ELT Conference 2023: Teaching practice
Wednesday 1 & Thursday 2 February | online
Our low-cost ELT teaching practice programme takes place online over two afternoons on Wednesday 1 and Thursday 2 February. English language teachers based in the UK and from around the world are welcome to register.
Build your teaching skills, explore best-practice and connect with your English language teaching peers.
Registration
Cost: £25 for members and non-members.
Programme: Wednesday 1 February
13:15 – 14:00 | Gen-Z 101: Engaging the generation of truly digital natives with Georgia K. Papamichailidou
As we get older, our students get younger! So, we often feel that we can't connect with this generation of truly digital natives but why? In this interactive session we will be decoding the profile of our gen Z learners taking into consideration both their attitude towards the world and their relationship with technology. Also, we will be exploring how they have changed the TEFL industry for good and understand how we can design tasks that are more relevant and relatable. At the end of the session, there will be a practice section during which we will be looking at how we can modernize our materials to engage with this generation and develop our teaching skills.
Georgia K. Papamichailidou is an award-winning EFL educator and teacher trainer who specializes in teacher training course design and materials writing. Coming from a broad background of teaching English and teacher training, she has an extensive experience in delivering professional development sessions publicly around the world. At present, Georgia is the Director of Studies at Kaplan International Languages Bournemouth.
14:15 – 15:00 | Post Teaching Practice Feedback (PTF), why and how? with Abeer Ali Okaz
One of the CELTA course components is post teaching feedback (PTF), an integral part of assessing trainees. Tutors sometimes face challenges during these sessions. Having different backgrounds and teaching experience, as well as motivation, shapes how trainees react towards the PTF sessions. Trainees feel the course workload is overwhelming, if not daunting, so PTF sessions feel added pressure. Some trainees would rather have the grade and leave than spend time discussing the strengths and action points of the observed lesson. Some PTF sessions appear harsh and subjective not only because the trainees are resistant to changing their teaching beliefs, but also because some tutors choose the same technique in every feedback session. These sessions can be productive and constructive or dominating and tutor led. This session focuses on the importance of PTF and proposes different approaches to giving feedback. Attendees will walk away with practical ideas to use when giving feedback after lesson observations in both F2F and online classes.
Abeer Ali Okaz is the DoS and Educational Consultant at Pharos University in Alexandria. She is a teacher trainer, CELTA tutor, and a DELTA Module 2 TP tutor. She is a NILE and TransformELT consultant. She has 23 years of experience, ten of which focused on strategic and organisational management, and training in higher education. She has published in international journals and has been presenting in international conferences since 2007. Her professional special interests are teacher training, materials development, management, ICT and working closely with teachers.
15:15 – 16:00 | Finding your voice – teaching pronunciation in a global world with Alex Warren
With up to five times more non-native speakers of English than native speakers it's time to consider our approach to pronunciation in the classroom. In this talk I'll start by considering the goal of pronunciation syllabi in a global world where English belongs to everyone; what this means for how we teach pronunciation in the classroom and the benefits it can bring to students. I'll then explore ways in which we might incorporate a more global view of pronunciation into our courses and in our doing so preparing students for the real English-speaking world.
Alex Warren is a DELTA trained teacher trainer with nearly 20 years' experience of working in ELT as a teacher, academic director and teacher trainer. A firm believer in a communicative approach to language learning and student-centred learning, Alex enjoys working with innovative, thought-provoking materials and presenting on a wide range of ELT-related topics, all the while driven by his passion for developing teachers on a global scale and helping them to reach their true potential.
16:15 – 17:00 | Inclusive activities in the ELT classroom with Rachael Harris
This practical workshop will present an array of activities that can be done in ELT classes of a variety of levels and ages, concentrating on activities that consider a variety of learning needs and styles. By providing a more inclusive learning environment we can make our classroom a more welcoming place for EVERY student. Participants will not only leave with a few new ideas, but more importantly will see how to tweak their existing lessons to make them more inclusive. Participants are encouraged to ask questions and share their ideas throughout this workshop.
