2012/01/29

Lori Ann Desrosiers:Turn Down the Volume: Making listening in to speaking

Desrosiers demonstrated various methods which she uses to add enticing, communicative activities to listening-heavy textbooks. Perhaps the most enjoyable was one in which a video was played with the audio muted while students attempted to substitute their own dialog in real-time.

Renee Sawazaki: Communicative Book Reports

Sawazaki showed how written book reports can be made into interactive materials that promote communication. Using pictorial summaries as visual aids, students explained the plot of their book to classmates. In addition, Sawazaki also showed the progress of the new self-access center at her school. See the video here.

Atsushi Iida:Teaching Writing in an EFL Context: Where to start?

Iida gave a whirlwind tour of teaching writing as a method of communication in Japan. Beginning at the beginning, he showed participants the activities he uses on his first day of class. These activities reflected his strong beliefs; that writing is a form of communication and that students must first and foremost develop their own voice when writing.

Daniel Potocki: International Kindergarten Education for Areas Lacking International Elementary Schools

Potocki led Gunma JALT members through the trials and tribulations of managing an international kindergarten in Japan. Individual topics ranged from the pros and cons of government certification to the difference between discipline and punishment. For our professor-heavy audience, this was a rare view into his exotic, Lilliputian world.