November
2003 - issue 11/03
DEVELOPING
TEACHERS.COM Newsletter
Welcome
to the November Newsletter.
We
have started a post in the Forums to see the different pay
rates that EL teachers get across the globe. For example
in Madrid, a teacher just starting on a 25 hour timetable
would probably receive around 900 euros per month (1,045.42
USD), with a contract in a school. It is difficult to make
comparisons but let us know approximately what a new teacher
on 25 hours a week would get per month. Give the currency
in the local one, euros & dollars - a good currency
exchange site: http://www.xe.com/ucc/
http://foro.developingteachers.com/viewtopic.php?t=281
While
you are at Developing Teachers.com try
out our version of ELT Hangman
If
you haven't already heard, Amazon have got an incredible
new feature at their site:
'A
significant extension of our groundbreaking Look Inside
the Book feature, Search Inside the Book allows you to search
millions of pages to find exactly the book you want to buy.
Now instead of just displaying books whose title, author,
or publisher-provided keywords match your search terms,
your search results will surface titles based on every word
inside the book. Using Search Inside the Book is as simple
as running an Amazon.com search.' It's getting to feel a
bit like a Jasper Fforde book!
Don't
forget that if you're going to buy at Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk
then please go through the Books
page at the site. Thanks.
The following was on the Guardian site the other day:
Slepping:
its so smiple - Michael Johnson - Wednesday October 22,
2003 - The Guardian
A
curoius ietm is going around the innernet at the moemnt
citting new reserach from Cambirge Uvinersity tat indicicates
we don't raed wrods the way we ttaut we ddid. Accroding
to the exprets, the eye deosn't need or evn want the whoole
wrord. It noets the frist and last lettres, and fills in
the rest by inrefence. You can even add or dorp lettres.
The jumumble in btweeen is irrveralent. Cogintion hapneps
vrey fast and quite misteriollusly.
My
immeaidte ttaut was, "Oh my, I have wasetd a good prat
of my life lerning to sllep this fraeking langague."
But hey, notting's prefect. At laest it is graet nieuws
for people who make a lot of tyops and for poor slleppers.
As the state of Eglinsh contieuns to flall, it's likley
that scools will strat to ralex thier lagnuage standrads
even feurther - if inedeed they still have any to ralex.
Prtety soon, taechers wll thorw up ter hnads and excalim,
"Who caers if wrods are sllepped crorectly? I'm not
paid enuogh for this carppy jobb anway."
To
read the rest of the article
Happy teaching!
**********
INDEX
1.
THE SITE - plans & articles
2. FORUMS
3. E-MAIL COURSES
4. TEACHING LINKS
5. BOOKS
6. DAYS OF THE MONTH
7. WEEKLY TEACHING TIPS
8. CVs & JOBS
9. PS - Internet/computer-related links
***************
ADVERTISEMENT
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SPEECH: A Course in Listening and Pronunciation for
Advanced Learners of English - An electronic publication
that aims to solve the problem of the misrepresentation
of speech. http://www.speechinaction.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/
If
you'd like to buy a Streaming Speech course you will receive
a discount if you tell Richard you heard about it at Developing
Teachers.com!
***************
1.
THE SITE
There
is a lesson plan on the site centred around an article titled
'Odd mishaps cause computer grief', looking at the problems
people have had with computers. It is an intermediate upwards
plan with the main aims as follows:
To
give extensive & intensive reading practice To review
when direct & indirect speech is used To extend the
stds' store of vocab connected to computers & data To
give freer speaking practice
To
read the plan
----------------------
Jane
Herbertson joins us for the first time with an article &
a lesson plan about 'Lexis: changing attitudes'.
She begins her article:
"Without
grammar very little can be conveyed, without vocabulary
nothing can be conveyed": Wilkins (1). This reflects
a change of attitude towards the role of lexis. Sökmen
(p239) likens it to a pendulum, comparing the importance
of lexis within the Grammar Translation approach (where
it was explicitly taught) to the Communication Approach
(where it was incidental). She suggests this pendulum has
swung back today to the middle ground, being taught both
explicitly and implicitly. Nunan (p117) claims it was neglected
by Audio-linguists (during the middle of the last century),
citing Hockett (1958) "vocabulary was the easiest aspect
of a second language to learn and that it hardly required
formal attention in the classroom".
