10 Speaking English Activities using TED.com

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Many English Language teachers, when deciding to work with a video clip in their classrooms, make a false assumption that for an activity to be considered as really teaching, then prior to showing it, they'd better sit down for a few hours, prepare an extensive worksheet filled with vocabulary and grammar questions and what-not...in order to turn it into a good pedagogical exercise, you know to ensure it's really not just glorified babysitting.  ;-)

Personally, I don't agree and I really don't think that extensive worksheets provide a particularly authentic experience - such a thing mainly just erodes the power of the message within the video, takes away the inherent pleasure in learning from TED speakers.   

I'm fond of using TED with my adult language learners (+ similar sites - see here for a list of others) for the ingenuity and its realistic relevance and because I know that whenever I visit TED I'll always find short, topical talks which can be used to kick-off real discussions within my classroom: stuff my adult students want to know and talk more about... speeches that will either captivate their interest or through understanding, even with lower students at only 50%, will encourage them to feel a greater motivation about where their English is going.

Here are a few simple activities you can do with the video clip you're about to show/ are showing/ have shown to your students without designing a full worksheet :


1. Prediction:  what's the video going to be about? Using the search bar function on TED, choose an interesting video (possibly related to the industry your students are currently working in) and then tell your students that they are going to watch a video with xyz talking about abc.  

Ask them what they think the speaker will be discussing and why they think this.   Do they have any pre-formed opinions on the subject matter?  After watching, get them to talk about whether or not the video met their expectations.  Why, why not?
Examples:

• Alan Siegel: Let's simplify legal jargon!
• Ric Elias: 3 things I learned while my plane crashed
• Jeff Bezos on the next web innovation
• Yves Behar's supercharged motorcycle design
• Johanna Blakley: Lessons from fashion's free culture vs Margaret Gould Stewart: How Youtube thinks about copyright

2. Vocabulary CollectionGive students a piece of paper with the numbers 1 - 10 written on it.   While watching, any video you've chosen, ask them to write ten words they found most interesting / or ten words they didn't understand / or ten words which they think would summarize the story.  

After watching, encourage students to share the words they've collected and to tell each other why these words were the ones they recorded.
Best with short TED videos: (see here)


3. DebateWhile browsing TED, look for a video which the community has marked as persuasive.  Show the video and ask your students what the main points discussed in the video were.  Ask them to choose sides on these - to take an opposing view from others in the classroom and to debate it.
Examples:

• Philip Zimbardo: The demise of guys?
• Alisa Miller shares the news about the news
• Diane J. Savino: The case for same-sex marriage
• Bill Davenhall: Your health depends on where you live
• Birke Baehr: What's wrong with our food system

4. Post-speech interviewAsk students to pretend that they are journalists at a TED talk.   
Watch one of videos marked as informative and get them to write down questions while-watching and post-viewing.   Get one student to pretend to be the TED speaker, and encourage him/her to sit in the center of the classroom (aim to pick a student who's most likely to know about the ESP subject matter) and then get the other students to read out and ask their questions.
Works with any informative TED video, examples:

• Arthur Benjamin's formula for changing math education
• Janet Echelmann: Taking imagination seriously
• Negroponte takes OLPC to Colombia
• Adora Svitak: What adults can learn from kids
• Renny Gleeson on antisocial phone tricks

5a. Critique Presentation StyleGive students a piece of paper and divide it to 2 parts:  + / -
Tell students to analyze a 3- 6 minute speech: to think about the presenter's style of delivery and ask them to write pluses and minuses, things like: she spoke too quickly; she flaps her hands about; she loves her subject material; she used good slides.
Examples:

• Laura Trice suggests we should say thank you
• Derek Sivers: Keep your goals to yourself
• Lakshmi Pratury on letter-writing 
• Murray Gell-Mann on the ancestor of language
• Stacey Kramer: The best gift I ever received

5b. Compare body-language
Choose two very short videos on similar subjects less than 4 minutes (or use the first few minutes of a longer video) and turn these on without using sound.  

Ask your students to pay attention to the speakers' body language and facial expressions while giving their talks and to compare these.   How many times do they move around the stage?   How do they stand, where do they keep their hands?   Who looks more convinced and thus convincing?  


After this discussion, play the videos again with sound, do they still think the same way?  What role does body language play in the audience's reception of the content of a talk?Examples:

• Ariana Huffington: How to succeed vs Richard St.John Success is a continuous journey
• Alexis Ohanian: How to make a splash in social media vs James Surowiecki: when social media became news
• Sheryl Sanberg: Why we have too few women leaders vs Halla Tomasdottir: A feminine response to Iceland's financial crash

6. Wh-Write on the board/flipchart the wh-questions: who/what/where/when/why/how  

Show the video you've (or one of your students') chosen and tell them they shouldn't write anything down while they're watching. After the video is finished, ask students to sit in groups and discuss what they watched, who was the presenter, why did she make this speech, how effective was it: encourage them to ask each other questions and share opinions.
Works with any TED video.


7. Critical Thinking  - Who's the target audience?Take one of the videos marked as most-emailed and watch it with your students.    
Show or tell them that out of the thousands of videos on the site, this was one of the most-shared with others via email and social networks.  Ask them to think about what sort of people found this video so interesting they sent it on to family members/ friends/ co-workers/ members of their online communities.   Was the speech designed to go viral?

Will they send it on too?  Why or why not?Get them to practice writing a "FB status update or a Tweet" summarizing the video in less that 140 characters!

Examples:

• Adam Ostrow: After your final status update
• Jay Walker on the world's English mania
• Eric Whitacre: A choir as big as the internet
• Gregory Petsko on the coming neurological epedemic 
• Howard Rheingold on collaboration

8. Will this idea fly?Choose a video marked as ingenious, in a subject matter your students have expressed a clear interest in or is connected to their work.  

Watch the video with them and then ask them to discuss in groups whether or not they think the idea has merit; if they've already heard of something similar or if they disagree with its potentiality.
Examples:

• A robot that flies like a bird
• Mike Matas: A next generation digital book
• Marcin Jakubowski: Open-sourced blueprints for civilization
• Eythor Bender demos human exoskeletons
• Jakob Trollback rethinks the music video

9. In his/her shoes...Review the videos marked as courageous and try to choose a video outside the scope of your students' normal interests and responsibilities.   Encourage a group discussion on whether or not, they could have done what was shown in the presentation; how they may have done things differently; who they know in their own lives/ read about who has done something like this?

