TESOL France
Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages
Members Access
Why join Tesol France?
Membership (read more):
Join now!
Free Annual Colloquium and free workshops, an annual Spring event, a quarterly newsletter, endless networking opportunities and resources...
Language Schools (read more):
Benefit from plenty of exposure and boost the teaching quality at your school, fee includes 4 teacher membership cards, free entrance to events...
Events in Paris
Save the date!
April 1, 2023
Workshop with Chaz Pugliese
_______________________________________
PARIS SALON type WORKSHOP
March 4, 2023, 2-5pm
Beyond listening comprehension
Helping learners become better listeners
Listening comprehension is the most challenging skill for many adult learners. At the same time, they are confronted with the need to understand native and non-native speakers in a variety of situations in their professional context and it’s often a source of stress. In this workshop, we will explore how to get to listening comprehension by first learning how to listen and training the ear to hear the sounds of English.
Join TESOL France members, Sue Thomas and Katherine Krieger, for an interactive workshop for trainers/coaches of adult professionals in one-on-one sessions or very small groups (or aiming to work in this sector). This workshop is about sharing knowledge and experience from working with adults in different professional sectors, focusing on listening skills. You will gain practical tips and insights and be able to share your own practices.
Register here: https://forms.gle/mbku8esJqmdQHDK6A
PAST WORKSHOPS
Paris Salon Workshop
Helping our clients/students set goals, and
PARIS SALON WORKSHOP
JANUARY 14TH , 2023
Learning by gaming using the Web App Know It! will help your students to improve their grammar, enrich their vocabulary, and increase their test scores while having fun learning English!
PAST WORKSHOPS
Paris Salon Workshop
February 11, 2023
2-5 pm
Helping our clients/students set goals, and
improve their speaking skills
Language trainers and language schools often claim to put the learner at the center of our lesson.
How well do we actually do that and what tools can we use to create a truly learner-centered learning journey? During this salon workshop, we will learn some tools and share practices and experiences to empower the learner with a coaching approach.
Another item of discussion will be how do we help our learners have the necessary tools and skills for all opportunities of oral communication (impromptu to prepared presentations). We will work together to see how can we do this in the different situations of where we teach.
BIO of Presenters:
Katherine Krieger is manager of Grant & Bates Institut de Langues, catering to adult professionals for their language training needs in English, Spanish, German and French as a foreign language.
Katherine is Franco-American by birth and came from the US to France in 1978. Her career started as an independent translator in various domains, then she specialized in finance as in-house translator for Société Générale, then NatWest Sellier.
Katherine shifted to education in 1996, after training in the Montessori Method, and joined a bilingual pre-school in central Paris. In 2004, she moved on to training adults in professional contexts and became a Neurolanguage Coach® in 2000. She has been manager of Grant & Bates since 2017.
Debbie West, UC Berkeley grad, brought up in a military family, has done almost everything from teaching French to being International Student Advisor in the United States to now teaching English to all levels and ages here in France. With a love for developing programs and an ever-present bank of ideas, there never seems to be enough time, energy, and money to do everything. Being single helps and sometimes doesn't. She tries to do her part in developing people's English skills. She continually is trying to find ways to help learners be confident in expressing and developing their oral skills in English.
How well do we actually do that and what tools can we use to create a truly learner-centered learning journey? During this salon workshop, we will learn some tools and share practices and experiences to empower the learner with a coaching approach.
Another item of discussion will be how do we help our learners have the necessary tools and skills for all opportunities of oral communication (impromptu to prepared presentations). We will work together to see how can we do this in the different situations of where we teach.
BIO of Presenters:
Katherine Krieger is manager of Grant & Bates Institut de Langues, catering to adult professionals for their language training needs in English, Spanish, German and French as a foreign language.
Katherine is Franco-American by birth and came from the US to France in 1978. Her career started as an independent translator in various domains, then she specialized in finance as in-house translator for Société Générale, then NatWest Sellier.
Katherine shifted to education in 1996, after training in the Montessori Method, and joined a bilingual pre-school in central Paris. In 2004, she moved on to training adults in professional contexts and became a Neurolanguage Coach® in 2000. She has been manager of Grant & Bates since 2017.
Debbie West, UC Berkeley grad, brought up in a military family, has done almost everything from teaching French to being International Student Advisor in the United States to now teaching English to all levels and ages here in France. With a love for developing programs and an ever-present bank of ideas, there never seems to be enough time, energy, and money to do everything. Being single helps and sometimes doesn't. She tries to do her part in developing people's English skills. She continually is trying to find ways to help learners be confident in expressing and developing their oral skills in English.
PARIS SALON WORKSHOP
JANUARY 14TH , 2023
VOCAB GAME APP AND MORE...
Know It! Workshop for English Language Teachers
Learning by gaming using the Web App Know It! will help your students to improve their grammar, enrich their vocabulary, and increase their test scores while having fun learning English!
We believe that learning English through engaging activities is essential and that variety in these activities is the key to an effective learning plan. Make Know It! part of that study plan. During the workshop, we will show you different ways to use Know It! as a teaching tool in and outside of the classroom.
For our workshop discussion, we enthusiastically invite you to come with your fun ideas and activities for English Learners. What are fun ways to improve the four language skills, to increase test scores, to make students speak, etc?
We are looking forward to sharing everyone’s favorite fun activities!
Paris : 23 March 2019
Writing “Revisité” TESOL France Workshop
Date: 23 March 2019
Time: 2pm - 5pm, room B316
Venue: Telecom ParisTech
Theme: Writing “Revisité”
Speaker: Wojtek Koszykowski
Register here:
20 January 2019
Using picturebooks to develop multi-literacies
Time: 2-5pm
Speaker: Gail Ellis
Venue: Room Opale, Telecom ParisTech, 49 rue Vergniaud, 75013 Paris
8 euros for Non-Members. Please bring exact change or payment by cheque.
Map:http://www.tesol-france.org/TelecomMap.php
Using Picturebooks to develop Multi-literacies
We have the honor of having Gail Ellis with us for a workshop this December. Please be sure to tell all your colleagues of young learners. We can try to Skype you in if you are outside the Paris area.
Description;
The fusion of trade publishing and ELT pedagogy offers a high quality and motivating approach to language teaching and learning and provides a flexible educational resource. This session will show how picturebooks selected from the British Council’s Drawing Words exhibition can be used to help children of primary school age develop multiliteracies, in particular, visual and emotional literacy.
Speaker Information:
Gail Ellis, Advisor Young Learners and Quality, is based at the British Council in Paris. She has published widely in the field of young learners and is co-author of Tell it Again! and Teaching children how to learn. Her main interests include children’s literature, ELT management, and inclusive practices and she is an advocate for children’s language learning rights.
If you like, joining TESOL France, €53 (or renewing your membership) will be possible on the day.
New members: Fill out your membership form before the event here: http://www.tesol-france.org/en/membership.html
Questions? Contact: tesolfrance@gmail.com attn: Debbie WEST
30 September 2018
How to be Cicero, or the Art of Planning
Time: 2-5pm
Speaker: Edward Bell
Venue: Room OPALE, Telecom ParisTech, 49 rue Vergniaud, 75013 Paris
The Art of Presentation: Caesar vs. Cicero
“It is not by muscle, speed or physical dexterity that great things are achieved, but by reflection, force of character and judgement”
This workshop will look at how we can plan our lessons, establish appropriate objectives and understand our students to offer them the best of our teaching experience. It will examine what teacher means in different contexts, before offering four main objectives of English language teaching. There will be many opportunities to play around with a variety of activities you can use before, during and after class to measure your success and that of your students.
It follows a workshop aimed at identifying two general student profiles: the confident one and the timid one. It will be rounded off in the spring with the ambitiously titled ‘How to be Caesar, or the Art of Success’.
About the Speaker
Our New Addition at Telecom ParisTech. Let's welcome him.
Edward Bell, originally from Blackburn, Lancashire, studied Latin and French at the University of
Oxford, graduating in 2014 and obtained his CELTA qualification in 2015. He has worked in private
education, setting up his own tutoring services in Paris and developing the RQ methodology
(Repetitive Questioning). Since October 2017, he has been teaching at Télécom ParisTech and put
on the school’s very first Christmas pantomime. Since January of this year, he has been teaching
at the Institut Villebon George Charpak, an innovative pedagogy unit linked to Paris-Sud.
TEACHERS FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE WITH LOTS OF IDEAS OR IN NEED OF IDEAS
If you would like to join TESOL France, €53 (or renewing your membership) will be possible on the day.
New members: Fill out your membership form before the event here.
IMPORTANT:
If you have renewed your membership or signed up as a new member recently and have selected the “Pay by cheque or cash onsite” payment option on the website, we can process your payment and validate your membership at the workshop.
Questions? Contact: tesolfrance@gmail.com attn: Debbie WEST
21 April 2018
The Art of Presentation: Caesar vs. Cicero
Time: 2-5pm
Speaker: Edward Bell
Venue: Room OPALE, Telecom ParisTech, 49 rue Vergniaud, 75013 Paris
About the Workshop
In 49BC, Caesar crossed the Rubicon with his loyal soldiers of the 13th legion. He had won over
the people and the army with his charisma, family background and wealth. Cicero, valiant defender
of the Republic, strove to uphold protocol, decency and the right way of doing things. But I
digress…
This workshop is designed to boost students’ presentation skills. One of the difficulties we face as
teachers is different student profiles and in particular what I will call the blaggard and the
blacksmith. We will look at the characteristics of these students and how we can nudge them in the
right direction to become “Presentation Emperors”.
We all have that student: the one with effortless charm and savvy language skills who can wing a
presentation like a walk in the park. To other students, it sounds fine because it is impressive. But
to us discerning teachers, you will recognise the lack of substance underneath their charisma.
Where was the structure? Where was the argumentation? Where were the carefully planned
examples and relevant evidence? How long did the student spend preparing and do they deserve
the high mark that you might be tempted to give them?
On the other hand, we all recognise the quiet student who spends hours preparing, always on time,
and who tries their best to fulfil the requirements of the task that we have given them. But when it
comes to the presentation, these students often find themselves with lower scores than the
genuine quality of their work should merit. What’s going on here? The flair of the first student is
missing and in a world where the medium is the message these students unfairly miss out due to
poor presentation skills.
About the Speaker
Edward Bell, originally from Blackburn, Lancashire, studied Latin and French at the University of
Oxford, graduating in 2014 and obtained his CELTA qualification in 2015. He has worked in private
education, setting up his own tutoring services in Paris and developing the RQ methodology
(Repetitive Questioning). Since October 2017, he has been teaching at Télécom ParisTech and put
on the school’s very first Christmas pantomime. Since January of this year, he has been teaching
at the Institut Villebon George Charpak, an innovative pedagogy unit linked to Paris-Sud.
TEACHERS FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE WITH LOTS OF IDEAS OR IN NEED OF IDEAS
If you would like to join TESOL France, €53 (or renewing your membership) will be possible on the day.
New members: Fill out your membership form before the event here.
IMPORTANT:
If you have renewed your membership or signed up as a new member recently and have selected the “Pay by cheque or cash onsite” payment option on the website, we can process your payment and validate your membership at the workshop.
Questions? Contact: tesolfrance@gmail.com attn: Debbie WEST
24 February 2018: What Drama Can Do for You and Your Students
Time: 2-5pm
Theme: What Students Can Do for You and Your Students
Speaker: David Fisher
Venue: Room OPALE, Telecom ParisTech,49 rue Vergniaud, 75013 Paris
About the Workshop
This seminar by David Fisher, director of The Bear Educational Theatre, Prague, will look at different aspects of how drama can be used in the classroom. The session will start with a series of popular short activities that any teacher can use to support textbook work or just have fun. Later it will look at more advanced considerations like how to stage role plays or scenes, also how we can perform better as teachers in terms of our body language and how we relate to our students.
Their Philosophy
The main principles guiding the activities of The Bear Educational Theatre are:
- We provide students and teachers with a positive learning experience.
- We make people feel good about themselves. - We make our activities accessible to as wide an audience as possible.
How Our Activities Reflect Our Philosophy
The Bear Educational Theatre aims to support teachers in schools by offering their students an unusual, positive and motivating learning experience. Traditional school teaching necessarily places students in a passive relationship to the subject being taught. It also places a certain focus on what students do not yet know through regular testing and reports etc. The Bear Educational Theatre compensates for this by focusing only on the positive, emphasizing what students can do rather than what they can't.
Students experience an interactive show in English, they understand it, and they enjoy it. They also have a positive meeting with English-speaking people from different countries, including native speakers. This experience motivates them to keep learning English by making them feel confident about the skills they already have.
The above philosophy is in three parts. The positive learning experience comes from the interactive shows we produce. The second part, making people feel good about themselves, should be reflected not only in the shows, but in the contact people have with the theatre at all levels. Finally the fact that we travel, play in different spaces, not only theatres, and keep our prices as low as possible, makes our work accessible to a wide audience.
About the Speaker
David Fisher of the Educational Bear Theatre, david@thebeartheatre.com
9 December 2017: TOEIC Teaching Ideas
Time: 2-5pm
Theme: TOEIC Teaching Ideas
Speaker: TEACHERS FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE WITH LOTS OF IDEAS OR IN NEED OF IDEAS
Venue: Telecom ParisTech,49 rue Vergniaud, 75013 Paris
About the Workshop
The workshop aim is to have a time where people who teach TOEIC or need to teach TOEIC share ideas and work together to create activities and share resources. From our last workshop, it was decided that we still needed to be more practical and discovered that there are many who have an idea or two about teaching the concepts in the exam. The learning objectives for students are basically to know how to pass the test but before that, we need to help them understand the holes missing in their English.
