Running header: HONG KONG SUMMER ENGLISH CAMP CURRICULUM REPORT

Hong Kong Summer English Camp Curriculum Report

Julia Damion, Junko Harada, and Callie Riel

Wheaton College

Dr. Cheri Pierson

February 17, 2016

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Hong Kong Summer English Camp Curriculum Report

Program Philosophy

The Asia Harvest Mission is hosting university and high school students in Hong

Kong for a two-week English camp this summer. The purpose for this camp is providing

opportunities for students in English language learning and practice through a Christian

perspective. Our three goals are as follows: 1) To help students enjoy English and build

confidence, 2) To improve students’ communicative competence through linguistic,

discourse, and sociolinguistic activities, and 3) To help students develop cross-cultural

skills. The students have had at least three years of English training, and our program covers

high-beginning to mid-intermediate levels. Two classes for university students and four

classes for high school students will accommodate these students. This program philosophy

will focus on the intermediate level of English language learning for high school students.

The program is divided into three major parts. The morning session will be comprised

of formal English classes, focused on integrated skills. The afternoon session will be

comprised of fun activities, sports, and camp hikes, with all instruction and practice provided

in English. In the evening session, students will relax and reflect on their day. The program is

designed to pay equal attention to the development of literacy and life skills.

The two-week English camp is based on a communicative approach and is student-

centered. We believe that when students enjoy learning English, they can more efficiently

develop communicative competence. Since this program is only a two-week session, we

would like to create a friendly learning environment so that students can feel comfortable

speaking English. The program also focuses upon integrating the four essential skills of

language learning (listening, speaking, reading, and writing), through various activities. This

atmosphere and focus will help build students’ confidence as English speakers.
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Our teachers are from North America, Europe, as well as several Asian countries,

including Malaysia, the Philippines, and Singapore. In the morning sessions, besides

integrating four-skills lesson activities, we will also provide a Bible story and cultural

presentation each day. The students will be given many opportunities to gain global

perspectives from their teachers, who come from different backgrounds. Through hearing the

Bible stories and journaling their responses at the end of the morning session, the students are

able to reflect their own thoughts from a Christian perspective, which can strengthen the

quality of their lives. We hope this program will not only be a two-week language

experience, but also a means for helping students grow as individuals and as members of a

cross-cultural community.
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Goals and Objectives

 Throughout the course, students will develop confidence in interacting with the
English language.
o Students will become more confident in conversing with native English
speakers
o Students will build confidence in speaking English with non-native English
speakers, including their peers
 By the end of the course, students will have built up their sociolinguistic competence
o Students will be introduced to idioms, slang, and other facets of casual
conversation
o Students will learn how to structure informal conversation and writing
 By the end of the course, students will have increased their motivation to learn
English
o Students will see the value in learning the English language
o Students will experience English as a fun and personally rewarding language
 By the end of the course, students will have a further understanding of the linguistic
components of the English language
o Students will develop linguistic competence through an increased knowledge
of English grammar
o Students will have a larger cache of English vocabulary from which to draw
from
o Students will improve their English pronunciation
 By the end of the course, students will have improved in their ability to read and write
the English language
o Students will be able to read with greater ease and increased understanding
o Students will be able to write in a way that is more comprehensible and
correct than before the camp
 By the end of the camp, students will have grown in their ability to interact cross-
culturally
o Students will not see English as just a western language
o Students will gain a greater understanding of culture, including American
culture
o Students will practice interacting with people from a different culture, and will
learn from these interactions

Structural Syllabus
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Course Goals/Objectives: Each day, students should be able to incorporate the day’s lesson
and topics with program goals. For example, at the end of day 1, students should:

1. Have increased confidence in discussing family and using the grammatical structures
of that day (simple present, present progressive, etc.)
2. Understand how to discuss family and use the day’s grammatical structures in a way
that is colloquial and casual
3. Be motivated to discuss their families and use the day’s grammar in English
4. Have an increased vocabulary on the topic of family, and fully understand the
grammatical structures introduced in day one
5. Be able to comprehend written work related to family/the day’s grammar, as well as
write with the correct use of family vocabulary and day one vocabulary
6. Have a greater understanding of family in other cultures

The outline of the topic and grammar covered in each of the 10 English lessons.
Topic Grammar

