IATEFL Voices Issue 294

From the Editor

Welcome to the September/October issue of IATEFL Voices, a time when we say goodbye to the summer months (at least in the northern hemisphere) and start to welcome students to the new school year, a busy time for teachers everywhere.

We start off this issue with a few words from new IATEFL President Aleksandra Popovski, who outlines the work she has done to date as both Vice President and President, before presenting her thoughts for the future, both for the Association and for the ELT profession as a whole. These thoughts very much resonate with the plenary talks from the IATEFL Conference back in April, including fair compensation and better working conditions.

Alex Fayle presents the Keynote for this issue, looking at why it is important to get to know your students through an exploration of identity in the ELT classroom, something that is particularly salient given the start of the new school year. A number of the feature articles in this issue take on a practical element, such as Urs Kalberer’s article presenting different ways to teach vocabulary, Andy Drought looking at the reasons behind excessive L1 use in the classroom and Chris Walklett exploring the transformative power of music and song in the classroom.

Elle Sõrmus, Õie Tähtla and Kateriina Rannula continue this practical theme through their findings from a study they conducted that looked at the effectiveness of Kahoot!, Quizlet and Padlet in tertiary education environments. Their article expands on the poster presentation they gave at the IATEFL Annual Conference. Khaled Khodeir provides some practical tips and recommendations for new teachers who may be starting out teaching young learners, and Ali Caszadeh Mataki returns to the topic of ChatGPT, but this time exploring some of its limitations. Russell Whitehead and Andy Johnson examine assessment and its place within ELT following the Covid pandemic.

Mike Biddle brings us full circle through his article on workplace stagnation in Taiwan and why the English as a Medium of Instruction project is facing particular difficulties. There are certainly overlaps with what he has presented in his article and what IATEFL President Aleksandra Popovski hopes can be changed both within the Association and throughout ELT in general.

With very best wishes,

4 From the Trustees Aleksandra Popovski

5 Keynote: Who are you beyond your facts? The importance of identity awareness in the ELT classroom Alex Fayle

7 Tribute to Susan Holden Marjorie Rosenberg

Feature articles

8 Teaching vocabulary with revision and deep processing activities Urs Kalberer

10 How assessment fits into the future of ELT Russell Whitehead and Andy Johnson

11 Understanding excessive L1 use through exploratory action research Andrew Drought

13 Exploring, enlightening, empowering: the power of music and songs Chris Walklett

16 To Kahoot! or not to Kahoot!

Elle Sõrmus, Õie Tähtla and Kateriina Rannula

18 Teaching young learners Khaled Khodeir

20 Beyond the false promise of ChatGPT: the potential and limitations of using ChatGPT in the English language classroom Ali Caszadeh

22 Workplace stagnation: a potential roadblock to Taiwan becoming bilingual Mike Biddle

29

From the Trustees

At the IATEFL Conference back in April, Aleksandra Popovski became President of the Association. Here, Aleksandra talks about what she has done since taking over as President as well as her plans for the future.

It’s been five months since I officially stepped into my new role as President of IATEFL and it has been an exciting journey so far. However, my involvement with IATEFL as a Trustee did not start in April 2023 but in April 2022 when I became the Vice President. As Vice President/President, I am also the Chair of the Publications Committee alongside four other committee members: Marina Gonzalez, Vicky Papageorgiou, Arum Perwitasari and Ewa Minkowska. Our primary responsibility is to ensure that all IATEFL publications reach IATEFL members on time while the content itself is provided by our 16 SIGs, Trustees, members and non-members of IATEFL.

Recently, I took on the role of Reviews Editor for IATEFL Voices, which has proven to be an invaluable learning experience. Ruby Vurdien, our former Reviews Editor, explained the whole process clearly and in great detail. However, it was only when I started working on my first reviews section that I truly understood how responsible the role was. Emailing publishers, reviewers, matching reviewers with publications, reviewing, editing – what a steep learning curve, but a positive one.

The Publications Committee has made some small changes to the monthly IATEFL eBulletin that is sent to all members with IATEFL-related news. We decided to omit the ‘From Vice President/President’ section and prioritise news from our Head Office and the SIGs. Even if you haven’t been reading the eBulletin (and please don’t worry, we understand), I strongly encourage you to give it a chance. You will discover plenty of opportunities for professional development and networking.

As a member of the Board of Trustees, I also have other responsibilities not connected with IATEFL publications so on a more serious note, I would like to share two key aspects of my vision for IATEFL and ELT in general.

The first key aspect of my vision for IATEFL is a strong commitment to fostering collaboration among IATEFL Associates, IATEFL SIGs and ELT professionals across the globe. Over the last 18 months, I have worked closely with the other Trustees and IATEFL volunteers to provide and enhance opportunities for professional development and networking within the Association. Through a series of webinars, IATEFL livestreams, and the Association’s main event, the Annual Conference, we have brought together experts and practitioners from various backgrounds to share best practices, explore current language teaching and learning trends and promote the value and significance of the ELT profession. Why? Because only through collaboration and mutual support can we create an inclusive professional environment that empowers ELT professionals. This culture of sharing can help us in our collective effort to raise the standards of English language teaching in all its aspects.

The second key aspect of my vision is raising awareness of the need for professional recognition and support for English language teachers through fair compensation, better working conditions, and career advancement opportunities. Early on in my career, I realised that despite the crucial role that teaching plays in our communities, it often lacks the comprehensive support it deserves from educational stakeholders. During IATEFL YLTSIG’s Emerald Anniversary Web Conference 2021, Beyond an industry: professionalising global TEYL practices, 35 speakers from around the world talked about the importance of recognising not only TEYL but ELT in general as a profession, ‘underpinned by research, best international practices and quality teaching standards’ (YLTSIG, 2021). Achieving this

is not an easy feat, but if we continue to nurture and promote the culture of sharing, an inclusive professional environment, and have open discussions about the state of ELT, I believe we can make a change. Five plenary speakers took to the stage at this year’s Annual Conference in Harrogate whose talks deeply resonated with me. One sentence from the review of Divya Madhavan’s plenary talk ‘Lean on me: stories of coaching, mentoring and teacher resilience’ summarises the powerful message conveyed by all five plenary talks, ‘teachers showing up for their students in difficult circumstances is something that is deserving of celebration and helping each other deserves recognition’ (Philip-Xu, 2023, p. 20).

As an IATEFL Trustee, I will continue to fulfil my obligations and duties in line with my vision for the future of the Association and ELT profession. Very often decisions and actions taken by a person in my position are not visible to others, but they are the little wheels behind each event, each collaboration, each professional development opportunity.

Let us continue to collaborate, advocate for our profession, and work towards creating a more supportive and empowering environment for all ELT professionals.

References

Philip-Xu, D. (2023). Divya Madhavan: Lean on me: stories of coaching, mentoring and teacher resilience, Reviewed by Derek Philip-Xu. IATEFL Voices, 293, 20.

YLTSIG. (2021). Beyond an industry: professionalizing global TEYL practices [Online Conference]. IATEFL YLTSIG’s Emerald Anniversary Web Conference.

president@iatefl.org

The International Association of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language was founded in 1967.

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Disclaimer

Views expressed in the articles in Voices are not necessarily those of the Editor, of IATEFL or its staff or trustees.

Copyright Notice

Copyright for whole issue IATEFL 2023. IATEFL retains the right to reproduce part or all of this publication in other publications, including retail and online editions as well as on our websites.

Contributions to this publication remain the intellectual property of the authors. Any requests to reproduce a particular article should be sent to the relevant contributor and not IATEFL.

Articles which have first appeared in IATEFL publications must acknowledge the IATEFL publication as the original source of the article if reprinted elsewhere.

Keynote: Who are you beyond your facts? The importance of identity awareness in the ELT classroom

Alex Fayle explores identity in the ELT classroom and recommends really getting to know your students

Gay, married, Anglo-Canadian, Spanish resident, academic director, Sandy, latediagnosed autistic, celiac, nearly blind without my glasses, 5’10”, somewhere around 200lbs, usually bearded, Uncle Bear, usually dyed hair and beard, author, Alex, speaker, multiple university and professional degrees, youngest sibling, parents deceased, uncle, great uncle, teenaged goth rebel, high school honour roll, Alexander.

Those are my facts. Do they give you an idea of who I am? What if I change the order of these words? If I put author before married, do I diminish the value of my marriage? By stating my gayness, does that automatically imply that I see myself an activist of some sort? My weight might suggest I’m not that vain, but my dye job says otherwise.

But really, do any of those facts tell you who I am? Is there anything specific about my collection of data that tells you what my identity is? No, my facts are merely labels that help others put me in boxes. But none of them individually or collectively will give you any idea as to my identity, who I see myself as and who I hope others perceive me as.

Who are you?

I would like you to take about 20 seconds to think about who you are without using facts as shortcuts. How would you describe yourself without any of the usual labels? Ready? Go!

How was it? Staying away from facts and hard data makes it quite the challenge, doesn’t it? I did this once with a group of 14-year-olds and I discovered I had a room full of personality-free clones; they all liked sport (football or basketball) and they all liked hanging out with their friends. That was it. It was impossible to get anything more out of them.

Identity definitions

Identity is a difficult thing to pin down. For the purposes of this article, I am going to avoid all the official socio-psychological

Through his passion for words, patterns, and learning, Alex strives to spark a passion for learning in others. He adores his job as academic director, combining the best of past roles in records management, professional organising, copywriting, coaching and teaching.

definitions of identity and just talk about two identities, our self-identity (the beliefs we hold about ourselves) and our perceived identity (the beliefs others hold about us).

Unfortunately, in both cases, those beliefs are quite often unconscious. We can rarely articulate them, and if we try, all too often, we end up saying what we want to believe about ourselves, not what we actually believe. And it is the same with perceived identity. We use facts, shortcuts and pigeonholes to decide who others are without ever checking to make sure it’s true.

But don’t despair, our self-identity is revealed through our actions, reactions and habits. And we can strip away the assumptions about others through questions and clear, unbiased observation.

Questioning our way to identity

Let me show you what I mean. You are about to see a list of questions that I would like you to answer. Some of these are simple yes/no questions while others may need a bit of explanation. Don’t take too long to answer them; let your intuition guide you.

❚ Are you a reader?

❚ Did you always do your homework at school?

❚ Do you dread meetings with your superior(s)?

❚ Do you like your body?

❚ Who do you call family?

❚ Did you ever get a detention at school?

❚ How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?

❚ Do you like parties?

❚ Do you binge-watch series?

Who is Alex?

Here are my answers:

❚ I devour books.

❚ My homework depended on the teacher.

❚ I used to hate meetings but now I have an awesome boss.

❚ I mostly like my body.

❚ My family is too big to name, but most are not blood relations.

❚ On the few occasions they actually caught me, yes I got detention.

❚ I prefer slow mornings, but can be ready in 5 minutes.

❚ If I can have one-to-one conversations or dance, then yes, otherwise parties are hellish.

❚ I can (and do) spend whole weekends with Netflix as my only companion. Based on what you see here, if I were a language student of yours, how autonomous do you think I could be?

Here’s my take on it.

Given my love of books, I like learning independently, which suggests autonomy. However, if my relationships aren’t good ones, I may not do what I’m asked, nor be open in class. I have few self-esteem issues (being 50-something does have its advantages), which means I trust my own judgement. I care for a lot of people, so will likely have the greater good in mind, but I am wily enough that you might want to check in on me occasionally to make sure I’m not finding shortcuts. Be clear if you need something from me and I will get it to you ASAP. Don’t put me in a classroom with poorly defined objectives if you want me to interact well, and finally be careful that I don’t obsess about something and forget about the rest of the world.

What type of student are you?

Now, it’s your turn to interpret your answers to the above questions. By the way, this is just one way to get there. There are many others, most based on the slow process of getting to know someone (and yourself) deeply. But fortunately, this can work as a sort of shortcut. Ready for some more self-reflection? Of course you are!

Using identity in the classroom

You may be incredibly lucky and have highly self-aware students, but given how rare that is even in adults, you are going to

have to rely on observation to figure out how each student identifies. Over time, you can help students become more self-aware, but that’s a long process, longer than we have time for in one article.

Before we move on, though, here’s an important question: why is identity so important in the classroom? Let me give you a simple example that I believe illustrates the importance of identity in the classroom.

Some of your students say they don’t read, in other words, they identify as non-readers. In fact, they do so almost violently, like books were poisonous to the touch. If you tell them they need to read more, you are telling them that who they believe they are isn’t enough, isn’t good, isn’t right. And what happens when people feel attacked or questioned? They generally rebel and reject the advice. So, your desire to turn non-readers into readers simply by telling them to read more will backfire horribly.