So very easily and basically, we will come together to share ideas and resources so that we know where to start, how to vary what we do, have an idea of the best materials out there. We will not bring in any official people, we will just share and discuss with one another. Please bring in examples on your computer or via paper copy. This is up to all of us.... so come and share a little something that you do or bring your questions to know and understand what you could do with your students.
About the Speaker
TEACHERS FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE WITH LOTS OF IDEAS OR IN NEED OF IDEAS
If you would like to join TESOL France, €49 (or renewing your membership) will be possible on the day.
New members: Fill out your membership form before the event here.
IMPORTANT:
If you have renewed your membership or signed up as a new member recently and have selected the “Pay by cheque or cash onsite” payment option on the website, we can process your payment and validate your membership at the workshop.
New members: Fill out your membership form before the event here.
IMPORTANT:
If you have renewed your membership or signed up as a new member recently and have selected the “Pay by cheque or cash onsite” payment option on the website, we can process your payment and validate your membership at the workshop.
Questions? Contact: tesolfrance@gmail.com attn: Debbie WEST
14 October 2017: Extended Language Learning and Young Learners
Time: 11 a.m-6pm
Theme: Focus on Language Learning and YOUNG LEARNERS
Speakers: Joan Kang Shin of National Geographic Learning and George Mason University, USA, Nayr Ibrahim of British Council France, and more...
Venue: Telecom ParisTech,49 rue Vergniaud, 75013 Paris, room OPALE
12 euros for Non-Members. Please bring exact change or payment by cheque.
Are You a 21st Century Teacher?Live Stream!
We live in a rapidly changing world, one that is increasingly interconnected. While this century is an exciting one because of its fast-paced, technology-driven nature, it is also a challenging one. Our students who are young global citizens need to learn values and skills that will enable them to successfully communicate and collaborate across borders and cultures. As English teachers we are building skills for global communication, which includes digital, new media, and visual literacy because communication in English is inextricably linked to these 21st century literacies.
Speaker Profile
Dr. Joan Kang Shin is an Associate Professor of Education at George MasonUniversity and the Academic Program Coordinator of the Teaching Culturally & Linguistically Diverse & Exceptional Learners (TCLDEL) program. Dr. Shin specializes in teaching ESL/EFL to young learners and teenagers and has provided professional development programs and workshops to EFL teachers in over 100 countries around the world. She is a Series Editor of National Geographic Learning’s young learner programs Welcome to Our World, Our World, and Explore Our World, as well as the teen program Impact, and an author of the professional development title Teaching Young Learners English.
English in multilingual classrooms
Our classrooms are ever more diverse in terms of children's languages, backgrounds and cultures. Yet education, in both mainstream or out-of- school contexts, still employs a monolingual approach, going as far as punishing children for using the ‘wrong’ language. In the last 60 years research has shown that recognising children’s multiple languages and
bringing these languages into the classroom enhances the learning process and taps into multilingual characteristics, such metalinguistic awareness, translingual practice. Furthermore, it makes children's linguistic repertoire visible, hence, valuing the children as multilingual individuals and increasing their self-esteem and confidence. But, is this the job of an English teacher? In this session we will look at practical ideas to integrate children's languages and cultures in the English classroom in order to help the learning process and create more diverse and inclusive classrooms.
Speaker Profile
Nayr Ibrahim is the Head of Young Learners and Bilingual Section at British Council in France and a PhD student at the University of Reading, where she is studying the link between trilingualism, tri-literacy and identity. Nayr has been teaching English for over 20 years in Portugal, Hong Kong, Cairo and Paris. She has written various articles on bilingualism and enjoys blogging and presenting on the topic. Her latest publication is Teaching Children how to learn, Delta Publishing, with Gail Ellis. Nayr’s interests include early language learning, bi/multilingualism, language education, multiple literacies, and language and identity.
And here's a surprise:
Why should we integrate affect into language learning?
What are the important dimensions to be taken into account? What are the practical postures and roles that both students and teacher should have in this new paradigm?
Speaker Profile
Juan Uribe has a degree in Education (Catholic University of São Paulo) and a Master’s degree in Human Development and Applied Psychology (University of Toronto). Juan directs Juan Uribe Ensino Afetivo, a language school where children learn English affectively through play, stories, puppeteering, and other holistic ways. He travelled for two years around the world visiting English schools where he conducted teacher training or enchanted young audiences with Buddy the Frog.
He writes a blog on affective language learning with young learners at childrenlearningenglishaffectively.blogspot.com
23 September 2017: Completing the circle
Time: 11-3pm (please bring a lunch)
Theme: Completing the circle
Speaker: Marcos OLASOLO – ETS GLOBAL
Venue: Telecom ParisTech,49 rue Vergniaud, 75013 Paris, room OPALE
About the Workshop
The workshop aim is to show how assessment, learning objectives, and classroom activities inform each other and are tied together by looking at some of the skills that the TOEIC® Listening and Reading test is assessing, and briefly discussing how the test score descriptors can help teachers identify learning objectives and activities for students in their English language classrooms.
Learning objectives can be the basis of a whole course, or the basis of an individual lesson. They describe what the students will be able to do after doing an activity or lesson or course. Activities in a lesson are designed to help the student to achieve the objective. Assessment can be formal or informal, but it is the way a teacher (or students) determine if the objective has been met, and decide on what future objectives will be.
Given that learning objectives are the basis for a language course, and so for a TOEIC test course or for a real-world English proficiency course, teachers would create a body of learning objectives. And because the TOEIC test is a proficiency test, by testing the whole area of English language skills needed for international communication, then gradually increasing the students’ overall proficiency, teachers are preparing them to do well on the test.
Another aim of the workshop is to demonstrate that in preparing learners for the real world, teachers are in fact preparing students to do well on a test of English language proficiency (here, specifically, the TOEIC test). Sub-skill aims that usually all teachers have, such as listening for detail, reading for gist, skimming and scanning are the very sub-skills that are measured in the TOEIC tests. So test preparation equals preparing students for success in the real world.
About the Speaker
Marcos OLASOLO - ETS Global
After more than twenty years of international experience in the world of education and training as a teacher, instructional designer and educational leader, Marcos Olasolo started a new professional stage at ETS Global in 2012.
With a master’s degree in English Literature and applied linguistics, he is fluent in English, French and Spanish. He has developed his professional experience in several countries like France, Spain, the United States, and the United Arab Emirates, in environments such as universities, language schools and corporations.
He is currently based in Madrid (Spain), where he works as a pedagogical consultant for ETS Global.
Tools & tips for success in online teaching - May 13th, 2017
Date: Saturday, 13 May 2017
Venue: Telecom ParisTech
Theme: Automated Grading
Speaker: Jeremy Levin
Time: 2-5pm, Room B316
Venue: Telecom ParisTech, 49 rue Vergniaud, 75013 Paris
Theme: Tools & tips for success in online teaching
Speaker: Christina Rebuffet-Broadus
Cost: Free for TESOL France members. 8 euros for Non-Members. Please bring exact change or payment by cheque. If you would like to join TESOL France, €49 (or renewing your membership) will be possible on the day.
New members: Fill out your membership form before the event here.
Questions? Contact: tesolfrance@gmail.com attn: Debbie WEST
With technology all around us and literally at our fingertips, online teaching has become an alternative career path to the traditional classroom. Online teaching offers lots of advantages for both teachers and students: no need to travel for class, the possibility to have lessons from anywhere, the ability to work with people anywhere in the world, just to name a few.
What tools do you need to make the learning process smooth? What’s it like to teach from behind a screen compared to a physical classroom? And how do you get clients in the first place?
In this workshop, Christina Rebuffet will share her tips and tools for attracting clients and for managing online lessons with both individuals and groups. From video-making to social media, from the virtual classroom to behind-the-scenes admin, you’ll come away from this event ready to start your career as an online teacher, or with fresh ideas for adding to you online teaching toolbox.
Speaker Information
Christina has been teaching English in Grenoble since 2004, and began her career online in 2015. Today, she teaches almost exclusively over the internet and loves it! Over the past 2 years, she has created Speak English with Christina TV on YouTube, and two digital courses.
Her online program Successful Small Talk was a finalist for the 2016 David Riley Award for Innovation in Business English. You can learn more about her work at christinarebuffet.com
If you would like to join TESOL France, €49 (or renewing your membership) will be possible on the day.
New members: Fill out your membership form before the event here.
Questions? Contact: tesolfrance@gmail.com attn: Debbie WEST
Automated Grading - Feburary 25, 2017
Date: 25 February 2017
Time: 2pm - 5pmVenue: Telecom ParisTech, 49 rue Vergniaud, 75013 Paris
Theme: Tools & tips for success in online teaching
Speaker: Christina Rebuffet-Broadus
Cost: Free for TESOL France members. 8 euros for Non-Members. Please bring exact change or payment by cheque. If you would like to join TESOL France, €49 (or renewing your membership) will be possible on the day.
New members: Fill out your membership form before the event here.
Questions? Contact: tesolfrance@gmail.com attn: Debbie WEST
With technology all around us and literally at our fingertips, online teaching has become an alternative career path to the traditional classroom. Online teaching offers lots of advantages for both teachers and students: no need to travel for class, the possibility to have lessons from anywhere, the ability to work with people anywhere in the world, just to name a few.
What tools do you need to make the learning process smooth? What’s it like to teach from behind a screen compared to a physical classroom? And how do you get clients in the first place?
In this workshop, Christina Rebuffet will share her tips and tools for attracting clients and for managing online lessons with both individuals and groups. From video-making to social media, from the virtual classroom to behind-the-scenes admin, you’ll come away from this event ready to start your career as an online teacher, or with fresh ideas for adding to you online teaching toolbox.
Speaker Information
Christina has been teaching English in Grenoble since 2004, and began her career online in 2015. Today, she teaches almost exclusively over the internet and loves it! Over the past 2 years, she has created Speak English with Christina TV on YouTube, and two digital courses.
Her online program Successful Small Talk was a finalist for the 2016 David Riley Award for Innovation in Business English. You can learn more about her work at christinarebuffet.com
If you would like to join TESOL France, €49 (or renewing your membership) will be possible on the day.
New members: Fill out your membership form before the event here.
Questions? Contact: tesolfrance@gmail.com attn: Debbie WEST
Automated Grading - Feburary 25, 2017
Date: 25 February 2017
Venue: Telecom ParisTech
Theme: Automated Grading
Speaker: Jeremy Levin
Tired of spending so much time grading exams? In this workshop, we’ll compare several applications that can help streamline your grading and feedback process. We will look at tools that can automate grading for multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blank, written assessments, and even oral presentations.
When used effectively, technology can help us save time on redundant menial tasks and redirect that energy into other things that matter more to you and your students.
Here are the applications and websites that will be presented:
1. Zipgrade
2. Socrative
3. Grammerly vs PaperRater vs JoeZoo Express
4. Google Forms
Speaker Information
With an American father and French mother, Jeremy has been split between two cultures and two languages his entire life. Born and raised on the outskirts of Philadelphia, Jeremy moved to Lille, France in 2003. Jeremy specializes in grammar games and educational technology. He loves finding ways that technology can streamline and lighten the burdensome teacher workload as well as making subjects that people typically think are boring into something fun. When he’s not teaching you may find him working on his electronic music mixes, his second passion in life.
When used effectively, technology can help us save time on redundant menial tasks and redirect that energy into other things that matter more to you and your students.
Here are the applications and websites that will be presented:
1. Zipgrade
2. Socrative
3. Grammerly vs PaperRater vs JoeZoo Express
4. Google Forms
Speaker Information
With an American father and French mother, Jeremy has been split between two cultures and two languages his entire life. Born and raised on the outskirts of Philadelphia, Jeremy moved to Lille, France in 2003. Jeremy specializes in grammar games and educational technology. He loves finding ways that technology can streamline and lighten the burdensome teacher workload as well as making subjects that people typically think are boring into something fun. When he’s not teaching you may find him working on his electronic music mixes, his second passion in life.Being Well Versed - Creating,telling and writing stories and poems in the English class - January 21, 2017
Date: 21 January 2017
Time: 2pm - 5pm
Venue: Telecom ParisTech
Theme: Being Well Versed - Creating,telling and writing stories and poems in the English class
Speaker: Damian Corcoran
Theme: Creativity, oral communication, writing, personal development
1 We will workshop short activities to warm up the writer within.
2 I will guide you through a key lesson which you can use with all students at pre-intermediate level and above, combining a variety of techniques which can be applied to different groups with different
content.
3 We will discuss the why and the how of story-telling
4 We will look at how a poetry based lesson might unfold.
5 I will present some ideas for exploiting stories and anecdotes and workshop 2 or 3 of them.
6 We will workshop your ideas for creative writing or oral activities
using poetry and stories.
Theme: Creativity, oral communication, writing, personal development
1 We will workshop short activities to warm up the writer within.
2 I will guide you through a key lesson which you can use with all students at pre-intermediate level and above, combining a variety of techniques which can be applied to different groups with different
content.
3 We will discuss the why and the how of story-telling
4 We will look at how a poetry based lesson might unfold.
5 I will present some ideas for exploiting stories and anecdotes and workshop 2 or 3 of them.
6 We will workshop your ideas for creative writing or oral activities
using poetry and stories.
Speaker Information
Damian Corcoran has been a trainer, actor and coach for over 20 years in Paris. His training background is primarily in working with adults in companies but he has also been working in higher education for the last 8 years in art, fine arts and architecture schools. At the same time he has pursued his acting career as a voice over and dubbing artist, working on English versions of French language films and documentaries. He has recently discovered his inner poet and since 2014 has been a regular featured poet on the English language spoken word circuit. He is now exploring ways of bringing out the poet in his students and promoting creative communication and expression rather
than just practicing language.
Special pre-holiday workshop in Paris: "Q&A for independents on the impact new
quality control legislation coming into effect January 1st"
Event co-hosted by TESOL France, The Language Network and Linguaid.