I
will attempt to explain why I believe lexis is important,
before considering the general problems for adult learners
of English. I shall then discuss the change in status of
lexis and consider one particular approach available to
teachers. Finally, I intend to draw general and specific
conclusions about my current/future practice.
To
read the article
The accompanying lesson plan is for upper intermediate students
& the aims are as follows:
Main
aims
1. To direct students to noticing lexical items as chunks
of language
2. To sensitise students to the grammar/usage of multi words
3. To introduce students to a lexical set connected to money
Subsidiary
Aims
1. To develop students' reading sub-skills to extract implicit
information
2. To give students the opportunity to peer teach and learn
from each other
3. To encourage students to use dictionaries
4. To provide opportunities for students to meet and try
to use some of the new vocabulary - assisting the process
of converting input to intake - see rationale
To
read the plan
Thanks
to Jane.
ARTICLES - If you've given a course or seminar or
have a lesson plan & would like to give it a public
airing then do send it to: mailto:articles@developingteachers.com
ADVERTISING
- We reach a few thousand teachers every week with the Weekly
Teaching Tip & the same each month with the Newsletter,
not to mention the 1000+ unique visitors a day to the site.
If you've got a book, course, job...anything that you'd
like to advertise, then do get in touch at: mailto:advertising@developingteachers.com
To
the contents
**********
2.
FORUMS
Lots
of different Forums to choose from. Post your jobs, your
CV, your questions, finds on the net, ideas, activities,
questions, grumbles, suggestions, your language courses,
your training courses...they
are there for you to use.
As
mentioned above get along to the Teaching Travels Forum
to let us know about average salaries in your country: http://foro.developingteachers.com/viewtopic.php?t=281
To
the contents
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3.
E-MAIL COURSES
Relax
& maximise your time by getting started on a quality
personalised teacher development course.
To
the contents
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4.
TEACHING LINKS
http://labs.google.com/glossary
Find
definitions for words, phrases and acronyms, c/o Google.
http://www.english-to-go.com/
'World's
Largest Lesson 6th November 2003 - On November 6 we are
holding the annual World's Largest Lesson. This year we
are working together with Adopt-A-Minefield to help to raise
awareness and funds for people who have been affected by
landmines. We have the support of Adopt-A-Minefield patrons
Paul McCartney and Heather Mills McCartney to get as many
people involved as possible.'
http://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~leslieob/themes.html
Theme-based
links to help with your timetabling & lesson planning.
http://eserver.org/
'The
EServer is a unique website where 281 writers, artists,
editors and scholars gather to publish and discuss their
works (currently 31847 of them in all).' Lots of links.
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/internet-grammar/
The
Internet Grammar of English is an online course in English
grammar written primarily for university undergraduates.
However, we hope that it will be useful to everyone who
is interested in the English language. IGE does not assume
any prior knowledge of grammar. The Internet Grammar of
English is accessible free of charge to all users. The Internet
Grammar of English is an online course in English grammar
written primarily for university undergraduates. However,
we hope that it will be useful to everyone who is interested
in the English language. IGE does not assume any prior knowledge
of grammar. The Internet Grammar of English is accessible
free of charge to all users. From Universtiy College, London.
http://llt.msu.edu/
'Language
Learning & Technology is a refereed journal which began
publication in July 1997. The journal seeks to disseminate
research to foreign and second language educators in the
US and around the world on issues related to technology
and language education.'
http://www.it-links.org/
'IT-Links
is the online journal published by the Information Technology
(IT) in English Language Teaching (ELT) Special Interest
Group (SIG) of ELTeCS-East Asia.'
http://www.natcorp.ox.ac.uk/index.html
The
British National Corpus.