And this is the moment that knowing how students identify becomes interesting and incredibly useful. Rather

than going up against a student’s identity, we can slip in sideways and slowly change that belief. For example, ask students to just open and close a non-school book once a day. You can even tell them why: you want them to develop a neutral relationship with books and see that books are not poisonous. Over time, some students’ natural curiosity will take over and they will start reading and they will start identifying as someone who doesn’t hate reading, which opens the door to someday becoming voracious readers.

The key is not to look at the end goal (more reading). The key is to start with something so small we can change it without attacking the student’s identity. You will find, however, that even such small gestures meet resistance. They need cajoling and encouragement on a constant basis to make even the tiniest of changes.

Common student identities

Here are two common student identities that may seem detrimental, but can be the basis for positive learning opportunities in the classroom:

❚ The class clown/performer/ringleader – get them to lead sections of the class to allow that person to fully take charge like, for example, if you want them to do a task together and report back to you. To show you trust their leadership skills, you may even want to step out of the room (but not far!).

❚ This next one is common in teenagers whose executive function hasn’t developed fully and they can’t see beyond two minutes into the future: English is useless – ask for and/or provide concrete examples of how this piece of English is highly practical, but do so casually without saying ‘Hey, Aitor, this is for you. See how English is useful?’ which is confrontational and not the purpose of using identity to guide students. Another tactic is to talk about language functions instead of grammar points (things they want to do rather than simply fill in the blanks).

Group vs individual identity

Finally, I would like to address the idea of group and individual identity. There are some self-beliefs that can be applied blanket-like to most students, for example:

I hate homework. And so blanket-like actions can be taken.

But what about individual identities? There’s only one way to figure them out: get to know your students. Be careful, however, about seeming intrusive. It’s easy to go too far and freak them out. Show interest and follow up with students, but there’s no need to create a database for each student as if you are an FBI agent creating a profile.

Also, students have highly attuned sincerity monitors. If your interest in them isn’t sincere, getting to know them will backfire and they will distance themselves from you. You need to honestly want to know more about them. And this leads us to another very important topic that has emerged as a research trend in the industry: inclusive practice and diversity.

Remember the labels back at the beginning of this article? The shortcuts that make assumptions about people? Dyslexic, divorcing parents, ADHD, smart, pretty, funny, shy and so on. These labels create blanket assumptions that tell us nothing about the person except

as a guide to maybe knowing what questions to ask.

One of my labels is autistic. If you were my teacher and were told before you met me that I was autistic, you might assume that I am emotionally challenged, may say inappropriate things, or may not be able to express myself. None of those assumptions line up with my identity, and yet, you might have made the decision that they did and therefore could end up looking for (and finding) examples to prove your assumption.

Fortunately, everything in this article can be reduced to a two-part question that is simple to ask, but intensely difficult to answer:

❚ What does each student need to be able to learn at their best level without feeling judged?

❚ And how I can help them create that ideal learning environment?

In the end, this is all we want as teachers – to create a space for students to learn without limits, fears or (self-imposed) blocks.

Tribute to Susan Holden

Marjorie Rosenberg, former IATEFL President, pays tribute to Susan Holden, a long time supporter of IATEFL and the YLTSIG.

I first met Susan at the 50th IATEFL Conference in Birmingham in 2016 when Susan arrived with a stack of newly published books, namely The NonNative Teacher, by Péter Medgyes. As this topic was becoming more and more important and well worthy of prolonged discussion and awareness-raising, I was delighted to see that this publication was being distributed for free to Conference attendees by Swan Communications, a small but active publishing company founded by Susan. Susan’s interest in humanistic language teaching, as well as emotional and social engagement were apparent in all that she did and republishing Péter’s book was certainly a large part of the message she was passionate about getting across to others in the field. At the time, I was doing quite a bit of work with teachers in different countries and at one point Susan

What does it all come down to?

So, let’s sum up.

❚ Two types of identity affect learning: selfbeliefs and external perceptions.

❚ Both identities are usually subconsciously articulated.

❚ Avoiding ‘facts’ avoids assumptions, shortcuts and unhelpful labels (in both self- and perceived identity).

❚ To be able to perceive students’ identities, we need to be self-aware enough to remove our own assumptions and filters.

❚ Don’t jump to the end goal – take baby steps, the smaller the better.

❚ Adapting identities to something more useful to the learning process requires time, a lateral approach and lots and lots of patience.

❚ Everything boils down to one question: What do students need to find themselves in their ideal learning environment? Now go out there and get to know your students!

alex@wellandwill.com

contacted me to ask if I needed more books to distribute. When I answered ‘yes’, she said she would be driving through Austria and she came to visit one afternoon with a box of books. I will always remember that afternoon (as well

as other times we spent chatting together at conferences in different European cities). I am very grateful that I got to know Susan and feel strongly that her memory will be a blessing to all of us who knew and worked with her.

Teaching vocabulary with revision and deep processing activities

Urs Kalberer presents a number of ways of teaching vocabulary

It seems an inconvenient truth that the teaching and learning of vocabulary represents the top priority in any foreign language classroom. Without vocabulary you cannot say, read, write or understand anything at all. Nevertheless, this important feature of learning a language is often pushed out of the classroom and transferred to the obscure realm of homework, where teachers have but limited control over what is happening.

The task of acquiring a sufficient range of words can be daunting considering the limited time available. The CEFR demands the following approximation of words for each level (considering an overlap between active and passive vocabulary):

A1 500-1,000

A2 1,000-2,000

B1 2,000-3,000

B2 3,000-5,000

C1 5,000-8,000

C2 8,000+

Table 1

Out-of-classroom exposure

The contact to the target language in an instructed foreign language setting is insufficient for most learners. Any means to extend the exposure into out-of-school time is thus welcome. This includes extensive reading, watching films with subtitles and (even) gaming.

Research suggests that between 6 and 16 encounters with a word are necessary to secure it in long-term memory. Thus, frequent exposure is essential for learners to retain and recall words effectively. Remember though, that input is not restricted to reading, it can and should also be listening.

According to Nation (2001), repetition and quality of processing are the two most important cognitive

conditions affecting vocabulary learning. Let us see how to put this into practice.

Repetition and fluency practice

Repetition means frequent encounters with new words or sets of words such as collocations. By steadily increasing the intake of lexical items, we spend less time on each individual word. This is called fluency practice and can be achieved either by increasing the speed, reducing the time or raising the memory demands with larger sets of words. Fluency practice is one important way of reviewing vocabulary in the classroom.

It is crucial to first teach the correct pronunciation and stress. Correct pronunciation helps us to remember the words better because we use auditory, visual and motor modalities in the process. This multisensory experience can help to reinforce memory traces and create stronger connections between the word and its meaning.

Let us image we want to teach the days of the week in Table 2 (any vocabulary set is possible, e.g. numbers, months, animals, etc.).

The teacher says each word individually and lets the class repeat. Then a set of days are said and steadily expanded. The pace is raised and finally the learners are given clues that they have to translate or spell, as in a dictation.

Fluency practice combined with skills training

Let your students read a passage for 60 seconds. They mark the word where they stopped. Then let them read the same passage again and mark their position, repeat once more. This simple activity repeated over a period of some weeks

shows that your learners can increase their reading speed considerably. The same method can be adapted for writing (a 5-minute passage) or speaking (reduce the time available after each turn).

Prefixes and suffixes

Teach your learners some common prefixes and suffixes, such as those listed in Table 3. Then let them underline examples in a text. Finally, offer them a selection of word stems that need to be completed with the correct prefix or suffix (_national, _understand, abbrevia_, safe_).

Slide show with increasing depth of processing

Present a series of photos representing new vocabulary and pronounce each word clearly. The class echoes. Repeat until the class can say all new words without your help.

In the following lesson show each slide while students are writing the words down the left margin of their books. To fix the stress of each word, the class adds the stress pattern with circles, e.g.

Table 2

2019

forest: Oo, education: ooOo.

In yet another lesson the students write an association for each new word down the right margin of their books. They should write the first thing that comes to mind when they see the slide. When finished, ask the class to cover the words down the left side and only look at their associations. Can they remember the original words? Finally, let them use each word in a sentence of their own.

Processing activities

It is not the painless, shallow learning that keeps words in the long-term memory, but rather the act of effortful recalling (retrieval) that makes learning more memorable. Because retrieving information requires mental effort, we often think we are doing poorly if we cannot remember an expression. We may feel like progress is slow, but that is when our best learning takes place. The more difficult the retrieval practice, the better it is for long-term learning. Some suggestions:

❚ recalling and using a recently met word in conversation or writing;

❚ turning a diagram or chart into written or spoken text;

❚ retelling a previously read text;

❚ gap-fill activities like walkabout closes;

❚ Show sentences including important vocabulary. Then, cover one part and let students remember the rest of the sentence.

❚ Explain it! Groups of 3–4 learners. One

of them is the speaker who gets a list of words that the group must explain (see Table 4). If they guess the word correctly, the speaker continues with the next one until the end of the list. Want to make it competitive? The groups compete against each other. Want more mileage? Use multiple lists and change the list and speaker after each round.

elbow giraffe net

cottage teeth folder

fitness door ride

coast mountain harbour

close winter travel

opposite pen barber

study feet webcam

upstairs cow button

stone money assistant

basket glove saucer

Table 4

A selection of websites for vocabulary work

❚ Learn English Teens https:// learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/ vocabulary offers a wide selection of vocabulary revision activities at different

levels. The exercises include matching, gap-fill and grouping tasks. There is also sound recording of all the expressions.

❚ Semantris https://research.google.com/ semantris is a catchy association game based on artificial intelligence. There are two modes of play: arcade and blocks.

❚ Skell https://skell.sketchengine. eu/#home is great for creating exercises and especially useful for non-native teachers of English. Type in a word in the search box and you can see the word in example sentences, in various grammatical settings, and as synonyms. Finally, why not try a vocabulary size test like this one by Paul Nation https:// my.vocabularysize.com? It will give you and your learners feedback and can be used for periodic and systematic screenings.

Students do not pick up vocabulary automatically as has been often said. Learning and storing words is hard work and the allocation of specific classroom time dedicated to vocabulary learning is essential in this process.

Reference

Nation, I. S. P. (2001). Learning vocabulary in another language. Cambridge University Press.

umkm@sunrise.ch

How assessment fits into the future of ELT

Russell Whitehead and Andy Johnson look at the recent, Covid-affected past in order to consider current trends and directions and potential future developments for assessment and its place within ELT

What’s been going on?

Recently there has been, where technology access permits, an increase in online provision of teaching, learning and assessment. Significant aspects include the rise of claims to provide individualised, tailored learning via online platforms. This depends on adaptive routes, with the learner’s experience being determined by their performance in various ways (not always obvious or stated to the learner). Research into, and delivery of, automated assessment of written and spoken performance continues apace. With very large numbers of learners or test takers at once (compared to the natural limits of a physical classroom or exam hall), online proctoring (both humanbased and wholly technological) has grown exponentially. Universities and government agencies are being invited to recognise officially a wide variety of assessments. This all coincides with the growth of online (including virtual reality) applications and admissions within the ever-increasing number of global EMI universities and other teaching organisations. Higher and adult education accounts for over $8bn of the total $32bn global English language market – lots of people and lots of money.

What does it mean?

Education is now a long way from Socrates sitting about with a couple of young guys. The range of threats and opportunities in front of us can feel bewildering. We need to use long-standing principles to help us maintain a sense of perspective. These principles are necessary and helpful, but we do need to ensure they evolve in positive ways.

Russell Whitehead has been a teacher, trainer, examiner, item writer, consultant and author. He set up LT123 in 2011. They specialise in all aspects of assessment for clients including exam providers, ministries, universities, schools and publishers. www. LT123.co.uk

Andy Johnson is a digital learning specialist with a background in product development and English language teaching. He has been a client of, and a Project Manager for, LT123. He currently manages the online programme portfolio of the London

Just as for decades, general book publishers would move into publishing in ELT, so various tech companies now look to move into ELT, with both learning platforms and forms of assessment. What began as ‘lift and shift’ (putting an exam as is from paper to screen) has become an interesting exploration of possibilities – for assessment, so much more is possible with computers than with a few sheets of paper. But just being possible isn’t the same as being beneficial.

Are we making sense?

We should ask, constantly, about the nature of what we’re assessing. Generally speaking, in the world handwriting is now not the final delivery mode for documents. So, we’re probably happy with tests being typed. Should we though, then, expect more or fewer words to be produced in a writing test? Should spelling/ grammar checks be disabled? Is that equivalent to traditional testing, or indeed to authentic experience? Actually, are we just treading water while Google Translate is perfected?

