1. XVth NATE Conference in Kazan
The XVth NATE Conference “Learning to Speak the Same Language” held in Kazan on June 25-28 was a great success in many ways. More than 500 EFL teachers - representatives of 30 EFL Teachers’ Associations from 83 cities, towns, and villages enjoyed professional live discussions. Many participants noted a very high level of expert speakers who presented the finest data in the most current and critical topics of ELT. The Conference provided the participants with opportunities to exchange research data discuss outcomes and interact with colleagues. This year’s NATE conference marked many firsts; the first time an ambassador of any nation opened the conference, the first time NATE was held in the multi-cultural and largely Islamic republic of Tatarstan, the first time a host government provided such a sizeable amount of the overall budget, and the first time an EV (electronic village) opened its doors for the conference participants. You can find more information about the Conference at the TATELTA site http://www.kazannate2009.ru
Special thanks to the organizers: TATELTA President Gouzel Nizhmetdinova and her team, TATELTA Vice Presidents Marina Solnyshkina and Olga Tarkayeva and their teams, TATELTA Treasurer Nellie Shamsutdinova, IT and web team- Dmitriy Bobkov and Liliya Apakova, dozens of volunteers led by Rusjaniya Takhtamysheva and Yuliana Amanova.
2. What Conferences to Attend this year? Save the dates!
If you want to advertise your conference, please send your information to lubninaen@state.gov and it will be added to the EFL Events Calendar. You can find the updated version of the Calendar at the http://www.eltrussia.ru site.
The next XVIth NATE Conference will be hosted by CHELTA – Chelyabinsk http://www.chelta.ru/
3. MakeBeliefsComix
Bill Zimmerman, Creator of MakeBeliefsComix.com is sharing his site with those of you who could not attend his workshop on Creating Comic Strips Online to Encourage Writing, Reading and Storytelling at the TESOL Denver 2009 conference. You are welcome to go to: http://www.makebeliefscomix.com/How-to-Play/Educators/ where you will find a handout on his website that lists 21 ways to use MakeBeliefsComix.com in the classroom.
Some examples:
At the beginning of each new school year have students create a comic strip online talking about themselves and their families or summarizing the most important things about their lives.
Have students create a comic strip story using new vocabulary words that are being taught.
Create comic strips in which students can practice such real-life, practical scenarios such as looking for a job or learning how to deal with a difficult boss or fellow workers.
4. WEB2 + TESOL
http://web2tesol2009.pbworks.com/
This is a great site with lots of info on using wikis
5. TOEFL® TV Launched on YouTube®
Heard about the new resource for students learning English? Check out TOEFL® TV – the new official TOEFL channel just launched in March on YouTube®.
TOEFL TV provides tips from teachers and other students on improving English-language skills; video testimonials from universities and other TOEFL-accepting institutions on why they use the TOEFL® test; and student videos sharing test preparation tips.
TOEFL TV can be found at www.youtube.com/TOEFLtv <http://www.youtube.com/TOEFLtv>
6. FYI – Publications!
You are welcome to submit your papers for publication in the quarterly professional journal “Inostrannyie yazyki v vysshei shkole” (“Foreign Languages at University Level”).
The Journal is published by Ryazan State University (Ryazan, Russia).
It accepts articles on:
• various linguistic issues,
• theory and practice of translation;
• teaching foreign languages to university students,
• in-service FL teacher training;
• global education via language instruction (content-based FL educa-tion, cross-cultural awareness, teaching global issues, principles and practice of integrating the curriculum, etc.)
P.S.: Issues concerning foreign language instruction at secondary school can be accepted if treated as educating university students in language teaching methodology.
The registration number of the journal (for subscription purposes):
ÏÈ ¹ ÔÑ 77-26636.
The International Standard Serial Number: (ISSN) 20672-7607
Papers are accepted either in Russian or in English. In either case, an annotation is required, as well as a list of key words.
The approximate size is 12 pages, Times new Roman, font 14. Margins: left – 3 cm, top and bottom – 2 cm, right – 1.5 cm.
