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Implementing the Curriculum - Examples of English Courses
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The Grade 7-10 English Curriculum at Ogilvie High is designed to enable each student to :
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Through studying the Grade 8 English course each student will further develop the ability to:
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The study and composition of texts are the major activities of the Grade 8 English program. Teachers will ensure that a range of texts are studied and created including literary, mass media and everyday texts.
- Literature
texts are those texts which represent, shape and explore human experience.
Such texts may be loosely categorised as follows :
Classic : excellent texts which have endured over time.
Contemporary : significant recent texts which explore issues in complex ways.
Popular : texts which aim to entertain and which do not attempt to explore issues and ideas in a complex way.
- Mass Media texts are those print, non-print and electronic texts which communicate with a mass audience.
- Everyday texts are those texts which people speak and listen to, read, view and write in their daily lives, their schooling and/or in the world of work.
In the study and composition of texts teachers will ensure that Grade 8 students are explicitly taught about the structures and features of written, spoken and visual texts, the ways in which the use of English varies according to situation and social or cultural context and the strategies that are needed to understand and use language effectively.
Linguistic Structures and Features
The key structures and features to be explicitly taught in the Grade 8 English program include :
- spelling (spelling rules and patterns, prefixes, suffixes, singular and plural, syllables, spelling lists);
- punctuation (capitalisation; the use of full stops, question marks, exclamation marks, apostrophes for possession and contraction, dashes, brackets, hyphens, commas and inverted commas for direct speech and quotations);
- grammar (basic sentence construction; knowledge and understanding of nouns, verbs, adverbs, adjectives, pronouns, conjunctions, prepositions and articles, verb tenses - past, present, future, agreement, first, second and third person);
- patterns of structure and organisation in different texts (phrases, clauses, major and minor sentences, paragraph structure including the topic sentence, introductions, conclusions, selection, sequence and organisation according to text type, form or genre);
- vocabulary (tone, homonyms, synonyms, antonyms, specialised vocabulary, colloquial language, slang);
- pronunciation;
- handwriting and keyboarding;
- layout and presentation (using accepted publishing conventions).
Contextual Understanding
As part of the Grade 8 English program students will be taught to recognise that :
- there is a standard Australian English which is expected or required in particular contexts.
- texts are created for particular purposes and appeal to particular audiences.
- texts may be interpreted differently by people with different social or cultural values.
Teachers should provide students with a range of purposes and audiences for using language.
Strategies
The key strategies to be explicitly taught in the Grade 7 English program include :
- active listening (listening for specific purposes, recording information);
- planning, preparing and presenting formal talks (using cue cards, keeping to time limits, using suitable props);
- selecting appropriate reading material (keeping a reading log);
- reading and viewing for specific purposes (journal responses to shared texts, making notes, close reading to find specific information, skimming and scanning, browsing);
- spelling (a multi-strategy approach to the learning of new words);
- using the writing process (planning, drafting, editing, proofreading, using RID);
- using established and emerging technology (CD ROMS and the Internet to access information, sending and receiving e-mail, using Superspell, entering, editing, formatting and publishing texts using a word processor);
- working independently;
- participating co-operatively in small and large group activities;
- presenting work for specific purposes (appropriate layout, use of subheadings) and using reference material (dictionaries, thesauruses, directories, databases and telephone books).
In order to provide an agreed scope and sequence for the English learning area at Ogilvie, all Grade 8 students will study eight core units of work. It is expected that about two thirds of the course will be spent covering the core units. A carefully planned, integrated approach to all four areas of the English curriculum - texts, contextual understanding, linguistic structures and features and strategies must be adopted. The Grade 8 English course will enable students to achieve at least level 4 outcomes on the English Profile; most will be working towards level 5 outcomes. A small number of Grade 8 students may also be working towards level 4 or level 6 outcomes; personalised programs of work will often be needed for these students.
As well as teaching the core units of work and within the policy framework provided by this curriculum statement teachers will be encouraged to develop individual units of work based on their interests and expertise and which best suit the needs of students in their classes. Teachers will be expected to incorporate a range of perspectives on English teaching in their units of work — cultural heritage, literacy, personal growth, genre and critical literacy.
The core units of work outlined in this curriculum statement may be taught as discrete units, on-going units or integrated into thematic units. They do, however, provide a minimum core of work to be covered by all Grade 8 students.
