TESOL 2013 Dallas, TX

TESOL International Convention 2013 Dallas, TX

…was amazing! As a green graduate student experiencing her first TESOL, I don’t think I could really imagine how many people “6,000” was until  a stampede of educators bustle through the halls of the Dallas convention center once their sessions released. The convention presentations were simply inspiring. Over 1,500 presenters from 100 countries shared their ideas at TESOL 2013. The TESOL program is THICK; nearly 240 pages. To give some perspective, from 7:30 to 8:00 each day, there were nearly 30 concurrent sessions at the same time. For the program, I was expecting a slender book with brief descriptions. However, when I was handed the program, I nearly dropped the 250 page behemoth from weight alone. ...Okay, I'm exaggerating, but the book is still big!

Critical Thinking with the World Peace Game

From before day one, my brain was exploding with information! TESOL was gracious enough to, Wednesday night, stream their plenary speaker John Hunter teaching critical thinking strategies with his amazing World Peace Game. Though the TESOL opening speech is not available any longer, his famous TED Talk is. His talk is an utterly inspiring motivator to get teachers to think outside of the box.

Comic Books in the ESL Classroom

For classroom use, I was able to find practical applications for free technology, and even comic books. Common core standards in the USA were a BIG topic this year at TESOL, as it has been for all education. "Reading as a Superpower" is a series of books designed to teach reading with subjects that all kids love-- comics, including Star Wars, Marvel, and DC!  Here is a quick write up of their awesome wares from the School Library Journal: http://www.slj.com/2012/11/webcasts/reading-is-a-superpower-comic-books-graphic-novels-literacy/



Research in NNEST
Research is a much more personal subject, and for myself I attended two research-oriented presentations on NNEST in TESOL, including the annual content-area meeting of the NNEST interest group in TESOL. Sitting next to George Braine was  unequivocally one of the nerdiest and most exciting moments of my time in TESOL and I won't soon forget it. Especially because my colleagues and I will be presenting this May at the regional SSTESOL conference on NNEST and NEST Perceptions in Asia, this was incredibly informative. http://nnest.asu.edu/

Corpora

There were also two very special presentations on corpora in ESL education. If you haven't used corpora, oh boy, are you in for a pleasant surprise! One was by Alison Youngblood, a PhD candidate from UCF as well as my former practicum director for the Soy Culto intensive English Program. Alison presented a history of corpora which was beyond mind-boggling. The amount of accumulated, searchable knowledge on the internet today is beyond staggering. Perhaps it comes as no surprise that researchers have accumulated very specific information, including the English language, in amazing databases called corpora. Corpora accumulate words from written articles, T.V. and radio broadcasts, books, and more. The other presentation was by both Alison and another student in my cohort, Christina Torres, who spoke on practical applications for integrating corpus in vocabulary lesson planning. Here is a link to the most used American Corpus, BYU's COCA: http://corpus.byu.edu/coca/

Job Marketplace
Another amazing aspect of TESOL 2013 was the job marketplace. Here, employers from around the world signed up to meet with hundreds of eager applicants. 45-minute interviews were scheduled online and then conducted in-person. It is an incredible opportunity for anyone seeking employment in the field, and even if you weren't at TESOL Convention 2013, they have a great online application as well! http://www.tesol.org/convention2013/job-marketplace

All in all, I feel incredibly fortunate and excited to be part of TESOL. As graduation looms above my head, I guess the best course of action next is to study for my comprehensive exam and get ready to experience even more amazing things in the field as I continue to develop as a professional. :)

Problems of Practice: ESL Students in the University Writing Center

Problems of Practice Inquiry into Tutoring ESL/NNS Students

Leah DeLorenzo and Charlotte Jones

Inquiry Question:

What perceptions do tutors have of non-native speakers and English and how might those perceptions affect teaching and learning in the Writing Center?

According to Thonus (1993) satisfactory scores do not always translate to college-level academic writing. To be admitted to the University of Central Florida as an International Student, students must get 80/120, or approximately 66.7%.. The following is a Level 3 (out of 5) Writing Sample, from the TOEFL iBT website.  

