MODULE 1: What is Motivation?

Table of Contents

MODULE 1: What is Motivation? .................................................................................................... 1

Welcome to Module 1! ............................................................................................................... 2
Pre-course Diagnostic Survey ..................................................................................................... 3
Module 1 Reading 1: What is Motivation? ................................................................................. 4
Module 1 Reading 2: What Factors Support Motivation? .......................................................... 6
Video 1: Key Concepts in Motivation and Engagement ............................................................. 7
Module 1 Quiz ........................................................................................................................... 11
Optional Module 1 Discussion .................................................................................................. 12
Module 1 Reflection Activity..................................................................................................... 13
Optional Activity Sharing and Portfolio Information ................................................................ 17
Optional FSME Activities Portfolio Template ........................................................................... 18
Module 1 Check ........................................................................................................................ 20

© 2023 by University of Oregon. FSME MOOC Module 1 Downloadable Packet for the Online
Professional English Network (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S. Department of State with funding
provided by the U.S. government and administered by FHI 360. This work is licensed under the
1
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License, except where noted. To view a copy of this license, visit
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
WELCOME TO MODULE 1!
In this first week of the Fostering Student Motivation and Engagement MOOC, we will think about how
to define motivation and engagement. We will also talk about ways to help students find their
motivation for EFL studies and support them to engage fully in their learning. Therefore, our guiding
questions for this week are:
• What is motivation?
• What does learner engagement look like?
• What factors can help support student motivation and engagement?
• How do our current teaching practices support student motivation and engagement, and where
would we like to make changes?

"People Sitting on Blue Carpet" by CDC is licensed under the Unsplash License.

Key Concepts
In each week of this MOOC, we will begin by defining a few key terms. Let's start by defining the words
in the name of our course: Fostering Student Motivation and Engagement.
Motivation: (noun) the desire, willingness, and enthusiasm that energizes goal-directed behavior.
When someone is highly motivated, they will work hard to meet their goals. They are active,
responsible, and inspired.
Engagement: (noun) the amount attention, optimism, and passion that someone brings to an activity.
When students are engaged, they show curiosity, participate actively, and do their best.
Fostering: (verb) encouraging or promoting development, supporting something to increase.
We named this course Fostering Student Motivation and Engagement because changes in student
motivation and engagement depend on the students themselves, but teachers can create situations
that encourage and promote students' efforts and reduce barriers to motivation and engagement.

Now reflect on these questions:

1. When you were a student, how motivated were you?
2. How do you recognize when your students are really engaged in a lesson?
3. What do you already do to support your students' motivation and engagement in the classroom?
There's no need to turn in your answers. For now, just think about the questions, or write about them in
your journal.

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Module 1 Activities
You can download this Module as a PDF Packet for offline use. If possible, please turn in all activities on
Canvas. The following checklist of Module 1 assignments may be helpful to you.

Module 1 Checklist
Check Assignment Estimated time investment
Complete the Pre-course diagnostic survey 30 minutes
Read the module introduction and definitions (this page!)
15 minutes
and think about the questions.
Read a text to learn about the definition and kinds of
45 minutes
motivation.
Read a text to learn about factors that can support student
45 minutes
motivation.
Watch a video to learn more about motivation and
15 minutes
engagement.
Take the quiz to check your learning from the text and video 30 minutes
Participate in an OPTIONAL discussion of factors that can
15+ minutes
affect student motivation and engagement.
Use a worksheet to guide your reflection on how you teach
now and how you can foster more student motivation and
1 hour
engagement. Then indicate your answers in the Module 1
Reflection Activity.
Read about the OPTIONAL FSME Activities Portfolio. 15 minutes
Review key ideas from this module and then answer the
15 minutes
question in Module 1 Check

PRE-COURSE DIAGNOSTIC SURVEY

Before you begin Module 1, take this Pre-course Diagnostic Survey. It is designed to assess your prior
knowledge of the topics covered in this course. The purpose is to help your instructor get to know you
better and understand what you already know, so you're not expected to know all of the answers yet.
Eventually, you will learn the correct answers to the questions in this course. Please give your best
answer to each question. Whether you are right or wrong, it won't affect your course grade.
You can only complete this survey one time, and it must be done in Canvas.

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Read this text and take notes as needed. We will check your understanding of the information presented
here in the Module 1 Quiz.

MODULE 1 READING 1:
WHAT IS MOTIVATION?
by Beth Sheppard

Motivation = desire, willingness, and enthusiasm that energizes goal-directed behavior

Engagement = the amount attention, optimism, and passion that students show in the classroom

Look at the above definitions of motivation and engagement. We

define motivation as desire, willingness, and enthusiasm that
energizes goal-directed behavior. We can think of motivation like a
motor, a source of power that gives us energy to do whatever we
choose to do. What does it look like when students are motivated to
learn? It looks like engagement! Students who have their motivation-
motors switched on and turned towards learning will pay attention,
work hard, and believe that can succeed. And how wonderful that is
for their teacher! On the other hand, unmotivated students may seem
passive and unengaged. Their motor for learning is switched off, so
they don’t have any energy to invest in the learning process. They
may well be motivated for something else (such as pleasing their
friends by making them laugh), but it is very difficult to engage them
in lessons. Unfortunately, this challenging situation is familiar to many
"Untitled" by Himanshu Dewangan is
teachers. licensed under the Unsplash license

In the second page of your reading, we are going to discuss factors

that can help increase student motivation and engagement, but first
let’s talk in a little more detail about different kinds of motivation
and how they can arise. Many researchers define two main
categories of motivation, extrinsic motivation and intrinsic
motivation. Extrinsic motivation to learn comes from outside of the
learner. The motivating factor is some kind of reward or punishment.
For example, if students participate in an activity to win a prize, or if
they are willing to study because they want a good grade or fear a
bad grade, they are extrinsically motivated. Students who study
English because they would like to get an international job in the
future are also extrinsically motivated. On the other hand, intrinsic
motivation to learn comes from within the learner, from the joy of
learning. There is no need for any reward besides the learning itself.
Language teachers are frequently told that they need to foster
intrinsic motivation in students, because it is more effective and
more durable than extrinsic motivation. The second part is true! If
students are participating only to win an immediate prize or avoid an "A Good Book" by Alex Blăjan is
immediate punishment, they will gradually get used to the prizes or licensed under the Unsplash liscence.

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punishments, and care less about them over time. The positive and negative consequences will need to
get bigger and bigger in order to keep working as external motivators. Rewards and punishments can
also give students a message that the work is not intrinsically interesting (Williams & Burden, 1997).
However, it is not always realistic to expect that every EFL student will intrinsically love learning English.
It can be helpful to realize that there are different levels of extrinsic motivation. For example, if
students are externally motivated by a long-term goal that is personally meaningful to them (such as a
job they hope to have someday), this kind of external motivation can be much more helpful than short-
term rewards and punishments. Teachers can help extrinsically motivated students (those who don’t
love language learning for its own sake) to see reasons for learning that matter in their own lives. This
will help students take responsibility for their own learning, even if their motivation is not intrinsic. In
addition, when extrinsic motivation leads to classroom engagement, sometimes this can begin a positive
cycle that develops intrinsic motivation. Both kinds of motivation have value in the classroom.

References
(This content is copyrighted, and cannot be adapted in any way, or distributed after the end of this course. It is not
Public Domain or Creative Commons-licensed, and therefore not for public use.)
• Williams, M. & Burden, L. R. (1997). Psychology for language teachers: A social constructive approach.
Cambridge University Press

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Read this text and take notes as needed. We will check your understanding of the information presented
here in the Module 1 Quiz.

MODULE 1 READING 2:
WHAT FACTORS SUPPORT MOTIVATION?
By Beth Sheppard
A class full of intrinsically motivated students would be wonderful to teach. They would want to learn,
be willing to study hard, and participate enthusiastically in classroom activities. Let's explore some
factors that can help make this kind of situation more likely. Psychologists tell us that all people have
basic needs to feel competent, autonomous, and related (Ryan & Deci, 2000). These feelings are the
basis of intrinsic motivation, so we will discuss them one by one in the following sections.

Competence
Students will be more motivated to learn when they feel competent – when they believe
that they can succeed. We can support students’ feelings of competence in many ways,
including:
• We can design activities at the right level of difficulty, and when a task is difficult, we can
provide support to help students succeed.
• We can prepare students for activities by activating their prior knowledge and being sure to pre-
teach needed words or structures.
• We can give clear instructions and standards from the beginning of each activity, so that
students know how to succeed.
• We can help students to learn through discovery, rather than simply telling them what they
need to know.
• We can help students to believe in themselves through encouraging words and actions.
• We can give precise and specific feedback and praise, so learners know their strengths.
• We can teach students not to fear making mistakes, but to see mistakes as a positive step
towards learning. This is related to building a growth mindset (Dweck, 2008) in our students.
• We can teach students how to assess and monitor their own learning through reflection.

Autonomy
Students will be more motivated to learn when they feel autonomous – when they
believe that they can make their own choices. We can support students’ feelings of
autonomy in many ways, including:
• We can help students define and communicate their own personal language-learning objectives,
and show how assignments and activities connect to those objectives.
• We can give students rationales for unappealing tasks, explaining how they will help them reach
their learning goals (or at least help them pass the test!).
• We can give students more choices in classroom activities and tasks, for example selecting one
of two texts to read, or choosing between listening and reading, or even voting on which of two
activities the class will do first today.

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 • We can make assignments relevant by connecting them to topics we know that students like or
are interested in, such as their hobbies or idols.
• We can connect language learning to any goals students might have related to the target
language country or culture.
• We can empower students to access additional learning resources of their choice.

Relatedness
Students will be more motivated to learn when they feel related – when they believe
that they matter in their community. We can support students’ feelings of
relatedness in many ways, including:
• We can build a strong rapport with students by connecting honestly and being trustworthy.
• We can encourage a classroom culture of kindness, appreciation, cooperation, enthusiasm, & humor.
• We can explicitly recognize the essential contributions of each student to the classroom community.
• We can incorporate group work in which students collaborate to meet goals, and teach students
to collaborate effectively.
• We can be sure to include a great deal of classroom interaction in our lesson planning.
• We can foster a connection to the target culture.

Highly motivated students will spontaneously seek the information

and skills they want to learn. They will engage in classroom
activities and contribute their thoughts and ideas. Motivation helps
students learn better and retain more of what they learn. At the
same time, motivation is a quality that can change over time and
it can be different from situation to situation. An unmotivated
student can always become slightly more motivated, and a usually
motivated student may have a day when they don’t care as much.
Broadly speaking, we can help our students become more
motivated by supporting their self-confidence, making lessons
relevant to them, and creating a positive and caring classroom
community.

References
(This content is copyrighted, and cannot be adapted in any way, or distributed after the end of this course. It is not
Public Domain or Creative Commons-licensed, and therefore not for public use.)
• Dweck, C. S. (2006). Mindset: the new psychology of success. Random House.
• Ryan, R. & Deci, E. (2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social
development, and well-being. American Psychologist, 55(1).

Image Credits
“Competence Icon” by the University of Oregon is an adaptation of “Arm Exercise Fist royalty-free vector graphic” by OpenClipart-Vectors,
licensed under the Pixabay license. This adaptation is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by the University of Oregon.
“Autonomy Icon” by the University of Oregon is an adaptation of “Feel Free Silhouette Joy royalty-free vector graphic” by Mohammad Hassan,
licensed under the Pixabay license. This adaptation is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by the University of Oregon.
"Relatedness Icon” by the University of Oregon is an adaptation of “Frame Heart Children royalty-free vector graphic” by GDJ, licensed under
the Pixabay license. This adaptation is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by the University of Oregon.

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VIDEO 1: KEY CONCEPTS IN MOTIVATION AND ENGAGEMENT
Watch the video on Canvas and take some notes. Or read the script and look at the slides below.

Module 1 Video Script and slides

In your required reading, you learned about three basic human needs which we are all motivated to
meet: the need to feel competent, autonomous, and related. When we think about teaching, we can
think about how to make learning fit into these needs, and also about how to avoid making our class
conflict with these needs, for example by shaming students or making them feel bad about themselves
(which would conflict with their need to feel competent) or by trying to control students completely,
squashing their individuality (which would conflict with their need to feel autonomous), or by causing
any competition or bad feelings between the students (which would conflict with their need to feel related).

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You also learned that motivation can be seen on a scale that includes both extrinsic and intrinsic
motivation. Both types of motivation are valuable, and students can move between them. They may
have different kinds of motivation at different moments. The key is to help students recognize and take
responsibility for their own learning, moving away from the need for the teacher to give immediate
rewards or punishments. The more students can reward themselves, the more their extrinsic motivation
will become internal. That means their motivation doesn’t depend on the teacher. Whether it’s extrinsic
or intrinsic, it’s theirs.

Another approach that can be useful for motivating learners is to promote a growth mindset. According
to the psychologist Carol Dweck, a fixed mindset is the belief that intelligence is static whereas a growth
mindset says intelligence can be developed. In a fixed mindset, the goal is to look smart, so students
tend to avoid challenges, give up easily, see effort as fruitless and ignore feedback, which they perceive
as criticism. On the other hand, students who are led to adopt a growth mindset tend to embrace
challenges and mistakes, persist in the face of setbacks, see effort as the path to mastery and welcome
feedback as an opportunity to learn.

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Teachers can encourage a growth mindset by modeling these ways of thinking, and adopting classroom
practices such as praising effort as much as results, and welcoming mistakes, and encouraging students
to take risks, try new things, and never give up.

John Keller proposed a model for promoting and sustaining motivation in the classroom. It’s called the
ARCS model. ARCS stands for Attention, Relevance, Confidence and Satisfaction. You can probably see
how these four ideas fit nicely with the three human motivations that we already talked about.
In the ARCS model, Keller suggests that we should capture students’ attention with an element of
surprise or humor, and keep their attention by posing questions that make them curious, keeping
activities varied. We should make learning relevant to students by explaining the purpose of activities,
connecting new knowledge to what students already know, making links to the students’ own goals and
interests, and by giving choices. We should build students’ confidence by making sure instructions and
expectations are clear, helping students see their progress, and giving students some control over their
learning. And finally, we should help students feel proud and satisfied when they apply what they have
learned or teach someone else.

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ARCS is an easy acronym to remember. Attention, relevance, confidence, satisfaction. Do you think this
acronym will be helpful to you in your classroom? Can you think of new ways to capture and keep your
students’ attention, and make learning relevant to them? Can you build up their confidence, and help
them feel satisfied with their learning experiences? I hope that you can!

MODULE 1 QUIZ

Purpose
This quiz will help you review the vocabulary and main ideas from the Module 1 reading and video. Feel
free to refer to your notes when you are working on the quiz.

Assignment
Take the quiz as many times as necessary to pass with at least 7 out of 10 (70%) of the answers correct.
You must take this quiz on Canvas.

