Job Discussion Forums

[TheEasyLife]

Hello,

I've just passed Delta Module 1 and am now looking at Module 3.

Has anybody done Module 3 independently or do you have to pay for an accredited tutor? If you can do it alone how do you send it in to Cambridge?

I'm checking with the usual suspects (bell, the distance delta) and the price is pretty hefty.

Thanks in advance for any advice!

[Andre 3000]

Hi. I did modules 1 and 3 independently and got passes in both - I think if you want to get passes with 'merit' or 'distinction', it's worth going down the tuition route.

You've already done Module 1, if your centre was an 'open' centre (and not 'internal'), you pay and register as an external candidate with the centre.

When you've finished the assignment, you send it to the centre and they send it to Cambridge. Make sure the centre sends you the 'no plagiarism' disclosure form to stick at the front of the assignment.

Module 3's marking fee is actually slightly cheaper than Module 1's.

Here's a link to finding centres:

http://www.cambridgeenglish.org/find-a-centre/find-a-teaching-centre/

[HLJHLJ]

I'm currently trying to make the same decision. I did module 1 with NILE and it was a train wreck, I honestly think I would have got a better result if I hadn't done a course at all. And I've just watched a colleague go through Module 3 with distancedelta. She put in a huge amount of work and did everything her tutor asked of her, and only got a pass.

Having read the handbook, I am pretty sure I'd get a pass anyway (I have a fairly strong academic background and the format seems straightforward). I'd gladly pay the tuition if I could be sure of getting a decent tutor, but it seems like it's just a lottery, even with the bigger name schools.

[ttxor1]

Hello,

Would any posters who have done DELTA Module 1 feel comfortable commenting on if :

1) You received input before the exam. What was the type and length of the input (conversations [face to face or via email?] with tutors? feedback on papers? Specific references from books?)
2) You didn't receive input before Module 1, and passed the exam, what references were helpful?
3) Module 1 has helped you in your teaching context. How?

Regarding Module 2:
1) What is your teaching context? Does it support a communicative teaching method? If not, has Module 2 helped you in your teaching context? How?
2) Did you have teaching experience before doing Module 2? If so, where did you teach?
3) Did you pass Module 2? If not, would you feel comfortable sharing the feedback you received from your DELTA tutors regarding the reason for the failure?
4) Where did you complete Module 2? Were you teaching/living/working in that country at the time?

Regarding Module 3:
1) Did you do a master's degree in TESOL before completing a DELTA Module 3?
2) What topic did you write on for Module 3?
3) How long did it take you to complete the paper?
4) Did you pass Module 3? If not, would you feel comfortable sharing the reason for the failure?
5) If you didn't do a master's degree in TESOL before doing Module 3, how long did it take to pass the Module?

Have any posters only done Module 2 and are happy in their subsequent teaching context?

These questions originally came from another thread which was discussing the DELTA and a master's in TESOL.

[Andre 3000]

ttxor1 wrote:

Quote:

Would any posters who have done DELTA Module 1 feel comfortable commenting on if : 1) You received input before the exam. What was the type and length of the input (conversations [face to face or via email?] with tutors? feedback on papers? Specific references from books?)

It depends on what you mean by 'input': I didn't follow any course of tuition, but I could argue that having x number of years teaching experience is in itself 'input'.

I used the 'Distance Delta' reading list as my source for texts:

http://thedistancedelta.com/howitworks/books.aspx

And also the Cambridge handbook:

http://www.cambridgeenglish.org/images/181161-delta-handbook-for-tutors-and-candidates-document.pdf

The argument for receiving tuition would be that you should have access to past papers - there are one or two past papers online, but not nearly enough for you to nail down your exam technique.

If you follow a course with a bricks and mortar institution, they may have an esl library where you can borrow the books.

[ttxor1]

Thanks very much Andre 3000!

[ttxor1]

The Delta is no longer the Diploma in English Language Teaching to Adults. It is technically now the DTESOL -- the Diploma in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages.

I've just passed the Module 3 assignment in teaching in an NESE -- Cambridge's term for teaching in an Non-English Speaking Environment-- more commonly known as an EFL context.

It is basically an MA TESOL / TEFL / TESL lite. It is a 4500 word essay in which you identify the issues an your chosen area, do a Needs Analysis and Diagnostic Test, propose a syllabus and finally, an assessment and evaluation framework for your course. There are two marking periods, in June and December, when you can submit the paper. You have to submit it through a Cambridge approved center. You don't have to take any courses in preparation; in fact I would suggest enlisting a Module 3 examiner who can help you personally, section by section, on the assignment. If you do want to take a more structured approach, the first and second modules of the credential give you a intro to the key terms and ideas that should be addressed in the paper. Also, there are centers that offer step by step advice, as well as the distancedelta.

The hardest part of this module is conforming to the genre and hitting the key terms and sources that Cambridge expects to see within the word count. It is very prescriptive.