When we were children, we were taught to tell truth. Telling truth and being honest also become

the criteria of judging a person. I do think that most people prefer to live in a world of pure truth

and it is also the best wish of all kind hearted people. However, what we have to face is not the

dream land. Telling truth all the time could only exist in our dreams. In another word, lies could

not be avoided.

I will illustrate my opinion with the following facts. In the business world, always telling

truth equals to commit suicide. For example, when competitor company is asking the content of a tender or the cost of a major product, telling truth is nonsense. Furthermore, we could learn from old collegue that to keep the business secrete is to keep the position.

For those people whose profession is politics, lies is their favorite language. In order to

stablize the mood of anxcious people, some times president has to tell lies to comfort the peolple so that no more serious result will hapen.  Among friends, allways telling truth will also cause lots of avoidable confllicts. For example, when a 49 years old lady ask her froend whether she is beautiful or not. If the answer is No (truth for sure). We could imagine the accompanied results. This is why we are using the term white lie to find the suitable reason to use minor lies.

However, despite all these difficulties, we should always try to be honest and tell truth as

much as we could. In lots of situation, to tell truth can strengthen the relationship and deepen the

communication and understanding among people. Especially among family memers, telling truth

is quite necessary for every one. A family full of lie will bankrupt immediately. In a word, in

different situation, we should tell different words.

What does the research show?

Lyons, G. (1992). Validating cultural difference in the writing center. Writing Center

Journal,12(2), 145-158.

• Learn to understand where the writer is coming from
• Says to “ask tough, honest questions... about his or her own prejudices, commitments, and ethos.” (p. 157)

Blau, S & Hall, J. (2002). Guilt-Free Tutoring: Rethinking how we tutor

non-native-English-speaking students. Writing Center Journal 23(1), 23-44

• It is realistic to alter your practices (p. 29)

Thonus, T. (1993). Tutors as Teachers: Assisting ESL/EFL students in the writing center.

Writing Center Journal, 13(2), 13-26

• Repeat Sessions: Working with students in multiple sessions
• Ask good questions: “How would you write that in your language?” ( p. 20).

Volunteer Challenge: WE WANT YOU!

The University of Central Florida’s IEP program CMMS conducts a Conversation Hour open to students and volunteers who want to help international students improve their English. We challenge you to volunteer an hour of your time (Tuesdays, Wednesdays, or Thursday 1:00-3:00 at the Barbara Ying Building next to the Student Center).

Resources for Tutors

• A Guide to Tutoring Non-Native English Speaking Students, John Jay College of Criminal Justice
• http://resources.jjay.cuny.edu/erc/tutoring/worksheets.php
• Over 66 worksheets for tutoring ELLs
• Longman Dictionary
• COCA for advanced learners
• http://corpus.byu.edu/coca/
• Keys to Teaching Grammar by Keith Folse
• New Resource: "Articles, Prepositions, and Verb Tenses"
• https://docs.google.com/document/d/1URnzDAiz1dJtIJJ9TZC4NXTQzH1JhNsXH6XCvrWDJPk/edit

Calling all English Teachers in Asia!

Greetings all English teachers!

As some of you may know, I am currently working on my Master of Arts in TESOL back home in Orlando at the University of Central Florida. I’m nearly finished, but before my work here is complete I am being asked to conduct some research. My colleagues and I have been examining other areas on native and non-native EFL instruction and have devised a survey eliciting teacher opinions.

So, I am in need of your help! If you are currently (or have previously been) teaching English as a foreign language in Asia and could spare five minutes (at your desk) to complete this short survey, I would be incredibly grateful. The survey is fairly straightforward and, of course, completely confidential. There's a short section for you to add your comments as well. :)

Please share the survey with their native/non-native English teacher friends/colleagues as well. The link is provided below:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/embeddedform?formkey=dFc5VmRURXlnQl80aWtBWTd4RHNTdGc6MQ

The more participants, the merrier, so tell a friend! Most of our respondents will have experience in South Korea, but if you know anyone with experience in Japan, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan or southeast Asia that would be very helpful as well.

Thank you so much, your responses are immensely appreciated!

All the best,
Charlotte :)

Playing with Geert Hofstede's Dimensions of Culture

Geert (Hassel)hofstede...

School is back in session, and my first assignment is due today: a paper on Geert Hofstede's Dimensions of Culture. The great news? It was actually fun!