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OPTIONAL MODULE 1 DISCUSSION
This discussion is not required, but we encourage you to read these
questions and think about them, even if you don't post your answers.
If you do post your answers, be sure to also read and reply to some
answers from your course colleagues.
The purpose of these optional discussions is to help you make
connections between your life experiences and the ideas in your
course readings and videos. The more you can connect your new
learning with your existing ideas, the more likely it is that you will
remember and apply what you have learned.
Discussion Questions
You can feel free to answer one or several of the following questions.
You don't have to answer all of them!
You can also share other thoughts you had in response to the
"Untitled" by Windows is licensed
assigned reading and video. Please don't post off topic in this under the Unsplash license
discussion: your posts should be closely connected to the topic of the
week.
Please also reply to several of your course colleagues in this discussion. Refer to the Discussion
Guidelines page if you'd like to review our suggestions for effective online discussion.

1. As a student of English, were/are you more extrinsically motivated or more intrinsically motivated?
In what ways?
2. Do you have a growth mindset or a fixed mindset? Was this different at other times in your life?
What factors have influenced changes in your mindset towards learning? What are some ways that
you have tried to promote a growth mindset in your students?
3. In your experience, what other classroom factors can affect students' motivation and engagement,
besides those we've discussed so far? And what factors outside of the classroom affect students'
motivation and engagement for language learning? Is there anything we can do about these outside
factors?

Remember, this task is OPTIONAL. It doesn't count towards your final grade in the MOOC. It's an extra
opportunity to express your thoughts about the topic of the week and learn from interaction with your
course colleagues and facilitators. If you choose to participate, you can assess your own participation
using the checklist below:

Discussion Self-Assessment Checklist

□ I answered one or more of the discussion questions on this page, or shared my response to the
readings and video in this module. I did not post off topic.
□ My answers were based on my own thoughts and ideas and written in my own words.
□ I read the answers of several course colleagues, and replied to at least one of them.

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MODULE 1 REFLECTION ACTIVITY
The purpose of this task is to reflect on your experiences
as a language learner and on your current teaching
practices. The questions should guide you to think about
which teaching practices you already use and which
practices you have not yet developed. When
implemented consistently and effectively, the teaching
practices in this inventory can support increased student
motivation and engagement.

What to do
1. Complete the worksheet found below (pages 14-16).
It’s called Fostering Student Motivation: Reflection "Person holding a red pen" by Lilartsy is
Worksheet (2015) by American English: Teacher's licensed under the Unsplash license
Corner.
2. After you complete the inventory, look over your
answers and use them to reflect on your teaching,
identifying your teaching strengths and areas for
improvement. We suggest writing your reflections in
your course notebook.
3. Finally, complete this assignment by answering the
questions. You must answer the questions on
Canvas.

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OPTIONAL ACTIVITY SHARING AND PORTFOLIO
INFORMATION
During this MOOC course, you have the option to create an Activities Portfolio.
In education, a portfolio is systematic collection of student work, which can be used as a form of
assessment. In our course, the Activities Portfolio will be a curated list of activities and ideas that you
can apply to help foster student motivation and engagement in your teaching context.

"Happy Children Education" by Akshayapatra is licensed under the Pixabay License.

How will you Complete it?

During Modules 2, 3, 4, and 5, you and your course colleagues can share classroom activities and ideas
related to our weekly theme. In a discussion forum, you will explain how to do the activities or how to
apply the ideas in the classroom. Then you will read the ideas of other participants and copy your
favorites to a portfolio. Your favorites will be the activities and ideas most applicable to your teaching
context, or those which you think will work particularly well.
We are providing a template for your Activities Portfolio, below (pages 18-19). You don't have to use the
template. You can also copy your ideas to any document where it will be convenient to save these new
ideas and find them again later.

"Lecture" by Felixioncool is licensed under the Pixabay license.

There is nothing to do for your portfolio this week. We will begin in Module 2.

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OPTIONAL FSME ACTIVITIES PORTFOLIO TEMPLATE
Each week, collect classroom activities and/or other ideas that you can use to foster motivation and
engagement in your teaching context. You may copy/paste from activities shared by your course
colleagues. Be sure to include all the essential information you will need when you want to apply the idea
in your teaching. Remember to include a link or citation regarding where you got the original idea.

Your name:
Your teaching context:

Module 2 Activities

Activity 1:

Activity 2:

Activity 3:

Activity 4:

Activity 5:

Additional Activities (Optional):

Module 3 Activities

Activity 1:

Activity 2:

Activity 3:

Activity 4:

Activity 5:

Additional Activities (Optional):

Module 4 Activities

Activity 1:

Activity 2:

Activity 3:

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Activity 4:

Activity 5:

Additional Activities (Optional):

Module 5 Activities

Activity 1:

Activity 2:

Activity 3:

Activity 4:

Activity 5:

Additional Activities (Optional):

Additional notes

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MODULE 1 CHECK
Key Points
At the end of each module, we will review some of the key lessons from the
week. Here are our main ideas from Module 1.
• Teachers can't make students more motivated or engaged. But
teachers can strive to remove barriers to motivation and
engagement, to pave the way for students to develop their own
motivation and engagement.
• Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation are both valuable for learning.
There are many different levels of extrinsic motivation - we want
to encourage motivation that doesn't depend on immediate
rewards and punishments.
• Factors that support motivation include basic needs such as
competence, autonomy, and relatedness, a growth mindset,
and attention/relevance/confidence/satisfaction (ARCS).
"Untitled" by LinkedIn is licensed
• Ongoing motivation and a growth mindset are also important under the Unsplash license.
for teachers. We can always improve our practice by gathering
new ideas, trying out those that seem like a good fit, and then
adjusting as needed.

Module Check
Please answer one question to verify that you have completed all activities in Module 1. You must
choose "yes" in order to move on in the course. If your answer is not "yes," please complete your work
and then return to this module check. This will count as 1 point toward your grade. You must complete
this check on Canvas.

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MODULE 2: Whose Needs Can We Meet?

Table of Contents
MODULE 2: Whose Needs Can We Meet? ..................................................................................... 1
Welcome to Module 2! ............................................................................................................... 2
Module 2 Reading 1: Motivation and Classroom Community................................................... 4
Module 2 Reading 2: Needs Analysis .......................................................................................... 6
Video 2: Differentiated Instruction and Universal Design for Learning ..................................... 8
Module 2 Quiz ........................................................................................................................... 12
Optional Module 2 Discussion .................................................................................................. 13
Module 2 Needs Analysis .......................................................................................................... 14
Sample Needs Analysis 1 .......................................................................................................... 15
Sample Needs Analysis 2 .......................................................................................................... 16
Optional Activity Sharing and Portfolio .................................................................................... 18
Optional FSME Activities Portfolio Template ........................................................................... 20
Module 2 Check ........................................................................................................................ 22

© 2023 by University of Oregon. FSME MOOC Module 2 Downloadable Packet for the Online 1
Professional English Network (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S. Department of State with funding
provided by the U.S. government and administered by FHI 360. This work is licensed under the
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License, except where noted. To view a copy of this license, visit
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
WELCOME TO MODULE 2!
In the second week of our MOOC, we'll look at ways that motivation and engagement can be
strengthened when students' needs are met. Therefore our guiding questions will be:
• How does a classroom learning community affect student motivation and engagement?
• How can I help my classroom be a positive learning community?
• How can I get information from students in order to better understand their needs?
• What is differentiated instruction, and how does it relate to motivation and engagement?
• How can I practice Universal Design in my classes?

A group of children" by Mario Heller is licensed under the Unsplash License.

Key Concepts
In each week of this MOOC, we will begin by defining a few key terms. This week, we'll define five
concepts related with our efforts to meet the individual needs of all students.
Classroom Community: A feeling of belonging within the classroom, so that every student is an
important member of the group, and students can rely on one another for help and support as they
achieve shared goals.
Needs Analysis: The process of determining students' learning needs, so that education can be
adapted to meet those needs.
Language Proficiency: a learner's level of language mastery; what the learner can do with the
language.
Differentiated Instruction: a way of teaching in which instructors observe differences between
students and plan instruction to meet all of their different needs.
Universal Design for Learning: a way of thinking about teaching so that all students can succeed.

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Now reflect on these questions
1. Think about a time when you were part of a wonderful (or terrible) classroom community.
What made it wonderful (or terrible)? How did it feel to be part of this community? How did it
affect your motivation, engagement, and learning?
2. When you were a student, did you find yourself in classes with a range of language
proficiency? How did your teacher handle this? How did it affect your learning?
There's no need to turn in your answers. For now, just think about the questions, or write about them in
your journal.

Module 2 Activities
You can download this Module as a PDF Packet for offline use. If possible, please turn in all activities on
Canvas. The following checklist of assignments may be helpful to you.

Module 2 Checklist

Check Assignment Estimated time investment

Read the module introduction and definitions (this page!) and
15 minutes
think about the questions.
Read a text to learn about motivation and classroom community. 45 minutes
Read a text to learn about needs analysis. 45 minutes
Watch a video to learn about universal design for learning. 15 minutes
Take the quiz to check your learning from the texts and video 30 minutes
If you wish, participate in an OPTIONAL discussion about meeting
15+ minutes
students' needs.
Create a questionnaire for needs analysis in your teaching
1 hour
context.
If you wish, share ideas in the OPTIONAL discussion and/or copy
15+ minutes
ideas to your OPTIONAL FSME Activities Portfolio.
Review key ideas from this module and then answer the question
15 minutes
in Module 2 Check.

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Read this text and take notes as needed. We will check your understanding of the information presented
here in the Module 2 Quiz.

MODULE 2 READING 1:
MOTIVATION AND CLASSROOM COMMUNITY
By Beth Sheppard

Classroom Community: A feeling of belonging within the classroom, so that every student is an
important member of the group, and students can rely on one another for help and support as they
achieve shared goals.

In Module 1, we learned that relatedness is a key aspect of

motivation. Now look at the definition of classroom community
above. Do you see how much a positive classroom community
can help students feel related? In fact, students tend to be more
active and engaged in classrooms with a strong sense of
community (Watkins, 2005). With the support of their
classmates, students can find the courage to speak a new
language, to do their best, and to believe they can learn. In fact,
it’s not just individuals who will have more confidence in their
ability to learn. According to Bandura (2000), the group itself
also has a certain level of confidence and motivation, and the
more they collectively believe in themselves, the more they will
achieve.
If a whole class of students is working together as one
community, there may also be fewer problems with discipline
(Burden, 2020). Students sometimes misbehave because they
feel anxious about whether they can succeed, but the support of
their classmates can help build students' confidence and belief
in their own competence. Misbehavior disrupts classmates who "Girl raises her hand in class" by Taylor Flowe
want to learn, so it’s less common in more cohesive classroom is licensed under the Unsplash License.
communities where students feel responsible to each other. And
if building community helps students feel more engaged, then
behavior problems arising from boredom should be reduced as
well. Therefore, the time you invest in creating a strong and
cohesive classroom community can pay off in time saved on
discipline and classroom management.
Recognizing that a strong and positive classroom community can support student motivation and
engagement, what are some techniques for building such a community? Let’s talk about four general
approaches.
Develop class norms
Norms are rules of interaction that a group chooses to emphasize. These can include behaviors that
keep everyone safe (e.g. no pushing) or behaviors that connect people (e.g. be kind). The difference
between norms and rules is that norms are enforced by everyone. The whole class agrees on them and

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the whole class helps each other follow them. For this reason, norms can’t be created by the teacher
alone; the class must decide together what norms they will support.
Find opportunities for kindness
Kindness is one group norm that is essential for building
community. Teachers can guide students to regular acts of
kindness in the classroom. In the language classroom, it’s
especially fitting to be kind with words, for example through
compliments, expressions of gratitude, giving advice, or
sharing sympathy. These activities allow students to practice
English while building community.
Know each other
Most language teachers include some activities to help
students get to know each other at the beginning of the
school year, but we can do much more. Beyond learning
students’ names and hobbies, it is valuable for the class
community to know what is going on in the daily lives of its
members, even outside of the classroom. When students “Relatedness Icon” by the University of Oregon is an
and teachers really know each other, they can understand adaptation of “Frame Heart Children royalty-free
and support each other better. Knowing each other can also vector graphic” by GDJ, licensed under the Pixabay
license. This adaptation is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by
mean finding out about students’ academic strengths and the University of Oregon.
weaknesses, their preferred learning styles, and their goals
for language learning via needs analysis.
Create rituals
A classroom community also has a classroom culture, which can be strengthened through traditions and
rituals that are specific to the group. Special greetings at the beginning of class, special class rewards or
events, special decorations or secret code words – these are examples of traditions that bind a group
together and help to build community. They help the classroom community to have an identity, help
students be able to say “this is who we are, and this is how we do it.”
The four broad approaches described above can be applied in many different ways, and combined so
that each strategy strengthens the others. These approaches might guide your selection of academic
activities, or your decisions about how to manage group work, or how you end the class each day. You
don’t have to come up with all of your own ideas for putting these approaches into practice. Your
colleagues surely have many good ideas, and sharing ideas is another way to build community!

References:
(This content is copyrighted, and cannot be adapted in any way, or distributed after the end of this course. It is not
Public Domain or Creative Commons-licensed, and therefore not for public use.)
• Bandura, A. (2000). Exercise of human agency through collective efficacy. Current Directions in
Psychological Science, 9(3), 75-78.
• Burden, P. R. (2020). Classroom management: Creating a successful K-12 learning community. Seventh
Edition. Jossey-Bass
• Watkins, C. (2005). Classrooms as learning communities: A review of research. London Review of
Education 3(1), 47-64.

5
Read this text and take notes as needed. We will check your understanding of the information presented
here in the Module 2 Quiz.

MODULE 2 READING 2:
N E E D S A N A L Y SI S
By Beth Sheppard

Needs Analysis: The process of determining students' learning needs, so that education can be adapted
to meet those needs.
Language Proficiency: a learner's level of language mastery; what the learner can do with the language.

