Thursday, November 29, 2007

At the beginning/In the middle/At the end - Puerto Varas

At the beginning of the session I felt curious because I was not sure what it was going to be about. In the middle of the session I found out how useful this was going to be for me. At the end of the session I will try some of the tips provided by Susan with my students.
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At the beginning of the session I felt anxious, curious and I had lots of expectations about the workshop and about what I would learn. In the middle of the session I felt quite confident and happy. My expectations were being fulfilled. At the end of the session I was waiting for more things to learn and for useful materials and new elements for my classes.
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At the beginning of the session I felt very excited and motivated. In the middle of the session I felt I felt very complicated because I was thinking about my 45 students (they are very special). At the end of the session I was very happy. The last activity was fun and interesting.
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At the beginning of the session I felt comfortable. In the middle of the session I felt motivated. At the end of the session I liked the explanation about the session. I learned a lot about methodology.
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At the beginning of the session I felt full of questions because I was not clear about the purpose of the workshop. I also felt full of expectations. In the middle of the session I was interested in the contents and entertained. At the end of the session I was relaxed and concentrated on what we were doing.---------------------------------------

List of Participants - Puerto Varas

1. Marcia Bucarey Sepulveda, Liceo Punta de Mieles, marcia.burarey@gmail.com
2. Elba Aguila Maldonado, Escuela Encarnación Oivares, troglotita@hotmail.com
3. Sylvia Rodas, Colegio Alonso de Ercilla, asrodas@gmail.com
4. Norma Rojas Araya, Escuela Teniente Merino, n.andrearojas@gmail.com
5. Marcela Cardenas Benavides, Immanuel International School, marcecardenas@gmail.com
6. Leticia Villanueva Salinas, Colegio William Booth, leticia_laus@hotmail.com
7. Isabel Gutiérrez Opazo, Liceo Técnico Profesional Bosque Nativo, el_tragaluz64@gmail.com
8. Elizabeth Gonzalez Pinela, Colegio Crecer, egonzalez52@hotmail.com
9. Maria Elena Perez Henriquez, DAEM Comuna de San Pablo, mperezhenriquez@hotmail.com
10. Ricardo Villagra Cea, Colegio Juan XXIII, rvillagracea@gmail.com
11. Elena Llanquileo, Colegio Proyecxción Siglo XXI, elena_llanquileo@yahoo.com
12. Veronica Moraga Cancino, Colegio Los Alerces Puerto Varas, veroing_pro@gmail.com
13. Maria Angelica Monsalve Oyarzo, Escuela 88 Canadá, angel_mi@latinmail.com
14. Alicia Vera C., Escuela Francia Valdivia, aliciavera2005@yahoo.com
15. Soledad Sandoval Molina, Instituto Comercial de Osorno, solesandoval007@gmail.com
16. Victor Peña Villarroel, Liceo Fray Pablo de Mayo, victorhugopv@yahoo.es
17. Paz Morales Severino, Esculea Garcia Hurtado de Mendoza Osorno, passymor@hotmail.com
18. Paulina Alvarez Vega, Liceo Benjamin Vicuña Mackenna, alvapau@gmail.com
19. Lorena Muñoz Huenchullanca, Colegio Preciosa Sangre, lapetite56@gmail.com
20. Jéssica López Monsalve, Escuela G - 627 El Mañio - Comuna Los Muermos, escuelamañio@gmail.com
21. Maria Ariela Torres Gallardo, Escuela "El Bosque" Valdivia, aritoga2007@gmail.com
22. Natacha del Carmen Acuña Velasquez, Instituto Superior de Administración y Turismo, nattyacunav@hotmail.com
23. Maria Eugenia Pizarro Molina, Escuela Delicio Cardenas y Escuela Básica San Pablo, chichepizarro@yahoo.com

