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Please join us for this series of webinars covering current trends in English Language Teaching Click the button below for a complete list of presentations.
Brought to you by Cambridge University Press
February 19th - 21st
Tuesday 30 October
Wednesday 31 October
Thursday 1 November
Friday 2 November
This webinar will focus on a variety of activities that will expand our resources for grammar instruction. We will cover a range of activities including engaging, yet meaningful ways to practice vocabulary, grammar charts, reading, writing, and editing. Each of the activities focus on different aspects of grammar instruction from making structured practice more fun while providing a foundation, to activities that integrate grammar across reading and writing, thus helping students be more successful in applying their knowledge of grammar. We will begin with vocabulary and grammar activities, and then move to activities that practice grammar in context. Ideas for using/adapting these practical activities in levels from High Beginner through Advanced learners will be presented.
As teachers, we have all been exposed to ideas from our teacher preparation classes about how students learn and what helps to make teaching/learning effective. But when we get into our classrooms, we often find that we are juggling so many different aspects that sometimes it is easy for some of those practices about teaching, and student learning to fade. This is especially true when it comes to grammar instruction. In this webinar, we will look at three ways to help our teaching be more effective and to improve our students’ learning. First, we will focus on guided noticing, and then move to scaffolded instruction. We’ll wrap up with ideas for contextualized practice. Clear examples of each of these will be presented in a way that will make them easy to incorporate into our teaching.
1:00 - 1:45pm Eastern Standard Time 3:00 - 3:45pm Eastern Standard Time 1:00 - 1:45pm Eastern Standard Time 3:00 - 3:45pm Eastern Standard Time 11:00 - 11:45am Eastern Standard Time 1:00 - 1:45pm Eastern Standard Time
Tuesday February 19th
Wednesday February 20th
Academic and professional success in today’s world requires essential skills such as effective communication, collaboration, critical thinking, comprehending complex informational texts, and digital literacy. In this webinar, see how we can include these skills in all language classes through the use of research-based, high-leverage instructional practices. High-leverage practices are those that: scaffold learning so that English learners can meet rigorous standards; address language needed to engage in academic conversations and writing; promote collaborations among learners; and prompt higher-order thinking. Many familiar classroom tasks and tools are high-leverage practices and they can be used with any curriculum. Demonstrations in this webinar include the use of graphic organizers as while-reading and while-listening tasks; gathering data from classmates (e.g. one-question interview) and data analysis tasks; language frames for both academic conversations and academic writing; and questions that prompt critical thinking. The instructional practices demonstrated can be adapted for various ages, levels, and content. Participants reflect on how to apply any of these practices in their curricula.
The flipped classroom is garnering more attention and being used more prevalently at varying levels of instruction. Because it enhances critical thinking, a skills set necessary to 21st century learning, flipped learning is a method that ESL instructors can use in their own classrooms. This webinar will provide a definition of flipping, show how it incorporates critical thinking, and explain some of the benefits for teachers and students alike.
Thursday February 21st
Adult ESL is becoming more rigorous as we align to state-adopted content standards such as the College & Career Readiness Standards (CCRS). How can teachers at very beginning levels, even pre-literate ESL, build a foundation for achieving CCRS skills like close reading citing textual evidence? In this webinar, the presenter will briefly respond to the often-expressed tension between CCRS and low-level ESL, and then she will share instructional examples that can be adapted for any adult ESL context. CCRS + ESL = Yes, we can!
EAP learners need to develop language skills, but they also need to have 21st century skills for success. The webinar walks participants through the framework of the 4Cs. Learn how increased communication, collaboration, creativity and critical thinking lead to greater learner gains and a better understanding of the what it takes beyond language for academic success.