All students are not alike. Some students come into your class already knowing a lot of English, and
others come with much less language proficiency. Some students come into your class excited to learn
and believing that they will succeed, while others come with less motivation and confidence. As
teachers our job is to meet the needs of all these students, but it’s not easy. The first step is coming to
know your students well, so we can help create a supportive learning community where differences are
valued.
Tomlinson (2013) describes student differences in terms of
readiness, learning preferences, and interests.
• Readiness refers to students’ language proficiency,
specifically in relation to the course goals. What is
the distance between students’ current language
skills and the proficiency level they are supposed to
reach during the class? That is their readiness.
• Learning preferences are the approaches to learning
that are most enjoyable for each learner. This may
be related to auditory, visual, and/or kinetic learning
styles, but current research does not support
assigning students permanently to one of these
categories (Tomlinson, 2013). Instead, we can help
students become aware of different learning styles
and guide them to explore their preferred styles in
various learning situations.
• Interests are the topics that students love. You
surely have seen students get excited and engage
when they are given the opportunity to talk about
their hobbies, idols, or other passions. Each student "I Just Love the Thought" by Kinga Cichewicz is
licensed under the Unsplash License.
has a different set of interests, and these can be
powerful motivators.
One way to know our students better is to conduct a needs analysis. We can create a questionnaire in
which we ask students open-ended questions, or prepare checklists and multiple-choice questions to
guide students’ responses. We can also discover students’ needs and desires by speaking to them in
individual conferences, conversing with the whole group, or assigning a dialogue journal. We can use a

6
diagnostic assessment to find out what students know, or we can speak to their previous teachers about
their strengths and weaknesses.
Regardless of the format, we should try to learn about students’ readiness, learning preferences, and
interests.
• To learn about readiness, we can ask about each
student's goals for English, and about specific
subskills that are their strengths and weaknesses,
such as listening, writing, grammar, or
pronunciation.
• To find out more about learning preferences, we
need to ask whether each student feels more
comfortable in group activities or individual
work, whether they like a lot of challenge and
direct correction or a more gentle approach,
whether they prefer active and dynamic lessons
or more quiet and serene lessons.
• When you explore students’ interests, you find out what they are motivated to talk about, such
as pets, music, or sports. You might also want to know if the students have any special
motivation for language learning, or any special fears or concerns. It can be useful to ask an
open-ended question like “is there anything else you want to tell me?”
Needs analysis can help us build a better connection with the students, which can support student
motivation through feelings of relatedness. Needs analysis can also help us steer our instruction
towards the most useful topics. This can support student motivation through feelings of competence as
students are faced with instruction at the correct level, and feelings of autonomy if students sense their
preferences are considered. So be sure to give some direct attention to analyzing your students’ needs,
and don’t do it just once on the first day of class! Continue collecting information and paying attention
to student needs throughout the year.

References
(This content is copyrighted, and cannot be adapted in any way, or distributed after the end of this course. It is not
Public Domain or Creative Commons-licensed, and therefore not for public use.)
• Tomlinson, C. (2013). Assessment and Student Success in a Differentiated Classroom. ASCD.

Image Credits
“Competence Icon” by the University of Oregon is an adaptation of “Arm Exercise Fist royalty-free vector graphic” by OpenClipart-Vectors,
licensed under the Pixabay license. This adaptation is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by the University of Oregon.
“Autonomy Icon” by the University of Oregon is an adaptation of “Feel Free Silhouette Joy royalty-free vector graphic” by Mohammad Hassan,
licensed under the Pixabay license. This adaptation is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by the University of Oregon.
"Relatedness Icon” by the University of Oregon is an adaptation of “Frame Heart Children royalty-free vector graphic” by GDJ, licensed under
the Pixabay license. This adaptation is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by the University of Oregon.

7
VIDEO 2: DIFFERENTIATED INSTRUCTION AND UNIVERSAL
DESIGN FOR LEARNING
By Beth Sheppard

Differentiated Instruction: a way of teaching in which instructors observe differences between students
and plan instruction to meet all of their different needs.
Universal Design for Learning: a way of thinking about teaching so that all students can succeed.

When we know our students’ individual needs, it opens the door to differentiated instruction. This
means that “the teacher proactively plans and carries out varied approaches to content, process, and
product in anticipation of and response to student differences in readiness, interest, and learning
needs” (Tomlinson 2017, p. 7). Note that the differentiation is proactive: teachers don’t just respond to
classroom problems, they begin their planning with an awareness of student differences and an
intention to help all students succeed. This concept of planning and creating classes with different
student needs and abilities in mind is known as Universal Design for Learning. This approach can help a
teacher plan instruction that engages students who experience various disabilities or other challenges,
students of average ability, and exceptionally skillful students, all together in the same classroom. We
will talk more about universal design in the video below.

Watch the video on Canvas and take some notes. Or read the script and look at the slides below.

Module 2 Video Script and slides

8
Universal Design for Learning is a way to think about teaching so that all students can successfully learn.
Actually, the phrase Universal Design was first used in architecture, starting in the 1980s. Buildings were
being adapted to make them accessible for people with disabilities, and the idea was to plan for
accessibility from the start, and to make it benefit everyone.

In Universal Design for Learning we make sure that students with disabilities or differences can access
classroom learning, but at the same time make the class better for all students. It’s a proactively
inclusive approach – learning systems are designed for EVERYONE: it’s universal!

9
In any language classroom, each student comes with their own unique combination of strengths and
weaknesses. Some may have disabilities, and some may have amazing talents, and some may have a
little of both. Universal Design for Learning is all about flexibility. It recommends offering multiple ways
for students to engage, learn, and act (CAST, 2020). Let’s talk about each of these in turn.

Provide multiple means of engagement

Some learners feel more engaged when things are exciting and new, while others feel more engaged in
the context of a strict routine. Some learners are more engaged when working alone, while others are
motivated by group work. Remember, the main idea of Universal Design for Learning is to keep in mind
that all learners are different, and we want to include all of them. There isn’t one way to engage all
students, so the idea is to offer variety and flexibility. For example, to practice a language point,
teachers can let students choose between preparing a 2-minute presentation alone or practicing a 5-
minute dialogue with a partner.

10
Provide multiple means of representation
Universal Design for Learning uses the phrase “multiple means of representation” to refer to giving
students more than one way to access the information they need to learn. One simple way to look at
this is to think about writing, speaking, or images. Some students have trouble reading, hearing, or
seeing. Others simply prefer one of these ways to access information. If we think about including all
three of these styles when teaching, it can benefit everyone. Not only can students focus on their
preferred method, but being exposed to all three methods will actually help them make more
connections and learn better. When we present information by multiple means, it’s better for everyone.

Provide multiple means of expression

Some students experience challenges in physical action, and others may experience challenges in
organization or other areas. We don’t want these challenges to prevent students from showing what
they know, so it’s important to be flexible and provide alternatives when it’s time for students to
express or demonstrate their learning. Examples of Universal Design for Learning in this area include
giving options in projects and assessments, letting students use the tools that work best for them. It also
means accepting that organization is difficult for some students, and providing scaffolding supports to
help them manage their tasks.
Universal Design for
Learning is a way of
thinking about instruction
to make sure it is
inclusive for all students,
giving them ways to
engage, learn, and act
that will work for them. It
can support those
students who experience
disabilities or other
challenges, while also
providing the benefits of
flexibility and
differentiation for all
students.

11
Differentiated instruction sounds like it could be a lot of work, doesn’t it? In fact, it does take more
effort at the beginning, but there are many ways to make the work more manageable. First, it is much
easier to plan for differentiated instruction in the context of a supportive classroom community. We
need to know our students in order to meet their needs, and our students need to support each other
and understand that different treatment may be fair treatment. Within this context, teachers can
develop differentiated instruction gradually, building a collection of materials, activities, learning station
instructions, templates, and assessments. Even better, teams of teachers can collaborate and share these
resources, with each teacher focusing on their own strengths and interests (Lawrence-Brown, 2004).
Differentiated instruction supports student engagement and motivation by reducing barriers to
learning. When students are frustrated because materials are too difficult or inaccessible to them, or
when students are bored because the material is too easy or not aligned with their interests, it is
difficult to convince them to engage. But when each individual student can participate actively and learn
successfully, their motivation starts to grow naturally, and they engage more spontaneously. The
classroom becomes more enjoyable for both teachers and students, and everyone learns more.

References:
(This content is copyrighted, and cannot be adapted in any way, or distributed after the end of this course. It is not
Public Domain or Creative Commons-licensed, and therefore not for public use.)
• CAST (2020, December 10). The UDL Guidelines. http://udlguidelines.cast.org/
• Lawrence-Brown, D. (2004). Differentiated instruction: Inclusive strategies for standards-based learning
that benefit the whole class. American Secondary Education, 32(3), 34-59.
• Tomlinson, C. (2017). How to Differentiate Instruction in Academically Diverse Classrooms. ASCD.

MODULE 2 QUIZ
Purpose
This quiz will help you review the vocabulary and main ideas from the Module 2 reading and video. Feel
free to refer to your notes when you are working on the quiz.
Assignment
Take the quiz as many times as necessary to pass with at least 7 out of 10 (70%) of the answers correct.
You must take this quiz on Canvas.

12
OPTIONAL MODULE 2 DISCUSSION
This discussion is not required, but we encourage you to read these questions and think about them,
even if you don't post your answers. If you do post your answers, be sure to also read and reply to some
answers from your course colleagues.
The purpose of these optional discussions is to help you make connections between your life
experiences and the ideas in your course readings and videos. The more you can connect your new
learning with your existing ideas, the more likely it is that you will remember and apply what you have
learned.

"Untitled" by Gradikaa Aggi is licensed under the Unsplash license.

Discussion Questions
You can feel free to answer one or several of the following questions. You don't have to answer all of them!
You can also share other thoughts you had in response to the assigned reading and video. Please don't
post off topic in this discussion: your posts should be closely connected to the topic of the week.
Please also reply to several of your course colleagues in this discussion. Refer to the Discussion
Guidelines page if you'd like to review our suggestions for effective online discussion.
1. Have you ever done a needs analysis for your students before? We you able to act on the
information you received? What would you do differently next time? Share some tips with
your course colleagues.
2. Universal Design for Learning and Differentiated Instruction require extra planning time, but
they don't have to be unmanageable. There is a saying the the USA, "don't let the perfect be
the enemy of the good." It means we can start doing a bit better, even when we can't do
everything. What are some ways to begin meeting students' varied needs without
overworking yourself?
3. In your experience, what other tools can help teachers meet their students' varied needs?
How does meeting student needs in these ways help support motivation and engagement?

13
Remember, the above discussion is OPTIONAL. It doesn't count towards your final grade in the MOOC.
It's an extra opportunity to express your thoughts about the topic of the week and learn from
interaction with your course colleagues and facilitators. If you choose to participate, you can assess your
own participation using the checklist below:
Discussion Self-Assessment Checklist
□ I answered one or more of the discussion questions on this page, or shared my response to the
readings and video in this module. I did not post off topic.
□ My answers were based on my own thoughts and ideas and written in my own words.
□ I read the answers of several course colleagues, and replied to at least one of them.

MODULE 2 NEEDS ANALYSIS

In this task you will draft a needs analysis questionnaire for your students. As you do the task, think
about what you learned from your reading and video. What information do you need in order to meet
students' needs? What questions will help you gather that information?
What to do
1. First, have a look at the sample needs analyses below, on pages 15-17.
2. Then, think of 5-10 questions you would like to ask your students. Depending on the
proficiency level of your students, you might use English or the students' first language. These
can be questions can be on various themes, depending on how well you know your students and
what you wish to find out. For example, you can ask what they like and dislike about learning
English, what they see as their strengths and weaknesses in English, their preferred teaching and
learning styles, or personal interests and hobbies that might influence the themes you choose to
include in your materials and activities. Write your questionnaire, making sure you use clear
formatting. If possible, show your questionnaire to a trusted colleague and request their
advice for improving it.
3. Finally, complete this assignment by answering the questions. You must answer the questions
on Canvas.

"Person in blue shirt" by UX Indonesia is licensed under the Unsplash License.

14
SAMPLE NEEDS ANALYSIS 1
Setting Goals and Thinking about Learning
Instructions:
1. Think about why you study English, what you want to learn in this course, and how you like to learn.
2. Write your answers below.

My Motivation and Goals

A. Complete the sentence: Overall, I study English because…

B. Complete the sentence with at least two examples: Learning English helps me/will help me…

C. Circle two options. If you want, you can write in other ideas in the last two blanks.
During this course, the two things I want to improve most about my English are:
Grammar Vocabulary Writing Other: _______________
Pronunciation Speaking Listening Other: ________________
D. Complete the sentence: During this course I want to learn…

My Interests
Circle up to three options. If you want, you can write in another idea in the ”other” blank. Give
specific examples of topics that are important to you in the last blank.
E. Topics I like to discuss or learn about:

Environmental issues Music Technology

Politics Events in the news Issues in my community
History Sports Issues affecting young people
Culture Art Other:

F. List examples here:

15
SAMPLE NEEDS ANALYSIS 2

Student name: __________________________________

1. Think about why you study English and circle the as many options as you wish.
• Travel abroad
• Get to know various foreign cultures/peoples
• Learn about the English-speaking world
• Have better employment opportunities
• Work abroad
• Pass the final exams and get a degree
• Get better educated in general
• Enjoy my favorite books, songs, films, and TV shows
• Other (please list): _____________________________________

2. Circle two options. If you want, you can write in other ideas in the “Other” blank. During this
course, the two things I want to improve most about my English are:
• Grammar
• Vocabulary
• Writing skills
• Reading skills
• Other (please list): ____________________________

3. Circle up to three options. If you want, you can write in another idea in the “Other” blank.
Topics I like to discuss or learn about:
• Technology - for example __________________________
• Music - for example __________________________
• Sports - for example __________________________
• Art - for example __________________________
• Fashion - for example __________________________
• TV and movies - for example __________________________
• Environmental issues - for example __________________________
• Current Events - for example __________________________
• History - for example __________________________
• Other (please list): _______________________________________________________________

4. Circle one answer. During class, I like activities where I work…

• alone.
• with a partner.
• with a team or group.
• some alone work/some group work.

16
5. Circle your answers. You can circle more than one answer. I like to learn by…
• watching videos.
• making videos.
• doing activities that involve moving my body.
• talking with others.
• writing.
• creating.
• working with computers.
• listening to music.
• playing games.
• other (please list): _____________________________________________

6. Circle up to four options to complete the sentence. Put an ‘X’ next to the option that is most
important to you. It’s important to me that my English teachers…
• use different types of materials (videos, music, Internet resources, books).
• ask me to use problem-solving skills.
• encourage class members to work together.
• make learning relate to my life and interests.
• explain instructions clearly.
• make learning challenging.
• make learning fun (games, puzzles, humor).
• let me make choices during activities and projects.
• help me discover things on my own.
• tell me how to improve my work.
• tell me when I am doing good work.
• let me be creative.
• are excited about teaching English.
• are friendly and encouraging.
• share their experiences learning English.
• are fair with class rules and grades.
• explain why we are doing something.
• other (please list): ______________________________________________________

Thank you for sharing some information with your teacher! This will help prepare the class in a
way that works for you and all other students.

Is there anything else you would like your teacher to know?