Date: Thursday, 15th December 2016,
Time: 7:00pm
Venue: 46 rue Barrault, 75013 Paris
Room: C49
Cost: Free for TESOL France and Language Network members. 8€ for non-members
We're sorry but this event will not be recorded or filmed. If you cannot attend, we suggest asking a friend to come and take notes for you.
Claire Oldmeadow, Andrew Wickham and Jane Ryder will be hosting the event. Come along with your questions, or worries, on how the new legislation coming into effect is going to affect you. If you think that going through a quality certification procedure even if it’s not sure it will be accepted for CPF funding is a waste of time? Think again : from January 1st, anyone who wants to benefit from OPCA financing will have to put a full quality procedure in place. If you’ve already worked on certification, it will be very simple to do, if you haven’t, you will find yourself with quite a workload to catch up on.
Please note that this legislation is only relevant to those of you who deal directly with public funding, be it from the OPCA's or other state bodies such as Pôle Emploi. For the moment those who work as sub-contractors for language schools or salariés, in whatever form, for higher education institutions are not affected.
Register online here.
TESOL France Paris: Propell Workshop for the TOEFL iBT test
15 October 2016
Propell Workshop for the TOEFL iBT test (earn your certification to teach the TOEFL iBT)
Facilitated by: ETS Global
Venue: Telecom ParisTech
Time: 11am - 6pm
Acceptional registration fee for members due to all-day event:
8 euros for TESOL France Members
15 euros for Non-Members.
TESOL France is hosting The Propell® WORKSHOP FOR THE TOEFL® IBT TEST
The Propell® workshop (more information here) is a one-day professional development program designed to help English-language teachers meet the challenges of teaching English to students. The workshop uses examples from the Reading, Listening, Speaking and Writing sections of the TOEFL iBT® test. It provides instructional techniques and strategies for using the integrated-skills approach to teaching language and for preparing students for success.
Led by ETS-approved facilitators in an interactive, hands-on classroom setting, the Propell workshop opens the door to increased success in teaching students English as a foreign language. Teachers will receive a Propell workshop kit that will guide them through stimulating sessions on teaching techniques and activities and help them learn more about the benefits of the TOEFL iBT test. The workshop is also an opportunity to interact with peers and provide feedback to help us improve and develop assessments that meet their needs.
The training is intended for English language professionals working in higher education establishments or in language centers who already prepare students to take the TOEFL iBT test or would like to feel prepared to do it. The training is conducted in English, it lasts up to 7 hours (depending on the number and duration of breaks). The workshop can be organized for a group ideally up to 24 participants.
The one-day workshop will offer instructional techniques and learning activities for English-language instructors to use in the classroom to build an engaging TOEFL iBT curriculum to effectively prepare students for test day. Based on the integrated-skills approach, it will include:
- a comprehensive overview of the TOEFL iBT test
- a detailed review of the scoring guidelines for the Writing and Speaking sections of the TOEFL iBT test
- practice in scoring sample test-taker responses
- an engaging discussion on practical applications to guide classroom instruction
There is no final exam; however, the participants are expected to take active part in discussion and group work ; they will be sent an introductory assignment to introduce themselves to the training. Participants who leave the workshop early may not be granted the certificate.
Teaching One Little Thing: Speaking, Listening, Reading etc...
Saturday, 28 May 2016
Time: 2 pm - 6pm
Speaker: Fadila ARAR and Marta Bujakowska and Debbie WEST
Venue: Paris Telecom, 49 rue Vergniaud, 75013
Room: B316
This event is FREE to TESOL France members.
Non-member registration fee: €8. Please bring exact change.
***Renewing members*** please be sure to log in to the Members Section of our website and click "renew" before coming to the workshop.
Teachers often face a problem of teaching ‘one little thing’, some language phenomenon, which is a challenge for learners, they try in many different ways, are sure that the material covered stays in students’ mind for ever. However, after some time it shows that students ‘just didn’t get it’. In this workshop participants will learn many ways of teaching one little thing that will stick in students’ minds.
We will work with quotations, play a board game, a conversation game and work with a song or two. My example will be 'If sentences', which often causes serious problems for learners. In the workshop the participants will try many activities that involve the four skills and are fun at the same time. All the activities will have one hidden objective: to help learner use the ‘if forms’ freely and confidently.
It comes from my believe that we need to give students practice more than anything else in our classes as they have little opportunity to practice what we teach.
The workshop will be interactive and hopefully some of the participants will be willing to share their experience and ideas.
Marta Bujakowska – I am a freelance teacher and teacher trainer from Poland with strong intercultural focus. Training teachers in Poland and also internationally in England, Ireland and Moldova is my favourite occupation nowadays. I have been with IATEFL POLAND since 1994. At present I hold a position of Liaison Officer.
Today, in any language learning course, certification has become a must have, and is more generally required for CPF funded training or for students to validate their degree.
How can you integrate TOEIC Listening and Reading preparation to your language training? During this 1.5 hour conference, the Fadila of ETS GLOBAL will provide you with some tips and ideas on how to best prepare your students.
How can you integrate TOEIC Listening and Reading preparation to your language training? During this 1.5 hour conference, the Fadila of ETS GLOBAL will provide you with some tips and ideas on how to best prepare your students.
Fadila ARAR of ETS GLOBAL and Debbie West (Paris Workshop Coordinator and Past President) will also share some ideas on using graded readers in the class thanks to the input of BLACK CAT, who cannot be with us.
If you like, joining TESOL France, €49 (or renewing your membership) will be possible on the day.
IMPORTANT: Before you join, please be sure to fill out the Members Registration Form on our website here: http://www.tesol-france.org/en/membership.html
TESOL France Paris: Apply This! The Best of Ed Tech Today.
Speaker: Jeremy Levin
Date: Saturday, March 26th 2016.
Time: 2pm - 5pm
Venue: Telecom ParsiTech, 49 rue Vergniaud, 75013 Paris.
Room: B316
This event is FREE to TESOL France members.
Non-member registration fee: €8. Please bring exact change.
***Renewing members*** please be sure to log in to the Members Section of our website and click "renew" before coming to the workshop.
Technology will not replace teachers, but teachers who use technology will replace those who do not. The latter may be debatable, but when done right, technology can make teacher’s lives easier and liven up the classroom.
This workshop will demonstrate various PowerPoint games, applications, and other favorite ed-tech tools and websites. Some say getting information off the internet is like taking a drink from a fire hydrant. It is in my hopes that after this interactive workshop participants will walk away will a full glass. This will be a BYOD (bring your own device) session. Come ready with a laptop, tablet, or smartphone.
This workshop will demonstrate various PowerPoint games, applications, and other favorite ed-tech tools and websites. Some say getting information off the internet is like taking a drink from a fire hydrant. It is in my hopes that after this interactive workshop participants will walk away will a full glass. This will be a BYOD (bring your own device) session. Come ready with a laptop, tablet, or smartphone.
1. 4-5 Powerpoint games. (I only have to present each briefly to get the gist)
2. Socrative (live polling, quizzing, and more)
3. Zaption (making videos more interactive)
4. The best of the Web - popular and favorite websites for Ed Tech.
Participants of this workshop should bring a device (phone, laptop, tablet) that can easily connect to the Internet.
Jeremy Levin:
With an American father and French mother, Jeremy has been split between two cultures and two languages his entire life. Born and raised on the outskirts of Philadelphia, Jeremy moved to Lille, France in 2003. With a Bachelor’s in French-English language studies, it made sense for him to start his career in translation, but he soon realized that something was missing, and it was that he’d rather work with people than sit behind a computer screen all day. 2006 marks the beginning of his teaching career and it has become his passion ever since. Jeremy specializes in grammar games and educational technology. He loves finding ways of making subjects that people typically think are boring into something fun. When he’s not teaching you may find him working on his electronic music mixes, his second passion in life.
If you like, joining TESOL France, €49 (or renewing your membership) will be possible on the day.
IMPORTANT: Before you join, please be sure to fill out the Members Registration Form on our website here.
TESOL France Paris: Course Syllabus Development Workshop
Speaker: Catherine Buon
Date: Saturday, April 23rd 2016.
Time: 2pm - 5pm
Venue: Telecom ParisTech, 49 rue Vergniaud, 75013 Paris.
Room: B316
Map: http://www.tesol-france.org/TelecomMap.php
This event is FREE to TESOL France members.
Non-member registration fee: €8. Please bring exact change.
***Renewing members*** please be sure to log in to the Members Section of our website and click "renew" before coming to the workshop.
If you are teacher tired of teaching without a clear plan, this workshop is for you! During the workshop, participants will learn to develop their own course syllabi. Teaching without a syllabus can be compared to flying without a net. Having a clear plan at the beginning of a course helps to determine what students need to learn and how they will learn this content. Sound course syllabus development is essential for educational effectiveness. This 3-hour workshop focuses on developing a complete course syllabus by:
- listing detailed course content in an outline
- deciding on teaching method
- announcing a method of evaluation
- drafting course learning outcomes
- choosing appropriate assignments
- developing grading scales and rubrics
The facilitator will provide a foundation and rationale for syllabus use, share various syllabus templates, show samples, and guide participants through developing their own syllabus. Workshop attendees are encouraged to bring details, descriptions and any other information they may have about a course they are currently teaching and for which they would like to develop a syllabus.
Catherine Buon
Catherine Buon is currently Associate Dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences at the American University of Armenia where she heads the undergraduate General Education program, teaches undergraduate courses in Topics in Cinema, French Language and Culture, and graduate
courses in applied linguistics.
If you like, joining TESOL France, €49 (or renewing your membership) will be possible on the day.
IMPORTANT: Before you join, please be sure to fill out the Members Registration Form on our website here.TESOL France Paris: Calling all Independents and Language Schools: Funding and Mechanics of the "Dossier CPF"
Facilitators: Andrew Wickham and Laurence Carlinet
Date: February 20th
Time: 14:00 - 18:00
Room: B310
This event is FREE to TESOL France members. Non-member registration fee: €12.
Please bring exact change.
***Renewing members*** please be sure to log in to the Members Section of our website and click "renew" before coming to the workshop.
***Joining TESOL France? Please fill out the online membership form here before coming to the workshop.
"Calling all Independents and Language Schools: Funding & Mechanics of the "Dossier CPF"
We're sorry, but filming this workshop will not be possible. If you can't make it, we suggest you check out the Linguaid website for future workshops an webinars on the CPF reform: http://www.linguaid.net
TESOL France Workshop Outline of Program
- Introduction : Contexte de la réforme CPF (Andrew) – Context of the CPF reform
- 1ère partie : Financements du CPF (Laurence) – CPF funding
- 2ème partie : Mécanique du dossier CPF (Laurence) – Mechanics of a CPF application
- 3ème partie : Comment profiter de la réforme pour augmenter son chiffre d’affaires (Laurence) – How to increase your business activity with the new CPF Reform ?
- Conclusion (Laurence et Andrew)
- Echanges ouverts (Laurence et Andrew)
Speaker bios
Laurence Carlinet a rejoint récemment ETS Global à la Direction Commerciale des régions Europe de l'ouest et des pays nordiques.
Laurence est titulaire d'un Master II en droit bancaire et financier de l'université de Lyon III, d'un Master II d'économie et gestion de l'innovation ainsi que d'une licence de philosophie.
Ses expériences précédentes couvrent des postes de Directrice Générale d'Aston Formation et de Vice-Présidente chez Learning Tree International. Depuis décembre 2005 et avant de nous rejoindre, Laurence occupait le poste de Directrice du développement de l'OPCA AGEFOS PME, au sein duquel elle était également chargée d'une mission de direction générale déléguée pour tout ce qui concernait les 50 branches professionnelles adhérentes.
Andrew Wickham has had a variety of roles in the language training business - a former language trainer, director of studies and language school founder and manager, he has also directed large blended learning projects, run the language training centre of a major multinational and carried out a variety of consultancy assignments for schools, companies and institutions. He is also the author of “Le Marché de la Formation Langues à l’heure de la Mondialisation”, a market study that has become the reference for the profession in France. He is particularly concerned by the challenges faced by teachers in a market that is becoming industrialised and technology oriented.
TESOL France Paris: Swap Shop with Sophie Pietrucci
Facilitator: Sophie Pietrucci
Date: January 30th
Time: 14:00 - 17:00
Room: B316
Theme: Ice Breakers and Fillers
This event is FREE to TESOL France members.
Non-member registration fee: €8. Please bring exact change.
***Renewing members*** please be sure to log in to the Members Section of our website and click "renew" before coming to the workshop.
Workshop Information
All NEW TEACHERS Welcome. EXPERIENCED Teachers welcome to share with NEW TEACHERS!
Initiating a class and those moments where you only have a few minutes: Do you have things you can pull out of a hat?
Come and share your ideas and pick up ideas from others.
Select an activity which always works wonders and come to the Swapshop to share it with motivated and dynamic teachers. The participants will demonstrate various fully tested practical activities and you will go home with plenty of ideas. All are welcome with or without an activity. If you have a worksheet to contribute please contact Sophie.
If you like, joining TESOL France, €49 (or renewing your membership) will be possible on the day.
IMPORTANT: Before you join, please be sure to fill out the Members Registration Form on our website here.
Select an activity which always works wonders and come to the Swapshop to share it with motivated and dynamic teachers. The participants will demonstrate various fully tested practical activities and you will go home with plenty of ideas. All are welcome with or without an activity. If you have a worksheet to contribute please contact Sophie.
If you like, joining TESOL France, €49 (or renewing your membership) will be possible on the day.
TESOL France Paris: December 12th
Homing in on a Documentary
Speaker: Denny Packard
Date: December 12th
Time: 14:00 - 17:00
Room: B316
Telecom ParisTech: 46 rue Barrualt, 75013 Paris
The purpose of this WORKshop is to create exercises around a documentary about San Francisco's Tenderloin district. (See a description of the film below.)
