26 fev 2014

by | in Language Acquisition

Long ago, in 1981, before many of you were even contemplated, I was teaching at the British Council, Cairo, Egypt. An expensive, imported gringo, I was energetic, attractive, hirsuit, super-keen having just done my second TEFL diploma, and feeling like ‘Superteacher’. But, I quickly learned some important pedagogical lessons. I’ll blog a few of them here over the next few months: Lesson 1: Native and non-native teachers; horses for courses I wasn’t allowed near Beginners or Elementary. Why? Because I had no idea of Arabic, their mother tongue, their needs...

21 fev 2014

by | in Language Acquisition

There is a lot of theory that can go into storytelling. Lots of ideas and lots of games and exercises for the classroom. I hope to touch upon those topics and others in this blog. I hope to be challenged, to share ideas, and to learn from the experience of others. Stories are the way in which we communicate with one another. They are the way in which we answer questions, the build-up until you get to the punch line of jokes, gossip, news, interviews, and shared conversations. Stories surround...

12 fev 2014

by | in Language Acquisition

This is my first blog for RichmondShare and I must say I am honoured, and a little bit in awe, to be sharing a platform with such great writers and professionals.  After reading some of the other posts already on this site the pressure is on to write something new, entertaining, interesting and relevant.  If I manage to achieve one of those I’ll be happy. [caption id="attachment_354" align="alignright" width="300"] It's so much easier at this age                     (Dept of Children...

05 fev 2014

by | in Language Acquisition

Segundo o portal de notícias do Senado Federal, um projeto apresentado em 2012 pelo Senador Cícero Lucena (PSDB-PB) está pronto para ser votado na Comissão de Educação do Senado (CE). O projeto (PLS 71/2012) tem como objetivo “incluir a fluência na oralidade como um dos objetivos do ensino de língua estrangeira no ensino fundamental e médio”, alterando o parágrafo 5 do artigo 26 da Lei nº 9.394, de 20 de dezembro de 1996, a chamada Lei de Diretrizes e Bases da Educação. O projeto parece não levar em...