ETAS 29th AGM and Convention SupplementForewordIntroductionThe 29th AGM and Convention on26th-27th January <strong>2013</strong> started on acold but stunningly beautiful winter’s dayin Sierre/Siders. The sun was just aboutto shine on the snow-covered mountainswhen the first participants arrived and theLOC welcomed everybody graciously.The previous evening some <strong>of</strong> the publishers,presenters, and participants had alreadyenjoyed the warm hospitality and deliciousValais platter at Imesch Vins Sierre SA,organized by Beverley Todeschini andher husband.PlenariesThe secret <strong>of</strong> a successful conference isto have good speakers. In our four plenarysessions we were able to engage fourhighly-acknowledged pr<strong>of</strong>essionals in ELT.Adrian Underhill captivated the audiencewith his song and he explained in humorousterms the difference between mess anddifficulty and that mess was not alwaysnegative and that we should try sometimesto think “outside our boxes”.Adrian Underhill: “Thank you so much fora most enjoyable ETAS convention... . I doappreciate the way you and the Committeehosted my visit and took care <strong>of</strong> my needs,and I found the academic and socialexchange with ETAS members moststimulating. Sierre too was a joy to visit,especially in that glorious sunshine! Andthe Château Mercier... !”The afternoon speaker was Kate Fox, thewell-known anthropologist, whose talk aboutthe hidden rules <strong>of</strong> <strong>English</strong> behaviour waspresented in a witty and eloquent manner.The audience particularly enjoyed thislight-hearted talk after a hard day’s work!On Sunday morning Marion Williams engagedthe audience with a selection <strong>of</strong> activitiesthat teach thinking skills to young learners.She describes her experience as follows:Marion Williams: “Thank you for inviting meand for your wonderful hospitality. I think itwas a superb venue and I loved the views <strong>of</strong>the mountains. I am very pleased to hearthat participants found the talk helpful andinteresting. I found the participants verypositive, knowledgeable, and enthusiastic;it was a nice group to work with, and I likedthe way everyone joined in the activities inthe plenary. The people who came to myworkshop were particularly positive, andI was impressed by the way they workedhard and creatively together.And many congratulations to you forputting such a successful event together.As past president <strong>of</strong> IATEFL, I can say thatETAS has always impressed me.”Throughout his talk Tim Murphey posedthe question, “What are you doing now?”Answer: “Collectively energizing ourimagination.” He showed us briefly theshort story <strong>of</strong> the last 6 million years inconnection with language learning.Tim Murphey: “Just wanted to say thanks somuch for your great collaborative leadership.I really enjoyed coming back to ETAS andseeing how it has grown and developed,thanks to people like you… .”Such an event could not take place withoutthe sponsors bringing in our distinguishedplenary speakers: thanks to British Council<strong>Switzerland</strong> (Kate Fox), ETAS (Tim Murphey),Helbling Languages (Marion Williams), andMacmillan Education (Adrian Underhill).WorkshopsForty-four workshops were held over thetwo days, <strong>of</strong>fering an interesting variety <strong>of</strong>inspiring topics that were appreciated by themajority <strong>of</strong> the participants. The subjectsranged from motivating learners to jugglingwith language, testing and speaking, andwriting activities.Acknowledgements and thanksA huge thank you goes to the members <strong>of</strong>the LOC who carried out the following tasks,among many others:Barbara Bréchet Mottier (project manager)and her LOC team – Leonard Adkins (PR),Barbara Althaus (registration desk, speakers’hospitality), Alexandra Bossetti (registrationdesk), Rita Jenelten (registration desk),John Raggett (Book Exhibition), Bob Schärer(registration desk), Beth Sollberger (raffle),Beverley Todeschini (Friday evening event,wine tasting), Monica Zumstein (IT support),and all the HES-SO caretaking team!Our ETAS President, Ann Humphry-Baker,wrote to the LOC: “You all did an amazingjob this weekend - everyone I talked to saidit was a wonderful conference... . You andyour team planned and executed a greatevent and ETAS is very grateful. The venuewas ideal, the talks inspiring, the organisationimpeccable, and the wine intoxicating!”Heartfelt thanks go to Monsieur ClaudeRoch, Minister <strong>of</strong> Education <strong>of</strong> Valais, forhis talk about the importance <strong>of</strong> <strong>English</strong>language learning, and Monsieur FrançoisSeppey, Director <strong>of</strong> the HES-SO Valais/Wallis,University <strong>of</strong> Applied Sciences Western<strong>Switzerland</strong>, for generously donating theuse <strong>of</strong> the venue. With its technicalstate-<strong>of</strong>-the-art rooms, this modern building,so close to the station, proved to be theideal venue for workshops, while its airy andbright corridors, equipped with c<strong>of</strong>feefacilities, provided publishers with excellentspace for the Book Exhibition. Sierre’sMayor, Monsieur François Genoud, warmlywelcomed the participants. ETAS is gratefulto him for his generous financial support.Furthermore we would like to thank thecatering team who supplied us with goodlunches on both days and with an excellentdinner on Saturday evening at theRestaurant Le Bourgeois.An AGM and Convention would be hard toimagine without Corinne Tschumi, ourAdministrator, who pulled strings behind thescenes and made sure nothing was forgotten.She was ably assisted by Ruth Buholzer onSaturday and by Amy Jost on Sunday. Awarm thank you goes to Ron Sumners, whoseemingly