The first half of the WORKshop will be devoted to viewing the 71-minute documentary, Love Me Tenderloin by French director Henri Quenette. In the second half, participants will collaborate in exchanging ideas and preparing exercises around the film and the topic of homelessness and ghetto life. Participants are free to bring along computers or tablets, as well as materials related to the topic.
The film's distributor is making DVDs of Love Me Tenderloin available to teachers at a steep discount (9 euros instead of 16).
Love Me Tenderloin
Director: Henri Quenette
Editing: Léna Aìache Risterucci
Producer: Henri Quenette
The Tenderloin has long been known as the "heart" of San Francisco. It is the last refuge for elderly, disabled, and low-income working people striving to survive in the city. This area is perhaps the last frontier in SF's ever-expanding gentrification trend. It has a high-density population and has prominent issues with drugs. San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood can be a difficult place in which to live. Almost a quarter of the neighborhood's residents live below the poverty level. It can be painful to look at how hard life is for some people. We think of that existing in some far-off country or continent, but it's in our own backyard, right in downtown San Francisco.
At the same time, we're talking to people about how much love there is among the residents of this neighborhood and the people who work there in order to improve the life of the Tenderloin residents. Love Me Tenderloin shows the everyday life of four inhabitants living in the Tenderloin: Bridchette, Arnold, Woody, and Indian Joe.
This WORKshop is being organized by Denny Packard, a TESOL-France member since its founding in 1982. His interest in this film stems from his own family's experience with homelessness in 1965. Denny had lived and taught in France for 38 years (plus summers in England and the U.S.) and has taught students from 93 countries. He has taught primarily in higher education, but has also taught business people, prison inmates, middle school special needs students, English teachers, and drug addicts.
TESOL France's Swap Shop, October 17th 2015
Theme: It works in practice.
Date: Saturday 17th Octobre 2015 from 2pm - 5pm in Amphi B316
Venue: Telecom ParisTech, 49 rue VERGNIAUD, 75013 Paris
FREE to TESOL France members. Non-member registration fee: €8
Please bring a photo ID to present at the venue entrance
Select an activity which always works wonders and come to the Swapshop to share it with motivated and dynamic teachers. The participants will demonstrate various fully tested practical activities and you will go home with plenty of ideas. All are welcome with or without an activity.
TESOL France Paris: "Creative conversations in class: how to help students get more from speaking activities."
May 23, 2015, 2pm - 5pm
Venue: Telecom ParisTech 49 rue VERGNIAUD, 75013 Paris
Room: Opale
This event is FREE to TESOL France members.
Non-member registration fee: €8. Please bring exact change.
Please bring a photo ID to present at the venue entrance.
Further information:
Jon Wright
Jon is a teacher, teacher trainer, consultant, and examiner with over 25 years' experience in teaching English in the UK and abroad. Until recently he was senior lecturer in TESOL at Manchester Metropolitan University, where he taught Course and Materials Design on the MA TEFL. He has written 17 ELT course books and resource books for publishers such as Oxford University Press, Heinle, DELTA publishing, Cornelsen and HarperCollins Cobuild. Jon is a regular speaker at conferences and workshops such as IATEFL, English UK, TESOL Italy and NATESOL. He is particularly interested in innovative teaching methods, materials design and CLIL.
Speaking activities are in many ways the cornerstone of the communicative classroom. It is extremely rare for any lesson NOT to involve some activity where students are invited to exchange opinions or compare their ideas in pairs or small groups.
However, it is often hard to see what the specific intended learning outcomes are for these activities. This raises questions about how we - and more importantly, the students - can judge to what extent an activity was successful in the language class.
The main focus of this practical session is on activities that encourage students to evaluate their speaking skills from a more critical and creative perspective.
The activities are designed to overcome some of the key problems students have when reflecting on their speaking skills. In particular, students often need guidance when judging the quality and effectiveness of their participation in speaking activities.
The activities include suggestions for the use of 'the silent third partner' that turn pairwork activities into creative triads. Additionally, I will demonstrate how to use simple visual organisers effectively in both the planning and conduct of classroom conversations.
Please contact Debbie if you have any questions: contact page (look for "General inquiries" in the list).
If you like, joining TESOL France, €49 (or renewing your membership) will be possible on the day.
Online membership registration will soon be available.
Speaking activities are in many ways the cornerstone of the communicative classroom. It is extremely rare for any lesson NOT to involve some activity where students are invited to exchange opinions or compare their ideas in pairs or small groups.
However, it is often hard to see what the specific intended learning outcomes are for these activities. This raises questions about how we - and more importantly, the students - can judge to what extent an activity was successful in the language class.
The main focus of this practical session is on activities that encourage students to evaluate their speaking skills from a more critical and creative perspective.
The activities are designed to overcome some of the key problems students have when reflecting on their speaking skills. In particular, students often need guidance when judging the quality and effectiveness of their participation in speaking activities.
The activities include suggestions for the use of 'the silent third partner' that turn pairwork activities into creative triads. Additionally, I will demonstrate how to use simple visual organisers effectively in both the planning and conduct of classroom conversations.
Please contact Debbie if you have any questions: contact page (look for "General inquiries" in the list).
If you like, joining TESOL France, €49 (or renewing your membership) will be possible on the day.
Online membership registration will soon be available.
TESOL France in Paris: Developing scoring rubrics: A practical workshop
Date: April 18, 2015
Time: 2pm - 5pm
Venue: Telecom ParisTech
Catherine Buon, Associate Dean for General Education College of Humanities and Social Sciences American University of Armenia – Yerevan, Armenia
Scoring rubrics are widely used to standardize grading in large ESL writing programs and in hopes of saving time when marking students’ papers. However, some programs have stopped using rubrics because they have identified problems such as:
The reduction of student writing to a set of pre-determined criteria
The sacrifice of originality for standardization
Rubrics, even carefully worded, cannot possibly account for all features of writing
The workshop will present the following issues:
1. Benefits associated with the use of scoring rubrics
2. Pitfalls presented by such rubrics
3. How to choose the right kind of rubric
4. How to design a scoring rubric
5. Alternatives to using scoring rubrics
The problem may be that rubrics are misused or not properly developed. Perhaps they would be best used when evaluating contrived, guided and controlled writing assignments. Holistic scoring is probably more appropriate to the evaluation of creative and original writing. Participants will be actively involved in the workshop, will design scoring rubrics, and will receive attractive handouts.
Swap Shop: "It Works in Practice!": March 21st
Date: March 21st, 2015, 2pm-5pm
Need to Spice up your Lessons with Playful Activities? "It Works in Practice!" Your Best Tried Activity, Idea, Worksheet - with Sophie Pietrucci!
Venue: Telecom ParisTech 49 rue VERGNIAUD, 75013 Paris
Room: Opale
Further information:
Select an activity which always works wonders and come to the Swap Shop to share it with motivated and dynamic teachers. The participants will demonstrate various fully tested practical activities and you will go home with plenty of ideas. All are welcome with or without an activity.
This event is FREE to TESOL France members. Non-member registration fee is 8 euros. Please bring exact change. You can join TESOL France or renew your membership on the day for 49 euros. If you like, joining TESOL France (or renewing your membership) will be possible on the day. If you would like to join, simply fill out the pre-membership form here.
This event is FREE to TESOL France members. Non-member registration fee is 8 euros. Please bring exact change. You can join TESOL France or renew your membership on the day for 49 euros. If you like, joining TESOL France (or renewing your membership) will be possible on the day. If you would like to join, simply fill out the pre-membership form here.
Workshop: Developing scoring rubrics: A practical workshop
Date: April 18, 2015, Time: 2pm-5pm
Workshop led by Catherine Buon, Associate Dean for General Education College of Humanities and Social Sciences American University of Armenia – Yerevan, Armenia
Venue: Telecom ParisTechFurther information:
Scoring rubrics are widely used to standardize grading in large ESL writing programs and in hopes of saving time when marking students’ papers. However, some programs have stopped using rubrics because they have identified problems such as:
- The reduction of student writing to a set of pre-determined criteria
- The sacrifice of originality for standardization
- Rubrics, even carefully worded, cannot possibly account for all features of writing
The workshop will present the following issues:
1. Benefits associated with the use of scoring rubrics
2. Pitfalls presented by such rubrics
3. How to choose the right kind of rubric
4. How to design a scoring rubric
5. Alternatives to using scoring rubrics
The problem may be that rubrics are misused or not properly developed. Perhaps they would be best used when evaluating contrived, guided and controlled writing assignments. Holistic scoring is probably more appropriate to the evaluation of creative and original writing. Participants will be actively involved in the workshop, will design scoring rubrics, and will receive attractive handouts.
This event is FREE to TESOL France members. Non-member registration fee is 8 euros. Please bring exact change. You can join TESOL France or renew your membership on the day for 49 euros. If you like, joining TESOL France (or renewing your membership) will be possible on the day. If you would like to join, simply fill out the pre-membership form here.
TESOL France workshop & Annual General Assembly
December 8, 2012
Workshop: 2:00pm - 5:00pm
AGM: 5:00pm - 6:00pm
Stay for the AGM for a chance to win a free TESOL France Membership!
Télécom ParisTech - Room: Opale
Further information:
Role Play and Pronunciation - Damian Corcoran
In this workshop we will look at how role play can be used effectively to improve learners' pronunciation. We will try out a few exercises beginning with short dialogues and moving on to sketches and extended role plays. We will practise essential techniques for explaining and giving feedback on pronunciation and perform exercises to improve the voice in general. Finally we will review the Phonemic Chart and brainstorm ways to teach it to our learners.Damian Corcoran has been working in TEFL for 24 years, mostly as a freelance in-company trainer in Paris, adapting authentic materials, developing learner autonomy, and providing training in presentation, meeting and negotiating skills for managers. He is also an experienced professional actor working primarily as a voiceover specialist on TV commercials, documentaries, and feature film dubbing. He has recently been working in Higher Education with Engineering and Fine Arts students.
Sustainable Teaching
October 20th, 2012 - 2pm-5pm
A workshop led by Colleen Brown
Télécom ParisTech, room F503
Further information:
Colleen Brown will deliver this topical workshop on sustainable teaching strategies, in response to the need for practical solutions in EFL teaching and the challenging environment of language teaching in France today.
Not only will Colleen discuss ways to identify how sustainable your teaching currently is, she will also offer practical ideas to help you to regain some healthy work/time ration. In this workshop you will learn how to:
Not only will Colleen discuss ways to identify how sustainable your teaching currently is, she will also offer practical ideas to help you to regain some healthy work/time ration. In this workshop you will learn how to:
- Reduce stress and enhance your time and creativity;
- Reuse lessons and courses by re-thinking how you design and share teaching resources;
- Recycle past materials to be more time efficient and cost effective.
Ultimately, these ideas and techniques will give you a sustainable teaching framework to help you assist in the long-term development of pedagogical objectives and learner autonomy.
Biography: A Francophile since childhood, Colleen decided to try her luck in Paris after graduating from the University of Michigan with a B.A. in English Literature and French. Thus began her 13-year career as an EFL teacher and trainer. Along the way, she earned a Licence in French literature (La Sorbonne, Paris 4) and a Maîtrise in French Language Teaching and Didactics (La Sorbonne Nouvelle, Paris 3). Since 2007, she has been running her own freelance teaching and translating business. Her teaching interests include learner motivation, literacy, cultural studies and using technology humanely in the EFL classroom. She is also deeply concerned about working conditions and standards for EFL teachers in France and addressed these issues in a recent workshop on Sustainable Teaching for TESOL-France in Strasbourg. She enjoys writing for the Teaching Times and creatively, for herself.
Biography: A Francophile since childhood, Colleen decided to try her luck in Paris after graduating from the University of Michigan with a B.A. in English Literature and French. Thus began her 13-year career as an EFL teacher and trainer. Along the way, she earned a Licence in French literature (La Sorbonne, Paris 4) and a Maîtrise in French Language Teaching and Didactics (La Sorbonne Nouvelle, Paris 3). Since 2007, she has been running her own freelance teaching and translating business. Her teaching interests include learner motivation, literacy, cultural studies and using technology humanely in the EFL classroom. She is also deeply concerned about working conditions and standards for EFL teachers in France and addressed these issues in a recent workshop on Sustainable Teaching for TESOL-France in Strasbourg. She enjoys writing for the Teaching Times and creatively, for herself.
Swap Shop and "We don't have time to be bored!" Strategies
for increasing student motivation
October 20th, 2012. 9:45am - 12:30pm
by Kate Kleinworth
Organized by Shahada Reardon
Free for TESOL France members. Non-members: €8
Grundtvig on Grundtvig: Applying for EU funding and Classroom
Activities & other Techniques Applicable to our Training and Teaching
September 29th, 2012
Télécom ParisTech, room B316
An all-day workshop very kindly sponsored by: Pilgrims
A TESOL France Membership Drive!
Further information:
This is exciting, and extremely useful two-part event FREE for TESOL France members. Non-members are welcome to attend provided they join TESOL France on the day.
Grundtvig on Grundtvig - applying for EU funding
The application procedure for Grundtvig funding can be very daunting, especially if you live in a country which does not share your mother tongue and whose national agency only publishes information in an L1 that you are not a fluent speaker of. The good news, however, is that help is at hand. This workshop will provide you with a few pointers in the right direction and show how by doing a bit of homework to understand the priorities of Grundtvig, the financial support that is available makes it definitely worthwhile.
