In this session, we explored the truth of intercultural communication and the real reasons students study and teachers teach. We sorted through some of the received wisdom on methods, skills and how we can divest them of cultural agendas while trying to promote elements of inclusion and promotion of diversity. We also shook the native teacher fallacy and saw what elements of gender, age, race and cultural bias fall out of the bottom of the packet.
We moved on to the meat of the above sashay through ideas, by unpicking some actual classroom uses: two things we often hear in class: “PUT THAT PHONE AWAY!” and “SPEAK ENGLISH!”. Both typify some grave concerns in the EFL classroom underlying a serious disconnect between teacher and taught, and a skewed educational compass that points to a North that has moved. We used the display of a variety of creative exercises for all levels and ages to explore the themes of technology, resources, 21st century skills, ingrained responses, relevance and motivation.
In this session we covered these topics:
- The truth of the classroom structure
- Classroom control
- Swiss Army knife lessons-ensuring you have back up plans up your sleeve
- Ways to use your phone as a valid educational tool
- A selection of communicative teaching exercises that will work at all levels
- Motivating them all students and staff
About the lecturer:
Thom Jones has lived in more than a dozen countries and delivered training in over 70. He started his professional life as a waiter before going into teaching, then management, before going freelance. Formerly part of the senior executive at Embassy CES before becoming Director of Operations USA for Studygroup he returned to the UK to work with Trinity College London and now works with a variety of organisations on a wide variety of projects. He is principal of Oxford College International summer programme for SBC and runs his own company: Brock Solutions Agency. He presents regularly around the world on a range of topics and is a guest lecturer at four universities. He is also a freelance trainer in business and management.