Rachael Harris is Special Educational Needs coordinator and teacher of ELT, literature, and Media studies to primary and secondary students in Geneva, Switzerland. She is also joint coordinator for IATEFL Inclusive Practices & SEN SIG and has published various materials in these fields. She is passionate about discovering how all learners learn best.
Programme: Thursday 2 February
13:15 – 14:00 | Preparing to prepare – setting up students for exam preparation courses with Jo Krousso
Examinations can be a stressful and daunting time for students. Study and preparation are vital to success. Students not only need to learn the skills required to take the exam itself, but also need support and guidance in identifying effective study techniques and approaches in order to make best use of their preparation time.
This session explores how we can best prepare students for exam preparation courses by establishing good learning systems and practices to help increase students' confidence and motivation, create the right conditions for effective learning, and maximise students' chances of succeeding in the exam.
Jo Krousso has over 20 years of experience at the chalkface of ELT, as a teacher, examiner and academic manager. She is now putting that knowledge to use as the ELT Sales Consultant for Macmillan Education in the UK and Ireland.
14:15 – 15:00 | Stimulating simulation with Laurie Wilson
Following a 12-month secondment in healthcare education developing Simulation Based Education (SBE) resources for nursing students, Laurie will draw on his experience to outline what simulation means in a healthcare setting and then argue that simulation is a much used, but under-recognised, technique in ELT and is central to much of what we do. He will encourage attendees to embrace their expertise as SBE practitioners and will also discuss the benefits of foregrounding simulation in an ELT context. The session will conclude by offering suggestions for what a Simulation Based Approach to ELT might look like.
Laurie Wilson has worked in ELT for 12 years as a teacher and digital learning specialist. He is a teacher development coordinator and learning technologist at the University of Sheffield's English Language Teaching Centre. He recently spent a year outside the world of ELT developing digital resources for nursing students, which led him to develop an interest in the area of simulation-based education.
15:15 – 16:00 | Supporting young neurodivergent students in the EFL Classroom with Ozgu Ozturk and Tuba Kızılkan
For some young learners, primarily those who have learning disabilities, studying languages can be more challenging and time-consuming. Should we ignore these students just because they struggle? Even though they may have difficulties understanding their native language, most are still capable of learning a foreign language. When we consider the value of English, it becomes even more important for these children to study this language. In this session you will have an insight into what neurodiversity is, teachers' perceptions on the issue and how to support young learners who have learning disabilities in the EFL classroom. I will hare practical activities and sample lesson plans.
Ozgu Ozturk teaches English as a foreign language at a Turkish high school. She is also a Dyslexia trainer. She conducts some studies related to action research on ELT. She contributes blog pieces to several worldwide ELT journals as well as the British Council's TeachingEnglish blog.
Tuba Kızılkan is an ELT professional, teaching English at all levels for over 20 years. She is a mind mapping, speed reading, memory techniques and Neuro Linguistic Programming practitioner. She specialises in linguistics, neuroscience and languages and conducts academic research on linguistics, ELT, mind mapping and education.
16:15 – 17:00 | Release the pressure: Taking the tension out of our teenage classes with Chris Roland
Anything and everything you do in a teens' class will either add to or take away from the existing tension in the room. In this session I will argue that some of our default teaching techniques add an unnecessary element of strain and I will draw on ideas I have fielded over the last two decades to offer small tweaks and alternatives to them. There will be examples, anecdotes and photos from my own classes. Suitable for new teachers, seasoned veterans, trainers and directors alike.
Chris Roland is a teacher, trainer and writer based in Seville. He has worked in Spanish mainstream education and private academy sectors and has held positions with the British Council in Barcelona and Syria. He has published several methodology books for teachers of young learners and teenagers through Pavilion. He is particularly interested in classroom dynamics, the decisions that both learners and teachers make and the dialogue that happens between them.
Registration
Cost: £25 for members and non-members.
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