Content and Language Objectives
By: Jennifer Palmer
What are some advantages to writing both content and language objectives for students to hear and see?
Students greatly benefit from knowing the learning expectations of the lesson. According to Echevarria, Vogt, and Short (2012), the more exposure students have and the more time students spend using academic language, the faster they will develop language proficiency. Lots of planning and thought go into writing objectives and the teacher uses the content standards to map out a lesson. Once the lesson is planned and the objectives are written, the teacher is then able to assess the students for understanding. "We are assessing constantly throughout the lesson to see if our students are understanding and getting what we are teaching." (Vogt n.d) And what is being taught is the content and language objectives.
How might written objectives affect teacher and student performance in the classroom?
Written objectives are a great resource for insuring that the lesson flows smoothly and effectively. Both the teacher and the students understand the goal for the lesson, and both can work towards reaching the goal.Introducing and reviewing objectives is a great way to incorporate academic language and identify new content vocabulary. Modeling and demonstrating new concepts is a great strategy that effective teachers use. By writing objectives, students can see how to properly use grammar and syntax. Objectives also help provide directions on how students should articulate their descriptions, comparisons, or predictions (Echevarria, Vogt, and Short, 2012).