English enhancement: A business for the whole school

1. English enhancement: A business for the whole school SKH Li Fook Hing Secondary School 25 March 2006

2. Insufficient English input • Input: 8-10 periods per cycle (CMI: about 1 hour a day; 23 hours without English!) • Movies? • Book reports? • Speech Festival? English is a business for everyone in school AND at home!

3. #2 (handout) • Education has failed to realize that what the society is interested in among our young people is what they could do in the future, rather than what they know at the moment (Cheng 2004).

4. #7 (handout) • Teaching junior students to order a Happy Meal in English in their [EFL] home country is irrelevant, unless teachers can provide [an authentic] context where English must be used (Yang 2003).

5. Cheng (2004) Expectations of individuals are now different. Most surveys on workplace requirements converge to the same list of personal attributes, such as: • ability to communicate • adaptability to change • ability to work in teams

6. Cheng (2004) • flexible human relations • preparedness to solve problems • ability to analyze and conceptualize • ability to assume personal responsibility • ability to reflect on oneself

7. Cheng (2004) • ability to manage oneself • ability to create, innovate, and criticize • ability to engage in learning new things anywhere and anytime • ability to cross specialist borders • ability to move across cultures

8. More English on campus ($) • Staff development ($$) • Decision-making process (priceless) • Examples ($$$)

9. Recommended Strategies (EC 2005) 1. EMI extended learning activities 2. Chinese and English learning resources 3. Provision of additional resources 4. English-rich environment 5. Teaching effectiveness of English language

10. School level • The principal / vice principals conduct English assemblies every month. • English is an official language on school notices. • Permanent signs (e.g. staff room, pantry) are in English. • English hymns are sung in Christian assemblies.

11. 5. Non-Chinese-speaking coaches are hired for school teams. 6. Students make English announcements every day. 7. Students are encouraged to read in English during reading sessions. 8. Certain cultural lessons (table manners, music) are conducted in English.

12. 9. Language proficiencies are also criteria for choosing prefects / monitors. 10. Non-English teachers are invited to conduct assemblies in English. 11. English proverbs / sayings are posted on campus regularly. 12. All teachers follow the same phonetics / phonics system.

13. 13. Teachers introduce English websites to students for content subjects. 14. The school enjoys the English services provided in the community (visits / guided tours). 15. English is an essential component in school functions (e.g. Sports Day). 16. The library has a wide variety of English magazines.

14. 17. The library advertises newly-purchased books every month. 18. A list of commonly-used campus English sentences is given every term. 19. Teachers receive / greet students in English at the school gate every day. 20. The school plays English songs for students’ pleasure during lunch hour.

15. English Department • English teachers converse with students in English at all times. • The school makes good use of EMB products (e.g. ETV for S1-3). • A pen-pal system has been established with an overseas institution. • Students’ essays are published for the whole school (Oasis, Writing Club).

16. 5. English drama competition is organized every year. 6. English teachers conduct assemblies on a regular basis. 7. English corner / café is well used by students. 8. Western festivals and cultures are duly introduced.

17. Students • Students make use of all complimentary tickets for English shows. • Students write class journal entries in English. • A reputable list of English online games / movies has been given to students / parents. • All students keep an English notebook for class.

18. 5. All students are encouraged to participate in English inter-school activities. 6. Students are encouraged to take part in international tests.

19. Parents • Parents lead English conversation / reading groups on a regular basis. • Parents talk to student body in English periodically. • Parents are invited to play English online games with students at home. • Parents have been requested to spend time reading with students at home.

20. Staff development • Services or equipment bought will not stay for long. Only teachers are “sustainable”. What will happen to the new students at the end of 6 years and when the 3 million is gone? • A well-planned strategy is needed.

21. 1: Teachers’ Workshops English Heads in neighboring schools decide upon a topic and invite a speaker for the talk for English teachers in the proximity.

22. 2: Teacher exchange programs • Teachers teach at another school for 1-2 weeks. The teachers will then learn the practice and culture from other schools, and bring whatever suitable back to their original positions. The exchange programs allow teachers to learn from peers and appreciate the difficulties (and comforts) each school experiences.

23. 3: Lesson studies • Teachers teaching at the same level (in different schools) observe ONE common class. They then discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the class and suggest possible/alternative teaching tasks for future reference. • Teachers identify a common problem (e.g. marking issues)

24. Decision-making • Does the school really need the English funds to run enhancement programs? • How ready are the teaching staff in helping out the programs you have decided to run? • Does the schedule permit additional English input? How much? Is it worth the work? • How does the school know what to run for students?

25. What to run? • Ask students through survey, focus group • Analyze the strengths of all teachers • Each department proposes a year-long activity, for example: • Visual Art + Drama + English • Liberal Studies + Camp + English • Computer + Smartboard + English

26. Criteria (a) Creating space (b) Whole-school approach (c) Capacity building (d) Sustainability (e) Outcome-oriented

27. Creating space • How practical are the objectives? • How is the program related to classroom learning? • What kind of outside help will be employed? • How often will the outside helpers meet with students?

