30 December 2020

Is for-profit education bad?

If education is a human right, or even just a social necessity, should it be provided by the state, by charities or social providers, or should private providers be permitted? And if private operators are permitted, should they also be permitted to make a profit? And if they make a profit, is that bad and does that have a negative effect on the education they provide?

Performance-related (merit) pay and teachers

Merit-pay. Payment for Performance, Payment by Results / Outcomes / KPIs - different names for largely the same thing. We often hear that "schools should be run more like a business" (true in many respects, but not in the way proponents expect) and that teachers should be paid for performance. FInd out why this latter assertion can not work and never has.

Teacher pay, pay scales and fairness

25 December 2020

Teacher appearance; does it matter?

Schools often have expectations for how teaches dress, how they do their hair, make-up or tattoos. Some may be logical such as protective eyewear in a science lab, or sports shoes in a gym. However some techers may feel athat sometimes these policies are not acceptable. Are any restrictions on how teachers present themselves reasonable, and if so where should such a line be drawn, how should they be enforced and by whom?

21 December 2020

Writing in the Early Years

Although this session deals with English Language Teaching, the philosophy and approaches are developmentally appropriate for Early Years (PK - K) programmes in all languages immersion programmes. Lower Primary (G1 - 4) teachers will also find this useful.

17 December 2020

Leadership : Mind Your Language, defining your Department's Mission

 

Defining your department or section`s Mission, Purpose, Objectives and Organising Principles.

An important consideration for Heads of Department, Academic Directors, Heads of School and Board members. Essentially no schools in Chile have defined their "Englishness", and many if not most use terms such as E2L, EFL and bilingual freely, loosely and interchangeably. Defining "who we are and what business we are in" affects and determines the role and profile of English the school, the programme, contents and methodologies, evaluation, staff selection, publications - everything in fact!

25 November 2020

Top 5 Paths to Success as English Teachers, Heads of Department, Academic Directors and Schools in Chile


Successfully running an English programme and/or an English department is not an administrative function : "box-tickers need not apply"! The role encompasses people, programmes, policies, procedures, planning, professional development, appraisal, evaluation, materials, promotion ... inter alia! This one-hour session reviews five key elements in running a successful department, essential to any subject area leader.

24 November 2020

Are private schools wealthy?

 

It's easy to look at a private school, the theatre, the gym, the pool, the labs, the lawns, and think that it is wealthy. But is it? What does it mean for a school to be well-off, is it and should it be? This Advanced Speaking Practice / Professional Conversation session considers some of the issues raised by this discussion.

22 November 2020

Leadership Philosophy & Practice : leading a department, an overview

 

The Chilean reality is that Subject Area Leaders are almost never trained or prapered, and are often appointed (or "volunteered") due to seniority alone. 

We can help. Join us in this quick run-through of what is involved in Running or Co-ordinating a Department, and the things new Middle Leaders have to look forward to. For current and prospective Heads of Department, Co-ordinators, Heads of Section and Academic Directors.

20 November 2020

Teaching Literature : Planning a Novel Unit

 

If you have not taught a Literature or a Lang & Lit novel unit before, or if you want to know how to incorporate a novel unit into your programme, this one-hour overview will get you started on the right path.

10 November 2020

Project-based Learning, an overview

 

Ask us about programme and methodology coaching and short courses related to Project-based Learning (PBL).

This is one of our seminars - please click here for more information on our seminars programme. A C1 or higher level of English is assumed.

Ask us about a closed session where you choose who, what, when or to be placed on the interest list for the next open session.

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  • 09 November 2020

    What is International Education?

     

    Many schools in Chile describe themselves as "international", but are they? Others say they offer "international programmes" or "international examinations" but do they? Do these terms mean something, or are they merely marketing mumbo-jumbo? Is an "international school" really an "international" school?

    What should a school do?

     

    Education is inherently, and unavoidably, political. Every decision made at every level is based on "what is right" or "what is best" and while some are not truly momentous, others are gut-wrenchingly complex and affect real people's real lives.

    07 November 2020

    Teaching boys; they're not the same

    Equality is not as easy (or as achievable) as it seems or as its proponents would have us believe, and is even more problematic in the educational sphere. For example, what is "equality", does it apply to inputs or to outputs, does it mean compensation for a deficiency? A particular problem for schools and teachers relates to boys and girls : how should they be treated?

    A standards-based (competency-based) lesson plan

    Effective teaching requires knowing your destination before starting your journey, and by extension knowing how to identify when you have arrived and how far along the route you are at any given time. In other words, effective teaching requires objectives; when expressed in an observable and measurable form, these are standards.

