How necesary is a Coursebook?

In a really personal opinion I think that a Coursebook is totally necessary in an English learning process. Not just because it is a guide which privies a clear framework to the teacher about what they are going to study first and what is next. But also it gives autonomy to the learner, in terms of he/she can use the Coursebook to learn new material being less teacher-dependent making the learning process meaningful.

What is a Course book?

The term Coursebook means a textbook of which the teacher and, usually, each student has a copy, and which is in principle to be followed systematically as the basis for language course.

My own Syllabus

Syllabus Séptimo Básico School: Liceo Hispano Americano

Instructor: John Christopher Walker Canelo

Office Hour: The appointment with the teacher required a previous phone call to his secretary

Location in the Curriculum: Lenguaje extranjero sub-sector Inglés

Course Description: This Course is going to work mainly with speaking and listening abilities, but also with writing an reading but in a secondary way.

Course Objectives: By the end of the course, students are going to:

• Develop the students' listening skills to enable them to understand and
  apply specific information from the input
• Produce a natural oral conversation in English according to his/her personal needs.
• Discriminate information in listening activities
• Explain ideas and opinions using the second language.

Course Format: Classroom Course.

Course Requirement: Class Participation, Respect for the other students .The minimal grade to pass this class is a 4.0

Required Text: 7° Básico Travelers (Alvarado Lina)

The Syllabus

When we are talking about The Syllabus we are talking about of a guide in which specify all the things that are be taught during the course

Some characteristics that might have our Syllabus are:

1. Comprehensive list of contents items (Words, Structures, Topics) and process (Tasks, Methods).
   
2. It's ordered (easier, more essential items first).
3. It has explicit objectives (usually expressed in the introduction)
4. It is a public document
5. May indicate a time schedule
6. May indicate a preferred methodology or approach
7. May recommend materials

Bloom's Taxonomy

Bloom's Taxonomy is a very useful tool which allow us to organize the material, and also the abilities, that we want to develop into our students. The verbs that are presented in this Taxonomy help us especially during the process of the lesson plan for every class.

Some basic Concepts

When we are talking about methodology we talk about how we are going to teach. And for teaching a second language we have to consider some concepts in our planning like:

-Strategies: In terms of the technique we are going to use in our classroom

-Principles: Especially for kids, or teenagers in terms of respect

-Culture: Knowing that when we teach a language we also teach the culture of the countries where that language is speaking (in this case could be USA, New Zealand, England, Australia etc)

-Skills: We can never forget that we have to develop the four linguistics abilities ( speaking, listening, writing, and reading)

-Metacognition: The student must be aware about his own learning process and check what is his or her weaknesses.