Day Family Simple present; present progressive; present perfect tenses

1

Day Communication Past tense pronunciation; irregular verbs; using ‘used to’
2

Day Community Simple past and past progressive tenses;

3 prepositions of time—in, at, on; past perfect tense

Day Food Future tense; using present progressive and simple present to
4 express future time future tense using ‘before’, ‘after’, ‘when’
and ‘if’

Day Friendship Nouns and pronouns; indefinite articles; possessive pronouns;

5 countable/ uncountable nouns

Day Occupations Adjectives; comparative/ superlative adjectives;

6 adjective clauses

Day Outdoors Adverbs; adverbs of frequency; making comparisons;

7 superlatives

Day Health Asking questions; who, what, where, when, why, how,
8 negative questions; tag questions

Day Holidays Passive sentences

9

Day Sports Connecting ideas in a sentence with so, because, so that,

10 although, even though
Scope and sequence
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Morning lesson 9:00-12:00

9:00-9:10 (10 Ice Breaker Begin with an activity that will help the students focus
minutes) on the theme of the day and give them confidence as
they speak English.

9:10-9:30 (20 Vocabulary & Teach the required vocabulary and then use the
minutes) Discussion 1 discussion to provide ample practice for that vocabulary.

9:30-9:40 (10 Activity 1

minutes)

9:40-9:50 (10 Idioms Introduce idioms and do fun exercises using them.
minutes)

9:50-10:00 (10 BREAK

minutes)

10:00-10:10 Bible Story Teach the Bible story in English.

(10 minutes)

10:10-10:30 Grammar Teach grammar and provide some practice time for
(30 minutes) Focus developing accuracy and fluency.

10:30-10:50 Activity 2
(20 minutes)

10:50-11:00 BREAK
(10 minutes)

11:00-11:10 Culture Teachers (from various cultural backgrounds) take turns

(10 minutes) Presentation sharing about their culture.

11:10-11:30 Vocabulary & Teach the required vocabulary and then use the
(20 minutes) Discussion 2 discussion to provide ample practice for that vocabulary.

11:30-11:45 Journal Possible topics are listed in each lesson.

(15 minutes) Topic-writing Last 5 minutes can be spent for reflecting the day.

11:45-12:00 Optional Have some back-up games and activities ready in case
Activities you have extra time.
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Recommended Resources

Erickson, Don. 2008. Adventures in English: Multi-level English lessons. Kenosha, WI:

International Network.

This textbook is designed for multi-level students. Each session has a topic such as family,

communication, community, and food related to their life skills. A communicative and

learner-centered approach are used. The syllabus design presents a structural focus on

vocabulary and grammar. The variety of activities helps students enjoy speaking English and

encourages collaboration.

Erickson, Don. 2008. Adventures in English: Reading and Conversation. Kenosha, WI:

International Network.

This textbook has two long-range goals: to understand the basic Bible truths, and to provide

an opportunity to discuss Bible truths (Erickson, 2008, p. 4). It provides a clear instruction of

how the materials should be taught in the classroom. A variety of materials - short Bible

stories, pictures, and worksheets such as crossword puzzle or sequence activities - are

included. Guided questions are also helpful for students to reflect on the concepts in the

stories.
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Program Structure

Harvest English Camp, organized by Asia Harvest Mission, is designed to meet an

increasing demand for English language learning in Hong Kong. Recognizing that many of

the high school and college-age students attending likely live in the New Territories region,

camp facilities and housing will be located at a private boarding school in the New

Territories. As we expect students of a variety of levels of proficiency and exposure to

English to attend, the camp will offer three levels of instruction: beginner, intermediate, and

high intermediate/advanced.

Each camp session (total of three) will span two weeks, with instruction occurring

during the ten week days, leaving weekends free for other activities. For each day of

instruction, the day will be divided into morning, afternoon, and evening sessions, with a

break for meals in between each session. All sessions will be conducted in English, with staff

available for interpretation as needed.

Morning Session (M-F, 9-12) Afternoon Session (M-F, varied) Evening Session (M-F, varied)

English lessons Theme-based activities, Relaxed session: campfire,

music, sports, hiking songs, story readings

This is a summer camp, and as such the atmosphere is more relaxed than in an

academic setting. While the focus of English instruction in many institutions in Hong Kong is

on reading, writing, and test-taking, we emphasize increasing students’ confidence, accuracy,

and fluency when speaking, in addition to strengthening their reading and writing skills.