Examples:

•  Jessi Arrington: Wearing nothing new
•  Becky Blanton: The year I was homeless
•  Matt Cutts: Try something new for 30 days
•  Julia Sweeney has "The Talk"
•  David Hoffman on losing everything
•  Matt Weinstein: What Bernie Madoff couldn't steal from me

10. Rank my TED video!Encourage students to find a TED video based on something they are personally interested in. It doesn't need to be about work, it can be a poem/song - it can be about glowing underwater fish! 
Whatever they like and while they watch -  possibly as homework (using the interactive transcripts in their own language if they need to) they can take brief notes about the subject matter.
In the next lesson, get students to share with each other what they watched.   Encourage them to    "rank" each person's suggestion in order of interest and at the end of the session, as a group watch the one that sounded the most fascinating.


11. What else?   Have you got any zero-preparation/ great tips to share with fellow English Language Teachers on using TED in the classroom?  Do let me know your favorite videos, how you use them or any other ideas and experiences.

Best,
Karenne
education
image credit: European Parliment

Useful Links

• TED videos for Business English
• Larry Ferlazzo's links for teaching with TED
• Douglas Evan's TED ESL Lessons Blog 
• I also found Adam Simpson's post filled with 3 useful ideas however you'll need to get your vids from TEDtalks on Youtube. 
• Teaching with TED wiki (via Glennie)

THIS POST IS A RE-POSTING OF AN ACCIDENTALLY DELETED ARTICLE DATED BACK TO JANUARY 2011 (the first lot of comments below are copies of those posted between 26 Jan and ...) 
update 050911: actually, it looks like Blogger/Blogspot has been losing posts (in general, not just my own :( ... re the link to other sites which is also no longer here - will repost these up as well!)

Back to school at the age of 42

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"Sleep with one eye open" was the quickly emailed advice from my Dad the night before Jake, my internet procured van driver, turned up on my doorstep along with my younger brother.

My parents were freaking (as parents do)

but I...

a) knew everything would be alright because statistically life usually is
b) trust the MyHammer website
c) had his email details and the van number
d) hitchhiked my way across Sumbawa on the back of an onion truck when I was 25 - if nothing happened then...

Of course, when Jake and Martin actually turned up, all of Jake's mates were furiously emailing and texting, worried that he'd arrived in Stuttgart and had his liver and kidneys taken out.  Ah, you gotta just love the way that television and general overhyped media resources have created such a nervous world.

My adventure did have its ups and downs, more because a jinn attached itself to my journey, probably attracted by all the worrying family members and friends.

He, the jinn that is, decided to infiltrate my bank account and managed to stop it from working on the very day I was leaving.   Despite frantic calls to the bank at 9am on Saturday, being able to view my money but not touch it, it was a no-go and all information given by the call centre pointed to an apology on Monday (which I got but seriously, it doesn't help to know that technical problems happen).  I was worried and stressed out enough that day, already nervous about packing up my whole life and cancelling numerous jobs and contacts and saying goodbye to students and friends and throwing out garbage bag after garbage bag of stuff not needed anymore... and trying to fit the rest of nigh-on 7 years into one van.

I recounted and recounted the pounds and Euros I'd taken out during the week, crossed my fingers that my budget based on GoogleMaps information was correct.

It wasn't... 

The jinn, you see, he'd also managed to persuade a neighbour to park his Ford 4x4 in front of the van, thus blocking the driveway.  Manic calls at 2am put me in touch with the efficient German police who promised to tow it away if they couldn't contact the owners.  They turned up bleary eyed and in their pyjamas, leaving us an hour off-schedule.

Jake tapped on some keys on the GPS which then prompted "Do you want to avoid tolls?"

We clicked no - we had to try and make the ferry in time - we left, speeding away through Germany and into France.

Sure enough, it was a badly clicked decision, as French toll after toll after toll ate away at those Euros in my pocket, in trickles of €3, €6, €24, €36 and thus, fearing not having enough to pay the final toll... a quick math calculation at the last gas station on the European side to get us just enough until we were in Ole Blighty, proved to be our undoing... 10 minutes away from Calais, 25 minutes away from our afternoon ferry, we wound up with the van parked on the side of the road and a whopping bill to pay for.  No gas.

Also, of course, because I had been super-super careful to tie up all loose ends, I'd remembered TWO DAYS BEFORE to report that I no longer knew the PIN number to my credit card (because I use it only for emergencies and internet transactions)...they'd said no problem and that they'd get a new one sent to me in the UK...

I hadn't reckoned on the jinn...

and thus, I didn't even have a credit card to take care of the breakdown on the side of the road.  It took some persuasion and desperation to convince the French-uber-expensive-fix it man (€186) to take the British currency.  He huffed, he puffed.  It's money.

So...

Nevermind.... 

Finally, after paying a fine for missing the right ferry and making our way through the south of the UK with nary a pee-stop, we got here around 10 in the evening and were met by my friendly landlord who'd brought round bread, tea and cookies in case we were hungry.



And so, oh-my-god, I am here.  In Manchester,  in a super-super-super friendly city where people talk to me for absolutely no reason.   I am sharing a flat with lovely young postgraduates who, so far, don't mind/know that I'm an old lady.

I am sleeping on the floor because I was outbid on e-bay on the bed I wanted.

There are still boxes which haven't been opened and unpacked yet.


I'm relearning how to cook soup from scratch, put together spaghetti bolognese, tuna-fish pasta and other cheap dishes (send me your student-food recipes!)

I've met my tutors and some of the onsite participants and they're all very friendly and interesting.  I'm also looking forward to hooking up with the off-site distance folk.

The University is amazing, the library is wonderful (although lots of the books I want are on one-week-only-loans so will have to reach deep into the coffers to purchase some).  

I have a student card and can get cheap tickets to movies and stuff.  Yippeeee! Lars von Trier here I come.

