El Sistema Educativo Finlandés

The Finland Phenomenon: Inside the World's Most Surprising School System (El fenómeno finlandés: El sistema escolar más asombroso del mundo). Es un documental de 60 minutos que describe por qué Finlandia posee un sistema educativo que ha sido situado por más de una década como entre los mejores del mundo. Es un sistema educativo muy diferente al del resto de países, y su éxito rotundo los ha llevado a ganar premios en todos los ámbitos. Los alumnos estudian menos, tienen menos tareas, en tanto que los profesores reciben un sueldo competitivo y se encuentran totalmente implicados en su trabajo. ¿Por qué Finlandia? Bob Compton, creador del documental, junto al investigador de Harvard, el doctor Tony Wagner, ha decidido averiguarlo. Los resultados se han consignado en este film. Wagner, educador desde siempre y autor del bestseller "The Global Achievement Gap" (La brecha de logros mundial), nos lleva al interior de este sistema en estos 60 minutos, pues está más que suficientemente calificado para explorar y explicar el éxito finlandés. Desde el salón de clases y a través de entrevistas con estudiantes, profesores, padres, administrativos, directores y funcionarios del gobierno, Wagner nos revela los factores que han llevado a Finlandia a poseer el sistema educativo catalogado como número uno en el mundo.

10 Simple Ways To Encourage Student Achievement

Inspiring students to become even better than they thought possible isn’t easy. But getting them into the right mindset with these tips will help. Student achievement, from elementary school to higher ed, is languishing in many parts of the country. Test scores are stagnating or declining, grades are slipping, and students are increasingly dropping out of school.

While there is no single solution to improving student achievement, there are some tried, true, and tested methods that have proven to be very effective in raising student achievement.

Whether combined together or used on their own, the following offer some real hope in getting students to meet their true potential and excel at whatever educational endeavor is set in front of them.

1. Reassessment of standardized testing.

   Standardized tests can be a great way for educators and administrators to gauge the progress that students are making in courses. Unfortunately, the way that many tests are presently set up, focused more on instructor accountability and basic skills and knowledge, may actually be holding students back. Research from the Gordon Commission has found that accountability-focused tests, and teaching catered to them, doesn’t help students develop the essential critical thinking and problem-solving skills they’ll need to succeed in college and beyond. In order to raise student achievement, the current standardized testing systems used in most states need major overhauls so that they can gauge not only the mastery of basic skills but of deeper learning, a lack of which (many education experts believe) is seriously hampering educational outcomes.

2. Find ways to make up for budget shortfalls.

   Having a plush budget doesn’t guarantee that a school will be able to churn out students with top marks, but it certainly doesn’t hurt. Things are stretched pretty thin, with many, if not most, schools at all levels of education making serious cutbacks in the past few years in light of state and federal cuts to spending. That means more students per classroom, less money for books, technology, and other supplies, and even the elimination of whole subject areaslike art and music. It’s easy to see how this can affect student achievement, so schools need to get creative to find new ways to fill in gaps in funding to keep their students supplied with everything they need. Some schools are doing just that, establishing partnerships withnonprofits and private-sector businesses that have an interest in fostering education, though critics caution that it could take quite some time to see results after years of slash-and-burn budgeting.

3. Improve teacher training.

   While policymakers have been focused on teacher quality, few have addressed what it actually takes to help teachers become better at their jobs. Many states have moved to use testing to evaluate teacher effectiveness, penalizing those who don’t match up rather than helping them to become better educators. This method may weed out some of the worst teachers, but it also may put a great deal of stress on new teachers who are promising but still need more training and guidance. Luckily, student achievement may get a bump from just this very issue in the coming years, with Secretary of Education Arne Duncan making teacher training a front-burner issue and the National Council on Teacher Quality ranking teacher-preparation programs this year. Others think technology could offer an alternative solution, with MOOCs offering teachers training free of charge, the results of which will trickle down to students through improved knowledge, expertise, and educational methodology.

4. Reform public policy on education.

   American politicians have long been searching for strong solutions to the problem of low student achievement. So far, programs like Race to the Top and No Child Left Behind have largely been ineffective and in some cases are actually hurting schools that need the most help and assistance. To really make a difference in student achievement levels, the U.S. educational system will need to make serious reforms that alter what students are taught, how they’re taught, and who’s teaching it. Furthermore, the changes need to be homegrown. While importing ideas from other nations with highly successful educational systems may seem like a good idea, many experts state that those nations succeed because their educational policies are interwoven into their larger social policies, and can’t simply be cut and pasted into educational policy in the U.S.

