A Work in Progress

1. A Work in Progress The Process of Revising EAP Curriculum

2. Introduction: Who are We? • Glenda Fish, Instructor and Curriculum Coordinator, Trent-ESL • Tamara Al-Kasey, Instructor, Trent-ESL, Oshawa • Trent-ESL is a 5-level EAP program • The Oshawa ESL program is smaller and newer but equivalent to the Peterborough program • Level 5 is the “gateway” to regular studies at Trent U.

3. Overview of Process: 2005-2013 • Existing Level 5 curriculum model • Instructor initiated revisions • Catalyst • Identification of Trent distinctives • Creation of new Level 5 curriculum model • Delivery • Evaluation and revision • Consideration of implications for other levels

4. Existing Level 5 Curriculum Instructor Initiated Revision

5. Level 5 Model: 2005-2010

6. Instructor Initiated Revisions • Initially, L5 was just “Lecture,” an integrated skills course • One-by-one three other skills courses were added as needed • Eventually the three skills courses were united into one course, but the course was disjointed

7. Revised Level 5 Curriculum Model: 2010

8. Catalyst Summer 2012

9. Oshawa Evolves • The Oshawa ESL program would offer a Level 5 class for the first time in September 2012 • The students would be Science Without Borders students heading to UOIT in January 2013. • Trent-ESL had never had a group of science students • The existing program was unsuitable • A decision was made to develop a model suited to both campuses

10. Identification of Trent Distinctives

11. What makes us “Trent”? • Writing conferences • Trent developed materials – not textbooks • Lectures by Trent professors as the starting point for units/essays • Disciplines and topics that are areas of specialty at Trent • Strong connections to other departments at Trent e.g. Academic Skills

12. Creation of New Level 5 Curriculum Model

13. Identification of Needs • Critical productive skills • Key receptive skills • Cross-course coordination of topics • General academic skills

14. The Inspired Curriculum Process

15. The New Level 5 Model

16. The New Model: Details • Includes writing conferences • Uses lectures by Trent professors as the starting point for units • Shares topics for units (i.e. Academic Analysis and Academic Communication study the same topic at the same time) • Uses Trent-developed materials • Continues relationships with other departments through University Transitions

17. Academic Communications:Writing Assignments

18. Academic Communications:Academically Speaking

19. Academic Analysis:Listening and Reading Skills

20. University Transitions

21. Delivery

22. Delivery: Fall 2012 • 2 campuses • 1 large mixed group (split into two classes) • 1 small culturally cohesive group • 2 curriculum writers (AC/AA) Unit-by-unit materials creation • 5 instructors

23. Evaluation

24. Evaluation • Mid-term SWOT (instructors and manager) • Mid-term evaluations (students) • End of term Focus Group (repeating students) • End of term student evaluations • Instructor feedback • Continuing evaluation (Winter/Spring 2013)

25. Instructor Mid-Term Evaluation: Fall 2012 • SWOT evaluation -Liked the shared topics -Liked the Trent-developed materials -Found materials development for AA and marking for AC time-consuming -Realized that good communication between the instructors is vitally important --Ptbo: felt a time crunch in AC --Oshawa: needed more hard science materials

26. Oshawa Student Mid-Term Evaluation: Fall 2012 • Requested grammar reference • Asked for explicit vocabulary instruction • Struggled with non-science writing • Enjoyed seminars • Felt themselves to be progressing Population details: -Homogenous cultural group: Brazilian engineers -Level variation -Direct admit students

27. Peterborough Student Mid-Term Evaluation: Fall 2012 • Many noted improvements in reading and note-taking • Some wanted speaking in Academic Analysis • Many liked trying new writing styles • Many were thankful for the seminars and presentations • Generally seemed to feel that the materials were directly relevant to regular studies

28. Peterborough Student Focus Group: December 2012 • Participants were students who had studied level 5 in both models (i.e. repeaters) • They loved the new model • They especially liked studying the same topics at the same time in the two courses • They liked the addition of report writing • Most felt University Transitions should be a separate course

29. Revision

30. Revisions in Oshawa • Additional/alternative units -mechanical engineering • Addition of reference grammar • Adaptation of writing assignments -e.g. technical writing, exam short essay responses, writing with graphics • Addition of vocabulary support

31. Revisions in Peterborough • Paring down the excess e.g. removed one-week introductory unit • As new units are developed, the critical reading assignments and note-taking assignments are becoming more focused • To free up some time in AC, moved the introduction to seminars to UT • Shifted to weekly assignments in UT

32. Considering the Implications for Other Levels

33. What does the new Level 5 mean for Levels 1 to 4? • Winter 2013 we began a process of sharing our findings and experiences with the other instructors • Currently we are undergoing a curriculum review process for the other levels • Preliminary decisions: adopt the shared topic approach in all levels, adopt the Academic Analysis / Academic Communication approach in level 4

34. Curriculum Review

35. Contact Information • Glenda Fish, Instructor and Curriculum Coordinator, Trent-ESL • Email: glendafish@trentu.ca