My course modules look RIDICULOUSLY UBER COOL (for an edtech tesol geek like me) and it's hard to decide for sure which ones to do, but I've worked out a good plan for the next two years and I am ridiculously, ridiculously excited to learn.


So, tomorrow, at the age of 42, wearing jeans which have already been laid out plus brand-new-shiny polished up DrMartens, me, after 15+ years in the classroom, I shall be walking in not as teacher but as learner.

Best,
Karenne
p.s. Thanks Anne Hodgson for introducing me to MyHammer!
p.p.s nervous as all get-out, so wish me luck!
image credit:Photograph by Mike Peel (www.mikepeel.net). [CC-BY-SA-2.5 (www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5)], via Wikimedia Commons

Thinking and Doing, Comparing and Contrasting

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Today was a beautiful day in Manchester: the trees are just beginning to add touches of yellow in their edges and the sun battles to provide us with some last warmth.

In between classes, I sat on a park bench with a thermos of brought-on-over-from-Germany, sage and honey tea, to reflect on the learning provided in the morning session with our Dutch professor Juup Stelma.   He started off the course, Psychology of Language Learning, with one of those very popular psychometric questionnaires. 

The problem with this sort of test is they force you into answering YES/NO -and well, if you, like me, have lived, then you know that being forced into black and white answers can intimidate and perhaps irritate  -  too much of what we do and think is grey;  too much is

'MAYBE,'

'it DEPends,'

'er, when I'm hungry'  &

'aye, when I'm in a grand mood.' 

Or, worse, if you've any intelligence then you quickly notice the relationships between the different questions separated out by a few lines and despite the valiant attempt to be "honest and truthful to oneself" you wind up wondering if you may be being tricked (why do we so distrust the psychological) and thus, forced by the pressure and the immediacy laying in wait behind the stopwatch, the demanding YES or NO, you attempt to reply in exactly the same way each time, whether or not it is the "truest" answer. 

Anyway, the resulting results are that I am a pragmatist-activist.

Oddly enough, true. 

But not surprising news.   Of course, I like life and learning to be practical (I'm a teacher!) and to be immediately applicable (tick-tock!), that's why out of all the MAs in the world, I wound up here, doing this one TESOL with real-life applicable educational and technological aims!  

Juup then acknowledged the lack of contextual reference presented through the questionnaire and wrapped up the exercise with a drawing made up of stick figures walking across the whiteboard, challenging us to think about what and who we, as people, as learners, interact with and how those things directly influence our learning.

The interpersonal and intrapersonal aspects.  

He provoked us into thinking about how the results of this non-contextual questionnaire, by Honey and Mumford, could ultimately provide a teacher with enough data to then create contextual materials and hinted at the potentiality of separating learners according to 'type.'

I'm intrigued by this idea but not sure.

In fact, it forces me to mull back over the whole concept of individual learner types - you know the now tossed out, theory of folks being auditory/kinestic/visual learners?   (gotta admit I still subscribe in part,as I know I always learn so much more from a picture than a droned lecture) but I actually tried separating out my students this way and it never really worked.   Even in the small classes.   Noticing was one thing but preparing, presenting, teaching, working together, another.   What about you?

And what do you do if you're teaching 30 or even 60 as some of my Asian colleagues need to?

Apart from the feasibility, is it practical or even worth the effort, to divide up students into theorists, pragmatists, activists and reflectors?   Aren't we all different because it is through the cooperation and collaboration of our differing skills that we make the better, more dynamic whole?   If we separate our learners into groups, won't they become flat and one dimensional?

But then, later, as I walked home, crisping my way through the first batch of dead leaves which rustle in oranges on the concrete lanes, after my class with Gary Motteram, on the Evaluation and design of Digital Software, I began reflecting once more on the infinite potentiality for well-designed computer programs to cater to these issues - whether on the surface level or deep within our id, in areas we don't even know about yet…  and how this potentiality may soon be within the reach of technology  - to teach and treat each individual learner individually while we work collectively.

Best,
Karenne


Useful links related to this posting:

• Learning Styles
• Peter Honey Learning styles questionnaire
• Psych Press Understanding your learning styles

COMPARE AND CONTRASTING
I received an invitation from Anne to take part in her blog challenge, of finding two similar pictures.   Why did I choose these two and how do you think they discuss the text above?




image credits:
Buddhist monk in Sirikit Dam by Tevaprapas Makklay
Sri Mariamman Temple, Singapore by AngMoKio 

education

How to Avoid Overseas EFL Teaching Job Scams

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(guest post by Susan Taylor)

Vacationing in a foreign country is wonderful, but it isn't always fulfilling enough. You may visit a new place, completely fall in love with the land, the people, even the food, and want to experience those things on at least a semi-permanent basis. Teaching English as a foreign language (EFL) is one way to do that.
Unfortunately, many EFL teachers can find themselves victims of job scams, which can not only cause them to lose a lot of money, but can sour them on the entire overseas experience, causing them to speak out about their negative experiences. Complaints like this are especially frustrating because language instruction can be a wonderful experience, especially overseas. If you decide to pursue an overseas EFL teaching job, be on the lookout for these red flags.

Up Front Payment Required

It's very rare that you should have to pay any kind of fee for any kind of job, let alone an EFL job. You're the one applying to do the work in order to be paid. Why should you have to pay anything before you get there? Disreputable employers, or scammers posing as EFL employers, will tell you the payment is to cover your travel costs, or for an orientation you must attend before you can begin teaching. 
Sadly, this very thing happens to many hopeful job seekers. One such story involved a woman who lost $2,500 when she wired money via Western Union for travel costs and rent fees with the promise she’d be reimbursed by the employer. When they received it and then asked her for more money, she became suspicious, and found out it was a scam.
Huffington Post columnist and author, Julie Gray, wrote an article about a very similar experience in which she described how even though she considers herself quite savvy, she still fell for a scam. It can happen to anyone.  As the instances above illustrate, if you pay that money, you'll likely never see it again. And you’ll still have to cover your travel. Be suspicious of any company that requires payment up front when you apply for a job with them.

