Teaching English to Young Learners - English Teachers Association ...

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EDITOR’S NOTES wellspring of creative energies. Space prevents me from mentioning them individually, but they know who they are. Finally, thanks to Diane and Ron – their insistence on precision and adherence to deadlines triumphed over countless small disasters and my own misguided administrative impulses. To readers unfamiliar with the business of editing and publication of journals, producing an issue such as this must seem simple. Moreover, to many, a journal editor is often seen as a person who enjoys bringing new writing to the world in a publication that will be seen, read, appreciated, and talked about. Well, that’s only half the truth. What many wouldn’t guess, however, are the largely invisible and protracted stretches of hard work when the pressure of deadlines is at times unbearable and the work too exacting, exerting multiple demands on one’s energies. After several whirlwind weeks of organizing, soliciting work, editing, finalizing content, and studiously remaining sane, I ETAS NEWS Call for Articles sometimes find myself asking, “Why am I here? Why are we doing this? Why do I care, and why should anyone?” And then I remember George Bernard Shaw: “Some men see things the way they are and ask, ‘Why?’ I dream things that never were, and ask, ‘Why not?’” Reflecting on a life away from the limelight, the famous American sprinter, Michael Johnson writes, “Perspective is in the quiet of a walk, the wisdom of a good book, or the harmony of your favorite music. I find it sometimes in the slow peace of fishing.” For me, perspective is in every successfully completed project. Every finished product is a deep and inarticulate pleasure. Like this summer edition of ETAS J – just one look at the Contents page and my weariness dissipates! How right Toni Morrison is: “…we do language. That [is] the measure of our lives.” I hope you will agree that ETAS J demonstrates variety in both expressive format and subject matter, and that ultimately, our issues will not only whet your appetite for more, but they will make you want to send us your own articles. Do check out our Call for Articles for our publication guidelines and new deadlines for next year. If you need help in writing your articles, with special formats, or with our referencing system, please do not hesitate to contact me at: publ@e-tas.ch I began these notes on an unbelievably gorgeous spring day, and I am filled with joy. For this gift of beautiful weather and so much else, I join e. e. cummings in giving praise: “I thank you God for this most amazing day, for the leaping greenly spirits of trees, and for the blue dream of sky and for everything which is natural, which is infinite, which is yes.” “En ce moment même dans cet ouvrage me voici.” (In this very moment, in this work, here I am. Yes.) Derrida, 1980 Ceres Pioquinto ETAS Journal invites submission of articles on various aspects of language teaching and methodology, lesson ideas, surveys of teaching materials, and reports that address language issues in Switzerland or the surrounding region. Book reviews and brief reports or summaries of work in progress which address similar issues are also welcome. Please adhere to the following guidelines when submitting your work. Submission may be in any of these formats: Full length articles: articles in this category advance conceptual, research-based, or theoretical arguments that bridge theory and practice in ESL/EFL. Articles must be fully grounded in current literature and must be of relevance to Swiss context. Manuscripts should not exceed 3,500 words, excluding references, in Times New Roman, font size 12. Referencing system in use should be APA 6th Edition (citation examples available online). Voices of Experience: articles in this category feature descriptions of teaching techniques or activities, teaching methods, best practices, professional development, and other useful information. Articles should specify audience, materials, procedures, and teacher reflections on procedures. Manuscripts should not exceed 2,000 words, excluding references, in Times New Roman, font size 12. Referencing system in use should be APA 6th Edition (citation examples available online). Perspectives: submissions to this section are of the following types: (1) reactions of readers to articles and reviews published in the Journal, and rejoinders; (2) viewpoints and opinions expressed in the form of a report, commentary, or interview on issues or topics of current interest. Perspectives submissions should not exceed 1,500 words. Deadline for the Winter 2011 Edition: 20th October 2011 Deadline for the Spring 2012 Edition: 16th January 2012 Deadline for the Summer 2012 Edition: 12th March 2012 Deadline for the Winter 2012 Edition: 19th September 2012 The Editors reserve the right to make editing changes without prior consultation with the author(s). Authors will be contacted regarding any major editing or revisions. All contributors will receive one complimentary copy of the ETAS Journal. Please send submissions, including a short biodata, as a Word document by email attachment to the Editor at publ@e-tas.ch . ETAS Journal 28/3 Summer 2011 7
