KEYNOTE Barbara Sakamoto: A collaborative approach to improving teacher English

[Heike Philp]

Recording (1h): http://lancelot.adobeconnect.com/p3ua9v4dz8i/

Teachers want to do their best for students. They want to inspire students to become lifelong learners, they want to learn new ideas for teaching, and they want to connect students with the world outside their classroom. The Internet and social networks have made it easier than ever for teachers to do these things. There are online teaching communities, a unlimited resources, and teachers waiting to connect. But, many teachers in Asia don’t participate in this global online community. Why not? They aren’t comfortable using English to communicate with other teachers. They’re afraid of being online. They can’t afford existing professional training opportunities. Traditional English courses don’t work because they don’t teach the language teachers need to learn. What does work? Lessons that focus on building accuracy with language used in teaching combined with discussions in a safe, nurturing online community. In this keynote, we’ll take a look at the collaborative process iTDi used in creating the first online English for Specific Purposes course for teachers. You’ll meet the 20 teachers who helped to make sure that the lesson content was relevant, authentic, and engaging. You’ll have a chance to experience an EFT lesson, where learning English goes hand in hand with learning about teaching. And, you will meet teachers who are part of an online community comprising teachers from more than 94 countries, working together to make each other better English teachers while strengthening their own language skills.

Barbara Hoskins Sakamoto has taught both English and ESL in the United States and EFL in Japan for more than 25 years. She earned her BA from Western Oregon University and her Masters in TESOL from Northern Arizona University. Barbara has conducted workshops throughout Asia, the U.S. and Latin America, and is co-author of the best-selling young learners Let's Go series (Oxford University Press). She is also a founding member of the JALT Teaching Children special interest group. Her motto is "Always try new things," so these days, when she's not teaching, writing, or giving workshops; you'll often find Barbara online exploring the potential of social media for professional development. If you'd like to explore with her, you can usually find Barbara on her award winning blog, Teaching Village.