Lion s. Lion s. Voice. Roars. Teachers Voice CONTENTS. Issue 1 September Teacher s Corner. Cover Story. Απλά Μαθήµατα Σχολικής Ψυχολογίας

Transcript

1 The Newsletter of PEOPLECERT for City & Guilds English Language Lion s Issue 1 September 2009 Lion s Roars CONTENTS Teacher s Corner > When in doubt, look it up! 2 Cover Story > The City & Guilds International English Qualifications 3 > Editor s Note Dear Readers, I am really delighted to welcome you to the first issue of our Newsletter which will be issued four times a year and will provide you with all the important information related to City & Guilds and ELT in Greece and worldwide. In this issue you will have the chance to read up on the latest news on the City & Guilds exams and our enriched support material for teachers, meet our Academic Department team and keep up to date with what we have planned for you, including important events such as seminars and exams. And I am sure that all teachers and parents will make the most out of the practical advice on common problems many students face at school in our learning psychology column. I would like to welcome you once again and wish you all a creative school year. George Lampropoulos Editor Απλά Μαθήµατα Σχολικής Ψυχολογίας > Στρατηγικές Μελέτης 4 > City & Guilds Teachers Club 5 Inside City & Guilds > Our Team 6 > City & Guilds Teacher Development Seminar Days 7 Latest News > Support for Teachers 8 > Examination Dates 8 > IESOL Scoring becomes friendlier and fairer 8 Συντακτική Οµάδα: Γιώργος Βασιλάκης, έσποινα ηµητράκη, Χρύσα Κλωνάρη, Γιώργος Λαµπρόπουλος, Γιάννης Πρεβεζάνος Σχεδιασµός - Εικαστική Επιµέλεια Λυδία Γραµµατικού, Πάρις Μητάκος 1 1

2 Issue 1 September 2009 Teacher s Corner > When in doubt, look it up! Teachers The time is 9.45am. The students walk Play games that involve the use of the into the exam room apprehensively holding their dictionaries tightly in and efficiently. For example, make sure dictionary. Here are some ideas: they know that the first and last word defined on each dictionary page appear in thinks of a word; the rest of the class their hands. They sit on their chairs and the exam is the header of that page. have to guess which word it is by asking about to start. It is just then that one of the questions like Is it before or after X candidates whispers to her friend sitting [where X is any word the students can next to her: Oh, no! I have left my dictionary at home! What am I going to do now? information in a dictionary entry are located, including information on the can help your students practise alphabet think of] in the dictionary?. This game Forgetting the dictionary on the day of the grammar of words (e.g. whether a noun skills. > City & Guilds exam does not necessarily is countable), their collocations, their Call my bluff: Students work in result in failure but a candidate that is wellprepared and capable of using the dic- level of formality, etc, so that they can groups. Each group chooses 3-5 unfamiliar words from a text they have read use the dictionary to improve their written production and not just to help them and prepare 3 different definitions for tionary intelligently obviously has an each word with the help of their dictionary. Only one definition is advantage. understand texts. correct, On the other hand, candidates will naturally be stressed in an exam situation and, unless the students are well trained in the use of the dictionary, it can turn into a mixed blessing: some students tend to rely on it excessively and can waste time looking everything up while they should be concentrating on the examination questions. So, it is very important that you instruct your students how to use the dictionary. Some of the points that you need to bear in mind are the following: 1 Teach your students how to be selective so that they don t waste time looking up every word they see. For example, when doing a reading comprehension exercise, ask them to work in pairs to select a maximum of 5 words they need to know. Train them in looking up 2words quickly Show them where the different types of 3 Check your students dictionaries 4a couple of weeks before the exam to make sure they are up-to-date and easy to use. Most publishers bring out learners dictionaries at various levels, so make sure the ones your students use are appropriate for their level. Spend 5time in class showing the students the steps that they need to follow when looking up a word. For low levels this can even be done in a form of a game! Occasionally ask your students to bring 6 their dictionary to class so that they practise under your supervision (they could complete some exercises found in the coursebook you use or during mock exams). > The dictionary game: one student 7 though. The other groups have to guess which are the correct definitions. > Taboo: An adaptation of the popular word game, whereby students work in groups to prepare taboo cards for vocabulary items that they have recently learnt; while preparing the cards, the learners use key words from the definition as well as synonyms and antonyms as taboo words. They then play the game with other groups. > Make up your own definition: Give your students a list of familiar words. Ask them to make up their own definitions for these words. Then, using their dictionaries, students check if their own definitions correlate to the ones their dictionary provides. George Lampropoulos 2

