2.

Lessonn Aims
Aims:
 To enco ourage the clear statem
ment of lessson aims fro
om the learners’ persppective with a focus on
real-life
e use of language / skills.

Materials rrequired:
 None.

Target exp
perience levvel of teache
er:
 CELTA A.

Applicable to learnerss:
 Adults at all levelss.

Input

ous task we noted Assu

In a previo umptions ass being Poinnt A; here, we
w will contiinue with Po
oint B,
which reprresents the aims of the lesson and
d proof of th ement, wherre possible, in a final
heir achieve
communica ative activity.

Lesson aimms should in nclude the following

f feaatures:
 They should be sttated from th he studentss’ perspectiv ve – not what the teachher will teac ch but what
the students will leearn. To foc cus on learnner achieve ement, aims s can usefullly begin witth the
phrase e, “By the ennd of the les sson, the sttudents will have …”
 They should includ de a contex xt – the topi c in which language is clarified annd practised d or the
subjectt / genre of a reading / listening te ext or a freer speaking / writing acttivity. The context
c
should be relevant to the learrners’ real w world needs s.
 The lan nguage area to be covered with so ome specifiic examples s and wheree applicable e,
ons (e.g., not just ‘the present
limitatio p perrfect’ but ‘the present perfect
p to tallk about life
e
experie ence’).
 How th he language e will be pra actised / useed – will thiss be controlled / less coontrolled / freer? Will itt
be orall / written? In a langua age lesson, this is wherre you will sees if your aaims have been b
achieve ed so the finnal activity should be le ess controllled / freer, communicat
c tive and sett in a real
world ccontext.
 The su ub-skills which will be practised
p /d
developed, e.g.,
e reading g / listeningg for gist, sppecific
informa ation or detaail, speaking for fluenccy, etc.
 They should clarify fy whether the languag e point is new to the sttudents or w whether the e focus is to
‘revise and extend d’ their know wledge.
 They should be prrioritised ap ppropriately between main m aims an nd subsidia ry aims.
 They should not be b a long list of stage a aims.
 They should not be b a list of activities.
Further reading
Scrivener, J., Learning Teaching, Macmillan, 2005, pp.124-128.
Harmer, J., The Practice of English Language Teaching, Pearson, 2007, pp.371-5.
Harmer, J., How to Teach English, Pearson, 2007, pp.156-162.
Parrott, M., Tasks for Language Teachers, Cambridge, 1993, pp.129-133.

Task 1

You are teaching an Elementary level group. The coursebook syllabus has given you a language
point to cover: “Do you like + ‘-ing’ form” with the responses “Yes, I love it”, “Yes, I do”, “I don’t mind
it”, “It’s OK”, “No, I don’t” and “No, I hate it” – for the purposes of this task, assume that this is the
first time the group has focused on this in class. The context offered by the book is weekend /
free-time activities. After the clarification and initial practice stages, one of the activities is a
listening where students hear someone carrying out a survey of weekend activities people like.
How would you phrase your aims for such a lesson?

Main Aim:


Subsidiary Aims:


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Suggested answers to Task 1

Main Aim:
 By the end of the lesson, the students will be able to conduct an oral survey using the newly
introduced language of “Do you like + ‘ing’ form?” and the responses “Yes, I love it”, “Yes, I do”,
“I don’t mind it”, “It’s OK”, “No, I don’t” and “No, I hate it” in the context of weekend activities.
They will also have had controlled written practice of the language.

Subsidiary Aims:
 To revise and extend students’ knowledge of lexis to describe weekend activities, e.g., going
fishing, taking a mini-break, etc.
 To develop students’ abilities to listen for specific information.

Note the following points:

Main Aims:
 By the end of the lesson, the students … - the aims are stated from the students’ perspective.
 … will be able to conduct an oral survey … - the use of the language in a final communicative
activity is clear.
 … using the newly introduced language of … - it’s clear the teacher thinks this is new language
for the group.
 … “Do you like + ‘ing’ form?” and the responses “Yes, I love it”, “Yes, I do”, “I don’t mind it”, “It’s
OK”, “No, I don’t” and “No, I hate it” … - these are specific examples of the target language.
 … in the context of weekend activities. - the lesson is set in a clear overall context.
 They will also have had controlled written practice of the language. - this says how else the
students will use the language.
Subsidiary Aims: - these are important parts of the lesson but not the main focus.
 To revise and extend students’ knowledge … - it is clear the teacher thinks some of this
language is already known.
 … of lexis to describe weekend activities, e.g., going fishing, taking a mini-break, etc. - the
overall language area is given along with some specific examples.
 To develop students’ abilities to listen for specific information. - the sub-skill which the students
will have to use in the listening exercise is specified.

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Alternative task (for teachers currently working in the
classroom)

Write the aims for one of your forthcoming lessons following the ideas given here.

Main Aim:


Subsidiary Aims:


After the lesson, reflect and consider:

 Did writing the aims in this way help you?

 Break down the aims as was done in the suggested answers to Task 1 and consider to what
extent each part of the stated aims was clear to the students.

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