If you’re interested in teaching English in Europe later this year, here are a few jobs: FRANCE Added June 12: English lecteur/lectrice positions at Université Paris Dauphine to begin September 1, 2013. Requirements: English must be your mother tongue or a language that you speak with the same proficiency as your mother tongue You [...]
Full Story »The Finnish Educational System and English Language Education
If only we could all be like Finland when it comes to teaching languages… Thanks to @LinguistAshley for live tweeting this talk a few weeks ago and @sirkkunikamaa for putting her slideshow online.
Full Story »Beliefs of American University Students Towards Foreign Language Requirements and Textbooks
I’ve been reading articles and dissertations on students’ beliefs and perceptions of foreign language study recently, and came across two with some incredibly painful quotes that I had to share. Foreign Language Requirement Price and Gascoigne (2006) reported on 155 incoming (directly out of high school) college students who responded to this essay prompt: One goal [...]
Full Story »Teaching Assistant Program in France for 2012-2013 School Year
If you would like to teach English in the public school system in France or the DOM-TOMs as an assistant for the 2012-2013 school year (October 1, 2012 to April 30, 2013), use the links below to find out the specific requirements and application process for your country. In general, you must be a native [...]
Full Story »Aussie English for the Beginner
And now for the post on Australian English! Thanks to Australian friends and the internet, I had learned some Australian English words before arriving so I wasn’t lost when reading about diggers in the news or picturing the wrong thing when hearing the word thongs. Being a linguistics nerd, I am endlessly fascinated by the [...]
Full Story »Cultural Differences in Photos: USA and France
In my English classes I taught at the university, we used flashcards with a photo of an object and the English word written out to teach and/or reinforce vocabulary. For most objects, there were no problems with the images provided but every once in a while, my students didn’t quite understand the connection between the [...]
Full Story »English Language Teaching Assistantship in France for 2011-2012 School Year
If you would like to teach English in the public school system in France or the DOM-TOMs as an assistant for the 2011-2012 school year (October 1, 2011 to either April 30, 2012 or June 30, 2012) , use the links below to find out the specific requirements and application process for your country. In [...]
Full Story »Pragmatics: Knowing what to say in certain situations
The Foreign Language Teaching Methods modules from the University of Texas-Austin includes a section on pragmatics – how context and situation affect meaning – which is extremely important for language students to learn, yet remains difficult to master. Learning what to say and when to say it, the appropriate use of language, varies significantly among [...]
Full Story »Free English as a Second Language (ESL) Lesson Plans and Activities
This weekend was the end of les grandes vacances in France because all public school students start the school year on Thursday. I actually love this time year of because it means that France is alive again. It’s not just back to school, but back to work since a lot of stores and businesses close [...]
Full Story »Using Realia Resources in Language Teaching & Learning
Realia is everyday, authentic objects, such as photographs, menus, brochures, receipts, maps, movies, television shows, commercials, etc. that are used to teach and learn languages. Some researchers include any items that can be used to prompt conversations or role-play, such as telephones, but those are generally meant to be employed in the classroom with other [...]
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