Until then, is what happens in a test a fair reflection of what is normal online? Isn’t video far more common than audio? ‘Talking to someone’ usually means typing to them. ‘Writing an email’ may mean speaking it. Should we continue to test the four skills like separate buckets? Are changes here to stay or themselves subject to further

flux? Could we afford to change testing frameworks and delivery systems as frequently as phone companies release new models?

What’s coming next?

Any understanding of the future of assessment must factor in the role that tech will have. It would be naive not to predict that ELT won’t be subject to some form of EdTech takeover (perhaps in unpredictable ways). Online education will continue to grow, with more people than ever learning, albeit on decreased budgets. As we move away from bricksand-mortar providers of education, the model will change to meet learners’ needs. Courses will be shorter, with spaced inputs and learning experiences. Experience online is key to the future of education, particularly given the development of the Metaverse. With Facebook rebranding to Meta and committing to the ‘embodied internet’, where users interact with each other and their environment in avatar form, and with Bill Gates predicting the end of the era of Zoom’s ‘celebrity squares’ by 2023, how assessment reacts to these developments will be fascinating. One of the advantages of the Metaverse is that it involves experiential learning. If assessment is to mirror the skills people use in their lives, it could be that there will be interactive, experientially based assessments in the Metaverse, with virtual test centres and avatar examiners. Looking ahead, one thing that is for certain is the strategic importance of testing. With increased learning, and accountability, there must be some way of measuring competence and outcomes, no matter what form of the inputs. Test-makers must maintain standards, be principled, robust and open. andybjornjohnson@gmail.com

russell@lt123.co.uk

‘‘ Experience online is key to the future of education, particularly given the development of the Metaverse. ’’

Understanding excessive L1 use through exploratory action research, an intervention, and unexpected opportunities

Andrew Drought adopts an exploratory action research methodology to explore possible reasons for excessive L1 use in the classroom

L1 use in the language classroom

This study is set in the context of an undergraduate English language programme in Japan. The problem that made the intervention reported here necessary involved large classes of mixed-ability, mixed-motivation 1st-year university students. Though student feedback was always excellent, the students were easily distracted by each other, reluctant to speak to the opposite sex, and excessive L1 use was a continual challenge.

Exploratory action research

I wanted to understand the situation better through exploratory action research by:

❚ asking teachers to list obstacles to an all-English environment, plus strategies for overcoming these;

❚ asking these teachers’ students to do a questionnaire about English use in class; and

❚ watching four classes, focusing on what teachers did to create an all-English environment.

Teachers listed English level, educational background, low awareness of the benefits of an English-only environment, maturity, judicious use of L1 spreading to the whole lesson, and motivation/interest as potential obstacles to an all-English classroom.

An interesting insight from the student questionnaire was that many of the students that had been described as unmotivated and uninterested in English by their teachers did not characterise themselves that way. In fact, students

overwhelmingly indicated that they were very motivated and interested in English. Learners also mentioned another possible reason for excessive L1 use that teachers had not – student anxiety.

The next stage of the study was to collect teachers’ strategies for overcoming these obstacles and to see what themes emerged from them. These included strategies for:

❚ creating an anxiety-free environment,

e.g. letting students know mistakes are OK;

❚ setting clear expectations, e.g. reminding students that English use will be assessed;

❚ planning and setting up tasks, e.g. displaying process language when demonstrating activities; and

❚ learner training, e.g. encouraging students to ask if they need help.

An intervention

The main recommendation to emerge from this exploratory action research was for teachers to share their strategies with each other. Within the framework of a simple action research project, I decided to create and encourage use of an ‘English-Rich Environment Action Checklist’.

Anxiety-free environment

Praise students after activities for only using English.

Let students know mistakes are OK (encouraged even) so L1 is not needed.

Arrange groupings so there is a good mix of English/motivation levels.

Planning and set up

Employ structured tasks with a clear purpose and try the activity yourself before the lesson to ensure it is pitched at the students’ level. Get the whole class’s attention and quiet before giving simple, clear, staged instructions using visual support and ICQs.

Include a demonstration so students can see the task in action and involve students so they can practise before they start.

Include process language in the demonstration and display on the screen.

Sometimes allow students to plan and do the task using Japanese before repeating the task only in English.

Expectations that class will be done in English

Remind students the class will be conducted in English and gently tell off students for speaking L1 unnecessarily.

Stop activities and give students feedback on how much L1 is being used.

Remind students that English use will be assessed.

Clearly signpost in which parts of the lesson L1 is expected and in which parts it is not.

Set English-only challenges and employ a reward/punishment system.

Learner training

Ask students to reflect on and discuss why an English-rich classroom is useful, how English is useful for future, how they felt doing the activity in English.

Nudge and support students to create the habit of speaking English. Teach and encourage students to use classroom ‘survival English’ and language for checking and clarifying. Encourage students to ask at any time if they need help with English. Highlight occasions when L1 is used and suggest ways to say the same in English.

I had just begun to encourage the team to use the strategies in the checklist when all lessons suddenly moved online due to the Covid pandemic. How could we get the seemingly unmotivated, easily distracted students to speak to each other in English online? Contrary to expectations, the sudden pivot online itself offered a number of opportunities to reduce L1.

Unexpected opportunities from the pivot online

Although there are well-known challenges to teaching online, there were many unexpected opportunities to reduce L1 use. The move online helped create an anxiety-free environment. This was partly through having to slow down, set more realistic outcomes, and not try to cover too much due to the more limited amount that can be covered in online classes. Learners were also less reluctant to talk to each other and

to contribute full class, thanks to Zoom tools, such as random breakout rooms (BORs), Chat, Annotation and Polls. The teacher was also able to listen intently and add feedback to Chat or Word documents in BORs using affordances offered by Chat and the extra visual support. Teachers were more likely to set clear expectations that English should be spoken before learners disappeared into BORs, and it also became easier for teachers to hear learners and nudge them to use English in BORs, thanks to the absence of background noise.

Task planning and set up was aided by learners generally being quiet and ready for teachers’ instructions. Again, before learners disappeared into BORs, it became more important for teachers to clearly demonstrate tasks with learners using ICQs. The need to replace missing aspects of the brick-and-mortar classroom with more visual slides, and providing a limited amount of process language on

these slides, meant L1 use was reduced further. Finally, the online experience presented opportunities to improve learner training through the use of timeefficient and interactive Polls, and the Ask for Help button to train learners to ask for help when needed.

Can these be replicated in the bricks-and-mortar classroom?

The unexpected opportunities arising from the move online provided valuable insights into creating an English-rich environment and resulted in a positive change in attitudes and approaches to the challenge of L1 use in class. This experience acted to remind us of the importance of basic teaching principles for promoting effective English language learning and minimising excessive L1 use both online and face-to-face.

Andrew.Drought@britishcouncil.or.jp

Exploring, enlightening, empowering: the power of music and songs & how it can be harnessed for educational purposes

Chris Walklett explores the transformative power of music in the classroom

Introduction

As became evident when Covid, lockdown and the many resultant difficulties, trials and tribulations hit, life changed immeasurably for us all, impacting not only on our physical health, but also our mental health, peace of mind and general wellbeing. It was a time in which it was hard for even committed optimists (let alone the rest of us) to see past present difficulties and into a brighter future.

These trying times though bore witness to some of the finer aspects of humanity. Few will forget the images of musicians and singers in Italy, Spain (and elsewhere) serenading neighbours from their balconies while lockdown had confined everyone to their apartments, making us wonder if anything brings us together and has the same power to unite and uplift as music does.

Don’t stop (and don’t give up)

Just prior to the commencement of the pandemic, a colleague shared how she used music to unite her ESOL students, many of whom were LACs – looked after children – who were new to the UK. They were disconnected, didn’t know each other or indeed hardly anyone else and ultimately were on their own in a strange country with no common language apart from their differing levels of English. Unsure of where their lives were headed, there seemed to be an understandable sense of pessimism and little hope for the future among the class members.

Spurred on by my song-based ideas in my coursebook Teaching Tracks, this practitioner employed the Fleetwood Mac song Don’t Stop to try to inspire friendship and hope among her ESOL

students. She implored them to focus on the core message of the song – that of not giving up and of always looking at each new day with renewed hope. She also employed warm imagery – sunshine, rainbows, smiley emojis, dream/thought bubbles and the like to draw out upbeat language and correspondingly uplifting thoughts from them.

Think visual

It is not just positive thinking that music inspires though. Lyric-less music in particular lends itself to techniques such as visualisation, where, with eyes closed, thus blocking out the ‘white noise’ from all around us, focusing and concentrating are made easier. Increasingly, in this fastpaced world, ambient, classical and other types of more meditative music are being explored to aid relaxation and calm our minds.

Such types of music present interesting possibilities for classroom usage. Activities such as conjuring up words of different types can be employed – getting students to close their eyes and produce

adjectives and other forms of descriptive language by asking questions such as, how does this piece of music make you feel? More ambitiously, students can be asked what story or scenario this piece of music brings to mind, which can lead to production of not just words, but doodles and sketches. Afterwards, they can then go on to explain what they have imagined or sketched. Below is an example of free doodling that took place while Emily Bryson’s students were listening to The Beatles Here Comes the Sun. Afterwards, she got her students to colour the doodle in and what emerged is below.

Image from emilybrysonelt.com

Waxing Lyrical

The lyrics within songs are also hugely impactful, it is believed that ‘like mantras…words and ideas are implanted into our subconscious through the music, reinforcing thought patterns that can affect our mood or outlook’ (Faye, 2016). Below is an example, also from Emily’s class, of how

lyrics can be combined with images to draw a song.

Songs, that is to say the combination of music and words, i.e. lyrics, have an even greater power. As Yip Harburg, the songwriter of one of the most famous paeans to optimism and a brighter tomorrow, Somewhere Over the Rainbow explained, ‘words make you think a thought, music makes you feel a feeling, but a song makes you feel a thought’ (Newman, 2017).

The whole of the…magic

Music could be said to exhibit an almost miraculous quality. In the summer of 2021, Thomas Leeds had a road traffic accident leading to him suffering acute face blindness: a brain injury that led to the loss of all (preinjury) memories. This, heartbreakingly (for both him and them) included him losing facial recognition of his loved ones.

Some ten years after the accident however, he happened to hear the unique drum, keyboard and jangly guitar intro to a song, which those around him noticed, appeared to spark recognition. By the time the lyrics to the Waterboys’ The Whole of the Moon had kicked in, a series of flashbacks were taking place – leading to a memory chain which enabled him (through association) to recall memories from pre-injury times. This was miraculous not only for him, but for his friends and family who he could now recognise. Perhaps Harburg’s ideas, at least in part, explain why Thomas Leeds’ memory recalibrated

itself a decade later when he heard the vocals/lyrics of that Waterboys’ anthem: he both felt and thought things from his apparently forgotten past, then he felt a thought which, in turn, set in motion the memory-chain process.

Music drives me crazy!

Music has an innate ability to dictate and change the way we think and act. There has been considerable research for example on how certain genres of music with a particular style, energy, or with a certain number of beats per minute (BPM), can affect how you do certain activities, for example driving. Certain types of music may engender a devil-may-care attitude, making you exceed the speed limit, or in some cases, even far exceed it. It’s not an easy task to drive slowly or cautiously listening to NWA, AC/DC or pumping house music. Indeed, research has shown that jazz (presumably the faster paced stuff rather than the cool type) is the genre most likely to make you speed, perhaps due to its freeform and rebellious nature. And what is it exactly about listening to Steely Dan that makes you want to put your sunglasses on, wind down your window and cruise?

On the other hand, it’s hard to get too worked up about things when you’re listening to a blissful Sandy Denny track, for example, or the beautiful compositions found on Kate Bush’s Aerial. The pastoral works of classical composer Ralph Vaughan Williams, or more recently the ambient works of Jon Hopkins or Jessica Curry, are a few examples of euphorically calming music that can relax us and bring down our heart rate.

Using songs to highlight issues

Using carefully chosen songs and wellthought-out teaching materials based on them can help aid understanding of personal issues, offering the possibility of uplifting and motivating students, perhaps even comforting them and acting as an aid to healing.

The all-too-commonplace occurrences nowadays of things like hate crime, bullying, abuse and violence can make it hard for young people to make sense of the world that they are growing up into. The confusion that such things can bring can lead to a sense that life is meaningless, leading to feelings of depression and other mental health issues, and/or feelings of loneliness. There is however a plethora of suitable songs out there that can be employed to examine such issues, and here I will namecheck but a few. Loss, pain and loneliness are brought to the fore in REM’s Everybody Hurts, a track originally conceived when songwriter, Michael Stipe, discovered the shockingly high teen suicide figures in the US. Lukas Graham’s 7 years looks at issues surrounding the difficulties involved in growing up, and in this case being made to grow up, too quickly. Video by India Arie, which promotes positive self-image among young women and focuses on knowing your own worth, could be employed, as could Nine Inch Nails’ Hurt, famously covered by Johnny Cash, which deals with the issue of self-harming.