 

It's Too Good To Be True

It's not difficult to find out the average pay for an EFL teacher in your country of interest. That information is available from multiple sites on the Internet, such as EFL businesses, and EFL support sites and forums. Just like most other teachers of any subject, EFL teachers don't go into that career field to become rich. 
Part of the compensation is the opportunity to live in a foreign country, and to interact with the culture and people there.  If an EFL company offers you what seems like an outrageous salary, or one that's much higher than what other companies are offering in the same area, it's probably a scam.

 

Questionable Web Sites

Just about anyone can build a Web site these days with just a little know-how and a Web host. In the cases of Internet scams, it's become the equivalent of a layperson hanging out a shingle that claims they're a physician. Fortunately, there are some things to look for that will help you identify EFL scam sites. 
First, look at the URL. Does it end with an unusual extension you've never seen before? Not to say that all sites with those extensions are questionable, but it's definitely a something to examine a little more closely. 
Also, is the site well designed? Are there a lot of spelling and grammar errors? Is the domain name unrelated to EFL? Any or all of these factors should tell you all you need to know about that supposed EFL employer.

 

Poor English

Think about it. You're applying to English schools to teach English. Doesn't it stand to reason that the people who work there would be very familiar with the language, and would have excellent English skills? One or two mistakes are probably nothing to be alarmed about. You can find errors on a lot of Web sites or advertisements written by people for whom English is their first language. But if the materials you're looking at are rife with errors, there's something wrong. 
It may also help for you to be more familiar with the native language of the country you’re attempting to teach in. For example, if you’re talking with a school in Spain and are worried about the reputation of the program, send out some tweets to people in the area and check teaching groups on Facebook for more information. If you’re rusty on the language of the country, audio-based programs help quite a bit. In this scenario, brushing up on Spanish will help you communicate, be more aware and maybe even help your instruction.


What other advice would you give to a newbie TEFLer?

"The Dog Ate My Internet"

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...was the smart retort from one of my professors, Gary, today when I gave a reason for not being able to do my required Blackboard discussion homework on top of the articles we had to read. 

In the last few weeks I've been using a pay-as-you-go-dongle and its bytes were being chewed up at a very costly rate... which, on top of the life-changing move, is why I've not been around much in the last couple of weeks: not on the 'net, not writing emails, not FBing and all that.   It was all quick in and quick out.  Also, alas, my grandfather died recently and I'll be heading to his funeral on Friday.
But anyway, yay! The Internet is now installed at home, I have finally got my bed from Ikea although I haven't put it together yet, I have curtains up instead of propped up pieces of cardboard, I have a schedule, I have lightbulbs...  I know where my highlighter pens are although I think I may have lost my glasses.
The course tutors have been piling on the work, reams and reams of articles, 25 - 50 pages long plus book chapters to read and I swear that when they list out what else they recommend reading that there could well be an evil-grin-glint in their eyes.

That part, because I'm so keen :-) you know, trying to read it all, (even some referenced articles mentioned at the bottom of assigned) ...  all wound up becoming a bit overwhelming and on Monday I ran on over to the disability office (I'm dyslexic) to say I was freaking out.  
Nice counselor there told me it was normal to freak out and I instantly stopped freaking out.

I think I need to take a more eclectic approach - but oh,oh,  it's so hard to choose - what if I miss out on something truly groundbreaking... complain as I might about pages of stuff to read, the truth is by golly, even with the articles I don't really like, that I want to simplify and break down into you know, English, teach so much.   
This old dog is definitely picking up some new tricks.

Beyond Approaches, Methods and Techniques

The most interesting work for this module that I read last week was perhaps Diane Larsen Freeman's concluding chapter of Techniques and Principles in Language Teaching.  She has a really good voice - easy and clear, and warming - she's a really-have-been-there-and-done-that-author.   In this chapter she discussed the changes in methodology over the years and provided a really good overview of the different approaches.

I found this particularly interesting laid out, like this, as I can't say that before now I have never actually thought about how much the way that an adult learner might have been taught previously might well affect the way he learns now or how he wants to learn now.  
I thought her statement "What makes a method successful for some teachers is their investment in it" particularly interesting - I wonder if dogme works in my classroom because I simply believe it does.  
Two other phrases which really caught my eye were "learners are very versatile and can learn well sometimes despite a given method rather than because of it" and "teachers who teach as if their practice causes learning, while recognizing that they are not in control of all the relevant factors, and that at the least they are in partnership with their students in this enterprise, can be true managers of learning."
I am not fond of the term, managers, managers are a little too much like a throw-back to the top-down boss effect.  I like coaches better.  I wonder if that's a sign of the times, of these times, 2011 influenced as we are by the Business gurus and their pop psychology.  But, I tend to think that a coach encourages, motivates, builds his team.  And a classroom pulling together needs a strong, warm lead.


Psychology of Language Learning

I'm auditing this class which means I participate as a guest and have to do the assignments but won't get assessed at the end.

I really would wish it could be one of my core modules but I'm planning on doing an ISS in year two and I need to save the credits.   Our Dutch professor is a very interesting character... a coach.  
He gave us an article by Susana V. Rivera Mills and Luke Plonsky called Empowering students with language learning strategies.  This is probably the most marked up of all the texts I had to read last week and the only one I read through more than once and then reread the comments in the margins again, prior to class. 
In class this morning, Juup had us critique and analyze some of her core points and terminology  and it was jolly good fun to give it a (respectful) bashing.  I highly recommend reading it, looking out for phrases like "instructors whose students posses misconstrued notions about language learning need to provide guidance to avoid their tendency to use less effective strategies" but don't expect any real practical advice on how to do that.
In her introduction she repeated a vital question raised by Dick Allwright in 1984 - a question I have been asking for years "Why don't learners learn what teachers teach?"  But her article was pretty theoretical, so I didn't walk away with any 'a-ha' moments.

Still it discussed things like how good strategies affect motivation and wound up reminding me of my own questionings on whether or not, the term I probably incorrectly refer to as "peer-induced-motivation," has any influence over the end-"product."



