27 jun 2018

by | in ELT Management, Reflections about Education, Trends in ELT

CLIL has been the starting point for the majority of bilingual education programs and methodologies across the globe. Born in 1994 with the establishment of the European Community, CLIL was an attempt to standardize bilingual education approaches within the comunity, or at least to determine a range of  practices that, based on a common concept, could be considered efficient to lead to various levels of bilingualism. That's what David Marsh (the leader of the group that coined the term in the 90s) call "the many faces of CLIL". The...

09 maio 2018

by | in Career, ELT Management, Reflections about Education, Teacher Development, Trends in ELT

Imagine you are feeling a little feverish. What do you do? Bloodletting, of course! You Google the nearest barbershop and get an Uber there so the barber can slash a vein and cure you by removing foul humours from your body. If you’re lucky, they may even use leeches! This may sound absurd to you, but the role of professions changes over time. The teaching profession wouldn’t be any different. Beginning on a very personal example, I’ve been deeply affected by recent changes in mindset and communication. The abilities...

30 mar 2018

by | in Career, ELT Management, Reflections about Education, Teacher Development

  Every professional in the realm of education has the power to influence positive change, for instance, aligning theory to practice as extensively discussed. In this post, leadership will be brought to light for a discussion on how educational leaders may contribute to building the learning environment and causing a great impact on education. Firstly, we are assuming that the more senior you are, the more chances you have to affect the lives of learners somehow connected to you. That means a trainer may impact teachers, who will in turn...

27 mar 2018

by | in ELT Management, Reflections about Education

When Ofelia Garcia in her book Bilingual Education in the 21st Century - a Global Perspective  states that "bilingual education is the only possible education in the 21st century", what does she mean by that? Is she saying that she envisages a future with only bilingual schools? Bilingual Education, for a lot of people, is still the kind of Education you have at bilingual or international schools. It is, therefore, a kind of Education that is only available to a few privileged people - the ones who can afford...

21 fev 2018

by | in ELT Management

Trabalhar como autônomo envolve riscos. Isso não significa que temos que aceita-los sem fazer nada a respeito. Em minha experiência como professor particular (por cerca de 18 anos), teacher trainer e empreendedor, pude aprender várias formas de mitigar esses riscos. Segue abaixo: 1- Tenha um contrato! Ter um contrato cria um efeito psicológico interessante. Embora nossos clientes podem simplesmente ignorar as cláusulas, na prática as pessoas precisam de um norte que oficialize as regras e como o contrato tem um formato jurídico, aumentamos drasticamente as chances de evitar certas dores...

29 jan 2018

by | in ELT Management

In my institution, we have a solid teacher evaluation system that has been in place for over twenty years, of course with adaptations along the way to face our ever-changing times. In this evaluation system, we try to balance the need for measurement and for development (Marzano, 2012). We also take into consideration teachers’ knowledge, awareness, skills, and attitude, according to Freeman’s (1989) KASA framework. Teachers are evaluated based on their performance in the classroom, with observations as data, as well as based on their role in the...

25 jan 2018

by | in ELT Management

It’s the beginning of the year.  Private teachers and educational managers are looking for new students while retaining the current ones. However, one area of weakness in keeping with most ELT professionals lies in their sales techniques. Therefore, by brushing up on their sales pitch, we may improve dramatically their conversion and, ultimately, their revenue. This article aims to shed light on an often-overlooked sales strategy called consultative sales. I’ll describe what constitutes its main features, its philosophy and goals. Afterwards I’ll explore ways in which consultative sales can...

23 jan 2018

by | in ELT Management, Reflections about Education

Photo from ELTPics by Branislav Kubecka  I’d like to thank all EFL/ESL teachers who agreed to participate and collaborate in my research of this important issue.   Burnout:  physical or mental collapse caused by overwork or stress (Oxford dictionary). Burnout is a theme which seems to have been frequently discussed among EFL teachers recently. I myself have reflected about it since I experienced a certain awful situation in 2012. I can assure you it is as if one steals the floor under your feet and the consequences are extreme and pure chaos. And  I tell you: either...

29 dez 2017

by | in Career, ELT Management, Reflections about Education

My whole formal educational background is academic, from my B.A. in Journalism, to my master's in Teaching English as a Second Language and my doctorate in Education. Everything I have published so far is academic, about learning and teaching. Most of my presentations in conferences are about academic topics, ranging from second language writing, assessment, and teacher development. Only recently have I started presenting on topics related to leadership and management. Thus, I can safely say that I am an academic in a leadership role. It's not that I...

19 dez 2017

by | in Classroom Experiences, Classroom Management, ELT Management, Reflections about Education, Skills

  "And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back." Robert Frost (1874-1963) It's the beginning of the semester and you are still getting to know your group of 10-year-olds. You have only just begun to set the ground rules for the group and you are still in doubt whether you should assign them homework or do the first homework assignments together in class so that they...