Shaler Area High School Curriculum Night Presentation

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Shaler Area High School Curriculum Night
Presentation
Japanese Language Program
By Ritsu Shimizu
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Topics

• Course Offering
• Curriculum (Goals, Structure, Learning
  Activities, Teaching Activities)
• Learning Strategies
• Assessment (Why, What and How and Grading)
• Japanese National Honor Society

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Course Offering Extra Curricular Activity

• Level I
• Level II
• Level III
• Level IV
• Level V
• Potential of the Future Japanese AP course(?)
• Extra Curricular Activity (JNHS)

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Curriculum Goals

• Developing Learners Communicative Competence
• Knowledge and skills in five areas (Listening,
  Speaking, Reading, Writing and cultural
  Understanding)
• Helping Students How to Apply Their Learning
  Strategies
• Six Types of Learning Strategies are Identified.
  Students should become aware of each type and
  apply them for their own study
• Technology Integration in Japanese Language
  Learning
• Japanese word processing use, Internet use for
  written language practice, Power Points use for
  presentation, E-mail, Scanner and Digital camera
  use for presentation

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Curriculum Structures
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Scope of Learning Activities

• Listening to (audio cassette tapes, teacher
  guided listening activities, fellow students
  talking presentation)
• Speaking (responding to the teachers question in
  Japanese, role plays, skit preparation and
  presentation, using basic classroom expressions,
  dialogues performance and pattern drills)
• Reading (reading aloud, making cards for
  recognition of katakana, kanji card, pair work as
  well as self)
• Writing (warm-up exercises for words or letters
  students learned previously, card making, a draft
  writing for an essay, final writing work.)
• Independent, open ended project (Writing,
  recording, research, a group presentation work)
• Cultural activity participation

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Diagram of Learning Strategies
Memory Strategies
Cognitive Strategies
Social Strategies
Affective Strategies
Compensation Strategies
Metacogntive Strategies
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Example of Language Learning Strategies (everyone
learns differently)

• Memory Strategies (creating mental linkage.
  Applying images and sounds, reviewing well)
• Cognitive Strategies (Practicing, Receiving and
  Sending messages, Analyzing and reasoning,
  creating structure for input and output)
• Compensation Strategies (guessing intelligently,
  overcoming limitations)
• Metacognitive Strategies Attitude (Setting
  personal goals, arranging and planning your
  learning,, focussing on tasks)
• Affective Strategies (Lowering your anxiety,
  encouraging yourself, taking your emotional
  temperature)
• Social Strategies (Asking questions, cooperating
  with others)
• Resources Language Learning Strategies, Rebecca
  L. Oxford

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Teaching Activities/Techniques
(vocabulary intro with picture, student drawing
of objects or event, students see and say, TPR

• Memory

Social
Cognitive
Pair work, small group, playing cards while
learning alphabets, kanji)
(Explaining lang. Structure, close form
exercise, repeated structure drills
Compensation
Affective
Guessing from context, use of gesture to
communicate
Calligraphy, TPR. Playing calm music, physical
exercise
Attitude
Focus on task, mind set, prioritizing,
responsibility
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Assessments What? Why? And How?

• Instruction Learning
• What? What?
• -Curriculum scope -Learning outcome of know-
• sequence ledge and skills
• -Instructional Technique -Learning process
• - Material
• Why? Why?
• -To plan effective instruction - To check
  /monitor learners
• -To feedback for instructional
  progress
• effectiveness

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How?Assessment Methods Traditional Vs
alternative

• Traditional Alternative
• Purpose Purpose
• -Learning outcomes (the products - Emphasis
  is on the process of
• are assessed. learning as well as the
  product
• -To allow comparisons across - To
  assess instructional processes
• populations as well as instructional
  objectives
• Contents Contents
• Discrete points are assessed -Tasks
  are often open ended, offer
  students a wide range of choices
• Formats Formats
• -Multiple-choice responses -Demonstrations,
  performance), portfolios,
  journals, observations,
• conferences

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Grading

• Benchmarks for each grade level and each four
  skill areas
• Areas of grading
• Active participation (the percentage of this
  portion decreases on each level)
• Homework (The types of homework also changes on
  each level)
• Written class work
• Quizzes (oral/aural, reading and writing)
• Performances (Oral response, skit, interviewing,
  tape recording a monologue, or interview)
• Independent project

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Reference to Language Developmental Stages

• Knowledge which a student can recall that they
  learned
• Knowledge and usable skills which a student can
  consciously recall and use
• knowledge which students have already accumulated
  unconsciously (can recall without laborious
  efforts)
• Knowledge and proficiency which a student can
  fluently command

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Japanese National Honor Society

• Goals of Society Members Activities --Experience
  of leadership, community services to share their
  knowledge and skills
• Membership Selection Criteria - Third year of
  Japanese, good grade and good citizenship
• Merits of Five Years (not four years) JNHS
  membership --Increase of receiving scholarship,
  Character references, and Leadership experience
  in working for community services
• Annual JNHS Activities
• Homecoming parade participation, - Shaler North
  Hills Library
• Visit of a private elementary school
  Origami workshop
• Japanese students newspaper publishing suggested
  this year The ideas of innovative activity for
  the JNHS from students are welcome.

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Graduation Project Personal Thought
at this stage.

• Start early--Each year a student keeps your
  representative work for Portfolio (a recorded
  tape, a writing project, authentic letters,
  photos commemorating some event.
• Add more personal touch, such as e-mail or
  letter exchanges, event of meeting or hosting a
  Japanese student, and keep a personal journal
• Community Japanese family visit
• Internship at a Japanese company (?)
• Final Project can be presentable in a various
  form, such as Power point, web page publication
  or as a book

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• Thank you for Coming