Evaluation and Design of Educational Courseware

I thought I was going to wind up in the quagmire... blinded by statistics and non-educational examples and too-much-for-the-brain-to-take-in-lists of principles, on printer-costly chapters from Dix and Norman, in the random pursuit of a main point or two.
However, the briefer Wilson, in Raising the bar for instructional outcomes, did serve one up and that is this: 

e-materials need to be 

efficient, 

effective 

and engaging.

He also talked about mythic story structure in e-design, referencing Joseph Campbell's journey of the hero (usually used in Hollywood -see my dogme post).

I really suspect I'll be reading more of his work and that I may well have more to say on this subject in the coming weeks/months.


Best,
Karenne

p.s.  For the next two years, Tuesdays are now going to be taken up with my self-reflective, what did I learn on my MA-EdTech&TESOL.  I hope you don't mind the diary style sort of entries and I might well waffle on a bit...  if you want to skip these, then Thursdays will be for the more lesson oriented stuff and Sundays will be the EdTech-SocialMedia comments/tips posts.  
p.p.s. For all you amazing folk who've sent your good wishes via blog and FB and Twitter and for your interesting comments here on the blog last week, so sorry - the dog ate my internet - I'll respond this week :-).

References
Freeman-Larsen, D.  (2000) Techniques and Principles in Language Teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.  Ch.12.
Rivera-Mills, S.V & Plonsky, L. (2007) Empowering students with language learning strategies: a critical review of current issues.  Foreign Language Annals, 40(3):535-548 
Wilson, B. Parrish, P. & Veletsianos, G (2008).  Raising the bar for instructional outcomes: Towards transformative learning experiences. Educational Technology. 48(3), 39-44

Image credit
Caught surfing flickr by derekGavey on Flickr.com

How are you – to be or not to be when talking to Russians

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When youmeet any English-speaking person, you hear 'Hello, how are you?' or just 'oh!How are you?'. I already got used to that and quickly – while passing – answer'thank you, hello' or just 'how are you?'. I LEARNT to do that, thoughsometimes i am still confused about that. Why? Let me explain)
WhenRussians meet, they say «Ð—дравÑ�твуйте»  to people they meet for the first time or tothose who are elder or higher in the hierarchy . Literary it means ‘Be healthy’(здоровье – turns tothe stem здрав  - zdrav and then came toimperative zdrav-stvuite). For friends we use Privet (hi) – привет!  Sometimes we may say «Ð—дорово» , which is also ‘hi’, but keeps the old meaning wishing health.  It is a good manner to smile when you greetsomeone.
Then itdepends on the person you greet. You may just pass if there’s nothing todiscuss with him. Or you may spend few minutes to learn how is your friend. Andhere we ask ‘How are you?’ – «ÐºÐ°Ðº дела?», «ÐºÐ°Ðº Ñ‚Ñ‹», «Ð½Ñƒ как поживаешь»(how do you live), «ÐºÐ°ÐºÐ¸Ðµ новоÑ�ти» (anything new?)
So whatdoes it mean? It means that Russians use this question when they REALLY what toask how are you. And it means that they expect to get the answer. What kind ofthe answer – that already depends on your politeness (it’s already another –and very interesting - thing to discuss). As well as smiling – this issomething that shouldn’t be formal (well, we speak about everyday life, notbusiness etiquette that is usually very formal), and requires a sincerequestion and sincere answer.

Ах, Александр Сергеевич, милый .... (с) or Pushkin's Birthday

To contact us Click HERE
Today, on the 6th of June ,we celebrate Alexander Pushkin's birthday. Only lazy one didn't mention it today in his account anywhere. This just proves that Pushkin is indeed "наше в�е" - 'our everything', as we use to call him now, following the phase of some critic.

Indeed, if you ask many interesting and talented professors in Russia 'who is your favourite writer', many of them will say 'Pushkin...', and that is of course not because they didn't read anything else! Pushkin is indeed greatest poet and a real treasure of Russian literature

Let's see why. Let's read the quotations about Pushkin by the writers and critics of his time  - here we will find interesting facts about him


При имени Пушкина тотчаÑ� оÑ�енÑ�ет мыÑ�ль о руÑ�Ñ�ком национальномпоÑ�те. Ð’ Ñ�амом деле, никто из поÑ�тов наших не выше его и не может болееназватьÑ�Ñ� национальным; Ñ�то право решительно принадлежит ему. Ð’ нем, как будтов лекÑ�иконе, заключилоÑ�ÑŒ вÑ�е богатÑ�тво, Ñ�ила и гибкоÑ�Ñ‚ÑŒ нашего Ñ�зыка. Он болеевÑ�ех, он далее раздвинул ему границы и более показал вÑ�е его проÑ�транÑ�тво.Пушкин еÑ�Ñ‚ÑŒ Ñ�вление чрезвычайное и, может быть, единÑ�твенное Ñ�вление руÑ�Ñ�когодуха: Ñ�то руÑ�Ñ�кий человек в его развитии, в каком он, может быть, Ñ�витÑ�Ñ� чрездвеÑ�ти лет. Ð’ нем руÑ�Ñ�каÑ� природа, руÑ�Ñ�каÑ� душа, руÑ�Ñ�кий Ñ�зык, руÑ�Ñ�кий характеротразилиÑ�ÑŒ в такой же чиÑ�тоте, в такой очищенной краÑ�оте, в какой отражаетÑ�Ñ�ландшафт на выпуклой поверхноÑ�ти оптичеÑ�кого Ñ�текла.Ð�.Ð’. ГогольWhen I think about Pushkin,I immediately think of the idea of ​​theRussian national poet. In fact, none of our poets is above him. In him, as ifin the lexicon, is combined all the wealth, power and flexibility of ourlanguage. More than anyone else, he further extended the boundaries of the language and showed all itsspace. Pushkin is a phenomenon, unique phenomenon of the Russian spirit: he is aRussian man in his development, as he might be in two hundred years. He is ofRussian spirit, the Russian soul, Russian language, Russian character reflectedin the same purity, in such beauty, in which the landscape is reflected on theconvex surface of the optical glass.NV Gogol
It isdifficult to estimate the contribution of  Pushkin in the formation of Russian literatureand Russian language. This is already the undisputed truth, and confirmed by awide variety of studies.


