TESOL Spring Day

TESOL France invites you to attend this year’s Spring Day 2024 in Paris (11eme). Come and listen to captivating topics, exciting developments in English language education in France and share your insights with colleagues.  

12 speakers X 12 minutes. Invited speakers from our teaching community here in France will present their topics of interest in line with a TEDEd-style talk format. Speakers will be grouped together in sessions (4 talks per session). Following each session, there will be a brief discussion time to exchange thoughts. 

We are excited to invite you to gather for a day of talks and interactive discussions where you will have the opportunity to share and ask questions. Some of the topics that will be presented:

 

 

Talks will be divided into three sessions and then followed by smaller facilitated discussion groups. 

 

Presenters are coming from different perspectives of the topics which hopefully will peak your interest and allow you to discover what is happening as well as how to navigate within the trends and changes upcoming.

This is a FACE-TO-FACE event in a new venue for TESOL: Ageca,  177 rue de Charonne 75011 Paris for a full day of presentations, discussion and networking. Possibilities to continue the group interaction by having people join small groups for lunch outside of the venue.

Session A

The New Inclusive Teacher for the Future of Education / Soad Louissi
Despite the growing number of students diagnosed with psychological and learning disabilities, only 37% of students disclose their disability because of the continued stigma. How can educators encourage students to disclose their disabilities, putting in place the appropriate accommodations to promote the growth and development of each student so that they can reach their full potential?

Teaching Teenagers, Don't Be a Teacher, Be a Student! / Victor Sakanwi
Teaching teenagers can be challenging for a multitude of reasons, one of which is a certain heightened resistance to being told what to do. As an ESL teacher, creating and maintaining that perfect balance between allowing students to freely express themselves while also establishing structure and order in the classroom, is a tall task. The secret to this symbiosis is to go undercover! Undercover Teaching allows you to establish order from the inside where classroom management and order becomes the concern of the group rather than that of the teacher alone.

How a Cooperative Could Make You and Your Business Happier / Diane Tisdall
Many self-employed English teachers struggle to find financial security, decent working conditions, and business development support. I run my business through Appuy Compétences, a cooperative training centre. In my talk, I’ll share how a cooperative works, how I fit into that and how you too can work from a position of strength and stability in a community of like-minded people.

Career development after teaching / Jessica Etridge
What can you do when you want to step back from teaching but still want to be involved in the pedagogical process? Materials writing? E-learning designer? Project management? Training manager? Our experience as educators equips us to fulfill all of these training roles and more both inside AND outside of ELT.

Storytelling as a Method to Jump-Start Students’ Oral Expression / Sonyth Huber
Have you ever faced a group of students, or a single student, with a low level and thought: "There has GOT to be a better way!" If this sounds familiar, here's a quick overview of a method that I've developed in my 20+ years of teamwork with my students. Boost their oral and written expression skills as well as their self-confidence and set out together on a journey to conquer a mutual foe: their belief that they are "nul en anglais".


Session B

Out-of-class Practice: The Key to Fluency / Jason Levine

Developing any skill requires meaningful repetition. We take this for granted when we\learn to ride a bike, do aerobics, or play a musical instrument. Yet we often overlook it when it comes to learning a language. To use English with confidence, students need extensive and engaging practice. Without it, they are less prepared and motivated to do activities in class. This talk focuses on ways to inspire students to practice English independently and offers suggestions for doing out-of-class practice with songs, games, and videos.

How Feedback Feeds / Damian Corcoran
Appropriate feedback at the right time has a huge impact on student progress and offering “food for thought” fosters student autonomy. How can we ensure that feedback gets heard? How can we give constructive feedback which is objective? What areas do we give feedback on? How do we prioritise? In this talk I will answer these and more questions while giving examples of successful outcomes from clearly focused feedback.

The Science of Mindfulness and Wellbeing / Shannon Griffin
Envision your learners attentive and engaged within the first five minutes of each class. Imagine that those same five minutes are the gateway to your students discovering how they learn best, and then harnessing those tools to enhance their progress. Allow me to introduce you to the Science of Mindfulness and Wellbeing.

AI in EdTech – a Painfully Rapid ‘Parallel’ Learning Curve / Tim Lorkin
It has been both amusing and scary to see the parallel learning curve to address the challenges of AI applied to all: Suppliers, Students, and Institutions themselves - viewed from the inside. The talk will focus on this learning curve, along with some suggested (independent) ‘Edtech’resources, which you were impatient for last year.

Session C

Tips and Insights in the Bilingual and Multilingual Classroom / Suzanne Barron-Hauwaert
How do you balance home, school and study languages in the classroom? Should you clearly separate each language, allow mixing, translations or use of a student’s home language in your classroom? A brief look at some of the issues and how we can support and celebrate language diversity in our classrooms.

Expanding Boundaries : How to Bring the Real-World Into your University Language Classroom / Larnell Perrin-Smith
In this talk, we delve into the transformative power that comes from building our university ESL classes around real-world activities. By bridging the gap between language as a subject and its practical application in life, we ESL teachers can take advantage of our unique perspective to foster holistic growth and spark lasting curiosity in our students. Together we'll examine ways to harness our passions, creativity and life experiences to expand the boundaries of our student's minds beyond classroom walls.

Games in the Classroom / Alex Donnez
As a passionate advocate for interactive and engaging learning experiences, I’d love to show you how I incorporate table-top games into my classrooms. Drawing from my love for games, I have adapted the rules to facilitate both one-on-one classes and small group dynamics. By leveraging the inherent fun and competitiveness of these games, I aim to foster collaboration, storytelling, and problem-solving skills among students. Join me as I explore the potential of merging leisure and language learning.

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This event is free for TESOL France members and €30 for non-members. For more information and to register online :

https://www.tesol-france.org/en/pages/149/spring-day.html

ONLINE REGISTRATION CLOSES on Thursday May 23 2024  at midnight. PLEASE REGISTER BEFORE THIS DATE.