The power to change thinking

We may decide that our role as educators involves the need to enlighten students in the manner Alan Maley prescribes in his poem Teacher, namely educating them ‘how to think, and feel’ (Maley & Peachey, 2017).

‘‘ Music has an innate ability to dictate and change the way we think and act. There has been considerable research for example on how certain genres of music with a particular style, energy, or with a certain number of beats per minute (BPM), can affect how you do certain activities, for example driving. ’’

Maley further advises we should guide our students to aspire to ‘inspiration, aspiration, cooperation, participation, innovation’ whilst also suggesting they consider meatier issues such as ‘globalisation, exploitation, confrontation, incarceration, discrimination, degradation, subjugation’ (Maley & Peachey, 2017). He further believes that we should demonstrate to them, ‘how inequality brings poverty, how intolerance brings violence, how need is denied by greed, how -isms become prisons, how thinking and feeling can bring about healing’ (Maley & Peachey, 2017).

I would suggest that songs are the ideal resource for doing what Maley advocates. Protest songs and other songs which contain within them social commentary, whether delivered aggressively, defensively, passionately, pleadingly or otherwise, are among the finest ways to highlight the multitude of issues that are happening or that have happened in our world.

Using this resource in such a way though will be dependent upon barriers. These will include ones imposed upon us by our institutions, e.g. the syllabus and the classes’ needs and preferences, etc.

However, there will also be barriers that are self-imposed, for, as Alice Hamachek put it, ‘consciously, we teach what we know; unconsciously, we teach who we are’ (Joy in Motion, 2009). Thus, the decision we take might well depend on how much you agree with Maley’s assertion that it is in fact our duty to educate and enlighten students in relation to, so called, ‘political’ issues such as those relating to climate change or social justice.

Conclusion

Music’s power is unequalled. Its transformative ability, whether through the magic of a beat or bar, note or chord, a snatched part of a lyric, or the pitch and rhythm that makes up a melody, can totally transform the way we feel. The power of music over the way we think and act is an attribute that is clearly ready and waiting to be harnessed. Using carefully chosen songs and well-thoughtout teaching materials based on them can help aid understanding of concerns of both a personal and political nature. In turn, they offer the possibility of uplifting, motivating and comforting students, perhaps even acting as an aid to healing.

Songs are a timeless, albeit neglected/ unexplored, resource containing within them a plethora of potential classroom possibilities that we as educators can use to explore, enlighten and empower. All that remains is for us to search for ways and means of making the most of what this staggeringly useful resource has to offer.

References

Faye, T. (2016, April 15). M: Music to De-Stress. TrishaFaye. https://trishafaye. wordpress.com/2016/04/15/m-music-tode-stress/

Joy in Motion. (2009, July 8). Quotes on Teaching. http://joymotiondance.com/ quotes-onteaching/#:~:text=Education%20 must%20teach%2C%20reach%2C%20 and,we%20teach%20who%20we%20are Maley, A., & Peachey, N. (2017). Integrating global issues in the creative English language classroom: With reference to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. British Council.

walklettchris@hotmail.com

To Kahoot! or not to Kahoot!

Elle Sõrmus, Õie Tähtla and Kateriina Rannula present their findings from a study looking at the effectiveness of Kahoot!, Quizlet and Padlet in tertiary education settings

Introduction and background

The objective of this paper is to present the results pertaining to the utilisation of diverse educational applications by students enrolled in institutions of higher education.

Given the prevalence of hybrid teaching in contemporary pedagogy, it is imperative that a diverse array of assignments be incorporated into the curriculum to facilitate optimal learning outcomes for students. Babic (2011) has noted that the dissemination of educational content has been facilitated through the utilisation of diverse technologies across different historical periods.

The advent of the Internet and diverse online educational platforms has facilitated the utilisation of various learning applications for the purpose of presenting instructor-generated content.

Interactive environments have been found to enhance learners’ attention toward the task at hand. Additionally, the provision of immediate feedback in such environments aligns with the expectations of modern learners.

Practical survey

Language lecturers employed in Tallinn Health Care College, a tertiary academic institution, decided to gather data and conduct a literature review. The present study scrutinised the following software applications: Kahoot!, Quizlet and Padlet. The primary aim of this study was to examine the potential efficacy of these applications in enhancing learners’ abilities, and to assess their perceived usefulness among students. Given that adult learning is predominantly selfdirected, it is imperative to incorporate tools that yield substantial advantages in learner performance during the learning process.

The present study examines the perspectives of first-year healthcare

Elle Sõrmus has been an Estonian lecturer at the Tallinn Health Care College since 2012. Her specialist areas of interest are language teaching methodology, teaching refugees and immigrants.

Õie Tähtla has been an English lecturer at the Tallinn Health Care College since 2016. She graduated from Tartu University with a degree in Translation Studies.

Kateriina Rannula has been an English lecturer at the Tallinn Health Care College since 2008. Her areas of interest are teaching English for healthcare purposes and academic ethics.

students regarding the efficacy of language learning applications utilised in their coursework. The participants in the sample were recruited on a voluntary basis. Google Forms were used to create questions for the survey. There were multiple choice questions, yes/no questions, open questions and a comment section. The students deserved to have as many various options to express their opinion on applications as possible, and the use of various types of questions allowed them to do that.

Pie charts are utilised to visually represent the outcomes of the investigation. According to Styaningrum et al. (2021), the utilisation of online language learning tools by teaching staff resulted in an increase in students’ motivation to study.

The Development Plan for Tallinn Health Care College’s Lifelong-Learning Centre for the years 2022–2026 has emphasised the creation of suitable digital learning materials for use in both regular classes and continuing education (TTK, 2022).

Discussion

Quizlet is perceived by students as a prompt, effortless and expedient application for acquiring novel terminology (84%) and for reviewing previously learned material (84%) due to its ability to reduce the time required for memorisation. Examples of students’ opinions about Quizlet: ‘Good and easy environment.’ ‘Quick and easy

way to learn.’ ‘Very comfortable to use.’ ‘Keywords help to learn.’ ‘Playful.’ ‘Images help to create connections.’

Kahoot! provides students with a stimulating and engaging experience, as it fosters a sense of competition and playfulness. This practice is deemed appropriate for establishing a strong foundation of knowledge and promoting a relaxed learning environment within the classroom. It represents a modification in their daily regimen. Moreover, educators possess the capability to ascertain the extent of their students’ knowledge and identify areas where they may require further assistance. Students’ opinions about Kahoot!: ‘There is a moment of competition.’ ‘It reduces the tension because it is playful.’ ‘Practice by playing offers positive emotions.’ ‘It is fun but does not help to memorize facts in long-term.’

The utilisation of Padlet was found to be advantageous by merely 57% of the student population, primarily due to infrequent usage or a lack of prior familiarity with the platform. Padlet was deemed suitable for brief summaries. Padlet in the eyes of the students: ‘I have not used it a lot.’ ‘Kahoot! and Quizlet are more comfortable. It can be used, however, I prefer it the least.’ ‘One can read and listen to the information there.’

The study’s potential shift toward an application-based and internet-based approach was noted by students as a potential source of concern. The students have observed that the utilisation of Kahoot! and Quizlet is hindered due to the former’s reliance on response speed and the latter’s requirement of payment for quality options.

The majority of students were unable to identify any additional applications that ought to be incorporated into the classroom setting. Nonetheless, a few other applications were cited, including Purposegames, Quizizz, and Studystack.

‘‘ The utilisation of Padlet was found to be advantageous by merely 57% of the student population, primarily due to infrequent usage or a lack of prior familiarity with the platform. ’’

Results

The findings are based on empirical data gathered through systematic observations and voluntary feedback provided by the learners. It can be hypothesised that educational applications typically provide students with the opportunity to utilise various settings instead of conforming to a singular environment.

According to the research conducted by Licorish et al. (2018), students reported that anonymity plays a significant role

in enhancing their engagement in the learning process, thereby resulting in elevated levels of knowledge and skills. Chart 1 provides a comprehensive display of the results regarding whether they found the applications beneficial or not. Most of the students perceived all the applications to be advantageous for their language studies. The outcomes of the survey may be applied to pragmatic objectives, such as improving the duration allocated to applications that were favoured in language courses, or

reducing the duration if no substantial advantageous factor was identified (see Chart 2).

Conclusion

Based on the results of the survey, it can be concluded that the applications can be used purposefully on certain topics to enhance student learning. However, it depends on the number of students and the peculiarities of the application. Padlet will not be used in language classes due to aforementioned characteristics. Kahoot! and Quizlet will be used occasionally. Quizlet is very useful for independent learning and revision for the test. Kahoot! is great for playful competitive moments, and to check whether there are gaps in knowledge or not. Three more applications were mentioned by the students, which we have not used in classes yet. It is possible to consider these applications to enrich the method of teaching in the future. These applications need further research and testing in language classes.

References

Babic, S. (2011, 23–27 May). E-learning environment compared to traditional classroom [Conference presentation]. Proceedings of the 34th International Convention, Opatija, Croatia.

Licorish, S. A., Owen, H. E., Daniel, B., & George, J. L. Students’ perception of Kahoot!’s influence on teaching and learning. RPTEL 13(9). https://doi. org/10.1186/s41039-018-0078-8

Styaningrum, F., Sulistyowati, N. W., & Wibowo, A. (2021). Does SmartphoneBased Quizlet Affect Students Learning Interest? Dinamika Pendidikan, 16(1), 64–74. https://doi.org/10.15294/ dp.v16i1.28780

TTK. (2022). Development Plan 2022–2026 https://www.ttk.ee/en/node/2793

elle.sormus@ttk.ee

oie.tahtla@ttk.ee

kateriina.rannula@ttk.ee

Teaching young learners

Khaled Khodeir gives some practical tips and recommendations for new teachers who are starting to teach young learners

Due to my experience teaching youngsters for about twelve years, it can be reinforced that they are the most impressive age to deal with. They are packed with energy, purity, love and sincerity, as well as being fast learners. The significance of this article is down to its critical importance for every parent, educator or curriculum developer, as the majority of us have a member of our family or working group who is considered to be a young learner. A young learner is defined as a child who is between three and eighteen years old.

A child’s growth has specific characteristics

Young learners get bored quickly. This is why we have to always remind ourselves to vary our ways of delivering information. It is essential to sometimes use the Present Practice Produce (PPP) approach, some other sessions would benefit from the Test, Teach, Test (TTT) technique or we could activate gamebased learning activities to prevent student boredom.

Young learners are meaning-oriented Pupils are mainly focusing on the meaning of what you are explaining; small details are not of great importance to them.

Young learners like to discover things. A keen teacher will probably find out that their younger students are actively engaged when they discover a piece of information for themselves. That is why it is better for them to be taught things implicitly so that they discover the outcome on their own. You will find students eager to learn and enthusiastic to participate if you create a learning environment in which they can discover things alone. As a result, it is advisable to make use of guided discovery as much as possible and activate discussions inside your classroom.

They prefer concrete activities. If you work with young leaners, you will possibly recognise that students can struggle to understand the meaning of abstract nouns. You may spend a

Khaled Khodeir is an enthusiastic and expert teacher with more than a decade of teaching experience. He is of the belief that varying teaching styles and motivating students are the secret components of learning successfully.

great deal of time and effort conveying the meaning of such words accurately and confidently. Therefore, young learners find it easier to learn concrete items; something they can feel, touch, see, hear or even smell. It is a matter of critical significance to use realia along with any visual aids.

They are more egocentric. A keen teacher should be aware of this point while designing their lessons. Activities and questions should be cautiously distributed among the students in the classroom. Young learners can easily feel jealous of their classmates. For instance, you may find a student who is complaining that they are not asked as frequently as their peers, or someone else who feels jealous or uncomfortable towards another in the same classroom. As a result, teachers should pay attention to this issue when preparing their lessons. They are imaginative. Your students are imaginative by nature. They let their brains make up stories and fables about people or things. They can quickly lose interest in a serious text or a difficult reading passage. They are in need of something that opens the door and enables their creativity to be nurtured. They imitate. Youngsters mostly imitate. They imitate their parents, teachers or even their peers. This is an extremely important issue for us as educators because they are exposed to our influence upon them for a long period of time. They receive a great deal of their knowledge and aspects of their characters from us as teachers. Hence, we need to be role models for them in a number of different ways; our appearance, beliefs, reactions and manners.

