CHAPTER 8: SYLLABUS . interactive environment, which affects the nature of both what is taught and what is learnt.

The
classroom thus generates its own syllabus (Breen, 1984).
What is SYLLABUS? 6) The Learner Syllabus. The learner syllabus is the network of knowledge that develops in the
- a syllabus can be defined as 'a description of the contents of a course of instruction and the order learner’s brain which enables that learner to comprehend and store the later knowledge. The learner
in which they are to be taught
syllabus belongs to the internal syllabus; it is a retrospective record of what will be learnt (Candlin,
- is the guide to a course and what will be expected of you in the course
1984). The importance of the learner syllabus lies in the fact that it is through the filter of this
There are several syllabuses that differ by its function: . syllabus that the learner views the other syllabuses.
1) The Evaluation Syllabus. This kind of syllabus will be most familiar as the document that is
handed down by ministries or other regulating bodies. It states what successful learners will know A. Why should we have a syllabus .
by the end of the course. In effect, it puts in record the basis on which success or failure will be 1) To make the material manageable. Language is a complex entity. It cannot be learnt in
evaluated. It reflects an official assumption as to the nature of language and linguistic performance. one go. We have to have some way of breaking down the complex into manageable
For example, if the syllabus is framed in terms of grammatical structures, this reflects a view that units. The syllabus, in defining the constituent parts of language knowledge, thus
knowing a language consists of knowing the constituent structures. It would be impossible to provides a practical basis for the division of assessment, textbooks and learning time.
produce an evaluation syllabus without having a view of what language is and thus how it can be 2) To give moral support to the teacher and learner. In addition to its practical benefits, a
broken down. syllabus also gives moral support to the teacher and learner, in that it makes the
2) The Organizational Syllabus. This syllabus states the order in which it is to be learnt. It is most language learning task appear understandable.
familiar in the form of the content page of a textbook. The organizational syllabus differs from the 3) To give a cosmetic role. Sponsors and students will want some reassurance that their
evaluation syllabus in that it carries assumptions about the nature of learning as well as language, investment of money and/or time will be worthwhile. The syllabus shows that some
since, in organizing the items in the syllabus. The organizational syllabus, therefore, is an implicit thought and planning has gone into the development of a course. This aspect is of
statement about the nature of language and of learning. particular importance when there are commercial sponsors involved.
3) The Material Syllabus. The first person to interpret the syllabus is usually the materials writer. 4) Returning to our analogy of learning as a journey, the syllabus can be seen as a
So we get our third kind of syllabus – the material syllabus. In writing materials, the author adds statement of projected routes, so that teacher and learner not only have an idea of
yet more assumptions about the nature of language, language learning, and language use. The where they are going, but how they might get there. The syllabus itself will be the
author decides the context in which the language will appear, the relative weightings and integration vehicle to reach the goal of learning.
of skills, the number and type of exercises to be spent on any aspect of language, the degree of 5) A syllabus is an implicit statement of views on the nature of language and learning. A
recycling or revision. These can all have their effect on whether and how well something is learnt. syllabus will normally be expressed in terms of what is taken to be the most important
For example, if certain vocabulary items are presented in texts which appeal to the learners, they aspect of language learning. If we lay out a syllabus in structural terms, we are saying
are more likely to be remembered, because the learners’ attention will be more involved. that knowledge of the structures of the language constitutes the most important element
4) The Teacher Syllabus. The second stage of interpretation usually comes through the teacher. The of language competence. If we take a skills basis, we are saying that skills are the most
great majority of students in the world learn language through the mediation of a teacher. Thus we important aspect and so on. A syllabus, then, tells the teacher and the student not only
have the teacher syllabus (Breen, 1984). The teacher can influence the clarity, intensity, and what is to be learnt, but implicitly, why it is to be learnt.
frequency of any item, and thereby affect the image that the learners receive. Stevick (1984) 6) A syllabus provides a set of criteria for materials selection and/or writing. It defines the
recounts how an inexperienced teacher would finish in two minutes an activity that he would spend kind of texts to look for or to produce, the items to focus on in exercise etc. This is
twenty minutes on. This kind of variability will inevitably affect the degree of learning. probably one of the commonest uses for a syllabus, but it can be one of the most
5) The Classroom Syllabus. As every teacher knows, what is planned and what actually happens in a damaging to the course design, if wrongly used.
lesson are two different things (Allwright, 1984b). A lesson is a communicative event, which is 7) Uniformity is a necessary condition of any institutionalized activity, such as education. It
created by the interaction of a number of forces. The classroom then creates conditions which will is deemed to be important that standards within a system are as equal as possible. A
affect the nature of a planned lesson. They might come from the learners as a group: perhaps they syllabus is one way in which standardization is achieved (or at least attempted).
are tired after a long day, excitable after an incident in the break. Individual students might hold 8) In that teaching is intended to lead a learner to a particular state of knowledge, there
matters up by asking questions or distracting the attention of the class. The classroom is a dynamic, need to be criteria against which success or failure in reaching that state will be
assessed. A syllabus, therefore, provides a visible basis of testing.
B. Criteria which Are Needed in Organizing Syllabus . C. The Role of Syllabus in Course Design Approaches .
a. Topic Syllabus. Topic-based syllabus is based on topics which are selected from the students’ According to Hutchinson and waters (1987) there are 4 course design approaches, those are:
specialist studies and the language analyzed based on appropriate syntax (Jordan, 1997). It is a. Language-Centered Approach. The syllabus is the prime generator of the teaching materials.
suggested that one objective of the ESP course may be to teach this specialist content (Robinson,
1991). Ex: health, engine.
b. Structural / situational syllabus. The focus of a structural syllabus is on aspects of grammar
(e.g., verb, tenses, sentence patterns, articles, nouns, etc.) and then the gradation of these aspects for
teaching, supposedly from the simple to the complex, and based on frequency and usefulness of these
aspects (Jordan, 1997, Robinson, 1991).
c. Functional / notional syllabus. Jordan (1997) points out, entails conceptual meanings: notions
(e.g., time, space, and quantity) expressed through language (logical relationship) and the
communicative purposes (i.e., functions) for which we use language (e.g., greetings, requests,
apologies, description, comparisons, cause and effects, etc.). As this approach focuses on
communication, the processes of communication (e.g., problem-solving, obtaining information, b. Skills-Centered Approach. The syllabus provides opportunities for the learners to employ

