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Blended Learning in English Language Teaching: Course Design and Implementation

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Alex<strong>and</strong>er Sokol, PhD, is pr<strong>in</strong>cipal developer of the Th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g Approach (TA) to<br />

language teach<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> learn<strong>in</strong>g, a teacher educator <strong>and</strong> a course designer.<br />

Alex<strong>and</strong>er taught <strong>English</strong> at a secondary level for 13 years, <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g teach<strong>in</strong>g<br />

blended courses. His co-writers for this paper are Edgar Lasevich, Renata Jon<strong>in</strong>a<br />

<strong>and</strong> Marija Dobrovolska-Stoian. All of the authors of this paper are collaborat<strong>in</strong>g on<br />

develop<strong>in</strong>g learn<strong>in</strong>g tools, materials <strong>and</strong> curricula for an <strong>in</strong>tegrated development of<br />

language <strong>and</strong> th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g skills of learners. The approach is be<strong>in</strong>g used <strong>in</strong> more than ten<br />

European countries <strong>and</strong> the materials are available <strong>in</strong> various languages. The team is<br />

also <strong>in</strong>volved <strong>in</strong> develop<strong>in</strong>g teacher education programmes on teach<strong>in</strong>g th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong><br />

br<strong>in</strong>g<strong>in</strong>g the culture of th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> work of various organisations. Detailed <strong>in</strong>formation<br />

on all these projects can be found at www.ta-group.eu<br />

Brian Toml<strong>in</strong>son is a Visit<strong>in</strong>g Professor at Leeds Metropolitan University <strong>and</strong> a<br />

TESOL Professor at Anaheim University. He has worked as a teacher, teacher tra<strong>in</strong>er,<br />

curriculum developer, football coach <strong>and</strong> university academic <strong>in</strong> Indonesia, Japan,<br />

Nigeria, Oman, S<strong>in</strong>gapore, UK, Vanuatu <strong>and</strong> Zambia <strong>and</strong> has given presentations<br />

<strong>in</strong> over 60 countries. In 1993 he founded MATSDA (the <strong>in</strong>ternational Materials<br />

Development Association) <strong>and</strong> he is now President of the association. His many<br />

publications <strong>in</strong>clude Discover <strong>English</strong> (with Rod Bolitho); Open<strong>in</strong>gs; Materials<br />

Development <strong>in</strong> <strong>Language</strong> Teach<strong>in</strong>g; Develop<strong>in</strong>g Materials for <strong>Language</strong> Teach<strong>in</strong>g;<br />

Research for Materials Development <strong>in</strong> <strong>Language</strong> <strong>Learn<strong>in</strong>g</strong> (with Hitomi Masuhara)<br />

<strong>and</strong> Applied L<strong>in</strong>guistics <strong>and</strong> Materials Development.<br />

Ron White is former Director of the Centre for Applied <strong>Language</strong> Studies, the<br />

University of Read<strong>in</strong>g, UK, Ron White has 30 years’ experience of teach<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong><br />

manag<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> Brita<strong>in</strong>, the Pacific <strong>and</strong> Japan. He has worked as a consultant for<br />

Cambridge ESOL, <strong>and</strong> was <strong>in</strong>volved <strong>in</strong> the <strong>in</strong>itial development of the TKT (Teach<strong>in</strong>g<br />

Knowledge Test) <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong> the revision of the DELTA. He is co-author of From Teacher<br />

to Manager, <strong>and</strong> has been a tra<strong>in</strong>er on the International Diploma <strong>in</strong> <strong>Language</strong><br />

Teach<strong>in</strong>g Management s<strong>in</strong>ce its <strong>in</strong>ception.<br />

Claire Whittaker is the Head of <strong>Learn<strong>in</strong>g</strong> <strong>and</strong> Teach<strong>in</strong>g at Bell <strong>and</strong> is based <strong>in</strong><br />

Cambridge. For a number of years she worked overseas with the British Council<br />

as a teacher, teacher tra<strong>in</strong>er <strong>and</strong> project manager <strong>in</strong> Bosnia <strong>and</strong> Herzegov<strong>in</strong>a,<br />

Pol<strong>and</strong>, Tajikistan, Ukra<strong>in</strong>e <strong>and</strong> Uzbekistan. She has also consulted on ELT projects <strong>in</strong><br />

Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Serbia <strong>and</strong> Nigeria. She is a member of the British Council’s<br />

<strong>English</strong> <strong>Language</strong> Advisory Group <strong>and</strong> holds a Doctor of Education (EdD) <strong>in</strong> Teach<strong>in</strong>g<br />

<strong>English</strong> to Speakers of Other <strong>Language</strong>s from the University of Exeter.<br />

252<br />

| Contributors

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