Core Competency, Alternative Curriculum, and Lesson Planning with TBL

http://www.naer.edu.tw/ezfiles/0/1000/img/52/129488083.pdf

To promote Task-Based Learning and develop feasible school-developed curriculum, I accepted an invitation from Nani, one of the major textbook publishers, in the hope that in-service teachers can be better prepared for the demanding challenges brought by the implementation of the new national curriculum guidelines.

Are there any specific standards or criteria for core competency and school-developed alternative curriculum? Well, the Ministry of Education does provide numerous workshops and ready-made templates for teachers to develop such lesson plans. I would prefer not to limited to the existing framework of popular models though, but rules are rules.

My lesson planning strategies, including TBL, Backward Design, ABCD Learning Objectives, and Cooperative Learning, help make sure the lesson plans not only to look good on paper but also applicable in the real class. Moreover, they both focus on students' collaboration to use the language in a meaningful context, such as giving English oral introduction to the beauty of Wuchi Fish Market, creating travel brochures for foreign tourists, making English-speaking videos about how to make a milkshake, to name just a few. 

All the learning tasks and activities have been successfully conducted in and outside of my school, with a group of teachers' class observation and participation. Based on the understanding of your teaching settings, everybody is more than welcome to tweak or modify the curriculums for them to work better for his or her students. Last but not least, I am open to learning from those who do give it a try and have some valuable reflections to share. Thank you.