Deepening Your Understanding: Resources on Course Syllabus Design

To further your understanding of the roles and work of the LPD, check out the practical and scholarly resources below.

Practical Resources

Graphic Organizers

Infographic Tools for Visual Syllabus Design

Graphic Syllabi

UDL 

Undergraduate Syllabus Templates


Scholarly Resources

Lord, G. (2014). Language program direction: Theory and practice. Pearson. [Chapter 3].

Macedo, D. (2019). Decolonizing foreign language education: The misteaching of English and other colonial languages. Routledge.

Nilson, L. (2007). The graphic syllabus and the outcomes map: Communicating your course. Jossey-Bass.

Paesani, K., (2017). Redesigning an introductory language program: A backward design approach. L2 Journal, 9(1), 1-20. 

Richards, J. C. (2013). Curriculum approaches in language teaching: Forward, central, and backward design. RELC Journal: A Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 44(1), 5-33. 

Robinson, P. (2013). Syllabus design. In C. Chapelle (Ed.), The Encyclopedia of Applied Linguistics (pp.5495-5498). Blackwell Publishing Ltd. http://doi.wiley.com/10.1002/9781405198431.wbeal1135 

Rosen, L., & Grovergrys, K. (2021). The power of media-based syllabi: If only students knew what the syllabus said. FLTMAG. https://fltmag.com/media-based-syllabi/?fbclid=IwAR11GQe6r4wMcgw0M9Iq_C8tErxXWwcafNISXk8mYjjQq5QPxJ6jLzUr8IM

Tobin, T., & Behling, K. (2018). Reach everyone, teach everyone: Universal Design for Learning in higher education. West Virginia University Press.

Wiggins, G., & McTighe, J. (2005). Understanding by design (2nd ed.). Association for Supervision & Curriculum Development.


Module References

Afros, E., & Schryer, C. (2009). The genre of syllabus in higher education. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 8(3), 224-233.

Albers, C. (2003). Using the syllabus to document the scholarship of teaching. Teaching Sociology, 31(1), 60-72. 

Allen, J. P. B. (1984). A functional-analytic approach to ESL at the secondary level in Ontario. Bulletin of the Canadian association of applied linguistics, 6(2), 71-80.

Bain, K. (2004). What the best college teachers do. Harvard University Press.

Breen, M. (1987). Contemporary paradigms in syllabus design, Part 1. Language Teaching, 20(2), 81-92.

Canale, G. (2016). (Re)searching culture in foreign language textbooks, or the politics of hide and seek. Language, Culture, and Curriculum, 29(2), 225-243.

Candlin, C. N. (1984). Syllabus design as a critical process. In Brumfit, C. J. (Ed.), General English syllabus design (pp. 29-40). Pergamon. 

CAST (2018). Universal Design for Learning Guidelines (version 2.2). http://udlguidelines.cast.org 

Chapelle, C. A. (2016). Teaching culture in introductory foreign language textbooks. Palgrave Macmillan. 

Criser, R., & Knott, S. (2019). Decolonizing the curriculum. Die Unterrichtspraxis / Teaching German, 52(2), 151-160. 

Cubillos, J., & Ilvento, T. (2019). Syllabus matters: The impact of course type on speaking gains abroad. NECTFL Review, 83, 41-56.

Curdt-Christiansen, X. L. & Weninger, C. (2015). Language, ideology and education: The politics of textbooks in language education. Routledge.

Del Valle, J. (2014). The politics of normativity and globalization: Which Spanish in the classroom? Modern Language Journal, 98(1), 358-72.

Doolittle, P. E., & Siudzinski, R. A. (2010). Recommended syllabus components: What do higher education faculty include in their syllabi? Journal of Excellence in College teaching, 20(3), 29-61. 

Dubin, F., & Olshtain, E. (1986). Course design: Developing programs and materials for language learning. Cambridge University Press.

Feez, S. (1999). Text-based syllabus design. TESOL in Context, 9(1), 11-14.

Gray, J. (2013). Critical perspectives on language teaching materials. Palgrave Macmillan.

Herschensohn, J. (1990). Toward a theoretical basis for current language pedagogy. Modern Language Journal, 74(4), 451-458. 

Hockensmith, S. (1988). The syllabus as a teaching tool. The Educational Forum, 52(4), 339-351.