Classroom Activities and other Techniques Applicable to our Training and Teaching
With the guidance of Pilgrims Trainer Peter Dyer we will discover that drama is not just about acting and role-play. Drama allows us to explore our environment, others, and ourselves in that environment as well as grammatical structures and how we can use drama to help students understand their construction and their function. We experience risk taking, group dynamic and co-operation, spontaneity and using our vast imaginations. We all have fast-untapped imaginations and drama helps us to release that potential. Drama encourages all communication skills and stimulates practically all-multiple intelligences.
The Pilgrims' modeled workshop will cover:
- Group dynamics and co-ordination
- Improvisation to relax ourselves and to encourage risk taking and loosening our imaginations
- Improvisation to encourage speaking, dialogue and story creation
- Extending the previous activities to encourage creative writing
- Looking at more complex grammatical structures and drama
- Creating scenarios and play
- Participation during this workshop is strongly recommended.
About the speakers
Andreas Grundtvig is based in Hamburg, Germany where he is also local CambridgeESOL Centre Manager. In his free time he presents regularly, is the Chair of his local teaching association (HELTA) and an ELT author. His most recent book is Basis for Business - New Edition. B2 - Teaching Guide (Cornelsen, 2012) was illustrated by his Lithuanian wife Alma. Beginning his career in 1994, Andreas has also worked in Lithuania, Portugal and France. He is passionate about learner autonomy, pragmatics and imaginative learning.
Peter Dyer has been teaching for over 30 years. He is trained as a drama and media arts teacher of secondary students and completed his training at Melbourne University. He entered the acting profession after graduating and worked in Theatre, Television, Film and Radio. He spent much of that time training young actors and directing plays and helping young actors with audition pieces.
Peter continues to work in Business English and teacher training and he utilises his drama experience with his teaching methodology. Peter attends regular workshops in Improvisation and Story Telling techniques to enhance his work. He believes strongly in the enormous potential of drama in the language classroom and travels extensively encouraging teachers in this work. He is delighted to be part of this program and is convinced that introducing drama at the first stage of teacher training is extremely beneficial to all teachers.
Peter Dyer has been teaching for over 30 years. He is trained as a drama and media arts teacher of secondary students and completed his training at Melbourne University. He entered the acting profession after graduating and worked in Theatre, Television, Film and Radio. He spent much of that time training young actors and directing plays and helping young actors with audition pieces.
Peter continues to work in Business English and teacher training and he utilises his drama experience with his teaching methodology. Peter attends regular workshops in Improvisation and Story Telling techniques to enhance his work. He believes strongly in the enormous potential of drama in the language classroom and travels extensively encouraging teachers in this work. He is delighted to be part of this program and is convinced that introducing drama at the first stage of teacher training is extremely beneficial to all teachers.
Franklin SpellEvent
June 9th, 2012 - 9:00am-4:00pm
Télécom ParisTech
Room: E200
Free for members and non-members!
Interactive Strategies To Build Vocabulary, Comprehension, Higher Order
Thinking Skills, And Authentic Assessment Tools In The CLIL Classroom.
May 26, 2012. 14:00 - 17:00
Télécom ParisTech, Room E200.
A workshop presented by Dr. Linda Gerena Associate Professor of Teacher Education at York College, City University of New York
Further information:
Linda's talks have always been well-received at our TESOL France conferences, therefore we are very pleased to have Linda back for this three-hour event.
The focus of this talk will be to provide hands on practice and application on effective learning tools for their students in CLIL settings. Some of the activities that will be developed during this session are activities geared towards:
The focus of this talk will be to provide hands on practice and application on effective learning tools for their students in CLIL settings. Some of the activities that will be developed during this session are activities geared towards:
- Developing Vocabulary
- Building Comprehension
- Incorporating Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS)
- Expanding critical thinking skills
- Increase authentic formative and summative assessment strategies
The goal is to provide participants with innovative ways to enrich interactive and hands on teaching and assessment in a CLIL environment. As such, this workshop will revolve around specific strategies and that will help teachers provide an effective learning environment for their students in CLIL settings. Participants are asked to bring a copy of a typical language arts or CLIL subject text (science, history, etc.) that they are currently using in their classrooms.
Dr. Linda Gerena is an Associate Professor of Teacher Education at York College, City University of New York. Her professional interests include second language acquisition theory and practice, effective practices in language instruction and bilingual teacher preparation. At York College in the City University of New York, Dr. Gerena teaches classes such as 'Bilingual and English Language Learner Education', 'Early Language and Literacy for English Only & English Language Learners', and 'Content Literacy for Grades 2-6 for English Only & English Language Learners'. As a researcher she is involved in several projects to improve education for English Language Learners and improving literacy practices. As a recipient of a 2011-2012 Fulbright Scholar Award, she is conducting research on bilingual education and teacher/language auxiliary preparation at the UAM during the spring 2012 semester.
English for Scientists Workshop sponsored by Cambridge University Press
April 14, 2012. 14:00 - 17:00
Télécom ParisTech, Room Opale.
Speakers: Bethany Cagnol and Divya Brochier
Further information:
Part 1: Fine-tuning Academic and Scientific Writing Skills with Divya Brochier
The goal of this workshop is to create a collaborative space within which teachers may fine-tune their techniques for the teaching of academic and scientific writing skills in English.The workshop will begin with a brief overview of issues related to academic and scientific writing in English here in France. There will also be some time for the participants to share the pedagogical choices they make in this area of teaching.
The workshop will include:
The goal of this workshop is to create a collaborative space within which teachers may fine-tune their techniques for the teaching of academic and scientific writing skills in English.The workshop will begin with a brief overview of issues related to academic and scientific writing in English here in France. There will also be some time for the participants to share the pedagogical choices they make in this area of teaching.
The workshop will include:
- An overview of sources of written academic register available to teachers.
- Brainstorming on possible techniques to bring these materials to life in the classroom
- Suggestions for the design of writing courses and assessment choices.
- Using Cambridge English for Scientists as classroom support.
The workshop will end with a Q&A and suggestions for further reading.
Part 2: Teaching English to Scientists: Ideas for the classroom with Bethany Cagnol
It can be a challenge to teach students and professionals in the sciences when we ourselves don't have a background in this field. In this workshop we will provide you with some tips and tricks for helping students to develop their spoken communication skills. This workshop will also help teachers know where to go to find background information when dealing with specific scientific themes, extension activities and websites to use in and outside the classroom. We will use ideas taken from the Cambridge English for Scientists Coursebook and Teachers' Book.
Part 3: Cambridge University Press resources with Terry Elliot
Terry Elliott will take you for a short tour of the Cambridge University Press resources in both paper and on-line form.
The Speakers
Divya Brochier teaches English for Academic Purposes at Ecole Centrale de Paris. She works with researchers who need to write and present their work in English, within the field of engineering. She also prepares students for exchange programs with universities in English-speaking countries. Divya is also a Cambridge ESOL examiner.
Bethany Cagnol has an MA in Teaching Second and Foreign Languages from the University of London Institute in Paris and is the currently the president of TESOL France and Treasurer of IATEFL BESIG. She co-authored the Cambridge English for Scientists Teacher's Book with Tamzen Armer.
Terry Elliott, Senior ELT Advisor, Cambridge University Press, taught adults for a number of years in Paris and worked as an ELT Consultant for a bookshop before joining the French team of Cambridge University Press in 1999.
Part 2: Teaching English to Scientists: Ideas for the classroom with Bethany Cagnol
It can be a challenge to teach students and professionals in the sciences when we ourselves don't have a background in this field. In this workshop we will provide you with some tips and tricks for helping students to develop their spoken communication skills. This workshop will also help teachers know where to go to find background information when dealing with specific scientific themes, extension activities and websites to use in and outside the classroom. We will use ideas taken from the Cambridge English for Scientists Coursebook and Teachers' Book.
Part 3: Cambridge University Press resources with Terry Elliot
Terry Elliott will take you for a short tour of the Cambridge University Press resources in both paper and on-line form.
The Speakers
Divya Brochier teaches English for Academic Purposes at Ecole Centrale de Paris. She works with researchers who need to write and present their work in English, within the field of engineering. She also prepares students for exchange programs with universities in English-speaking countries. Divya is also a Cambridge ESOL examiner.
Bethany Cagnol has an MA in Teaching Second and Foreign Languages from the University of London Institute in Paris and is the currently the president of TESOL France and Treasurer of IATEFL BESIG. She co-authored the Cambridge English for Scientists Teacher's Book with Tamzen Armer.
Terry Elliott, Senior ELT Advisor, Cambridge University Press, taught adults for a number of years in Paris and worked as an ELT Consultant for a bookshop before joining the French team of Cambridge University Press in 1999.
Legal English Workshop sponsored by Cambridge University Press
March 17, 2012. 14:00 - 17:00
Télécom ParisTech, Room Opale.
Speaker: William Yeago
Further information:
Most international firms and businesses who work in English find themselves dealing with issues involving varying aspects of contract law, corporate law, and /or employment law. Within these areas of interest lurk misunderstandings in terms and false cognates which are potential minefields.
In this afternoon workshop organized by TESOL France and Cambridge University Press Wiliam Yeago, who is a Paris-based teacher, lawyer, TransLegal representative for France and Benelux and co-author of the teacher's books for Introduction to International Legal English and International Legal English (Cambridge University Press) will provide insights and information on how to avoid pitfalls while helping you develop an effective approach to teaching contract law, company law and legal practice.
William will also inform you about the 'Cambridge English Legal - the International Legal English Certificate' (ILEC) certification designed by Cambridge ESOL and TransLegal to demonstrate to employers and clients that an individual has the English language skills to work in a legal context. He and Terry Elliott, Senior ELT Advisor, Cambridge University Press, will present on- line and paper support for ILEC candidates.
After a question and answer session, Terry Elliott will wrap up the afternoon with a short overview of related and new publications from Cambridge University Press.
We haven't forgotten creature comforts either: refreshments will be provided!
In this afternoon workshop organized by TESOL France and Cambridge University Press Wiliam Yeago, who is a Paris-based teacher, lawyer, TransLegal representative for France and Benelux and co-author of the teacher's books for Introduction to International Legal English and International Legal English (Cambridge University Press) will provide insights and information on how to avoid pitfalls while helping you develop an effective approach to teaching contract law, company law and legal practice.
William will also inform you about the 'Cambridge English Legal - the International Legal English Certificate' (ILEC) certification designed by Cambridge ESOL and TransLegal to demonstrate to employers and clients that an individual has the English language skills to work in a legal context. He and Terry Elliott, Senior ELT Advisor, Cambridge University Press, will present on- line and paper support for ILEC candidates.
After a question and answer session, Terry Elliott will wrap up the afternoon with a short overview of related and new publications from Cambridge University Press.
We haven't forgotten creature comforts either: refreshments will be provided!
William Yeago, (B.A., J.D., LL.M) received his education at Duke University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Sophia University in Tokyo, the Sorbonne in Paris and is a certified English teacher (ESL/EFL) by the California State Board of Education and the Royal Society of Arts (RSA). He studied law at the University of California - San Francisco, Oxford University (Magdalen college), and the University of Paris II (Assas-Pantheon). He was admitted to the State Bar Association of California, the United States Federal Court for the Northern District of California, the California Supreme Court and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He has practiced 10 years in appellate law in the areas of Corporate and Commercial law. He is currently an Adjunct Professor of Foreign Law and Languages at the University of Paris II (Pantheon-Assas), the University of Paris I (Sorbonne) and Head Lecturer and Bar Examiner at the Paris Bar Association Legal Training Centre (EFB). William is a contributor to the Cambridge University Press book International Legal English and advisor for the University of Cambridge ESOL International Legal English Certificate (ILEC) examination.Developing People Internationally and Communicating Internationally in English
February 11th, 2012
Télécom ParisTech
Room: Opale Amphitheater
Further information:
Where is Business English going? Are you keeping track with developments in the field. It is clear that more and more, BE teachers are being expected to help their clients focus on business outcomes and successful international communication rather than on language accuracy and that adding intercultural awareness and interpersonal skills training to your repertoire can provide you with a professional advantage.
York Associates is a training organisation based in York in the north of England which offers various types of trainer training courses to support Business English teachers in their professional development, including two which work on these areas:
York Associates is a training organisation based in York in the north of England which offers various types of trainer training courses to support Business English teachers in their professional development, including two which work on these areas:
- Developing People Internationally (DPI) is a three-day course which has been run successfully in France on several occasions over the last four years, to help trainers to deliver international team training;
- Communicating Internationally in English (CIE) is a new one-day interpersonal skills training course which will be launched in France later in 2012. Descriptions of both courses are below. Both courses will be supported by The Language Network
The three-hour workshop for TESOL France in February will provide participants with a taste of what happens in each of these training courses and will provide insights into both these areas of training. The workshop will stand alone with practical takeaways from both halves, but in addition, attendees will qualify for an additional 5% discount on top of the 15% discount on the standard prices for which TESOL France members are already eligible.
The workshop will be led by Steve Flinders, a director of York Associates.
Developing People Internationally accreditation workshop, Paris, 22 - 24 June
This course is for teachers and coaches who wish to develop their skills to deliver international team training. Participants are introduced to the DPI framework and approach, and familiarised with a flexible collection of video-based materials developed by York Associates. These focus on the common challenges of working in international teams e.g. building team understanding, creating a clear direction, dealing with conflict and achieving cooperation. The course is designed to provide trainers with materials to design their own specialised courses on international team development and is also relevant for those wishing to integrate this topic within their existing teaching practice.
Communicating Internationally in English one day trainer training workshop in 2012
This course aims to develop the core interpersonal skills essential for successful professional communication across cultures. Participants will develop their understanding of some of the fundamental interpersonal communication challenges which support all human communication: clear speaking, effective listening, building relationships, influencing, giving feedback, making collective decisions, facilitating diverse groups, etc. The course will enable participants to develop self-awareness of their own personal communication style, the styles of others and to find strategies to create stronger mutual understanding and achieve better results at work. It will draw on ideas in York Associates' 2011 book, Communicating Internationally in English by Bob Dignen (director of York Associates) and Ian McMaster (editor-in-chief of Business Spotlight magazine).
