Introduction

In simple terms, a syllabus is a ’road map’ for any course. Syllabi are used to provide structure and security to both students and teachers. There are many differnt types of syllabi which can be used; however, there are some basic principles and questions a teacher should ask him or herself before developing a syllabus and lesson plans. Some questions the teacher should ask him or herself are as follows:

• What kind of students are in the course (number, prior knowledge, experience, motivation, etc.)?
• What are your goals for the course?
• What are the student’s goals for the course?
• What learning activities can be used to meet these goals?
• What teaching strategy is best to structure these learning activities?

After answering these questions, a teacher can then decide which type of syllabi best suits the course. (Cornell University)

Different Types of Syllabi

Although there are several types of syllabi, rarely is one type exclusively used for syllabus development. Most syllabi usually have one dominating type and use a combination of other types of content are integrated into it. The different types of syllabi are as follows:

• Strucutal/Formal Syllabus: The content of language teaching is a collection of the forms and structures, usually grammatical, of the language being taught. Examples include nouns, verbs, adjectives, statements, questions, subordinate clauses, and so on. (T. Reilly)
• Notional/Functional Syllabus: The content of the language teaching is a collection of the functions that are performed when language is used, or of the notions that language is used to express. Examples of functions include: informing, agreeing, apologizing, requesting; examples of notions include size, age, color, comparison, time, and so on. (T. Reilly)
• Situational Syllabus: The content of language teaching is a collection of real or imaginary situations in which language occurs or is used. A situation usually involves several participants who are engaged in some activity in a specific setting. The language occurring in the situation involves a number of functions, combined into a plausible segment of discourse. The primary purpose of a situational language teaching syllabus is to teach the language that occurs in the situations. Examples of situations include: seeing the dentist, complaining to the landlord, buying a book at the book store, meeting a new student, and so on. (T. Reilly)
• Skill-based Syllabus: The content of the language teaching is a collection of specific abilities that may play a part in using language. Skills are things that people must be able to do to be competent in a language, relatively independently of the situation or setting in which the language use can occur. While situational syllabi group functions together into specific settings of language use, skill-based syllabi group linguistic competencies (pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and discourse) together into generalized types of behavior, such as listening to spoken language for the main idea, writing well-formed paragraphs, giving effective oral presentations, and so on. The primary purpose of skill-based instruction is to learn the specific language skill. A possible secondary purpose is to develop more general competence in the language, learning only incidentally any information that may be available while applying the language skills. (T. Reilly)
• Task-based Syllabus: The content of the teaching is a series of complex and purposeful tasks that the students want or need to perform with the language they are learning. The tasks are defined as activities with a purpose other than language learning, but, as in a content-based syllabus, the performance of the tasks is approached in a way that is intended to develop second language ability. Language learning is subordinate to task performance, and language teaching occurs only as the need arises during the performance of a given task. Tasks integrate language (and other) skills in specific settings of language use. Task-based teaching differs from situation-based teaching in that while situational teaching has the goal of teaching the specific language content that occurs in the situation (a predefined product), task-based teaching has the goal of teaching students to draw on resources to complete some piece of work (a process). The students draw on a variety of language forms, functions, and skills, often in an individual and unpredictable way, in completing the tasks. Tasks that can be used for language learning are, generally, tasks that the learners actually have to perform in any case. Examples include: applying for a job, talking with a social worker, getting housing information over the telephone, and so on. (T. Reilly)
• Content-based Syllabus: The primary purpose of instruction is to teach some content or information using the language that the students are also learning. The students are simultaneously language students and students of whatever content is being taught. The subject matter is primary, and language learning occurs incidentally to the content learning. The content teaching is not organized around the language teaching, but vice-versa. Content-based language teaching is concerned with information, while task-based language teaching is concerned with communicative and cognitive processes. An example of content-based language teaching is a science class taught in the language the students need or want to learn, possibly with linguistic adjustment to make the science more comprehensible. (T. Reilly)

Which Type is Best

As mention previously, a syllabus normally does not consist exclusively of one type of syllabus but uses one main type and integrates portions of other types into it. It is important to remeber that when creating a syllabus you should not think about which type of syllabus to use, but which TYPES to use and how to relate them to each other and the material being taught. (T. Reilly)

Tarey Reilly has developed ten Stepps which are usful in determining and preparing a practical language teaching syllabus. The Stepps are as follows:

• Determine, to the extent possible, what outcomes are desired for the students in the instructional program. That is, as exactly and realistically as possible, define what the students should be able to do as a result of the instruction.
• Rank the syllabus types presented here as to their likelihood of leading to the outcomes desired. Several rankings may be necessary if outcomes are complex.
• Evaluate available resources in expertise (for teaching, needs analysis, materials choice and production, etc.), in materials, and in training for teachers.
• Rank the syllabi relative to available resources. That is, determine what syllabus types would be the easiest to implement given available resources.
• Compare the lists made under Nos. 2 and 4. Making as few adjustments to the earlier list as possible, produce a new ranking based on the resources' constraints.
• Repeat the process, taking into account the constraints contributed by teacher and student factors described earlier.
• Determine a final ranking, taking into account all the information produced by the earlier steps.
• Designate one or two syllabus types as dominant and one or two as secondary.
• Review the question of combination or integration of syllabus types and determine how combinations will be achieved and in what proportion.
• Translate decisions into actual teaching units.

Example Syllabi

For different courses different formats will also need to be used. For example, when working with business clients, you will need to have a formal professional style syllabus; whereas, when working with general students and young learners, you can use a less formal style syllabus. Examples are as follows:

Formal Syllabus Template

(Cornell University)

(Course Title)

(Dates of Course)

(Course Meeting Times)

Instructor: (Name) (Contact Information)

I. Course Aims and Objects:

Aims

Thinking from the prospective students’ point of view, what general outcomes is the course designed to achieve? How will it contribute to them professionally?

Specific Learning Objectives:

By the end of this course, students will:

List as specifically as possible the learning outcomes the course is intended to produce. It is helpful here to think about the kinds of evidence you will need to assess the students’ learning as your objectives should drive your assessment and grading schema. Kinds of evidence can be manifest in what students say, do, think and/or feel. What they say (as on an exam, paper, project, homework, etc., or in class discussion) is a reflection of their thinking. Feelings are often neglected in specifying course or class objectives, yet the research on the role of affect (emotions and feelings) in learning has been well documented and has been shown to have a significant influence and integration with cognitive learning. For example, if you were teaching a course on ecology it would be difficult to do without addressing human values, which have an affective aspect to them. If certain psycho-motor skills are intended to be developed, the evidence will be in doing (as in a lab course where actions like titration, completing successful assays, collecting meaningful data and analyzing it are regular expectations) they should be articulated as clearly as possible. A well stated objective has two components: substance (content/subject matter like osmosis or absorption) and form: what action must the student perform with regards to the substance (compare and contrast, evaluate, analyze, apply, etc.)

II. Format and Procedures:

How is the course structured and how will classes be carried out? What behavioral expectations does the instructor have for the students in class?

III. Tentative Course Schedule: (may change to accommodate student needs)

Informal Syllabus Template

(EnglishRaven.com)

Conclusion

In conclusion, when a teacher develops a syllabus they should first determine the objectives in the class (what the students want and need to learn) and then develop a method plan which best suits the students and the environment which the course is held. Each course should be looked at individually when developing a course syllabus since every course has different students and different needs.

Kristen Kelly