5. Improve relationships.

   Books, resources, and great educators all play a role in helping improve student achievement, but a much more basic factor is also in play: communication. In order to raise student achievement, schools need to foster better relationships all the way around: between students and teachers, teachers and parents, administrators and teachers, and schools and the larger community. Only when all parties are actively involved in making changes, providing support, and working together can students make big jumps in achievement and have better educational outcomes for the long haul.

6. Create strong leadership and administration.

   Student success in school isn’t just about what their teachers do, it’s also about what their principals and administrators are doing. At some of the best schools in the U.S., principals are a constant presence. They walk through the halls, they get to know students and teachers, and they play an active, daily presence in how the school is run and led. Both in the school and in the larger administrative body, those in education have to be able to confront problems, gather data, create attainable goals, monitor progress, and hold everyone involved in the educational process accountable for their role in student achievement. Under poor leadership it is nearly impossible to make sustainable and significant changes to student achievement.

7. Develop high expectations of students.

   As it turns out, one of the secrets to raising student achievement is pretty simple: set high standards and expect students to meet them. It may sound flip to boil down student achievement to such a simple statement, but putting this into practice has shown that it’s actually a very effective method of motivating students to achieve. Teachers must create a challenging curriculum, pay close attention to student progress, and be there to help students when they are struggling. Studies have shown that raising expectations of students can help them to improve in school by developing their confidence, giving them a sense of belonging, and teaching them self-reliance. Ultimately students can only perform in the ways and at the level that their teachers expect and demand, so motivating and supporting them to achieve higher standards has a long-lasting effect on educational outcomes.

8. Ensure students master basic skills before moving on.

   Sadly, it’s often much easier for teachers and administrators to pass a student along to the next grade level before he or she has fully mastered the skills from the previous year than to hold him or her back. Over time, the disparity between what the student knows and what he or she should know grows to be so wide that the student feels frustrated, achievement drops, and school may become a punishment not a privilege. It is critical for the long-term achievement of students that they are given a strong framework for the basic skills they’ll need in reading, writing, and mathematics. Students who are given extra support and attention when they haven’t mastered a concept, often being retaught the lesson immediately, are much more likely to stay in school, get better grades, and succeed.

9. Take advantage of technology in smart ways.

   While technology isn’t essential to teaching, it can be a valuable tool in many ways for teaching today’s children. Studies have shown that students often stay engaged longer and take more of an active role in their own learning process when they use technology to learn. Additionally, technology also provides a way for teachers to meet the needs of the wide variety of achievement levels in a given classroom. Students can use educational games and learning modules to work through concepts until they understand them, each working at his or her own pace. Those who need additional support can get it from teachers. Technology also makes it easier to monitor student progress and to alert parents when students are struggling. While it is not a panacea to everything that ails education, technology can play an important and lasting role in raising student achievement when used intelligently in the classroom.

10. Constant reevaluation and improvement.

    The world is in a constant state of change, and education has to change with it. Even the best solutions for today’s students may not work in five or 10 years’ time. Sadly, many schools are sticking with outdated, unproven methods that aren’t helping students learn or meet their potential. To raise student achievement, schools, educators, and policymakers have to be willing to constantly reevaluate what’s working and what’s not, and always strive to improve, even when outcomes already seem “good enough.”

Top 10 videos on 21st Century Learning

Do you need some inspiration for the start of this new year ? Do you need something to empower you and boost your teaching moral up ? Edutopia has the answer. The folks there have just finished curating a great list of short videos that are definitely worth watching. These videos are all under five minutes long so they wont take a lot from your time but I am pretty sure once you watch them you will want to watch again. I particularly loved Learn to Change and Change to Learn and I watched it 3 times.

