PIES (Plan for Improving English in Schools)

Introduction

PIES is a 20-week programme that serves as the foundation upon which SEEDS is built. As vocabulary forms the basis of language acquisition, PIES concentrates on vocabulary building activities. Special strategies involving simultaneous practice and reinforcement exercises are implemented through listening, speaking, reading and writing activities. Texts used in the activities are specially selected to cater for different levels of students. It is estimated that at the end of the programme, students would have accumulated 1,500 words.

Implementation

1.  A team of staff is selected to be responsible for PIES.
2.  Each member of the team is given a specific role to play.
3.  A pre-test is conducted to gauge the participants' standard of English.
4.  Upon the implementation of the PIES programme, a list of 15 words with their approximate
     meanings in Bahasa Malaysia (Malay) is given out to all members of the school community.
5.  At a prescribed time, a broadcast activity is conducted to teach and practise the 15 words for
     the day.
6.  Reinforcement exercises using special techniques start in the second week of the programme.
7.  Monitoring of the programme is done at 2 levels:
        -    at school level by the Principal
        -    externally by the programme designers
8.  A final evaluation is done at the end of the 20-week period through a post-test.
 

FEC (Formal English Classes)

Introduction

FEC is a 2-year programme that takes into account the present classroom situation and attempts to realign the focus of our attention from the syllabus and examination to English proficiency. The belief underlying this strategy is that if a student is proficient in the language he or she would perform well in the required examination. Another concern that FEC addresses is the level of motivation of students learning a foreign language. FEC attempts to overcome this problem through student-centred learning and activity-oriented classes.

Implementation

1.  A pre-test is conducted to gauge the level of English among students.
2.  Teacher training sessions are carried out in stages to expose teachers to innovative teaching
     methods.
3.  Workshops are conducted to prepare lesson plans for the classroom.
4.  A compilation of selected lesson plans is sent to the participating schools to be used as models
     in their effort to prepare lesson plans for the year.
5.  Monitoring is done through visits to the participating schools by programme designers.
6.  A final evaluation is carried out at the end of the 2 year period by conducting a post-test.
 

EIA  (English Immersion Activities)

Introduction

EIA is a 2-year programme that concentrates on activities outside the formal classroom. Its objective is to restructure the school environment, making it conducive for acquiring the target language. Opportunities in the form of daily, weekly and annual activities are generated that require students to use and be exposed to English constantly. Eventually, English becomes part of the school culture, thus making it bilingual.

Implementation

1.  A pre-test is conducted to gauge the level of English proficiency among students.
2.  A list of possible daily, weekly and annual activities is sent to the participating schools.
3.  The participating schools choose the required number of activities and implement them for a
     2-year period.
4.  Monitoring of these activities is done by the Principal at school level and by the programme
     designers through visits to the participating schools.
5.  A final evaluation is done at the end of the 2-year period through a post-test.
 

Conclusion

It is envisaged that  SEEDS works on the premise that successful acquisition of English involves the assimilation of the language into the learners' world. In this manner, retention of what is learnt is enhanced.