[NIFL-ESL:10998] Re: Lesson Planning for a "model" ESL

From: David Rosen (djrosen@comcast.net)
Date: Sat Jul 16 2005 - 18:09:26 EDT


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From: David Rosen <djrosen@comcast.net>
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Subject: [NIFL-ESL:10998] Re: Lesson Planning for a "model" ESL
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Hi Elsa,

Some might argue that using a lesson plan format itself is  
mechanistic, prescriptive, imposed and top down.  I have certainly  
seen examples where K-12 school systems, in an effort to standardize,  
have driven out creativity and quality, diminished teacher control,  
and ended up with well-organized mediocrity or worse.  So I would  
extend your caution to _all_ top-down processed which require  
standard formats for lesson planning.

However, in the control of teachers who are trying to share and  
integrate what they do across a team, a format is often useful,  
especially one which allows creativity and is not a slave to a  
particular teaching or assessment approach.

I wanted to test this one out (before recommending it to a group of  
teachers last week) and developed a sample lesson for adult learners  
at a secondary level who were interested in getting career  
information and also who needed to improve their report writing  
skills.  I decided to target it for a population of urban young  
adults, men and women, ages 16-20, who had left school without  
graduating.  I also decided that it should make good use of  
information, research capabilities and collaborative writing  
opportunities offered by the Internet.  Finally, I wondered if this  
format would be helpful to me in designing a (writing) portfolio  
based assessment process using rubrics, one in which students could  
collaboratively critique each others' writing in teams.

I didn't find the format constraining in any way.  When I presented  
the format and the lesson plan I had designed to a group of teachers  
a couple of days ago, they saw many possibilities for it, and found  
the lesson plan itself intriguing.

So I would conclude that a tool like this could, in the hands of a  
large top-down, system which was interested in primarily in  
organization and accountability (and not the quality of what teachers  
and students do in the classroom) could be a problem.  In the hands  
of teachers working together, however, who choose to use it, a format  
like this  can be very helpful.

All the best,

David
djrosen@comcast.net

On Jul 16, 2005, at 4:16 PM, Elsa Auerbach wrote:

> Please note that there is a great deal of controversy about Madeline
> Hunter's approach which many practitioners (K-12) find prescriptive  
> and
> mechanistic; it has been imposed  in a top-down way in school  
> systems and is
> seen as controlling, stifling of teacher creativity, disrespectful to
> teachers' professionalism, etc.
>
> Googling Madeline Hunter would probably turn up some of these  
> critiques
> (although I have to admit I haven't done this).
>
> Elsa Auerbach
>
>   On 7/16/05 10:54 PM, "sandra fugate" <aviasan2@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>
>> Thanks David.  This is a very helpful site.  I
>> especially like the extensive 'measurable verbs' list
>> that have been categorized.
>>
>> I am somewhat familiar with the work of Madeline
>> Hunter who is referenced in the OTAN site.
>>
>> Are you familiar with Dr. Bob Kizlik's site, Adprima,
>> at http://www.adprima.com/?
>>
>> I have also found the book "Learning Teaching" by Jim
>> Scrivener very useful.  Additionally, CAELA has good
>> ideas for planning lessons in their Toolkit.
>>
>> Again, thanks for this great site.
>>
>> Sandra
>>
>>
>>
>> --- David Rosen <djrosen@comcast.net> wrote:
>>
>>
>>> Hello Sandra and others who have this question:
>>> "What do you consider
>>> to be the 'model' ESL-specific lesson plan format?"
>>>
>>> A new -- and possibly very useful -- tool which
>>> addresses the need
>>> you have described is Lesson Plan Builder
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>> http://www.adultedlessons.org/login.cfm?fuseaction=login
>>
>>>
>>> It's a free, online template where a teacher can
>>> create lesson plans
>>> and save them.  The lesson plans  can be done a
>>> piece at a time,
>>> saving (and returning to) the parts that are done.
>>> They follow a
>>> tried-and-true format (Madeline Hunter/WIPPIE). They
>>> have adult
>>> education (including ESL/ESOL) competencies
>>> referenced within it
>>> (such as CASAS, and SCANS, with others to be added )
>>> and it
>>> conveniently links with a (free) online rubrics
>>> builder.  The
>>> completed lesson plans can be saved to one's own
>>> computer (or a
>>> program's server for all teachers there to use) and,
>>> within a few
>>> months or, so they will be able to be saved to a
>>> user-accessible,
>>> searchable online database of lesson plans.  This
>>> has been developed
>>> (and will be improved) by OTAN in California.  I saw
>>> it demonstrated
>>> at COABE this year, and think it is potentially very
>>> useful to adult
>>> ESL/ESOL teachers and others.
>>>
>>> What do you - and others here -- think of it?
>>>
>>> David J. Rosen
>>>
>>>
>>> On Jul 16, 2005, at 11:33 AM, sandra fugate wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>>> While we are on the subject of "Model ESL
>>>>
>>> Programs", I
>>>
>>>> would like to ask a question.  What do you
>>>>
>>> consider to
>>>
>>>> be the 'model' ESL-specific lesson plan format?
>>>>
>>> We
>>>
>>>> are trying to create a 'formal' lesson plan
>>>>
>>> template
>>>
>>>> that is ESOL-specific.  We have researched a
>>>>
>>> number of
>>>
>>>> resources and have found that the components for
>>>>
>>> the
>>>
>>>> 'recommended' ESOL-specific lesson plan are pretty
>>>> much the same with the exception of the titles of
>>>>
>>> the
>>>
>>>> components.  Even when the title varies (such as
>>>> learner activities vs practice) the definition is
>>>> basically the same.
>>>>
>>>> We have many ESOL practitioners who are 1)
>>>>
>>> part-time,
>>>
>>>> 2) have no language acquisition teaching
>>>>
>>> experience or
>>>
>>>> related educational background and  3) some who
>>>>
>>> may
>>>
>>>> not even hold a k12 teaching license that would
>>>> indicate they have had training in teaching
>>>> methods/lesson planning.
>>>>
>>>> For these reasons, we want to provide training in
>>>> lesson planning and ESOL-specific teaching
>>>>
>>> strategies.
>>>
>>>>  Of course, we know that they will not create a
>>>>
>>> formal
>>>
>>>> plan before each class, but we want them to at
>>>>
>>> least
>>>
>>>> know how to do so and understand the principals
>>>>
>>> that
>>>
>>>> support each component of an ESOL-specific lesson
>>>> plan.
>>>>
>>>> In an effort to create a lesson plan that conforms
>>>>
>>> to
>>>
>>>> recognized ESL specifications, we would greatly
>>>> appreciate your feedback.
>>>>
>>>> Thank you,
>>>>
>>>> Sandra Fugate
>>>> ESOL Coordinator
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
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