Friday, November 9, 2007

At first/In the middle/At the end - Antofagasta

"At first, I felt like saying "the same old song again". In the middle, I felt more confortable. At the end I felt begging for more, I need more workshops like this one."
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"At first I felt about another workshop about curricula. At the middle I felt good and motivated because I like using drama techniques and role play at high - school. At the end, I started thinking how to motivate my colleagues to work in this way".
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"At first I felt anxious and curious, ready to learn something new. In the middle I flt motivated to apply innovative activities in the class. At the end I felt ready to apply some of the dynamic activities for getting nergy from the students"
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"At first I felt curious because I wanted to know if my travel was useful. In the middle I felt very happy, first because the subject matter was very interesting and the teacher was very nice. At the end, I felt pleased as my travel had been useful and I had shared with my friends"
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"At first I felt tired, sleepy. In the middle I felt more relaxed and interested on the lecture. At the end, I felt like I wanted to learn and practice more."
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"At first I felt excited about the new things I'd learn. In he middle I felt so interested. At the end I felt so relaxed because of the teacher's energy and experience."
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"At first I felt happy to be able to be here after a three - hour trip by bus. In the middle I felt impressed by the way we can use drama in our classroom. At the end I felt eager to go back to classes and apply what I learnt today".
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"At first I felt curious. In the middle I felt engaged. At the end I am compromised."

Comments and Pictures - Antofagasta

"We never stop learning" Let's take advantage of every opportunity we are offered! Thanks! Andrea González

"I'm very happy to to have the opportunity to participate in this workshop, because I learned new activities to teach English in a more attractive way, to meet colleagues I've not met before, to share our teaching experience and the most important of all, to have a very good teacher who - through her model and example - gave us more than reading a book, because Susan is a great person and a teacher. She motivated me a lot to continue teaching English". Vilma Vranicic

"Hi! I am Norma and I feel happy to have this opportunity to listen, practice and share experiences with other teachers. In this way, I understand that I'm not an island fighting in the ocean. There exists more like me, with the same problems or similar ones to be solved in the classroom" Norma Bernal

"It is wonderful to be informed about what is happening in our English world; we need more and more to help our students. When we motivate them more, we will get better results and improve their learning" Ana María Estay

"Please don't leave the opportunity to go to workshops. These workshops are good activities to become better teachers" Ingrid Muñoz Soto

List of Participants - Antofagasta

  1. Dolly Araya, Liceo Marta Narea, dollyara@hotmail.com
  2. Norma Bernal, Colegio San José, abernal@vtr.net
  3. Blanca Bravo, Escuela Victoriano Quinteros Soto, blancabravoe@hotmail.com
  4. Lila Carriel, Colegio Bautista, lilaycarriel@yahoo.es
  5. Liliana Cavour, Juan Pablo II, ayorca@vtr.net
  6. Alfredo Cordero, Liceo Juan Cortés Monroy, alfcord@hotmail.com
  7. Leticia Díaz, Escuela Arturo Prat E-80, leda197@gmail.com
  8. Ana María Estay, Escuela Alondra Rojas, ana_estay@hotmail.com
  9. Andrea González, Colegio San Nicolás, andreagonzalezjara@yahoo.com
  10. Ingrid Muñoz, Liceo Domingo Herrera, narnia91@hotmail.com
  11. Boris Olivares, Liceo Politécnico José Miguel Quiroz borisalejandro2005@yahoo.es
  12. Ligia Osorio, Liceo Marta Narea Díaz, ligikos@gmail.com
  13. Carolina Rivera, Liceo A-27 Jorge Alessandri, carol0605@hotmail.com
  14. Fabiola Toro, Colegio Emilio Sotomayor D-45, fabi_to@123mail.cl
  15. Marcia Villalobos, Colegio Santa Emilia, mvillalobos1@hotmail.com
  16. Vilma Vranicic, Liceo Andrés Sabella, v_vranicic_m@hotmail.com

Antofagasta Report




18 teachers of English from Antofagasta and one Teacher of English coming from Tal Tal met on Wednesday 7th November at Hotel Diego de Almagro in Antofagasta for the "Stand and Deliver" Workshop.



We started with a classroom set-up and then we moved the tables and everyone participated in a circle. It is was very notorious how different people participate when you have them looking at each other's back and when they look at each other's faces.


What problems do English teachers face in their Practice?