______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________

17
OPTIONAL ACTIVITY SHARING AND PORTFOLIO
Instructions
In this discussion you will share and gather ideas for your Activities Portfolio. For a reminder about the
portfolio, you can refer back to OPTIONAL Activity Sharing and Portfolio from Module 1.
Please share an activity or idea that can help build community in the classroom. Describe each activity
in about 100-200 words. Be sure to include the following information:
1. The name of the activity and where you learned about it. If you share an activity that you
found online or in a published source, please include a citation. But we'd love to hear about
activities that you learned from a colleague or invented yourself!
2. The specific purpose of the activity (such as getting to know each other, increasing kindness,
establishing norms, etc), the amount of time needed for the activity, plus any materials that
are needed.
3. A description of the activity: What do teachers and students do? Please use your own words
for the description, without copying and pasting from any source. It's fine if your description is
simple and brief. Just tell us what you do!
If you want to share more than one activity or idea, that's fine too! Just make another post to this
discussion for each one that you share.
After you share your own activity, read your colleagues' ideas. When you see an idea you would like to
use, copy it into your Activities Portfolio. Then leave a reply for the colleague who shared this idea,
thanking them and adding any comments. You can add as many activities as you like! You are welcome
to copy/paste from this discussion to your portfolio, if you wish, and we suggest also adding the name of
your course colleague who shared the idea.
For your convenience, the activity portfolio template is on pages 20-21. Remember, this is an optional
activity, so you could also use a different format. It's your choice.

"Class discussion" by Andros1234 is licensed under the Pixabay license.

18
Sample
Here is an example activity description.
Daily Shout-Outs: A "shout-out" is a message of support or appreciation. I learned about it from a
website called Edutopia. The purpose of this activity is to help students value each other and feel
appreciated by the community. There are no materials required and it takes 1-10 minutes. The teacher
says "it's time for shout-outs" and students raise their hand and say something good that another
student has done. For example "Amira really helped me with an assignment today" or "Jiang had a really
good idea." At first, the teacher gives some examples, but later only the students give shout-outs. After
high beginners, the teacher can help students give their shout-outs in the target language.
Here is a sample reply:
Dear Arya,
I love the "Shout-Outs" idea. It's simple and easy to implement. It helps build community and
English language at the same time. I will try it with my 9 year old students!
Thanks for sharing,
Samira, Burkina Faso

Remember, this task is OPTIONAL. It doesn't count towards your final grade in the MOOC. It's an extra
opportunity to share your ideas, collect ideas from course colleagues, and develop a portfolio of useful
activities. If you choose to participate, you can assess your own participation using the checklist below:

Discussion Self-Assessment Checklist

□ I shared one or more activities with my course colleagues on this page.
□ The activities I shared are closely connected to the module theme for this week.
□ I used my own words to describe the activities, with no copy/pasting from the internet.
□ I read my colleagues' ideas and copied my favorites from this discussion onto my portfolio
document.
□ I formatted and organized my portfolio so that they will be useful to me in the future.

19
OPTIONAL FSME ACTIVITIES PORTFOLIO TEMPLATE
Each week, collect classroom activities and/or other ideas that you can use to foster motivation
and engagement in your teaching context. You may copy/paste from activities shared by your
course colleagues. Be sure to include all the essential information you will need when you want
to apply the idea in your teaching. Remember to include a link or citation regarding where you
got the original idea.

Your name:
Your teaching context:

Module 2 Activities

Activity 1:

Activity 2:

Activity 3:

Activity 4:

Activity 5:

Additional Activities (Optional):

Module 3 Activities

Activity 1:

Activity 2:

Activity 3:

Activity 4:

Activity 5:

Additional Activities (Optional):

Module 4 Activities

Activity 1:

20
Activity 2:

Activity 3:

Activity 4:

Activity 5:

Additional Activities (Optional):

Module 5 Activities

Activity 1:

Activity 2:

Activity 3:

Activity 4:

Activity 5:

Additional Activities (Optional):

Additional notes

21
MODULE 2 CHECK
Key Points
At the end of each module, we will review some of the key lessons from the week. Here are our main
ideas from Module 2.
• All students are different, with individual strengths
and weaknesses. We strive to meet all students'
needs, and tools such as building community, needs
analysis, differentiated instruction, and universal
design for learning can help us do so.
• Building classroom community supports student
motivation and engagement. We can often make sure
that community building activities are also English
language learning activities, so that we don't waste
any class time.
• We need information about individual students in
order to best meet their needs. When we ask students
about themselves in a needs analysis survey that
doesn't mean we have to give them everything that
they request. We are still the teachers! Instead, we
receive student information and filter it through our
professional knowledge before applying it to best
meet all students' learning needs.
• We don't have to be perfect in order to do well. We Christiann Koepke by Surface is licensed
will not be able to meet every single need of every under the Unsplash License.
single student, but we can gradually build our ability to
differentiate instruction. It's especially helpful to work
on this process with the support of colleagues.

Module Check
Please answer one question to verify that you have completed all activities in Module 2. You must
choose "yes" in order to move on in the course. If your answer is not yet "yes," please complete your
work and then return to this module check. This will count as 1 point toward your grade. You must
complete the Module Check on Canvas.

22
MODULE 3: Can Assessment Be Engaging?

Table of Contents

MODULE 3: Can Assessment Be Engaging? .................................................................................... 1

Welcome to Module 3! ............................................................................................................... 2
Module 3 Reading 1: Formative Assessment and Motivation ................................................... 4
Module 3 Reading 2: Engaging Students in Metacognitive Reflection ...................................... 6
Video 3: Giving Student Feedback .............................................................................................. 8
Module 3 Quiz ........................................................................................................................... 12
Optional Module 3 Discussion .................................................................................................. 13
Module 3 Assessment Activity .................................................................................................. 14
Optional Activity Sharing and Portfolio .................................................................................... 15
Module 3 Check ........................................................................................................................ 17

© 2023 by University of Oregon. FSME MOOC Module 3 Downloadable Packet for the Online
Professional English Network (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S. Department of State with funding
1
provided by the U.S. government and administered by FHI 360. This work is licensed under the
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License, except where noted. To view a copy of this license, visit
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
WELCOME TO MODULE 3!
This week we'll take a look at a part of teaching and learning than tends to inspire big feelings:
assessment! We'll consider ways that assessment can support student motivation and engagement,
guided by the following questions:
• How does assessment support learning?
• How do we make assessment less stressful for both students and teachers?
• Can assessment be motivating and engaging? Even fun?

"Kids" by MJ555 is licensed under the Pixabay License.

Key Concepts
In each week of this MOOC, we will begin by defining a few key terms. This week, let's look at types of
assessment, and a few other useful concepts.
Summative Assessment: an evaluation of student learning at the end of an instructional unit or class.
Formative Assessment: a way to monitor student learning during an instructional unit or class.
Student Feedback: information given to students about their performance and progress.
Reflection: In education, reflection means thinking about oneself and one's own work, especially
when we link our thoughts about past experiences to our plans for the future.
Metacognition: Thinking about thinking; the awareness and understanding of one's own thoughts or
other cognitive processes.

2
Now reflect on these questions
1. How were you assessed when you were a student? How did assessments affect your
motivation to learn?
2. How do you feel about assessment in your work now? Do you enjoy preparing assessments
and giving learner feedback? Why or why not?
There's no need to turn in your answers. For now, just think about the questions, or write about them in
your journal.

Module 3 Activities
You can download this Module as a PDF Packet for offline use. If possible, please turn in all activities on
Canvas. The following checklist of assignments may be helpful to you.

Module 3 Checklist

Check Assignment Estimated time investment

Read the module introduction and definitions (this page!) and think
15 minutes
about the questions.
Read a text to learn about formative assessment and motivation. 45 minutes
Read a text to learn about metacognitive reflection. 45 minutes
Watch a video to learn about giving student feedback. 15 minutes
Take the quiz to check your learning from the texts and video. 30 minutes
If you wish, participate in an OPTIONAL discussion about
15+ minutes
assessment and reflection.
Develop an assessment or reflection activity for your students. 1 hour
If you wish, share ideas in the OPTIONAL discussion and/or copy
15+ minutes
ideas to your OPTIONAL FSME Activities Portfolio.
Review key ideas from this module and then answer the question in
15 minutes
Module 3 Check.

3
Read this text and take notes as needed. We will check your understanding of the information presented
here in the Module 3 Quiz.

MODULE 3 READING 1:
FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT AND MOTIVATION
by Beth Sheppard and Char Heitman

Summative Assessment: an evaluation of student learning at the end of an instructional unit or class.
Formative Assessment: a way to monitor student learning during an instructional unit or class.

When people hear the word “assessment,” they most likely think
about tests, quizzes, papers and other assignments which students
turn in and teachers grade. While it is true that these examples are
forms of assessment, they are not the only forms. In fact,
assessment activities can also include presentations, projects,
observation of daily tasks, exit tickets, dialogues, discussions,
surveys, graphic organizers, reflections, and many more. The ways
that these activities are “graded” can be different for summative
assessments and formative assessments.
• Summative assessments judge how well a student mastered
materials and skills compared to a standard. Summative
assessments tend to be given at the end of a unit or the end
of a course. Scores for these assessments are given by the
teacher or an outside body, and they are usually stated in
the form of a numerical or letter grade.
• Formative assessments, on the other hand, occur during the
process of learning. The purpose of formative assessment is "Untitled" by Varun Gaba is licensed
to give students an opportunity to make improvements in under the Unsplash License.
their work. While these assessments might sometimes
involve numerical or letter grades, they more often are given
as comments by peers or the teacher and can even include
student self-assessment.
Summative assessment is part of education in most institutions today. It is often required by local or
national policies. Summative assessment can also represent a powerful external motivator, especially
high stakes assessments that can have a deciding effect on students’ future possibilities. Of course most
students will work hard for such important assessments. However formative assessment can often have
a more positive effect on students’ motivation and engagement because it can help support students’
feelings of competence, autonomy, and relatedness. Formative assessment is related to these
components of motivation in the following ways.

4
 • Competence: A well-designed formative assessment can show students what
they are already doing right on an assignment, as well as indicating areas for
improvement. This can build feelings of competence as students are
recognized for what they are doing well, while the suggestions help students
understand how to meet expectations and show a clear path forward for
improving their work.
• Autonomy: Formative assessment can support students’ feeling of agency
because it engages them in their learning and sharpens their ability to assess
their own work in relation to a standard. A low score on a summative
assessment can be disempowering; but formative assessments, on the other
hand, involve and empower students, challenging them to fulfill their potential
and giving guidance for how to do so. The student gets to decide how to make
changes in response to the assessment.
• Relatedness: Formative assessments can strengthen relationships. When
teachers give constructive feedback, they show themselves to be on the
same team as their students. Rather than the student trying to win a grade
from the teacher, the teacher and student together are working towards a
certain standard. When we assign peer review, we build community by
giving everyone in the class the opportunity to share their insights and help
each other improve. This gives students a voice and recognizes their
contributions as valuable.
Another phrase sometimes used to describe formative assessment is “assessment for learning.” The
purpose of formative assessment isn’t to rate students’ current skills, but to help them improve. This is
why formative assessment often doesn’t include a grade or score. In fact, research has shown that
students may pay less attention to feedback if a grade is present (Butler, 1988; also see Lowden, 2017).
Sometimes if we think carefully, we will find that there is no need to rate students’ current level of
success. If we focus on students’ future success by offering feedback and guidance, assessment becomes
truly part of the learning process.

References
(This content is copyrighted, and cannot be adapted in any way, or distributed after the end of this course. It is not
Public Domain or Creative Commons-licensed, and therefore not for public use.)
• Butler, R. (1988). Enhancing and undermining intrinsic motivation: The effects of task‐involving and ego‐
involving evaluation on interest and performance. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 58(1), 1-14.
• Lowden, K. (2017). Delaying the grade: How to get students to read feedback. Cult of Pedagogy.
https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/delayed-grade/

Image Credits
“Competence Icon” by the University of Oregon is an adaptation of “Arm Exercise Fist royalty-free vector graphic” by OpenClipart-Vectors,
licensed under the Pixabay license. This adaptation is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by the University of Oregon.
“Autonomy Icon” by the University of Oregon is an adaptation of “Feel Free Silhouette Joy royalty-free vector graphic” by Mohammad Hassan,
licensed under the Pixabay license. This adaptation is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by the University of Oregon.
"Relatedness Icon” by the University of Oregon is an adaptation of “Frame Heart Children royalty-free vector graphic” by GDJ, licensed under
the Pixabay license. This adaptation is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by the University of Oregon.

5
Read this text and take notes as needed. We will check your understanding of the information presented
here in the Module 3 Quiz.

MODULE 3 READING 2:
ENGAGING STUDENTS IN METACOGNITIVE REFLECTION
by Beth Sheppard

Reflection: In education, reflection means thinking about oneself and one's own work, especially when
we link our thoughts about past experiences to our plans for the future.
Metacognition: Thinking about thinking; the awareness and understanding of one's own thoughts or
other cognitive processes.

Most teachers tend to reflect a lot. We think about what happened

in class each day, and use our reflections to decide what worked
and what needs to be changed, apply theoretical knowledge to real-
world situations, and plan for future actions. When we do this, it
can bolster our own feelings of competence and autonomy,
because it allows us to recognize our strengths and feel like we can
take independent action to improve. When we share our reflections
with others it strengthens feeling of relatedness because we see
the ways that we face similar challenges and appreciate the
opportunity to give and receive help. Reflection helps us maintain
our own motivation and engagement as teachers.
Now look at the definition of metacognition above. Thinking about thinking is certainly related to
reflection, but it’s more specific. It means paying attention to how we think, monitoring our attitude,
and tracking our learning progress (Veenman, Van Hout Wolters, & Afflerbach, 2006). It means noticing
what we know and what we don’t know. These metacognitive actions are an important difference
between more effective learners and less effective learners. You may have heard of Richard Schmidt’s
famous noticing hypothesis (1990). He proposed that language learners make large steps forward in
proficiency when they consciously notice a feature of the language. After that they seem to see it
everywhere, and quickly begin to use it more and more correctly. In other words, when students pay
attention to what they are learning and notice that there is something they need but don’t yet know, it
helps them learn much more quickly. In addition, reflection and metacognition can help students think
critically about factors like culture, and it can help support students’ motivation in the same ways we
described for teachers above.
How can we teach students to practice metacognitive reflection? The answer depends on the age and
level of the students, but in general we should think of it as a scaffolded process. In education,
scaffolding means that teachers offer support throughout the learning process. The amount of support
starts out high. As students develop their skills, teachers gradually reduce the support so that it’s always
just enough for students to learn successfully. Scaffolding for metacognitive reflection often means
requiring students to share their reflections, and providing questions or other prompts that guide
students to reflect usefully. These steps are meant to help students build the habit of thinking about
their learning even when it is not assigned and guided by the teacher.

