14/10/2022
An insightful read for those considering engagement in digital English teacher CPD in China, Japan or Korea.
The continuing professional development experiences and needs of English language teachers: China, Japan and Korea
https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/article/continuing-professional-development-experiences-and-needs-english-language-teachers-china
This landscape report on the digital CPD needs of teachers of English in basic education in China, Japan and South Korea is the result of comprehensive research that took place in 2021 and 2022. Using questionnaires and interviews, over 7,000 teachers working at primary and secondary levels across China, Japan and South Korea gave information about their professional development experiences and preferences for future PD. The resultant findings and recommendations contained in this report will therefore be invaluable reading for policy makers, providers of teacher education and other stakeholders involved in the professional development of state sector English teachers.
Report citation:
Borg, S., Anderson, J., Beaumont, B., Xie, K., Guo, Y., Thorburn, R., Choi, T., Kim, H. J., Aizawa, I., & Fujinaga, K. (2022). The continuing professional development experiences and needs of English language teachers (Countries: China, Japan and Korea). London, UK: British Council.
The continuing professional development experiences and needs of English language teachers: China, Japan and Korea
About this publication This landscape report on the digital CPD needs of teachers of English in basic education in China, Japan and South Korea is the result of comprehensive research that took place in 2021 and 2022. Using questionnaires and interviews, over 7,000 teachers working at primary and se...
04/10/2022
Agree or disagree?
Telling another teacher how to teach? It's a sin, says leading academic
It is a sin to observe other teachers’ lessons simply to tell them how to teach, according to one of education’s most influential researchers.
12/07/2022
The latest two Pearson podcasts are with Mike Hogan and Chia Suan Chong on the importance of professional development in English language teaching and Sam Wadsworth and Anna Hasper on what testing and assessment really mean and why they are so important.
Pearson English Podcast | Resources | Pearson English
Our podcast panel chats with English language experts from around the world to share experiences, discuss innovations and explore educational trends. Come and join us.
11/07/2022
It’s probably time for another visit to the OASIS database, which “makes research on language learning, use, and education available and accessible to a wide audience”. They’ve just completed their thousandth review! https://oasis-database.org/?locale=en
Recent article summaries include ‘Learning new second language sounds as a by-product of playing a videogame: Potential and limitations’, ‘Translingual pedagogies on English as an additional language writing’, How a skilled author used creativity when writing a textbook for English language teaching’ and ‘Improvements in automatically calculating vocabulary use in EFL writing’.
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08/07/2022
A thoughtful blog post by Neil Mosley, What role will MOOC platforms play in UK universities online futures?
https://www.neilmosley.com/blog/nm6ovv8dvhqlrkovr5861l5pxlw0rc “As more UK universities begin to review and develop their online education strategies and portfolios, and think about the role of partnerships in that, consideration of existing or prospective MOOC platform partnerships should be a part of the mix.
Now we are over 10 years on from the initial surge of MOOC platforms, universities with existing partnerships that are simply ticking over, should now reflect seriously on these partnerships and whether or not they might, or are actually helping them achieve their goals and aims.”
What role will MOOC platforms play in UK universities online futures? — Neil Mosley
10 min read
07/07/2022
Some food for thought from Anne Kispal for the NFER blog on Choosing texts for comprehension activities in the classroom
https://www.nfer.ac.uk/news-events/nfer-blogs/choosing-texts-for-comprehension-activities-in-the-classroom/
Starts with a sentiment : “Choosing the right text for assessing comprehension is not an easy, five-minute job. However, for many of us - whether we are teachers or assessment specialists - it is one of the more pleasant tasks.”
Choosing texts for comprehension activities in the classroom
Choosing the right text for assessing comprehension is not an easy, five-minute job. However, for many of us - whether we are teachers or assessment specialists - it is one of the more pleasant tasks.
06/07/2022
OUP have an interesting blog https://public.oed.com/blog/
Try this one on The Language of Climate Change https://public.oed.com/blog/the-oed-october-2021-update/
Blog | Oxford English Dictionary
The Historical Thesaurus of the OED (HTOED) is a semantic network of OED senses arranged by concept or meaning. It allows users to explore the different ways that meanings have...
05/07/2022
The Oxford Text Checker is primarily intended for teachers who want to check the language level of a text, but students can have fun with it, too.
Text Checker | Oxford Learner's Dictionaries
The Text Checker checks your text
04/07/2022
Seven hours sleep each night is all you need, say a team of scientists from Cambridge and Fudan
Sleep: here's how much you really need for optimal cognition and wellbeing – new research
Both too much and too little sleep may interfere with our cognition.
01/07/2022
he Research Excellence Framework (REF) is a very big thing for universities here in the UK. Here’s a good clear explanation of what it’s all about from David Kernohan of WONKHE which will be of interest to university staff in other countries, who may like to compare it to their own national equivalent and feel either relieved or jealous that they don’t have something similar, and to schoolteachers who want to take a look over the fence
What is the meaning of REF? | Wonkhe
The last one was in 2014, so you can be forgiven for being a bit rusty. David Kernohan walks you through the Research Excellence Framework
30/06/2022
Here’s a WONKHE piece by Jim Dickinson comparing the two very different approaches to the funding of higher education to be found either side of the Irish Sea
Lower fees, more student grants. In Ireland. | Wonkhe
This morning the Russell Group is out arguing that the average deficit per UK undergraduate will more than double from £1,750 in 2021-22 to around £4,000 in 2024-25, with deficits across all subjects.