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Welcome to KingGarden - online game KingGarden, Special Issues: English language Introduction
 * 1) Learn to express themselves about daily life.
 * 2) Understand the target languages and sentence structures in each unit by listening and speaking.
 * 3) Learn to make conversations with the target languages and sentence structures in the right way.
 * 4) Read and understand the relevant reading materials
 * 5) Be encouraged to write the articles by using the useful languages.

Textbook

Go For it! is the textbook we are using to teach the students in Junior 1. It is published by People's Education Press and Cengage Learning Asia Pte Lte 2007.

Methodology

This course will be conducted using game-based lerning strategies. The course is organized to maximize student centered learning as it is loosely structured as a role playing game, generally following a medieval European theme (as it typical of role playing games.) Students are adventurers who are based in a KingGarden and who venture out on various paths radiating in the KingGarden. Each adventure keeps a record of the pursuits along these paths in a personal Adventurer's Log that includes links to that adventurer's missions and has discussions, Journal entries, Surveillance reports, and Mission updates.

Grades

Grades will be derived from experience point (XPS) generated by various activities achieved in the conquest of this course game. Students will be able to gain XPS from participating in pilgrimages (readings, sound, and video presentations of course content) and quests (activities) that are recorded in their adventurer logs. Missions (projects) and at least one Raid (exam) allow student adventurers to gather larger "hauls" of experience points (XPs). Experience points (XPs) also can be gained through regular journal entries reflecting on one's personal learning experience and surveillance reports observing activities others pursue in the class.XPs are arranged into levels to help students experience their accomplishment in advancing through the game/course. Levels (the top 8) are bracketed for end of game/course grades. Plus and minus grades are calculated for the top and bottom (respectively) 10 XP ranges in each bracket.

A = levels 9-10, 220 -250 XP B = levels 7-8, 190-219 XP  C = levels 5-6, 60- 189 XP  D = levels 3-4, 130-159 XP

XP values will be noted at each site. Player and Game Master work together to build XPs when good points are noted in the content analysis of a Pilgrimage or Quest, combined with personal reflections on that item. Journals are overall student reflections on the week's work, while Surveillance is content analysis and reflection on others' work that week. Mission Updates are reflections on Mission work, as well as listing of Mission accomplishments for the week to be used to guide claims of Mission XPs. Typically, XPs are awarded for each point made, with some pilgrimages especially affording opportunity for more total XP earnings than others. A "good point" comes from statements of a sentence or more, not listings. Rarely a "good point" statement may also earn a quality XP, but not all sentences will necessarily serve as a "good point" statement in and of themselves. Special rules: 1. Pilgrimages and Quests(about 50%, possibly more with substitutions for Journal or Surveillance work), will need to have some balance. Some pilgrimages and quests will be required, as noted, but there are more pilgrimages and quests than any one is expected to complete. * Pilgrimages are reading, listening, or watching experiences that then are written up as a report on the content acquired from the experience. Longer experiences require longer write-ups and generate the possibility of more XPs. The quality of the write-up matters in terms of what one has gained and understands. Most pilgrimages are worth up to 5 XPs (usually) or up to 10 XPs (for a fair number). At least 60% of Pilgrimage/Quest XPs must be from Pilgrimages. * Quests are typically game activity experiences, where one is expected to learn and briefly play a game, then write about the experience from an educator's perspective. Most quests are worth up to 5 XPs for a quality report that explains how the game works, what it is like to play it, and what the educational implications are for it. 2. Missions(30%) - Mission assignments are linked to the Home page. Students are required to complete the Mission and Mission activities. 3. Journals and Surveillance(10%) - Journals and Surveillance are relatively easy ways to get XPs, but an Adventurer may not get credit for more than one each per week (one Journal entry and one Surveillance report). Therefore, Journals and Surveillance cannot be done late, because that would yield more than one per week. * Additional pilgrimages and quests can make up for missed Journal or Surveillance XPs.
 * Journal and Surveillance Reports are worth up to 1XPs each, with an option for extra points awarded for particularly thorough Surveillance Reports. Journal entries have a far less likely possibility for extra points.

4. Power-ups(4%) - Power-ups are extra points that will be given for certain accomplishments at various times during the course, as noted on the Power-ups page. Power-ups help ensure that students pursue optimum study strategies with regard to making good choices of material to consider and keeping up with work to be done in a timely fashion. Information on Power Ups is linked to the wiki sidebar.

Calendar Garden Calendar (also linked in the KingGarden) - There is no formally recognized break in coursework for any other holidays. Most holidays have a formal observance of less than a week, so it should be possible to work around these times in a week's coursework. Please contact the teacher if there is a scheduling problem.

Disclaimer This syllabus is a good faith effort to predict how this course will proceed. The teacher reserves the right to make any changes as may be deemed necessary or desirable without advance notice.