6
Sample activities for metacognitive reflection can include:
• A learning journal in which students regularly write about
their process and the teacher gives brief responses.
• Beginning each lesson with a pre-test or a graphic organizer
such as a KWL chart or a small group discussion to identify
what students already know and what they need to learn.
• “Exit tickets,” or brief assignments at the end of each
lesson or unit or course in which students explain what
they understand well and what they don’t yet understand
well, and propose what their next steps will be.
(day/uni/course).
• Student self-assessment of assignments using checklists or
rubrics that guide students to consider each feature of
success on the assignment.
• Student responses to teacher feedback, either in writing or
in one-on-one conferences. Students can be required to
"Book" by Sasin Tipchai is licensed
prepare observations and questions for these responses. under the Pixabay License.
• Mistake analysis in which special activities are designed to
elicit language errors and then students “mine” these
activities for mistake “treasures,” and then describe what
they notice about their language progress (Sheppard, 2022).
• Discussions of learning strategy in which students can learn from each other’s best practices.
Through these and other practices, teachers can train students to plan, monitor and evaluate their
learning in all parts of the class: lessons, assignments, tests, and other activities. This can help students
become aware of their strengths and weaknesses, and develop independence as they set and
accomplish learning goals. These practices increase the chances of students developing into
autonomous, lifelong, successful and accomplished learners.

References
(This content is copyrighted, and cannot be adapted in any way, or distributed after the end of this course. It is not
Public Domain or Creative Commons-licensed, and therefore not for public use.)
• Schmidt, R. (1990). The role of consciousness in second language learning. Applied Linguistics 11(2), 129–158.
• Sheppard, B. (2022). Learning from mistakes in listening. In: Jones, T & Reed, M. (Eds.), Listening in the
Language Classroom, 171-186. TESOL Press.
• Veenman, M. V. J., Van Hout Wolters, B.H.A.M., & Afflerbach, P. (2006). Metacognition and learning:
conceptual and methodological considerations. Metacognition and Learning, 1(1), 3-14.

Image Credits
“Competence Icon” by the University of Oregon is an adaptation of “Arm Exercise Fist royalty-free vector graphic” by OpenClipart-Vectors,
licensed under the Pixabay license. This adaptation is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by the University of Oregon.
“Autonomy Icon” by the University of Oregon is an adaptation of “Feel Free Silhouette Joy royalty-free vector graphic” by Mohammad Hassan,
licensed under the Pixabay license. This adaptation is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by the University of Oregon.
"Relatedness Icon” by the University of Oregon is an adaptation of “Frame Heart Children royalty-free vector graphic” by GDJ, licensed under
the Pixabay license. This adaptation is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by the University of Oregon.

7
VIDEO 3: GIVING STUDENT FEEDBACK
In the introduction to this module, we defined student feedback as "information given to students about
their performance and progress." In the readings, you have seen that student feedback can be a
powerful tool for both motivation and learning. In this video we give a little more detail on when and
how to give student feedback.
Please watch the video on Canvas and take some notes. Or read the script and look at the slides below.

Module 3 Video Script and slides

Some teachers believe that feedback means error correction. They believe teachers should correct every
student error. This is not only difficult and time consuming, but it is not very effective. Too many
corrections can be overwhelming to students. They may not be able to pay attention to all of them. Too
many corrections can also be demotivating, giving students the feeling that they are not competent learners.

8
In order to have the most positive impact on learning, teachers need to consider when to give feedback,
what feedback to share, and how to share it.

It’s important to give feedback soon after the student performance. If teachers wait too long, it
becomes more difficult for students to connect the feedback to the work that they did.
On the other hand, there are some times when a small delay can be helpful. For example, if students are
giving a spoken presentation, it wouldn’t be a good idea to interrupt them with grammar corrections. In
fact, many teachers save their comments about student presentations until after all students have
presented. Then they offer some general comments about frequent mistakes. The timing of feedback
will depend on what kind of work teachers want to comment on. Teachers should try to balance the
need to give timely feedback that students can use with the need to avoid interrupting or de-motivating
their students.

What information teachers choose to share when giving feedback also depends on the situation. The
most important thing to remember is to focus on the purpose of the activity.

9
If students are doing grammar exercises, for example, teachers can offer explicit corrections or requests
for self-correction on the grammar focus of the activity. It would probably be best to ignore most
mistakes that are not related to the current grammar focus.
If students are having a discussion or writing a journal, teacher feedback can consist of responses to
student ideas or requests for clarification.
If students have written a first draft of a paragraph or essay, teachers can make suggestions about
organization and word choice.
If students are writing sentences with new vocabulary words, teachers can focus only on the use of
those words when giving feedback.

Limiting your feedback to the focus of the activity helps teachers avoid giving too much feedback, and
that helps both students AND teachers avoid becoming overwhelmed and demotivated.

There are many different ways to give feedback.

Teachers can give explicit correction, for example, by re-writing a
sentence for a student, or by reminding students of a grammar rule.

Teachers can also help the student correct themselves, for

example, by just making a gesture, or by underlining a mistake,
possibly with a symbol that indicates the error type. This is called
implicit correction.

10
 Don’t forget that praise is also a form of feedback.
Compliments should be as specific as possible, commenting
on a student’s excellent use of a specific structure or word, or
a specific idea that was well-expressed.

Finally, when sharing comments at the end of a written

text or spoken activity, it is often best to give a “feedback
sandwich.” This means starting with a specific compliment,
then giving a correction or suggestion, and ending with
something positive.
These supportive comments help the student feel competent in their language learning and close to
their teacher, both factors that support motivation and engagement.
For extended assignments such as essays or projects, teachers often choose to use a checklist or rubric
for formative and summative feedback.

Checklists show the steps, skills, and/or materials students need to successfully fulfill an assignment.
Both teachers and students can use the checklist for formative assessment to note what is complete and
what still needs work.
Rubrics describe the teacher’s expectations for student work, and indicate what scores would be given
to different levels of work. They are often used for summative assessments, but they are also useful for
formative assessments to indicate progress.

11
Regardless of the instrument or method teachers choose to give feedback, the important thing is to
match the feedback to the learning objectives. Be mindful of the quantity and timing of feedback, and
be sure to balance the positive comments with corrections. How teachers choose to give feedback can
definitely impact students’ motivation and engagement.

MODULE 3 QUIZ
Purpose
This quiz will help you review the vocabulary and main ideas from the Module 3 reading and video. Feel
free to refer to your notes when you are working on the quiz.
Assignment
Take the quiz as many times as necessary to pass with at least 7 out of 10 (70%) of the answers correct.
You must take this quiz on Canvas.

12
OPTIONAL MODULE 3 DISCUSSION
This discussion is not required, but we encourage you to read these questions and think about them,
even if you don't post your answers. If you do post your answers, be sure to also read and reply to some
answers from your course colleagues.
The purpose of these optional discussions is to help you make connections between your life experiences
and the ideas in your course readings and videos. The more you can connect your new learning with your
existing ideas, the more likely it is that you will remember and apply what you have learned.

"Coffee Gathering" by Helena Lopez is licensed under the Unsplash license.

Discussion Questions
You can feel free to answer one or more of the following questions. You don't have to answer all of them!
You can also share other thoughts in response to the assigned reading and video. Please don't post off
topic in this discussion: your posts should be closely connected to the topic of the week.
Please also reply to several of your course colleagues in this discussion. Refer to the Discussion
Guidelines page if you'd like to review our suggestions for effective online discussion.
1. What roles do summative assessment and formative assessment play in your curriculum? How
can you increase the focus on formative assessment to foster student motivation and
engagement?
2. What are some ways that you practice metacognition and reflection in your own life and
work? How do these practices affect your own motivation and engagement?
3. Do you assign metacognition and/or reflection activities to your students? Why or why not?
How have students responded to these activities?

Remember, this task is OPTIONAL. It doesn't count towards your final grade in the MOOC. It's an extra
opportunity to express your thoughts about the topic of the week and learn from interaction with your
course colleagues and facilitators. If you choose to participate, you can assess your own participation
using the checklist below:

13
Discussion Self-Assessment Checklist
□ I answered one or more of the discussion questions on this page, or shared my response to the
readings and video in this module. I did not post off topic.
□ My answers were based on my own thoughts and ideas and written in my own words.
□ I read the answers of several course colleagues, and replied to at least one of them.

M O D U L E 3 A S S E S S M E NT A C T I V I T Y
In this task you will revise or create an assessment that better supports student motivation and
engagement. The more specifically and thoroughly you plan, the more useful it will be for you.
What to do
1. Think of a way that you formally assess your students. It could
be an exam, test, quiz, essay, project, presentation, or any other
assessment, big or small. If you don't have an assessment to
revise, you can create a new formative assessment.
2. Now think about ways that you could adjust this assessment to
better support students' motivation and engagement.
o Can you make it more formative, with room for on-going
improvement? (Remember the definition and the
importance of a growth mindset from Module 1.)
o Can you reduce the emphasis on judging or grading, and
bring more emphasis to supportive comments for each
student?
o Can you add steps to the assessment that will scaffold “Self development” by Artem Maltsev is
licensed under the Unsplash License.
students' metacognitive reflection as they complete the
task?
3. Make a plan to update your assessment for improved student motivation and engagement. Be
as specific as possible. This might mean revising your rubric or drafting a handout with directions
for the metacognitive activity or writing some new questions for your quiz.
4. Finally, complete this assignment by answering the questions. You must answer the questions
on Canvas.

14
OPTIONAL ACTIVITY SHARING AND PORTFOLIO
Instructions
In this discussion you will share and gather ideas for your Activities Portfolio. For a reminder about the
portfolio, you can refer back to OPTIONAL Activity Sharing and Portfolio from Module 1.
Please share an activity or idea for formative assessment and/or reflection in the classroom. Describe
each activity in about 100-200 words. Be sure to include the following information:
1. The name of the activity and where you learned about it. If you share an activity that you
found online or in a published source, please include a citation. But we'd love to hear about
activities that you learned from a colleague or invented yourself!
2. The specific purpose of the activity (such as getting to know each other, increasing kindness,
establishing norms, etc.), the amount of time needed for the activity, plus any materials that
are needed.
3. A description of the activity: What do teachers and students do? Please use your own words
for the description, without copying and pasting from any source. It's fine if your description is
simple and brief. Just tell us what you do!
If you want to share more than one activity or idea, that's fine too! Just make another post to this
discussion for each one that you share.
After you share your own activity, read your colleagues' ideas. When you see an idea you would like to
use, copy it into your Activities Portfolio. Then leave a reply for the colleague who shared this idea,
thanking them and adding any comments. You can add as many activities as you like! You are welcome
to copy/paste from this discussion to your portfolio, if you wish, and we suggest also adding the name of
your course colleague who shared the idea.
You can find the activity portfolio in the packets for Modules 1 and 2. Remember, this is an optional
activity, so you could also use a different format. It's your choice.

"Untitled" by Van Tay Media is licensed under the Unsplash license.

15
Sample
Here is an example activity description:
Exit Tickets: I learned about exit tickets in an OPEN course I took last year. Exit tickets help the teacher
find out how well the class understood each day's lesson, so she knows whether to explain more the next
day, or move on. They can also help students self-assess their progress. One exit ticket takes about 5
minutes. You need a slip of paper, or an online survey. Students respond to a few simple prompts, for
example rating from 1-10 how well they understand, or writing one question about the day's lessons. The
teacher collects exit tickets at the end of every class. It's a habit. I want to try this habit.
Thanks, Edith, Ukraine.
Here is a sample reply:
Dear Edith,
Thank you for sharing about exit tickets. I had heard about them before this course but I have
never used them. I think I will try it now.
Best wishes, Yuko, Japan

Remember, this task is OPTIONAL. It doesn't count towards your final grade in the MOOC. It's an extra
opportunity to share your ideas, collect ideas from course colleagues, and develop a portfolio of useful
activities. If you choose to participate, you can assess your own participation using the checklist below:

Discussion Self-Assessment Checklist

□ I shared one or more activities with my course colleagues on this page.
□ The activities I shared are closely connected to the module theme for this week.
□ I used my own words to describe the activities, with no copy/pasting from the internet.
□ I read my colleagues' ideas and copied my favorites from this discussion onto my portfolio
document.
□ I formatted and organized my portfolio so that they will be useful to me in the future.

16
MODULE 3 CHECK
Key Points
At the end of each module, we will review some of the key lessons
from the week. Here are our main ideas from Module 3.
• Formative assessment often strengthens motivation more
than summative assessment, but that doesn't mean that
summative assessment is bad. We can use both kinds of
assessment, and we can add formative elements to
summative assessments.
• There is no need to correct every single student mistake.
Overcorrection can be discouraging to both teachers and
students. It's best to focus corrections on the area that the
assignment was designed to practice, for example fluent
expression or a specific grammar point.
• Supportive feedback to students include both compliments
and corrections, all expressed in terms of growth. That
means the focus of feedback is on showing students what do
to next time. “Woman sitting” by Ceyda Çiftci is licensed
under the Unsplash License.
• Metacognitive reflection activities can help students learn
how to learn. This may increase their chances of becoming
life-long self-directed learners.

Module Check
Please answer one question to verify that you have completed all activities in Module 3. You must
choose "yes" in order to move on in the course. If your answer is not yet "yes," please complete your
work and then return to this module check. This will count as 1 point toward your grade. You must
complete the Module Check on Canvas.

17
MODULE 4: Why do Projects?

Table of Contents

MODULE 4: Why do Projects? ........................................................................................................ 1

Welcome to Module 4! ............................................................................................................... 2
Module 4 Reading 1: Tips for Project-Based Learning................................................................ 4
Module 4 Reading 2: Projects and Motivation ........................................................................... 6
Video 4: Advantages of Project-Based Learning ......................................................................... 8
Module 4 Quiz ........................................................................................................................... 11
Optional Module 4 Discussion .................................................................................................. 12
Module 4 PBL Plan .................................................................................................................... 13
Optional Activity Sharing and Portfolio .................................................................................... 14
Module 4 Check ........................................................................................................................ 16

© 2023 by University of Oregon. FSME MOOC Module 4 Downloadable Packet for the Online
Professional English Network (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S. Department of State with funding
1
provided by the U.S. government and administered by FHI 360. This work is licensed under the
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License, except where noted. To view a copy of this license, visit
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
WELCOME TO MODULE 4!
We've passed the middle point of our MOOC already! This week, we'll introduce Project-Based Learning
(PBL) and talk about why it's motivating and how to do it well. Our guiding questions will be:
• What is Project-Based Learning (PBL)?
• How can PBL help foster student motivation and engagement?
• What are some best practices for PBL?
• Does PBL support students' future success?

"Boy in Green" by CDC is licensed under the Unsplash License.

Key Concepts
Each week, we begin by defining a few key terms. Here are some phrases that will be important in
Module 4.
Project: An extended task in which students work to solve an authentic problem or produce a
complex and meaningful product.
Student-Centered Instruction: A style of teaching that shifts the focus from the teacher to the
student. This approach acknowledges that teachers can't simply transfer knowledge to students, but
rather students learn much better when they engage in a process of discovery.
Collaborative Learning: an educational approach in which groups of students work together to
discuss an issue, solve a problem, complete a task or create a product.

Now, reflect on these questions:

1. Think about a time when you completed a project that was meaningful for you personally or
for your community. What did you do? How did you do it? How did you feel?
2. What kinds of assignments, tasks, and/or projects seem to inspire your students to work
enthusiastically? Why?
There's no need to turn in your answers. For now, just think about the questions, or write about them in
your journal.

