4. Methodology

In this section, the developmental process of the program will be presented (The teacher's guide and the workbook). For this section, the following topics that will be covered are: The Program Design Process, The Student's Profile and their Linguistic Needs, The Type of Program, The Pedagogical Approach and The Learning Objectives.

4.1 The Program Design Process

To design the Spanish programs for levels A2 (A2.1 and A2.2), B1, and B2, it was necessary to start by first knowing the linguistic needs of the target group. Subsequently, it is essential to know the reality of the learning context in accordance with the following variables: the academic level of the learner, the students’ age, the area where the learning takes place, the need to use the target language; among others. When considering the academic level of our target group, it contributes greatly to the planning of the teaching program, since the appropriate content for the target group is selected based on their academic level. Therefore, it is important not to discuss or share topics that are intended for primary school students with high school students. Each level must receive an appropriate linguistic content so that it can be easily grasped relying on the foundation/background acquired from their mother language.

Knowing the age of the students of a target group aids in the selection of content, vocabulary, and teaching material necessary to be used. For instance, a children’s video will not be presented to a group of teenagers because such material could demotivate students and consequently alter the process of learning or acquiring an L2. The area(s) where learning/acquisition takes place is extremely important to consider when selecting teaching strategies, since these depend on the presence of Spanish speakers in the classroom. For example, the target group in Belize may be 100% Hispanic speakers, 90% Hispanics combined with 10% having L1 as other languages, 50% Hispanics and 50% speakers of other languages, ​​or 90% of speakers of other languages ​​combined with 10% of native Spanish speakers. This combination of speakers is a reality in our learning context. In these cases, the teacher must adjust the program to satisfy the linguistic needs of each target group or implement objective strategies for the same/similar purpose.

One of the most important variables in teaching a  target group is the need to use the target language. When planning a second language teaching program, it is essential to consider the following questions:

• What is essential for students to know about the target language at different academic levels and ages?
• Which topics would be appropriate for students at their respective academic levels?
• What is the main objective/aim for learning a second language?
• Why do the students need target language at different academic levels and ages?

• The answers to those questions allow the preparation of a precise and objective program that corresponds to the reality of teaching and learning/acquiring a L2 in the classroom setting. In other words, it is necessary to identify the reasons as to why Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary level students need to acquire Spanish as a second language. 

After addressing the previous questions, it can be established that the linguistic need for Spanish as a second language for Primary School Students is to:

• Create a solid foundation in the target language to tackle the higher levels of teaching and understanding.
• Interact in the target language with the natives of the Spanish language.
• Use the target language to carry out some daily activities such as shopping in a place where only Spanish is spoken, giving an address, or describing a place, person, or event, etc.

High School Students need to learn/acquire Spanish as a second language to:

• Create a solid foundation to prepare them for higher levels of teaching/learning and understanding.
• Interact with native speakers of the target language in social, recreational, work, leisure, and other situations.
• Develop and express themselves in workplaces where only Spanish is spoken.
• Perform everyday activities such as buying, selling, describing, explaining an issue or event, giving an address, assisting a person asking for help, asking for help, etc.
• Get involved in the target language when traveling in Spanish-speaking countries.
• Prepare for a future student scholarship in a Spanish-speaking country, etc.

College students need to learn/acquire Spanish as a second language in order to:

• Acquire a job, which may have extra credibility/benefits if they speak the target language.
• Get a promotion in  a job they already have.
• Increase their financial income.
• Interact with native speakers of the target language in social, recreational, work, leisure, etc. situations.
• Develop and express themselves in workplaces where only Spanish is spoken.
• Carry out daily activities such as buying, selling, describing, explaining an issue or event, giving an address, assisting a person asking for help, when they need to ask for help, to make good arguments, giving advice, giving opinions, debating, etc.
• Speak and understand the target language when traveling in Spanish-speaking countries.
• Prepare for a future student scholarship in a Spanish-speaking country, etc.

Regarding the learning context, it is necessary to consider that Belize has a very high Hispanic presence. Since it has Spanish-speaking countries as neighboring entities, it has established the teaching of the Spanish language from Primary to Higher levels. Consequently, the country requires the Spanish language both in business and commercial matters. Although it considers Spanish as a second language, it is used immensely in many households and social areas, as the first language of many Belizeans. Therefore, it is vital to consider all these characteristics that contribute to the planning of the Spanish program.