Part 1: Issues and Implications

This is where you identify 4-6 relevant issues in the area and discuss how they will impact your NA, DA, syllabus and assessment. Let's say you're writing on teaching in NESEs -- General / Survival English contexts in which students are studying English in countries / contexts where English is not the official language. An Issue might be:

"Students in NESEs don't have as much exposure to English outside of the classroom as those studying in ESL contexts; therefore, my course will emphasize language learning strategies that will encourage students to study outside of the classroom."

A key source: Kachru, B. (1996) Standards, codification and sociolinguistic realism: The English language in the outer circle. In Bolton, K. and Kachru, B. (Eds) World Englishes: Critical Concepts in Linguistics. Oxen: Routledge.

Although a bit dated, Kachru coined the terms Inner, Expanding and Outer Core countries. I think there are more updated comments on the concepts, but Kachru roots a paper in this specialism in the idea that students studying in Expanding and Outer Core contexts either use English as an language for legislative, educational or official purposes, or that they look to the Inner core for conceptions on how English 'should' be spoken and written.

Part 2: Needs Analysis and Diagnostic Test

Here you'll conduct an NA and DT on the students you propose the course for. The NA basically gains information on why, when, where and how ELLs use/need English. It's very subjective. The DT offers an objective view on their abilities, and your commentary should offer critical analysis juggling the results of the two.

For example: Students in NESEs typically don't have much exposure to English outside of the classroom. Therefore, in my NA I asked students how they gain exposure to English. Common responses were "through TV, movies, songs, and the internet."

"ELLs reported in my NA that listening and speaking were the most difficult skills, but the DT revealed that grammar and vocabulary were actual language needs."

A key source: Munby, J. (1978) Communicative Syllabus Design: A sociolinguistic model for defining the content of purposes specific language programmes. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Very dated, but Munby is the pioneer in NAs. Focus, and apply your course, on the terms purpose domain, setting, interaction, and instrumentality.

Part 3: Course Design

In this section you'll want to link the issues that you focussed on in Part one to the results of the NA and DT in part 2. For example:

"Pupils in NESEs have less exposure to English outside of the classroom, they wanted listening and speaking practice, but they needed grammar and vocabulary work. Therefore, my course has balanced the needs and wants of the concerned group of learners. In the NA they reported that they gain exposure to English outside of the classroom by listening to English songs and in the DT they struggled with grammar, so I've included a component of my course on songs which focus on particular functions / grammatical structures. "

A key source: Nation, P. and Macalister, J. (Eds) Language Curriculum Design. Oxen: Routledge.

Zero in on the chapter on Goals, Content and Sequencing. Use these ideas, and others in the book, to justify your course content. Use color coding to emphasize recycling of course content.

Part 4: Assessment

Design a final test for your course which reflects the needs, wants and lacks of the learners. Justify it by linking it to the aim and the objectives of the course, as well as to the issues identified in Part 1, to NA and DT, and to your syllabus. Reliability, validity, and positive washback effects are key terms.

A key source: Hughes, A. (2003) Testing for Language Teachers. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Hughes maps out the different types of assessment and their purposes. Of particular importance is placement testing and DTs.

Other suggestions:

Presentation is importance to Cambridge. Append the collated results of the NA and DT to the main document. The only other attachment you can submit should run at least 20 pages or more (the course you're proposing is a 20 hour course) which should include materials samples, the assessment, and the evaluation questionnaire.

Ask a family member or friend who is not in TESOL / ESL to have a look at the paper. Despite the prescriptive nature of the credential, It should 'make sense' to someone outside of the field.

Check the file size of the second appendix. If it goes over the limit, use your favorite search engine to reduce the file size.

Copy and paste the Cambridge Statement of Originality on the title page. They won't even look at the work without it.

Keep to the word count section by section. The overall word count is all that matters, but if you go over in, for example, Part 1, you might not have the space to discuss it to Cambridge's satisfaction in parts 2, 3 and 4.

Have I missed anything out? This is the most rewarding part of the credential. While prescriptive, it gives the candidate the chance to investigate the language needs of a group of students and try your hand out at proposing a course that would address their perceived needs versus their actual needs. Highlight it on your CV to employers who value curriculum development.

[HLJHLJ]

Andre 3000, did you find any examples of an ESP Mod 3 that you could recommend? I'm hoping to do the same later this year (only in aviation English) and although there are quite a few model papers around, I haven't found anything for ESP.

[Andre 3000]

HLJHLJ, like you, I couldn't find any ESP examples online. The best non-ESP example I saw was this one, which obtained a distinction:

https://authenticelt.files.wordpress.com/2013/08/vn130_017_lewington_delta3_yl_06-2013.pdf

https://authenticelt.files.wordpress.com/2013/08/vn130-017-lewington-delta3-appendices.pdf

It has clarity of thought and it's easy to see the central theme throughout.

[HLJHLJ]

Thanks, I've seen that one before, but I'll read it again more carefully. I wish Cambridge would provide more varied examples though :-\

[nomad soul]