http://www-personal.umich.edu/~jlawler/lingmarks.html
Language
& linguistics links from The Eclectic company.
http://www.surrey.ac.uk/ELI/thesis.html
'From
the University of Surrey, Applied Linguistics Research Group
- Postgraduate dissertations online - 'All the dissertations
and abstracts listed in this directory have been written
by MA in Linguistics (TESOL) and MSc in English Language
Teaching Management students in the Applied Linguistics
Research Group.'
http://www.bartleby.com/65/
Nearly
51,000 entries to search.
http://www.vocabulary.co.il
'My
name is Jacob Richman and this week I launched a new educational
site that helps students learn English vocabulary. The site
is called Learning Vocabulary Can Be Fun . There are four
games on the site: Word Search Game, Hangman, Match Game
& The Vocabulary Quiz. The vocabulary site has something
for everyone and feedback is always appreciated.'
http://www.nelliemuller.com/
'My
name is Nellie Deutsch and I would like to introduce you
to Nellie's English Projects. The site is about collaborative
writing projects and is free to share. Nellie's English
Projects are content based lessons designed to provide students
and teachers with clear instructions on how to write and
present research papers. Students are evaluated for the
process as well as for the final product. The site provides
evaluation rubrics and clear instructions on how to do the
projects. The topics are WebQuest tasks. In addition the
site provides many educational resources.'
To
the contents
**********
5.
BOOKS
The
book review this month looks at 'Personalising Language
Learning' by G.Griffiths & K.Keohane (CUP). As the name
suggests the book is at the heart of a learner-based approach
to language teaching. To
read the review
BUYING
BOOKS? If you're going to Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk then
please go through our Books page.
You will pay the same & we will receive a few pennies
to keep the site & newsletters free. Thanks.
To
the contents
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6.
DAYS OF THE MONTH
Some
days to plan your lessons around in November:
5th
Bonfire Night http://www.developingteachers.com/tips/pasttips43.htm
Remembrance
Day
16th International Day for Tolerance 17th World Peace Day
25th Eid Al Fitr
28th Buy Nothing Day http://www.developingteachers.com/tips/pasttips44.htm
http://www.developingteachers.com/tips/pasttips27.htm
US
Thanksgiving Day - 4th Thurs. in month
To
see the Days of the Year
To
the contents
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7.
WEEKLY TEACHING TIPS
Free
weekly practical teaching tips by e-mail.
Recent
Tips have included:
-
Being observed - some advice
- Patterns - a look at the problem-solution pattern.
- United Nations Day - activities
- Motivation - types & ways
Each
week there is a thread in the Forums about the theme of
the Weekly Tip - a chance to have your say about the area.
To
see the Past Tips
To
sign up to receive them
To
the contents
***********
8.
CVs & JOBS
Shanghai,
Wuxi, Suzhou and Nantong - China
C&C Internatioanl Culture&Commerce Centre(Canada)
has been authorized by 5 Chinese high schools which are
in Shanghai, Wuxi, Suzhou and Nantong to seek Esl teachers.
In these high schools, teaching hours will be 20 per week,
and the students' ages will be from 15-18. If you are interested,
please contact our China office. Requirements: Internationally
recognised TEFL qualification (CELTA, TEFL Diploma, MA TESOL
etc) or about one-year teaching experence Benefits: 1 RMB
4000-6000 salary per month, based on experience 2 Accommodation
paid for and provided by the school 3 Round-trip airfare
for a one-year contract Contact: China office: 4 floor,
No.34 Wuai road, Wuxi city, Jiangsu province, China 214031
Tel: 86-510-2791740, 86-510-8911653 Fax: 86-510-2791740
mailto:china@canadaandchina.com
Costa
Rica
CLASS, Costa Rica Latin America School Supplies Inc. is
a 501 c3 non profit Florida corporation seeking volunteer
teachers, to teach teachers in Costa Rica, how to teach
English. Involve your entire school. In Latin America learning
English is no longer a luxury it is a necessity. Visit our
web site: http://www.ItsASureBet.net
Hanoi,
Vietnam
Here is a copy of the advertisement placed on Wednesday
in the 'Vietnam News'. If you 'fit the bill' please send
your full CV to the email address given. If you don't quite
fit - feel free to send your CV: there may be future openings
for qualified EFL teachers and trainers. Although based
in Hanoi, The Education Company responds to needs in other
Vietnamese towns and cities if requested.