2
Module 4 Activities
If possible, please turn in all activities on Canvas.
The following checklist of assignments may be helpful to you.

Module 4 Checklist

Check Assignment Estimated time investment

Read the module introduction and definitions (this page!) and think
15 minutes
about the questions.
Read a text to learn about some tips for Project-Based Learning. 45 minutes
Read a text to learn about projects and motivation. 45 minutes
Watch a video to learn some more advantages of Project-Based
15 minutes
Learning.
Take the quiz to check your learning from the texts and video. 30 minutes
If you wish, participate in an OPTIONAL discussion about your
15+ minutes
experiences with PBL.
Develop a plan for PBL that you could try with your students. 1 hour
If you wish, share ideas in the OPTIONAL discussion and/or copy
15+ minutes
ideas to your OPTIONAL FSME Activities Portfolio.
Review key ideas from this module and then answer the question
15 minutes
in Module 4 Check.

3
Read this text and take notes as needed. We will check your understanding of the information presented
here in the Module 4 Quiz.

MODULE 4 READING 1:
T I P S F O R P R O JE C T - B A S E D L E A R N I N G
by Char Heitman and Beth Sheppard

Project: An extended task in which students work to solve an authentic problem or produce a complex
and meaningful product.

One of the best ways to facilitate learning in a way that keeps

students engaged and motivated is to incorporate project-based
learning. Project-based learning is a teaching method in which
students actively engage in real-world and personally-
meaningful projects. In a language learning classroom, projects
are an ideal way to engage students because they help students
use the language they are studying rather than just learn about
the language (Gaer, 1998). Instead of doing drills and fill-in-the-
blank worksheets, students actually use their language skills in
an authentic project. For example, students might make a
booklet of their favorite recipes using imperative verb forms and
food vocabulary. Or they might create posters to be displayed
around the school for an anti-bullying campaign or food drive.
Or they might create a video of interviews with tourists about
places of interest in their hometown. Projects give the students
opportunities and reasons to use their new language in
meaningful ways. "Man Reading" by Oladimeji Ajegbile is
licensed under the Unsplash License.
Projects can be done with students of all ages and language
levels, and they can take as little as one day or as long as a whole
year. The project's outcome, group composition, and audience will vary according to the learners, time
available, and a variety of other factors. No matter what the project, it is essential that the teacher
carefully plan key elements of the project and give clear instructions, so students will feel successful and
use their time well. Teachers should consider the following while planning and designing projects:
1. Align the project with the curriculum.
While projects should be fun for students, they should also align with course goals and
objectives. In other words, for an English class you should make sure that most of the time
students spend on their project is focused on practicing English, not on arts and crafts or on first
language content knowledge. Think about what projects can support specific language
objectives. For example, if students must demonstrate mastery of the imperative verb form by
the end of the semester, the teacher could have students do a project creating a recipe book,
cooking demo video or other how-to videos, in which imperatives such as “chop,” “stir,”
“combine,” “mix,” and “bake” are naturally used. The idea is to make sure the projects develop
the skills, competencies and/or knowledge articulated in the goals and objectives of the course,
so that they are part of the curriculum, not just extra tasks.

4
 2. Make projects authentic and meaningful for students.
Students will be much more motivated and engaged if they are creating products or working
with themes and topics that are personally relevant and meaningful to them. Examples of
themes include: music, art, science, health, local history, and famous people. Though the final
general outcome of the project may be defined, be sure that students have some choice about
the content of the project itself. For example, if students are creating a tourist brochure, they
can choose the places they wish to feature. In this way, students choose the topics and themes
that interest them most, which will increase their engagement in the project.
3. Clearly describe the project and timeline.
The outcome of projects can vary widely. Examples of outcomes that students might produce
include: posters, maps, booklets, brochures, magazines, newspapers, bulletin boards, videos,
websites, games, performances, presentations, and reports (Alan and Stoller, 2005). Whatever it
is, be sure to be clear about the parameters of the product. For example, does the video have to
be at least five minutes long? Does the brochure have to be 10 pages and include at least 6
popular town sites? The clearer and more specific the teacher can be about the outcome, the
more likely students are to be able to fulfill the requirements of the assignment. For longer-term
projects, it is essential to break down the larger project into smaller steps. Rather than just give
an overview of the project and ask students to come back with a fully-formed product in four
weeks, for example, it is more supportive to set interim deadlines or check-ins along the way.
There are many ways to structure this. For example, the teacher can have students create a
checklist of the steps of the project which are due by certain dates. Alternatively, students could
submit interim reports in which they write what they have accomplished, what they still need to
do, and ask any questions as needed. Using a step-by-step approach helps ensure that students
will make consistent progress instead of rushing to finish the project on the last day. It also
ensures that students will put more time and effort into the project and produce a higher-
quality outcome (Edutopia, 2007).

References
(This content is copyrighted, and cannot be adapted in any way, or distributed after the end of this course. It is not
Public Domain or Creative Commons-licensed, and therefore not for public use.)
• Alan, B. & Stoller, F. (2005). Maximizing the benefits of project work in the foreign language classroom.
English Teaching Forum, 43(4) 10-21.
• Edutopia. (2007, October 19). How Does Project-based Learning Work: Tools for Understanding the
Process of Planning and Building Projects. https://www.edutopia.org/project-based-learning-guide-
implementation
• Gaer, S. (1998). Less teaching: More learning. Focus on Basics: Connecting Research and Practice, 2(D).

5
Read this text and take notes as needed. We will check your understanding of the information presented
here in the Module 4 Quiz.

MODULE 4 READING 2:
PROJECTS AND MOTIVATION
by Char Heitman and Beth Sheppard

Student-Centered Instruction: A style of teaching that shifts the focus from the teacher to the student.
This approach acknowledges that teachers can't simply transfer knowledge to students, but rather
students learn much better when they engage in a process of discovery.
Collaborative Learning: an educational approach in which groups of students work together to discuss
an issue, solve a problem, complete a task or create a product.

You have already read that Project-Based Learning can help support student motivation and
engagement in the language classroom. Let’s talk a little more about why that might be the case. We
have said that student motivation often increases when they feel competent, autonomous, and related.
Projects can support students’ feelings of
competence because they do meaningful work and
achieve success that their community can see and
appreciate. That’s why it’s important to consider
how the project can be published or displayed
beyond the classroom, and also why it’s so
important to provide the scaffolding that helps
students succeed. Projects can support students’
feelings of autonomy because the work unfolds in a
student-centered environment in which the teacher
facilitates the students’ efforts. That’s why it’s so
important to plan for student choice in the project
outcomes and content, and also why projects
involve a lot of independent work with the teacher
checking in and offering support. Finally, projects
can support students’ feelings of relatedness
because they are often completed in small groups, or published in formats where every student’s
individual work becomes part of one whole. That’s why we need to pay close attention to group
formation and collaborative work dynamics, and also why it’s helpful to include peer feedback in
Project-Based Learning.
Learning is inherently a social act, and knowledge is acquired and constructed through interactions with
others. This is not to say that one cannot learn independently, but learning is more robust and
knowledge is retained longer when learning is done with others (Gerlach, 1994). In addition,
collaboration is a fundamental skill that students will need when they leave school and get a job. Most
students will not have to take grammar tests or write 5 paragraph essays once they finish their
schooling. Rather, they will need to work with others to solve problems, successfully complete projects,
and communicate about plans and ideas. As our current millennium was approaching, educators and
industry experts came together to identify key skills needed in the future workplace. Their suggestions
became known as 21st-century skills, or the Four Cs: communication, collaboration, critical thinking
and creativity. Project-Based Learning can help students develop all of the 4 Cs. In group project work,

6
students must communicate and collaborate effectively, and considering the ideas suggested by others
helps develop students’ critical thinking. Furthermore, project work involves creating original content or
products. Students often enjoy engaging with these real-life skills, and they may also be motivated by
the awareness that this practice can help support their future success.
During Project-Based Learning, it can be important
to explicitly scaffold and assess these 21st century
skills to help students achieve success and/or learn
from their mistakes. One frequent concern with
group projects is that not all students will
participate equally and that only one or two
students will do all of the work. In order to increase
accountability, teachers can have students discuss
what constitutes good group behavior and effective
team work. Teachers can help students establish
and commit to norms for project participation that
address issues such as dividing the work equitably, "Boys Writing " by Andrew Ebrahim is licensed
communicating respectfully, and meeting the under the Unsplash License.
agreed-upon deadlines. These are not only good
skills for students to practice for a specific project,
these are abilities that will be needed and valued in
any future work place setting. Another way to support full participation of all group members is to tell
groups that at the end of the project, all members will rate themselves and each other according to how
well they did on meeting their deadlines, contributing ideas, communicating clearly, and carrying out
assigned tasks. This increases the chances that all group members will contribute equally to the final
outcome and communicate as clearly as possible along the way as well.
Well-planned projects can be motivating and help students reach the goals and objectives of a language
course. Projects can also help students develop skills that will increase their success in the workplace
and throughout their life. Most importantly for our course, projects can support student motivation and
engagement because they offer meaningful work that includes some student choice and some
opportunities for collaboration.

References
(This content is copyrighted, and cannot be adapted in any way, or distributed after the end of this course. It is not
Public Domain or Creative Commons-licensed, and therefore not for public use.)
• Gerlach, J.M. (1994). Is this collaboration? New Directions for Teaching & Learning, 59, 5-14.

Image Credits
“Competence Icon” by the University of Oregon is an adaptation of “Arm Exercise Fist royalty-free vector graphic” by OpenClipart-Vectors,
licensed under the Pixabay license. This adaptation is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by the University of Oregon.
“Autonomy Icon” by the University of Oregon is an adaptation of “Feel Free Silhouette Joy royalty-free vector graphic” by Mohammad Hassan,
licensed under the Pixabay license. This adaptation is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by the University of Oregon.
"Relatedness Icon” by the University of Oregon is an adaptation of “Frame Heart Children royalty-free vector graphic” by GDJ, licensed under
the Pixabay license. This adaptation is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by the University of Oregon.

7
VIDEO 4: ADVANTAGES OF PROJECT -BASED LEARNING
Your video this week focuses on the role of the teacher and audience in PBL, and on assessment for PBL.
Please watch the video on Canvas and take some notes. Or read the script and look at the slides below.

Module 4 Video Script and slides

As you learned in the reading, project-based learning or PBL is an educational approach in which
students do a valuable task. They must solve an authentic problem or produce a complex and
meaningful product. Many aspects of PBL were discussed in the main reading, but in this video, we will
highlight a few key differences between a traditional pedagogical approach and PBL.

8
One big difference between a traditional classroom and the project-based learning approach is the role
of the teacher. In a traditional approach, the teacher is the expert and source of information and is also
the person responsible for organizing learning experiences. In a project-based approach, the teacher is
more a facilitator, coach, and consultant. After telling students about expectations for the structure and
outcome of the project, the teacher lets students organize their experience and learning. They will, of
course, need guidance in the process, but they have a much more active role. The degree of
responsibility students have will vary by age group and maturity level and extent of the project, but in
general, the PBL approach is a more student-centered model in which students are creators and
presenters of knowledge.

Another difference between traditional pedagogy and PBL is the assessment model. In traditional
classrooms, students take tests and complete individual tasks. In PBL, students are assessed differently.
Rather than creating a text with fill-in-the-blank, true/false or essay questions, the teacher needs to
create a tool that assesses both the process of the project and its product. This may require several
different rubrics or checklists, and it can also include peer evaluations, conferences, and other tools.

9
In traditional pedagogy, tests assess how much the students know about the language. In PBL, the
teacher assesses how well students use the language. For this, it is helpful to consider the principals of
performance-based assessment. Performance-based assessments measure students’ ability to apply the
knowledge and skills they have learned. Although these assessments can vary, they share several key
features. Namely, performance-based assessments are authentic, complex, process-oriented or product-
oriented, and open-ended though still time-bound.

Projects are also an ideal opportunity to help students develop accountability and teamwork skills. In
recent years, many workplaces have started to incorporate 360-degree assessment. In this kind of
assessment, workers are evaluated by multiple people. This means that a worker’s performance is not
only evaluated by the highest-level boss but also by immediate supervisors, colleagues, project team
members, and themselves. In the same way, during project work in the classroom, students should
receive feedback about their performance from group mates and other classmates in addition to the
teacher. Students should also be given opportunities for self-reflection, and they should rate themselves
according to how well they participated, contributed ideas, met deadlines, and carried their weight
during the product creation process. Both peer-assessment and self-reflection can lead students to identify
their strengths as well as gaps in their performance. This can help them address such gaps in the future.

10
Finally, projects are an excellent way to create and strengthen connections between the class, school
and community at large. In a traditional classroom, it is only the teacher and maybe the classmates who
see a final product. But in project-based learning, the teacher should arrange to have the widest
audience possible for final project results. For example, students can present live performances to
parents, other English classes or the whole school. Similarly, for campaigns, poster projects, bulletin
boards or other tangible creations, project outcomes can be displayed outside the classroom or around
the school. For digital products like videos or websites, links can be shared on a publicly accessible
school website. The teacher should determine which wider audience is most appropriate for each
product or outcome. The more students sense that their products will be viewed and valued by a larger
community, the more motivated they will feel to create a high-quality product, and the more
meaningful it will be.

Project-based learning may seem challenging. Projects do require a lot of careful planning, but the
rewards are well worth the effort!

MODULE 4 QUIZ
Purpose
This quiz will help you review the vocabulary and main ideas from the Module 4 reading and video. Feel
free to refer to your notes when you are working on the quiz.
Assignment
Take the quiz as many times as necessary to pass with at least 70% of the answers correct.
You must take this quiz on Canvas.

11
OPTIONAL MODULE 4 DISCUSSION
This discussion is not required, but we encourage you to read these questions and think about them,
even if you don't post your answers. If you do post your answers, be sure to also read and reply to some
answers from your course colleagues.
The purpose of these optional discussions is to help you make connections between your life experiences
and the ideas in your course readings and videos. The more you can connect your new learning with your
existing ideas, the more likely it is that you will remember and apply what you have learned.

"Workplace Team" by Free-Photos is licensed under the Pixabay License.

Discussion Questions
You can feel free to answer one or more of the following questions. You don't have to answer all of
them! You can also share other thoughts in response to the assigned reading and video. Please don't
post off topic in this discussion: your posts should be closely connected to the topic of the week.
Please also reply to several of your course colleagues in this discussion. Refer to the Discussion
Guidelines page if you'd like to review our suggestions for effective online discussion.
1. Have you experienced PBL before? Please describe any challenges that came up, along with
how you or a colleague worked to overcome those challenges.
2. Unfortunately, it's quite common for teachers to assign projects that don't require much use
of the target language. Can you think of examples of projects in which more class time was
spent on arts & crafts or collecting information than on language practice? Please describe
ways that these projects could be revised to include more target language practice.
3. Projects are often completed in small groups. What are some of the ways you create groups
which foster students' motivation AND help them stay on task? How do you support students
for successful group work in which everyone participates actively?
Please sign your discussion post with your name and country, to help guide your colleagues' replies.

