The Future of English Language Teaching Conference

Saturday 10 June, 2023

Current time in London (UK)

Please note: All breakout sessions are running on a first come, first served basis.

 

Breakout sessions 4

13:45 - 14:30 (UK time)

 

Select a breakout session below to reveal more details and to access the button to join.

 

The Russian war against Ukraine has drawn attention to the critical role Media Literacy and critical thinking play for fighting massive propaganda and disinformation. Many of us believe that manipulation is so obvious, primitive and ridiculous that it is not a problem for us. But current state of things in the world reveals the vulnerability of human civil sanity and demonstrates that more attention needs to be paid to it. In this talk I share my experience of transforming ESP syllabus due to unprecedented circumstances and the needs of university students in the war time. I reflect on the ways in which language education could incorporate the teaching of Media Literacy as a core life skill from acquiring military and war-related vocabulary to recognizing verbal manipulation techniques, fake news and hate speech in the media. 

 

Oksana Torubara

 

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Feedback and its effectiveness on L2 writing performance has been studied by many scholars, and the debate about its effects has been a controversial topic for over two decades (Cao, 2021). Apart from the inconclusive results, most studies on this topic have been conducted with postsecondary students (75%) and adult learners (86%), which highlights the need to pay more attention to young learners (Liu & Brown, 2015). Driven by this gap, this study aims to clarify whether the feedback loop has an impact on young learners' second language writing. 40 EFL Second grade students were divided into two groups: the experimental group and the comparison group. During the treatment period, the experimental group received a continuous feedback loop for 5 weeks, while the comparison group received feedback only once. At the end of the treatment period, the results of the Kruskal-Wallis test showed that the experimental group performed better than the comparison group on the post-test. (H (1) = 17.094, p <.005). Pedagogical implications are presented at the end of the article along with suggestions for future studies.

 

Tuana Lopez Ibarra

 

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Developing linguistic confidence through international students-led networks
The fact that students acquire linguistic skills of effective communication best through collaborating with their peers is undeniable. However, many teachers underestimate the value of international collaboration considering it a time-consuming workload and potential disbenefit for language learners with immediate goals. This study focuses on how international networks in post-pandemic 2020-2023 developed students’ linguistic confidence and digital competencies in line with SDG#3, SDG#4, and SDG#17.

The Community
Our school has been implementing international collaborations through student-led networks such as iEARN, GlobalCoLab, and TakeItglobal.
Students form teams in which each member has a real task – a writer, a vlogger, a photographer, a communicator, a project developer, etc. These tasks rotate regularly so that every student can master his skills. All learners meet at project-based hubs to realize their potential as global citizens by sharing their solutions at national, local, international, and global levels. 
Students offer solutions to real-life problems using a foreign language as a tool for effective communication. Since students make collaborative decisions, the application of project-based activities is flexible concerning national and global agendas.
The role of a teacher comprises the attributes of a language mentor who is well-equipped with ESD methodology and promotes sustainable learning in alliance with SDGs.

 

The benefits
The two-year collection of ‘GOLD’ (Global Ownership of Learning and Development), an international online kids magazine, reflects ‘The head, the hands, and the heart’ approach, meeting students’ academic and socio-emotional needs of self-development; international cross-curricular collaborations include students-generated surveys, presentations, video interviews, digital exhibitions, and podcasts.
Collaborative learning serves every learner’s goals in that s/he realizes the requisite for linguistic literacy, accuracy, and digital competence. Students feel emotionally attached to their progress throughout the creative process, thus becoming more confident users of a foreign language.

 

Ekaterina Bozdogan

 

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Intercultural language teaching is crucial in today's interconnected world, as students must possess the skills to navigate cultural differences and communicate effectively with people from diverse backgrounds. This webinar will explore how to incorporate intercultural language teaching principles into student-centred lesson planning, utilising reflective practice through video lesson observations. We will examine the significance of authentic communication, emergent language, and learner agency in developing intercultural competence, drawing on the work of Scarino (2013), Liddicoat and McConachy (2022).

Reflective practices such as reflective journals, authentic video discussions, and pragmatic judgement tasks will be discussed to promote ownership of intercultural learning and critical thinking skills. Additionally, blogs or reflection journals will be explored as suggested by Jackson, Chan, and Sun (2022), to encourage learners to gain new insights and awareness of their attitudes and biases.

By utilising these strategies and activities, learners will become effective intercultural speakers capable of navigating cultural contexts with sensitivity and respect. Ultimately, this webinar will equip language teachers with tools and strategies to create immersive and comprehensive learning experiences that develop intercultural competence.

 

Cecilia Nobre

 

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While there’s ongoing innovation happening in education, the disruptions from the pandemic and staff shortages are having a knock-on effect in the ELT sector worldwide. In this context, teacher collaboration is becoming a fundamental – and increasingly critical – part of the profession.

In this session, we will provide an overview of the key benefits of collaboration as well as the possible barriers of peer collaboration. We will also share the case study from an academic initiative called “Teaching Together” implemented in Argentina in 2022, in which hundreds of EFL teachers actively participated in a successful collaborative project sharing experiences and techniques with colleagues from the region.

Professional collaboration is a powerful tool for teachers in the ELT sector, since it can lead to more effective teaching, increased job satisfaction, and improved student outcomes. This is an invitation to embrace opportunities to collaborate with peers, both in person and online, in order to develop multiple skills and provide the best possible learning experience for their students.

 

Emilia Pittelli

 

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