Watch recording
Session 1 Helping our students learn how to learn · Dr. Randi Reppen Session 2 Breathing life into grammar instruction · Dr. Randi Reppen Session 3 Addressing the language demands of today’s world through high-leverage instructional practices · Betsy Parrish Session 4 Flipped classrooms use critical thinking to benefit students and teachers · Robyn Brinks-Lockwood Session 5 Low-level Adult ESL and College & Career Readiness: Can it be done? · Patsy Egan Session 6 The 4C approach to EAP Learning in the 21st Century · Christina Cavage
Although there is a lot of research evidence demonstrating the benefits of extensive reading (ER), it remains a relatively under used practice in ELT. This talk will outline the linguistic benefits learners may gain from participating in ER programmes, consider the reasons why ER is not more widely used and how the blocks to ER may be overcome. We will then go on to examine the part ER can play in successfully developing thinking and learning skills.
As education becomes increasingly global, bilingualism is becoming a core education policy for more and more countries. From improved cognitive skills and problem-solving abilities through to improved cultural awareness and preparation for English medium tertiary education, there is growing evidence of the benefits for some students of bilingual education. But what are the implications for teachers in the classroom? This session will explore the lessons and opportunities for teachers and educational leaders implementing a bilingual approach.
This session seeks to provoke some questions with regard to shifts and turns in more recent socio-cultural and political landscapes which are rapidly changing the face of classrooms across the world. Given that increasing numbers of classes are multilingual and multicultural, I believe that learning in any context with languages other than the learners' first is offering a rich opportunity to build on what we know supports successful learning whilst extending and re-conceptualising through a more holistic lens the role of (pluri)literacies in learning across ages and stages across languages and contexts. In particular, I will draw on more recent research in content and language integrated learning and look at how these principles and practices might impact positively on more language-oriented classrooms.
In this keynote, Tim considers the role which education has in building collaborative skills in learners, with reference to PISA 2015.
An opportunity for a coffee and conversation about hot educational issues. We will look at recent headlines from the news, which relate to education, and discuss the impact on our educational contexts.
This talk will look at how we can better understand the different aspects of 21st century/life skills and how they can be integrated into English language programmes. We will look at the Cambridge Framework for Life Competencies, and show how it can help us develop these skills through teaching, curriculum, materials and assessment.
PICK AND CHOOSE TALKS Optional Session 1A · The Wolfson Hall The Cambridge Framework for Life Competencies · Ben Knight Optional Session 1B · Jock Colville Hall Education in the news · Karen Momber and Jo Timerick Keynote 3 · The Wolfson Hall Assessing collaborative skills: OECD's interest in widening ideas of student performance · Tim Oates Keynote 4 · The Wolfson Hall Adapting, adopting and implementing bilingual approaches in our programmes: principles, practices and possibilities · Do Coyle Coffee break PICK AND CHOOSE TALKS Session 3A · The Wolfson Hall Gone global: Learning lessons from successful bilingual classrooms · Jane Mann Session 3B · Jock Colville Hall Reading skills, language development and life competencies: The benefits of extensive reading · Peter Watkins Lunch Innovation Showcase
8.30 9.30 10.25 11.15 11.45 12.30
MORNING
Tuesday 26th July
Programme
AFTERNOON
Tuesday 26th June
My talk will give an overview of the trends in the mixed media landscape of children's content. I will showcase some innovative digital work from a schools hub in Germany. I will offer some thoughts and ideas on how best to balance the relationship between traditional and digital learning tools today.
Digital literacies are the technical skills and social practices needed to effectively interact with and communicate via digital technologies. Digital literacies are key 21st century skills, and are increasingly important in educational curricula the world over, across all subject areas. This plenary looks at some of the theory underpinning digital literacies, and considers the implications for educational managers and leaders. We explore how educational institutions can take a principled and effective approach to integrating digital literacies into the English as foreign language curriculum.
There has been some recent interest in research evidence in ELT. This has mostly focused on debunking popular approaches: what doesn't work. In this presentation, I will draw on four of the most widely quoted meta-analyses (studies that bring together many research projects) in general educational research to identify things that might work in ELT classrooms. The personal list I will present includes some surprising (and unfashionable) approaches. I will conclude by analysing meta-analyses themselves and consider the extent to which language teaching can actually be evidence-based.