Hodaeian, M., & Biria, R. (2015). The effect of Backward Design on intermediate EFL learners’ L2 reading comprehension: Focusing on learners’ attitudes. Journal of Applied Linguistics and Language Research, 2(7), 80-93.

Keles, U., & Yazan, B. (2020). Representation of cultures and communities in a global ELT textbook: A diachronic content analysis. Language Teaching Research, (Online First). https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168820976922 

Krahnke, K. (1987). Approaches to syllabus design for foreign language learning. Prentice Hall.

Korotchenko, T., Matveenko, I., Strelnikova, A., & Phillips, C. (2015). Backward Design method in foreign language curriculum development. Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences, 215, 213-217.

Kubota, R. (2004). Critical multiculturalism and second language education. In B. Norton & K. Toohey (Eds.), Critical pedagogies and language learning (pp. 30– 52). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Long, M. H., & Crookes, G. (1993). Units of analysis in syllabus design: The case for task. In G. Crookes & S. Gass (Eds.), Tasks in a pedagogical context (pp. 9–54). Multilingual Matters.

Matejka, K., & Kurke, L. B. (1994). Designing a great syllabus. College Teaching, 42(3), 115-117. 

Meyer, A. Rose, D.H., & Gordon, D. (2014). Universal design for learning: Theory and practice. CAST Professional Publishing.

Nunan, D. (1988). Syllabus design. Oxford University Press.

Nunan, D. (2001). Second language acquisition. In R. Carter & D. Nunan (Eds.), The Cambridge guide to teaching English to speakers of other languages (pp. 87–92). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Parkes, J., & Harris, M. B. (2002). The purpose of a syllabus. College Teaching, 50(2), 55-61.

Rabbini, R. (2002). An introduction to syllabus design and evaluation. The Internet TESL Journal, 8(5). http://iteslj.org/Articles/Rabbini-Syllabus.html  

Rahimpour, M. (2010). Current trends in syllabus design in foreign language instruction. Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2, 1660-1664.  

Richards, J. C. (2013). Curriculum approaches in language teaching: Forward, central, and backward design. RELC Journal: A Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 44(1), 5-33. 

Robinson, P. (2009). Syllabus design. In M. H. Long & C. H. Doughty (Eds.), Handbook of language teaching (pp. 294-310). Wiley-Blackwell.

Robinson, P. (2013). Syllabus design. In C. Chapelle (Ed.), The Encyclopedia of Applied Linguistics (pp.5495-5498). Blackwell Publishing Ltd. http://doi.wiley.com/10.1002/9781405198431.wbeal1135 

Scida, E., & Jones, J. (2017). The impact of contemplative practices on foreign language anxiety and learning. Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 7, 573-599. 

Shardakova, M., & Pavlenko, A. (2004). Identity options in Russian textbooks. Journal of Language, Identity, and Education, 3(1), 25-46.

Slattery, J., & Carlson, J. (2005). Preparing an effective syllabus: Current best practices, College Teaching, 53(4), 159-164.

Smith, M., & Razzouk, N. (1993). Improving classroom communication: The case of the Course syllabus. Journal of Education for Business, 68(4), 215-221.

Thompson, B. (2007). The syllabus as a communication document: constructing and presenting the syllabus. Communication Education, 56(1), 54-71.

Thompson, K. D. (2013). Representing language, culture, and language users in text- books: A critical approach to Swahili multiculturalism. Modern Language Journal, 97(4), 947-964. 

Uzum, B., Yazan, B., Zahrawi, S. Bouamer, S., & Malakaj, E. (2021). A comparative analysis of cultural representations in collegiate world language textbooks (Arabic, French, and German). Linguistics and Education, 61, 1-12.

Widdowson, H. G. 1984. Educational and pedagogic factors in syllabus design. In Brumfit, C. J. (Ed.), General English syllabus design (pp. 22-28). Pergamon. 

Wiggins, G., & McTighe, J. (2005). Understanding by design (2nd ed.). Association for Supervision & Curriculum Development. 

Wilkins, D. (1976). Notional syllabi: A taxonomy and its relevance to foreign language curriculum development. Oxford University Press. 

Yalden, J. (1987). Syllabus design: An overview of theoretical issues and practical implications. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 8, 30-47.

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