If you were not limited by the demands of the national/regional curriculum, what would you say is the most important thing you would teach your students about your subject (in a CLIL context)? How would you assess their learning?

If you were not limited by the demands of the national/regional curriculum, what would you say is the most important thing you would teach your students about your subject (in a CLIL context)? How would you assess their learning?

In my opinion, the most important thing is to communicate the students the real utility of the subject I teach —technical training course in forestry and nature conservation— for their effective incorporation into the labour market and, eventually, for life.

The aim is not easy: we must take account of the fact which the reality of work is; transmit to a very demanding —and more insightful than it might seem at first sight— collective (pupils) the right skills for effective job performance, putting superfluous contents aside and emphasizing, however, on those skills that are really useful; instill the benefits of teamwork, basic in any workplace; explain the importance of adaptability to different circumstances and contingencies that arise in any work environment; and get them become autonomous to face up to difficulties of any kind existing in the future.

Not only that: the extraordinary importance attached to the rules of prevention of occupational risks, resulting in worker safety and that of others, has to be transmitted; as well as other factors, such as the need to maintain in good condition the material the secondary school provides for learning. In any case, there is one which is specially relevant: the value of effort, both to pass the course and working life, in which nobody will give them anything at all.

And all that taking into account the specificities of the subject I teach; for that reason, respect for the environment must be present at all times.

Learning assessment would take place through teaching practices (mountain outings, company visits, etc) that predominate over theory. Also, I would enhance the audiovisual media (DVD, videos, reports ...) on the textbook. The language used should be simple, objective and direct, to the point, trying to avoid dense or twisted explanations, and dropping from time to time (why not?) a touch of humour. It would also be very helpful to use references that students feel as their own, as they would be extremely useful for transmitting knowledge.

The specific evaluation would be continuous: in this way, progression of each student and effort they have made throughout the course, according to their capabilities, would be observed. The predominance of practical content, as well as aptitude, on the purely theoretical would be also reflected when assigning marks.