1. A classic or contemporary shared novel study :
Grade 8 students will study one or two classic or contemporary novels during the year. They should read for understanding and enjoyment, to explore challenging themes, events and characters and to reflect upon their own values and personal experience. Students should provide detailed, well considered spoken and written responses to themes, events and/or characters in the novel and respond creatively to it. Appendix 2 provides lists of recommended novels for shared study in Grade 8.
When studying a novel Grade 8 students should consolidate their understanding of plot, character and setting (LSF). They should also develop and understanding of theme and first and third person narration and consider as appropriate point of view, style and conflict (LSF). Students should gain some insight into the social and cultural values inherent in the novel and compare them with their own values (CU). They should be provided with a brief introduction to the life and work of the author and consider how this background may have influenced the writing of the novel (CU). Students should read key passages closely, summarise and make notes in order to gather information to justify a personal view about a theme, event or character in the novel (S).
2. An individualised wide reading program :
Grade 8 students will be asked to read independently a variety of contemporary and popular literature - with an emphasis on novels and short stories - in their wide reading program. Fifteen minutes of silent, sustained reading time will be provided at the beginning of each lesson. Students will record each of the books that they read in their reading log (S) and will be encouraged to write about them in a reading journal (S).
Grade 8 students should be introduced to a wide range of literature through the use of the Library, the Bookroom, teacher and peer recommendations. Students should develop a positive attitude to reading, e.g. choosing appropriate fiction and non-fiction, reading willingly for sustained periods of time and readily discussing reading with others. Teachers should monitor students’ self chosen reading carefully.
3. Classic, contemporary and popular poetry study :
Grade 8 students will read a range of different forms and styles of narrative, dramatic and lyrical poetry. They should read for understanding and enjoyment, to explore themes, events and ideas and to reflect upon their own values and personal experience. Students should be encouraged to write poetry in both structured forms — haiku, tanka, blank verse - and free verse (S). The publication of a word processed anthology of at least five poems should be completed by the end of semester two. Students should be encouraged to provide detailed, well considered spoken and written responses to selected poems and respond creatively to them. Appendix 2 provides a list of recommended poetry anthologies for use in Grade 8.
Individual and multi-voice reading and performance of poetry will be an important part of the course. Students should consider how different poems are written for different purposes and appeal to different audiences (CU). They should consolidate their understanding of the poetic terms and devices introduced in Grade 7. Grade 8 students should consider subject, theme, tone and mood, figurative language - simile, metaphor personification and poetic terms and devices — alliteration, assonance, onomatopoeia, repetition, rhyme and rhythm (LSF).
4. A contemporary feature film study :
Grade 8 students will study one or two contemporary feature films during the year. They should view the film for understanding and enjoyment, to explore challenging themes, events and characters and to reflect upon their own values and personal experience. Students should provide detailed, well considered spoken and written responses to themes, events and/or characters in the film. They should also respond creatively to the film. Appendix 2 provides a list of recommended feature films for study in Grade 8.
When studying a feature film Grade 8 students should be provided with a brief introduction into the social and cultural context in which the film was made particularly the role of the writer, director and producer in its creation (CU). Students should develop an understanding of important structures and features of the film they are studying — plot, character, theme and setting. They should be introduced to particular film techniques. While this will be dependent on the particular film being viewed, camera shots — establishing, long shot, medium and close-up, camera angles — high, eye-level, low; camera movement — panning and tracking; lighting, music and sound effects should be appropriately highlighted (LSF). By viewing selected scenes with and without sound or using or creating a running sheet students will be able to gather information to justify a particular interpretation of the film (S).
5. Newspaper and magazine study :
Grade 8 students will study the important structures and features of newspapers and magazines during the year, including newspaper reports, feature articles, editorials, letters to the editor, surveys and interviews. They should read and view for enjoyment and understanding, to explore perspectives on current issues and to compare the representation of issues in the media with their own values and personal experience. Students should provide detailed, well considered spoken and written responses to selected mass media texts. They should create a number of mass media texts and in doing so develop an increasingly critical understanding of the constructed nature of these texts (CU).
When studying mass media texts Grade 8 students should develop an appreciation of the social and cultural values inherent in such texts and compare them with their own values (CU). They should be introduced to the concept of target audience and how this affects the construction of the text (CU). In creating mass media texts, Grade 8 students should demonstrate an understanding of the structures and techniques used in particular texts — the inverted pyramid formula in newspaper reports or the appropriate linking of visual images and written text in feature articles (LSF). Students should be taught how to read and view visual texts (S). They should use a word processing or desktop publishing program to construct an individual, group or whole class mass media text (S).