The workshop will be led by Steve Flinders, a director of York Associates.
Developing People Internationally accreditation workshop, Paris, 22 - 24 June
This course is for teachers and coaches who wish to develop their skills to deliver international team training. Participants are introduced to the DPI framework and approach, and familiarised with a flexible collection of video-based materials developed by York Associates. These focus on the common challenges of working in international teams e.g. building team understanding, creating a clear direction, dealing with conflict and achieving cooperation. The course is designed to provide trainers with materials to design their own specialised courses on international team development and is also relevant for those wishing to integrate this topic within their existing teaching practice.
Communicating Internationally in English one day trainer training workshop in 2012
This course aims to develop the core interpersonal skills essential for successful professional communication across cultures. Participants will develop their understanding of some of the fundamental interpersonal communication challenges which support all human communication: clear speaking, effective listening, building relationships, influencing, giving feedback, making collective decisions, facilitating diverse groups, etc. The course will enable participants to develop self-awareness of their own personal communication style, the styles of others and to find strategies to create stronger mutual understanding and achieve better results at work. It will draw on ideas in York Associates' 2011 book, Communicating Internationally in English by Bob Dignen (director of York Associates) and Ian McMaster (editor-in-chief of Business Spotlight magazine).
A Swap Shop on Fun with Grammar and using the News with Sophie Pietrucci
February 25th, 2012
Télécom ParisTech
Room: B316
Collaborative Writing Activities
January, 14th 2012
Télécom ParisTech
Room: F503
Karen Einstein British Council, Barcelona
Further information:
Teaching writing can be amusing and rewarding for both teachers and students. In this workshop participants will have the opportunity to experiment with a variety of collaborative writing activities and to discuss briefly the aspects of writing practiced. The objectives of the activities include such areas as considering the target reader, building complex sentences, discourse management, focus on grammar / lexis, peer teaching, peer correction, developing classroom rapport and considering culture.
Karen Einstein has given workshops in TEFL for many years for The British Council, The International house, TESOL Spain, Trinity and others. She has a special interest in process and collaborative writing and works in Spain, specializing in teenagers. She particularly enjoys encouraging learners to experiment with different ways of expressing themselves through writing.
Karen Einstein has given workshops in TEFL for many years for The British Council, The International house, TESOL Spain, Trinity and others. She has a special interest in process and collaborative writing and works in Spain, specializing in teenagers. She particularly enjoys encouraging learners to experiment with different ways of expressing themselves through writing.
Young Learners Workshop
December 3rd, 2011
Workshop from 1:00pm to 5:00pm
Followed by the TESOL France Annual General Assembly from 5:00pm to 6:00pm
Télécom ParisTech
Further information:
In this workshop, Peter Dyer will be offering participants a series of activities aimed at getting young learners to improvise using their voices and bodies. They will be involved with activities which will encourage group co-ordination or dynamics, exercises to develop their imaginations, speaking skills and story creation skills. Participants will be encouraged to try out the activities and during the session and ask Peter any questions to clarify the purposes of the activities. Participants can take part actively and openly in all activities and be prepared to take risks so that they are able to benefit from trying out the ideas before analyzing its value in the classroom. If teachers can take these risks, they will be able to pass on the ideas with confidence to their young learners. We are guaranteed to have a lot of fun!
Peter Dyer comes from a theatre background in Melbourne, Australia. He appeared many times on television series and one or two appearances in films. He worked extensively in theatre appearing in improvised productions as well as contemporary and classical theatre. He also worked with voice overs for television, film, training films and radio. He also appeared in plays written for radio. During this time he trained young actors in theatre skills and in the" Theatre of the Grotesque". He is a qualified secondary teacher in Drama and Media Arts and has taught in many secondary and primary schools. His last long standing position in Secondary schools was with Kent College, Kent, Canterbury, teaching English as a second language and Drama from 2003 to 2009. Over many years he has taught English to young adults, children and adults including teacher training. He has used his theatre background to assist teachers in using theatre or drama skills to improve communication in the language classroom and to improve their own communication skills. He is currently working for a major language school in Paris teaching Business English but specializing in communication and presentation skills. He is also working on a book on his experience to offer activities that are useful for teachers of young learners. He continues to work with the Pilgrims organisation mainly in Teacher Training and Business.
Peter Dyer comes from a theatre background in Melbourne, Australia. He appeared many times on television series and one or two appearances in films. He worked extensively in theatre appearing in improvised productions as well as contemporary and classical theatre. He also worked with voice overs for television, film, training films and radio. He also appeared in plays written for radio. During this time he trained young actors in theatre skills and in the" Theatre of the Grotesque". He is a qualified secondary teacher in Drama and Media Arts and has taught in many secondary and primary schools. His last long standing position in Secondary schools was with Kent College, Kent, Canterbury, teaching English as a second language and Drama from 2003 to 2009. Over many years he has taught English to young adults, children and adults including teacher training. He has used his theatre background to assist teachers in using theatre or drama skills to improve communication in the language classroom and to improve their own communication skills. He is currently working for a major language school in Paris teaching Business English but specializing in communication and presentation skills. He is also working on a book on his experience to offer activities that are useful for teachers of young learners. He continues to work with the Pilgrims organisation mainly in Teacher Training and Business.
Classroom Ideas that Work!
October 8th, 2011
Télécom ParisTech
Speaker: Dennis Davy
Further Information:
In this workshop, Dennis will share a dozen of his favourite and most effective language teaching activities and techniques:
- Using authentic videos to encourage creative story-telling
- Ideas for exploiting newspapers in class
- How to encourage students to listen to each other's oral presentations
- Creative ways of giving feedback on students' oral and written work
- Integrating music and song and art into language lessons
- Motivating students to read authentic short stories
- Stimulating newspaper articles with effective reading and vocabulary activities
- Getting on with phrasal verbs
- Integrating spelling rules with pronunciation teaching
- Using authentic crosswords and creating your own
- Practising verbs and nouns of upward and downward movement
Participants will leave the session with a pack of ready-to-use, tried and tested exercises and techniques that they can use and adapt in their own classes.
Dennis Davy is Lecturer in English at EDHEC Business School in Lille and at the Ecole Polytechnique in Paris; he is also a teacher trainer on Cambridge ESOL's DELTA blended learning programme in Strasbourg. He studied French and German at Oxford University, ELT at Lancaster and English and Applied Linguistics at Cambridge. Over a career of more than 30 years in TEFL, he has taught English and trained teachers in Germany, Japan, Algeria, Qatar, Oman and France. His research interests include lexicology, language testing, the teaching of spelling, the role of art, music and song in language learning, the different cultures of the English-speaking world, British media, language teacher education and English for business and law. Dennis is a passionate language learner and dedicated world traveller.Franklin SpellEvent - France
May 28th, 2011 8:30am-6:30pm
Télécom ParisTech
Room: Emeraude
Students compete for a trip to New York City!
Teacher CVs and Interview Techniques
April 2nd, 2011 2pm-5pm
Télécom ParisTech
Room: G6-1
Led by Bethany Cagnol and Erin Douglas
Further Information:
Presented by TESOL France President, Bethany Cagnol and Director of Studies, Erin Douglas.
This interactive workshop will focus on the professional development of language teachers by helping them update their CVs and prepare for future interviews. While this workshop is geared toward teachers, attendees will also receive CV and interview ideas they can use with their own students.
Erin and Bethany will be speaking about:
- The Dos and Don'ts of teacher CVs
- What's missing and what should be removed
- Overall CV design
- Interviewing techniques
- Answering tough questions
Join us in what promises to be a very informative and lively workshop.
English360 Hands-On Workshop
March 26th, 2011 2pm-5pm
Presented by Valentina Dodge and Byron Russell
Télécom ParisTech, Room B310
Further Information:
Important: Be sure to bring your laptop computer and an ethernet cable to connect to the Internet on the day.
Developments in learning technologies and trends in blended course delivery pose new challenges to educators and learners in terms of maintaining the flow and pace of personalised learning paths. This workshop will give attendees first-hand experience of how the tools available on the English360 web-based platform can personalize learning, keep learners motivated, forward-bound and "on track" to achieve their own goals.
Using blended modes of delivery to provide learners with introductory or follow-up activities, revision exercises, core or supplementary language activities, educators often find that the additional course-related information and communication channels used to support face-to-face or distance learning programmes can create new learning opportunities whilst also making it more challenging to keep learners on their individual learning paths. In this session, we will consider how educators can keep individual learners, whether in-group or one-to-one scenarios, engaged and on track when supplementing courses with authentic materials from the web or extending discussions beyond the four walls of the classroom.
The workshop will be hands-on and focus the English360 "learning path" tools that can be used for:
Using blended modes of delivery to provide learners with introductory or follow-up activities, revision exercises, core or supplementary language activities, educators often find that the additional course-related information and communication channels used to support face-to-face or distance learning programmes can create new learning opportunities whilst also making it more challenging to keep learners on their individual learning paths. In this session, we will consider how educators can keep individual learners, whether in-group or one-to-one scenarios, engaged and on track when supplementing courses with authentic materials from the web or extending discussions beyond the four walls of the classroom.
The workshop will be hands-on and focus the English360 "learning path" tools that can be used for:
- Goal setting: identifying learner aims via integrated needs analysis tools and needs tagging,
- Personalising ready-made content : pulling content from a range of sources (the web, re-purposed CUP books, Creative Commons courses already available in English360),
- Ongoing course design: flexible, dynamic course creation made possible by online tools such as the course organizer and the draft/publish mode,
- Performance monitoring: giving learners control of flow and pace, in conjunction with course moderator. Instant access to scores, answers and records of results, to promote self-direction motivating and increasing learner involvement : suggestions on supporting teacher-learner and peer interaction,
- Creating activities around user-generated content: using the self-authoring tools to seamless deliver relevant exercises and consolidation tasks.
Valentina Dodge is Learning Manager for English360 where she oversees content, pedagogy, teaching, and academic matters for English360. She works closely with educators and school owners on a global scale to help them provide personalised English learning programmes to meet their student and customer needs. She collaborates with and supports English language teachers all over the world to help them publish and share lesson and courses for blended or online delivery. She organizes training sessions and support forums on instructional design and blended course organization to allow educators to combine their own materials and lesson plans with high quality course material from Cambridge University Press.
Byron Russell started his career as an ELT teacher back in 1985, and subsequently moved into publishing. He has since spent more than twenty years in sales management, working with global UK and US-based educational and trade publishers. He first became involved in the business development of web-based learning materials in 1999, and since then has supported the growth of some of the innovators in this rapidly-expanding field.Motion and Emotion: Exploring powerful theatre techniques for EFL teaching
February 12th, 2011 2pm-5pm
Presented by Monika Gora
Télécom ParisTech
Further Information:
This session explores a range of theatre techniques highly effective when applied to EFL teaching. Examining their use to advance the students' linguistic abilities, self-expression and self-confidence. It aims to provide participants with a series of theatre-based techniques that allow teachers to teach more effectively by taking a more creative approach.
The workshop is aimed at teachers of English as a foreign language introducing drama based methods as a tool for learning.
Monika Gora has had a long carrier in teacher training and teaching several languages with the particular focus on the English language through arts. She is the founder and the director of the International School For Creative Learning successfully incorporating theatre, improvisation, music and art into language teaching. The school specialises in organising inspiring and innovative summer and Easter programmes in the UK for young learners (12-19) as well as teacher training exploring theatre for effective classroom teaching.More info at www.creative-english.co.uk
Going Independent Part 3: Round Table Discussion on Auto-Entrepreneur
January 22nd, 2011 2pm-5pm
Télécom ParisTech
Beyond the Language of Meetings: Culture in a Business Context
January 8th 2011 (2-5pm)
Presented by Linda S. Vignac, an expert in Intercultural Communication, Management and Pedagogy
Télécom ParisTech
Further Information:
So what happened at the meeting? Learners knew how to express ideas and opinions, agree and disagree, make suggestions... Yet when the meeting started, Sergio wouldn't let them finish their sentences; Yomika didn't say a word and Jim rushed through all the items on the agenda without leaving any time for discussing alternatives.
This workshop will be the opportunity for teachers to experience firsthand the affect of cultural differences on communication through a meeting simulation involving members of an international team. The simulation will be followed by debriefing with a presentation of the cultural dimensions involved, some useful teaching points, the exchange of ideas and questions.
Linda S. Vignac is a Franco-American pedagogue and teacher trainer and has been creating dynamic training activities for over 20 years. She began her career as an ESL Teacher/Trainer at Langues et Entreprises, one of Paris' leading corporate training companies, where she created and facilitated programs for adult professionals from a wide range of sectors: banking & finance, automobile, pharmaceutical, aerospace, insurance, hotel & tourism etc. At Langues et Enterprises still today, she is the Director of Training & Program Design as well as an author and independent consultant. Her responsibilities include ongoing training and mentoring of trainers representing over 30 nationalities. She creates and facilitates workshops and seminars on intercultural communication, management, team-building and pedagogy in both English and French throughout Europe.Association Annual General Meeting
January 8th 2011 (5-6pm)
Télécom ParisTech
Roundtable Discussion: Vacataire, CDD, CDI?
November 13th 2010 (2-5pm)
Télécom ParisTech. Room C48
Chaired by: Sophie Pietrucci. Conducted in French and English
Swap Shop: Stand up, speak out ! (Encouraging our students to speak)
November 6th, 2010, 2pm-5pm
Télécom ParisTech
Further Information:
What to do: select an activity you’ve tried with your students and come to the Swapshop to share it with other motivated and dynamic teachers.
How to register: go to tesol-france.org, click on events and follow the instructions.