These skills will serve them well not only in Hong Kong, where English is one of the official

languages, but they will also be highly beneficial for those seeking to go abroad for college or

work. Though all four skills will be covered, to some extent in instruction, listening and

speaking practice will take priority.

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As the curriculum is based on one textbook, the themes will remain constant across

levels, while the levels of instruction will need to be gauged toward the students’ proficiency

levels. For example, each day’s lesson has a particular grammar focus. Teachers for students

at the lower level may need to spend more time on the grammar instruction and simplify the

practice exercise; students at the highest level may need less direct instruction in grammar

and more activities to review and practice the grammar pattern. The textbook’s lesson plans

are detailed, including the activities, making it a suitable resource for teachers of varying

levels of experience.

To determine at what confidence and proficiency levels the students’ levels

approximate, students upon arriving at the camps will meet with the English teachers for an

informal placement interview. The interview will help teachers place the students in the

appropriate levels for camp. Additional assessments will be conducted as the camp

progresses.
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Needs Analyses 1: Letter to the Directors

Dear Sir/Madam,

We are very pleased to have the opportunity to develop a curriculum for Harvest
English Camp in Hong Kong. To ensure that our curriculum will be of benefit to the students,
teachers, and staff, our team has compiled a categorized list of questions to aid us in this
process, which are outlined below.
First, we would like to get a better sense of your vision for this camp, especially
regarding students’ language development and growth in cultural understanding and
understanding of Christianity. What are your major goals for the students in this program?
Second, to get a better sense of how the curriculum can serve the camp structure, we
would request a breakdown of the camp daily schedule and to know how much of the day’s
activities will be covered by the curriculum. Information regarding the expected number of
students and teachers for each camp, and what kinds of facilities (especially classroom space)
will be available to them, will also be helpful.
Third, we would like to get a better sense of how to gauge the curriculum toward the
proficiency levels and English learning experiences students have had. How many levels do
you anticipate being represented, and how much English instruction have these students
received in school?
Fourth, knowing that there will be a culturally diverse staff at the camp, we would
like to get a better sense of the students’ exposure to other cultures. What are the main
avenues for exposure to other cultures in Hong Kong, and how much do you anticipate that
students have already engaged with those cultures? Additionally, we would like to inquire as
to students’ previous exposure to Christianity.
Finally, we would request more information regarding curriculum content and
assessment. We would like to understand your expectations regarding the balance between
academic and cultural content, whether there are certain topics that you would like to see
included, and whether Christianity can be explicitly covered in the lessons. Furthermore, we
would like to know whether there are any expectations surrounding formal assessment.

Your answers to the above questions are greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,
The Harvest English Camp Curriculum Design Team
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Needs Analysis 2: Placement Interview

The purpose of this assessment is to determine student proficiency levels for placement into

beginner, intermediate, and high intermediate/advanced. At the time of the interview,

Mandarin and Cantonese-speaking staff should be on hand to provide assistance as necessary.

Part 1: Introductory questions: involving name, age/ year in school, hometown, how long

they have studied English

Part 2: Picture Description: Students will speak for one minute about a picture (such as the

one provided below).

The rubric to be utilized to assess students in these two sections is attached below.
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(http://umabreakfastclub.blogspot.com/2012/11/hello-everyone-it-is-still-raining-what.html)

Note: There will be an exit interview at the end of each camp session that is parallel of

identical format, using a different picture. The purpose of the exit interview is to assess

student improvement in communication, particularly as related to linguistic competence

(vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation) and discourse competence (fluency, development of

interaction).
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Division of Project Duties

For this project, we sought to collaborate on the content of each section as much as possible.

The duties listed below reflect the responsibilities taken on by the individual to turn what we

discussed into coherent, finished sections of this project.

Junko: Philosophy statement, scope and sequence, outline of camp (10 days), recommended

resources

Callie: Goals and objectives, structural syllabus explanation, needs analysis rubric-finder,

PowerPoint facilitator

Julia: Project facilitator, camp structure explanation, needs analyses 1 & 2 writer, division of

duties