When I design materials, I think about:
1. Level and context (I have taught in many different cultural contexts and at many different levels. It takes time to adapt from one to another.)
2. What do I want my students to learn from what I am giving them?
3. Is my lesson interesting for them (appropriate to age, interests, close to them...)?
4. Are they going to be tested? If so, I need them to see the object of the test very clearly.
5. Does it have something for all abilities? Is it scaffolded so I cater for all abilities?
I agree Carmen. I also consider these things you have mentioned. I also want the material to be interesting, to revise the old vocabular and always learn new one. I adopt it to students age, culture and level too.
ReplyDeleteThanks Carmen, yes, each context requires very specific principles - as well as the universal ones, of course. Addressing mixed abilities is a big issue - and can easily be done, I think though we often neglect to do it. A good activity for Professional Development is to create some materials - and then think about how they can be made (a) easier and (b) more challenging.
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