Needs identified

Strategies used

Students lack motivation in reading English fiction because:

1. many of them are overwhelmed by the length of fiction books in English;
2. some students have not mastered the skills in choosing appropriate books for themselves; and/or
3. there is a mismatch between the students’ intellectual development level and their English reading level, which makes it a challenge for them to find appropriate reading materials.

1. Introduce and provide opportunities for students to practise their extensive reading skills and strategies
2. Make use of short stories that appeal to students in lessons for:
1. introducing essential reading and appreciation skills
2. developing students’ skills in using the reading journal
3. Ensure easy access to fiction in the form of a short stories anthology that is of appropriate reading ability level and interest of students for independent reading (Reference list on short stories websites)

Many students have a weak foundation in basic language skills, especially in reading.

1. Integrate the explicit teaching of intensive and extensive reading skills and strategies into the Short Stories Elective module whenever appropriate
2. Supply opportunities for students to apply the reading strategies taught in the Core Part
3. Provide more scaffolding for the speaking and writing tasks

Many students lack confidence in speaking to an audience. 

1. Present students with more opportunities to practise speaking during lessons with and in front of their peers
2. Make speaking tasks manageable for students by providing clear successful criteria 

Students lack the language and vocabulary to talk or write about movies and stories.

1. Equip students with a bank of vocabulary and useful expressions essential for discussing or writing about a specific aspect of a fiction
2. Provide opportunities for students to practise using the new vocabulary and expressions in their speaking and writing tasks
3. Reward students’ effort in applying the new vocabulary and expressions in their speaking and writing tasks (Samples of writing rubrics for bonus marks in writing)

Students spend most of the time describing the plot of a fiction rather than tailoring their answers or responses according to the questions set in their SBA or writing tasks.

1. Show students how to summarise a story effectively
2. Introduce key features and techniques commonly used in short stories to enhance their ability in appreciating and conducting an informed discussion about works of fiction

Many students have difficulties in retaining the correct pronunciation and spelling of the newly acquired words.

1. Make recording of the pronunciation of new words and expressions available in the e-class for students’ practice outside class time
2. Conduct dictations of the new words regularly
3. Award bonus marks in writing tasks for accuracy in spelling

Students are passive in their learning and some of them do not treat the speaking tasks in class seriously enough.

1. Make use of formative assessment to develop students’ ownership in their learning:
1. inform students about the learning objectives and what they can do to facilitate their own learning in the module at the very beginning
2. encourage students to reflect on their learning through self-assessment and evaluation
3. arrange very focused on-going speaking assessments regularly throughout the module
4. let students know the focuses and the success criteria of each speaking assessment so that they can prepare accordingly 
5. Provide opportunities for students to exercise autonomy by allowing them to choose:
1. the number of formative assessments they would like to take within the period of the module
2. the stories, either from their short stories anthology or any other fictions of their choice, for these assessments

(Samples of in-class IP assessment tasks & instructions for students)