While the highly essentialist nature of this model has its obvious limitations, this comparison tool provided by the website of The Hofstede Centre gives a surprising amount of general insight between cultures, dividing them into five dimensions and giving a nice explanation at the bottom page about what they all mean.

It's fun to play with too! Below is a screenshot of the United States and South Korea. The differences in individualism are incredible to see quantified.

The tool is here: http://geert-hofstede.com/countries.html

 

It's also interesting to look at the generalized differences between cultures like Sweden and Saudi Arabia, China and Canada. Some things are surprising!

However, while I see the value in such a  generalized view, I cannot also help but conjecture that a model like this downplays the complexity of individuals and of culture. What do you think?

My Top 5 (Generalizable) Games to Supplement Lessons

Fun, customizable, quick-prep games!

When teaching elementary level EFL in South Korea, I rarely found worksheets useful. My students usually had difficulty getting up the courage to speak, so incorporating games that utilized their participation and speaking helped students gain courage in class.


5. Jenga

If ever I found myself at the end of a lesson with five minutes to spare, my students knew there would be a review game to pull out of a hat. My favorite was undoubtedly Jenga. Jenga isn't an English game you say? Not so! I've found Jenga remarkably helpful while reviewing vocabulary at the end of a lesson, and is a great way to informally assess how even the quiet students have grasped the material.

Materials: Jenga game

Target Vocabulary: Customizable
The teacher situates his or herself at a desk
Have students to line up in front of your desk.
Ask question to the student at the front of the line. If they get it correct, they are able to take a turn with the Jenga piece. If they are incorrect, they must go to the back of the line.

This usually takes between 5-10 minutes for all the pieces to fall.


4. Go Fish




Go Fish is a great way to get students to write, speak and communicate with target vocabulary.

Materials: Notecards (cut in half)

Target Vocabulary: Customizable / "Do you have..." "Yes I do." "No, Go Fish."

Write the vocabulary on the board and have the students copy them onto their notecards
Have students group into pairs (or have them work in threes if you want to) and shuffle the cards
Rock-Paper-Scissors to see who goes first
The first person asks the runner-up if they have any of the cards they need to complete their pairs
If the person has them, they say "Yes I do" and give player 1 the card. If they don't, they say "No, go fish." and player 1 takes a card from the deck
This continues until all cards are matched and the winner has the most cards!



3. Golden Bell

"Golden Bell" is a famous game show in South Korea. It is also the name I learned this review game under. The two, upon revision, are remarkably un-related, but it's still a great final review.

Materials: Dry erase boards (or a piece of paper each)

Target Vocabulary: Customizable
Give each student a dry erase board and have them draw three stars at the top
Ask a question, and require the students to write the correct answer on the board
If the student answered incorrectly, mark the star off the board with a red/green marker
The last man standing wins



2. Read - Speak - Write Relay Races

Materials: Paper, Chalk/white board

Target Vocabulary: Customizable
Divide classes into two teams
Assign roles to each student (Reader, Speaker , Writer). These roles will rotate
Write a sentence (or word, or paragraph depending on level) on a piece of paper and tape it outside the classroom door.
Choose a student from each team to be the reader of the paper
Count off for them to read it, then release them to the listener
The speaker then runs to the writer at the board, who writes the sentence correctly
The first team to get the phrase/sentence/paragraph correct gets a point


1. Powerpoint Template Games

Prior to coming to Korea, I had only heard of Powerpoint Jeopardy Games. Then, I found out about Waygook.org and the amazing work done with Powerpoint template games. My favorite stand-bys are:

• Pass the Pencilcase: http://www.authorstream.com/Presentation/mod83-1271462-pass-the-pencil-case/
• Super Mario Classroom Blast: http://www.authorstream.com/Presentation/mod83-1271360-template-quiz-super-mario-classroom-blast/
• Robots vs. Aliens: http://www.authorstream.com/Presentation/mod83-1271345-template-quiz-robots-vs-aliens/

Pass the Pencilcase is essentially "Hot Potato" with the Benny Hill Theme playing. Super Mario and Robots vs. Aliens are versions of the bomb game. They incorporate sound, animation and are highly customizable. The kids absolutely love them.