Russianliterature and Russian language is constantly experiencing the impact of thepolitical situation in the country. Depending on who rules a great power, beganto set up their own rules and regulations that speak about how to write or saywhat books will be sold and which will fall under the ban. Language  assimilated, feeling the impact of populardialects, as well as European language. Gradually, language and literatureacquired properties of other cultural traditions that took root in Russia, butall were strange. Everything has changed since then, as theliterary arena joined Alexander Pushkin. In his works, the author uses thepopular lexicon. Despite the fact that he is considered a good connoisseur ofFrench language, is widely established in various areas, Pushkin refersspecifically to the people's speech, using specific words or concepts. Thus, hebrings in a whole new language of communication elements that have beenforgotten or replaced by a foreign vocabulary. Pushkin understood that theRussian language - is primarily a national treasure, and however  it had been changed and distorted by the greatminds of his time, ordinary people will still speak the national language –same that had been used by their ancestors.
 In addition, the author introduces thelanguage of a large variety of beautiful epithets and metaphors. He imbues hisworks phraseology and expressive epithets, the writer tries his readers not thinkstraight, and try to see the image and beauty of language and words denoting theusual subject and ordinary action. The literary language of Pushkin became aclassic of Russian language, which was later followed by other writers. Pushkin wasthe first Russian writer who began to make experiments with the stylisticorientation of the text. He never followed the strict framework of genre whenwriting texts. Pushkin is more appealing to the notion of style, highlightingthe common features of it, playing with it, creating a unique product. Inaddition, Pushkin laid the foundation of a new stylistic direction in Russia -realism. All the writer's works are multi-faceted and diverse.
ReadingPushkin, you hear his voice. He was the first poet who destroyed the image of aconvention of copyright: in "Ruslan and Lyudmila," "EugeneOnegin", Pushkin speaks to the reader "on an equal footing", asit is between close friends, all grasping at a glance 


За�луги Пушкина перед Ро��ией велики и до�тойны народной признательно�ти. Он дал окончательную обработку нашему �зыку, который теперь по �воему богат�тву, �иле, логике и кра�оте формы признает�� даже ино�транными филологами едва ли не первым по�ле древнегрече�кого; он отозвал�� типиче�кими образами, бе��мертными звуками на в�е ве�ни� ру��кой жизни. Он первый, наконец, водрузил могучей рукою знам� по�зии глубоко в ру��кую землю...И.С. Тургенев
The merits of Pushkin for Russia are  great and worth getting national recognition. He gave a final transormation to our language, which is now by its richness, power, logic and beauty of form is recognized even by foreign philologists as almost the first after the ancient Greek.  He was the first, who finally hoisted the banner of poetry, deep in the Russian land by the mighty hand...IS Turgenev



source of photos - vk.com
text (Russian) here and here

21 June, Victor Tsoy's birthday

To contact us Click HERE
Only a lazy one doesn't know Tsoy...
Виктор Цой, Soviet rock-musician, poet, leader of the group KINO, has become a symbol of the epoch that 'was waiting for changes'

Tsoi contributed a plethora of musical and artistic works, including ten albums. He died in a car accident on August 15, 1990, aged 28.



At the age of 17, Tsoi began writing songs. In the 1970s and the 1980s, rock was an underground movement limited mostly to Leningrad; Moscow pop stars ruled the charts and received the most exposure from the media. However, rock music was not popular with the government. Thus rock bands received little or no funding, were not given any exposure by the media. By this time Tsoi had begun to perform the songs he wrote at parties.Tsoi went to underground concerts of Leningrad rock musicians. After a Boris Grebenshchikov solo concert he returned with Grebenshchikov on an elektrichka train from Petergof to Leningrad and played two of his songs to him. Grebenshchikov, who had already been a relatively established musician in the Leningrad underground scene, was very impressed by Tsoi's talent and took him under his wing and helped him start up his own band. This signaled the beginning of Tsoi's rock music career.Kino's impact on Soviet music and society was huge. The group introduced a sound and lyrics that no other Soviet artist before them was able or willing to produce. Kino opened the doors for modern Russian rock bands. It's displayed today in many places around Russia, from graffiti on the fences of St. Petersburg to an entire wall dedicated to Viktor Tsoi in a bylane of the famousArbat street in Moscow, where fans still gather to remember their hero. In 2000 some of the nation's top rock bands came together and released their interpretations of Kino's best songs as a tribute to Viktor Tsoi on what would have been his 38th birthday. Even though he is gone, Viktor Tsoi still lives in the minds of many Russian youths.There are lots of web-sites dedicated to his music and song. Like the fan's site http://vitya-tsoy.ru/ where you may listen to the music and find his texts or watch some videos with the legend of Russian rock or web-sites with the info about all his albums etcThe most symbolic songs are for sure these one
'The star named the Sun'

Listen or download КИ�О Звезда по имени Солнце for free on Prostopleerand 'We are waiting for changes'

Listen or download Кино Мы ждем перемен for free on Prostopleer
Here I'd just share some of my most favorite songs! 

Listen or download КИ�О Пачка �игарет for free on Prostopleer
Listen or download Кино В.Цой Кукушка for free on Prostopleer
Listen or download Кино �люминиевые огурцы for free on Prostopleer

С днем рождени�, Вит�!

Little men by 'Happiness supplier no.1'

To contact us Click HERE



The author of this picture is Eugenia Gapchinskaya, Kiev artist who has made happiness as her brand, and describes herself as ' happiness supplier number 1 ." Pictures of Evgenia are cheerful and bright, inhabited by small funny and touching people



Eugenia Gapchinskaya bornin 1974 is a Ukrainian artist,painter, illustrator of children's literature.


In 2008, the Ukranian post has releaseda series of 12 stamps, "Zodiac" with herworks.
Annually she holds over a dozen newexhibitions in Ukraine, Russia, France, Belgium, England, theNetherlands and other countries. He has several of his own galleriesin Ukraine and Russia. Her works are in European museums and privatecollections of fans and artists.