6. Everyday texts study :
Grade 8 students will listen to, read, view and create a range of spoken, written and visual everyday texts. Students will discuss texts in small and large groups, report on these discussions both informally and formally, participate in interviews and informal and formal debates, read aloud, tell anecdotes and/or stories and present arguments to communicate a point of view.
Students will be introduced to formal essay writing during semester two. They should be taught about the basic structure of an essay — an introduction, several body paragraphs and a conclusion (LSF). All students should write one or two opinionative or argumentative essays about a current issue or event. Most students should attempt an extended formal response to a literary text.
Students will both read and create a range of everyday texts associated both with daily life - instructions, labels, invitations, forms and diaries - and schooling - lists, notes, summaries, descriptions and speeches.
Students will deliver both an impromptu and a formal prepared speech designed to entertain, inform or influence their peers.
When studying everyday texts Grade 8 students should develop an understanding of the appropriate use of spoken and written English for particular purposes and audiences (CU). They should be taught to structure a formal speech and shown how correct pronunciation, clear enunciation, variation in pace, volume and pitch and appropriate non-verbal language will improve the effectiveness of it (LSF). They should be taught to structure a formal essay in clear, fluent paragraphs using accurate spelling, punctuation and grammar and appropriate vocabulary and style (LSF).
Students should also be taught to use cue cards to deliver a formal speech and to work co-operatively with others to participate in small group work (S). They should also be taught how to plan, draft, edit and proofread their essays and to present a word processed final draft for effect (S).
7. An individualised writing program :
Grade 8 students will write in a wide variety of forms, particularly imaginative and creative forms for a range of purposes and audiences. The process approach to writing should be emphasised. The end point of the writing program will be the publication of a word processed folio of crafted writing.
In the on-going writing program Grade 8 students should become increasingly proficient in the use of standard Australian English (CU). They should understand that writing varies according to form, purpose and audience and apply this in their own work (CU). Students will develop increasing understanding of, and control over, the conventions of writing particularly punctuation, spelling, grammar and style but also appropriate text structure and organisation, paragraphing, layout and presentation (LSF). They will be taught effective writing strategies, particularly planning, drafting, editing and proofreading (S).
Students will be taught how to word process their writing, to maintain a personalised spelling list and to present their work for effect (S). Students should be encouraged to publish their work in the School’s literary magazine Threads, enter the annual House Writing competition, publish their work electronically on the Internet and/or enter the many writing competitions available to them.
8. Classic, contemporary and popular short story study :
Grade 8 students will read a range of classic, contemporary or popular short stories. They should read for understanding and enjoyment, to explore challenging themes, events and characters and to reflect upon their own values and personal experience. Students should provide detailed, well considered spoken and written responses to themes, events and/or characters in some of the short stories. They should also respond creatively to some short stories. An author, genre or thematic study is recommended for Grade 8 students. Appendix 2 provides a list of recommended short story anthologies for use in Grade 8.
When studying short stories Grade 8 students should consolidate their understanding of plot, character, theme and setting and consider as appropriate point of view, style, conflict and first, second and third person narration (LSF). They should gain some insight into the social or cultural values inherent in particular short stories and compare them with their own values (CU). Students should discuss short stories in co-operative groups, create graphic organisers or respond reflectively in journals in order to develop their understanding of them (S).
Other suggested units of work
- Biography - an Australian author study
- A study of fables, myths, legends or fairy tales
- A thematic or integrated study e.g. "Fantasy", "Australiana", " or "Historical fiction"
- A negotiated unit of work - speaking, listening, reading, writing and viewing
- Small group novel reading - an Australian author’s work
- Reading visual texts - picture books, video clips, news photographs
- A word processed or desktop published class anthology or newspaper
- Reading and performing one-act plays and/or script writing
- An introduction to formal debates
- Improvised drama, role-plays, dramatic readings, panel discussions or interviews
- Television news, drama, soap opera or comedy study
- A study of the radio as a mass media text
Assessment is an integral part of the teaching and learning program in Grade 8 English. The major purpose of assessment is to improve student learning.
Students who are well informed about their progress and achievement are able to :
- participate in setting personal goals.