I am not sure how familiar you are with these videos but all of them are really popular and have been making rounds online. Have a look at them below and if you cant watch them now make sure to bookmark them for later, you should not miss them. I would also love to hear your feedback, share with us your thoughts and responses in the comment form below . Enjoy

1- Expanded Learning Opportunities

2- What is 21st Century Education

3- Educate The Heart

4- Learn to Change, Change to Learn

5- Teachers Inspire Us ( this is really an amazing video I love it )

6- The Art of Teaching ( Sir Ken Robinson )

7- Make your Voice Heard: Discover Democratic Education

8- An Introduction to Technology Integration

9- Project Based Learning Explained

10- The Future Starts Now

Source: Educational Technology and Mobile Learning

It’s all in the accent: Being critical about how you teach pronunciation

Published by Sara Hannam under Critical Education,Critical Language Testing,Critical Pedagogy,Critical Pronunciation,Critical Research,Definitions of 'critical',ELF,Language varieties

Whatever other speech you grow into….your dialect stays alive in a sort of inner freedom, a separate little self

Ted Hughes, Poet, cited in Corcoran 1993:114

*this blog post is based on an article submitted to TESOL Spain Newsletter in 2006.

Introduction

My interest in the topic of Accent Prejudice, or the idea that some accents are perceived to be better (or more appropriate) than others, was first inspired in my childhood when observing my parents, both from working class London backgrounds (my mother of Irish-Italian origin), in their endeavor to ‘cultivate’ their accents depending on whose company they were in. My father, for example, had a decidedly different voice when attending formal functions, to the one he seemed to have around the house. I never thought to question it at this stage, other than through the humour of referring to this as his ‘posh’ voice (which he also recognized had a slightly performative quality to it). That was, until I moved to Liverpool for four years, and realized how many negative stereotypes I had grown up with of the Liverpool (or Scouse as it is often referred to) accent, coming from the South-East of England, the region that gave birth to Standard English (both in terms of accent, mirrored through Received Pronunciation (RP), and what is considered ‘correct’ written English). When I moved to Greece, I saw the same set of characteristics being reproduced in ELT through the pursuit of the highly sought-after native-like pronunciation and, in terms of teaching, widespread incidents of uncomprimising attitudes towards students who could not produce this variety.

The Question

Why are some people (and some EL teachers) negatively disposed towards certain accents and voices? I ask this question primarily in the spirit of trying to understand how this might change, both at the level of individual views and in relation to the role the EL teacher plays in the classroom. I hope to explore how a more open-minded idea of practice can be encouraged that propels teachers towards using variety in the classroom, whilst questioning some of the unconscious prejudices they may be carrying around that make them fearful (or dismissive) of different accents. This discussion might prove helpful both to teacher educators who are responsible for providing training to EL teachers, and to teachers themselves, who are searching for ways of ensuring more ethical and socially-informed practice. Although this article focuses specifically on a Greek setting, the same discussion is relevant in other teaching/learning environments and I would be really happy to hear about your experiences of your own setting.

Is Native Speaker Best?

A good starting point when considering this issue might be the common assumption that Native Speakers of English provide the best model for pronunciation and accent, and are by default better teachers. To date, Greek ELT has primarily been controlled by external agencies deriving from the UK and USA and such agencies have had the majority market share in terms of publishing, language testing and, through teacher training certification, defining the parameters of what is considered right or wrong in terms of teaching methodology and classroom practice. This is demonstrated by the (sometimes unquestioning) view that external products are better quality and, I would argue, through the lingering attitude that they (the British or American agencies) know best, as it is their language. This includes the widespread belief that the model the students should be striving for is the norm-bound speaker of Standard English with an RP accent, also reflected in many published listening materials which, for the most part, contain a limited range of authentic accents. Both regional British and American accents (for example, Newcastle (UK) or Texas (US) respectively), as well as different varieties of international English (such as Greek, Spanish or Chinese English) are therefore in a marginalized position.

The Greek ELT Landscape

The ascribing of a different status is also evidenced by research carried out in Greece. Sifakis and Sougari (2003) found that 54% of Greek English teachers questioned felt their students should acquire a Standard British accent and 7% a Standard American accent, whilst only 6% felt that a Non-native Greek accent was appropriate. Carter’s research revealed that the students questioned felt pronunciation and speaking skills “are better taught by people speaking English as their mother tongue” (2004: 10). This is also reflected in the choice, particularly in the past, made by some Greek language schools/departments to put NEST teachers in charge of the oral component, sometimes at the expense of appropriate qualifications or experience. This has changed in more recent times due to the imposition of more eligibility criteria in terms of employment for NEST teachers, the rise in the cost of living coupled by falling wages which makes Greece a less attractive destination, and the opening up of more opportunities for non-NEST teachers which I fully support and hope to see continue into the future. For example Greek educators are now welcomed by most high profile international language testing bodies as oral examiners, demonstrating more openess to the non-NEST model. This was not the case even a decade ago. However, it is my supposition that the ideological strong hold of the ‘native speaker is best’ still exists, and is often reflected in pedagogical decision making.

