Elementary level

Activity 3. Refer to the example of a three level ESL syllabus below and give your comments on them:

ESL Syllabus

A syllabus for each proficiency level should be designed to incorporate all the skills and systems necessary to provide a sense of moving forward; of growing achievement and progress.

ELEMENTARY LEVEL

In the Elementary programme, students should aim to:

Oral/Aural

• Demonstrate an understanding of word order in English;

• Demonstrate a basic vocabulary sufficient for everyday use;

• Use those sounds in English that do not occur in their mother tongue;

•Have learnt the appropriate intonation and stress patterns of English;

•Give basic personal information, can exchange greetings, can ask for simple information necessary for daily school life.

Reading

• Demonstrate a recognition of words and sentence patterns in English;

• Understand the conventions (punctuation and layout) of English;

• Respond to questions about a written text;

• Reinforce and apply their vocabulary skills through shared and guided reading appropriate to their level;

• Use contextual knowledge to predict the meaning of unfamiliar words;

•Develop skills to enable them to determine meanings of unfamiliar words (dictionary and research skills).

Writing

•Write simple instructions, e.g. getting to school, playing a game;

• Use story structure to write about own experience in same/similar form;

• Use capitalisation, e.g. headings, titles, names;

• Be able to use the correct register, spelling and punctuation;

• Be able to write sentences which follow basic sentence patterns;

•Keep vocabulary and definition lists.