interacting with people) are often used in the teaching/learning and therefore, it is often referred to as and evaluate the skills and strategies considered necessary in the target situation.

the communicative approach (Jordan, 1997). Ex: request, apology.

d. Skills syllabus. Skill-based syllabus is organized around the different underlying abilities that are
involved in using a language for purposes of such as listening, speaking, reading, writing, (Thakur,
2013). As Robinson (1991) suggests, a course in writing business letters, or in oral skills for business
people, or in academic reading can be examples of this syllabus. As Jordan suggests, reading may be
classified into a number of microskills (e.g., skimming, scanning, reading for information, ideas,
opinions, etc. Ex: negotiating, being interviewed, interviewing.
e. Situational syllabus. According to Taghizadeh (201) a situational syllabus is a collection of real or
imaginary situations in which language occurs or is used. The primary purpose of a situational language
teaching syllabus is to teach the language that occurs in the situations such as in a business setting, c. Learning-Centered Approach. The syllabus and the material evolve together to inform the

seeing the dentist, complaining to the landlord, buying a book at the bookstore, meeting a new student, other.

and so on. Ex: situation in the classroom, post office, front office in a hotel, etc.
f. Functional / task-based syllabus. A task-based syllabus is a series of complex and purposeful
tasks that the students want or need to perform with the language they are learning such as applying
for a job, talking with a social worker, getting housing information over the telephone, and so on
(Dincay, 2010)
g. Discourse / skills syllabus. Discourse /skills syllabus emphasizes the discourse which is related to
the context of its use.
h. Skills and strategies syllabus. Skills and strategies syllabus concerns the strategies which can be
used to teach and assess students’ competence and comprehension.

d. The Post Hoc Approach