Her style is very recognizable. Andeven if she thinks of experiment and something new, it is just aboutsomewhere inside herself, at thelevel of these strange little men from herpictures. 'This is the way I thinkh –thourgh these little beloved men', says the artist




personal web-site http://gapchinska.com
photos are taken from 2photo

Cinema club: July, 17 at 7 pm, 'Hipsters'/ "Стиляги"

To contact us Click HERE

RUSSIANLANGUAGE CENTER invitesyou to the 
RUSSIANCINEMACLUBJuly, 17 at 7pm
HIPSTERS/ Cтил�ги(2008,Russia,120 min)

Director Valery TodorovskyStarring Anton Shagin, Oksana Akinshina Stilyagi (СтилÑ�ги) is a 2008 film, named Hipsters for its American release. It is a musical that deals with Soviet youth subculture "hipsters" or literally "obsessed with fashion" of the 1950s.Mels, a member of Komsomol (the youth wing of Soviet Communist Party), helps break up a hipster’s party. He briefly meets and is intrigued by a hipster girl named Polly, who invites him to hang out with her friends on "Broadway." Mels is drawn to Polly and seeks to win her over by becoming part of their world of colorful fashions, dancing, and loud music. He begins to adopt their fashions and even purchases a saxophone off the black market which he learns to play in the illicit jazz style…

• audience favorite at the Toronto International Film Festival,
• audience favorite at the Nashville Film Festival,
• audience favorite at the the Cleveland International Film Festival, winner of the Audience Choice Award at the Anchorage International Film Festival
• Golden Eagle Awards
• Best Film at the Nika Awards

VENUE:the classroom of RLC, 701,7/F, Arion Commercial Centre, No. 2-12 Queen's Road West, SheungWan
Admissionis free,however please write to us (2teacher@rlc.hk)or call us (25988389)to book a seat.

Ах, Александр Сергеевич, милый .... (с) or Pushkin's Birthday

To contact us Click HERE
Today, on the 6th of June ,we celebrate Alexander Pushkin's birthday. Only lazy one didn't mention it today in his account anywhere. This just proves that Pushkin is indeed "наше в�е" - 'our everything', as we use to call him now, following the phase of some critic.

Indeed, if you ask many interesting and talented professors in Russia 'who is your favourite writer', many of them will say 'Pushkin...', and that is of course not because they didn't read anything else! Pushkin is indeed greatest poet and a real treasure of Russian literature

Let's see why. Let's read the quotations about Pushkin by the writers and critics of his time  - here we will find interesting facts about him


При имени Пушкина тотчаÑ� оÑ�енÑ�ет мыÑ�ль о руÑ�Ñ�ком национальномпоÑ�те. Ð’ Ñ�амом деле, никто из поÑ�тов наших не выше его и не может болееназватьÑ�Ñ� национальным; Ñ�то право решительно принадлежит ему. Ð’ нем, как будтов лекÑ�иконе, заключилоÑ�ÑŒ вÑ�е богатÑ�тво, Ñ�ила и гибкоÑ�Ñ‚ÑŒ нашего Ñ�зыка. Он болеевÑ�ех, он далее раздвинул ему границы и более показал вÑ�е его проÑ�транÑ�тво.Пушкин еÑ�Ñ‚ÑŒ Ñ�вление чрезвычайное и, может быть, единÑ�твенное Ñ�вление руÑ�Ñ�когодуха: Ñ�то руÑ�Ñ�кий человек в его развитии, в каком он, может быть, Ñ�витÑ�Ñ� чрездвеÑ�ти лет. Ð’ нем руÑ�Ñ�каÑ� природа, руÑ�Ñ�каÑ� душа, руÑ�Ñ�кий Ñ�зык, руÑ�Ñ�кий характеротразилиÑ�ÑŒ в такой же чиÑ�тоте, в такой очищенной краÑ�оте, в какой отражаетÑ�Ñ�ландшафт на выпуклой поверхноÑ�ти оптичеÑ�кого Ñ�текла.Ð�.Ð’. ГогольWhen I think about Pushkin,I immediately think of the idea of ​​theRussian national poet. In fact, none of our poets is above him. In him, as ifin the lexicon, is combined all the wealth, power and flexibility of ourlanguage. More than anyone else, he further extended the boundaries of the language and showed all itsspace. Pushkin is a phenomenon, unique phenomenon of the Russian spirit: he is aRussian man in his development, as he might be in two hundred years. He is ofRussian spirit, the Russian soul, Russian language, Russian character reflectedin the same purity, in such beauty, in which the landscape is reflected on theconvex surface of the optical glass.NV Gogol
It isdifficult to estimate the contribution of  Pushkin in the formation of Russian literatureand Russian language. This is already the undisputed truth, and confirmed by awide variety of studies.


Russianliterature and Russian language is constantly experiencing the impact of thepolitical situation in the country. Depending on who rules a great power, beganto set up their own rules and regulations that speak about how to write or saywhat books will be sold and which will fall under the ban. Language  assimilated, feeling the impact of populardialects, as well as European language. Gradually, language and literatureacquired properties of other cultural traditions that took root in Russia, butall were strange. Everything has changed since then, as theliterary arena joined Alexander Pushkin. In his works, the author uses thepopular lexicon. Despite the fact that he is considered a good connoisseur ofFrench language, is widely established in various areas, Pushkin refersspecifically to the people's speech, using specific words or concepts. Thus, hebrings in a whole new language of communication elements that have beenforgotten or replaced by a foreign vocabulary. Pushkin understood that theRussian language - is primarily a national treasure, and however  it had been changed and distorted by the greatminds of his time, ordinary people will still speak the national language –same that had been used by their ancestors.
 In addition, the author introduces thelanguage of a large variety of beautiful epithets and metaphors. He imbues hisworks phraseology and expressive epithets, the writer tries his readers not thinkstraight, and try to see the image and beauty of language and words denoting theusual subject and ordinary action. The literary language of Pushkin became aclassic of Russian language, which was later followed by other writers. Pushkin wasthe first Russian writer who began to make experiments with the stylisticorientation of the text. He never followed the strict framework of genre whenwriting texts. Pushkin is more appealing to the notion of style, highlightingthe common features of it, playing with it, creating a unique product. Inaddition, Pushkin laid the foundation of a new stylistic direction in Russia -realism. All the writer's works are multi-faceted and diverse.
ReadingPushkin, you hear his voice. He was the first poet who destroyed the image of aconvention of copyright: in "Ruslan and Lyudmila," "EugeneOnegin", Pushkin speaks to the reader "on an equal footing", asit is between close friends, all grasping at a glance 