Tips before starting to teach young learners

Make sure they are comfortable. Be sure that your class is cosy and has enough natural light. The use of comfortable seats and tables is a must. Having a neat and well-organised whiteboard is essential. Make sure that your pupils are well-rested and not hungry.

Set clear rules of acceptable behaviour. The teacher should strike a balance between being strict and being flexible with their learners. Consequently, it is advisable from the first day at school, to set clear standards of behaviour to prevent any unacceptable behaviour in the classroom. All these rules and systems should be arranged according to what is acceptable or unacceptable in your institution.

Establish your reward system. Rewarding good behaviour should be conducted through the use of words of praise, and there should also be obvious reward criteria followed throughout the school year. It can be printed out and attached to one of the class boards to be easily and frequently read and used. Make your class interesting.

It is evident that youngsters get bored easily. Their attention span is approximately two to three times their age, so a ten-year-old child would have an attention span of, maximum, thirty minutes (CNLD Testing and Therapy, n.d.). As a result, our classes should have a sense of entertainment, engagement, movement or gamification.

Implications for new teachers

Working with young learners requires reducing the affective filter or, in other words, breaking the ice between the educator and the learners via gamification, icebreakers or welcome activities.

Activities should not take more than ten minutes to complete. This is why variation should be taken into consideration while preparing your sessions. Hence, encouraging learners to concentrate more than that will be counterproductive. The final outcome will be students getting bored and disinterested.

The content of the sessions should be motivating and involving. Young learners are mostly self-centred; therefore, topics and activities should preferably focus on the students’ life experience to date.

Youngsters are perfect imitators; that is why they mostly imitate their guardians or even their teacher. Hence, an educator should be a good model of language use as well as social behaviours. The teacher’s pronunciation, for instance, matters enormously. While a lot of changes have occurred in the last few years in how we teach grammar, vocabulary, collocation, context and meaning, I believe that pronunciation is still rooted in an

essentially behaviourist paradigm of listen, identify, discriminate and repeat.

Youngsters acquire their first language more or less effortlessly. They unintentionally rely on acquisition of the language more than specifically learning it. They respond to meaning and are far better at picking up language through listening and speaking. Since children like playing, discovering and using their imagination, the activities that focus on making things, drawing, problem-solving (e.g. riddles), singing and playing games can be very beneficial. The classroom should ideally be colourful and spacious enough to be able to move around without any problems. Children should work in groups and the activities should take place in stress- and anxiety-free environments.

How do children learn?

❚ They enjoy learning through playing, acting, making and doing.

❚ They are imaginative.

❚ They understand language as units not separate words.

❚ They interpret meaning without necessarily understanding the individual word.

❚ They learn indirectly rather than directly.

❚ They develop physically, mentally and conceptually.

Motivation as a part of a young learner’s education

Each teacher should:

❚ use a starter activity;

❚ adopt activities that are within the students’ interests – something that is relevant to a game or even a popular cartoon they watch;

❚ design meaningful tasks that are of

some importance to their lives;

❚ integrate fun, play and imagination and make them part of the lesson routine;

❚ be prepared to act (vary voice, intonation, stress) to avoid boredom or losing the interest of the students;

❚ use an attention-getting activity, signal or a chant.

Giving instructions to young learners

While giving instructions to young learners can sometimes be challenging for some teachers, here is a list of tips and tricks to have highly effective instructions inside your classroom. We follow the BE CLEAR rule of giving instructions:

Break things down.

Explain the activity.

Create a step-by-step outline.

Let students see what the activity looks like (demonstrate instructions).

Experiment with a student.

Assess their understanding (how?).

Repair misunderstandings (if needed).

Successful practices inside the classroom

Activate the use of songs, chants, stories, games and crafts.

❚ Songs and music lower anxiety.

❚ They create enjoyable, anxiety-free environment.

❚ They are beneficial for teaching vocabulary.

❚ They serve as excellent listening material.

❚ Songs can be used as supplemental texts.

❚ Songs can be used for vocabulary development.

❚ They support grammar presentation, practice and revision.

❚ They bring various cultures into the classroom.

Dos & Don’ts for teaching young learners

❚ Teach language in context.

❚ Create an English-speaking environment.

❚ Keep yourself motivated (contagious)!

❚ Encourage and make English fun.

❚ Vary your tone of voice.

❚ Act, sing and move.

❚ Don’t teach grammar explicitly.

❚ Never compare students to each other.

❚ Never underestimate students.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it can be reiterated that teaching young learners is a journey full of power, enthusiasm and sincerity. As a teacher, you will remain memorable forever if you have the ability to capture the love of your pupils. The previouslyintroduced points have helped me a lot while teaching young learners, and I hope they are helpful for those teachers who are starting out teaching young students. They will help build trust and rapport between the educator and the learner.

Reference

CNLD Testing and Therapy. (n.d.). How long should a child’s attention span be? https://www.cnld.org/howlong-should-a-childs-attention-spanbe/#:~:text=9%E2%80%9310%20 years%20old%3A%2020,years%20 old%3A%2030%2D40%20minutes

khaledkhodeir88@gmail.com

Beyond the false promise of ChatGPT: the potential and limitations of using ChatGPT in English language teaching

Ali Caszadeh Mataki acknowledges the potential of ChatGPT but outlines the limitations which need to be considered by teachers when using such technology in the classroom.

Introduction

The effective communication skills brought about by English Language Teaching (ELT) are necessary for individuals living in today’s increasingly interconnected global society, thereby promoting intercultural understanding. However, traditional language teaching practices often face challenges related to the provision of meaningful conversation opportunities and targeted feedback concerning individual learners’ needs specifically. In such circumstances, advanced chatbots such as ChatGPT have emerged as a new possibility that could revolutionise ELT methodologies by providing increasingly nuanced learning alternatives that address these gaps effectively. Nonetheless, Chomsky et al.’s (2023) article ‘The False Promise of ChatGPT’ provides critical insights into the limitations and controversies surrounding these models while highlighting certain implications for ELT.

Chomsky has raised valid concerns regarding GPT-3-like chatbots’ ability to replicate human-targeted linguistic proficiency while challenging universal grammar theory, heralding potential problems (Chomsky et al., 2023). In light of this assessment, questions need to be raised concerning the appropriateness of this model’s role in promoting effective learning practices.

With a clear understanding of the implications, advantages and disadvantages contained therein, language models like ChatGPT remain an area to investigate continuously in ELT methodologies. Improvements, such as personalised feedback provision and simulation of realworld conversation scenarios, opportunities for learner growth at different proficiency levels point toward a better future in integrating advanced chatbots like

ChatGPT.

This article aims to offer essential insights for educators, researchers and policymakers seeking to incorporate AI technology in their respective fields.

Implications for ELT methodologies

The use of models like ChatGPT presents significant opportunities for ELT methodologies. By including these models in instructional approaches, conversation practice becomes more engaging, and error correction is streamlined, allowing language learners to receive valuable feedback (Emerick & Goldberg, 2022). ChatGPT’s conversational dialog enables learners to hone their language skills in a simulated interactive environment. This feature proves highly beneficial for individuals with limited access to authentic language practice or those who experience shyness in public speaking. Moreover, language models such as ChatGPT can assist learners by providing instant feedback on their language production, leading to efficient language learning and promoting learner autonomy. However, it is crucial to maintain balance when considering the benefits that these modelling approaches offer. These models must undergo critical evaluation and require adaptability when integrated into pedagogical practices because they cannot replace the need for human interaction or instruction. Therefore, instructors must cautiously incorporate tools like ChatGPT into ELT methodologies as a method of support for language learning rather than substitutes for human interaction.

Additionally, while these models can contribute significantly to accurate responses about language needs or questions from learners, it is important to

avoid relying solely on this tool due to its limitations in complex linguistic situations. Teachers should guide learners through the process of critically evaluating information obtained through the tool and provide additional explanations and clarifications when needed.

When incorporating modelling languages such as ChatGPT into ELT methodologies, a reflective approach must be undertaken that allows for adaptability in each specific scenario. In order to enhance language learning experiences in ELT classrooms, teachers should be mindful of both the strengths and limitations of ChatGPT. They can leverage the language model’s potential by implementing scaffolded activities that guide learners to interact with it effectively and evaluate its responses critically. This kind of informed integration aligns with Kohnke et al.’s (2023) perspective on ChatGPT’s value as a tool for ELT instruction.

Chomsky et al. (2023) argue that while Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT excel at simulating human-like responses, they lack an understanding of human language learning. They contend that LLMs are products of engineering, not science, and their design hinders insights into language acquisition and cognition. LLMs scan data for statistical regularities without differentiating between possible and impossible languages, limiting their ability to provide understanding. Chomsky et al. (2023) emphasise that true scientific inquiry involves studying the biological endowment for language and its transformation through growth and development. They assert that LLM approaches, reliant on observed data, restrict understanding of language’s internal processes. They recognise the utility of LLMs for specific applications but highlight their shortcomings in providing insights into human language learning and cognition.

Impact on language acquisition theories

The development of novel methods for computational modelling, such as ChatGPT, raises questions about longstanding theories on human language acquisition

and opens up new possibilities for language education. These approaches emphasise the importance of interactive engagement and exposure to diverse environments to promote language acquisition.

There are ongoing discussions about the universal grammar theory proposed by Chomsky et al. (2023), suggesting that humans possess an innate capacity that guides their understanding and use of linguistic systems over time. However, the emergence of models that rely solely on statistical patterns raises fundamental questions about whether there is a similar capability for independently modelling human speech production. These models provide greater insight into the factors influencing this process.

Exploring these inquiries can generate valuable research insights into effective interaction opportunities for future learning environments that incorporate language model technology like ChatGPT. This can lead to intelligent integration within educational contexts, fostering improved autonomy and personalisation to support more naturalistic language learning experiences. Integrating language models into existing strategies for classroom practices and theories of language acquisition can be highly advantageous. However, caution must be exercised at every step of this process.

While these models can enhance language practice and provide meaningful insights, they fall short of expressing the intricacies of human communication and the nuances of language. Educators and researchers must scrutinise their roles diligently to ensure that these supplementary tools do not replace core elements such as developing cultural awareness, facilitating crucial interpersonal interactions, and sharpening critical thinking abilities.

Ethical considerations and future directions

To ensure the responsible integration of ChatGPT into ELT, educators must give serious consideration to critical ethical factors. One crucial aspect is addressing concerns related to privacy and data security while also mitigating potential biases embedded within the model’s operation through various measures.

Privacy preservation is vital when incorporating ChatGPT within an educational framework, as it involves operating a processing system capable of analysing large amounts of user-generated data (Frąckiewicz, 2023). To protect privacy, institutions should obtain permission from learners before processing user-generated texts. It is also crucial to implement strict protocols governing data protection and secure data storage procedures.

In addition, language models like ChatGPT learn and generate responses based on vast amounts of text data, which increases the probability of reflecting biases within the model (Ferrara, 2023). There is a possibility of perpetuating stereotypes and marginalising certain learner groups. Institutions must curate training data with diverse linguistic and cultural perspectives through rigorous evaluation processes. Regular system auditing can also help mitigate potential biases.

Teachers play a vital role in implementing the responsible use of ChatGPT in ELT discourse while equipping themselves with adequate knowledge of operating AI technology responsibly. They can encourage discussions aimed at promoting meaningful engagement with language models as tools for language learning while fostering balanced perspectives. By enabling learners to gain a solid grasp of what Language Models (LMs) entail, their limitations, and the debates surrounding the implementation of AI in educational technology, they can develop crucial insights and enhanced digital literacy skills. This ultimately paves the way for more informed decision-making processes regarding engagement with LMs and their applications that mediate our experience with computer systems’ natural user interfaces (NUIs).

Future-focused investigations into the utilisation of AI in contemporary pedagogical engagements should direct attention toward the long-term effects on learners’ proficiency levels, motivational factors driving sustained interest in content ingestion pathways, and inclusive engagement practices that invite all students within safe psychological bounds, regardless of their diverse communication channels.

As new methods surface regarding the integration of assistive language models like ChatGPT within ELT, ethical considerations such as privacy, data security, and the elimination of potential biases in training data should be carefully appraised. With guidance from professional learning facilitators and pedagogical experts, students stand a higher chance of gaining experience and insight that will equip them with applicable skills beyond their formal classroom experiences.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the arrival of chatbots like ChatGPT has opened up significant opportunities for ELT. This article has undertaken an analysis of AI’s inclusion in educational settings, critically examining criticisms surrounding the progress achieved through applications like ChatGPT. It has also explored the promising areas where chatbots can support underperforming

classrooms, contributing to the ongoing discourse in ELT.