After learning about the target group and the learning context, the establishment of the process of developing the program proceeds as follows:

• The general objectives of the program will be established based on the linguistic needs of the target group and the learning context.
• The thematic content will identify based on the needs of the target group and common conversations from the surrounding(s). This content should be segregated into subtopics for a better development and organization of the program.
• The descriptors and learning standards presented by the CEFR will be selected to establish the basis for each level.
• The functional content (specific descriptors on the use of the language) will be developed based on the CEFR guidelines for each level of teaching/learning, and, at the same time, it will focus on the general objectives of the program and link to the thematic content. This content is developed based on the four learning competencies and focused on the use of the language; that is, it will target/determine the use of target language by the students upon completion of the program.
• The necessary grammatical content will be identified so that students can complete the different activities of the program. This content will be presented in the form of vocabulary or integrated into each activity. The aim is that students pay more attention to the meaning of the language than to the form (language structure).
• The program will continue to be organized in the different units based on the thematic content and its subtopics. It will also be based on the functional and grammatical content and the specific objectives of each unit.
• Each unit will be developed retroactively; that is, it will be conceptualized from:
• the general topic of the unit to the final task,
• the final task to the subtopics,
• the subtopics to the specific descriptors,
• the specific descriptors to the specific objectives, or
• from the specific objectives to the preparatory activities.

Consequently, the vocabulary that will be taught and the material necessary for the elaboration of such activities will be identified from the preparatory activities.

Evaluation criteria will be established to evaluate, formally and informally, the student's learning process and his/her final performance at the end of each program.

4.2 The Types of Programs

The programs presented in this curriculum have been designed to fulfill the needs of the Belizean students, teachers, and community in regards to the teaching of the Spanish Language as a L2. The programs are directed for Secondary School students at the different educational levels by following the CEFR guidelines. Referring to the need of having a clear, precise, simple, and dynamic program, the curriculum can be implemented by all teachers with or without the experience, pedagogical knowledge, or preparation to teach a second language in the classroom setting. The program will guide the educator to identify specific characteristics of the target group, which will assist in the selection of the appropriate and adequate teaching materials and the preparation of effective teaching/learning activities for the instruction of a second language in each of the levels.

The programs will be organized in different units, which are essential to be implemented during the academic year. These programs will be based on the Task-based Approach and Lexical Approach. Thus, it will be a student-centered program that will engage the students in the learning process and will allow the educators to be the guide/facilitator of the teaching of Spanish as a second language.

Regarding the activities, it is considered that the programs will be semi-open. In other words, the programs are not to be arbitrary in its content. It will allow the facilitator to make necessary adjustments by changing or integrating teaching/learning activities that lead to the final tasks, which will be reflected in the final task to maintain its level. Likewise, the detail evaluation criteria will not be established, since each facilitator is given the autonomy and right to decide what he/she wants to assess and when to do it. Most importantly, the educator needs to take into consideration that the assessment must remain at the same teaching/learning level of each program to fulfill its objectives.

4.3 The Pedagogical Approach

This section contains details about the way the Task Based Approach will be implemented in the L2 class and how the teaching of the lexicon will be presented.

4.3.1 Worked an L2 program using the Task-based Approach.

To work on a program for the teaching of Spanish as a second language with the use of the Task-based Approach, firstly, the linguistic needs of the target group will be identified. Secondly, the learning context needs to be considered. Finally, the program will be structured and worked on retroactively from the final tasks (evaluation) to the objectives. The procedures to complete the program are described below: 

• The general topics that will be covered in each unit of the program will be identified.
• For example: Unit I: What a delicious food!
• The final tasks for each unit of the program will be selected. These tasks will be divided into four phases, with one task for each language skill (Written Comprehension, Written Expression, Oral Comprehension, and Oral Expression). The selected task will be implemented at the end of each unit with the objective to assess the student’s performance in the acquisition/learning process of a L2.
• Example of a task: A role plays in the restaurant (to assess oral expression).
• To prepare students for the final task, the subtopics will be identified based on the content of the final task of each unit, especially using the written and oral expression activities. Thus, in each unit, teachers will need to work with the necessary vocabulary to prepare the students for the completion of the final assessment of the unit (the final task). For instance, to assess the oral expression, the students must perform “a role-play in the restaurant”. Therefore, the teacher needs to work with the following subtopics: food and drinks, courtesy words, ordering in a restaurant, describing places, speaking of tastes and preference, etc. Once all these subtopics are taught/worked on during the development of the unit, the students will be prepared to carry out the final task. 
• After identifying the subtopics of each unit, the specific descriptors will be written for each subtopic selected and linguistic ability by following the guidelines of the general descriptors in CEFR for each level and the general objectives of the Spanish curriculum. Furthermore, the linguistic need of the target group and the learning context will be considered for the selection of the descriptors. It is important to know that all the descriptors must point towards the final task of each unit, since they represent the functional content of the program. The number of descriptors depends on the teacher and the allotted time to implement the program. An educator will need to be conscious of the number of descriptors selected because the more descriptors are selected, the more activities there will be, and more time will be taken to implement the program.
• Example of Specific descriptors:
• a) Can understand food recipes. (Written Comprehension)
• b) Can write the recipe for their favorite food. (Written Expression)
• c) Can understand when someone talks about their favorite food. (Oral Comprehension)
• d) Can talk about their favorite food. (Oral Expression)
• The specific objectives of each subtopic will be identified. The objectives will be formulated by using the descriptors and omitting the word “can” from the statement. Therefore, the objectives are the same descriptors with the difference that the word “can” is omitted. Each objective will be introduced using the following statement:

