich learners learning experience
• Add variety to the language curriculum

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The Compulsory Part
Meaningful use of
Reading/ Writing Listening/ Speaking
Vocabulary
Text Types
Grammar Forms Communicative Functions
through exploration of themes in varied contexts
by adopting different approaches and strategies
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Relationship between the Compulsory and Elective
Parts
Elective Part (Drama module)
Compulsory Part
--Stress intonation --Short
scene --Expression of writing
emotions and --Production feelings
of an

original
script
Dramatised Reading Role play / Drama
performance
Reading/ Writing Listening/ Speaking
Vocabulary
Extension, application and consolidation of what
has been learned
Text Types
Grammar Forms Communicative Functions
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Assessment for Learning

• Use of formative assessment through a variety of
  approaches (questioning, learning tasks and
  activities, process writing, projects and
  portfolios, etc.)
• Close alignment with the learning targets and
  objectives

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Assessment for Learning

• Frequent opportunities for feedback on how well
  students are doing and how they can do better
  (i.e. to recognise achievements and to provide
  support)
• Use of different types of feedback (e.g. peer
  feedback, self feedback) to promote learning and
  reflective thinking

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Public Assessment

• Assessment Objective
• The overall aim is to evaluate candidates
  achievement of the learning targets and
  objectives of the curriculum detailed in the New
  Senior Secondary Curriculum and Assessment Guide
  for English Language (Secondary 4 to 6)

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Proposed HKDSE English Language

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Main Features

• Graded approach in reading and listening papers
• Speaking skills assessed in two modes
• SBA (for school candidates only?)
• public oral exam (for private candidates only?)
• Standards-referenced reporting

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Paper 1 Reading

• Written texts of varying lengths and levels of
  difficulty
• Different question types including
  multiple-choice items, short responses and more
  extended open-ended responses

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Paper 2 Writing

• Part A
• Short, guided task
• About 200 words
• Situation, purpose and relevant information
  provided

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• Part B
• Longer, more open-ended task
• About 400 words
• Choice of one out of 8 questions
• Each based on one of the 8 modules in the
  Elective Part

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Paper 3 Listening and Integrated Skills

• Section 1
• Various listening tasks
• Sections 2 and 3
• Integrated listening / reading and writing tasks
  of different levels of difficulty based on the
  same theme

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Paper 4 Speaking

• Part A Group Interaction
• Discussion based on a given short text
• Preparation 10 minutes discussion 8 minutes
• Part B Individual Response
• Candidates respond individually to an examiners
  questions
• Questions based on the discussion task
• One minute per candidate

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SBA Component

• Part A
• Format of assessment same as 2007 CE
• Teachers need to conduct three assessments in S5
  and S6 and report three marks for this part
• At least one mark based on group interaction and
  one on individual presentation

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• Part B
• Group interaction or individual presentation
  based on modules in the Elective Part
• Focus on students ability to reflect on, make
  use of and speak about the knowledge, skills and
  experience gained in the Elective Module(s)
• Assessment based on students oral performance
• Teachers need to report one mark for this part at
  the end of S6

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Planning the New Senior Secondary English
Language Curriculum
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Interface with the Junior Secondary Curriculum

• Planning and developing a coherent school-based
  curriculum
• Making use of a wide range of activities and
  materials to provide a language-rich environment
• Promoting extensive reading and viewing
• Developing skills of learning how to learn and
  positive values and attitudes
• (For CMI schools) Providing additional support to
  help students switch to EMI at S4

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Compulsory Part

• Using a variety of effective approaches and
  strategies
• Task-based Learning
• Self-access Language Learning
• Grammar in Context
• Language Arts
• Assessment for Learning
• Integrated Skills

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Elective Part

• (I) Choices of module, considering
• Learners background, needs, interests and
  abilities
• Teachers expertise and readiness to teach the
  module
• Learning objectives and content of the modules
• Resources available, both inside and outside
  school

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• (II) Logistical arrangement, considering
• Number of modules to be offered
• Start small and expand gradually
• Timetabling arrangement
• Block timetable for English
• Sequential/ parallel run
• Coordination with school/social functions

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How to Contact Us

• Website http//cd.edb.gov.hk/eng
• E-mail ccdoe_at_edb.gov.hk
• Tel [phone]