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A successful syllabus will form a common reference point that will set the stage for learning throughout the course and forms a contract between the teacher and students. In the case of having older students it will be important for them to have easy access to the course Syllabus, this can be done by either handing out hard copies at the Introduction Class or making a digital copy available on the school website. With young learners, as is the case in this course, the same can be done for the parents to keep them informed of their child’s progress. The form and content of a syllabus can vary widely depending on the employer, instructor or course. Some constraints to consider when designing or implementing a syllabus include; the type of assessment to be carried out, if the assessment is external this will have a tremendous impact on the syllabus. What resources do you have at your disposal, how many teachers, materials and equipment are available. The location of the learners will also impact syllabus design, are the students in class or are they attending online classes. And lastly do you have a course book to work from to base your syllabus around, or are you building your syllabus from scratch. It is extremely important to determine the learners needs which will depend on factors such as age, English level, interests and reason for learning, which can be done using a needs analysis. Possible strengths and weaknesses of the students can also be ascertained and used when defining the learning objectives in the syllabus. The content will always vary in syllabus design however there are common components that most successful syllabi will contain. These components communicate an accurate description of the course, including topics it will cover, assessments, objectives, policies, values and eventual outcomes of the course. Course content must be clear and concise with consideration being given to making it fun and interesting maintaining student focus and interest. Always ensure that the designed syllabus promotes inclusiveness of all students, promotes student participation and honours student’s diversity. Another consideration would be assessing the students’ progress during the course. When looking at a twenty day course as an example there would be two possible assessments that will be carried out proceeding revision classes. A progress tests will be held during the course and will help the teacher gauge progress and make any corrective measures if need be. With a final assessment test being held at the end of the course to ensure the correct outcomes and objectives have been met. When designing a syllabus always remember to include the teachers as this will help them feel they contributed to the syllabus and that it is not being forced upon them. By doing this you will gain valuable input as well as ensure that the teachers are already aware of the syllabus. And thus will be open to training and testing the further implementation of the syllabus. Once you have completed designing the syllabus it will need to be run in a pilot class to be tested and be adapted as necessary. Even after implementation of the new syllabus it is important to encourage feedback from the teachers and changes made accordingly. A great syllabus is quite a process and will only be complete after being tried and tested and even then will need to be constantly revised and updated.