3 Cover Story > The City & Guilds International English Qualifications City & Guilds may be the largest vocational awarding body in the world, and the oldest in the United Kingdom, but it is relatively new in Greece. The City & Guilds International English Qualifications are recognised in the UK and internationally. They are accredited by Ofqual and the Home Office in the UK and by ASEP in Greece. The IESOL (International English for Speakers of Other Languages) suite of exams focusing on Listening, Reading and Writing and the ISESOL (International Spoken English for Speakers of Other Languages) suite of exams focusing on Speaking were introduced to the Greek educational community in Since then, a very large number of people has worked behind the scenes to make sure that we offer a high level of service to students and teachers in Greece: The academic team has been busy making sure the quality of the exam itself is high, the marking process is fair and reliable and the EFL educational community receives the kind of support that it deserves through seminars and workshops designed for teachers in Greece. The marketing team has tried very hard to make our qualifications known to candidates, parents and teachers through an inspired television and radio advertising campaign, posters and billboards in the bigger towns, and a number of promotional and information leaflets and booklets. The network development team has been working with language schools all over Greece to authorise examination centres in all the major towns as well as remote areas so that our exams can be accessible to as many candidates as possible. The research and development team has put a lot of effort into developing state-of-the-art online systems for registration of students, exam management and result processing, as well as new online assessment solutions which we will be in a position to present to you very shortly. The examination administration team has been working seven days a week to make sure that we can offer our exams six times a year, in multiple locations, with a registration deadline that is only twenty days before the date of the exam itself. The customer service team has been on duty twelve hours a day seven days a week to make sure all your calls are answered promptly and you get all the information that you need as soon as you need it. We now feel that our efforts have been rewarded to a large extent: In 2009, tens of thousands of students took part in our exams in 50 locations all over Greece. 60 authorised examination centres, including the largest foreign language school chains, are working closely with us to offer the best examination experience to their students. The City & Guilds Teachers Club, which offers members educational support as well as practical help with registering students for our exams, now has more than 8,000 members and is still growing. Most major publishers of EFL educational material have now produced practice tests and other practice material for teachers and students. It is, I think, clear, that after almost two years of hard work on our part, and thanks to the support of teachers and schools all over Greece, the City & Guilds exams are here to stay. This is perhaps not surprising, in view of the advantages they offer; let s remember a few of them: The City & Guilds exams are available six times a year to suit all course design needs. Registration is up to 20 days before the date of each examination. Results come out 4 weeks after the examination date. The IESOL exams comprise a single paper which lasts between 2 and 3 hours depending on the level; learners are allowed to use a monolingual dictionary during the exam. The ISESOL exams are completely independent of the IESOL exams. This Newsletter represents an attempt on our part to have even better communication with teachers in Greece. We hope you will enjoy it and we look forward to your feedback and your contributions. George Vassilakis, Academic Director T V 3

