Plenary

Frank Heyworth, European Centre for Modern Languages of the Council of Europe: The Future of Language Education – Lessons to be Learned from the Pandemic

The Professional Network Forum of the European Centre for Modern Languages of the Council of Europe carried out a survey in February in which teachers and other language professionals were asked to recount and assess their experience of teaching languages during the pandemic. There were 1735 responses to the survey from 37 countries around Europe. The team coordinating this initiative is now analysing the data from the questionnaire, using corpus analysis to explore the input in open text to questions (among others) related to the challenges raised by the pandemic, but also the positive factors which can be drawn from it. In my talk I will present the results of the survey and some ideas on ways in which approaches to language education will be impacted by the pandemic.

Session 1

Dana Kampmann: Building Community in Online Classes

The move to online classrooms has created many new challenges in teaching and learning. One of these challenges is creating connections between the teacher and students as well as amongst the students. This interactive workshop aims to share strategies and stories to better build online learning communities.

Session 2

Claudia Schuhbeck: The learning cycle: Holistic learning approach

Learning methodologies from a humanistic and constructivist perspective propose that we are naturally capable of learning. The organization of a sequence focused on the educational objective plays a critical role in constructing, acquiring, and applying knowledge. Within teaching, the teacher needs to consider that a learning process is fundamental. It establishes a relationship between a learner’s performance at each stage of the process and the achievement of the stated goal. The learning cycle requires a series of techniques that can be used in all its phases, but their variety will enrich the learner’s experience of the target of study. The combination of techniques motivates students to experiment at each stage of the cycle with their learning process. It also helps them to develop their reflections and concepts about what they have learned. On the other hand, the process provides the teacher with a guide for action to establish an effective path towards achieving the educational objective. In this presentation, you will identify the main elements of the phases that make up the learning cycle, which can be used in face-to-face, virtual or blended learning classes.

Session 3

Geoff Tranter: Strategies for Activating and Involving Everybody – Not Only, but Especially in the Online Classroom

For teachers, it is often a challenge to ensure that every learner in the group is actively involved in the lesson, especially in larger groups. This applies equally to face-to-face teaching and the digital classroom. The aim of this practical session is to show a few techniques that can be used to keep (almost) everybody active throughout the lesson – regardless of whether the emphasis is on reading, listening, speaking or writing. Most of the techniques can be used as from A2 upwards.

Session 4

Angélica Martínez: Contributions of Neuroscience to Language Learning

Derived from the experience of English teaching, and the observation of students´ learning patterns, this paper reviews some Neuroscience principles applied to the second language teaching-learning process. In this context, we identify Neuroscience as Educational Neuroscience, which study constitutes a relevant and powerful tool for teachers.
It starts with an introduction to the subject, proceeding to an overview of Neuroscience findings related to the way we learn, and an overview of the brain-compatible learning principles. Then, the application of these principles to class planning and classroom issues will be analyzed.
It is concluded that besides the search for the best didactic strategies, teachers should build awareness of the importance to study the brain and its functions as the foundation to develop methodologies more compatible with the way our brains learn.

Session 5

Silke Riegler: Blended Learning in Adult Education – is it worth the hype?

In an increasingly digital world online learning has finally found its place in adult education. The advantages are obvious and so are the challenges of setting up a program that benefits students and teachers alike.
In this talk, I will look at the benefits of using Moodle, a free and open-source learning platform, with university students. Based on my own experiences as a course developer for the Virtual University of Bavaria, an online university open to all students studying in Bavaria, and as a university lecturer, I will show examples of my own Business English blended learning courses, which can easily be adapted to any adult education scenario.
I will discuss my experience with a blended approach, share my successes and challenges during the development and teaching process. In addition, I will encourage you to think about how to implement my framework into your own teaching context.
By the end of the talk, I hope to have sparked your interest in the topic and maybe you will transform from tech sceptic to tech addict in the classroom.

Session 6

Neil Anderson: Mind the Gap: Maximising Meaningful Communication Online

Despite online and face-to-face teaching representing different modes of delivery, when it comes to motivating students to communicate, the problems remain similar: the need to scaffold, support and motivate learners through, for instance, providing clear goals to stimulate interaction. This interactive talk will review these general principles and examine practical tools and techniques for encouraging students to communicate meaningfully online.

Session 7

Dr. Edith Huerta Trejo: Flexible learning in the face of pandemics: The case of the Gestalt University in Mexico

Prolonged school closures during COVID-19 have been a challenge for students, teachers and parents. Today, many countries are planning to reopen schools in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). Social distancing measures probably make that distance learning remain at least partially part of our daily lives. The substantial distance restrictions necessary for reopening and reducing the number of students per classroom by approximately 30% make “hybrid education” models a possible solution. During this presentation, a change in the educational model of the Gestalt University in Mexico to face the pandemic challenges will be described.