- take responsibility for aspects of their own learning.
English teachers who are well informed about the development of their students' language skills can :
- assist students' learning, goal-setting and awareness of strengths and weaknesses during the learning process.
- provide accurate information about students' achievement in English.
- evaluate and modify their programs on the basis of that assessment information.
Parents who are well informed about student progress and achievement are better placed to support their children's learning.
Assessment in Grade 8 English is criterion-based. Teachers should use a wide range of assessment strategies to determine students' achievements including :
- the observation of individuals and groups.
- conferencing with individuals and groups.
- collecting student work samples to mark against one or more of ten criteria.
- administering language and literature tests.
Grade 8 Assessment Criteria
| 1. | Speak and listen appropriately in a variety of formal and informal situations. |
| 2. | Read and view a variety of texts. |
| 3. | Write accurately. |
| 4. | Use language creatively and imaginatively. |
| 5. |
Plan, draft, edit, proofread and publish writing for a range of purposes and audiences. |
| 6. |
Gain and share understanding of a range of texts. |
| 7. |
Understand how beliefs and experiences shape texts. |
| 8. |
Use available technologies to access information, compose texts and communicate with others. |
| 9. |
Work constructively with others in a variety of group situations. |
| 10. |
Develop responsibility for independent learning. |
The Grade 8 English assessment criteria should be photocopied and handed
to students early in the year. At the beginning of each unit of work teachers
should outline to Grade 8 students the work required, the method of assessment
to be used and the criteria for assessment. Each criterion should be assessed
by teachers on at least three occasions during the course.
Teachers should also encourage the use of self assessment and
peer assessment.
Most students in Grade 8 will be have achieved the level 4 outcomes listed below and be working towards level 5. Some students may also be working towards level 4 or level 6 outcomes.
Level 4 Outcomes
Speaking and Listening
- speaks and responds to others with confidence, after having thought about topics.
- selects and uses suitable language for different settings, purposes and audiences.
- uses language to entertain, inform and influence people.
- selects and organises information to present ideas and information clearly.
- speaks and listens in ways that continue to improve communication with others, e.g. giving different viewpoints, encouraging others to contribute to group discussions.
Writing
- uses writing to develop familiar ideas, events and information, e.g. writes poetry in various forms, writes a play for performance, writes a set of instructions to carry out a task.
- adjusts own writing by taking into account the purpose for the writing, the interests and needs of the people who will read it.
- controls the structures and features of basic types of texts such as reports, stories and arguments and uses a clear and neat handwriting style.
- uses a range of ways to plan, review and proofread their writing with teacher guidance.
- uses a range of spelling methods to develop an increasingly accurate spelling vocabulary.
Reading and Viewing
- gives reasons for own interpretations of ideas, information and events.
- gives possible reasons for the different ways that people interpret texts they read and view.
- with teacher guidance, identifies and discusses how the structures and features of language influence understanding and affect meaning, e.g. discusses the techniques of lighting and music that are used by film makers to create a certain mood; discusses the effect of descriptive language when reading.
- selects and uses techniques to interpret a range of texts, e.g. scanning for main points, rereading, making notes.
- works with other student on research tasks to identify what information they need to know and where to find it.
Level 5 Outcomes
Speaking and Listening
- speaks and responds to other students, in formal groups, to discuss familiar subjects that involve challenging ideas and issues.
- identifies how different settings, audiences and purposes change the way we speak, e.g. how people speak when telephoning a friend compared with when telephoning a stranger.
- discusses and experiments with spoken language structures and features that help speakers to influence an audience, e.g. by using body language, vocabulary and recognising statements of opinion.
- develops and uses specific ways of listening for information and recording it, e.g. selecting key ideas.
Writing
- uses a variety of text types such as stories, poems, journals, articles to write about familiar subjects and explore challenging ideas and issues.
- understands that readers have expectations of certain text types and tries to meet these in own writing.
- makes sure of clear communication when writing texts of some length by checking layout, sequences and grammar.
- plans and reviews own writing in order to effectively complete the task.
Reading and Viewing
- discusses challenging themes, issues and ideas and prepares responses to explain understandings.
- recognises that texts are constructed in particular ways which appeal to different individuals and groups.
- uses knowledge of the structures and features of written and viewed texts to explain how they are constructed, e.g. works out themes, examines plots and sub-plots, considers images.
