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S7 Lecture 4. Types of Language Teaching Syllabi Master 1

The document outlines six types of language-teaching syllabi: structural, notional/functional, situational, skill-based, task-based, and content-based. Each type is characterized by its focus, such as grammar forms, language functions, real-life situations, specific skills, tasks, or content knowledge, with most syllabi being a combination of these types. The document emphasizes that while these syllabi can be treated separately, they often overlap in practice and are used to enhance language learning in various contexts.

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4 views

S7 Lecture 4. Types of Language Teaching Syllabi Master 1

The document outlines six types of language-teaching syllabi: structural, notional/functional, situational, skill-based, task-based, and content-based. Each type is characterized by its focus, such as grammar forms, language functions, real-life situations, specific skills, tasks, or content knowledge, with most syllabi being a combination of these types. The document emphasizes that while these syllabi can be treated separately, they often overlap in practice and are used to enhance language learning in various contexts.

Uploaded by

Yasmine HM
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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University of Algiers II, Abou El Kacem Saâdallah

Faculty of Foreign Languages

Department of English

Course: Focus on Curriculum Design (Master 1)


Teacher in Charge: Mr Azzouni

Lecture 4:

Types of language-teaching syllabi

There are six different types of language teaching syllabi and each is
treated largely as though it occurred "purely," or independently of the other
types. In practice, of course, these different types rarely occur
independently of each other. Almost all actual language-teaching syllabi are
combinations of two or more of the types defined here. On the other hand,
for a given course, text, or curriculum, one type of syllabus usually
dominates; that is, while other types of content may be combined with the
dominant type, the majority of the content reflects one or another type of
syllabus. Furthermore, the six types of syllabus are not entirely distinct
from each other. The distinction between syllabi defined as skill-based and
those defined as task-based, for example, may be minimal. In such cases,
the distinguishing factor is often the way in which the instructional content
is used in the actual teaching procedure. The six types are treated
separately so that their characteristics; differences, and strengths and
weaknesses can be clearly defined. There is no recommendation that

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language teaching adopt one or another in pure form for any purpose
whatsoever.

1. Structural (or formal) syllabus:

A structural (or formal) syllabus is one in which the content of


language teaching is a collection of the forms and structures, usually
grammatical, of the language being taught. Examples of structures include:
nouns, verbs, adjectives, statements, questions, complex sentences,
subordinate clauses, past tense, and so on, although formal syllabi may
include other aspects of language form such as pronunciation or
morphology.

2. Notional / functional syllabus:

A notional / functional syllabus is one in which 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,
promising, and so on. Examples of notions include size, age, color,
comparison, time, and so on.

3. Situational syllabus:

A situational syllabus is one in which 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. Sometimes the
situations are purposely relevant to the present or future needs of the
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language learners, preparing them to use the new language in the kinds of
situations that make up the syllabus. Examples of situations include seeing
the dentist, complaining to the landlord, buying a book at the bookstore,
meeting a new student, asking directions in a new town, and so on.

4. Skill-based syllabus:

A skill-based syllabus is one in which 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,
sociolinguistic, 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, taking language tests,
reading texts for main ideas or supporting detail, 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.

5. Task-based syllabus:

A task-based syllabus and a content-based syllabus are similar in that


in both the teaching is not organized around linguistic features of the
language being learned but according to some other organizing principle. In
task-based instruction, 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

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develop second language ability. Language learning is subordinated 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. They differ from situations 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 language 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 are applying for a job, talking with a social worker, getting
housing information over the telephone, completing bureaucratic forms,
collecting information about preschools to decide which to send a child to,
pre-paring a paper for another course, reading a textbook for another
course, and so on.

6. Content-based syllabus:

A content-based syllabus is not really a language-teaching syllabus at


all. In content-based language teaching, the primary purpose of the
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

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need or want to learn, possibly with linguistic adjustments to make the
science more comprehensible.

In general, the six types of syllabi or instructional content are


presented beginning with the one based most on language structure, and
ending with the one based most on language use. If language is viewed as a
relationship between form and meaning, and instruction as emphasizing one
or the other side of this relationship, then the six types of syllabi can be
represented as a continuum, ranging from that based most on form to that
based most on meaning

(Adapted from Krahnke, 1987, pp. 13-18)

References
Krahnke, K. (1987). Approaches to Syllabus Design for Foreign Language
Teaching.
Language in Education: Theory and Practice. West Nyack, NY:
Prentice-Hall, Inc.

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