12
Remember, the above discussion task is OPTIONAL. It doesn't count towards your final grade in the
MOOC. It's an extra opportunity to express your thoughts about the topic of the week and learn from
interaction with your course colleagues and facilitators. If you choose to participate, you can assess your
own participation using the checklist below:
Discussion Self-Assessment Checklist
□ I answered one or more of the discussion questions on this page, or shared my response to the
readings and video in this module. I did not post off topic.
□ My answers were based on my own thoughts and ideas and written in my own words.
□ I read the answers of several course colleagues, and replied to at least one of them.

MODULE 4 PBL PLAN

In this task you will make a plan for PBL. The more details you include in your plan, the easier it will be to
implement it in the future. Of course, when you carry out your plan you will probably need to adapt
your plan to the specific students, and after giving it a try you will want to revise it further.
What to do
1. Think of a class you teach (or would like to teach), where a project might be a good fit. Consider
the students' age, proficiency level, how much time they spend in your class, and any other
relevant details.
2. Think of a project that might be motivating and engaging for these students, and will also help
them meet language objectives for their class. You can use this template to write up your plan:
Download FSME MOOC Module 4 Template: Make a Plan for PBL (DOCX 223 KB)
Download FSME MOOC Module 4 Template: Make a Plan for PBL (PDF 124 KB)
3. Make a plan about when you will try out this project. Decide how long the project should take.
4. Finally, complete this assignment by answering the questions. You must answer the questions
on Canvas.

"Together Now" by John Schnobrich is licensed under the Unsplash license.

13
OPTIONAL ACTIVITY SHARING AND PORTFOLIO

Instructions
In this discussion you will share and gather ideas for your Activities Portfolio. For a reminder about the
portfolio, you can refer back to OPTIONAL Activity Sharing and Portfolio from Module 1.
Please share an activity or idea for formative assessment and/or reflection in the classroom. Describe
each activity in about 100-200 words. Be sure to include the following information:
1. The name of the activity and where you learned about it. If you share an activity that you
found online or in a published source, please include a citation. But we'd love to hear about
activities that you learned from a colleague or invented yourself!
2. The specific purpose of the activity (such as getting to know each other, increasing kindness,
establishing norms, etc), the amount of time needed for the activity, plus any materials that
are needed.
3. A description of the activity: What do teachers and students do? Please use your own words
for the description, without copying and pasting from any source. It's fine if your description is
simple and brief. Just tell us what you do!
If you want to share more than one activity or idea, that's fine too! Just make another post to this
discussion for each one that you share.
After you share your own activity, read your colleagues' ideas. When you see an idea you would like to
use, copy it into your Activities Portfolio. Then leave a reply for the colleague who shared this idea,
thanking them and adding any comments. You can add as many activities as you like! You are welcome
to copy/paste from this discussion to your portfolio, if you wish, and we suggest also adding the name of
your course colleague who shared the idea.
You can find the activity portfolio in the packets for Modules 1 and 2. Remember, this is an optional
activity, so you could also use a different format. It's your choice.

"Group" by Z is licensed under the Unsplash license.

14
Sample
Here is an example activity description:
Wikipedia Project: I read about a similar idea in the Asian EFL Journal. I think my students would like to
create an English Wikipedia page for our school. It doesn't have a Wiki page yet, so they could really
publish it. The activity will strengthen their reading and writing skills. It could take two weeks. The
required material is a computer with an internet connection. First, the whole class can brainstorm a list
of sections for the page (for example, history, building, teachers, students), and then each section will be
written by a small group of students. Then the groups can edit the sections of the other groups, and then
we can publish it. I have not tried this, but I am thinking about it for next year. I hope you like my idea.
Best wishes, Sooyoung, Korea
Here is a sample reply:
Dear Sooyoung,
I love this idea! Thanks for sharing it. Now I am also thinking about it for next year.
Dao, Thailand

Remember, this task is OPTIONAL. It doesn't count towards your final grade in the MOOC. It's an extra
opportunity to share your ideas, collect ideas from course colleagues, and develop a portfolio of useful
activities. If you choose to participate, you can assess your own participation using the checklist below:
Discussion Self-Assessment Checklist
□ I shared one or more activities with my course colleagues on this page.
□ The activities I shared are closely connected to the module theme for this week.
□ I used my own words to describe the activities, with no copy/pasting from the internet.
□ I read my colleagues' ideas and copied my favorites from this discussion onto my portfolio document.
□ I formatted and organized my portfolio so that they will be useful to me in the future.

15
MODULE 4 CHECK
Key Points
At the end of each module, we review some of the key lessons from the week. Here are our main ideas
from Module 4.
• Projects for PBL need to align with the language curriculum. Avoid projects in which most of
students' time will be spend on arts and crafts, or on collecting content information using their
first language. Think about the language objectives of your course, and envision projects that
focus on one or more of those areas.
• PBL is a student-centered approach. After clearly defining the project, the teacher can be a
facilitator and guide as students make choices and organize their work.
• Projects are often done in small groups, although they can also involve individual work. For
group projects, teachers should explicitly teach students techniques to collaborate well, and can
scaffold successful group work by providing group contracts, checklists, suggested roles, and/or
peer- and self-assessment of group contributions.
• PBL requires performance assessment, meaning that teachers evaluate both the process and
the product in terms of how language is used. Assessment should be transparent, meaning that
students know from the beginning how they will be assessed.

Module Check
Please answer one question to verify that you have completed all
activities in Module 4. You must choose "yes" in order to move on
in the course. If your answer is not yet "yes," please complete your
work and then return to this module check. This will count as 1
point toward your grade. You must complete the Module Check
on Canvas.

"Woman in Black" by Christina is licensed

under the Unsplash License.

16
MODULE 5: Which Games?

Table of Contents

MODULE 5: Which Games?............................................................................................................. 1

Welcome to Module 5! ............................................................................................................... 2
Module 5 Reading 1: Games and Motivation ............................................................................. 4
Module 5 Reading 2: Choosing the Right Games ....................................................................... 6
Video 5: Games and Classroom Management ........................................................................... 8
Module 5 Quiz ........................................................................................................................... 13
Optional Module 5 Discussion .................................................................................................. 13
Module 5 Game Analysis .......................................................................................................... 14
Optional Activity Sharing and Portfolio .................................................................................... 15
Cascading New Knowledge ....................................................................................................... 17
Module 5 Check + Final course Check ...................................................................................... 19
Post-course Diagnostic Survey .................................................................................................. 19

© 2023 by University of Oregon. FSME MOOC Module 5 Downloadable Packet for the Online
Professional English Network (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S. Department of State with funding
1
provided by the U.S. government and administered by FHI 360. This work is licensed under the
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License, except where noted. To view a copy of this license, visit
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
WELCOME TO MODULE 5!
In the last week of our MOOC, we'll look at everyone's favorite motivating classroom activity - games!
Games are fun, but they should also be useful for language learning. Our guiding questions this week will be:
• What effect can fun and other emotions have on learning and motivation?
• What factors make games effective in the ELT classroom?
• How can we help students to maintain good behavior while playing games?

"Untitled" by Ngo Huuy Moi is licensed under the Pixabay License.

Key Concepts
Each week, we begin by defining a few key terms. Knowing these definitions could be helpful in Week 5.
Affective: related to emotions, feelings, and moods. Affective factors can have a positive or negative
effect on learning.
Game: a form of play that takes place within set rules, usually competitive.
Gamification: the use of game elements in non-game contexts.

Now reflect on these questions:

1. What games do you like to play (not in the classroom, but just in general)? How do you feel
when you are playing them?
2. Think about the feeling you described in your answer to question 1. Did you ever feel that way
in the classroom when you were a student? This could be while playing classroom games, but
it might also be during other kinds of activities. If so, when did you feel that way? What were
you doing?
There's no need to turn in your answers. For now, just think about the questions, or write about them in
your journal.

2
Module 5 Activities
If possible, please turn in all activities on Canvas.
The following checklist of assignments may be helpful to you.

Module 5 Checklist

Check Assignment Estimated time investment

Read the module introduction and definitions (this page!) and think
15 minutes
about the questions.
Read a text to learn about games and motivation. 45 minutes
Read a text to learn about choosing the right games. 45 minutes
Watch a video to learn about classroom management for games. 15 minutes
Take the quiz to check your learning from the texts and video. 30 minutes
If you wish, participate in an OPTIONAL discussion about your
15+ minutes
experiences with classroom games.
Choose one language-learning game and analyze it in depth. 1 hour
If you wish, share ideas in the OPTIONAL discussion and/or copy
15+ minutes
ideas to your OPTIONAL FSME Activities Portfolio.
Share with other colleagues based on Cascading New Knowledge
15+ minutes
(optional).
Review key ideas from this module and then answer the question
15 minutes
in Module 5 Check.
Complete the post-course diagnostic survey.

3
Read this text and take notes as needed. We will check your understanding of the information presented
here in the Module 5 Quiz.

MODULE 5 READING 1:
GAMES AND MOTIVATION
by Beth Sheppard

Affective: related to emotions, feelings, and moods. Affective factors can have a positive or negative
effect on learning.
Game: a form of play that takes place within set rules, usually competitive.

You have probably heard of the Affective Filter, Krashen’s (1985) idea that negative feelings can make it
very difficult for students to learn. When a student is stressed, un-motivated, or lacks confidence, it
seems like the information we are trying to teach just can’t get past those feelings – the feelings block
out some of the learning. On the other hand, positive feelings such as confidence, comfort, and
playfulness can make it easier for students to learn. This is especially true for language learners, since
their self-image is often more vulnerable while trying to use a new language (Arnold, 2009). We can help
improve affective factors in the classroom through elements of humor, playfulness, kindness, and
community-building.
When you have students play language-learning games
in the classroom, it supports students’ motivation and
can help them to learn. This is partly due to affective
factors. Games are by definition playful, and they also
involve clear rules that can help scaffold language
learning and motivate through competition or rewards.
Games also allow learners to focus on a manageable
short-term goal and build feelings of competence.
Learners are able to make mistakes in an atmosphere of
friendly competition where everyone is making
mistakes, reducing fear and anxiety. At the same time,
shared game play can strengthen the sense of positive
classroom community. All of these factors support
"Boy in Blue" by Ismail Salad Osman Hajji dirir is licensed
motivation and engagement. Finally, learning a under the Unsplash License.
language is a long and challenging process. Injecting a
little competition, excitement, and laughter can help
sustain students’ motivation along the way.
The idea of using games in the language classroom is not new, and you can find many game ideas in
books, online, and from other teachers. The challenge isn’t a lack of ideas, but the need to make good
choices about which games will truly support students’ learning (the topic of Reading 2). In addition, we
need to present games in ways that support students’ motivation and help the play go smoothly.
Games should be simple to learn. Let students spend time actually playing, rather than trying to
understand the rules of the game. Remember, the game is not the purpose of the lesson; it’s just a tool
for language practice. Choosing simple games can also make it easier to plan and prepare. Often it is
helpful to use games with familiar rules, and play them over and overusing different language content.
When you introduce a new game format, be sure to explain it very clearly. You can describe the game

4
and demonstrate how it is played in an example round. You can also write the game rules on the board
or in a handout. The time investment required to learn a game must be reasonable when compared to
the amount of time spent playing a game. If a game will be used for many hours throughout the year, it
may be worth a more complex explanation, but don’t spend 10 minutes explaining a 10-minute game.
Classroom games need to engage
and support all students. If a game
is embarrassing for some students,
or if it’s no fun for those who
aren’t winning, then it won’t help
improve affect and increase
motivation for everyone. If a game
involves long individual turns while
other students sit passively, it may
not be the best use of class time.
Some games are played by the
whole class, with the teacher
leading and all students engaging
simultaneously. Once the class is
familiar with a game of this kind,
students can also be called up to "Three People" by Brook Cagle is licensed under the Unsplash License.
lead. Other games can be played
by small groups of students taking
turns in groups of 3 or 4 or 5. Think carefully about which students to group together, considering game
success (students’ language proficiency level) and classroom management (students’ behavior).

References
(This content is copyrighted, and cannot be adapted in any way, or distributed after the end of this course. It is not
Public Domain or Creative Commons-licensed, and therefore not for public use.)
• Arnold, J. (2009). Affect in L2 learning and teaching. Estudios de Linguistica Inglesa Aplicada, 9, 145-151.
• Krashen, S. D. (1985). The input hypothesis: Issues and implications. Longman.

5
Read this text and take notes as needed. We will check your understanding of the information presented
here in the Module 5 Quiz.

MODULE 5 READING 2:
CHOOSING THE RIGHT GAMES
by Beth Sheppard

Not all games are equally valuable for language learners. Many factors affect the success of a game in
the classroom, such as the simplicity or complexity of the game rules, the length of time needed, the
materials involved in preparation, group size, classroom space, and student readiness. Alongside all of
these, we must consider how a game supports language-learning objectives.
Games that are played in the students’ first language won’t help them practice their target language,
and neither will games that are mostly non-linguistic, such as games based on coloring or running.
Instead, games should give students opportunities to practice elements of the target language that they
have previously studied. This often means practice with specific vocabulary or grammar points; for
example, students can practice asking and understanding “yes”/"no” questions with the 20 Questions
Game, or review vocabulary with a game of BINGO or Pictionary. It can also mean general fluency
practice related to a specific topic or language function; for example, students can race to describe
pictures chosen by the teacher, or take turns adding a sentence to a story. Any time you plan a game
for class time, you should be able to identify what language skill it helps students practice. It’s best if
this is a language skill that students
have studied before – games are
usually better suited for review and
practice than for learning new items,
and you don’t want the game to be too
difficult for independent play. In fact,
games are an excellent way to liven up
practice that might otherwise be
boring. Learning a language takes a lot
of repetition; for example, learners
need to encounter a new word 8-12 or
more times before they really learn it
and won't forget it quickly (Lorenzutti,
2016). Since students need to review
the same material many times, it’s "Scrabble Tiles" by Okanakgul is licensed under the Pixabay License
helpful to have many different ways to
review, especially fun ways like games.
Most students enjoy games, but most students also want to feel that they are doing something useful in
the classroom. Therefore, it’s a good idea to briefly explain the language learning purpose before
beginning a game. A brief sentence like, “This game will help you review the vocabulary we learned last
week,” or “This game will strengthen your listening skills” can be helpful, especially with older learners.
In many cases, it will also be useful to plan activities before and after the game to prepare and extend
the language that students will practice while they play. Just like a video or a song or a reading text, the
game is not the teacher; it’s just an experience that the teacher uses to help students learn.
Online games or video games also have potential for language learning. Such games are carefully
designed to be motivating and maintain players’ interest, and many people these days are very

6
interested in them. Some online games are specifically
designed for language teaching, and others are played in the
target language and can help learners practice in an authentic
and motivating way. As with any game, it’s important to ensure
that students engage with the target language as they play
online. Consider which language objectives the game helps
students practice, and how much time they spend actually
practicing language relative to other game elements.
Language learning is a challenging endeavor, and as Peter
Medgyes (2001) said, “The classroom is not to be taken for the
outside world where we want to buy bread, make inquiries
about flights to Sao Paolo, and want to let off steam… In the
classroom, we don’t really want to do any of these things. All
we need to do is to admit this fact, suspend our disbelief, and
let our laughter roar free. … What helps learners to persist is
humour, fun and laughter.” Enjoyable experiences help
learners bond with each other and also with their teacher. They
can even help make experiences more memorable. Classroom "Young Boy Playing" by Kelly Sikkema is licensed
under the Unsplash License.
games can provide a welcome change of pace or a new way of
structuring the whole class. If they are well-designed and well-
used, games can help students learn in a relaxed atmosphere,
reducing some of the challenging emotions such as anxiety or self-doubt that might otherwise hinder
students from learning. When a class is made more enjoyable by playing games, students create positive
associations with that class and learning in general. These positive feelings can foster student motivation
and engagement in the language classroom.