4 Issue 1 September 2009 Απλά Μαθήµατα Σχολικής Ψυχολογίας > Στρατηγικές Μελέτης Teachers Καθηγητής: Πάλι τα µισά έκανες, Λαµπρόπουλε; Μαθητής: Κύριε, δεν πρόλαβα. Καθηγητής: Γιατί δεν πρόλαβες; Πέντε σελίδες από το βιβλίο είχαµε µόνο. Μαθητής: εν θυµόµουν τι είχαµε, κύριε, και µπερδεύτηκα. Μαµά: Ακόµα δεν τελείωσες την Ιστορία, ήµητρα? ήµητρα: Μα είναι πολλά! Μαµά: Έχεις 20 σελίδες ιστορία να µάθεις γιατί έχετε διαγώνισµα. ήµητρα: Πώς θα τα µάθω εγώ όλα αυτά? Εσύ δηλαδή τα ξέρεις? Ως καθηγητές αναθέτουµε στους µαθητές µας κατ οίκον εργασία και ως γονείς στέλνουµε τα παιδιά µας στο δωµάτιό τους να διαβάσουν. Τους έχουµε διδάξει όµως πώς να µελετούν; Για την καλύτερη λειτουργία του εγκεφάλου απαιτούνται περίπου 6-8 ώρες ύπνου το βράδυ. Οι πρωινές ώρες προσφέρονται καλύτερα για µάθηση που έχει σχέση µε γεγονότα, λεπτοµέρειες και καινούριες έννοιες. Το απόγευµα είναι καλύτερο για επαναλήψεις και για µάθηση γνώσεων που απαιτούν κρίση και περιέχουν λιγότερες λεπτοµέρειες. Η βραδινή µελέτη συγκρατείται καλύτερα στη µνήµη, όταν την ακολουθεί αµέσως µετά ο ύπνος, παρά όταν παρεµβάλλεται άλλη δραστηριότητα. Η στάση του σώµατος κατά τη µελέτη πρέπει να είναι όσο το δυνατόν όρθια. Το σκύψιµο περιορίζει την άνετη αναπνοή και την καλή κυκλοφορία του αίµατος. Η γυµναστική αυξάνει την εισδοχή οξυγόνου στον εγκέφαλο. Αποτέλεσµα οι γρηγορότερες αντιδράσεις και η βελτίωση της µνήµης και της σκέψης. Η διατροφή πρέπει να είναι κανονική. Το άκουσµα της µουσικής (χωρίς στίχους) εµψυχώνει, ενεργοποιεί το νου ενώ ταυτόχρονα µειώνει το άγχος. Εσείς έχετε στρατηγική µελέτης; Οδηγίες για τη µελέτη ενός βιβλίου: ξεφυλλίζουµε το βιβλίο ορίζουµε την ποσότητα ύλης και χρόνου (πόσα έχω να µάθω και πόση ώρα έχω στη διάθεσή µου) ρωτάµε τι θέλουµε να µάθουµε (αναζητούµε κάποιες πληροφορίες από το κείµενο; χρειάζεται να µάθουµε κάποια βασικά σηµεία; απαιτείται να το αποµνηµονεύσουµε;) ρωτάµε τι ξέρουµε ήδη για το θέµα, ώστε να το συνδέσουµε µε προηγούµενες γνώσεις µας Όταν µελετάµε κρατάµε σηµειώσεις, κάνουµε σχεδιαγράµµατα και υπογραµµίζουµε τις λέξεις κλειδιά. Με τον τρόπο αυτό καλλιεργούµε την αφαιρετική µας σκέψη, κερδίζουµε χρόνο κάνοντας τις επαναλήψεις µας από τις σηµειώσεις, και γράφοντας τις σηµειώσεις µε δικά µας λόγια, τις θυµόµαστε καλύτερα. 4

5 3. Μνήµη: Χρησιµοποιείτε διάφορες τεχνικές για να θυµάστε πληροφορίες (οµοιοκαταληξία, ακρωνύµια, ακροστιχίδες ); Ανακαλείτε εύκολα τις πληροφορίες που γνωρίζετε, όταν γράφετε διαγώνισµα; 4. Επικοινωνία: Μπορείτε να ζητήσετε βοήθεια από τους καθηγητές σας, όταν τη χρειάζεστε; Μπορείτε να ζητήσετε βοήθεια από τους συµµαθητές σας, όταν τη χρειάζεστε; T V 5. Αντιµετώπιση άγχους: Αισθάνεστε ότι, αν θέλετε, µπορείτε να τα πάτε καλά στο σχολείο; Ξέρετε τεχνικές που σας βοηθούν να χαλαρώσετε και να ηρεµήσετε; 1. Οργάνωση: Έχετε οργανωµένα τα τετράδια και τα υλικά που χρειάζεστε για να µπορείτε εύκολα να τα βρείτε; Τηρείτε ένα πρόγραµµα διαβάσµατος; Τηρείτε ένα γραπτό πλάνο για τις εργασίες που έχετε να κάνετε; 2. Κατανόηση-Σηµειώσεις: Καταλαβαίνετε τι διαβάζετε στα βιβλία του σχολείου; Μπορείτε να κάνετε περίληψη µε δικά σας λόγια από κάτι που διαβάσατε; Μπορείτε να υπογραµµίσετε τις λέξεις-κλειδιά σε ένα κείµενο; Μπορείτε να ζητήσετε βοήθεια από τους συµ- µαθητές σας, όταν τη χρειάζεστε; Η έσποινα ηµητράκη είναι αριστούχος απόφοιτος του Τοµέα Ψυχολογίας και του Τµήµατος Φιλοσοφίας-Παιδαγωγικής-Ψυχολογίας του Πανεπιστηµίου Αθηνών. Είναι κάτοχος του µεταπτυχιακού τίτλου Σχολικής Ψυχολογίας και υποψήφια διδάκτωρ του Πανεπιστηµίου Αθηνών ως υπότροφος του ΙΚΥ. Αποτελεί µέλος του Πανελληνίου Ψυχολογικού Συλλόγου. Συνεργάζεται µε εκπαιδευτικούς οργανισµούς και εκδοτικούς οίκους στον σχεδιασµό, οργάνωση και διεξαγωγή σεµιναρίων. Συµ- µετέχει σε ευρωπαϊκά και διεθνή επιστηµονικά συνέδρια. > Publishers Thank You The City & Guilds Academic team would like to thank the publishers who have brought out preparation material for our exams. Andrew Betsis ELT Burlington Books Express Publishing Litera Boukouvalas New Editions - Cengage Learning 5

