TESOL SPAIN
Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages in Spain
Claudia is an experienced presenter and ELT author who travels the world as a teacher educator. She has run training sessions and participated in conferences in South America, the Caribbean, the USA, Europe and South East Asia. She holds an MA in Education and Professional Development from the University of East Anglia, UK, and a PhD in English Studies from the University of Nottingham.
In Argentina, where she is based, she is a lecturer at the Instituto de Enseñanza Superior en Lenguas Vivas and the Instituto Superior del Profesorado “Joaquín V. González”, Buenos Aires, and in the MA programme in Literatures in English at the Universidad Nacional de Cuyo, Mendoza. In the UK, Claudia is a Visiting Fellow and research supervisor at the School of Languages, Leeds Metropolitan University, and an Associate Trainer with NILE (Norwich Institute for Language Education). She also teaches in the “Máster Oficial en Enseñanza del Inglés como Lengua Extranjera” at the Universidad de Alcalá de Henares, Spain.
Claudia often works as a consultant, materials designer and facilitator for the British Council and has co-chaired the Oxford Conference on the Teaching of Literature on five occasions. She has also worked as Project Manager for the Penguin Active Readers Teacher Support Programme.
David Crystal is honorary professor of linguistics at the University of Bangor, and works from his home in Holyhead, North Wales, as a writer, editor, lecturer, and broadcaster. He read English at University College London, specialized in English language studies, then joined academic life as a lecturer in linguistics, first at Bangor, then at Reading, where he became professor of linguistics. He received an OBE for services to the English language in 1995. His books include The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language and The Stories of English. A Little Book of Language, and Begat: The King James Bible and the English Language were published in 2010 and Internet Linguistics: A Student Guide in 2011. The Story of English in 100 Words, and an audiobook version, are due out in October 2011. He was consultant for the British Library 'Evolving English: One Language, Many Voices' exhibition (November 2010 to April 2011), and author of the accompanying book, Evolving English.
Of course we want to promote co-operation between communities, people, and nations. The crucial question is 'how'? An essential first step is to understand exactly what a 'culturally diverse society' means, in linguistic terms. Just how much of a language is 'culturally distinctive'? How does this distinctiveness actually affect the task of English teaching and learning? And how are English teachers and learners to become aware of it? At a theoretical level, we need a more general notion of pluriformity, which includes pluridialectism as well as plurilingualism. At a practical level, we need an online dictionary of cultural linguistic practice.
Lindsay Clandfield is a teacher, teacher trainer and an international award winner author of Global, Macmillan's new course for adults. Lindsay has written books for teachers and learners of English and had a column on teaching tips in the Guardian Weekly newspaper. His writing has appeared in numerous magazines and journals and Lindsay has given talks to teachers around the world. Lindsay lives and works in Spain, among the palm trees of Elche.
Giving the world a voice
What is world English and what does it sound like? If it's true that there is roughly four non-native English speakers for every native English speakers what is the implication for our teaching? Over the past few years, there has been a recognition that learners should be exposed to a variety of accents and kinds of English. While some have been recommending this for years, it looks like now our materials are catching up. This talk looks at the effect that world English is having on contemporary ELT especially in the area of listening.