TEACHING, EXAMINING AND ASSESSING SPOKEN ENGLISH

Comenius/Grundtvig Code: UK-2011-1313-001

This course is aimed at ELT professionals working at all levels and with different age groups, who are interested in:

• improving their understanding of what spoken English is really like
• enhancing their ability to explain and exemplify the key aspects of spoken English
• learning how to teach spoken English more effectively
• learning how to test, examine and assess spoken English more effectively

Participants should have a minimum language level corresponding to B2/C1 on the Common European Framework.

Aims and objectives:

• To review how spoken English is used in a range of authentic contexts
• To explore the differences between the grammars of spoken and written English
• To review the principles and practice of teaching spoken English to non-native learners
• To introduce and critically survey recent developments in materials and methodology for the
  analysis, teaching and testing of spoken English
• To examine the relationship between teaching and testing spoken English ? To evaluate existing materials for stimulating spoken English in class and in tests
• To examine existing assessment criteria and develop new criteria for different contexts
• To provide practical hands-on experience of spoken language assessment
• To encourage participants to re-examine their own practice in the light of the above

All course participants receive a pre-course questionnaire, which should be returned prior to the course. This is to ensure that the areas of most relevance to participants are covered. The main strands of the course will be carefully integrated but will include attention to some or all of the following, in line with participants' needs and interests:

• Personal language development
• Pedagogic grammar for spoken English
• Grammar at discourse level
• Motivating learners to speak in class
• Assessing spoken English
• Spoken English test design
• Assessor training for spoken English
• Evaluation of exams in spoken English
  Language awareness for spoken English
• Materials design for teaching & assessing
• Interactive methodology
• Maximising learners' speaking practice
• Testing & examining spoken English
• Designing good assessment criteria
• Making marks meaningful
• Review of the literature on TEASE

Time will be built into the course for reflection and for participants to consider how to adapt ideas from the course to classrooms in their own professional contexts.  The course will also involve a significant element of English language improvement and/or development of language awareness.

The 50-hour course provision includes intensive tuition by trainers who are experts in the field of teaching, examining and assessing spoken English, as well as opportunities for reading and research and guest lectures from well-known figures in the field of ELT.  Classes will be practical and ‘hands-on' but with reference to relevant theory.

Dates and fees:

Please note that these prices do not include airport transfers.

The school was established in 1995 by directors with extensive experience of ELT worldwide.  It was set up as a specialist teacher development institute to provide courses of the highest quality for teachers from all over the world. The number and range of these courses continues to grow, and the range of work has been extended to cover the following main areas:

• Professional development programmes for EL teachers and trainers
• Professional development programmes for CLIL teachers (using English as a medium of instruction), including vocational teachers
• Modular postgraduate courses up to Masters level for second or foreign language teaching professionals under a programme validated by Leeds Metropolitan University
• CELTA and DELTA training (as an accredited centre for Cambridge ESOL)
• BEC and TKT exam preparation courses by arrangement
• International consultancy
• International project management
• Delivery of short courses, seminars and workshops worldwide
• One-to-one and executive language training

The school has grown to become the biggest single provider of professional development courses for EL teachers and trainers in Europe. It was the first institute to be accredited by the British Council for the provision of teacher development courses and all these courses qualify for either Comenius, Grundtvig or Leonardo funding. It is a member of EnglishUK and an official examination centre for Cambridge exams. It is also one of the very few independent UK organisations accredited to run courses offering qualifications up to Masters level, through a modular programme allowing teachers to choose to go for a PG Cert., PG Dip., or an MA. It also runs BEC and TKT exam preparation courses by special arrangement. Its Cambridge CELTA courses have a 99% pass rate.

Hundreds of courses for thousands of participants from over 60 different countries have been run. As well as running open-enrolment courses, the school works closely with education ministries, regional authorities and institutional partners around the world to design and deliver tailor-made courses. Consultants and trainers are also sent all over the world to help with practical advice and training in the field of English language education.

Homestay accommodation is provided in single study-bedrooms with carefully selected hosts. It comprises bed, breakfast & evening meal each day and light lunch (or packed lunch, as appropriate) at weekends.

Residential accommodation is provided on campus at the University of East Anglia in single study-bedrooms with private bathroom. The accommodation is on a bed & breakfast (B&B) basis in university houses or flats with a shared kitchen/dining room, fully equipped for self-catering.