In Antofagasta we did an activity using rythm, were teacher had to follow a rythm using their hands and think about the problems they have in class and when in each turn teachers had to say one word that reflected one problem. The words or concepts where the teachers identified were:


Discipline,
Expectations,
Home problems,
Fear to speak,
Lack of vocabulary,
Big sizes classes,
Learning problems,
No time to practice,
Motivation,
Mixed ability classes,
Bullying


The problems presented were the same in Melipilla. In the end they are similar not only throughout Chile but also throughout the world, therefore we need to look for solutions. Of course, there are problems that the teacher cannot work on, like home problems, but for the mixed ability classes and the large classes there are solutions if we use some of the drama techniques that Susan is teaching us. The activities we learned tackle most of the problems, but the teacher needs to develop drama skills.


The teacher as a model



In order to carry out different active activities, without having discipline problems, the teacher needs to reflect the following through his or her body language and voice. The teacher as a model should:







  • Have classroom presence. In other words, know exactly what you want your class to look like.



  • Raise Awareness of the role of the teacher



  • Make eye contact: as it immediately reflects that you’re interested.



  • Read faces and respond to them: are the students open to learn? Sometimes the students have problems, and they do not want to work.



  • Maintain attention by using the techniques actors use to maintain attention.



  • Energy… in drama you contain your energy. It is an art of self control: keeping and conveying.



  • Creating engagement and atmosphere through relationships. Making students want o stay in the classroom.

Thursday, November 8, 2007

The SPICE of Life and ELT

Susan talked about remembering to create a holistic classroom atmosphere where students can feel motivated to learn and to study with a positive attitude, feeling they are being helped to progress quickly and effectively. She suggested we should remember the acronym:
SPICE
S for social development
P for physical development
I for intellectual development
C for creative development
E for emotional development

Tuesday, November 6, 2007

The Frightening Conclusion

The Frightening Conclusion
Haim Ginott

I’ve come to the frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element in the classroom.
It’s my personal approach that creates the climate. It’s my daily mood that makes the weather.
As a teacher, I possess a tremendous power to make a child’s life miserable or joyous.
I can be a tool of torture or an instrument of inspiration.
I can humiliate or humour, hurt or heal.
In all situations, it is my response that decides whether a crisis will be escalated or de-escalated and a child humanized or de-humanized.

List of Participants - Melipilla

List of Participants - Melipilla
Carol Alarcón, Colegio El Sembrador Puente Alto, ceal56@latinmail.com
Marcela Alvear, Liceo Guillermo Feliu Cruz, cheloalvear@hotmail.com
Andrea Arancibia, Liceo Carmela Carvajal, anaryz@hotmail.com
Mercedes Araya, Colegio San Cristóbal de Las Casas, mercedesarayat@hotmail.com
Gonzalo Araya, Colegio Bellavista La Florida, gmozzy@hotmail.com
Carlos Arévalo, Liceo Municipal 860 María Pinto, carevalod@hotmail.com
Betsabé Barrera, Liceo Gabriela Mistral Melipilla, tabecyta@yahoo.com
Paola Calderón, Instituto San Pablo Misionero, paolacald@gmail.com
Germán Cona, Liceo 523 La Pintana, German.writer@gmail.com
María Alejandra del Río, Escuela Ecuador, aleja762@yahoo.com
Rosario Fuenzalida, Liceo Polivalente San José de Maipo, rosifh@gmail.com
Josefina González, Colegio San Cristóbal de Las Casas, josephina@vtr.net
Sol González, Liceo Polivalente C82, Solgon63@yahoo.es
Macarena Guajardo, Liceo Salesiano Manuel Arriarán Barros, macaligula@yahoo.es
Sylvia Hernández, Liceo Los Almendros, shivi@123mail.cl
Belia Iturbe, Colegio Corazón de María de San Miguel, tiamixx@yahoo.com
Teresita Pino, Internado Nacional Barros Arana, teresitapb@yahoo.com
Elizabeth Ponce, Colegio Arzobispo Crescente Errázuriz /Belén Educa, clauelita@hotmail.com
Cecilia Rojo, Centro Educacional Mariano Egaña, ac.soto@uc.cl
Sandra Rubina, Liceo Francés, rubisan2000@yahoo.com
Marcela Salgado, Colegio Los Nogales, msalgado8@gmail.com
Ethel Salinas, Colegio Lourdes de Peñaflor, ethel_cl@yahoo.com
Alejandro Tan, Colegio Iberoamericano, alextan63@gmail.com
Nayaret Toro, Liceo Politécnico Hannover, nice_rayen@yahoo.com
Isabel Valdés, Liceo J.V Lastarria, isavalj@hotmail.com
Alejandra Valencia, Liceo Carmela Carvajal, piovalencia@hotmail.com
Leyla Velasco, Liceo Froylán Yáñez de la Barra, levelzo@yahoo.es
Eduardo Zúñiga, Liceo el Ballenar Melipilla, 831474/8323140

