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Neo-liberalism
Stimulating both economic growth and increasing divisions between rich and poor. Atomisation of goods.
The market is arbiter of all (it regulates supply and matches it to demand, it sets prices and supposedly regulates efficient distribution)
Increasing commodification and monetisation of all manner of otherwise intangible things. Standardized exams influence what gets into teaching materials.student;portfolios, tests, practice tests, teacher training modules endorsed by the CEF. -
Period: to
Neo-liberalist Education
Education has been at the forefront of this process – through such devices as the league tables amongst schools and universities, ostensibly showing the ‘value’ and ‘extra value’ a ‘provider’ (read school/university) can offer its ‘customers’ or ‘consumers’ (read ‘students’), with its ‘premium products’ (read ‘widely recognised diplomas’) offering a ‘market advantage’ (read ‘jobs, contracts, networks’). Example: standardized exams to enormous scales, -
1950s - 1980s
Context: cold war, space race between USA and the URSS, the URSS was in advantage with sputnik launching. USA reacts identifying a course of action to solve the situation, the answered was that the US scientist were failing in keeping up with the technological developments in other parts of the world, thus #LanguageTeaching becomes a priority. Technical advances influenced teaching (the technical scientific approach), as well as the behaviorist theories. -
1960s - 1970s
Culture in these ages is characterizad by a shift towards alernative, ways of doing things & the rejection of the mainstream. Here emerged numerous humanistic theories and the view of language teaching acquired an instrumental nature. The notion of DIY allowed beliefs as the self acces work or as the featuring of the self study materials, and teacher less language learning. Evenmore, new perspectives on language acquisition appeared, as the Krashen's imput hypothesis. -
1970s - 1980s
Context: individualism expanded over colectivism, sub groups began to voice their separate identities. in most countries the democratisation increased when decreasing the age for voting.
Influence of language teaching: Individuals linguistic wants and needs became the focus, emerged tools for specification od a individuals' particular needs; The space "special purpose" as a disticnt branch of syllabus design; consideration on learners own styles and strategies.
Social movements influenced CLT -
Sameness in commercial publishing
Millions of dollars are now routinely invested in the development of a new multilevel course, with all its ancillary components.
Convergence around a ‘safe,’ proven publishing formula is therefore the most likely outcome. -
McDonalizated materials
There is a fixed sequence, repeated across units, a proposed standardised ‘packaging’ of the classroom time, a predictable
sequence of language presentation, grammar practice, vocabulary, reading, speaking and writing activities, interspersed with review exercises.
They provide virtually all the resources that teachers and learners will need (activity books, readers, DVDs, computer-based exercises, teacher training materials, extra web resources) -
McDonaldization
Absolute emphasis on efficiency and total predictability.
Standardised products and standardised routines of interaction have now become the norm. Society is locked evermore into scripted, predictable, homogenised environments of consumption.
Materials aim to provide not only a guide to how the teachers and learners are to interact, but, what they are to say to each other.