tirelessly took pictures on bothdays and whose results show in this <strong>Journal</strong>.I would also like to thank all our workshoppresenters, whose dedicated work formedan important basis <strong>of</strong> the convention. Theworkshops provided teachers with newideas or new reflections on old ones;useful teaching materials were availablefor integration into classroom activities.Many thanks to all the following sponsors(listed alphabetically):academia • croissants SundayBlack Cat • bagsCambridge University Press• one year’s membership to Cambridge<strong>English</strong> Teacher, pensCasino de Saxon • 10 entrance ticketsCity <strong>of</strong> Sierre • Aperitif wineFondation Pierre Gianadda Martigny• 10 entrance ticketsMigros Valais • water and dried fruit forSaturday and Sunday/PlenarySpeakers’ giftNILE, Norwich Institute for LanguageEducation • Raffle: first Grand PrizeOffTheShelf <strong>English</strong> Bookshop • s<strong>of</strong>t drinksOxford University Press • notepadsPearson Schweiz AG • dictionariesRouvinez Wines Sierre • wine tastingSL&C Supercomm Languages &Communication • Raffle: secondGrand PrizeTLC – The Language Company, Baden • fruitUniversity <strong>of</strong> Cambridge ESOL Examinations• Aperitif food, croissants SaturdayValais centre Exams Manager Rep:Sally MayorZenhäusern Bakery • 15% <strong>of</strong>f croissantsand rollsConclusion and outlookLast but not least: we have already startedplanning the next AGM and Convention inThun, which will take place on 25th-26thJanuary 2014. ETAS will then be celebratingits 30th anniversary and I can alreadyassure you that this will be a special eventwith great surprises! So, don’t miss it!Barbara ChuckNational Events Chair16 ETAS <strong>Journal</strong> 30/2 <strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2013</strong>
ETAS 29th AGM and Convention SupplementMinutes <strong>of</strong> the 29th Annual General MeetingSaturday 26th January <strong>2013</strong>, HES-SO Valais/Wallis, Sierre/Siders1. WelcomeThe members were welcomed by Ann Humphry-Baker, President.2. Approval <strong>of</strong> the AgendaThe Agenda was unanimously approved.3. Approval <strong>of</strong> the Minutes <strong>of</strong> the 28th AGM in Yverdon-les-Bains,printed in the ETAS <strong>Journal</strong> (<strong>Spring</strong> 2012), p. 17.The Minutes, with no changes, were unanimously approved.4. Annual ReportsThe Committee Members’ Annual Reports were presented.Each Report will be published in the ETAS <strong>Journal</strong> (<strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2013</strong>).Publications Chair: Ceres PioquintoNational Events Chair: Barbara ChuckTeacher Development Chair: Cindy StiegerVice President/National Coordinator: Hazel TreppWeb Chair: Steve LanderSecretary: John RaggettTreasurer: Raymond RogersPresident: Ann Humphry-Baker5. Auditor’s ReportThe Report on page 14 <strong>of</strong> the 29th AGM and ConventionProgramme was unanimously accepted.6. Approval <strong>of</strong> the Budget for the new fiscal year (2012 - <strong>2013</strong>)The 2012 - <strong>2013</strong> Budget on page 11 <strong>of</strong> the 29th AGM andConvention Programme was unanimously accepted.7. Election <strong>of</strong> Committee membersA number <strong>of</strong> Committee members stepped down at this AGM.They were warmly thanked for their service.National Coordinator: Hazel TreppPublic Relations Chair: Paul HendersonSecretary: John RaggettWeb Chair: Steve LanderAn equal number <strong>of</strong> new Committee members were elected,by acclamation, at this AGM. They were also warmly thanked.National Coordinator: Anita TowersPublic Relations Chair: Peach RichmondSecretary: Catherine ShultisWeb Chair: Hansjoerg Stieger8. AnnouncementsThe President thanked the Regional and SIG Coordinators who werestepping down for their hard work and their valuable contributions.Baden co-RCs: Sarah Giles and Jenny GuerneCentral <strong>Switzerland</strong> RC: Donna AebersoldGraubünden RC: Peter PasquillSt. Gallen co-RCs: Paul Raper and Francesca ElsaesserExaminations, Testing & Assessment SC: Nina BlaettlerShe then welcomed the new Regional and SIG Coordinatorsand thanked them for volunteering.Baden co-RC: Caroline RickliSt. Gallen RC: Liudmila ViaroukinaTicino co-RC: Ruth CastaneraCross-Cultural SC: Christina KwokExaminations, Testing & Assessment SC: Neil BullockNext, Ann welcomed the new members <strong>of</strong> the Editorial Board andthe Events Subcommittee.Editorial Board:Helena LustenbergerValerie SafaiThe Events Subcommittee:Eva BietenholzAmy JostAlice KnöpfelHelena LustenbergerAlessia PratkaValerie SafaiHazel TreppFinally, the President thanked Corinne Tschumi for all herhard work in the past year.Cindy Hauert then presented the latest news from our currentTeacher-to-Teacher Project, working with Matopo Primary School inZimbabwe and helping send girls on to secondary school. Sheshowed us images <strong>of</strong> the second class <strong>of</strong> secondary schoolscholarship students and told us that their dormitory is being built.This building is being built with funds raised entirely by ETASTreasurer, Raymond Rogers. She also said that the FedererFoundation is now in its third year <strong>of</strong> supporting the project.Cindy’s report will be published in ETAS <strong>Journal</strong> (<strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2013</strong>).9. Any Other BusinessFree membership draw for all contributors to ETAS <strong>Journal</strong>during the past year. The draw was won by James Taylor.The President declared the meeting closed.Catherine Shultis, SecretaryETAS <strong>Journal</strong> 30/2 <strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2013</strong> 17
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