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ii) -ssumptions about learners needs

#he nglish /anguage #eaching curriculum clearly states that the listening and speaing

sills should be focussed in the primary education, especially in the early years. #he pupils

would be able to pic up and learn the language in a meaningful way, and later they could beable to use that in reading and writing. It is important therefore that pupils should be provided

with the language before they are e!pected to produce it.

#hey must also be given opportunities to try out the new language in controlled practice

sessions where they have very little opportunity to mae mistaes. Slowly, control can be

released as they are given the opportunity to use the language freely.

0evertheless, as listening and speaing sills were not tested in the e!aminations, the sills

had basically been neglected in the schools. Some teachers claimed that the school and

education authorities did not bother with the development of these sills in the primaryschools. 1hat counted were the literary sills, which constituted maor components in the

2(SR nglish language paper.

iii) -ssumptions about the conte!t in which learning occurs

-s visualised in the KBSR, learning nglish should be pupil"centred in order to meet the

mi!ed pupils of different abilities. nglish language in most cases in rural areas such as

ours, was seen as a foreign language. In fact pupils rarely had the opportunity to use thelanguage besides in the classroom3 the culture was rather hostile towards the learning of the

language itself. #he KBSR nglish language curriculum, in principle, tries to ensure that the

pupils would acquire nowledge and sills through direct e!perience in learning the language

sills. -s such the maor features in the teaching and learning strategies include*

4 %anaging learning through a variety of grouping3 a class, small group, in pairs, appropriate

to sills be taught and the many different inds of abilities and interests of the

pupils.

4 5reater diversity and fle!ibility is to be applied in the selection of the body of nowledge

and sills to be taught in a particular lesson.

4 %ore attention to be given to the individual needs and interests of pupils through remedial

and enrichment programmes.

4 2tilisation of available local materials and resources to enhance the teaching and learning

process.

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0evertheless, the KBSR faced several implementation setbacs. #he goals have not been

fully achieved. It was, a 6paperwor culture+. It was beautiful on the paper. -pparently, the

theoretical aspects of the language have been neglected. 1hen the e!amination became

the main concern, stereotyping of teaching and learning of the language occurred, and

classroom situations became unattractive. (edagogy has become dry and too structured.

iv) #o what e!tend do u agree or disagree with the assumptions underlying the

curriculum on which your language programme are based

-s we e!amined the stated and the e!pected, and as I looed at the reality, I discovered

that there was a policy"practice mismatch3 the policy as visioned in the /# curriculum

could not be implemented fully in the primary schools. #he reason was obvious and a

direct one, but a significant one " we came to reali$e that tests and e!ternal e!amination

were the over"riding concerns 7 and they led to teaching to the test phenomenon in the

primary schools. #his concern3 i.e., the over"riding concern for e!amination in the

primary schools apparently turned out to be one of the dominating factors shaping the

conte!t in which the nglish language teaching is been done in primary schools. -s we

have e!perienced, S/ teachers+ had been forced to be only concern in the S/ classes

became the concerns and worries to get as many pupils as possible to pass the nglish

language paper in the public e!amination or the monthly standardised tests. -s a

consequence, they 8employ teaching methods which are underpinned by a behaviourist

view of learning3 attempt o complete the syllabus as early as possible to leave room for

revision before the 2(SR3 used 2(SR revision worboos3 and conduct supplementary

lessons where pupils are given e!tensive practice on the inds of questions that will be

tested in the 2(SR9 '/im, :;;":=?).

v) an u thin of any strategies to change, modify or adapt aspects of the

curriculum with which u disagree@

-lthough the curriculum recommended the teachers to get on creative and innovative

approaches in their teaching, little change were seen in the evaluation strategy in use. #he

element of continuous school"based assessment still place emphasis on the evaluation of

students+ achievement and performance. In the conte!t of KBSR evaluation is narrowly

defined to mean the measurement of the similarity between performance and standards or

obectives leading to professional udgements of pupil progress and achievement, where

achieving is taen to mean the level of achievement according to stated criteria.

#here is a clear absence of reliable information on the actual operationali$ation process of

the new curriculum in small schools. in detail evaluation is important and necessary towards

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this end. Illuminating the reality of what actually happen in the classrooms of the schools is

critical if the KBSR is to bring about the desired change to the rural educational scenario.

Special concern should be the manner in which the following si! teaching strategies which

are central to effective implementation of the KBSR are interpreted and operationali$ed by

teachers*

ffective teaching of new subects lie %anipulative Sills, and ommercial (ractices

in which these teachers were never trained before3

oncept of fle!ibility which requires the teachers to be fle!ible in their choice of sills

and nowledge to be taught, and materials to be used to suit changing situations and

pupils needs and abilities, a contrast to te!tboo"based teaching they are familiar

with3

oncept of group and individual teaching which requires the teachers to change from

their normal teaching strategies of teaching the same sill or nowledge to all pupils

in the same class to one that is more creative and multi"dimensional3

Integration of subect matter and sills which requires the teachers to apply a more

integrated approach to their teaching as well as personal mastery and acquisition of

a bigger number of sills and broader nowledge3

oncept of continuous evaluation as an integral part of teaching and learning which

requires the teachers to have a good understanding of both formative and summative

evaluation and the necessary sills to administer them3 and

mphasis on, and integration of remedial and enrichment activities into the normal

teaching learning situations which required teachers to give considerable attention to

pupils individual differences and the promotion of independent learning.