Chatbots, powered by natural language processing, offer valuable support for conversation practice in classrooms. They provide learners with error correction and real-time feedback, enhancing their language skills. Furthermore, implementing chatbots as language-learning tools facilitates interactive learning experiences, engaging students in meaningful language practice. However, it is crucial to address ethical concerns related to privacy and data security before integrating chatbot technology into the curriculum.

Lastly, responsible integration of innovative technologies in pedagogical settings requires ethical due diligence. It is essential to consider privacy regulations, biases within training data, and potential risks to learners’ trust. Therefore, researchers should focus on studying the long-term consequences of using applications like ChatGPT to identify optimal ways to integrate AI technology into instructional approaches. Additionally, investing in key touchpoints involving teacher guidance and student awareness, along with transparent implementation strategies, is crucial in digital ELT curriculums.

References

Chomsky, N., Roberts, I., & Watumull, J. (2023, March 8). Noam Chomsky: The false promise of ChatGPT. New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/08/ opinion/noam-chomsky-chatgpt-ai.html

Emerick, M. C., & Goldberg, J. L. (2022). ‘I Would Purposely Try to Keep them Separated’: Language Ideologies, Language Policy, and Beliefs about Emergent Bilinguals in Career and Technical Education. TESOL Quarterly https://doi. org/10.1002/tesq.3196.

Ferrara, E. (2023). Should ChatGPT be Biased? Challenges and Risks of Bias in Large Language Models. arXiv (Cornell University) https://doi.org/10.48550/ arxiv.2304.03738

Frąckiewicz, M. (2023, April 13). The Role of ChatGPT-4 in the Future of Privacypreserving AI: AI-driven Federated Learning and Data Protection. TS2 SPACE https:// ts2.space/en/the-role-of-chatgpt-4-in-thefuture-of-privacy-preserving-ai-ai-drivenfederated-learning-and-data-protection/ Kohnke, L. M. A., Moorhouse, B. L., & Zou, D. (2023). ChatGPT for Language Teaching and Learning. RELC Journal, 0(0). https://doi. org/10.1177/00336882231162868

Workplace stagnation: a potential roadblock to Taiwan becoming bilingual

Mike Biddle considers the English as a Medium of Instruction project in Taiwan and the potential difficulties it faces

One of the central difficulties that surround the English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) project in Taiwan, and in turn the desire to be bilingual by 2030, is one of workplace stagnation. In tandem with this, is the ability to attract instructors who could help bring about this change. Many people (the public and educators alike) agree with the sentiment that it is not achievable in its current form. I set out here what I believe are the biggest issues surrounding this and what I believe needs to be addressed.

Firstly, one must give a definition as to what EMI is. While there is no consensus as to what EMI is, it is generally accepted that it refers to the use of the English language to teach academic subjects (other than English itself) in countries where the first language of the majority of the population is not English. Beyond that, Richards & Pun (2023) break down EMI into its constituent parts. They point to the fact that ‘a number of different forms of EMI may occur in the same school or institution, area, or country’ (p. 216), so in order to understand the characteristics of what it is, one must first understand the purpose it is being used for.

Mike Biddle has been an EFL teacher in Asia for 20 years, teaching at every level. He is currently an English Instructor at Chinese Culture University

Hiring practices

Content EMI, as defined in Table 1, would explain Taiwan’s more pragmatic approach, whereby the use of EMI is regarded as a selling point to prospective students overseas. Low student enrolment has been a factor for a number of years and the intake for 2022–23 had been frustratingly low for many universities in Taiwan – the English department of my university alone had only 29 of a possible 120 and forced the department to have only one class. This meant that the university, wary of underlying factors such as Covid-19, saturation of higher learning institutions and low birth rates, has had to cast its net further afield, using internationalism and classes taught in English as pull factors. There is also the example of English being a hangover from Britain’s colonial past, which has influenced the education system in places such as Singapore and led to governmental and administrative works being largely based on a British system. Intercultural EMI on the other hand, best describes how English is used in order to foster learning across areas such as the EU.

Primary Goals Classification Example

Learning academic content and skills through English

Learning academic content and skills in two languages

Learning intercultural communication skills

Content EMI

Tertiary EMI in Hong Kong

In order to get a visa to work as a teacher at the lowest levels, you need a passport and a university degree from a country deemed native-speaking by the Taiwanese government (the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, or South Africa) and this does not guarantee high standards of teaching. At university level, a PhD in any field is required. The prevailing stereotype that ‘white is right’ is often to the detriment of the students’ learning. The pool of candidates for universitylevel teaching causes its own problems. Teachers who have been in Taiwan longterm are more likely to obtain a teaching job, this is because of a more seamless application process. If internationalism is the goal, this can be self-defeating as many teachers have no real recent international experience. Ideas may be entrenched and bear little resemblance to what is going on off island, no matter how well intentioned they may be, or how well the individual teacher feels they are engaged with culture elsewhere. These same teachers have little impetus to develop their own teaching skills as salaries have remained roughly the same for over 20 years and feel there is something of a glass ceiling.

Workplace stagnation is a well-known phenomenon across all industries, and teaching is no exception. Among the findings of Abele et al. (2012), they point to many reasons why stagnation in the workplace can arise. They reason that career stagnation can often feel like the temporary end of one’s development and identify both individual and organisational factors which could be at play.

Bilingual content EMI

Secondary EMI in South Africa

Intercultural EMI CLIL projects involving students in two countries

Improving proficiency in English Proficiency EMI College-level EMI in Japan Table

(Richards

In terms of the creation of an individual’s own stagnation, Abele et al. (2012) highlight self-efficacy, goal, attitude, and dual career as factors. Within organisations, a lack of socialisation/support/mentoring, bullying and mobbing, stereotyping and discrimination are also factors influencing stagnation. While not every category has relevance to the Taiwanese experience, many could be given as reasons why teachers feel the task is insurmountable.

With self-efficacy, the literature points to the fact that a person’s own belief in their abilities to meet a standard can often derail their ambitions, especially if one were to view the task at hand as being difficult. As intimated earlier, many teachers privately express the view that being bilingual in such a short time frame is something of a Sisyphean task.

Goals, according to goal-setting theory, should be, specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely. If goals have these attributes, performance in different work domains is usually higher compared to goals lacking these attributes (Locke & Latham, 2009). While the goal of being bilingual by 2030 is certainly specific, it is arguable that this is not measurable. For example, just how bilingual is bilingual?

With attitudinal factors, there is focus on the protean and boundaryless career types. A protean career is characterised ‘by the exercise of self-direction and a focus on intrinsic values in the pursuit of psychological success, whereas a boundaryless career is defined as those in which individual workers can move across boundaries between employers and/or work units within employers, develop their careers via extraorganisational networks or information, and reject existing (conventional) career opportunities for work-related or nonwork-related reasons.’ (Abele et al., 2012, p. 111)

Abele et al. (2012) argue that you are likely to be somewhat immune to falling prey to career stagnation if you follow one of these career types, as you are shown to be adaptable, and can handle yourself effectively. One would argue that the Taiwanese university system however is the antithesis of this and remains very traditional in its structure. Any chance of showing adaptability often makes the teacher feel that they cannot make any kind of difference.

In terms of the organisational factors, the lack of socialisation/support/mentoring relates to the worker feeling that they are generally unsupported within the workplace (whether true or imagined). This is often spoken about by many teachers who are made to feel that they should just ‘get on with it’. Stereotyping and discrimination abound as in the private cram school system there are countless, though anecdotal stories of people who otherwise qualify as an English teacher being discounted as they are not American – the stereotype often being that the American accent is easier to understand, or Americans are more fun.

Stagnation of a teachers’ own English language skills may also have an effect on learners’ effectiveness at communication. For example, the rise of multicultural London English (MLE) a multiethnolect, which has been evolving from the traditional ‘cockney’ variety of English to now include usages and phrasing from immigrant populations in the previous 20 years, may not be understood well by a native speaker who has been away from their home country for a significant amount of time. If a learner were to graduate and live or work in London, a working knowledge would be beneficial, though most studies suggest that all speakers have the ability to codeswitch in the correct situation. It is widely said, that in order to do business with citizens in the south of Taiwan, it is better to learn the local dialect. Speaking only Mandarin Chinese would be acceptable enough for all circumstances, but the extra step of being able to use Taiwanese language would be met keenly by hosts or bosses. This idea is supported by Cavallaro and Ng (2009), in which the more formal Singapore Standard English (SSE) and the more colloquial Singapore Colloquial English (SCE) were studied, and highlighted the difference between status and solidarity. In their discussion they point out that SCE is the most likely variant of English to be heard in everyday life, it is the language used in order to get things done, though it is frowned upon in official circles.

As Cavallaro and Ng (2009) write, ‘There is nothing that undergraduate Singaporeans like more than lecturers who can crack the occasional Singlish (SCE) joke or break out in fluent Singlish’ (p. 154). We are after all, judged on how we speak. So, one could argue that if we are able to codeswitch, it would be a benefit, but it is unclear how far we have to go.

Salaries

Secondly, salaries are not high enough to encourage PhD holders from overseas to consider Taiwan. At the time of writing a PhD could expect roughly 70,000 NTD a month and be paid 13.5x a year (the standard contract includes a Lunar New Year bonus of 1.5x the monthly salary). While the salary is stable, teachers with the ability to create the bilingual environment proposed by-the government would need to be offered a higher salary, particularly if they are supporting a family.

According to Salary Explorer (2023), salaries for a Lecturer position in the United Kingdom range from 53,500 GBP (starting

salary) to 157,000 GBP (maximum salary). At current exchange rates, the calibre of lecturer needed would be leaving a UK position for a role in Taiwan and giving up a salary that was roughly seven times higher, a more substantial (though meagre) pension, for a role that may not count as experience if they were to return to the UK. Even at the lowest most junior level, a lecturer is making more than double that of a PhD in a Taiwanese university, in what is likely an institution with a higher QS ranking.

Recommendations

I would argue that the government needs to genuinely invest in the talent it desperately requires from overseas and to follow through with the recommendations that they bring. Too often cultural issues such as saving face play a huge part. An overseas hire will be invited to teach in an institution and then be told that they are going to teach in the way it has always been done, thus repeating the cycle. This one simple change would pay huge dividends. The kudos brought by international experts would also help convince the public at large that such a goal is achievable, and they would then be more likely to take the idea more seriously. Getting the public on board is crucial, as it is surely they who stand to benefit the most.

References

Abele, A. E., Volmer, J., & Spurk, D. (2012). Career stagnation: Underlying dilemmas and solutions in contemporary work environments. In N. P. Reilly, M. J. Sirgy, & C. A. Gorman (Eds.),  Work and quality of life. International Handbooks of Quality-ofLife. (pp. 107–132). Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-40594_7

Cavallaro, F. & Ng, B. C. (2009). Between status and solidarity in Singapore. World Englishes, 28. 143–159. 10.1111/j.1467971X.2009.01580.x.

Locke, E. A., & Latham, G. P. (2009). Has goal setting gone wild, or have its attackers abandoned good scholarship. Academy of Management Perspectives, 23, 17–23.

Richards, J. C., & Pun, J. (2023). A Typology of English-Medium Instruction. RELC Journal, 54(1), 216–240. https://doi. org/10.1177/0033688220968584

Salary Explorer. (2023). Lecturer Average Salary in United Kingdom 2023. http://www. salaryexplorer.com/salary-survey.

php?loc=228&loctype=1&job=6259&job type=3

michaelgbiddle@gmail.com

Materials reviews

How to Teach with TED Talks: A Practical Guide for English Teachers

Independently Published, 2021

166 pages

Paperback ISBN: 9798593433596

Lewis Lansford’s book is exactly what it says it is, a guide. It is a book that is intended to show teachers how to prepare their own lessons using TED as a resource. Explanations are given every step of the way as to why a teacher would make each choice in preparing lessons.

Lansford’s book is organised into five main parts with each part further divided into units, making it easy for educators to navigate and implement the suggested teaching methods. The units walk the reader through the theories and principles that guide the instructors to create their own lessons. From the outset, Lansford emphasises the importance of selecting TED Talks that resonate with students and align with their interests and learning goals. By incorporating these authentic and thought-provoking videos, teachers can captivate learners’ attention and foster meaningful discussions.

Part three of the book deals with audio. Here Lansford points out that the audio does not determine the level; it is the tasks assigned with the audio. Asking a question about a listening from King Lear may be too difficult for learners, leading them to feeling bad for not understanding the listening and not being able to answer the question. The questions could be directed to the level. For example, for a lower level asking if they are listening to a news cast or a play.

