Estabilishing realistic goals

The information gathered during the fact-finding stage in utilized by a policy-making authority whose job
it is prepare guidelines for new courses ,at the national level,the authority be a curriculum advisory
committee,while at the local level it could be a teacher s’committee assigned the task of preparing a
new program.in either case,the process requires translating societal needs and expectations into
operational and attainable goals.in the case of the advisory committee a draft document specifiying
overall educational goals would be prepared,then passed on to a syllabus committee.in the second
case,the teachers’ committee would prepared both the specifications of the goals and the course
syllabus with its more specific objectives.

In an EFL setting

A document stating mational priorities usually defines golas in very broad terms, allowing for more
specific decision-making to be carried out at lower levels.such a wide, general view is illustrated in the
following statement which might occur in an EFL setting: the purpose of introducing an additional
language into our educational system (provided it is a world LWC) is to allow communication with the
rest of the world.’ This statement of objectives reflects overall societal goals for a country which needs to
promote contacts with other communities. on the other hand, if the particular educational system places
high priority on personal aspects of language learning a statement like the following make be found: the
main objective in learning an additional language is to allow for personal growth and enrichment.’both
of these quite general statement might lead policy makers towards different types of decisions.the first
strongly emphasizes the need for communication,while the second emphasizes individual choice and
achievement.

If the emphasis is on the communicative aspect of language learning, or in other words on the learners
‘ ability to use the target language for communicative purpose, then planners are likely to design a
utilitarian- oriented syllabus, one which encourages the development of communicative teaching
materials. in more operational terms, the curriculum committee might define the terminal goal the
program as follow: the student finishing this program will be able to converse effectively with a native
speaker on topics of interest ,will be able to read authentic materials for pleasure of professional needs,
and will be able to correspond with friends,colleagues or business associates in the target language.;this
definition is still very general, but it is an attempt to give some description of the terminal
competencies which are the expected outcome of the course.

In some countries, general goals of a language program might be defined more narrowly if the system
has different types of schools, for example: academic high school, scientific high schools, vocational high
schools, etc. in such cases, it would be necessary to define the terminal competence of the graduates a
vocational high schools, for example . on the basis of the broader goals, it is necessary to set up number
of intermediate objective in an attempt to specify expected outcomes at each stage . if English as an
additional language is taught starting in junior high school, for instance, it may be necessary to specify
the objectives for those finishing junior high and leaving school, as well as for those continuing with
their studies . these would then be inter mediate objectives for some student and terminal ones for
other .

It becomes omportant to investigate the societal needs uf such potential school leavers, while at the
same time it is necessary to define ‘entry knowledge’ to the high school level for those continuing with
their studies. In order to set up proper objectives for these two population, as well as to develop suitable
batteries of the achievement test, it is imperative for planners to interview both teachers and students
at the junior and senior high school levels, along with graduates of the junior high school who may have
taken on various jobs in the community and would be able to indicate their needs for English outside the
school system.

In an ESL setting

Although individual needs and wants must be taken into account in both EFL and ESL setting, they are
more pronounced in the ESL one in those cases where learners have moved to a new environment in
which the target language plays a crucial role in the overall process of acculturation. In the ESL situation
of this type, the broader goals may simply state the most idealized outcome for a language
course:’learners are expexted to eventually use the language as’’near’’ native speakers.’yet ,the learners
might be painfully aware of immediate, daily needs in order to begin to function in the new
community,needs whoch are quite removed from this ideal terminal outcome but which are vital for
daily survival.in this kind of situation,courses for boh children and adults must set up goals to fit
individual needs and wants by reflecting social objectives as well as academic, professional or
occupational ones.

Young learners in second language situations, too have dual needs. First, to learn those school subjects
which are part of the general curriculum for their age group(science, history, math, etc.) but also to be
able to participate in the social life outside the classroom. the goals of a language program ,therefore,
must account for both academic and social-survival needs. Adult learners higher education also have
dual needs: on the one hand they must cope with English in classes in their field of interest. for this
purpose, their academic needs might be defined in terms of the both language and general learning skill
such understanding lectures in the target language, taking notes ,reading textbooks, etc. on the other
hand ,these students often have strong needs to acculturate and socialize in the new community.
Again, the course must set up goals that incorporate both academic –professional and survival
situations faced by students.