PICK AND CHOOSE TALKS Session 4A · The Wolfson Hall What might work · Philip Kerr Session 4B · Jock Colville Hall Balancing digital: Learning and play today · Neal Hoskins Keynote 5 · The Wolfson Hall Digital literacies · Nicky Hockly Forum session with refreshments Day 2 Closing remarks · The Wolfson Hall
14.00 15.00 15.55 17.20
This talk will draw on research evidence from large-scale international studies to explore why teachers' CPD is a fundamental activity in any organisation that is serious about its learners' learning, what forms of CPD are particularly effective, what factors need to be in place, and how leaders can ensure that effective CPD is implemented.
Textbooks have certain limitations, specifically relating to issues of authenticity, context, immersion and practical application. VR can be an excellent tool to address these shortcomings as it allows students to see English in an authentic context, one that simulates the environment in which they will actually be deploying the language. Furthermore, considering the majority of students are EFL learners (i.e. learning in non-native English speaking countries) VR is especially beneficial to presenting cultural nuances of language use. In conclusion, although at the current point and time VR can be used as excellent supplement to textbook-learning, in the future, it could very well change the way in which we teach, learn, and use language.
Virtual reality (VR) is becoming increasingly prevalent in a range of contexts, including medicine, entertainment and education. One simple way of experiencing VR is through 360-degree video, an immersive type of video that allows viewers to move and look around in all directions, affording choice and control over what they see. This talk will discuss the strengths, limitations, opportunities, and software necessary to begin exploiting the significant potential of VR as a tool for engaging students, designing materials and supporting trainee teachers.
With speaking in English being the most difficult skill to master among L2 users, understanding how to help learners become better speakers remains at the core of ELT research. Such research often centres on identifying trends and patterns that differentiate spoken and written language. However, psycholinguistic and language learning research increasingly demonstrates the importance of identifying role models and creating safe-spaces in which to use language in the development of speaking skills. This talk extrapolates on several of these studies, illustrating what teachers and learners can do to develop speaking strategies from a research-informed perspective.
Optional Session 2 · The Wolfson Hall Developing speaking skills: Contemporary approaches in ELT and psycholinguistics · Laura Grimes & Niall Curry Keynote 6 · The Wolfson Hall Exploring virtual reality for teacher training, materials development and student engagement · Paul Driver Session · The Wolfson Hall Textbooks turned 360: How Virtual Reality facilitates language learning and improves student outcomes· Lulwa Bordcosh The Cambridge experience · The Wolfson Hall A virtual trip around Cambridge · Rupert Daniels Coffee break Keynote 7 · The Wolfson Hall Impactful leadership of teachers' professional development: What matters and why it matters · Silvana Richardson Closing remarks · The Wolfson Hall Lunch Optional Cambridge Activity Punting!
8.30 9.30 10.25 10.50 11.05 11.25 12.15 12.45 15.00
Wednesday 27th June
Robyn Brinks-Lockwood
Christina Cavage
Betsy Parrish
Patsy Egan
Dr. Randi Reppen
Betsy Parrish is Professor in the MATESOL and TEFL Certificate programs at Hamline University in St. Paul, Minnesota. She has worked as a language teacher, teacher educator, and consultant for over 30 years, with experience in the US, Bangladesh, France, India, Russia and Vietnam. She has participated in the development of state and national adult education standards focusing on college and career readiness. Her research centers around instruction that prepares English learners for success in today’s world. Her most recent book, Teaching Adult English Language Learners (Cambridge University Press, 2019 in press), addresses the diverse needs of adult English learners and provides ideas on how to prepare all learners for the demands of the 21st century.