Each section finishes with a prepared lesson for the teacher to use as a model. The lesson plans are for specific levels, ways to modify them are given so that they can be used for multiple levels. There are also recommendations for further TED Talks that Lansford feels are suitable for further lessons. Links to all the lesson plans, activities and suggested videos are available online.

This book is not a textbook or for anyone who is looking for something to walk into a classroom with. This is for teachers who are looking for help in building their own lessons using TED Talks as the base material in the classroom. With this book, teachers can build meaningful lessons for all levels and classes.

Trinity Teach English Online Trinity College London, 2023

Gathering around the university boardroom with a few seasoned ESOL instructors, we explored Trinity College London’s new Teach English Online course. Within an hour, consensus echoed through the room, ‘We should have had this three years ago!’. In early 2020, the pandemic forced our fully in-person programme, fully online. From our course design team to our instructors, to our directors, being caught flat-footed with this sudden shift from face-to-face to fully digital brought anxiety and many unknowns. Reflecting on our own experiences with the migration online, this course had the answers to our questions. This included course design, teacher skills and knowledge, and delivering live online lessons effectively.

On successful completion of this 10-module specialism programme, learners who pass the assessments are awarded Ofqual Level 4 certification from the globally recognised Trinity College of London. The CertOT can be completed within 50 hours. 30 of these are self-led hours of coursework, followed by 20 hours slotted for the four assessment tasks.

The CertOT course follows the mantra stating that teacher training courses should practise what they preach. Essentially, teacher training should demonstrate the very theories and practices presented to the learners. The design, layout and flow are in step with best practices of online instruction. Clean, well-organised, user-friendly interfaces take the learners through the 3-hour units effortlessly. Using a mix of multimedia videos, quizzes, slide decks, and text, the lessons are broken up into manageable and meaningful sections.

Moving through the course, sound foundations in language teaching are integrated with proven and effective online teaching techniques. Smart approaches to teaching reading, writing, listening, and speaking, are balanced with more nuanced considerations for the online instructor. This includes best practices around digital copyright, adapting offline resources to online ones, using digital tools to generate learner content, and managing the online classroom.

Our teaching world is full speed ahead with online technologies in 2023. This course embraces that reality. It can be an invaluable precursor for the new teachers’ professional development journey, or a refresher for the seasoned instructor who is shifting from in-person to on-screen. The comprehensive resource also fits well as a gap fill for those instructors that find areas of online instruction stubbornly lacking.

Teaching English in the primary school: A taskbased introduction for preand in-service teachers

256 pages

Paperback ISBN: 9783772715488

The book is intended for preservice and novice teachers teaching English in primary schools. However, experienced teachers can also benefit from it by revising the main methodology principles and getting inspired by the variety of examples from the classroom. It can also inspire experienced teachers to do more reflection on their teaching. The book is organised into twelve chapters on various topics. Some chapters focus on more traditional areas such as focus on form, classroom management and assessment. However, there are more contemporary themes, such as how to support cultural learning, integrate subject matter or learning about media as well as learning with media in the EFL classroom. Also, serious thought is given to the role of coursebooks and literature in the young learner classroom.

As a researcher, I was particularly interested in Chapter 2. This chapter is devoted to the research on primary EFL and discusses various research approaches to inspire teachers to conduct their own classroom research and reflect more on their teaching. A significant addition to the book is the reflection section in each chapter. Namely, at the beginning of each chapter, the reader is given a set of questions to think about before reading and making notes, or analysing and making notes on different scenarios connected to the topic. While reading the chapter, the reader is expected to compare their notes to the issues discussed in the chapter. After some chapters, there is further reflection so that the reader can see where they stand in their teaching practice and philosophy. In this way the reader is transformed as a teacher, as the input from the chapters and the thinking process create new understandings about teaching English at primary level. Recommended reading at the end of each chapter is carefully selected and provides the reader with an abundance of resources for self-study.

The book is an excellent read for both novice and experienced teachers of young learners as it encourages revision of main methodology guidelines for primary education and offers an opportunity for self-reflection and self-study.

Big Ben Language School, Tuzla, Bosnia

The Art of Writing B2 –Student’s Book (with DigiBooks App)

Express Publishing, 2022

88 pages

ISBN 9781399209724

The Art of Writing was written to assist students in learning to write six practical text types. The book offers activities to teach students how to write: emails and letters, stories and a variety of different types of essays, descriptive articles, reviews and reports. Each chapter follows a similar pattern and includes models, charts and diagrams to keep them on track, and an evaluation tool at the end.

In the first chapter about emails, students work through a selection of practical strategies, such as underlining key words, to ensure they understand the prompt prior to doing the writing activities. The author provides models to follow and ensures the prompts are relevant to the learners and each task has a ‘planner’ to help the student organise their thoughts. I liked that these were consistent in style because this helps learners to identify the pattern. This chapter includes a lot of practical email types: seeking advice, offering suggestions, accepting and refusing invitations. While these topics are to be expected in a writing book, I appreciated that the emails were about typical subjects students relate to.

The second chapter on ‘Stories’ identified different techniques to start and end stories in the first and third person. Topics are the themes students would be able to talk about and the visuals help to keep students focused on the task at hand.

Chapter three, ‘Essays and Letters to the Editor’, includes ‘for and against’, ‘opinion’, and ‘solutions to problems’ in both essay and letter format. Chapter four, ‘Articles’, gives students a simple format to follow and the next chapter on ‘Reviews’ includes books, film, plays, TV series and products. Again, the topics were relevant to students (recommending a mobile phone to buy; reviewing a favourite video game, beloved book or movie), which provides students with an authentic purpose for writing.

Finally, the chapter I was most interested in, ‘Reports’, completed the book. It addresses reports for assessments and suggestions, and includes simple ‘catch phrases’ for students to use and, again, models for them to follow. Topics include bullying, internet safety and a newsletter aimed at parents.

I like this little book because it is practical, relevant and includes the language students need to write both comprehensive and comprehensible texts.

Program Head - English, University of Doha for Science and Technology (UDST) sandee_t@yahoo.com

From the SIGs

English for Specific Purposes SIG

The English for Specific Purposes Special Interest Group (ESPSIG) has created a plan to enhance the engagement of its members and attract new ones who share its vision and goals. The purpose is to build a vibrant and diverse community of scholars and practitioners who share an interest in English for Specific Purposes (ESP), and to foster a sense of belonging. To achieve this, ESPSIG has devised a two-pronged approach.

The objective of the first approach is to increase its visibility, credibility and influence in the field of ESP. Hence, content that is relevant, informative and appealing will be shared via its social media handles on a regular basis, to ESP practitioners and researchers around the world. This content, open to all, will be based on either upcoming ESPSIG events or a specific theme related to ESP.

Additionally, the ESPSIG plans to organise one informal, online, open-toall meet before the launch of its journal issue on Algeria, where one can discuss current issues and trends in different parts of the world related to ESP. The December 2023 issue of Professional and Academic English will feature research and practice from Algerian academics and ESP practitioners. We hope that this will be the first in a series of issues that will focus on ESP in different countries, thereby giving a platform to our members to showcase their ESP expertise in their own specific contexts.

The objective of the second approach is to nurture a long-term relationship with those who are already engaging in ESPSIG events such as webinars, workshops and conferences. ESPSIG recognises the importance of the last mile communication in ensuring the success and impact of its events. Therefore, ESPSIG will communicate with the speakers and audience before and after each event, providing them with relevant information, guidance, support and appreciation.

The expected outcomes of this plan are to generate interest in ESPSIG events and initiatives among current and potential members in different regions and contexts; enhance member engagement and satisfaction; and

finally, to boost membership numbers and retention rates.

Teacher Development SIG

TDSIG has been keeping busy with different projects, all with the purpose of promoting teacher development. In the last few months more episodes of Developod (our podcast) have been released, all around our central theme for this year: the future of teacher development. Among the guests this season we have had Silvana Richardson, Gabriel Díaz Maggioli, Richard Chinn and Danny NorringtonDavies. All episodes (and previous seasons) are available on our website.

We have also held TDLIVE, a onehour informal conversation with an ELT expert, once every two months. During this online event, exclusive to TDSIG members, participants can actively participate and engage with the guest. The recordings of the TDLIVEs held are available in the members-only area of the IATEFL website.

We are also excited with preparations for our Web Carnival in October and the Annual Conference in Brighton in 2024 – not to mention putting the final touches to the new volume of the TDAJ, our academic journal. To learn more about the projects and what we have been doing, visit our website and follow us on social media!

Pronunciation SIG

This year, 2023, is a year in which we’ve seen the PronSIG family grow. With new members joining all the time, we’re delighted to see that more and more people are recognising the importance of pronunciation instruction and its power to transform students’ intelligibility and confidence to communicate with others.

To take stock of our growing size and better understand the needs and interests of all of our members, both new arrivals and veterans, in May the committee created a membership survey which was sent out to PronSIG inboxes all around the world. The results of this

survey were incredibly insightful, letting us know what members valued most, what they liked and disliked about our annual events and activities, as well as providing us with ideas for the future. A full write-up of the results will be published in our Speak Out! 70th anniversary issue in February 2024, but for now, here are a couple of important takeaways.

One of the areas it seemed not everyone was clear about was how and when you would hear from us, the PronSIG committee. Firstly, you’ll hear from us in the monthly IATEFL eBulletin emails, where we post news on upcoming conferences, calls for papers, webinars, blog posts and more. PronSIG submits updates to the eBulletin almost every month, meaning you should never miss the latest news, but if you aren’t receiving these, check your spam folder just in case. We also regularly submit updates on all of our social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn) and email you with specific member-only information such as book club events or conference details. Beyond this, all of our webinar recordings are stored on our YouTube channel, our monthly blog resides on our website, and past issues of our bi-annual journal Speak Out! can be found in the members’ area of the IATEFL website. In short, there are lots of ways to keep up-to-date with us, but in quieter moments we encourage you to look at our ever-expanding back catalogue of event recordings and publications; we have so much to share, but also lots more to come!

Another important piece of feedback we received from our survey was that members really want and enjoy content with a practical focus, providing ideas and activities that can be taken into class and used straight away. On that note, we think members will be pleased to learn that our upcoming online October conference will do just that. The theme is ‘the music of English’. As such, on Saturday 14 October we’ll have a whole day of presentations, posters and workshops on teaching students to perceive and produce English stress, rhythm and intonation. More information on this event including registration details can be found on our website. We hope to see you there!

From the Associates

Welcome to the Associates’ section of Voices

The IATEFL Associates’ Committee has been working hard on a new project aimed at giving Associates further opportunity to network and be part of a truly global community. I am excited to announce that on 21 October 2023, IATEFL will be hosting its first ever IATEFL Associates Online Conference.

The theme of the conference is ‘Leadership and Management’, and the talks all centre around various aspects of creating, running and managing a teacher association (TA). Many of us, myself included, became an association committee member by first volunteering and then standing for election in our local TAs. Lots of us come from teaching backgrounds and soon find out that managing a TA is very different from managing a class of students. Because we lack management training, we are liable to make mistakes along the way, which has an impact on the enjoyment we feel when we are TA committee members. Also, many TAs suffer from a lack of people who wish to volunteer to be committee members. This may be because the leadership and management aspect in the committee roles often puts off members from standing for election.

So, one of the ways in which IATEFL helps TAs is by offering guidance and support to the committee members. This is done through helpful handbooks which are available on the website, the Associates’ eBulletin, Associates’ Day and, from this year, the new IATEFL Associates Online Conference.

The conference is being held online in order to ensure that Associates can attend at no additional cost to themselves. Associate Committees have already been sent an information email and invited to nominate up to three representatives to join us on the day. The nominees may be committee members or other TA members who the committee feel would benefit from this experience, e.g. Association volunteers or people who are considering standing for a committee role. The nominated person must be an IATEFL member in order to attend the conference.

The online event will start with a plenary by Beatrix Price, a former President of IATEFL Hungary, who has just finished her PhD. Her research included an investigation into how CPD offered by TAs impacts the members’ professional lives but also benefits the organisation, keeping it alive and healthy. The final plenary will be given by Gabriel Díaz Maggioli, the former President of IATEFL, who has dedicated much of his time and energy into working with

TAs around the world and helping them thrive.

The conference will also include various shorter presentations by representatives of a number of IATEFL Associates. These speakers will offer their real-life experience of running an association and being in leadership roles. By offering their insight and speaking from a practical stance rather than the theoretical one, all the speakers will be able to shed light on overcoming challenges and how to help an association to grow.

If you are interested in finding out more about the event, please visit the IATEFL website or contact your local association if they are an associate of IATEFL.