Little research has been carried out into the reasons why these might be the prevailing attitudes in Greece. I would like to suggest that the native speaker of English is not automatically better equipped to teach or act as a model for pronunciation. I would also like to posit that this taken for granted view cannot be fully explained without questioning the ‘status’ still automatically ascribed to the NEST teacher of English which is part and parcel of the socio-historical relationship between Greece and the UK/US in relation to the teaching of the language. This has been described by some commentators as a form of intellectual colonialism (see Leontis 1995), and within this dynamic, it could be argued, no space has been allotted to allow for variety or difference. As we have now entered into what has become termed a ‘post-colonial’ phase of history, this relationship is clearly outdated and in need of urgent modification.

International Intelligibility: A More Realistic Goal?

Reflecting this shift, the field of ELT has started to take on board the fact that it is an unrealistic goal for an Non-native speaker to attain the pronunciation patterns of an Native speaker. It is neither necessary nor achievable and it is therefore time to reevaluate what we expect of our students in terms of their pronunciation output, which should be moving towards a model of international intelligibility. This is largely in recognition of the fact that most users of English do not speak the language as a mother tongue, but are speaking English as a Lingua Franca (ELF). In her work on ELF, Jennifer Jenkins suggests that pronunciation teaching should concentrate only on essential components that genuinely affect comprehension in ELF situations. Jenkins carried out extensive research with speakers of many different languages to assess what elements were essential for phonological intelligibility and developed the Lingua Franca Core (LFC) which signficantly cuts down the amount of areas that need addressing by the pronunciation teacher (see Jenkins 2000). For an excellent insight into how this research can be applied to Spanish learners of English, see Robin Walker’s 2001 article online.

However, Jenkins cautions that the only way the LFC will be of use is if the NEST teacher is prepared to fully take on board an ELF perspective by putting themselves in the position of their non-native students. In other words, unless teaching is readjusted to take into account ELF goals, teachers will continue to “base pronunciation decisions on intelligibility and appropriacy for themselves and their peers” (Jenkins 2000: 225). Paradoxically, some non-NEST teachers also lose sight of what they once felt like as learners and internalize and reproduce the dominant methodology in the belief that they must teach their students to ‘overcome’ their accent. Herein lies the contradiction. The theory outlined above which rightly directs us to embrace different pronunciation patterns among our learners positively has yet, in many cases, to meet the practice in the classroom which often dictates that we should be measuring our learners against the RP speaker of Native Standard English.

My Research

In an attempt to tease out some more precise data on the contradictory parameters highlighted above, I carried out a qualitative research project for my Master’s dissertation in 2004. Two groups of ELT practitioners were involved: one group lived and worked in the UK and other group lived and worked in Greece – each group was interviewed separately in the local environment. The research took part in two phases; firstly, the teacher participants were played the same samples of various Regional/Standard British English accents, as well as a Greek English accent (all collected by me for the project) and asked to comment on whether they would use them in the language classroom (or not) with a simple yes/no answer. The results were analyzed using a quantitative framework by counting the frequency of positive/negative responses to certain accents.

In the second phase of the research, which aimed more squarely to analyze the teacher participants’ perceptions, the same two groups were asked to discuss a range of issues pertaining to accent prejudice, the teaching of pronunciation and the pedagogical significance of ELF. The accent samples previously heard acted as a springboard for this dicussion which was organized in a semi-directed manner. I acted as a facilitator by providing a series of prompts to encourage the consideration of certain points, but I did not actively take part in the discussion to avoid distorting its development. I chose this method as it has been identified as suitable for the exploration of “different perspectives (that) operate in a social network” (Kitzinger and Barbour 1995:5) and is therefore likely to be successful when considering issues that might invite several different perspectives. The data were examined using a qualitative paradigm, the transcribed focus group interview scripts being subject to analysis using a series of thematic codes, enabling views to be grouped together in a meaningful way.

