Dear All,

I'll be waiting until Thursday, until all Participants have signed in, and I'm
sure of their locales. I'd like to group you according to your time zones if I
can.
Watch for an update here on Thursday.
(posted January 27)


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Re: Activity 4 - Sequencing the Course (Group Activity)
by Marie Baird - Saturday, 1 February 2014, 07:58 PM

1.Within your group (and using your own group forum) you will have your
discussion.
Note: The main thing here is not really to come to a consensus - though
thats a bonus; it is to collectively consider the many things we may need
to take into account when we design our course sequence outline. Its also
to become more aware of the context of individual participants as this
should inform our later discussions
2. After coming to an agreement about, and/or identifying key course
sequencing considerations, the presenter will publish your results and
rationale here, in Activity 4 - Sequencing the course.

Group 1 - Maria, Martinez, Jordi (Spanish A-Lang-Lit)
Group 2 - Allyson, Robin, Helen, Gurpreet
Group 3 - Halvor, Bronwyn, May, Yasser
Group 4 - Camille, Alexandra, Joanna
PLEASE AIM TO PUBLISH YOUR CONCLUSIONS here by Tuesday,
February 4. We begin Module 2 at that time.
Cheers, Marie


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Re: Activity 4 - Sequencing the Course (Group Activity)
by Halvor HEGLAND - Tuesday, 4 February 2014, 02:12 PM

Hello Marie!
Our group agrees on following Bronwyn's suggestion of how to sequence
our course. " We would want to teach a Language course and a Literature
course within one year and another Language course paired with the
remaining Literature course in the second year. This is because we would
want the students to see the link between the study of language and the
study of literature; the two are not isolated, literature being one of the
forms of expression through language. We would also want to pair the
parts of the curriculum which seem to form a connected continuum in
terms of their main focus, so we would suggest tackling Part 2 (Language
and Mass Communication) first (to get the students to look in depth at the
uses of different styles) and Part 4 (the Literary Criticism section) second.
These seem to us to form a beautiful continuum as they both lead students
to delve deeply into stylistic elements.
We would follow this, in the second year, with Part 1 (Language in Cultural
Context) and finally Part 3 (Texts in Context). Again, these two sections go
together logically s they both examine context.
We believe that this sequence would also fit in with the examining times,
ending with literature because the texts need to be fresh in the candidates'
minds - although some revision time would definitely be needed before the
exams (which in our case would fall in May).
So to sum up, our suggested sequencing is:
1. Part 2 - Language and Mass Communication
2. Part 4 - Literature Critical Study
3. Part 1 - Language in Cultural Context
4. Part 3 - Texts in Context"
On behalf of group 3,
Halvor


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Re: Activity 4 - Sequencing the Course (Group Activity)
by Marie Baird - Thursday, 6 February 2014, 05:45 AM

Thanks Halvor. And naturally, as we develop more confidence in our
delivery, we'll see opportunities for moving back and forth with increasing
ease between the Parts. For example, when a topic link (from Part 1) can
be supported by a discussion (or brief foray) into a Part 4 text, we'll be able
to create opportunities that enrich students' understanding by exploring
text from both.
One note - if we complete Part 4 text studies in Year 1, we need to be
prepared to complete the IOCs at that point as well -- or to review those
Part 4 texts in Year 2, prior to students completing the IOC (IOC =
Individual Oral Commentary). We'll spend time in MOdule 4 looking at the
IOC, and students' preparation for this important component.
M


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Re: Activity 4 - Sequencing the Course (Group Activity)
by Alexandra MOLINA - Wednesday, 5 February 2014, 02:39 AM

course overview.doc
Dear Marie,
I am sending this so you can give me feedback on it.
Text and Topic Worksheet
This worksheet can help sketch the major parts, topics, and texts for the
two year program. The parts have been ordered in a logical sequence but
after working out assessments, topics, and texts we could find that a
different order or another approach may work better with our classes. Part
1: Language in cultural context approximately 9 weeks.