Korean Summer 2012: Reflection

After thirty days of living and teaching at English Camp...

I’ve finally made it back on the plane home. The thirteen hour joy ride from Asia to Atlanta now feels like the multi-annual pilgrimage of necessity of my early twenties:  I’ve been lucky enough to take the trip six times in the past two years. Just as lucky, I have a window to rest my head on, some row-mates to chat up and awkwardly stumble over on my way to the bathroom, a pair of legs to cramp, movies and news to watch, eBooks to read!  I also have a laptop to peck away and preserve some memories while they are still fresh. Grueling work, obviously. Anyway..

This trip to Korea has solidified my certainty of two things:

1)   My continued path as a teacher is set firmer than a brick house. I couldn't be more excited to continue learning about TESOL instruction and curriculum. Even knowing summer camp students for such a short amount of time, even with language barriers, even without yellow stickers, knowing that I was able to convey some tiny bit of knowledge, be it cultural or linguistic, makes it all worthwhile. While I’d love to stay in Korea, the fact that I’m going back home is softened by the fact that I’m working to become a better teacher. Only two semesters left until I’ve got my Master’s in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. Onward!

2) I adore Korea. Stand-alone, it holds a place in my heart beyond comparison. However, during this trip I have realized that despite Korea's aparent monopoly on awesomeness, the composition of people in any setting make or break an experience, regardless of setting. Human beings are remarkable, unique, surprising, wonderful creatures.Really just the bee’s knees. During my first 2010 year in Korea, I met some amazing individuals who made my time there impressively awesome and touched my life in ways I can’t express. A surprising majority of these people still abide Korea-side. Perhaps more surprising is their willingness to reconnect this time around. I am baffled and overjoyed that I got to see these people again. In 2012, I have met an equally amazing group of globe-trotting educators who have made this Korean English camp experience truly unforgettable. I feel unfathomably lucky and humbled to have been in such company.

 







Beyond that, the actual trip can be divided into two similar sections: Teaching and Travelling, for which I will tell you right now to avoid unless you are either my mother or desire unneccesary boredom and/or eyestrain.

Part One: Da-da-da-da! Teaching!

Teaching in South Korea is something I thoroughly enjoyed the first time around and there are quite a few parallels which can be drawn in teaching elementary school students both in a public school or summer camp setting. In both settings, native English speakers are brought in as teachers to provide instruction entirely in English and provide a new cultural viewpoint and are encouraged to keep their teaching style fun and friendly. The most notable difference in a summer camp is the sheer number of hours spent with the students. Public schools usually see different students for an hour per day, but at camp (in my case) I spent up to 12 hours per day with the students. Obviously in such a large day, many different approaches to instruction should be taken and a whole slew of new activities need to be carried out.



The first camp was an intensive submersion academic reading-based camp for ages 7-14. If it sounds intense, you are astute. These kids went on summer break just to go back to school, but they were undeniable troopers. Each day, we conducted a daily diary presentation where they were scored on set criteria and expectations, went through three hours of an academic unit incorporating a lesson, activities, reading, writing and games, then worked on a week-long project based on an interest of their choice, incorporated a fun arts/science lesson and finally wrote an English diary for the day. Whew! My favorite lesson to teach was definitely the arts lesson on Expressionist Art. In this lesson, students learned about Wasilly Kandinsky, Edvard Munch and Jackson Pollock. Students brainedstormed vocabulary to describe certain pieces of art and were taught what it meant to express emotion through art. Students then created their own paintings expressing a specific feeling or emotion. The kids really loved creating art this way and some pieces were quite impressive.

Note for sanity: Jackson Pollock paintings really should only be done outside and smock covered. After the fourth class splattering paints, I nearly lost my mind.

The second camp was far less academic and focused on language acquisition through activities and games rather than a set curriculum. We had three hours of instruction, P.E. time, ocarina (the bane of sleeping teachers everywhere), diary writing and correction time, and performance preparation with the students. I have taught the"Gangnam Style" and "Cha Cha Slide" dance to about sixty Korean students at this point. I stand by the effectiveness of dance and song for English acquisition, because it's the best way I remember things in other languages as well. Despite it's aparent hokiness, the "Cha Cha Slide" is awesome for sneaking in English directional vocabulary and simple verbs, my first group of students couldn't get it out of their head. Then they had a dance party.