What did I find?

Bearing in mind that the same accent samples were played to both groups, the results of particular interest are as follows. In terms of the statistical findings, the majority of British teachers were very critical of stigmatized British accents such as Liverpool and Belfast. 85% of participants said they would not use either of these particular accents in the language classroom. However, almost all Greek teachers were positive about Regional British accents, with 100% saying they would use the Liverpool accent in the classroom and 75% the Belfast accent. Greek participants were much more critical of the Greek English accent, with only 50% saying they would be happy using this accent as a model. British participants were, however, 100% positive about using the Greek English accent as a model in the language classroom (it should be noted that all were resident in the UK and none had previous experience of teaching in Greece).

The focus group discussion brought up some interesting reasons reasons why the participants made the choices they did. For example, British participants expressed reluctance towards using the Liverpool or Belfast accent as many felt both would be unintelligible (and therefore unsuitable) for the non-native learner. The Greek participants, on the other hand, felt the Liverpool and Belfast accent would be good samples to use – reasons given included attractiveness, warmth and ease of understanding for the non-native learner. Conversely, some Greek participants felt that the recorded sample of their own accent was “too Greek” and that it required moderation and would not provide a suitable model. British participants were more positively disposed, including among the reasons for using this accent sample student need to understand a range of international accents. All participants in both groups agreed that RP is suitable and easier to use in the language classroom, partly due to the availability of pre-produced samples.

How did I analyse what I found?

What seemed to emerge was that some individuals in the focus group felt more confident criticizing pronunciation models that derived from their own immediate setting and culture. The RP model still appeared as dominant in both settings. The contradiction in NEST and non-NEST speakers’ perceptions about the intelligibility of the Liverpool and Belfast accents needs close attention – the Greek participants apparently found both accents clearer than NEST teachers from the UK! This suggests that the UK responses were about more than just intelligibility or clarity and that there was a direct engagement with social perception. This may have led to a negative appraisal of the Liverpool and Belfast accent by the NEST participants due to their knowledge of the status of those particular speech communities. Even in modern Britain, both carry the historical burden of being easily identified as the antithesis of RP in terms of the cultural value ascribed to them. Although many linguists would argue it is possible to measure intelligibility accurately, the point at which one begins measuring is inherently subjective. Individual reactions to pronunciation vary dramatically, and intelligibility is, at least to an extent, a relative concept.

The Social Content of Pronunciation

We need to be aware of the series of social messages contained in the way people speak which can give rise to what Lippi-Green terms “listening with an accent” (1994: 188). In other words, the will of the listener to understand plays a very important role in whether they can comprehend the speaker or not. It could be argued that the desire to try and understand has been partly shaped by continual over-exposure to a specific model, which in turn leads to unconscious intolerance of other varieties. Perhaps this explains why there is still a need to cultivate positive acceptance of the Greek English accent as equal to any other accent in the spectrum. The Greek participants who felt negative about this variety have grown up in the shadow of a profession that undervalues and penalizes them them for having features such as the post-vocalic /r/. This is despite the Greek accent sharing a number of features also found in different varieties of British English. The /r/ is present in the Dublin, Bristol and Liverpool accent. (Hughes and Trudgill 1996). These are features that some of their EL teacher, both NEST and non-NEST, have told them to eliminate, even though they rarely cause comprehension problems.

Accepting or Resisting Change?

Although the results of my research in the UK showed that the particular group of NEST teachers interviewed responded positively to Greek English pronunciation, there are obviously NEST practitioners working in Greece who do not share that view and see it as less ‘correct’ than RP or General American (GA). There are some, who might be in the role of test designer, teacher or oral examiner, who perceive themselves, as “custodians of the English language…(and) endeavour…to protect the English language from non-native infiltration by the regular undermining and denigrating of NNS Englishes” (Jenkins 2004: 37-8). Whether unconsciously or consciously, individuals who respond negatively to EL2 voices (characterized by EL2 pronunciation), are in part expressing anxiety towards a changing global landscape. The movement of native speakers of English into the minority (of those actually using the language) is a position some people involved in ELT, and in society as a whole, feel threatened by.

