The Functional Syllabus

Since the mid-70s, the functional syllabus has been the alternative
to the formal syllabus. The functional syllabus is a propositional plan of
language knowledge and capabilities based upon a distinctive view of the
nature of content for language pedagogy.

Q. What knowledge does the functional syllabus focus upon??

The priorities of the functional syllabus have been influenced by

the theoretical and analytical concerns of linguistics as something serves
a central role in social events and social structure. The analysis of
language in use and with the relationship between the language code or
textual system and how people behave with language in social groups in
certain social situations.

The sociologist Hymes (1971-1972)proposed that our knowledge

of language also embraced a knowledge of how to use language in
appropriate ways in order to achieve particular purposes and participate in
particular everyday events and situations.

Communicative competence entails both knowledge of the rules

of language as code and knowledge of the conventions covering the use
of the code within social and cultural groups. So, by it, we relate our
linguistic competence to our social use competence and the two systems
of knowledge are interdependent.

Philosophers were interested in the problems of meaning,

exploring the notion of speech at the actual meanings which people
attributed to what they or other said. They concerned with force and
value of the language used to convey meaning.

Recalling halliday's distinction between textual, interpersonal, and

ideational functions of language, the major developments or the last 16
years is to explore how the three mutually interrelate when using a
language in everyday life and for teaching when we learn.

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Q. Some theoretical roots of communicative approach to language
teaching

Language teaching and specially syllable design drwas up on the

contributions of linguistics. Language teaching has been characterized by
a disillusionment with the mechanistic methodology associated with the
grammar-translation and audio-lingualism. The motivation is to improve
methodology and to incorporate the new perspectives on language
knowledge offered by linguistics. How to select and organize contents by
the communicative movement from a range of alternative method.

Q. The characteristics of functional syllabus

functional syllabus captures a redefinition of language knowledge

1. It focuses upon the learners knowledge of speech acts.

2. It may focus on purposes a learner may achieve through language in

particular social activities.

3. It gives priority to the different purposes which language can serve

and how these functions are coded through the language.

4. It is a propositional plan of categories of language use and analysis of

interpersonal or social functions.

5. Objectives and content for language teaching are represented through

socio-semantic categories which are linked to their linguistic or textual
exponents.

Q. What capabilities does the functional syllabus Focus upon??

A learner works within a function of syllabus in order to:

1. learn how to achieve certain purposes with language.

2. become accurate in using the language .
3. learn how to be socially appropriate in language performance.

4.give priority to social purposes .

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5. addresses the learners capacity to be correct in the interpretation and
production of the linguistic exponents.

Note the functional syllabus shares with the formal syllabus a skill-
oriented view of learner capabilities. proficiency is identified with the
accurate and appropriate use of the four skills the process of developing a
repertoire of functions is similarly identified with a sequential
development of from receptive to productive skills.

Q. On what basis does the functions of syllables select and

subdivide??

The functional syllabus:

1. identifies the main types of language purpose in sets and subsets with
a range of superordinate functions containing their own subordinate
functions.

2. specifies how these functions may be realized in various ways through

the language code.

3. follows similar principles of selection and subdivision to those of a

comprehensive phrase book.

Q. How does the functional syllabus sequence what is to be learnt??

The formal syllabus adopts a sequencing which requires:

1.the learner to accumulate, in an additive way, aspects of the various

systems of the language.

2.The learner to gradually synthesis what the syllabus has previously

analyzed for the step-by-step.

However, the functional syllabus moves:

1. from general sets of functions to more specific functions

2.from the most common linguistic realization to more varied or refined

realizations.

3. sequence is from the general to the particular or cyclic in nature.

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4. the learner is assumed to acquire certain key functions and their
common linguistic exponents as a kind of Foundation of uses of
language.

E.g. Greeting: the learner begins with the common forms such as : hello,
hi, etc., and later build up a more comprehensive repertoire of greeting
types.

Therefore, the functional syllabus selects a particular range of

functions appropriate to their target language and the learner needs on
completion of the syllabus. In the academic needs, it will divide these
functions into superordinate or main categories and within each division
they are subdivisions or levels. The functional syllabus will list the range
of appropriate linguistic realization of each function sequencing will be
based upon a cyclic movement from main to subordinate functions, the
most needed functions to less needed ones, most frequently in specific
target situations to be rare in occurrence.

Q. The rationale for the functional syllabus

The functional syllabus is a particular expression of a

sociolinguistic view of the purposes which language can achieve. it
focuses on the meaningfulness as an important element in the language
learning experience. To use language is to achieve things in an
interpersonal or social way, language as a means for getting things which
implies fluency as much as linguistic accuracy. Functional approach to
syllabus design regards fluency as the carrier or motivator of accuracy,
the former providing the learner with a springboard for the development
of the latter.

Q. Comparison between functional and formal syllabuses

1. The formal syllabus is concerned with the learner's linguistic

competence, the functional syllabus represents a concern with the
communicative performance.

2. formal and functional syllabus assume that learners can and will be
meta communicative during the learning process by depending on the
cognitive acceptance of these ways of imposing order upon a new
language.

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3. functional syllabus is a particular propositional representation of
language knowledge motivated by sociolinguistic perspectives on
language, whereas formal syllables addresses the pedagogic priority of
offering learners a semantic and interpersonal framework within which
language code or text may be located.

Sources and references

functional to include functional notional syllabus many functional

services exploit functions and the primary organizing category whilst
using notions or topics or even situations as the frame for subdivision of
content where in the range of functions and their exponents may be
located.

Van EK 1975 is a central contributors to the development of the

functional syllabus abandons the notional subdivision of a framework of
pre-selected topics or themes which carry a functional syllabus.