KazAELT’s first conference

Assiya Zhangabay, President of KazAELT, writes about their first annual conference

First of all, we would like to extend our deepest gratitude on behalf of the Kazakhstani Association of English Language Teachers (KazAELT) for IATEFL’s support. KazAELT hosted its first annual conference in the capital of Kazakhstan, Astana, on 17 and 18 June.

It was truly a remarkable gathering, uniting 106 enthusiastic English language teachers. Among them were 17 esteemed speakers and 12 dedicated volunteers, forming a diverse and passionate community. Gabriel Díaz Maggioli supported us from IATEFL by

presenting online on the topic of ‘Reading the Word and the World’ and enriched the conference with his profound expertise and valuable insights.

The conference was hosted by Kazguu (Maqsut Narikbayev University), and we were fortunate to receive the generous support of sponsors such as Collins, Interpress, IDP, Oxford University Press, and our gold sponsor, Academic Nomad. Furthermore, it is worth noting that we actually met Collins, one of our sponsors, during the IATEFL Conferences held in Harrogate and Belfast. We express our sincere gratitude to Collins for their generous sponsorship of our event’s gift bags, thereby emphasising the significance of collaborative endeavours within the IATEFL community.

associatesrep@iatefl.org

Coming events

2023

SEPTEMBER

22–24 Poland

32nd IATEFL Poland Conference

‘From the Classroom to the World’ http://iatefl.org.pl/

NOVEMBER

4–5 Pakistan

39th SPELT (Society of Pakistan English Language Teachers)

International Conference, Karachi ‘Teaching–Learning of English Language’

https://spelt.org.pk/39th-speltinternational-conference-2023/

NOVEMBER

17–19 France

iatefl.org/events iatefl.org/iatefl-associates-events

42nd Annual International TESOL France Colloquium https://www.tesol-france. org/en/call_for_papers.html

DECEMBER

14–16 Cuba

26th ALC-GELI Convention, Havana ‘GELI 2023: A Journey into the Future of English Language Teaching’ https://www.facebook.com/ alcgeli

Issue

Who’s who in IATEFL

Advisory Council

As Editor of the ELTJ: Dr Alessia Cogo

Individual members: Mike Solly, Amos Paran and Catherine Walter

Board of Trustees

President: Aleksandra Popovski president@iatefl.org

Vice President: Gabriel Diaz Maggioli vp@iatefl.org

Treasurer: Bethany Cagnol treasurer@iatefl.org

Secretary: Maria-Araxi Sachpazian secretary@iatefl.org

Membership Committee Chair: Gerhard Erasmus memcom@iatefl.org

Special Interest Group (SIG) Representative: Judith Mader sigrep@iatefl.org

Associates Representative: Jean Theuma associaterep@iatefl.org

Digital Committee Chair: Shaun Wilden digitalchair@iatefl.org

Executive Committee Members

Associates: Jean Theuma (Chair), Marta Bujakowska, Mirela Cristina Manea Gültekin, Freya Rutt and Ewa Minkowska (Head Office representatives)

Conference: Gabriel Diaz Maggioli (Chair), Christopher Graham, Sarah Mount. Head Office representatives: Annie Park, Sarah Ward, Louise Atkins, Jon Burton and Laura Creed

Digital: Shaun Wilden (Chair), Sanja Bozinovic, Marcio Oliveira, Pola Papadopoulou, Georgia Papamichailidou and Louise Atkins (Head Office representative)

Membership: Gerhard Erasmus (Chair), Syke Annamma Kumaran, Maria-Araxi Sachpazian, Bozica Saric-Cvjetkovic, Freya Rutt and Ewa Minkowska (Head Office representatives)

Publications: Aleksandra Popovski (Chair), Marina Gonzalez, Vicky Papageorgiou, Arum Perwitasari and Ewa Minkowska (Head Office representative)

Other committees and roles

Scholarship Committee: Christian Ludwig (Chair), Ben Beaumont, Laura Creed, Amos Paran, Nora TartsayNemeth and Adrian Tennant

Voices Editor: Derek Philip-Xu editor@iatefl.org

Conference Selections Editor: Deborah Bullock cseditor@iatefl.org

IATEFL Representative on the ELTJ Editorial panel: Shelagh Rixon

IATEFL Representative on the ELTJ Advisory Board: Richard Smith

IATEFL Ambassadors

Evan Frendo, Sarah Mercer, Sandy Millin, George Pickering, Syke Annamma Kumaran and Harry Kuchah Kuchah

Special Interest Groups (SIGs)

Please visit the individual SIG website for a list of current committee members

Business English (BE) www.besig.org

Joint Coordinators: Rob Howard and Maria Szugfil besig@iatefl.org

English for Speakers of Other Languages (ES(O)L) https://iateflesolsig.wordpress.com

Coordinator: Declan Flanagan and Vivi Bairami esolsig@iatefl.org

English for Specific Purposes (ESP) https://espsig.iatefl.org

Coordinator: Caroline Hyde-Simon espsig@iatefl.org

Global Issues (GI) https://gisig.iatefl.org

Coordinator: Rose Aylett gisig@iatefl.org

Inclusive Practices & SEN (IP&SEN) https://ipsen.iatefl.org

Joint Coordinators: Rachael Harris and Giovanni Licata ipsensig@iatefl.org

Learner Autonomy (LA) https://lasig.iatefl.org

Joint Coordinators: Lawrie Moore-Walter and Giovanna Tassinari lasig@iatefl.org

Leadership and Management (LAM)

Coordinator: Gerhard Erasmus and Josh Round lamsig@iatefl.org

Literature (Lit) https://litsig.weebly.com

Coordinator: Gerhard Finster litsig@iatefl.org

Learning Technologies (LT) https://ltsig.iatefl.org

Coordinator: Maria Diakou ltsig@iatefl.org

Materials Writing (MaW) https://mawsig.iatefl.org

Coordinator: Heather Buchanan mawsig@iatefl.org

Pronunciation (Pron) https://pronsig.iatefl.org

Joint Coordinators: Gemma Archer and Adam Scott pronsig@iatefl.org

Research (Res) https://resig.weebly.com

Coordinator: Ernesto Vargas Gil resig@iatefl. org

Teacher Development (TD) https://tdsig.org

Coordinator: Cecilia Lemos and James Taylor tdsig@iatefl.org

Testing Evaluation and Assessment (TEA) https://tea.iatefl.org

Interim Coordinator: Maria Davou and Maggi Lussi Bell teasig@iatefl.org

Teacher Training and Education (TTEd) https://ttedsig.iatefl.org

Coordinator: Bahar Gun ttedsig@iatefl.org

Young Learners and Teenagers (YLT) https://yltsig.iatefl.org

Coordinator: Laura McWilliams yltsig@iatefl.org

Associates

ACPI (Costa Rica) http://www.acpi-tesol.com

ACTA (Australia) www.tesol.org.au

AINET (India) www.theainet.net

ALC-GELI (Cuba)

AMATE (Czech Republic) www.amate.cz

ANELTA (Angola)

APC-ELI (Cuba)

APPI (Portugal) www.appi.pt

ATECR (Czech Republic) http://www.atecr.weebly.com

ATEF (Finland) http://www.suomenenglanninopettajat.fi

ATEI (Iceland) www.ki.is/feki

ATEL (Lebanon) http://www.atel-lb.org

ATER (Rwanda) http://www.aterw.org/

ATES (Senegal)

ATETE (Denmark)

AzerELTA (Iran, Islamic Republic of) http://www.eltanet.org

BelNATE (Belarus) http://belnate.www.by/

BELTA (Bangladesh) http://www.belta-bd.org

BELTA (Belgium) http://www.beltabelgium.com

BETA (Burkina Faso)

BETA (Bolivia)

BETA Bulgaria (Bulgaria) http://www.beta-iatefl.org

BRAZTESOL (Brazil) http://www.braztesol.org.br

CAMELTA (Cameroon) http://www.cameltacameroon.weebly.com

CYTEA (Cyprus) http://cytea.weebly.com

E and M - GATE (Germany) http://englisch-und-mehr.de

EATE (Estonia) www.eate.ee

ELT Ireland www.elt-ireland.com

ELTA (Serbia) www.elta.org.rs

ELTA Albania (English Language Teachers Association of Albania) (Albania)

ELTA Rhine (Germany) http://www.elta-rhine.de

ELTA/GB (Guinea-Bissau) http://eltagb1.wixsite.com/ elta-gb

ELTABB (Germany) http://www.eltabb.com

ELTAF (Germany) www.eltaf.de

ELTAI (India) http://www.eltai.in

ELTAM (North Macedonia) http://www.eltam.org.mk

ELTAN (Nigeria)

ELTAS (Germany) www.eltas.de

ELTAU (Germany) http://www.eltau.de

ETAB (Bangladesh) https://www.etabbd.com/

ETAG (Georgia) www.etag.ge

ETAI (Israel) http://www.etai.org.il

ETAS (Switzerland) www.e-tas.ch

FAAPI (Argentina) www.faapi.org.ar

FEELTA (Russian Federation) www.feelta.wl.dvgu.ru

FORTELL (India) www.fortell.org

GEN TEFL (Thailand) www.gentefl.org

HELTA eV (Germany) www.helta.de

HUPE (Croatia) www.hupe.hr

Head Office

Chief Executive: Jon Burton

Deputy Chief Executive: Louise Atkins

Senior Bookkeeper: Iwona Minkowska

Conference Programme Coordinator: Sarah Ward

Conference Planning Officer: Laura Creed

Exhibition, Sponsorship and Advertising Officer: Annie Park

Volunteer Support Officer: Hazel Frost

Membership and Careers Officer: Freya Rutt

Membership and Publications Officer: Ewa Minkowska

Finance Administrator: Linda James

The IATEFL Head Office team are happy to help members or non-members with their questions and requests.

Membership enquiries: membership@iatefl.org, Finance and payment enquiries: finance@iatefl.org, General enquiries: info@iatefl.org

Or call in office hours UK time: +44 (0)1795 591414.

IATEFL Hungary http://www.iatefl.hu

IATEFL Poland (Poland) https://iatefl.org.pl/en/

IATEFL Slovenia www.iatefl.si

IATEFL Ukraine http://ukraineiatefl.wix.com/iateflukraine

IELTA (Iran, Islamic Republic of) http://www.ielta.ir

IndiaCALL (India)

INGED (Turkey) http://inged.org.tr/

JALT (Japan) http://jalt.org

KazAELT (Kazakhstan) http://kazaelt.kz

KOMELTA (Russian Federation) https://vk.com/komelta

KOTESOL (Korea, Republic of) http://www.koreatesol.org/

KSAALT TESOL (Saudi Arabia) http://www.ksaalttesol.org

LAKMA (Lithuania) http://lakmaonline.lt/

LATAZ (Zambia)

LATE (Latvia) http://www.late.lv

MATEFL (Malta) http://www.matefl.org

MELTA (Germany) https://melta.de/

META (Moldova) http://meta-moldova.md

MEXTESOL (Mexico) http://mextesol.org.mx

NAETSA (South Africa)

NATE (Russian Federation) http://nate-russia.ru/

NATECLA (United Kingdom) www.natecla.org.uk

NATESOL (United Kingdom) http://www.natesol.org

NELTA (Nepal) http://www.nelta.org.np

PAET (Cyprus)

Panama TESOL (United States) https://panamatesol.com/

RATE (Romania) www.rate.org.ro

SATEFL (United Kingdom) http://www.satefl.co.uk

SELTA (Senegal) www.selta.sites.google.com/site/ englishlanguagecell

SLTA (Sweden) www.spraklararna.se

Sudan ELDA (Sudan) Sudan ELDA (Sudan)

TATE (Tunisia) tate.tn/

TEFL China http://www.telf-china.net

TEFL Kuwait (Kuwait) https://teflkuwait.com/

TELTA (Tanzania, United Republic of)

TESOL France http://www.tesol-france.org

TESOL Greece www.tesolgreece.org

TESOL Italy https://tesolitaly.org/

TESOL Macedonia-Thrace N. Greece (Greece)http:// www.tesolmacedoniathrace.org

TESOL Society of Bangladesh https://tesolbangladesh.org

TESOL Spain www.tesol-spain.org

TESOL Turkey http://www.tesolinturkey.org

TESOLANZ (New Zealand) www.tesolanz.org.nz

UALTA (Ukraine) http://ualta.in.ua

URUTESOL (Uruguay)

VLLT (Levende Talen) (Netherlands) www.levendetalen.nl

WITESOL (United States) http://witesol.com

YALS (Serbia) http://www.yals.rs

Yemen TEFL (Yemen) http://www.yementefl.webs.com

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