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SUPPORT MATERIAL FOR TEACHERS

TEACHING MALTESE AS A SECOND LANGUAGE

DEVELOPING A PROGRAM FOR A PARTICULAR GROUP OF STUDENTS

There are many processes that teachers can follow when developing a language program for their students.

The following outline describes one possible approach.

1. Bearing in mind the aims and objectives of the syllabus, and bearing in mind also:

  • the backgrounds, needs, abilities, aspirations, and interests of the particular group of students:
  • the need to build upon Students' previous knowledge of language and content and extend this knowledge into new areas;
  • the nature of the assessment tasks:
  • the criteria that will be used for judging performance;
  • the time available

    1. the total number of weeks and hours per week
    2. time in and out of the classroom,

  • the resources (including human) available;
  • teacher preferences, interests, and experience of working with particular themes and topics, activities, and discourse forms;

Decide which activities, topics, roles, settings, discourse forms, and linguistic elements are most important.

 

2. Decide which organisational focus may be used to encompass the features identified as being important.

A program should be based on a variety of different types of organisational focuses. An organisational focus can be a theme or topic (including a topic being studied in another curriculum area), a skill, or a discourse form such as a letter (personal) or a text.

If a literary or other text of cultural significance is used as an organisational focus, it can encompass a number of activities. The text can, for example, be used as the basis for conversation and discussion about ideas and opinions related to it; extracting the gist and summarising can help develop understanding of the whole text or parts of it; an incident or character in the text can be depicted through the preparation and performance of a dialogue or scene; imaginative or evaluative writing can be produced in response to it.

Such texts can also support activities related to other organisational focuses. They can be used as resource material in a wide range of activities involving the production of different kinds of writing and speaking. Examples of such activities include describing people, places, or events; discussing ideas and opinions' a range of issues; writing a letter, magazine article, narrative story, or script for different purposes (personal, imaginative, informative, persuasive, or evaluative) and different audiences.

Texts can be used as sources of information in activities related to the retrieval and use of information. For example, they can provide resources for a special edition of a magazine on a particular topic; they can help in the preparation of an oral report to a group, or of a short speech for a debate. Similarly, They can be performed or recited to provide entertainment for others.

After studying the text to develop an understanding of the passage to be presented, students can focus on pronunciation, intonation, and phrasing in rehearsal to improve on their presentation and gain confidence in performing for an audience.

Other activities can be developed by using a particular discourse form as a focus. Students could identify the characteristics of a discourse form previously used receptively, could identify further examples of the form, and could then produce it in speaking, or in writing, for a purpose.


Maltese Language School of Adelaide

Basic Maltese Curriculum

[Primary Level Rec - Year 7]

THE LANGUAGE

The language to be studied and assessed is the modern standard/official version of Maltese.

RATIONALE

The study of Maltese contributes to the overall education of students, particularly in the areas of communication, cross-cultural understanding, literacy and general knowledge. It provides access to the culture of Maltese-speaking countries and communities. The study promotes understanding of different attitudes and values within the wider Australian community and beyond.

Maltese is spoken in the historical and ethnic Maltese territory. It is also spoken in Australia, in areas where there is a concentration of Maltese migrants, in many countries in Europe and elsewhere, for instance Canada, America and England.

Maltese speakers have contributed to development of important areas such as science, sport, literature, music, the visual arts, trade, and tourism. These contexts could be profitably explored in language learning. The ability to communicate in Maltese may, in conjunction with other skills, provide students with enhanced vocational opportunities.

 

AIMS OF THE COURSE:

  • To provide the student with a basic language competence which will enable him/her to converse in a 'survival' and/or social situations with native Maltese speakers at a reasonable level of language.
  • To give the students the grasp of basic situational Maltese enabling them to communicate effectively in real day to day situations
  • To give the students the opportunity of learning listening and comprehension skills in Maltese.
  • To teach the students the basic Maltese without resorting to direct word for word translation.
  • To teach students the ability to use written and spoken idiomatic and conversational Maltese.
  • To develop an appreciation of the cultural and linguistic heritage of the Maltese people.
  • To give the students a comparative knowledge of Maltese and Australian life-styles, leading to a better understanding of the multicultural and multilingual society we live in.

METHODS OF APPROACH:

Oral/Aural Work:

As Maltese is one of the major community languages the emphasis on

  • The spoken language should be relatively easy as well as more relevant. Maximum use should be made of audio aids such as recordings, tapes, and radio and television programs and the internet. Students should be encouraged to participate in any cultural activities promoted by the Maltese community.
  • Maltese should be widely used in the classroom from the very beginning of the course in particular for routine comments and questions. Songs, dialogues,
  • dramatisation and debates should be included in Classroom activities. Exercises in aural comprehension, reading, listening and conversation are given regularly. Accuracy in pronunciation must be stressed.

  • Reading: In addition to the reading of graded material in the classroom pupils should be encouraged to read as widely as possible for their personal enjoyment.

Background Course:

The learning of the language does not imply only the simple mastery of the mechanics of the language, but it must be supplemented by an understanding of Malta and its people and culture. This involves some knowledge of the geography, people, history, literature, customs and traditions of the people. Much of this work can be undertaken by the pupil's themselves. Projects, lectures and individual research within the pupil's own areas of interest are desirable.

Fields in which some study is required are listed under Section A; topics in Section B may offer fields of interest, where teachers and students wish to pursue them, and as time permits.

Section A (required for study)

Geography:

  • The position of Malta with relation to other countries. The climate and the population.
  • The economic resources of the country and currency.
  • Rural and urban areas.

History:

A brief outline of Maltese history since and including

  • Prehistory
  • Roman domination
  • Carthaginians and Phoenicians
  • The Arab rule
  • the periods of the Knights of Malta
  • The French and the British
  • Modern history.

Section B (for general interest)

Literature:

  • The origins and history of the Maltese Language.
  • The influence of other languages on the Maltese Language.
  • Brief outline of modern and contemporary literature.
  • Music and the Arts
  • Famous Maltese

Additional History:

  • Early Maltese history.
  • The Neolithic Temple of Malta.
  • Malta's part in the two World Wars.

IL-MALTI
Fost l-Ilsna kollha - Ja Lsien Pajjizi
Isbah u bhalek - jiena ma narax
Ghax jien minghajrek - bhal fomm imbikkem
li jrid jitkellem u ma jistghax.


See also the official website of the MALTESE LANGUAGE SCHOOL OF ADELAIDE

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