Notional-functional syllabus

Notional-functional syllabus

1. 3. Teaching situations and implications for the notional-functional syllabus

   • How do we define teaching situations?
     • narrowing our field.
   • Institutional variables
     • Class size
       • Determining which of the various needs identified should be given the highest priority
       • However, there are individual needs
     • Assessment
       • Notional-functional syllabuses work best with no formal assessment.
       • formal assessment recognizes the goals of a notional-functional syllabus.
       • assessment based on grammatical forms,
     • Status
       • It refers to whether an institution is a private “for-profit” institution or a public “not for profit”
         • public
           • Ministry of Education guidelines to follow
         • Private
           • More freedom, the syllabus should be an efective one.
         • Many universities have the academic freedom and inclination
   • Socio-cultural variables
     • Individualism
       • learners are more open to new methods which focus on exposure to authentic language and the negotiation
     • Power-distance
       • in notional-functional syllabuses, the teacher is the facilitator,power-distance is low
     • Uncertainty avoidance
       • spectrum ranging from tolerance to intolerance
     • Gender bias
       • the spectrum which ranges from masculine to feminine perspectives on norms of behavior.
   • Learner variables
     • Language level
       • refers to the level of language ability demonstrated by a particular learner
         • beginner, through elementary, pre-intermediate, intermediate, and upper-intermediate to advanced.
     • Learner styles
       • “convergers” and “conformists”
     • Motivation
       • instrumental
         • needing a language as an instrument to achieve other purposes such as doing a job effectively or studying successfully at an English-speaking institution
       • integrative.
         • wishing to integrate into the activities or culture of another group of people.
   • Status of English in the locality
     • Status of English in locality
       • This includes localities where English is the native language; localities where English is an official language; and localities where English is a foreign language.