Melipilla Comments and Gallery


"It was a great experience to share our problems or difficulties that we, as teachers, have. Thanks to Susan and the British Council for giving these opportunities to improve as English Teachers" Betsabé Barrera

"There's nothing better than sharing with your colleagues, it's the only way to omprove and take advantage of what we have". Andrea Arancibia

"Impossible is nothing" Leyla Velasco

"there's always time for learning a bit more" Carlos Arévalo

"Thanks for the opportunity of being here sharing and learning more about teaching". Alejandra Valencia.

"Dear friends: teach with love, teach with effort, teach innovating and be happy" Rosario Fuenzalida.








Thanks Carlos for taking the pictures!





"It is very important for us to be part of an experience that forces us to face different situations that make us to feel the same our students feel. It is a real experience of learning and feel the same our students feel. It is a real experience of of learning and feel better and willing to change many or at least some aspects of my teaching". Sandra Rubina

Melipilla Report

28 teachers from the Metropolitana Region participated in the first workshop "Stand and Deliver". It was a very active and rewarding day.
The programme included four sessions. The first one started with an introduction to what the expression "Stand and Deliver" means. This expression comes from the stories of old, when the bandits would assault the rich people, travelling in their horse and carriage through the forests of England with "Stand and deliver", meaning "Give up all your goods", leaving the victims with nothing. The metaphor is that teachers participating in the sessions will become aware of their need to stand and deliver quality active lessons using drama techniques and stagecraft. In this way they should be able to better motivate their students to also "Stand and Deliver" with confidence, and a certain presence, their growing repertoire of English language competence.

Part of the first and the second session included an "active activity" called the layers of the onion, where teachers reflected on and shared the problems they face everyday in their practice and expressed why they had decided to attend this workshop.


There was also a revision of theoretical concepts, like
*what is drama?
*how does confidence relate to liking and motivation
*which is more important? fluency or accuracy?
We also discussed the different skills and resources a teacher should reflect on and use in the classroom.
After lunch, Susan had the teachers participate in some activities in order to wake students up, since after lunch everyone was thinking about a siesta! Once the participants had been "refreshed" we went through different activities that can work in large, mixed-ability classes (40-45 students). Teachers became students, and, we have to say, they behaved very well and participated actively. There was lots of activity, laughter and learning.

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Who's Susan Hillyard (CV)

  • Susan Hillyard
    hillyard@ciudad.com.ar

    Susan has a B.Ed. Hons (like a BA but in Education) from the University of Warwick, UK. Even though she is British she is currently living in Buenos Aires.

Key Areas of Expertise:

  • professional experience in education and ELT in fourteen countries;
  • materials development for teaching and training;
  • writer and moderator on two on-line courses for teachers, with two more in preparation
    2008
  • Associate Trainer for NILE, UK
  • accredited examiner for course work and oral examiner for English Language for Cambridge IGCSE (CIE)
  • managing the secondary section in two international and three bilingual schools;
  • writing for the RBT series for Oxford UP (UK) “ Global Issues”
  • writing articles for teacher magazines;
  • developing leadership skills and global understanding;
  • inspiring teachers towards Lifelong Learning;
  • speaker at national and international conferences/seminars;
  • educational adviser to The Performers Educational Theatre

    Countries of Work Experience:
    UK, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Chile, Brazil, China, Peru, USA, Mexico, Colombia

For a full CV go to the British Council website.

Programme

Stand and Deliver

Speaker: Susan Hillyard B.Ed.(Hons)
e-mail:
hillyard@ciudad.com.ar

Abstract
Stand and Deliver: Using Drama Techniques to improve the Teacher’s and the Students’ Productive Skills in large mixed ability classes.