References
(This content is copyrighted, and cannot be adapted in any way, or distributed after the end of this course. It is not
Public Domain or Creative Commons-licensed, and therefore not for public use.)
• Lorenzutti, N. (2016). Vocabulary games: More than just Wordplay. English Teaching Forum, 54(4), 2-13.
• Medgyes, P. (2001) How’s this for fun? The role of humor in the ELT classroom and ELT teaching materials.
In: Bax, M. & Zwart, J. Reflections on Language and Language Learning: In honour of Arthur van Essen.
John Benjamins Publishing Company

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VIDEO 5: GAMES AND CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT
Some teachers avoid games out of a concern for classroom, management. Your video this week
addresses this concern.
Please watch the video on Canvas and take some notes. Or read the script and look at the slides below.

Module 5 Video Script and slides

Some teachers hesitate to use games in the classroom because they are concerned about students
misbehaving during game time. It’s true that games will only be effective if students are on task and
playing them in a useful way. So how can you manage your classroom when games are assigned?
Well, the first thing to consider is classroom management in general. If your class isn’t running well for
other activities, it’s not suddenly going to run well while playing games. Let’s talk about a few general
tips for classroom management.

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Students of any age are more likely to remain on task when they know what to do, they feel they can do
it, and the teacher in on their team. Let’s expand on each of these factors.

One of the most common reasons that students misbehave is because they don’t know what they are
supposed to be doing. They feel that the assignment doesn’t make sense, so they choose to do
something else; or they don’t know what the teacher expects of them so they try to take charge
themselves. Similarly, if there is a long pause in classroom activities, students are likely to lose focus.
Ideally, teachers keep a steady momentum in the classroom.

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If students know what the teacher expects but think it is too difficult for them, they may misbehave or
choose other activities as a way to save their self-esteem. On the other hand, if students feel the activity
is much too easy and boring, they may make similar choices. It’s much easier to keep students’ attention
with an activity that is at the right level – not too hard and not too easy. An activity at the right level
feels useful and can help students feel engaged.

Teachers can support students’ best behavior in several ways.

Once a teacher has established clear expectations for student behavior, they should be fair, firm, and
consistent when enforcing clear expectations, and strive never to show anger. It is not helpful to insult
or humiliate students who misbehave. Instead, preserve students’ dignity at all times. Show them how
to behave appropriately and give earnest praise when they do well.

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All of these ideas about classroom management also apply to teaching with games.
Make sure that students know how to play the game. In the first few minutes, you might sometimes
need to stop play for additional explanations. It can be a good idea to have a student do the explaining.
Students can have other roles in the game as well, such as “materials manager” or “score keeper” or
“timer.” These can help groups avoid conflict, and help students know what it expected of them.

Once students are playing the game, the teacher becomes a facilitator. Students should do most of the
work of game play, but the teacher is constantly observing and taking small actions as needed to keep
the game on track. Sometimes during game play, it may become clear that some aspects of the game
are too difficult or too easy. It’s okay to make changes as the game progresses.

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The teacher can also cheer on and encourage students during game play.
Since games are a learning tool, it is helpful to have a class conversation about the game after playing it.
Here, students can share what they liked or didn’t like about the game, or tell what aspects of the game
were easy or difficult for them. This will help the teacher perfect the game next time. Students should
also think about what they learned from the game, because this helps them apply their new knowledge
outside the game. It can also help them see the value of games, supporting their motivation for good
behavior while playing.

Some games are high-energy activities, but the class should still stay focused while playing them. Don’t
make game time an exception to your usual classroom management for good behavior. Instead use it as
an opportunity to further clarify your expectations and build positive relationships with your students.

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MODULE 5 QUIZ
Purpose
This quiz will help you review the vocabulary and main ideas from the Module 5 reading and video. Feel
free to refer to your notes when you are working on the quiz.
Assignment
Take the quiz as many times as necessary to pass with at least 70% of the answers correct.
You must take this quiz on Canvas.

OPTIONAL MODULE 5 DISCUSSION

This discussion is not required, but we encourage you to read these questions and think about them,
even if you don't post your answers. If you do post your answers, be sure to also read and reply to some
answers from your course colleagues.
The purpose of these optional discussions is to help you make connections between your life experiences
and the ideas in your course readings and videos. The more you can connect your new learning with your
existing ideas, the more likely it is that you will remember and apply what you have learned.

Discussion Questions
You can feel free to answer one or more of
the following questions. You don't have to
answer all of them! You can also share
other thoughts in response to the assigned
reading and video. Please don't post off
topic in this discussion: your posts should
be closely connected to the topic of the
week.
Please also reply to several of your course
colleagues in this discussion. Refer to the
Discussion Guidelines page if you'd like to "People-Students" by naassomz1 is licensed under the Pixabay License.
review our suggestions for effective online
discussion.

1. Have you ever had a bad experience using games in your classroom? Please describe what
happened, what you learned, and what you might do differently in the future.
2. Think about your past experiences as a language learner. Did you play any games that were
especially memorable and helpful? What did your teacher do right in selecting, presenting,
and facilitating these games?
3. Games are a popular technique in the language classroom, and they can be very motivating to
students. Can you think of any more advantages or suggestions that weren't covered in the
reading? Can you think of any additional pitfalls to avoid?
Please sign your discussion post with your name and country, to help guide your colleagues' replies.

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Remember, the above discussion task is OPTIONAL. It doesn't count towards your final grade in the
MOOC. It's an extra opportunity to express your thoughts about the topic of the week and learn from
interaction with your course colleagues and facilitators. If you choose to participate, you can assess your
own participation using the checklist below:
Discussion Self-Assessment Checklist
□ I answered one or more of the discussion questions on this page, or shared my response to the
readings and video in this module. I did not post off topic.
□ My answers were based on my own thoughts and ideas and written in my own words.
□ I read the answers of several course colleagues, and replied to at least one of them.

MODULE 5 GAME ANALYSIS

In this task you will think deeply about one game for use in the EFL classroom.
What to do
1. Think of a game you have used in the classroom, or find a new game in a published source or in
the optional discussion.
2. Look at the template below. Consider all of these aspects for the game you've chosen and
complete the template.
Download FSME MOOC Module 5 Template: Game Analysis (DOCX 224 KB)
Download FSME MOOC Module 5 Template: Game Analysis (PDF 148 KB)
3. Decide whether this game is a good choice for your class. If it is, think about when you might
use it.
4. Finally, complete this assignment by answering the questions. You must answer the questions
on Canvas.

"Group of People" by NCI is licensed under the Unsplash License.

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OPTIONAL ACTIVITY SHARING AND PORTFOLIO

Instructions
In this discussion you will share and gather ideas for your Activities Portfolio. For a reminder about the
portfolio, you can refer back to OPTIONAL Activity Sharing and Portfolio from Module 1.
Please share an activity or idea for formative assessment and/or reflection in the classroom. Describe
each activity in about 100-200 words. Be sure to include the following information:
1. The name of the activity and where you learned about it. If you share an activity that you
found online or in a published source, please include a citation. But we'd love to hear about
activities that you learned from a colleague or invented yourself!
2. The specific purpose of the activity (such as getting to know each other, increasing kindness,
establishing norms, etc.), the amount of time needed for the activity, plus any materials that
are needed.
3. A description of the activity: What do teachers and students do? Please use your own words
for the description, without copying and pasting from any source. It's fine if your description is
simple and brief. Just tell us what you do!
If you want to share more than one activity or idea, that's fine too! Just make another post to this
discussion for each one that you share.
After you share your own activity, read your colleagues' ideas. When you see an idea you would like to
use, copy it into your Activities Portfolio. Then leave a reply for the colleague who shared this idea,
thanking them and adding any comments. You can add as many activities as you like! You are welcome
to copy/paste from this discussion to your portfolio, if you wish, and we suggest also adding the name of
your course colleague who shared the idea.
You can find the activity portfolio in the packets for Modules 1 and 2. Remember, this is an optional
activity, so you could also use a different format. It's your choice.

"Untitled" by ean254 is licensed under the Pixabay License.

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Sample
Here is an example activity description:
Describing items: I'm not sure where I learned about this game - probably from a web search and
maybe I combined a few ideas. I have been using it for several years. The purpose is to practice
describing things so students can stay in the target language even when they don't know a word. You
make a handout with 12-24 pictures of items that students are familiar with but don't know how to
name in English yet. The name of the item is also on the handout, but the students are not allowed to say
it. Students sit in small group and one student picks one item secretly, and they describe it. The rest of
the team can look at the paper, and they say the name when they understand the description. The game
takes about 15-20 minutes, and you just need the handouts.
Best wishes, Yifan, China
Here is a sample reply:
Dear Yifan, I've done an activity like this, but I didn't include a handout with pictures and names, I
just asked students to think of an item. It didn't work very well because the group usually couldn't
guess. But I think the handout makes all the difference. I will try it again.
Thanks for sharing!
Carlos, Argentina.

Remember, this task is OPTIONAL. It doesn't count towards your final grade in the MOOC. It's an extra
opportunity to share your ideas, collect ideas from course colleagues, and develop a portfolio of useful
activities. If you choose to participate, you can assess your own participation using the checklist below:
Discussion Self-Assessment Checklist
□ I shared one or more activities with my course colleagues on this page.
□ The activities I shared are closely connected to the module theme for this week.
□ I used my own words to describe the activities, with no copy/pasting from the internet.
□ I read my colleagues' ideas and copied my favorites from this discussion onto my portfolio document.
□ I formatted and organized my portfolio so that they will be useful to me in the future.

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C A S C A D I N G N EW K N O W L E D G E
As you are reaching the end of this MOOC, let's consider how you can cascade your new knowledge.

What is "Cascading"?
You have certainly seen a cascade before, “a waterfall descending over a steep, rocky surface”
(dictionary.com). You may have also encountered this word in other contexts, “a cascade of sounds” or
“a cascade of events,” where this word is used metaphorically to refer to something falling or rushing
forward in large quantities. In education, “cascading” is often used to describe a way of sharing
knowledge and experience among professionals. For example, after attending a professional
development event and learning new approaches, some teachers may teach other teachers what they
have learned. In other words, they “cascade” new knowledge.

Why Cascading in this Course?

There are two main reasons. You may have guessed
the first one:
• Increasing the course impact
When you joined this course and the OPEN
program, you were given an opportunity to
learn and grow professionally with peers from
all over the world. After completing the
coursework, we are certain you have become
become a fountain of knowledge. It’s only fair
that you share some of your knowledge with
those who didn't have a chance to join the
program.
The second reason is perhaps less obvious.
• Double your learning
A Roman proverb says, “When we teach, we
learn.” You know that from your own
experience – explaining something new to
students pushes you to think more deeply about
that concept. You reorganize your knowledge,
and that improves your own understanding.
Also, it helps you identify ideas you need to "Bridal Veil Falls" by Tim Mossholder is licensed
under the Unsplash license.
clarify, or things you need to improve.

What to Do
“Cascading” can take many shapes and forms. When you have completed this MOOC course, we are
asking you to cascade your knowledge by talking to someone outside of the course about what you have
learned, or by sharing one of the course resources along with a brief description of what you like about
it. Make a plan for cascading, and then check your plan against the checklist below.

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The cascading activity is not assessed and doesn't count towards your final grade in the MOOC, but it
will be helpful for you and for others. You can use the following checklist to make sure you have
completed it.

Cascading New Knowledge Self-Assessment Checklist

□ I shared with a colleague who teaches English, but who didn't participate in this MOOC.
□ I told my colleague what I have learned about fostering student motivation and engagement.
□ I shared about some of the most important concepts I learned, or I shared a course resource along
with my comments about the resource.

© 2023 by University of Oregon. Cascading New Knowledge for the Online Professional English Network (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S.
Department of State with funding provided by the U.S. government and administered by FHI 360. This work is an adaptation of Cascading New
Knowledge: An Introduction for the AE E-Teacher Program by World Learning, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License. To
view a copy of the license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. Adapted content is licensed under the Creative Commons
Attribution 4.0 License, except where noted. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

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MODULE 5 CHECK + FINAL COURSE CHECK
You have nearly finished the final module of this MOOC! After you review the main ideas from Module
5, your Module 5 check will assure that you have completed all required activities in the course.

Key Points
At the end of each module, we review some of the key lessons from the week. Here are our main ideas
from Module 5.
• Classroom games can support student motivation through fun, relationship building, friendly
competition, and short-term successes within clear rules.
• Classroom games must have a specific language-learning purpose, and most of the class time
allocated to the game should involve actual language practice.
• Classroom games require good classroom management. Games can be a good opportunity to
clarify your expectations for appropriate behavior, even when energy is high.
• Clear instructions for games are essential because they help students succeed and feel
competent, and they support classroom management. Recycling the same game rules with
different language content throughout the year can be a good way for students to re-use their
knowledge of the rules. This makes the instructions very efficient.

Module Check
Please answer one question to verify that you have completed all activities in Module 5. You must
choose "yes" in order to complete this course. If your answer is not yet "yes," please complete your
work and then return to this module check. This will count as 1 point toward your grade. You must
complete the Module Check on Canvas.

"Classroom Students" by Public Domain Pictures is licensed under the Pixabay License.

POST-COURSE DIAGNOSTIC SURVEY

After you finish Module 5, please take this Post-Course Diagnostic Survey. It is designed to assess your
knowledge of the topics covered in this course. The purpose is to check your knowledge now that you have
completed the MOOC. Please give your best answer to each question. Whether you are right or wrong, it
won't affect your course grade. You can only try this survey one time, and it must be done in Canvas.

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