Time tbc - Viv Lambert: Raising cultural awareness in the primary classroom

Abstract
Children bring different knowledge to the classroom and they are influenced by their backgrounds and cultures. In recognising this, we can encourage children to open their eyes to the world around them and appreciate that everyone is different, has different societies, customs and celebrations. In this presentation, Viv looks at ways to raise children’s awareness of cultural issues in the Primary language classroom through a variety of activities.

12.30 - 13.30 - Carol Read: Creativity through story and drama

Abstract
In this presentation, Carol shows how an integrated approach to storytelling and drama can be a powerful vehicle for developing young learners’ language skills and potential for creativity. The main focus will be on ways to scaffold – or support – pupils’ learning, and engage them in exploring relevant issues through the social and communal experience of classroom drama. Carol will also explore links to other areas of the curriculum and the shared, cultural dimension of storytelling and drama in promoting citizenship and fostering positive attitudes in today’s world.

15.00 - 16.00 - Angela Llanas: Developing Reading Strategies

Abstract
As teachers, it is our job to make reading a pleasure for our students. When they have the desire to read, then it will be much easier to develop the ability to do so. So where should you start? With picture books – no words are necessary for this initial stage! When the students are interested and talking about the content of the pictures, that will be the right moment to employ strategies for actually reading the written word. It is as if one started at the end of the process (with overall understanding), and then moved forward to the beginning, with the decoding of written symbols, now that the students have the pictorial clues to help them. Reading is a vital skill. When you can read you can increase your vocabulary, fix grammar patterns in the visual memory and see functions in action. This talk focuses on the short-cuts and secret codes that make reading a fun activity for children, and will help them to build up a reading habit that will last them for a lifetime.

12.30 - 13.30 - Scott Thornbury: Why are we still teaching the wrong grammar the wrong way?

Abstract
Language teachers spend a lot of time teaching "tenses", but in terms that (I will argue) have little linguistic or psychological reality. In this webinar I will critique the standard teaching model, and then attempt to simplify it, by first distinguishing between tense and aspect, and then suggesting ways that a simpler, more elegant system might be applied in practice.

13.45 - 14.45 - Adrian Underhill: Pronunciation: The Cinderella of ELT

Abstract
Although we talk about integrating pronunciation into language learning and teaching, our whole take on pronunciation makes that practically impossible. I will explore two underlying reasons why so little seems to have changed in pronunciation teaching over the last 50 years, consider how this outsider status has had a devastating impact on motivation, learner self-esteem and on learning itself … AND consider what transformation could be possible when we recognise the beauty and power of pronunciation and its potential impact learning. I will propose two practical solutions to these problems that any teacher can put to the test and try out for themselves, to bring this Cinderella fully into the classroom!

15.00 - 16.00 - Pete Sharma: The TIPping point: new Technologies, new Ideas and new Pedagogies

Abstract
Teaching in today's digital classroom is changing fast. Some of the time, we are training our students on how to be more autonomous. New apps are coming out all the time. However fast the technology moves, we are always thinking about the pedagogy. How can this tool enhance our teaching, or help our students learn?

This talk will explore ten tools, including the presentation software Prezi and the new IELTS app (Macmillan). It will explore them from three aspects: what are the affordances of the technology? what pedagogical advantages does it offer? and finally, practical teaching ideas. How about you: have you reached the TIPping point?

12.30 - 13.30 - Vaughan Jones: Bringing Language to Life

Abstract
The disconnect between coursebook materials and the knowledge, feelings and opinions that a learner brings into the classroom is sometimes startling. While coursebook topics may strike a chord, and many learners will find the texts and illustrations engaging, it’s usually in the nitty gritty of controlled language practice where the disconnect is most apparent. A relentless focus on form leads to exercise after exercise where learners are invited to enter the wonderful world of Tom, Dick and Harry: imaginary people doing imaginary things in imaginary places (united only by their exemplary use of the present continuous!)

In this webinar, I’d like to explore ways of reconnecting the learner’s life experience with the language they are practising. Using what the learner brings into the classroom makes language learning more motivating, memorable and above all meaningful.

13.45 - 14.45 - Louis Rogers: How specific should we be?

Abstract
Teaching General English can be both liberating and daunting. What we choose to teach is limited only by our imagination, or at the very least the course book writer’s creativity. For some it can be refreshing to find yourself in a field such as Business English or English for Academic Purposes where needs are often much more immediate and specific. However, this is only one shift along the specificity spectrum. Students and companies may require English for the medical profession or the banking sector but even then it might easily be argued that a Medical English course is not specific enough. Do nurses, GPs and nutritionists really need the same language to do their job? However, if we are to become more specific then how specific can we or should we go? This talk will look at some of the key issues in the debate between specificity and transferability particularly in an Academic English context.

15.00 - 16.00 - Miles Craven: Effective Scaffolding – Two practical techniques

Abstract
Most students need support in order to able to communicate freely and effectively in English. The kind of support we give, and how we provide it, can be vital to the success of classes we teach. Getting the approach right, offering the right kind and amount of ‘scaffolding’, can help learning to flow smoothly and naturally. If we get it wrong, classes can falter, and the classroom can quickly become a difficult and exasperating place for both learners and teachers. The question this webinar will address is; What kind of support can we offer our students, and how best can we deliver it?

Clearly, no single approach will suit all learners. Students from diverse learning backgrounds, and at varied ability levels, will benefit from different approaches. In this session, Miles Craven will demonstrate two very different, yet equally practical, approaches that teachers can use to support their learners in the classroom: Scripted dialogues (where all, or almost all, of the words are provided) and Mind maps (which help students think and interact creatively). Each approach will be explained and demonstrated, with ideas and activities that teachers will be able to use in their very next class.