Transcript EFL Playful Learning Program

•ABLA ELT•Cali, Colombia
•July 31, 2010
EFL program designed for children (5 -12 years )
at the Binational Center
Instituto Cultural Dominico Americano
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
Grisel Del Rosario, M, Ed
Language School Director
www.icda.edu.do
[email protected]
What is creative assessment?
 Challenging?
 Unexpected, different or unique?
 Enjoyable ?
 Success oriented?
 Interactive?
 New?
 Motivating?
 Informative ?
 Input for decision making?
Playful Learning Program
 EFL Program at a Bi National center in the Dominican
Republic
 Playful Learning program caters to children from the
age of 5 to 12 years old.
 The course is aligned with and complemented by the
Junior program(12-18) and the Adult program.
 The program is accessible on the main campus and in
six other locations throughout the country, serving a
population of over 16,000 students.
Mission
 The Playful Learning Program was created by the
ICDA with the objective of promoting English
language acquisition for children within the ages of 5
and 12 years old, coherently with their developmental
stages of learning.
 Our mission is to promote a dynamic and interactive
learning environment that takes into consideration the
needs and diversity of our students, keeping in mind
the most recent research in language acquisition
methodologies.
What do we do?
 Our program’s methodology finds its roots within the
constructivist school for children to acquire knowledge
through meaningful experiences that allow them to see
that learning can be fun.
 We model social, school and family daily life situations to
make the learning experience natural, fun and most
importantly relevant.
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Ludic activities.
Projects, Arts and Crafts.
Songs, rhymes, poems and stories.
Artistic presentations and expositions.
Seasonal celebrations that add on to our teaching and
learning experience.
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Age and grade level grouping.
3 hours per week.
September through June.
Academic Program based on the child’s academic skills
and interest.
 Evaluation based on objective accomplishments as
informative tools for parents and teachers. No passing
grades.
 Use of teacher-and-student-made-materials.
 Cultural and community values are reinforced in all
activities .
Who are our teachers?
 Young adults in their college years, with native- like English
proficiency.
 Instructors receive weekly training for lesson planning
and program troubleshooting.
 Skills and attitudes:
 Able to interact with children.
 Capacity to apply teaching skills through art, sports, and
technology.
 Highly motivated and identified with the playful style.
 Lots of “School Spirit” in the learning environment.
 PFL teachers take pride in having the opportunity to teach
and learn, which provides an unique experience during
their college years.
What’s the role of parents?
 Parental involvement through orientation meeting
and homework assignments needing parental
support.
 Parents attend and participate in seasonal activities:
Christmas Show, Graduation, Mother’s day and others.
 Midterm progress report is discussed in a PTC time
with parents.
Midterm Evaluation Form
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EVALUATION OF CLASSROOM BEHAVIOR (VS-S-NI)
1. Participates adequately in class
2. Regularly does and hands in the assigned homework
3. Respects the established rules of behavior
4. Comes to class with the necessary materials
5. Shows that he/she continues studying at home
6. Pays attention in class
7. Shows a good attitude or motivation toward learning
English
 8. Is careful and concentrates on his/her work
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Midterm Evaluation Form
EVALUATION OF THE SKILL AREAS (VS-S-NI)
1. Reading comprehension
2. Written expression
3. Grammar
4. Vocabulary and Idiomatic Expressions
5. Listening Comprehension
6. Oral Expression
7. Cultural and community values.
Parent Teacher Conference
Information for parents
Information for parents
Why is it creative assessment?
 It is enjoyable.
 It relates to life celebrations.
 It does involve valuable information for parents.
 It allows expressions of the child’s knowledge through
corporal, artistic and other forms to support verbal
knowledge. It relates to the concrete learning style of each
age.
 Textbooks (Faces, Brainstorm, Next Stop from MacMillan)
are used to support activities, specially homework .
 It is not testing time only.
We value…
 The program has the highest rate of retention compared to the Junior
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and Adult programs.
This early exposure to the language throughout elementary years
complemented by the Junior Program guarantees a native like quality
of speaking.
Students show a high level of motivation to attend classes.
Parents without knowledge of English interpret their children`s
accomplishment as a challenge for themselves.
Parental involvement is possible through homework and constant
feedback.
Many teachers find a vocation through this job.