Hi,

I'm currently finishing up my application for EPIK Spring 2011 and as I'm applying to Seoul I need to include a lesson plan. As I have put High School down as my first preference I am trying to write a plan appropriate for this level. I also want to try and do the class on something that might not have been done much before. As I have a Politics degree I was hoping to maybe do an introductory class on that, maybe just covering something like US foreign policy. Is this beyond high school level? Alternatively, I was thinking of something on Downloading from the Internet, which would hopefully stimulate debate about whether it should/shouldn't be illegal etc. Again, is this too demanding for this level?

Thanks in advance.

Hi,

I'm currently finishing up my application for EPIK Spring 2011 and as I'm applying to Seoul I need to include a lesson plan. As I have put High School down as my first preference I am trying to write a plan appropriate for this level. I also want to try and do the class on something that might not have been done much before. As I have a Politics degree I was hoping to maybe do an introductory class on that, maybe just covering something like US foreign policy. Is this beyond high school level? Alternatively, I was thinking of something on Downloading from the Internet, which would hopefully stimulate debate about whether it should/shouldn't be illegal etc. Again, is this too demanding for this level?

Thanks in advance.

To me it sounds quite intense for high schools since it will be in English and not Korean for them. My teachers tell me it's better to go too easy than too hard for them. So my suggestion would be if you're doing US foreign policy, keep it in simplified English terms with a lot of pictures!
Best wishes!
(p.s. I did my lesson plan for elementary and ended up at a high school)

I think the topic doesn't matter as long as you can make it current and interesting to the students. Bottom line is you need to focus on speaking/conversation in your classroom, so if you can make a lesson plan about politics that is speaking focussed, and actually get all the students to participate, then go for. I recommend having a lot of back-up activities, and also pre-teaching some vocabulary and phrases to help them.

Your function as an English Teacher here is to get the students speaking. You can include grammar in your lessons but through trial and error experience over four years I have learned it is best to KISS - Keep It Simple Sally. The student won't understand grammar explanations from you in English, so if you do it, it should be VERY basic with VERY simple explanations. I would suggest just practicing grammar they should already be familiar with. As an example, look at the  comparatives and superlatives lesson by jellomando on the master list. The students should have already had lots of practice with this material, but the lesson helps to reinforce their comfort level using it in simple conversation and have fun by using it in a simple game. Those are the types of lessons that are most effective, in my opinion.