- identifies features, purposes and effects in stories, films and videos and understands how this influences the meaning of other texts, e.g. how the use of an American western setting, characters, language in a poster advertising jeans help to create an instantly recognisable image for the product.
- develops systematic ways to find and record information.
Common Assessment Tasks
Grade 8 students will complete a common assessment task during October each year. This will involve an extended writing task in response to a literary, mass media or everyday text.
Grade 8 students will also submit a folio of crafted, word processed writing for assessment each November.
Grade 8 students receive a progress English report during the second half of term one. Global ratings on academic progress and attitude are made at this time.
Grade 8 students receive a full English report in July and December each. Students are assessed against the ten assessment criteria. Ratings on classroom and personal management and a written comment are also completed at this time.
A very small number of students who experience considerable difficulty in meeting the requirements of the English course will receive an English Modified report in July and December.
Grade 8 students also receive a Literacy Statement in December each year. Students are assessed against Tasmanian Literacy Outcomes (TLOs). These describe the knowledge, attitudes and skills in reading and writing considered to be the minimum that students need to achieve in order to become independent learners.
APPENDIX 1 : Extracts from the DETCCD Literacy Policy (1997)
Definition of literacy :
| Literacy is the ability to read and use written information and to write appropriately in a range of contexts. It also involves the integration of speaking, listening, viewing and critical thinking with reading and writing, and includes the cultural knowledge which enables a speaker, writer or reader to recognise and use language appropriate to different social situations. |
Dimensions of literacy :
| Students need to be proficient in four interrelated dimensions of language use. This involves their being able to : |
| 1. Decode and encode language at an appropriate level of proficiency. This includes recognising and being able to speak and write words and sentences; it incorporates phonics and the use of accurate spelling and grammar. |
| 2. Use their knowledge of the world, knowledge of vocabulary and knowledge of how language works, to comprehend and compose texts. |
| 3. Understand how language varies according to context, purpose, audience and content, and be able to apply this knowledge. |
| 4. Critically analyse and challenge the way texts are constructed to convey particular ideas and to influence people. |
| These dimensions of literacy are involved to varying degrees whenever we speak, listen, read, view and write. |
The special role of English teachers in teaching literacy :
| Although literacy programs and English programs are closely interrelated, there are differences. The English learning area encompasses more than the development of literacy. A statement on English for Australian schools identifies two interrelated strands of learning in English, texts and language. The texts strand describes the broad range of literature, mass media and everyday texts that students should study and compose. The language strand deals with the knowledge about language and the skills in using language that students should develop in school. Teachers of English, through explicit teaching strategies, have a special role to play in literacy learning because they focus on knowledge about language and how it works. Although the statements and profiles of other learning areas provide information about the literacy practices required for success in these areas, they do so less explicitly than in English. |
| The explicit focus of the English curriculum on text and language contributes importantly to all aspects of students’ literacy education. Within the English curriculum, students learn and practise the skills of speaking, listening, reading, viewing, writing and spelling in different contexts and learn to use the grammar of standard Australian English. They study and compose a wide range of written, spoken and visual texts for cultural, personal and practical purposes. In doing so, they learn about the power of language to convey explicit and implicit meanings and layers of meaning, and they develop the capacity to discuss and critically analyse text and language. |
APPENDIX 2 : Recommended Grade 8 Texts
1. Grade 8 Class Novels
Thunderwith So
Much To Tell You
Foxspell People Might Hear You
Mandragora Boy
2. Grade 8 Small Group Novels
Taronga The
Lake At The End Of The World
Jackaroo The Boy In The Bubble
Storm Bird The Callendar Papers
3. Grade 8 Short Story Anthologies
Top
Drawer Australian Short Stories
Craft And Other Stories Telling Tales
4. Grade 8 Poetry Anthologies
Enjoying
Poetry Right Of Reply
Poetry Can The Poetry Connection
Into Poetry And Beyond Fun With Poetry
5. Grade 8 Feature Films
Into The West Strictly Ballroom
6. Grade 8 Course Books
Heinemann
Outcomes 2 English With Effect
English Power Book 2 Englishworks Book 2
Stepping Stones English 8 : A Comprehensive Course
7. Grade 8 Picture Books
The
Watertower Lucy’s Bay
Way Home The Lost Diamonds Of Killiecrankie
The Deliverance of Dancing Bears Rebel
Norton’s Hut The Rabbits