After having completed this subtopic, the student will be able to:

• The specific introduction of an objective is used because, in the teaching of a second language, it is necessary to establish what the student “can do” with the target language after each lesson, sub-topic or unit of work and what is not going to be done during the lesson, as compared when the didactic objectives are introduced.
• Another important point to address within this section is that some objectives will need to start with the verb “to understand”. It is argued that “understanding” is not measurable. Therefore, the word is not allowed to be used in didactic objectives of other subjects.  However, understanding is something that should be measured and evaluated in the acquisition/learning of a L2. It clearly indicates that some objectives will initiate with the verb in the teaching of a L2. Examples of specific objectives are: 
• After completing this subtopic, the student will be able to:
• After completing this lesson, the students will be able to:
• a) Understand the content of food recipes. (Written Comprehension)
• b) Write the recipe for their favorite food. (Written Expression)
• c) Understand when someone talks about their favorite food. (Oral Comprehension)
• d) Talk about their favorite food. (Oral Expression)
• Regarding specific objectives, it is necessary to consider that they do not apply to all the learning domains (psychomotor, cognitive, and affective) in a lesson because the skills and linguistics competences are being targeted in teaching a L2 and not a specific content knowledge as compared with other subjects.
• Once the general topics for each unit, the subtopics for each general topic, the descriptors, and specific objectives per subtopic have been established, the preparatory activities for the final task will be selected. The activities, which are completed by the student, will assist and prepare the learner for the assessment at the end of each unit (final task). The preparatory activities will be divided into activities to introduce vocabulary, activities to practice the vocabulary, and activities to apply the vocabulary in different contexts.   The descriptors of each subtopic, as well as the specific objectives, should be reflected in the different activities.
• After selecting all the activities for each unit and subtopic, the lexical content will be identified, especially for the activities to introduce the vocabulary. The lexical content can also be identified for the other activities as well, since it will assist in finding questions, answers, and phrases that will be used and presented in the target language. The lexical content will be placed in the “Suggested Lexical Content” section of the program.
• Finally, from the same activities, the material to be used in each lesson will be identified. It should be organized in the section of the program entitled “Support Material”.

With these 8 steps, the Spanish program for a second language will be completed in a structured, coherent, and objective manner. 

4.3.2 Working with the Lexicon in the L2 class.

The lexicon is considered the main element in the completion of a task because, as previously stated, without words there are no meaningful messages, and without it there is no form of communication or constructive conversations. Therefore, the lexicon should be taught before any activity leading to the final task. It is important to consider the pre-task stage (teaching the vocabulary) as the opportunity to motivate students in learning an L2, since this becomes the springboard to ascend in the acquisition of the target language. For this reason, when teaching vocabulary, educators will need to use a variety of games and recreational activities that encourage students to continue learning/acquiring a second language.

To prepare an activity for the teaching of the lexicon, the vocabulary will be selected by association, semantic field, function, prefabricated phrases, etc. It depends on what is required from the final task. For example, if the task focuses on the topic called “A day at the market”, the educator will need to focus on buying fruits and vegetables. Then, the educator will select the vocabulary of the list of names of fruits and vegetables sold or found in their local market or surroundings (vocabulary by association). Finally, the teacher will find and prepare an activity to introduce the vocabulary.

To teach a vocabulary like preposition(s), the educator will be doing Written Exercises. For a vocabulary based on the semantic field, it is important to present it using games and interactive activities. Then, the verbs are presented based on the context for a better understanding of their use. Success in teaching a vocabulary depends on the creativity of the teacher to educate and the motivation of the students to learn.          

4.4 The Learning Objectives

The learning objectives proposed for each level are intended to guide the teacher and the students in the teaching and learning of Spanish as L2. The objectives have been divided into three groups, namely: objectives on the use of the language, grammatical objectives, and cultural objectives.

The learning objectives on the use of the language are derived from the learning standards presented by the CEFR for each level. It is written in a more specific way to simplify its implementation in the program. These objectives are also the specific program descriptors on the use of the language (functional content). The learning objectives will be divided into four different learning skills and in the units that are intended to be developed in the Spanish program of the curriculum.

Based on the proposed form of the language, the learning objectives are intended to guide the teaching and learning of the correct use of grammatical elements but taking into consideration the level at which this competence will be developed. Therefore, the grammatical units will be selected based on their frequent use and considered necessary for the student to complete the different tasks the program focuses on. Likewise, the proposed cultural objective guides learning towards the knowledge and practice of the different cultural norms and customs that are related to the language and the behavior of the natives of the target language. The affective factor is emphasized as the main axis in the acquisition of this competence. These objectives will not be treated thematically but will be integrated into the units that require it.