За�луги Пушкина перед Ро��ией велики и до�тойны народной признательно�ти. Он дал окончательную обработку нашему �зыку, который теперь по �воему богат�тву, �иле, логике и кра�оте формы признает�� даже ино�транными филологами едва ли не первым по�ле древнегрече�кого; он отозвал�� типиче�кими образами, бе��мертными звуками на в�е ве�ни� ру��кой жизни. Он первый, наконец, водрузил могучей рукою знам� по�зии глубоко в ру��кую землю...И.С. Тургенев
The merits of Pushkin for Russia are  great and worth getting national recognition. He gave a final transormation to our language, which is now by its richness, power, logic and beauty of form is recognized even by foreign philologists as almost the first after the ancient Greek.  He was the first, who finally hoisted the banner of poetry, deep in the Russian land by the mighty hand...IS Turgenev



source of photos - vk.com
text (Russian) here and here

21 June, Victor Tsoy's birthday

To contact us Click HERE
Only a lazy one doesn't know Tsoy...
Виктор Цой, Soviet rock-musician, poet, leader of the group KINO, has become a symbol of the epoch that 'was waiting for changes'

Tsoi contributed a plethora of musical and artistic works, including ten albums. He died in a car accident on August 15, 1990, aged 28.



At the age of 17, Tsoi began writing songs. In the 1970s and the 1980s, rock was an underground movement limited mostly to Leningrad; Moscow pop stars ruled the charts and received the most exposure from the media. However, rock music was not popular with the government. Thus rock bands received little or no funding, were not given any exposure by the media. By this time Tsoi had begun to perform the songs he wrote at parties.Tsoi went to underground concerts of Leningrad rock musicians. After a Boris Grebenshchikov solo concert he returned with Grebenshchikov on an elektrichka train from Petergof to Leningrad and played two of his songs to him. Grebenshchikov, who had already been a relatively established musician in the Leningrad underground scene, was very impressed by Tsoi's talent and took him under his wing and helped him start up his own band. This signaled the beginning of Tsoi's rock music career.Kino's impact on Soviet music and society was huge. The group introduced a sound and lyrics that no other Soviet artist before them was able or willing to produce. Kino opened the doors for modern Russian rock bands. It's displayed today in many places around Russia, from graffiti on the fences of St. Petersburg to an entire wall dedicated to Viktor Tsoi in a bylane of the famousArbat street in Moscow, where fans still gather to remember their hero. In 2000 some of the nation's top rock bands came together and released their interpretations of Kino's best songs as a tribute to Viktor Tsoi on what would have been his 38th birthday. Even though he is gone, Viktor Tsoi still lives in the minds of many Russian youths.There are lots of web-sites dedicated to his music and song. Like the fan's site http://vitya-tsoy.ru/ where you may listen to the music and find his texts or watch some videos with the legend of Russian rock or web-sites with the info about all his albums etcThe most symbolic songs are for sure these one
'The star named the Sun'

Listen or download КИ�О Звезда по имени Солнце for free on Prostopleerand 'We are waiting for changes'

Listen or download Кино Мы ждем перемен for free on Prostopleer
Here I'd just share some of my most favorite songs! 

Listen or download КИ�О Пачка �игарет for free on Prostopleer
Listen or download Кино В.Цой Кукушка for free on Prostopleer
Listen or download Кино �люминиевые огурцы for free on Prostopleer

С днем рождени�, Вит�!

Little men by 'Happiness supplier no.1'

To contact us Click HERE



The author of this picture is Eugenia Gapchinskaya, Kiev artist who has made happiness as her brand, and describes herself as ' happiness supplier number 1 ." Pictures of Evgenia are cheerful and bright, inhabited by small funny and touching people



Eugenia Gapchinskaya bornin 1974 is a Ukrainian artist,painter, illustrator of children's literature.


In 2008, the Ukranian post has releaseda series of 12 stamps, "Zodiac" with herworks.
Annually she holds over a dozen newexhibitions in Ukraine, Russia, France, Belgium, England, theNetherlands and other countries. He has several of his own galleriesin Ukraine and Russia. Her works are in European museums and privatecollections of fans and artists.


Her style is very recognizable. Andeven if she thinks of experiment and something new, it is just aboutsomewhere inside herself, at thelevel of these strange little men from herpictures. 'This is the way I thinkh –thourgh these little beloved men', says the artist




personal web-site http://gapchinska.com
photos are taken from 2photo

Cinema club: July, 17 at 7 pm, 'Hipsters'/ "Стиляги"

To contact us Click HERE

RUSSIANLANGUAGE CENTER invitesyou to the 
RUSSIANCINEMACLUBJuly, 17 at 7pm
HIPSTERS/ Cтил�ги(2008,Russia,120 min)

Director Valery TodorovskyStarring Anton Shagin, Oksana Akinshina Stilyagi (СтилÑ�ги) is a 2008 film, named Hipsters for its American release. It is a musical that deals with Soviet youth subculture "hipsters" or literally "obsessed with fashion" of the 1950s.Mels, a member of Komsomol (the youth wing of Soviet Communist Party), helps break up a hipster’s party. He briefly meets and is intrigued by a hipster girl named Polly, who invites him to hang out with her friends on "Broadway." Mels is drawn to Polly and seeks to win her over by becoming part of their world of colorful fashions, dancing, and loud music. He begins to adopt their fashions and even purchases a saxophone off the black market which he learns to play in the illicit jazz style…

• audience favorite at the Toronto International Film Festival,
• audience favorite at the Nashville Film Festival,
• audience favorite at the the Cleveland International Film Festival, winner of the Audience Choice Award at the Anchorage International Film Festival
• Golden Eagle Awards
• Best Film at the Nika Awards

VENUE:the classroom of RLC, 701,7/F, Arion Commercial Centre, No. 2-12 Queen's Road West, SheungWan
Admissionis free,however please write to us (2teacher@rlc.hk)or call us (25988389)to book a seat.