Communicative need: what learners need most urgently for real-world use
Contrastive difficulty: L1–L2 distance affects acquisition order
Sequencing Patterns
Linear: each item taught once, then the syllabus moves on. Risk: insufficient recycling.
Cyclical / Spiral: items revisited at increasing depth (Bruner's spiral curriculum). Better for language learning where mastery requires repeated exposure.
Modular: self-contained units that can be reordered to suit learner needs.
Practical Implications
No single criterion is sufficient; grading decisions involve trade-offs
Natural acquisition orders (e.g., morpheme studies) may conflict with pedagogic grading
Sequencing interacts with Needs Analysis: high-priority needs may override complexity-based ordering
Effective recycling (spacing, interleaving) is as important as initial sequencing