Part 1: Language in cultural context 9 weeks
(Number of topics is up to the teacher)

Topic 1: _______________________________________

Topic 2:________________________________________

Topic 3:________________________________________

Part 4: Literature critical study approximately 9 weeks

Text 1_______________________________________ (PLA)

Text 2_______________________________________ (PLA)

Text 3(HL)____________________________________ (PLA)

Part 2: Language and mass communication approximately 9 weeks

Topic 1:________________________________________

Topic 2:________________________________________

Topic 3:________________________________________

Part 3: Literature texts and contexts approximately 9 weeks

Text 1_______________________________________ (PLT, in
translation)

Text2________________________________________(PLA)

Text 3________________________________________(chosen freely)

(SL = one text from PLT, one text from PLA or chosen freely, written in
Language A)
Notes: We need to check texts to be sure we have covered 2 genres, 2
periods, and 2 places. We should also check for balance in terms of
gender, style, and level of difficulty. This I still have trouble with.




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Re: Activity 4 - Sequencing the Course (Group Activity)
by Marie Baird - Thursday, 6 February 2014, 05:49 AM

Thanks Alexandra. The attached document identifies your text choices for
Parts 3 and 4 (which I commented on in Act 3, when you discussed your
syllabus choices). It doesn't really indicate the order in which these would
be delivered, however. You can read the comments of other groups to see
some of the flags their discussions raised.


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Re: Activity 4 - Sequencing the Course (Group Activity)
by Allyson WEILAND - Wednesday, 5 February 2014, 05:11 AM

Hello Marie,
We didn't quite reach a consensus on how exactly to sequence the
course. We did identify some issues in the sequencing that we are all
considering.
Originally, the thought was to teach the various parts in
sequence. However, upon further discussion we agreed that doing so
might result in the two years feeling like two separate courses. The first
year would be more of a language course, and the second focusing more
on literature. After further thought, we agreed that it would be best to pair
part one or part two with either part three or part four.
This is where we couldn't quite reach an agreement. We need to take into
consideration the topics that we are teaching for Part 1 and Part 2, and
how they pair with the texts that we've chosen for Parts 3 & 4. Additionally,
we need to very strategically choose where and when to conduct our
assessments. There was concern that too much time might pass between
introducing a text and the paper that accompanies it. However, it was
suggested that perhaps having critical reading practices to assist students
in reviewing the work over a longer period of time might deepen their
understanding.
We have further thinking to do on this topic, and we continue to revise and
consider our sequencing.


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Re: Activity 4 - Sequencing the Course (Group Activity)
by Marie Baird - Thursday, 6 February 2014, 05:39 AM

Thanks Allyson, for taking on the reportage, and capturing all the different
aspects of your conversation. Naturally there are many variables, within
our contexts, that will continue to impact how we organize the syllabus.
Just so long as we keep in mind those critical assessments and build in
time for our students to be fully prepared to perform to the best of their
abilities.


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Re: Activity 4 - Sequencing the Course (Group Activity)
by Hannah PAYNE - Friday, 7 February 2014, 09:37 AM

I also didnt reach a conclusion, although working individually on this! I
could not decide it if was better to run the parts individually in which case:

Part1, Part 2, Part 4,Part 3

Or if it would make more sense to teach the course as a whole and mix up
texts to best fit the topics being studied.

I first thought that following the logical sequence of ideas and texts would
give the students a more rounded idea of the course. However as I am the
only teacher at my school, and am teaching this for the first time (we are
an IB candidate school- no one at my school has IB experience) I would
worry that I would not cover each part in enough detail.

Following each part separately would allow me to ensure that I will be
covering each in detail and will allow me time to ensure my assessment
times match the requirements without having to recap a section.

I could use part 1 and 2 as a preparation for the choices we would be
making and concepts being studied in parts 3 and 4.


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Re: Activity 4 - Sequencing the Course (Group Activity)
by Marie Baird - Friday, 7 February 2014, 11:27 PM

Thanks Hannah. You never need to fear you're in isolation. We live in a
very connected world - and you can continue to contact me, or connect
with people through the online forums on the OCC.
You'll find as you teach the course that there will be natural opportunities to
blend and blur the lines between the distinct Parts. As I pointed out in
another post to you, your Part 1 topic choice of language and propaganda
provides obvious opportunities to introduce students to WW1 poetry -- to
Brooke's sonnets which were used in newspapers and pulpits as
propaganda ("Now God be thanked, who has matched us with this hour...")
and to Owen's tragic response to that (Dulce et decorum est pro patria
mori - decrying "the old lie"). In other words, you're teaching a topic within
Part 1, but you're also introducing literary texts, and students are
discovering the profound links between the two.