Sample of reference within the text: [5, pp.34-35]. (Footnotes may be reserved for comments, if necessary.) The list of references after the text should be given in the alphabetical order.
Feel free to contact us at the following addresses:
Jacob Kolker, Professor, editor-in-chief: ya.kolker@rsu.edu.ru
Elena Ustinova, Associate Professor, editor: e.ustinova@rsu.edu.ru
Tel.: (4912) 21 57 23
7. An Opportunity to Publish Your Work in the English Teaching Forum
(FORUM) welcomes article submissions from classroom teachers, teacher trainers, and language educators worldwide. FORUM accepts previously unpublished articles on a wide variety of topics in second/foreign language education, including principles and methods of language teaching; activities and techniques for teaching language skills; and classroom-based studies.
Only 6 Russian EFL teachers had their articles published in Forum - let’s change that! FORUM is waiting for your articles!
FORUM accepts articles that:
• reflect up-to-date principles, methods, and techniques in English language teaching.
• appeal to FORUM’s worldwide readership.
• are well-written and organized and supply sufficient explanation to enable readers to apply the insights and recommendations in their classes with their own students.
• contribute new ideas and information to the field of English language teaching.
• put the topic in context by citing other authors.
• exhibit writing that is clear, concise, and easy to read.
Note: Articles that require knowledge of a language other than English or focus exclusively on teaching in a specific country may not be appropriate for the global readership of FORUM.
Look at FORUM online to see what topics have been included in recent issues and to see the length and scope of published articles: www.forum.state.gov.
Guidelines for submissions
Submissions are always welcome; there is no deadline. Follow these guidelines in preparing articles for submission:
Forum does not accept previously published articles (print or online).
1. Maximum length is 6,000 words (an abstract is not necessary).
2. All pages should be double-spaced and have margins of about 3 centimeters/1 inch.
3. Use of first person is acceptable, especially when discussing your own teaching context.
4. Only the sources you cite in the article should be included in the list of references.
5. The article should comply with The Chicago Manual of Style (15th edition), in particular the citations of authors and references. A guide is available at: www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html. Follow the instructions for T (text citations) and R (references).
Submitting your article
We prefer to receive submissions as email attachments. Please do not send an article as the text of an email message. If you do not have access to email, you may send your article by post.
• Email: etforum@state.gov
• Post: English Teaching Forum
ECA/A/L/M
U.S. Department of State, SA 44
301 4th Street SW, Room 304
Washington, DC 20547 USA
8. E-TEACHER COURSES
Nominations for participation in the Fall and Spring E-teacher Courses are expected from
EFL Associations. Please e-mail your recommendations to Nataliya Fomenko at
fomenkonv@state.gov
ELO anticipates the following E-teacher course offerings for both Fall and Spring Terms:
• Building Teaching Skills through the Interactive Web
• Critical Thinking in the EFL Curriculum
• English for Specific Purposes (ESP) Best Practices
• English as a Foreign Language (EFL) Assessment
• Methods Course I: Survey of Best Practices in TESOL
• Methods Course II: Developing EFL Literacy through Project-Based Learning
• Teaching English to Young Learners (TEYL)
ANDIDATES
Candidates for "E-Teacher" course should be teacher trainers or teachers who are working, or plan to work,
with the subjects covered by the courses. They should be highly motivated individuals who are dedicated both to
their own professional development and to sharing the knowledge gained with colleagues through workshops or
professional presentations. In addition, candidates should meet the following criteria:
(a) Level of English necessary for a typical university-level course at American universities
(b) Regular and dependable access to the Internet
(c) Commitment to spend the necessary 8-10 hours/week throughout the 10-week course until the completion of the course
If you meet the above-mentioned criteria and would like to apply for the course,
please submit the following information by August 30. Preference will be given to
applications supported by Teachers’ Associations.
E-TEACHER COURSE APPLICATION
First name
Last name
Institution name
City
Mailing address
E-mail address
Contact phone number
Course choice
Why are you interested in taking this course? How it will help you and your ELT community?
Are you willing to share the knowledge and skills acquired as a result of the course? How are you going to do this?