A computer, an internet connexion, a CD/DVD player, a VCR and a video projector will be available.
Workshop: Going Independent Part 2: Clients and Paperwork
March 20th 2010 2 - 5pm
Presented by TESOL France President, Bethany Cagnol and ExCom member, Elaine Henry.
Télécom ParisTech
Further Information:
TESOL France President, Bethany Cagnol, and fellow Executive Committee member, Elaine Henry, team up for "Independents' Day Part 2". This 3-hour workshop is for independents and non-independents.
Elaine and Bethany will be speaking about:
Elaine and Bethany will be speaking about:
- Getting and maintaining clients,
- Time management,
- Late-payment issues,
- Paperwork,
- URSSAF,
- Using Excel,
- Autonomously managing one's accounts.
Since this workshop is Part 2 in the series, the speakers won't go into too much detail on how to become a travailleur independant. But for highlights from Part 1 on how to go freelance, Bethany Cagnol has created a handy blog: The Freelance Teacher in France . The speakers recommend attendees read the articles from the blog before coming to this workshop. Get your questions in now, by posting them on the blog. The speakers will then try to incorporate them into the workshop.
Join us in what promises to be a very informative and lively discussion.
Bethany Cagnol is the President of TESOL France. She has a BA from the University of Virginia and an MA in Teaching Second and Foreign Languages from the University of London Institute in Paris. She has spoken at IATEFL, BESIG, IATEFL Poland, and the American University of Paris Conferences. Bethany organizes conferences for TESOL France. She has also written for the publisher Cornelsen. Her professional interests include Business English, Testing and Assessment, Teacher Development, English for Specific Purposes, English as a lingua franca and Materials Design.
Elaine Henry earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in French and Spanish from the University of Bradford and then decided to make a life for herself in France. She tested a number of professional waters including PA work and English teaching. However, more exotic destinations (with warmer waters!) were on the horizon... A 3-and-a-half-year stint in Guadeloupe enabled her to complement her office skills with a graphic arts qualification. After returning to work in the UK, she took up an offer in Paris to become PA to the 'PDG' of an Afro-Caribbean radio station, Media Tropical, which is sadly now off-the-air. This closure was the perfect opening for Elaine to change directions and settle down doing what she really enjoyed: English language training. She gained experience working in language schools and trained to become a 'Formateur-Coach'. She then decided to take the plunge (or more like walk on water...) and become a self-employed English trainer. Her core purpose for language teaching is personal development of trainees. Using English to help them to communicate confidently is a means to this end. She also trains groups of professionals from the medical field who want to improve their oral communication skills in English.
Workshop: Falling salaries and prices, increasing competition from web 2.0 technologies and low cost distance learning, a major reform of training law under way: what future for face to face language trainers in France.
March 6th 2010 1-5pm
Presented by Andrew Wickham
Télécom ParisTech
Further information:
Entrance fee for members and non-members: €25
The rise of distance learning and the Blended revolution are having an increasing impact on the traditional language training industry in France, which could be on the eve of a major transformation. Today, face to face training with teachers based in France accounts for 80 to 90% of language training, but if the current trends persist, will distance learning by telephone or visioconference, using "offshore" trainers working in countries where salary costs are much lower, replace face to face training in the coming years? Is e-learning, thanks to Web 2.0 technology and broadband access, finally coming into its own? What are the comparative advantages and disadvantages of distance learning over face to face training? How are traditional training organizations coping? Is the market going to concentrate? What do face to face trainers need to do to stay competitive? With prices and salaries under even greater pressure from the economic crisis, and worsening work conditions, what incentives are there for providing the high level, personalised professional training that many clients say they want today? How will the current reform of training law impact the market in 2010 ? Will the trends currently developing in France spread throughout Europe in the coming years? These are some of the questions that the Linguaid market study set out to find answers to in early 2008. Nearly 2 years later, Andrew Wickham, the writer of the market study report, which was published in Spring 2009, will present the study, which has been updated for 2010, and discuss some of the findings that directly concern trainers. The workshop will be as interactive as possible. This will be followed by an open discussion with participants.Andrew Wickham began as a language trainer then moved to training management, set up and ran a training company, then moved to project management of industrial blended learning systems. He currently works as a consultant. His specialties include: Designing, building and running large-scale integrated training systems, strategic consultancy, managing language and communication training projects, cross-cultural training for business communication, and communication coaching.
Workshop: Mix & Match - how tagging and playlist-courses can create personalised blended learning paths for BE students
January 30th 2010 2pm - 5pm
Presented by Cleve Miller and Valentina Dodge
Télécom ParisTech
Further Information:
The first decade of the 21st century has already seen some strong web 2.0 features emerge. Web users can easily create, network, personalise, share and self-organise. So language-learning content also needs to be co-created and not just delivered by 'experts' but by teachers, school staff and learners. With English360, a whole new approach to materials development and course design is now available. This method involves mixing and matching material from learners, their company, authentic web resources, mp3 or pdf files, and other shared resources from teachers worldwide. Teachers can also integrate their own course material seamlessly with 25 Cambridge University Press titles that have recently been repurposed for online/blended delivery within the English360 platform. This new generation of content creation (which is entirely free for educators) moves beyond the traditional book, photocopier or scissors-and-glue approach. It enables teachers to create tailor-made activities that are uniquely relevant (real-world) performance-based.
The workshop will start off with an overview of the web today, and will outline the rapid shifts now occurring in publishing. It will address Business English needs assessment and the issues involved in blended course design, as well as offering advice on materials development. It will illustrate tags and tagging and show how digital tools can make the needs analysis process fast, accurate and ongoing. Tagged material and cross-referenced resources mean teachers can pull content from as wide a range of sources as possible to create individualised 'course' books much as you can shuffle playlists on an mp3 device.
The easy-to-use English360 self-authoring tools, which can be used to create a wide range of activities, will be demonstrated during this hands-on workshop, together with the course management features of the platform. The session will be entirely interactive and involve open discussion with participants.
The three-hour workshop will cover:
Trends
The workshop will start off with an overview of the web today, and will outline the rapid shifts now occurring in publishing. It will address Business English needs assessment and the issues involved in blended course design, as well as offering advice on materials development. It will illustrate tags and tagging and show how digital tools can make the needs analysis process fast, accurate and ongoing. Tagged material and cross-referenced resources mean teachers can pull content from as wide a range of sources as possible to create individualised 'course' books much as you can shuffle playlists on an mp3 device.
The easy-to-use English360 self-authoring tools, which can be used to create a wide range of activities, will be demonstrated during this hands-on workshop, together with the course management features of the platform. The session will be entirely interactive and involve open discussion with participants.
The three-hour workshop will cover:
Trends
- Web 2.0
- Blended learning
- Personalising training programmes
- Shifts in publishing
- The English360 philosophy
Business English
- Needs assessment/analysis
- Existing systems
- English360 tagging
- Finding content - CUP cross-referenced content
Using English360
- Creating courses
- Self-authoring activities
- Mixing & matching CUP content
- Sharing content
- 'Managing' learners
Since 1989 Cleve Miller has designed, managed and taught business English programs in 11 countries to thousands of students in over fifty Global-500 companies. He has been named a 'global expert' by the American Society of Training and Development and, since about 1998, has had a single-minded obsession with effective use of the web for learner-centred language teaching. Originally from Kansas, he is currently based out of Cambridge, UK.
Valentina Dodge is Teacher Community Coordinator for English360, where she helps educators provide personalised Business English learning programmes to meet their student and customer needs. She collaborates with, and supports, Business English language teachers all over the world to help them publish and share lessons and courses for blended or online delivery. She organises training sessions and support forums on instructional design and blended course organisation, to allow educators to combine their own materials and lesson plans with high quality course material from Cambridge University Press.TESOL France General Assembly & Swapshop: Learner Autonomy Led by Sophie Pietrucci
November 28th 2009 2-5pm
Télécom ParisTech
Further Information:
During our swapshop on fostering students' autonomy, we will give ideas on how to:
- Target our students objectives and meeting their specific needs?
- Raise students' awareness of ways of identifying goals and finding resources which will help them meet these goals?
- Set up "learning to learn" strategies?
- Provide relevant and step by step self-assessment grids for students to reflect on the learning process?
The participants in this workshop will share practical activities to improve students' autonomy, to reduce Teacher Talking Time (TTT), to encourage student-centred classroom activities.
Ready to use worksheets will be available for all participants.
What to do: Select an activity that worked well with your students and come to the Swapshop to share it with eager teachers.
How to participate: Write a one-page document stating the aim, the level, the time needed, the detailed instructions.
Workshop: The French Language Training Market in the Context of Globalization
October 17th 2009: 1:30-5:30pm
Télécom ParisTech
Presented by Andrew Wickham
Further Information:
Entrance fee for members and non-members: €25
The rise of distance learning and the Blended revolution are having an increasing impact on the traditional language training industry in France, which could be on the eve of a major transformation. Today, face to face training with teachers based in France accounts for 80 to 90% of language training, but if the current trends persist, will distance learning by telephone or visioconference, using "offshore" trainers working in countries where salary costs are much lower, replace face to face training in the coming years? Is e-learning, thanks to Web 2.0 technology and broadband access, finally coming into its own? What are the comparative advantages and disadvantages of distance learning over face to face training? How are traditional training organizations coping? Is the market going to concentrate? What do face to face trainers need to do to stay competitive? With prices stagnating since 2000 and salaries of qualified trainers falling, what incentives are there for providing the high level, personalised professional training that clients say they want today? Will the trends currently developing in France spread throughout Europe in the coming years?
These are some of the questions that the Linguaid market study set out to find answers to in early 2008. One year later, Andrew Wickham, the writer of the market study report, which was published in Spring 2009, will present the study and discuss some of the findings that directly concern trainers. The workshop will be as interactive as possible. This will be followed by an open discussion with participants.
Andrew Wickham began as a language trainer then moved to training management, set up and ran a training company, and finally moved to project management of industrial blended learning systems. He currently teaches cross-cultural communication and works as a consultant. His specialties include: Designing, building and running large-scale integrated training systems, strategic consultancy, managing language and communication training companies, cross-cultural training for business communication, and communication coaching.
The rise of distance learning and the Blended revolution are having an increasing impact on the traditional language training industry in France, which could be on the eve of a major transformation. Today, face to face training with teachers based in France accounts for 80 to 90% of language training, but if the current trends persist, will distance learning by telephone or visioconference, using "offshore" trainers working in countries where salary costs are much lower, replace face to face training in the coming years? Is e-learning, thanks to Web 2.0 technology and broadband access, finally coming into its own? What are the comparative advantages and disadvantages of distance learning over face to face training? How are traditional training organizations coping? Is the market going to concentrate? What do face to face trainers need to do to stay competitive? With prices stagnating since 2000 and salaries of qualified trainers falling, what incentives are there for providing the high level, personalised professional training that clients say they want today? Will the trends currently developing in France spread throughout Europe in the coming years?These are some of the questions that the Linguaid market study set out to find answers to in early 2008. One year later, Andrew Wickham, the writer of the market study report, which was published in Spring 2009, will present the study and discuss some of the findings that directly concern trainers. The workshop will be as interactive as possible. This will be followed by an open discussion with participants.
Andrew Wickham began as a language trainer then moved to training management, set up and ran a training company, and finally moved to project management of industrial blended learning systems. He currently teaches cross-cultural communication and works as a consultant. His specialties include: Designing, building and running large-scale integrated training systems, strategic consultancy, managing language and communication training companies, cross-cultural training for business communication, and communication coaching.
Workshop: The Power of Image: Developing a Visual Literacy in the Language Classroom
October 3rd 2009: 2-5pm
Télécom ParisTech
Presented by Ben Goldstein
Further Information:
This practical workshop will analyse ways images have been traditionally used in the language classroom and seek out some alternatives for the future. With the advent of digital technology, we will address the need to place the image at the centre of our classroom practice, exploring ways to help learners not only describe but also interpret images and thus become more visually literate.
Back by popular demand, Ben Goldstein spoke at the TESOL France 27th Annual Colloquium in 2008.
Ben Goldstein lives in Barcelona and has taught English for over twenty years in the UK, Spain and Hong Kong. He currently teaches online at the Catalan Open University (UOC) and on the New School's MATESOL program in New York. He has published the teachers' methodology handbook Working with Images (Cambridge) and is author of the adult coursebook series New Framework (Richmond Publishing). His website is: www.bengoldstein.es.
Back by popular demand, Ben Goldstein spoke at the TESOL France 27th Annual Colloquium in 2008.
Ben Goldstein lives in Barcelona and has taught English for over twenty years in the UK, Spain and Hong Kong. He currently teaches online at the Catalan Open University (UOC) and on the New School's MATESOL program in New York. He has published the teachers' methodology handbook Working with Images (Cambridge) and is author of the adult coursebook series New Framework (Richmond Publishing). His website is: www.bengoldstein.es.Young Learners Workshop: Using Authentic Storybooks in the English Language
September 26th 2009: 3:30-5:30pm
Télécom ParisTech
Presented by: Jo Bertrand and Nicky Francis (The Story Seeds)
Further Information:
The Story Seeds: Discovering English through storybooks
This hands-on workshop provides a fresh look at using authentic storybooks with primary children learning English as a Foreign Language.
Many teachers are reluctant to use authentic storybooks. In our workshop we will discover the reasons why they should use them. Then together, we will explore how they can use them.
Jo Bertrand is the educational advisor for British Council language assistants in primary schools worldwide and a senior teacher at the British Council in Paris. She is currently co-writing a course book for primary children learning English.
Nicky Francis is a teacher and teacher trainer at the British Council, Paris. She is currently involved in a storybook project for the British Council network. Together they are the co-founders of The Story Seeds, an association which promotes the use of authentic storybooks in the English language classroom.Workshop: Legal English
June 13th 2009: 2-5pm
Télécom ParisTech
Presented by: William Yeago
Further information:
Free for TESOL France members. 8€ for non-members.