Patsy Egan, PhD, is the director of ATLAS, ABE Teaching & Learning Advancement System, housed in the Hamline University School of Education in St. Paul, Minnesota. Her teaching and research focus on literacy development and teacher education for adult learners, including adult basic education and English as a Second Language. As director of ATLAS, Patsy collaborates with Minnesota Department of Education staff on multiple projects focused on identifying, planning, designing, and evaluating the training and professional development needs of ABE/ESL administrators, teachers, and support services staff across the state. As a subject matter expert on the OCTAE ESL Pro project, Patsy authored the Companion Learning Resource on Meeting the Language Needs of Today’s Adult English Language Learner. Patsy was also involved in the OCTAE-sponsored initiative for the new English Language Proficiency Standards.
Randi Reppen is Professor of Applied Linguistics and TESL at Northern Arizona University (NAU) in Flagstaff, Arizona. She has over 20 years’ experience teaching ESL students and training ESL teachers, including 11 years as the Director of NAU’s Program in Intensive English. Randi’s research interests focus on the use of corpora for language teaching and materials development. In addition to numerous academic articles and books, she is the author of Using Corpora in the Language Classroom and a co-author of Basic Vocabulary in Use, 2nd edition, both published by Cambridge University Press.
Christina M. Cavage is currently Director of Intensive English Institute at Florida Atlantic University (FAU). Prior to joining FAU, Ms. Cavage was a professor of ESL at Savannah College of Art and Design and Department Chairperson and Professor of ESL at Atlantic Cape Community College. She received her Master's in TESOL from West Virginia University and completed a one-year Fellowship at Princeton in 2009, where she researched Web 2.0, Language Learning and Blended Learning. In additional to receiving the 2008 Lindback Distinguished Teaching Award, Ms. Cavage has both authored and been a contributor to several textbooks and digital tools, including Prism (Cambridge University Press). Additionally, her publications have appeared in the TESOL Journal (currently The Essential Teacher), Princeton Papers, E-TESL, and the NYS Dialogue. She has presented at numerous conferences and conventions, including The League for Innovation, TESOL and the National Education Computing Conference.
Robyn Brinks Lockwood teaches courses in English listening, speaking, and writing for international graduate students. She is also the coordinator of the American Language and Culture undergraduate summer program. She is an active member of the international TESOL organization, serves as Chair of the Book Publications Committee, and is a past chair of the Materials Writers Interest Section. She is a frequent presenter at TESOL regional and international conferences. Robyn has edited and written numerous textbooks, online courses, video programs, teacher’s materials, and textbooks for writing, speaking, and listening English courses and TOEFL preparation. Her publications include those of Macmillan Education, University of Michigan Press, Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, Pearson, and McGraw-Hill.
Details
betterlearning@cambridge.org
For any questions surrounding the conference please email
Our Better Learning conference attendance is by invite only.
You should now have all your flight information, if this is not the case, then please do get in touch with us: betterlearning@cambridge.org All of our guests will be greeted at the airport, you should receive details via email over your airport transfers two weeks before the conference start date. Once exiting arrivals at your London airport (after clearing immigration and collecting luggage) a representative will be waiting to collect you, they will be easily identifiable, as they will have one of our Better Learning Conference and Cambridge University Press signs, they will then drive you straight to Churchill College in Cambridge. Download our immigration letter here. All of our guests are staying at the Churchill College and this is where the conference is hosted. Is one of the prettiest Cambridge University Colleges and set in spacious wooded grounds, just outside of the Cambridge city centre. There are local shops, restaurants and cafes close by for convenience. During your spare time, outside of the conference programme, you may wish to explore the historic city centre and we will be happy to advise the best ways of doing this. Look at the map › All of our guests are invited to attend our formal dinner at Churchill College. Dinner will be served at 19:00. Dress code is smart/formal, but no need for black tie! This will be a free evening for guests to spend as they wish After lunch we have arranged to take our guests on a guided punting tour on the river Cam, to see the famous sights of Cambridge. There will also be some free time for guests to explore Cambridge themselves too (please note comfortable shoes are advised).
Accommodation
Formal Dinner Monday 25th June
Churchill College
Arriving at the Conference