    Standards-based teaching and learning

    Standards-based education gives teachers and students clear goals, and if the standards are well-designed, a structured programme. However standards are not methodologies; when  incorporating standards into their practice, teachers must also make their lessons engaging while aiming at student success. This one-hour overview considers standards, objectives and competencies and reviews some sample teaching and learning standards as examples of how to do so.

    Positive Discipline, an overview

    Teachers have multi-functional roles, arguably most important of which is that of ensuring the conditions for learning and this of course involves managing and directing student behaviour. As teachers, we should have long-term aims and yet many, or most, common strategies bring only short-term effects. Positive Discipline refers to collaborative, constructive approaches which have at their core inculcating the desire for doing the right thing. 

    Effective Pairwork

    Pairwork is one of the most effective teaching strategies and should be one of the primary approaches of all teachers, not just English Language and Lang&Lit. This Philosophy and Practice seminar for G7 - 12 levels (G5 - 6 teachers will also find it useful) reviews the hows and whys, teacher friendly approaches, effective and valid assessment and evaluation and how to avoid some of the more common reasons pairwork activities are not a huge success.

    Group Oral Test

    Groupwork is one of the most effective teaching strategies and should be one of the primary approaches of all teachers, not just English Language and Lang&Lit. However few teachers are confident assessing oral performance in a group situation which is not really so difficult. This methodology seminar for G7 - 12 levels (G5 - 6 teachers will also find it useful) reviews a teacher-friendly, effective and valid assessment approach.

    Positive Assessment, an overview

     

    Assessment as a part of Teaching and Learning should provide all partners in the interaction(s) with useful information on what is known, shown and can be done. At the same time, assessment should not end the process or negatively impact the learner. 

    This Philosophy and Practice session reviews how to assess positively and several such approaches.

    Active Learning, an introduction

    Years upon years of reaearch and classroom practice have shown that students learn best when part of the learnng process. Such approaches have different flavours and thus different names but share the same philosophical underpinning. Learning must be active, especially in the Early and Primary Years.

    Join us as we review this approach, and some of the common branches of the Active Learning family tree. This session will be particularly useful for new and prospective Cambridge Primary, High Scope, PYP and Reggio Emilia teachers.  

    06 November 2020

    School Choice in Chile

     

    Introduction to the Cambridge Primary Programme

     

    Cambridge Primary from Cambridge International is the first of four stages on the Cambridge Pathway and is usually offered around K - G5. Cambridge Primary consists of ten subjects and is ideal for immersion and bilingual schools; it should not be confused with Cambridge English.

    Teaching Writing PK - 12, an overview

     

    Writing is the hardest of the six modes of linguistic performance (incidentally also of competence) and the only one where a teacher is absolutely de riguer. Writing is not natural and it must be learnt; after all, there is only one Shakespeare, one Francis Bacon, one Orwell.

    Teaching Commentary Skills

     

    What is "English"?

     

    Do you teach in a bilingual school? Are you sure? What is bilingual? Is your school "bilingual" if you offer EFL examinations (Flyers, B2 First, TOEFL, Trinity)?

    Visual Language - response and analysis, an introduction

     

    While EFL programmes focus on Spoken and Written modes (not skills, modes!), E2L/E1L/bilingual programmes also consider Visual language, which just like Spoken and Written also has receptive and productive modes (not skills). This session provides an introduction to Visual Language for new or prospective E2L/E1L/bilingual programme teachers and for those interested in these modes.

    Vocabulary-based English teaching; an effective approach

     

    Natural language acquisition, or how the very young among us learn language(s), is not based on any programme, planning or methodology. It is an immersion process (we like to call it submersion) where infants are exposed to sounds, patterns and, above all, vocabulary. Researchers into language learning and teaching have long been interested in this, producing programmes, planning and methodologies. Here is our approach, useful for all ages and stages.

    Bullying, what happened here?


     Ask us about a closed session where you choose who, what, when or to be placed on the interest list for the next open session.

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    Teaching Literature : poetry "The Eagle"

     


    Tennyson's influential poem is important not just for its vivid and evocative imagery, but also for its window on the philosophical and artistic concerns of the time. "The Eagle" is one of those poems which everyone should read, and which every literature programme should include.

    Short story "The Open Boat"

     

    Our four-part series on this work for students, teachers and those interested in literature. This text comes from the Cambridge English Literature book list, and is also appropriate for IB Language. Literature and Lang&Lit programmes.