What do you think about this? Do you agree/disagree that pronunciation teaching should be socially informed? Of course I don’t argue that we should abandon teaching pronunciation as sometimes it is very much needed, but shouldn’t the target be more realistic?

References

Carter, J. 2004. Native or non-native speaker teacher: does it make a difference? TESOL Macedonia Thrace Bulletin, Dec, 10-11.

Cocoran, N. 1993. English Poetry Since 1940. London: Longman.

Hannam, S. 2004a. Models of correct pronunciation and the ELT classroom. In Pulverness, A. (Ed.). IATEFL 2004 Liverpool Conference Selections. IATEFL: UK, 56-57.

Hannam, S. 2004b. An investigation into ELT practitioners’ views regarding the use of regional British accents in the language classroom. M(Ed) dissertation. University of Sheffield, UK.

Hughes, A. and Trudgill, P. 1996. 3rd Edition. English Accents and Dialects: An Introduction to Social and Regional Varieties of English in the British Isles. New York: Arnold.

Jenkins, J. 2004. ELF at the gate: the position of English as a lingua franca. In Pulverness, A. (Ed.). IATEFL 2004 Liverpool Conference Selections. IATEFL: UK, 33-42.

Jenkins, J. 2000. The Phonology of English as an International Language Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Kitzinger, J. & Barbour, R. S. 1999. ‘The challenge and promise of focus groups’ in Barbour, R. S. & Kitzinger, J. (Eds) Developing Focus Group Research: Politics, Theory and Practice London: Sage.

Leontis, A. 1995. Topographies of Hellenism: Mapping the Homeland. Ithaca: Cornell University Press.

Lippi-Green, R. 1997. English with an Accent: Language, Ideology and Discrimination in the United States. New York: Routledge.

Lippi-Green, R. 1994. Accent, standard language ideology and discriminatory pretext in the courts’, Language and Society, 23, 163-198.

Sifakis, N. C. & Sougari, A. M. 2003. Pronunciation issues in EFL teaching: the Greek teachers’ perspective. Paper presented at the 13th International Conference of the Greek Applied Linguistics Association, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece.

Walker, R. 2001. Pronunciation for international intelligibility, English Teaching Professional 21, available online from: http://www3.telus.net/linguisticsissues/internationalintelligibility.html

Source: Critical Mass

Top 10 Posts of 2012: Deep, Meaningful and Creative Learning

It may come as no surprise that the ideas that are top-of-mind for educators, parents, and policymakers are the very topics conveyed in the most popular MindShift posts this year. Giving kids the tools to create, teachers the freedom to innovate, making students’ work relevant in the real world, giving them access to valuable technology. These are the aspirations that have resonated most with MindShift readers this year. Here are the top 10 posts from 2012.

1. 1. EASY WAYS TO INTRODUCE PROGRAMMING TO KIDS.

2. Being able to use the Internet and operate computers is one thing, but it may be just as valuable to teach students how to code. Giving students an introduction to programming helps peel back the layers of what happens inside computers and how computers communicate with one another online. Programming knowledge, even at a very basic level, makes technology seem less magical and more manageable. Programming also teaches other important skills, including math and logic.

3. 2. 10 THINGS IN SCHOOL THAT SHOULD BE OBSOLETE.

4. So much about how and where kids learn has changed over the years, but the physical structure of schools has not. Looking around most school facilities — even those that aren’t old and crumbling –  it’s obvious that so much of it is obsolete today, and yet still in wide use.

5. 3. WHY KIDS NEED SCHOOLS TO CHANGE.

6. The conversation in education has shifted towards outcomes and training kids for jobs of the future, and in many ways the traditional classroom has become obsolete. And yet many people fear change, preferring to hunker down and take the conservative route. Yet, it’s exactly during these uncertain times when people must be willing to try new things, to be more open, curious and experimental, said educator Madeline Levine.

7. 4. LEARNING SHOULD BE MESSY.

8. Can creativity be taught? Absolutely. The real question is: “How do we teach it?” In school, instead of crossing subjects and classes, we teach them in a very rigid manner. Very rarely do you witness math and science teachers or English and history teachers collaborating with each other. Sticking in your silo, shell, and expertise is comfortable. Well, it’s time to crack that shell. It’s time to abolish silos and subjects.