Without doubt much of what goes on in schools all around the world goes on through the spoken and the listened to word. Theatre and Drama relies on just those media with the addition of learned and practiced techniques to make the speaking and the listening more effective. In this workshop we will look at how stagecraft can offer a number of useful techniques to improve both the teacher’s and the students’ presentation skills. Into the bargain we will see how classroom management skills and students’ responses can move towards more meaningful exchanges. There will be lots of practical work and an element of microteaching for the teachers to experience and practice the skills for successful active learning.

Programme

Morning session 1
1) Warmers
2) Sharing concerns in discussion groups
a) Layers of the Onion
b) Inclusive brainstorming
c) Rainbow grouping
3) Short powerpoint presentation on Interactive Teaching and Learning: Stressing confidence first, fluency second and accuracy third.
4) Experiential activities covering the essential components of the oral skill
a) Pronunciation
b) Voice control and breathing techniques
c) Body language
d) Use of visual aids , cue cards and equipment

Morning Session 2
5) Sharing concerns about classroom management in active learning classrooms
6) Techniques for teachers
a) Getting and maintaining silence
b) Giving instructions and explaining activities X 3
c) Arranging classroom furniture
d) Grouping
e) Preparing essential materials
f) Teaching concentration and listening skills

Afternoon Session 1
1) Games
2) Role play
3) Speaking activities
4) Readers’ Theatre

Afternoon Session 2
1) Rehearsing for microteaching in pairs
2) Presenting microteaching: Each teacher must conduct one short game ,role play or speaking activity with the audience
3) Round up with discussion and a final closing activity.

Bibliography
For teachers self improvement

Viney P. and K., Handshake, A Course in Communication, O.U.P.
Comfort J., Effective Telephoning, O.U.P.
Effective Presentations, O.U.P.
Effective Meetings, O.U.P. ( with Video)
Pietro R.J., Strategic Interaction, C.U.P.
Dufeu B., Teaching Myself, O.U.P.
Pedlar M. Burgoyne J. and Boydell T.,
A Manager's Guide to Self Development, Mc Graw Hill
Jarvis P. Paradoxes of Learning, Josey Bass, S. F.
Jarvis P., Adult and Continuing Education, Josey Bass.SF
Bowman DP, Presentations, Adams 1998, Massachusetts
Hughes D and Philips B, The oxford Guide to Successful Public Speaking, Virgin, 1988 London.

For practical teaching ideas

Maley,A and Duff A: Drama Techniques in Language Learning (Cambridge University Press)
Games for language Learning (CUP)
McGregor, L., Tate and Robinson K: Learning Through Drama (Heinemann)
Mc Gregor, L: Developments in Drama Teaching (Open Books, London)
Holden, S: Drama in Language Teaching (Longman)
Morgan N. And Saxton,J: Teaching Drama, a mind of many wonders (Stanley Thornes)
Smith, S: Theatre Arts and the Teaching of Second Languages (Addison – Wesley)
Wessels C, Drama OUP

Stand and Deliver - Susan Hillyard



What is "Stand and Deliver"?

Stand and Deliver is an 8-hour workshop developed for teachers of English in Chile by Susan Hillyard, who has a vast experience working and motivating teachers of English. The workshop will tour around Chile.
The workshop will teach our teachers of English to use drama techniques to improve the Teacher's and the Students' Productive Skills in large ability classes.
This workshop has been organised by the
British Council and Inglés Abre Puertas (Ministry of Education)

What is this blog for?

The idea is that teachers participating in this workshop will share their experiences during and after the workshop. If you want to be part of it and be a blogger, please contact gabriela.silva@britishcouncil.cl

When and Where will the workshops take place?

Monday 5 November 2007: Melipilla
Wednesday 7 November 2007: Antofagasta
Friday 9 November 2007: Puerto Varas

Who will participate?

This is a joint event between the British Council and Inglés Abre Puertas (IAP)IAP will invite teachers working in municipal and subsidised schools in the areas where the workshops take place. If you want to participate and you're not sure if you can, please contact mariapaz.gatica@mineduc.cl