Goals, Content, and Sequencing

This part of the curriculum design process aims to make a list of the items to teach in the order in
which they will be taught.
Guidelines for Deciding or Checking the Content and Sequencing of a Course
Content and sequencing must take into account the following:
1. Course's environment
a. Learners (ideas should be appropriate for their age & level of skill, as well as
their expectations & interests.)
b. Teachers (The language in the course should be able to be modeled and
comprehended by the teacher.)
c. Situation (Time should fit the school schedule, and content should be practical.)

2. Learners need
a. Lacks (The content should suit the learners' proficiency level.)
b.Wants (The content should take account of what learners want.)
c. Necessities (The content should be what learners need.)

3. Principles of teaching and learning.

Goals and Content

Goals are defined as general statements concerning desirable and attainable program. Purposes
and aims based on perceived language and situation needs in delivering goals
From perceived needs, The goals of a language lesson can focus on one or more of the following:
 Language
 Ideas
 Skills
 Text
The Units of Progression in the Course
The units of progression in a course are the items used to grade the progress of the course. For
example, if the starting point of a course were language items, particularly vocabulary, the units
of progression would be words and, at a broader level, word frequency levels similar to those used
in grading the levels of simplified readers.

The units of progression can be classified into two types:

 Definite series, such as vocabulary levels,
 Field of knowledge could be covered in any order, such as topics.
The progression used for:
 To set targets and paths to those targets
 To check the adequacy of selection and ordering in a course
 To monitor and report on learners’ progress and achievement in the course
Task-based Syllabuses
Ellis (2003b: 4–5) provides nine different definitions, one of which is especially succinct and useful
for teachers: “A task is an activity which requires learners to use language, with emphasis on
meaning, to attain an objective” (Bygate et al., 2001).
Sequencing the Content in a Course
The lessons or units of a course can fit together in various ways. The two major divisions are
whether the material in one lesson depends on the learning that has occurred in previous lessons
(a linear development) or whether each lesson is separate from the others so that the lessons can
be done in any order and need not all be done (a modular arrangement)
Linear Approaches to Sequencing
These include a spiral curriculum, matrix models, revision units and field approaches to
sequencing.
1. Developing a spiral curriculum involves deciding on the major items to cover, and then
covering them several times over a period of time at increasing levels of detail.
2. A matrix model (Table 5.4) is somewhat similar to a spiral curriculum, the main difference
being that the change when meeting old material again is one of diversity rather than
complexity.
3. Revision units (Table 5.5) are simply an addition to a linear model.
4. In a field approach the items to be covered are decided upon and then the learners can start
anywhere with the material and end anywhere as long as it is all covered.
A Modular Approach to Sequencing
1. Describe the goals of the course.
2. Decide on the unit of progression for the course.
3. Choose and sequence the content of the course.
4. Check the content against lists of other items to ensure coverage.