Qatar National Convention Centre

Qatar National Convention Centre10:30–12:00 Submitting Your Research to an Academic Journal: What Are Editors Looking For?Presenters: Alan Weber, Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar; David Palfreyman, Zayed University;Christopher Leonard, Editorial Director, Bloomsbury Foundation JournalsTwo regional journal editors and the director of Bloomsbury Qatar Foundation Journals each give 10-minutepresentations on how and what to submit to academic journals accepting TESOL-related research. Thepanelists also discuss framing research questions in the Gulf, preparing manuscripts, and approachingeditors. The session concludes with a question period.11:15–11:35 Concurrent SessionsSTEL: Professional Development for Teachers of English Language LearnersPresenter: Louise Wilkinson, Syracuse UniversityHow prepared are prospective teachers to understand and meet the needs and challenges of Englishlearning students? The presenter shares insights from participation in an innovative multiyear nationalfaculty development program. The goal of STEL is to improve the effectiveness of K–12 teacher educationprograms, preparing prospective teachers for linguistically diverse classrooms.Preparing Students for Core Reading and Writing Competencies: An Analysis of ESLTextbooksPresenter: Margi Wald, University of California, BerkeleyThis session highlights core reading and writing competencies expected of students entering U.S. highereducation programs as well as selected lexical and grammatical features of professional academictexts. It then presents an analysis of advanced-level ESL textbooks, comparing task types and foci to thecompetences and features noted in current research.11:15–12:00 Concurrent SessionsNot All Error Types Are Equal: Treating the Untreatable in Second Language WritingPresenter: Diane Schmitt, Nottingham Trent UniversityThis session applies insights from research on error correction in second language writing to instructionalpractice. Previous findings have categorized vocabulary-related errors as untreatable. However, this sessionoffers tools that enable writing teachers to provide feedback that both treats immediate vocabulary errorsand offers scope for long-term lexical development.Home Literacy and Agency: An Ethnographic Approach to Studying the Home LiteracyPractices of Six Multilingual Children in QatarPresenter: Misti Savage-Shepherd, Qatar AcademyResearching home literacy practices of multilingual students may lead teachers to see new insights into the rangeof literacy abilities their students have instead of viewing them from an English-only perspective. This sessionreviews the results found from six different ethnographic case studies and the patterns found across them.Learning L2 Words With Pictures: The Role of Individual Differences in Processing WordMeanings and FormsPresenter: Derek Theriault, College of the North Atlantic–QatarThe presenter examines how individual differences in memory and attention influenced the effectiveness ofusing pictures to teach L2 vocabulary to beginners. Using pictures appears to be an efficient way to commitwords to memory, and differences in memory and attention are associated with learners’ success in this task.8