6 Issue 1 September 2009 Inside City & Guilds > Our Team Teachers George Lampropoulos, Academic Associate George Vassilakis, Chryssa Klonari, George Lampropoulos has studied Literature and Applied Linguistics. He Academic Director Academic Associate has worked as a teacher of English George Vassilakis has studied Philosophy, Literature and Linguistics and has worked in Chryssa Klonari has studied Literature, Linguistics and Management. and Business English for several years as well as a linguistics instructor in universities and colleges. George has the field of English Language Teaching since Chryssa started her career as a he was in his late teens. With a background translator for the European Committee and she had worked as a Gen- preparation courses for language also been a tutor on ASEP exam in examining, teacher training and academic management, he joined the City & Guilds team in Athens in 2007 as Academic Director of the International English Qualifications. George has written more than twenty ELT eral English and Business English instructor and examiner for 10 years, before she joined a well known chain of language schools as Head of the teachers and has written practice tests books. His duties involve the content development of the City & Guilds exams as well as academic personnel books, most published by Heinemann ELT English Language Department. training and evaluation. and Macmillan, and is an approved CELTA and DELTA trainer. He has presented more than 50 papers at national and international conferences and has published articles in most major journals. Chryssa has recently joined City & Guilds as Academic Associate; her responsibilities include coordinating academic support for schools and teachers, presenting on teacher development seminars and workshops as well as driving forward the City & Guilds Teachers Club. Jenny Zacharopoulou, Chief Examiner Jenny Zacharopoulou has a degree in Literature, a Diploma and a Master in Teaching English. She has worked as a teacher of English, author, editor and publisher of English Language Teaching books. She joined City & Guilds in Greece in July 2005 and since October 2007 she has undertaken the position of Chief Examiner. Her responsibilities include working with a team of markers to oversee the marking of examinations and to ensure that standards are maintained and procedures properly applied. Christina Kyrka, Director of Administration Examination Department With over 30 years of experience in our field, Christina Kyrka is an important addition to the City and Guilds team. In her new role as the Director of the Examination Administration Department, Mrs Kyrka will be managing a large team of people working on the administration of the exams, ensuring that we continue to offer a high quality service to candidates, teachers and language schools. 6

7 > City & Guilds Teacher Development Seminar Days The academic department has planned the next cycle of teacher development seminars that will help you prepare your students more effectively for the exams they are about to take. Seminar Programme City & Guilds English Exams: What s New? Coffee Break This presentation looks at the structure and content of the City & Guilds IESOL (written) and ISESOL (spoken) exams at all levels and focuses on the changes that have recently been introduced in certain aspects of the examinations as well as the marking criteria for all levels. Participants will see how the exams have evolved to become fairer and friendlier and will get a free pack of practice material for their students, including books that several publishers have now brought out to support your exam preparation courses. T V Writing: How to Give Feedback and Help your Learners Write Better Research suggests that the most important factor contributing to writing skills development in a foreign language is the amount and quality of feedback students receive on the texts they attempt to write. In this workshop we will explore different ways of giving feedback on writing, focusing both on level of performance and on the process of producing written texts. Participants will get a correction and feedback kit that can be used for different genres of writing at different levels to give students a clear idea of where they stand and how they can improve. Seminar Schedule Town Date Venue Ioannina Tuesday, 1 September 2009 Hotel Grand Serai Arta Wednesday, 2 September 2009 Hotel Vyzantino Agrinio Thursday, 3 September 2009 Hotel Alexander Xanthi Tuesday, 15 September 2009 Hotel Cazino Kavala Wednesday, 16 September 2009 Hotel Egnatia Drama Thursday, 17 September 2009 Hotel Kouros Serres Friday, 18 September 2009 Hotel Elpida Resort Kozani Saturday, 19 September 2009 Hotel Ermionio Thessaloniki Sunday, 20 September 2009 Hotel Mediterranean Larissa Monday, 21 September 2009 Hotel Imperial Volos Tuesday, 22 September 2009 Hotel Xenia Lamia Wednesday, 23 September 2009 Hotel Samaras Athens Saturday, 26 September 2009 Hotel Imperial Patra Tuesday, 29 September 2009 Hotel Vyzantino Kalamata Wednesday, 30 September 2009 Hotel Pharae Rhodes Saturday, 3 October 2009 Hotel Mediterranean Herakleio Wednesday, 7 October 2009 Hotel Lato Chania Thursday, 8 October 2009 Hotel Akali Kerkyra Saturday, 10 October 2009 Hotel Ariti Among other material, all teachers will receive the City & