English Curriculum Studies 1 CLB018 / CLP408

Lecture 2

Models of English teaching:Pedagogical approaches

Kelli McGraw

Write a statement in one sentence beginning: ‘The aims and purposes of secondary English (Years 8–12) are …’

(tip: making brief notes justifying your statement will prepare you to

complete Part A of Assignment 1)

Consider: 1. who the learners are2. what they should learn3. and how.

Metalanguage for this topic

Theorising:• Paradigm• Discourse• Pedagogy• Capital

Curriculum issues:• Literacy practices • Multimodality• Learning outcomes• Literature vs. Texts

Perhaps the greatest barrier to a paradigm shift is the reality of paradigm paralysis: the inability or refusal to see beyond the current models of thinking.

Discourse = An institutionalised way of thinking, a social boundary defining what can be said about a specific topic.

More Metalanguage...

Models of English

teaching:Which

discourses do you draw on?

“Discourses [‘unwritten rules about how something can be discussed’] do not offer neutral descriptions of the world. They actively shape the world in favour of certain viewpoints.” (Moon, 1992 ‘Literary Terms: A practical glossary’ p.36)

Cultural Heritage?

Skills? Personal Growth?

Cultural Studies/Analysis?

Critical Literacy? Multiliteracies?New Basics?

Shifts in language and literature teaching: then and now

But...let’s not get stuck in binary oppositions! Read more this week:

• Charged with Meaning:Chapter 1 – what else is English ‘charged with’?Chapter 2 – ‘Post-Dartmouth’ in Australia (= 1966-2009)Chapter 3 – The Growth Model

• Bushell reading (on BB): Skills Cultural Heritage Personal Growth Socio-cultural Critical Cultural

But...you’re already messing with my metalanguage!

Can you match these with the

discourses outlined

previously?

A: Identifying the significant schools of thought is the important part.

Cultural Heritage?

Skills? Personal Growth?

Cultural Studies/Analysis?

Critical Literacy? Multiliteracies?New Basics?

Bushell used these labels:‘Skills’, ‘Cultural Heritage’, ‘Personal Growth’, ‘Socio-cultural’ and ‘Critical Cultural’

What kind of English teacher do you want to

be?

www.polyvore.com

Our Homework

The homework task for this week was to bring in a bag filled with FIVE artefacts that you think symbolise the kind of English teacher you want to be.

• What did you choose?• Which discourses can you identify in your choices?• Do you think you are ‘old fashioned’ in your

approach after learning more about the history of how the English curriculum has developed?

• What have you discovered about what you value?

Finally, have you...

• Checked out Blackboard for CLB018?• Obtained the text ‘Charged with Meaning’?• Printed/saved the Bushell reading?• Checked out our unit blog?

http://englishteachinginoz.wordpress.com/

• Joined twitter (and ‘tweeted’)?