ETAS NEWS President’s Report Oh, to be in England, now that April’s there… and, unlike Robert Browning, dear Reader, I was, though not to admire the coming of spring in rural England. I was off to the raffish seaside town of Brighton to attend the 45th IATEFL Conference and Exhibition. This is an enormous event, with more than a thousand delegates, which goes on for four days. The venue is right on the seafront, so serious and sober conference participants mingle with less serious and sober visitors to Brighton, many of them on stag or hen parties, dressed somewhat more excitingly than the people I sat next to in workshops. As ETAS President (I’m getting more used to saying that), I attended the IATEFL Associates Meeting, the day before the conference began: here, and at the welcome dinner the night before, I met representatives from other TAs (teachers’ associations) from around the world. It’s fascinating to hear about English teachers’ associations in countries like Pakistan, Japan, Chile, Germany, and Latvia, to name but a few. It’s so easy to think that the way we do things is the only way, but there’s a lot of diversity out there. What I discovered at this meeting is that Past President Amy Jost is extremely active on behalf of IATEFL Associates and spent last summer working hard helping to put together a wonderful manual: Running an Association for Language Teachers: Directions and Opportunities. It was produced with the assistance of the British Council and contains articles written solely by IATEFL members. We all received hot-off-the-press copies as the books arrived at the last moment during the meeting – keeping the Advisory Panel who produced the manual on tenterhooks as they wondered what had happened to their baby! You can find a link to the online version on the ETAS website. It’s well worth a read. The view of Brighton Pier as we left the conference one evening 8 ETAS Journal 28/3 Summer 2011 The conference itself was informative, mind-expanding, hectic, friendly, exhausting, but also rewarding. Each morning there was a plenary talk, followed by workshop sessions on any subject related to TEFL you could imagine – and a few you may not have thought of before. Visit the website below, and you will be able to see much of what was on offer. http://iatefl.britishcouncil.org/2011/ news/sessions-itunes-u If you’d like to know what frogs and applied linguists have to do with each other and TEFL, listen to Catherine Walter’s talk. You’ll be informed and entertained. I learnt a lot from the many presentations I attended, and very much enjoyed Professor David Crystal’s performance with his wife Hilary and son Ben on “A thousand years of words on words”. The final plenary by Brian Patten, “Juggling with gerbils – poetry off the stage”, was a delight and great way to wind up the conference. Conference organisers (and I’ve been there myself) spend countless hours putting together a programme of talks, workshops, and entertainment, but strangely enough what delegates appreciate almost more is the opportunity to talk to other teachers, to catch up with old friends, make new ones, network, and just relax with others who know what they are talking about. IATEFL conferences are a great way to combine all that (as are ETAS ones too!) with keeping up-to-date with the latest developments in TEFL and I can only encourage you to attend the 2012 IATEFL Conference in Glasgow. Don’t forget you can join IATEFL at a reduced rate through ETAS. See the membership renewal reminder on page 15. Once again, Ceres Pioquinto has produced a wonderful Journal, helped by Ruth Benvegnen and Joy Cosslett who have put together a mind-provoking Special Supplement which should be of great interest and value to all teachers, not only those who teach young learners. I’m sure you’ll enjoy reading the interviews with ETAS members and volunteers Dorothy Sommer and Peter Pasquill, and reading about the excellent work that is being done in Matopo in Cindy Hauert’s report on our Teacher-to-Teacher Project. Do you belong to a SIG? You can find out all about our SIGs – who runs them and what they offer. The series of articles Ceres mentioned in her Editor’s Notes is a welcome addition to the Journal. I hope you’ll read them and be inspired to share your knowledge and ideas with Journal readers. When this Journal reaches you, you will probably be looking forward to a summer break, although I know some teachers work even harder in the summer. Whatever you will be doing, wherever it is, I wish you a happy, creative and restorative summer. I look forward to seeing you all at ETAS SIG Day in Zug on 17th September. Ann Humphry-Baker
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Page 10 and 11: ETAS NEWS Faces of ETAS Support “
Page 12 and 13: What most interests you about ELT a
Page 14 and 15: ETAS NEWS Membership renewal inform
Page 16 and 17: students aged 7 - 18 in New York, R
Page 18 and 19: PERSPECTIVES Interview with Urs Ras
Page 21 and 22: Teaching English to Young Learners
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Page 28 and 29: Gary Anderson, well-known teacher/t
Page 30 and 31: REVIEWS A Look at Books Nicola Mart
Page 32 and 33: Library Updates RECENT ACQUISITIONS
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