In April, 2007, I started to teach a writing course to KoII and KoIII students (grades 11 and 12) in a private girls JSHS in Osaka, Japan. I will attempt to describe the process of designing the course syllabus as well as provide an ongoing reflection as to what’s working or not working. Please feel free to comment or ask for clarification/elaboration – I love the chance to interact.
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Your blog looks well-organised, and I look forward to seeing how it develops.
At my conversation school, a writing course has begun around November of last year. It is very different from what I want it to be, but thought you’d like to hear what NOT to do…
The course was started from the owner of the school franchise, basically fulfilling HIS dream of the perfect learning situation. He is Japanese, and has lots of visions about how his school should be run. He started the course, and the only students are himself, his daughter (university age), and the manager.
It is basically an English translation course. They work on a Japanese text, and translate it to their version of an English text. They all claim to learn a lot from this, but my dream of a writing course is actually learning how to WRITE, not how to translate correctly. Writing involves much more creativity.
I guess I’m doing my part, as fulfilling their learning request, and I suppose with that I should also be satisfied. However, reading all of the interesting ideas through the MA course, I feel there are so many unexplored possibilities.
Here in Japan, focus is so strongly on “conversation” within conversation schools, and “reading/writing” in public school education, that it seems a shame there is so rarely a time when all of these skills (AND listening) are combined.
I know you went through Nunan’s book in the first Birmingham Pedagogy course, but re-read his chapters on Reading and Writing to refresh yourself and get more inspiration, and let me know how things go!
Good luck.
Comment by Erin Kourelis — May 7, 2007 @ 1:24 am |