© The Author 2007. Published by Oxford University Press; all rights reserved.
Teachers and learners evaluating course tasks together
Tim Stewart has team taught courses with ELT and subject-area specialists for over 15 years. He is a founding faculty member of Miyazaki International College in southwestern Japan. After reflecting on his practice with colleagues for 10 years there, he accepted a tenured position at a public university in Japan. He is currently helping to develop a new Department of Communication and Information Studies at Kumamoto University
Email: stewart{at}kumamoto-u.ac.jp
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Abstract |
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This paper describes an approach to task evaluation that emerged out of the process of the negotiated development of a course between two co-teachers. The course was co-taught by one ELT specialist and a specialist in a subject area. The teachers were equal partners in this self-contained course. While teaching a new class, the teaching partners sought students' opinions on course tasks. They acknowledged that with classroom communication largely in teacher control, students often struggle to understand the patterns of communication presented. The assumption is that this can result in different interpretations of and participation in classroom activities by students. In the interest of generating multiple observations and evaluations of tasks, the co-teachers created a multi-layered reflection process. This process synthesizes student and teacher assessments of tasks written in learning logs with more traditional course evaluation data, in a reflective process of course development.