ELT PROFESSIONALS WANTED TO JOIN THE EDUCATION COMPANY
The Education Company, a dynamic, expanding, Hanoi-based
consultancy is seeking professional trainers for its teaching
team. One position is available immediately, others will
open during the autumn. 1. Full-time Trainer for Danang:
the applicant should be willing to be resident in Danang.
2. Part or full-time trainers for Hanoi: we are seeking
CVs for our Trainer Database for positions opening in October
and November.
Criteria for Applicants: Essential: Native (or near native)
speaker of English, First degree, Internationally recognised
TEFL qualification (CELTA, TEFL Diploma, MA TESOL etc),
Relevant experience, Proficient computer skills.
Preferable (for Hanoi): IELTS examiner, Experienced TOEFL
/ IELTS teacher, Minimum three years teaching experience
after graduation, Experience in designing/delivering skills
courses, Postgraduate or professional diploma/ Higher degree.
Please e-mail or fax CV. All enquiries will receive a response.
Previous applicants need not reapply. Tel: (04)7628306.
Fax: (04) 7628307. malito:teduco@hn.vnn.vn
For
the Jobs Forum
You
can post your CV for free too - check out the CV Forum
To
the contents
***********
ADVERTISEMENT
CAMBRIDGE
ESOL TEACHER TRAINING COURSES
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in Spain - Courses running in the near future at the British
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CAMBRIDGE
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Full-time four-week courses, next courses January, February,
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To
the contents
*************
9.
PS - Internet/computer-related links
A
few computer use rules of thumb:
-
make copies of all important files
- run scan disk & then defragment the hard drive
- use firewall software
- use a virus scan & update the files every week
- install security patches that software providers offer
- update your DirectX files regularly
- don't open attachments without scanning for viruses first
- don't respond to spam - just delete & forget
- don't send personal or bank information by email
- turn off your computer at night
http://www.springfieldtech.com/Support/
Support
for Computers from Springfield Technology
http://www.computerhope.com/support.htm
More
computer help - calling support.
http://www.apple.com/itunes/download/
Apple's
music downloads taking the world by storm.
http://www.futureme.org/
Write
yourself an e-mail that gets posted to you at some time
in the future.
http://www.seattleartmuseum.org/exhibit/interactives/intimateWorlds/
enter.asp#
Stories
of Krishna from Seattle Art Museum. Takes a while to load
- Flash.
http://www.helpanswers.com/
Get
you computer questions answered.
http://www.openoffice.org/
No
need to spend any money on an Office suite - this is all
free.
http://www.barcodeart.com/art/art.html
Bar
code art.
http://www.jetable.org/
Disposable
e-mail.
http://www.fontosaurus.com/
Free
fonts.
http://openphoto.net/
Free
photos
http://combat.uxn.com/tracing.html
Where's
it coming from & who you complain to.
http://www.futureme.org/
Send
your self an e-mail that will arrive at some specified time
in the future.
http://powerreporting.com/treasure.html
'Web
treasure hunt: 10 questions to test newsroom literacy.'
http://www.bookblog.net/gender/genie.html
'The
Gender Genie - Inspired by an article in The New York Times
Magazine, the Gender Genie uses a simplified version of
an algorithm developed by Moshe Koppel, Bar-Ilan University
in Israel, and Shlomo Argamon, Illinois Institute of Technology,
to predict the gender of an author.'
http://www.magiceye.com/
Send
yourself cross-eyed again - the Magic Eye people.
http://www.popcap.com/gamepopup.php?theGame=rocketmania
Rocket
man game.
http://www.fidius.org/quiz/pirate.php
Want
to know your pirate name? Just asking.
To
the contents