9. 5. MAKING CELL PHONES WORK IN THE CLASSROOM.

10. At its core, the issues associated with mobile learning get to the very fundamentals of what happens in class everyday. At their best, cell phones and mobile devices seamlessly facilitate what students and teachers already do in thriving, inspiring classrooms. Students communicate and collaborate with each other and the teacher. They apply facts and information they’ve found to formulate or back up their ideas. They create projects to deepen their understanding, association with, and presentation of ideas.

11. 6. TURN YOUR CLASSROOM INTO AN IDEA FACTORY.

12. If we’re serious about preparing students to become innovators, educators have some hard work ahead. Getting students ready to tackle tomorrow’s challenges means helping them develop a new set of skills and fresh ways of thinking that they won’t acquire through textbook-driven instruction. Students need opportunities to practice these skills on right-sized projects, with supports in place to scaffold learning. They need to persist and learn from setbacks. That’s how they’ll develop the confidence to tackle difficult problems.

13. 7. OPEN EDUCATION RESOURCES FOR ALL.

14. As open educational resources and OpenCourseWare (OCW) increase in popularity and usage, there are a number of new resources out there that do offer opportunity for interaction and engagement with the material.

15. 8. FOR STUDENTS, WHY THE QUESTION IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE ANSWER.

16. In a traditional classroom, the teacher is the center of attention, the owner of knowledge and information. Teachers often ask questions of their students to gauge comprehension, but it’s a passive model that relies on students to absorb information they need to reproduce on tests. What would happen if the roles were flipped and students asked the questions?

17. 9. DEFINING DEEPER LEARNING.

18. In preparing students for the world outside school, what skills are important to learn? This goes to the heart of the research addressed in the Deeper Learning Report released by the National Research Council of the National Academies of Science in Washington. Simply defined, “deeper learning” is the “process of learning for transfer,” meaning it allows a student to take what’s learned in one situation and apply it to another, explained James Pellegrino, one of the authors of the report. “You can use knowledge in ways that make it useful in new situations,” he said.

19. 10. HOW CAN WE CONNECT SCHOOL LIFE TO REAL LIFE.

20. So what if we were to say that, starting this year, even with our children in K– 5, at least half of the time they spend on schoolwork must be on stuff that can’t end up in a folder we put away? That the reason they’re doing their schoolwork isn’t just for a grade or for it to be pinned up in the hallway? It should be because their work is something they create on their own, or with others, that has real value in the real world.

Source: Mind/Shift

Teaching Adults

15 Secrets to Teaching Adults

Traditionally, the image of the teacher has always been a stern authority figure with a blackboard and chalk. Ordinarily they presided over a classroom full of kids. Within the ESL industry, however, the clientele can range from three years of age to eighty and beyond!

A lot of teachers will find they have to teach younger people however many more will also be teaching adults. This is obviously true with regards to those within the world of business English. Sometimes it can be a little tricky, particularly if those adults are a lot older than yourself. Many factors need to be taken into account, such as respect and making sure you do not patronize them however many people sometimes feel that they are doing this without meaning to.

