Innovation In Language (English) Curriculum

Dear Writer,
I am a professional Primary school teacher. I teach at a public school All my students are Indigenous EAL/D learners. Teachers still use the “Northern Territory Curriculum Framework (NTCF) ESL” document for our EAL/D students. In fact, we are required to report against the NTCF ESL and enter data into SAIS. My school does this twice a year and inputs the data into SAIS. This was developed before the Australian Curriculum, but is still in use across the Northern Territory.
Please read through ALL of the below instructions. Read through all of the power points so you have an understanding of how to use the appropriate linguistic metalanguage in depth. You must refer to the Reading List for reference use as much as possible.
My University subject is: “Innovation in Language (English) Curriculum”.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR THIS ASSIGNMENT
Please carefully read through ALL instruction.
This assignment involves writing an extensive report in which you will analyse a broader curriculum document and its implementation. The report should demonstrate your understanding of the concepts and theories underlying English language curricula and related issues of curriculum implementation in a particular socio-cultural context. The report should also provide an analysis of linguistic, social, and possibly political factors that influence second language syllabuses and curriculum

You will need to use the “ESL Primary Learners Northern Territory Curriculum Framework” for this assignment.

Note: Your report must consider the following questions, all of which relate to your study in this unit so far. Please do NOT use the questions below as headings.
1. Give a brief overview/introduction of the current position or status of this curriculum document. (e.g. Is it a compulsory national/state/local syllabus? Is it recent/due for renewal/out of date? etc) Could it be seen as an innovation, in Markee’s terms (see Hall and Hewings, 2001), when first introduced?
2. If the curriculum is taught within a mainstream environment, i.e. a school, what is the relationship of the English language curriculum/syllabus to the mainstream one?
3. What seem to be the main organising principle(s) underlying this English curriculum?
4. What theoretical approach to language description or analysis underpins it? E.g. Is it systemic functional grammar and/or genre theory? Is it a structural grammar? Traditional grammar? You may find referring to these different approaches to Grammar. Readings useful here, especially Derewianka (2001) Pedagogical Grammars.
5. What theory of language learning underpins it? E.g. Is it behaviourism, a cognitive approach, interaction-input-output theory?
6. In what ways does the curriculum suit its context?
7. Comment on assessment within this curriculum/syllabus.
8. Can you see or find out about any other external influences on this curriculum, e.g. the demands of the job market, requirements of a school leaving or university entrance examination, the IELTS or TOEFL examination, etc.?
9. Comment on any issues, such as tensions or clashes between the curriculum/syllabus’s stated purpose and its use in reality as evidenced by your reading and through personal experience.

Note that this is not a fieldwork research project and you are not required to interview teachers, go into classrooms or collect other data. You will be working from your syllabus document and appropriate literature from this unit and further reading as relevant. In this sense your research is literature-based.
Throughout this unit, your case study readings on the implementation of various syllabus/curriculum documents have provided a model for you of the ways in which the issues and concerns that arise with any major change in curriculum can be framed and discussed. For example, you might re-read Carless’s chapter in Hall and Hewings (2001) who writes about the Hong Kong English syllabus and use other relevant literature sources that do a similar kind of work.
Write this assignment up in the form of a report for your peers in order to inform them in greater depth of the current theories and views underlying English Language Teaching (ELT) syllabuses and how they are exemplified in your chosen syllabus.
Organizing your report.
Use headings and sub-headings to structure your report.
You may like to use Tong, Adamson and Che’s (2000) framework (in Adamson and Davison 2003), of ‘intended, resourced, implemented and experienced’ curriculum to structure your assignment, even if you are not able to report on all of these aspects. If you teach using this curriculum, you can use personal experience for the ‘implemented’ and ‘experienced’ sections, as well as relevant literature.

MARKING CRITERIA
What the Assessor will be looking for when marking this assignment

Depth of understanding of the concepts and theories underlying English language syllabuses and curriculum documents;
Depth of understanding of the concept of ‘innovation’ and related issues of implementation in this context;
Depth of understanding of the influences surrounding and affecting second language syllabuses and curriculum documents;
Level of engagement with the set readings and relevant literature through the report content and appropriate referencing;
Use of appropriate terminology for describing ELT syllabuses, including linguistic metalanguage and the labelling of syllabus components; and
Ability to present a clearly-written report, structured appropriately for audience and purpose.