Both camps left teachers and students full of new information and thoroughly exhausted. I think I slept an entire day once finished. Overall, teaching my students was absolutely amazing.

 

Part Two: Traveling

There were a few things I set out to do this time in South Korea. The only one I missed was accupuncture, which means I have something to do next time!

1) Take a traditional Korean dance class, or “Hanguk Muyeong”. This was achieved at the Seoul Tanz Station in Sinchon, right next to Hongdae. The class was an hour long and went over the basic foot and hand movements of Korean traditional dance. It was elegant to watch, remarkably difficult to execute and despite being conducted entirely in Korean was completely amazing. I got a lot of information and understanding from this class. Check!

2) Get smothered in mud at the annual Boreyang Mud Festival at Daecheon Beach, Chungcheongnam-do. Luckily this annual festival occured during my first week in the country. Check!

3) Travel by train and bus to see Korea’s largest Buddha statue at Gwangchoksa (Buddhist Temple) in Nonsan-si, Chungcheongnam-do. This was an amazing day trip from Daejeon, and total travel time was about 45 minutes. The entire temple complex was absolutely breathtaking. I recommend this to anyone who wants to take a trip off the beaten path. Check out the size of that noggin!

4) Re-visit my old students from the TaLK Program at Sojeong Elementary School. Only about a 40 minute bus ride from camp location was my old elementary school. The students were so sweet, and these girls were some of the sweetest for sure.

5) Take a Hangang River Ferry Cruise. The Han River runs through Seoul and has a rich history regarding the development of the city. The cruise eluded me the last time around, but for 16,000 won we were granted with an amazing view of the magestic Han River in Seoul, complete with light and fountain show. Simply beautiful. Check!

6) Learn a Korean ghost story. I have a penchant for things like ghost stories, and have been unable to find much information about them in Korea. However, a teacher at outsource camp showed us a spooky face found in the 100 won coin, just put your thumb over his the main face.. You should see a creepy skeleton in the beard. and told of Kim Min Ji, the poor girl who has parts of her body located throughout Korean money!

In sum,

This trip to Korea, while significantly shorter than my last, has been no less fulfilling. Despite the appeal of my own mattress, dryer sheets and personal transportation, returning to Orlando is certainly bittersweet. There is little question whether or not I will return, although the capacity is still uncertain. For now, Korea and I will maintain a healthy long-distance relationship. To Korea, to anyone who reads, I wish the best to you, cheers, safe travels, until we meet again and thank you. Saranghae!

30 Days and 30 Nights in South Korea

I'm back!

Well, bless my lucky stars; I'm back! Apparently, Korea has a strong magnetic force and I am by no means immune. It's been just under a year since I last laid foot in the good old Republic of Korea, and I'm glad to see it is doing just as fine as ever! The intense summer humidity, distinctive architecture of Incheon airport and tantalizing aroma of Deli Manjoo cream cakes in the subway station flooded my mind with the fondest of memories from 2010. I was thoroughly reminded of how exciting it was to come here two years ago as a first-time English teacher and continue to be instilled with excitement for the next six weeks.

Perhaps, dear reader, you are wondering by what means I can return to Dae Han Min Guk for such a short time. Well, back when I was a TaLK scholar,  a certain un-named summer camp was responsible for our extensive month-long orientation. Through their remarkable organization and workshop instruction they were able to effectively train over 200 brand new TaLK scholars. After a year of teaching, I left South Korea thoroughly inspired and came back USA to begin work on my MATESOL program, but I soon found that I distinctly missed the experiences of teaching and living in South Korea. So, around January I looked up the camp again up again and applied for their summer 2012 program in April. After a rigourous, tedious, treacherous, viscious visa application (with which I am sure all fellow English teachers are familar and love), I finally recieved confirmation that I had been hired for their month long camp. I will be based in the same tiny town where I lived for a year previously in Chuncheongnam-do province, darling little Jochiwon.

I thank my lucky stars for the ample summer break provided to graduate students and public school teachers, so I am able to teach at Camp Korea for a month and return to my job and studies. I am SO excited to be back and am ready to teach English the FUN way. Hapshida!