28. Whole-school approach • What is the support mechanism of the school in this program? • How many non-English teachers are regularly involved in this program? • What are the impacts on students with outside helpers on campus? • What is the involvement of other students (not at the level intended) in the program? • How feasible is it to share the workload and fruit of the program with a neighboring school?

29. Capacity building • How many English teachers are regularly involved in this program? • How many out of classroom hours are needed for each teacher to prepare and conduct program-related activities? • What is the percentage of regular classroom teaching “sacrificed” that has to make way for the program? (online activity in MMLC) • How many hours of additional English input will each student receive weekly?

30. Sustainability • How is the program related to everyday English learning? • What kind of strategies will be employed? • What kind of new training will teachers need for the program? • How feasible is it to recycle materials / methodologies used in the program? • How does the program help improve teaching / learning quality in the long run?

31. Outcome-oriented • What are the student outputs: short term and long term? • What is the involvement of each student in the output? • How are the weekly tasks monitored? • How are the outputs measured? • Besides language skills, what else will students learn in the program?

32. 1: Hall of Fame • Thirty famous historical people (e.g. Nobel Prize, Pulitzer Prize, Oscar winners) may be chosen for the whole form. Students are grouped together and research on the character chosen: childhood, education aspiration, family life, contribution to society, pictures, books written on the character, etc. An exhibition will be held at the end of the school term.

33. Hall of Fame • Departments: History? Liberal Studies? Project Learning? Economics? English? • 30 famous characters, 5 classes (6-7 students work on one famous character, 6 characters per class, 6 teachers to supervise)

34. Sept / Oct: to assign character, to conduct preliminary research • Nov / Dec: to share information on the character’s childhood, education, family life, contribution to society, post-modem influence, pictures / movies / books on the character

35. Jan / Feb: to revise materials written / collected • Mar / Apr: to prepare for uploading / hall exhibition • Related activities: (1) to vote for the best booth; (2) to prepare booth games; (3) to invite neighboring schools to view the exhibits

36. 2: Model United Nations • Students represent different countries and discuss current issues in the interest of the nations. Students learn about cultures, economies, politics, geography, moneys, etc. of countries around the world.

37. 3: Attendance • For a mathematics unit with the understanding goals “Students will understand how percentage can be used to describe real-world happenings” and “Students will understand how to represent numerical information in clear graphs”. In small groups students collect and compile data about school attendance over the course of two weeks.

38. They calculate the percentage of students who fit various categories (percentage of students absent, percentage present, percentage tardy, and so on). They then create groups to represent their data visually, collect feedback from the class, and revise their graphs accordingly. (EMB 2006)

39. School Office + Mathematics + English • A class is divided into 5 groups (8 students in a group every two weeks) • To collect data from Office, to interview (tape) late students / teachers, to check newspaper on traffic / weather conditions • To provide a 5-minute video report at the end of the two weeks

40. Alternatives • Circulation of tuck shop snacks • Popularity of school lunch boxes • Restaurant visits / reviews • Circulation of library books • Video reports / recommendations at the end of the investigation

41. Online resources • http://www.pacificnet.net/~johnr/aesop/ • http://www.carolhurst.com/index.html • http://www.stonesoup.com/ • http://www.ucalgary.ca/~dkbrown/index.html • http://www.ncte.org/ • http://www.bibliomania.com/bibliomania-static/index.html • http://www.theteachersguide.com/bookactivities.html • http://www.webenglishteacher.com • http://www.lessonplanspage.com/LA.htm • www.englishcompanion.com/assignments/reading/103readingactivities.htm

42. Concluding remarks • Set a small objective, but do it thoroughly. • Involve as many dedicated teachers as possible. • Consider the fun element in the activity; it is as important as the content area. • Don’t worry if you can’t spend $0.5 million a year. The less you spend, the more sustainable it may be.

43. Many thanks Pooi To Middle School Pui Ching Middle School SKH Li Fook Hing Secondary School St Mark’s School

44. #14 (handout) • One hundred years from now it will not matter how much money you made, what kind of car you drove, what sort of house you lived in. But one hundred years from now, the world will be a better place because you made a difference in the life of a child. (Invitational Education, circa 1998).

45. Thank you

46. References • Cheng, K. M. (2004). Questioning education: Learning and society in a post-industrial era. CCEAM Conference Commonwealth Council for educational Administration and Management. 20 October 2004. • Education Commission (2005). Report on review of medium of instruction for secondary schools and secondary school places allocation. HKSAR. • EMB (2006). The future is now: Vision to realization—School leaders workshop for planning 334. HKSAR. • Matthews, A. (1999; 2003). Happiness in a nutshell. Seashell publishers. • Yang, A. (2003). An egg-cooking approach to communicative language teaching. TESL Reporter 36 (2), 1-7. • Yang, A. and Cheung, C. (2003). Adapting textbook activities for communicative teaching and cooperative learning. Forum 41 (3), 16-24.