Discovering you are about to teach a group of legal professionals can be a daunting prospect. The language required to communicate is becoming more professional and more specialized in today's multi-nationalized world. This workshop will demonstrate that one does not require a specialized background in law to teach students in Legal English. William Yeago will share his experience preparing students in Legal English. He will explain how teachers can approach these specialized classes, how to prepare, how to focus on the language and where to find appropriate and relevant materials.
William Yeago is an American lawyer who teaches Legal English at the Universities of Paris I Sorbonne and Paris II Assas, He is the Head Lecturer and Bar Examiner for the Paris Bar Association and co-contributor to the Cambridge University Press books, International Legal English and Introduction to International Legal English. He is also a legal advisor for the International Legal English Certificate (ILEC) examination developed by Cambridge ESOL and Translegal.
Discovering you are about to teach a group of legal professionals can be a daunting prospect. The language required to communicate is becoming more professional and more specialized in today's multi-nationalized world. This workshop will demonstrate that one does not require a specialized background in law to teach students in Legal English. William Yeago will share his experience preparing students in Legal English. He will explain how teachers can approach these specialized classes, how to prepare, how to focus on the language and where to find appropriate and relevant materials.
William Yeago is an American lawyer who teaches Legal English at the Universities of Paris I Sorbonne and Paris II Assas, He is the Head Lecturer and Bar Examiner for the Paris Bar Association and co-contributor to the Cambridge University Press books, International Legal English and Introduction to International Legal English. He is also a legal advisor for the International Legal English Certificate (ILEC) examination developed by Cambridge ESOL and Translegal.Workshop: Pearson Test of English Academic: Developing an innovative test of academic English
May 16th 2009
Télécom ParisTech
Professor Dr. John H.A.L. de Jong and Michael Howard
Further information:
Mike Howard, Manager for Western Europe, will give an introduction to Pearson and Pearson Language Tests before handing over to John H.A.L. de Jong, Vice President Test Development.
John will present information on a brand new English language test, PTE Academic, aimed at assessing students’ ability to cope with the language requirements in academic settings. The test will be available on demand and will require students to deal with authentic language as used in academic settings in universities around the world where English is the language of instruction.
The test will make use of a large number of different innovative item types to ensure a complete picture of candidates' language abilities and to minimize the dependency on multiple choice items. The tasks operationalized in the tests will require interactive and integrative usage of language skills. In this workshop John will demonstrate how all four skills, reading, writing, speaking and listening will be addressed in a single session and how student responses will be rated centrally to avoid dependence on local tolerance for internationally less effective usages. The test will be administered in secure test centres worldwide. Several methods have been used to ensure alignment with the Common European Framework for Languages. Furthermore we expect results will be available to candidates themselves and to a number of universities of their choice within 5 business days.
John H.A.L. de Jong is Vice President of Test Development at Pearson. He has over 30 years experience in language testing. John graduated in General Linguistics, French and English languages from Leiden University and obtained a Ph.D. in Educational Measurement from Twente University. He has published articles and books on language assessment and educational measurement. He has specialised in empirical scaling and the development of internationally standardised reporting scales of language proficiency. He was involved in developing the Common European Framework for Languages. Before starting his career in language testing, John had been teaching French for seven years in secondary schools.
Mike Howard came to France in 1992 as a musician touring in a band. After meeting his future wife (and waving goodbye to the camper van!) he decided on a career in teaching. This included three years spent at the Calandretta - a local Occitan school in Montpellier. He specialised in a communicative task based approach to language acquisition going against the grain of grammar driven learning and introduced new evaluation and grading processes based on positive achievement. Following this he spent three years as a trainer for AFPA (National Vocational Training Organisation) and took a key role in a national project developing evaluation methods and certification within specific vocational domains.
After studying and obtaining an MBA at the Montpellier Business School (where he won the Prix d'excellence) he began working as Business Development Manager for Pearson Language Tests developing a network of Test Centres throughout France and Switzerland. He now is responsible for managing PLT in France, Switzerland, Spain Italy and Portugal.
John will present information on a brand new English language test, PTE Academic, aimed at assessing students’ ability to cope with the language requirements in academic settings. The test will be available on demand and will require students to deal with authentic language as used in academic settings in universities around the world where English is the language of instruction.
The test will make use of a large number of different innovative item types to ensure a complete picture of candidates' language abilities and to minimize the dependency on multiple choice items. The tasks operationalized in the tests will require interactive and integrative usage of language skills. In this workshop John will demonstrate how all four skills, reading, writing, speaking and listening will be addressed in a single session and how student responses will be rated centrally to avoid dependence on local tolerance for internationally less effective usages. The test will be administered in secure test centres worldwide. Several methods have been used to ensure alignment with the Common European Framework for Languages. Furthermore we expect results will be available to candidates themselves and to a number of universities of their choice within 5 business days.
John H.A.L. de Jong is Vice President of Test Development at Pearson. He has over 30 years experience in language testing. John graduated in General Linguistics, French and English languages from Leiden University and obtained a Ph.D. in Educational Measurement from Twente University. He has published articles and books on language assessment and educational measurement. He has specialised in empirical scaling and the development of internationally standardised reporting scales of language proficiency. He was involved in developing the Common European Framework for Languages. Before starting his career in language testing, John had been teaching French for seven years in secondary schools.
Mike Howard came to France in 1992 as a musician touring in a band. After meeting his future wife (and waving goodbye to the camper van!) he decided on a career in teaching. This included three years spent at the Calandretta - a local Occitan school in Montpellier. He specialised in a communicative task based approach to language acquisition going against the grain of grammar driven learning and introduced new evaluation and grading processes based on positive achievement. Following this he spent three years as a trainer for AFPA (National Vocational Training Organisation) and took a key role in a national project developing evaluation methods and certification within specific vocational domains.
After studying and obtaining an MBA at the Montpellier Business School (where he won the Prix d'excellence) he began working as Business Development Manager for Pearson Language Tests developing a network of Test Centres throughout France and Switzerland. He now is responsible for managing PLT in France, Switzerland, Spain Italy and Portugal.
Swapshop - Video/DVD
April 4th 2009
Led by Sophie Pietrucci
Télécom ParisTech
Workshop: Helping our Learners Sing a Better Song: What makes our students grow?
March 14th 2009: 2-5pm
Presented by Chaz Pugliese, Pilgrims
Télécom ParisTech
Further information:
In this session Chaz Pugliese will firstly suggest that students learn more efficiently when they are taught in ways that are meaningful to them. He will then go on to say that when the teachers challenge their students beyond the language, linguistic and intellectual development are likely to occur. And finally Chaz will argue that teachers need creative approaches to arouse their learners' curiosity and help them sustain attention.
Chaz Pugliese is currently Director of Studies (Teacher Training) at Pilgrims, UK. A regular presenter at international conferences, Chaz has contributed over 60 articles to several ELT publications and has worked with teachers in 25 countries. Chaz's first book Creative Strategies for Teachers will be published by Delta in 2009. A second one (with Simon Mumford and Mario Rinvolucri) on Teaching Spoken Grammar will be out in 2010. When he's not teaching, Chaz likes to play the blues on his beloved Gibson guitar.Workshop - Web 2.02: Audacity - Creating Podcasts
February 14th, 2009
Led by Laurence Whiteside
Télécom ParisTech
Further information:
Led by Laurence Whiteside
Audacity is a free sound editing program for Windows, Mac or Linux. In this workshop I will show you how you can use Audacity to:
- record streaming media from the Internet,
- take short extracts from long recordings (e.g. a short report from a 20 minute podcast),
- make your own recordings, or even a class podcast,
- digitize your tapes.
If you have a laptop, I'd be grateful if you could install Audacity on it beforehand and bring it along to the session. If you have a microphone or headset, bring that too. If you don't have your own equipment, no problem - come along anyway!
You can download Audacity here: http://audacity.sourceforge.net/download.
We'll be working with version 1.2.6
Creating web-based activities with Hot Potatoes
Also: The TESOL France Annual General Assembly
December 13, 2008
Led by Laurence Whiteside and Sab Will
Télécom ParisTech
Further information:
Led by Laurence Whiteside, and Sab Will, Editor of The Teaching Times and Blogmaster.
Hot Potatoes is a suite of programs for PCs and Macs, to allow you you to create interactive exercises, including multiple-choice, short-answer, jumbled-sentence, crossword, matching / ordering and gap-fills, for the World Wide Web. In this workshop, Laurence Whiteside and Sab Will will show you how to:
Hot Potatoes is a suite of programs for PCs and Macs, to allow you you to create interactive exercises, including multiple-choice, short-answer, jumbled-sentence, crossword, matching / ordering and gap-fills, for the World Wide Web. In this workshop, Laurence Whiteside and Sab Will will show you how to:
- create simple, interactive exercises with no technical knowledge,
- create more complicated exercises including images, sound and video files,
- put your exercises on the Internet.
We would like this workshop to be as "hands on" as possible. Therefore, we ask those of you who have laptops to install Hot Potatoes beforehand and bring them to the session. You can download Hot Potatoes from hotpot.uvic.ca.
Swap Shop
October 25th, 2008
Télécom ParisTech
Web 2.0 for Dummies (and English Teachers)
Saturday, September 27th, 2008
Led by Sab Will, Editor of The Teaching Times and Blogmaster
Télécom ParisTech
Further information:
Led by Sab Will, Editor of The Teaching Times and Blogmaster.
Following on from his successful presentation at the Best of BESIG Spring Day, and using a live internet connection, Sab leads you where few English teachers have gone before: right to the heart of the New Web. Discover how the average teacher can easily master and exploit some fascinating resources immediately with their students.
The idea is that we have plenty of time to show more examples and demos, ask more questions, and go into more detail on exactly how to use this amazing stuff in class.
Indeed, one of the main aims will be to combine my offerings with attendees' own experience to all get lots of new ideas and inspiration from the session.
Following on from his successful presentation at the Best of BESIG Spring Day, and using a live internet connection, Sab leads you where few English teachers have gone before: right to the heart of the New Web. Discover how the average teacher can easily master and exploit some fascinating resources immediately with their students.
The idea is that we have plenty of time to show more examples and demos, ask more questions, and go into more detail on exactly how to use this amazing stuff in class.
Indeed, one of the main aims will be to combine my offerings with attendees' own experience to all get lots of new ideas and inspiration from the session.
Activity Swap Shop
May 17th, 2008
Télécom ParisTech
Designing Materials to Teach Spoken English
April 26th, 2008
Led by Ivor Timmis
Télécom ParisTech
Further information:
In recent years, increased knowledge about spoken English has not been matched by increased knowledge about how to design materials to teach it: this workshop aims to bridge the gap. The workshop has 2 main aims:
- To provide a framework for identifying features of spoken English which are of potential value to learners.
- To provide a framework for using authentic conversations to raise awareness of spoken language.
Throughout the workshop we will be looking at authentic conversations as a source for materials. We will begin by identifying features in the conversations which are typical of spoken language, but not generally covered in coursebooks (and sometimes not even described in grammars). I will then argue that teachers' conversations, particular teachers' anecdotes, are a potentially rich source of material for teaching spoken language and demonstrate how such material can be transformed into effective teaching materials using a principled framework of tasks which focus on both the linguistic and cultural content of the conversations. Participants will have the opportunity to apply the framework to authentic conversations through a 'hands-on' session and to discuss and evaluate the materials they produce. We will close with questions on issues related to the teaching of the spoken language which have arisen during the day.
Ivor Timmis runs the MA in ELT Materials Design at Leeds Metropolitan University.
Workshop limited to 15 people.
Event free to TESOL France members.
Past workshops
Developing People Internationally
led by: Steve Flinders
Is it Worth Being a Vacataire?
led by: Harold Surguine (1993 TESOL France President) and Sophie Pietrucci (2008 TESOL France Secretary)
For more information on Vacataire Status in France, download this document, "Language Teachers: are they vacataires?" English Version and Version Francaise.
Going Independent - how to become a freelance teacher
led by: Bethany Cagnol
Using Drama in the Classroom
led by: Tonya Trapp
Telephoning
led by: John Hession
NLP in the Workplace
led by: Mario Rinvolucri
The Silent Way
led by: Glenys Hanson
Enhancing Student Creativity: Films, Talks, and Debates
led by: Marianne Raynaud
Pronunciation 1 and 2
led by: Vicki Moore
Needs Analysis and Language Audit
Led by: Michael Ashworth
Coaching and Language Coaching
Led by: Niamh Texier
Working with Videos and Transcripts
Teacher Awareness in a Self-directed Learning Context
Forum Day
Including: Ian Bell, James Cox, Dennis Davy, Diann Gruber, Chaz Pugliese, Hester Poumellec, Paul Sanderson, and Jan Tabet
Teaching Business Writing
Led by: Mary Jo Calderon
PowerPoint Workshop
Led by: Denny Packard
Self-directed Learning Special Interest Group
Led by: Barbara Tavares
Teaching the Use of Transparencies in Business Presentations
Led by: Anais Laurent
Primary Teaching Day
In association with The British Council
Skills Needed for Internet Project Work
Video in ELT
Micro-assessment, Developing Levels Definition Grids from Specific Individual Cases, and Humour in Assessment.
Using News Media in the Classroom
Led by: Michael Fouassier, John Harrop, and Paul Sanderon
Ideas for Making Translation More Motivating
Led by: Francoise Grellet
Phonetic Correction Stimulating Spontaneous Speech
Led by: Ljerka Guberina
Annual colloquium
We hold an international conference, the Annual Colloquium every year in November.
More information, dates, call for proposals and delegate registration are available via the Colloquium page.
More information, dates, call for proposals and delegate registration are available via the Colloquium page.