How to Teach Adults: 15 Secrets

1. 1
   Keep the Class Relevant to the Age Group
   It could be quite common, especially for younger English teachers, that most of their students will be older than them. As a result, it is important to keep the topic of the class relevant and be something that they will understand. Discussing aspects of modern youth culture might not appeal to those within the age bracket of fifty onwards. So it is always important to keep anything you talk about relevant so that the associated party will be more interested and in tune with what you have to say.
2. 2
   Be Passionate
   Having an interest in your own subject is vitally important. No one will learn anything if the teacher doesn’t seem to care, and seems to just be giving the class rote-learning. Learning things by heart definitely does work in some cases, but a lot of the time when teaching language it is important to show an interest in it. Adults can tell immediately if you don’t have an interest in what is going on, and they themselves will then be likely to switch off.
3. 3
   Encourage Them to Ask Questions
   A lot of the time, the people you will be teaching may not have been in school for many years. They might not be sure what proper classroom protocol is, so it is important to make sure that they ask as many questions as possible. When teaching the class, perhaps it would be a good idea to frequently tell them, “Now, does anyone have any questions?” If a student is unsure of this, then they will usually raise their hand and ask something.
4. 4
   Keep Them Engaged
   Keeping students engaged is important for any age group, and this is a vital skill that most teachers will learn over time. Sometimes one might be tempted to just focus on those who are participating, and leave more quieter ones to their own devices. Try and include everybody in the class equally, asking various questions more so to those who don’t speak as often. Simply standing at the board and listing off a load of information won’t help it to stick in their heads.
5. 5
   Distribution
   Distributing practice is also another thing, closely tied in with the previous point. Make sure that everybody gets a chance to speak and practice their new skills. Sometimes, one student may be more talkative than the others and hence not give the rest of the class time to have their say. So it is important to come up with an idea or an activity whereby everyone can be involved, and therefore allow everyone to participate.
6. 6
   Smile
   Smiling might seem like one of the most simplest things in the world, but it is quite easy to forget at times! Try to remember that the world of teaching has probably changed a lot since your students’ day, and therefore their own experiences of teachers might’ve been tough, stern people who never smiled. Showing a happy, pleasant face will definitely get the whole class more relaxed!
7. 7
   Recognize Learning Styles
   Everybody has different ways of learning and adults are no different. Visual learners tend to be the most common, and so one should keep this in mind but also remember there may be other learning styles present. Do some research on these specific styles and see which ones your students will fit into. It will then be a lot easier to incorporate the techniques into the class.
8. 8
   Be Flexible
   Quite a lot of beginner teachers go into their first lesson with all of the purest intentions. They will have aplan written out, usually involving group work and the like, think that everything will go smoothly and accordingly. Sometimes, however, the class might veer off on a different path. Don’t panic if this happens, just remember that as long as you keep on topic in some form, the class is a success. At the end of the day, however, it is also important that the students are ultimately speaking English.
9. 9
   Correction
   If the teacher is younger, then it can be quite daunting when a student makes a clear mistake. Often, they may simply ignore the mistake because they’re afraid of patronizing the student. Don’t be, just correct them in a way which sounds less patronizing. This usually involves something along the lines of, “That was a good sentence but… Can you think of a way of improving it?” It will encourage the student to examine their own grammar and make the correction themselves. Also see “5 Non-Verbal Ways to Do Error Correction”.
10. 10
    Topics of Interest
    Oftentimes people will feel that they are getting nowhere when a student simply wants to speak about theirjob, or their cat, or even their wife! Since they usually are the ones paying for it, they will argue that they can have the right to do this. Naturally, this is true but it doesn’t mean that nothing can’t be learned from the class. If they want to talk incessantly about their pet, then simply incorporate that into the whole lesson. The more they talk, the better their English will become!
11. 11
    Encouragement
    Every student needs encouragement at some time or another, and more so than adult learners. The older they are the more reluctant they may seem. This can be a particular challenge so it is important toalways make sure that they are on board with the topic of the lesson.
12. 12
    Dealing with Tension
    Sometimes, particularly when teaching business English, one might find that they are teaching senior managers and secretaries. This unusual mix may cause a little bit of tension as the bosses may not feel comfortable at being at the same level. It is important to steer conversation away from anything that might be related to their current work, and to focus solely on the lesson to avoid conflict.
13. 13
    Speak English
    This might seem like an obvious one but it is important to remember that, especially with those who arebeginners, many might be tempted to slip into their native tongue and this can be detrimental. Often, students might start talking amongst themselves, usually if they’re simply asking for instructions. If this happens, inquire as to what they are talking about and see if they can say it in English. This will help them to learn some new vocabulary and the teacher won’t feel so isolated.
14. 14
    Eliciting Words
    Having the students think of or come up with their own words rather than simply telling them is important. In doing this, the students will find that they already know the vocabulary and just need to “let it out” so it to speak. Also see “How to Elicit Vocabulary: Top 6 Techniques”.
15. 15
    Have Fun!
    No one ever said that school and learning had to be boring, so it is important to make the class funwhich will in turn engage the students a lot more. Think of various games and ideas which can be done that will get everyone involved. It will also help to loosen up the atmosphere a bit and get some of the more shy students talking!

It is always important to remember, at the end of the day, adult students are not really that different from younger ones.

They have more life experience and will be a lot more critical, perhaps even pick up on certain things faster, but they are still novices when it comes to English (for the most part) and you are there to teach them a new language.