Using TSA data to enhance curriculum planning

1. Using TSA data to enhance curriculum planning English Language Education Section Curriculum Development Institute Education Bureau

2. Listening Some Suggestions of the Way Forward: • Expose pupils to more authentic listening materials covering a range of text types (e.g. advertisements, announcements, telephone conversations) to prepare pupils for listening to English in real-life situations • Use poems, songs and rhymes to help pupils develop sensitivity towards the sounds and rhythm of the English language • Draw pupils’ attention to the use of spoken English in their daily life (e.g. conversations with the NETs, announcements on the MTR) • Make use of activities like storytelling, reading aloud and shared reading to develop pupils’ listening skills • Design activities which provide pupils a clear purpose for listening

3. Listening Some Suggestions of the Way Forward: • Teach the skillsexplicitly rather than just playing the tape/CD and checking answers • Help pupils anticipate the contentof the listening text and tune in • Develop in pupils the good habit of listening to the whole recording once to get the gist or main ideas the first time they listen. In subsequent listening, guide pupils to locate and understand specific details • Help pupils develop theirsimple note-taking skills • Review the problems when pupils fail to identify the information required and guide pupils how to get the answers • Increase in complexity the content of the listening materials as pupils progress from KS1 to KS2 (e.g. providing opportunities for pupils to listen to extended texts rather than merely short and discrete items)

4. Reading Some Suggestions of the Way Forward: • Expose pupils to a range of text types • Use multi-media resources to boost pupils’ interest and confidence in reading • Teach pupils differentreading skills explicitly instead of just explaining the meaning of the vocabulary • Guide pupils to read for meaning (i.e. understand the main ideas/gist of the whole text before learning how to locate specific information) • Use effective questioning techniques to help pupils develop reading skills as well as critical thinking skills and creativity • Allow ‘wait time’ for pupils to formulate their responses

5. Writing • Some Suggestions of the Way Forward: • Expose pupils to a variety of text types • Discuss the topic for the writing task, clarify the purpose and audience, discuss the format, conventions and language features whenever appropriate • Ask more open-ended questions to stimulate pupils’ critical thinking and creativity • Guide pupils how to organise ideas with the use of mind maps and appropriate cohesive devices • Provide opportunities for the application of the language items and structures learnt • Encourage pupils to use a variety of language structures and vocabulary

6. Writing • Some Suggestions of the Way Forward: • Help pupils develop the habit of reviewing their own work to avoid careless spelling and grammatical mistakes • Give quality feedback to pupils on how they can improve their writing (apart from acknowledging pupils’ efforts and give encouraging remarks) • Foster a good learning culture in class by demonstrating examples of good pupil writing and highlighting pupils’ strengths • Gradually reduce the support to help pupils progress from the stage of controlled writing to guided writing and to independent writing

7. Speaking • Some Suggestions of the Way Forward: • Encourage pupils to apply the phonics skills in reading aloud • Provide more practice on giving presentations or rehearsed speech (e.g. show-and-tell) • Provide more practice on interactive activities (not just answering teacher’s questions) • Encourage pupils to talk with the NETs or English teachers in English both inside and outside the classroom • Encourage and guide pupils to give appropriate elaborations • Develop pupils’ confidence in speaking up (emphasis on fluency before accuracy) • Teach the communication strategies explicitly

8. Marking – Writing / Speaking Some Suggestions of the Way Forward: Use holistic marking • Identify the focus of the task • Decide on the marking criteria which can cover the different aspects (e.g. content, language and organisation for writing) • Practise consensus marking to gain a common understanding of pupils’ performance and facilitate the provision of feedback • Give constructive feedback to help pupils identify their strengths and improve on their work • Avoid counting every single grammatical/ spelling/ pronunciation mistake

9. English Language Learning Reading Speaking • Vocabulary learning • Integration of 4 skills Listening Writing

10. Vocabulary Building Skills Word Formation • Affixation (e.g. unhappy, careless) • Compounding (e.g. foot+ball=football) • Conversion (e.g. cook a meal, a cook) • Derivation (e.g. excite, exciting, excited, excitement) English Language Curriculum Guide (Primary 1-6)(2004), pp. 168-171

11. Vocabulary Building Skills Word Association • Synonyms (e.g. happy = glad) • Antonyms (e.g. bright dark) • Homonyms (e.g. catch a bus, catch a cold) • Collocations (e.g. make a wish, watch TV) • Lexical sets (e.g. furniture – table, chair, desk, cupboard) English Language Curriculum Guide (Primary 1-6)(2004), pp. 168-171

12. Receptive Paradigmatic Approach Syntagmatic Approach Productive Approaches to Vocabulary Learning

13. Paradigmatic Approach Word Hierarchy

14. Paradigmatic Approach Superordinates Sports Furniture

15. Paradigmatic Approach

16. Paradigmatic Approach • Organises words into hierarchies • Develops associative networks • Encourages efficient vocabulary learning • Allows for additions

17. Syntagmatic Approach Topic: Jobs

18. Syntagmatic Approach Topic: Going around Hong Kong

19. Syntagmatic Approach • Develops associative networks • Helps with the productive use of English • Focuses on multi-word units (e.g. ‘See you later.’, ‘Have a good trip!’) • Learns word collocations (e.g. ‘go shopping’, ‘have a shower’, ‘play football’)

20. Providing Opportunities for Practice Pupil’s initial draft I like music. My father bought me a piano. I love the piano. I think it is the best piano. I play the piano every day. When I touch the piano, I feel very happy. My Favourite Thing

21. Suggestions for Enrichment Pupil’s revised draft My Favourite Thing I like music. My father bought me a _______ piano I love the piano. I think it is the best piano. I play the piano every day. When I touch the piano, I feel very happy. (Adj?) new as a birthday present. (What for?) because it is beautiful. (Why do you think so?) (When?) after school.

22. Lexical Substitution Too many pianos? Pupil’s final draft My Favourite Thing I like music. My father bought me a new piano as a birthday present. I love . I think it is the best because it is very beautiful. I play every day after school. When I touch , I feel very happy. present. the piano. the gift. piano musical instrument the piano the keyboard the piano

23. Integrative Tasks Story reading:(Reading) - Learning story structure and vocabulary Writing a story 1 2 3 • Collaborative story telling: • (Listening and Speaking) • Brainstorming setting, characters and events • Brainstorming storyline in groups • - Developing storyline with teacher support • Individual story writing: • (Writing) • Summarising the collaboratively produced story • Creating a personalised ending to the story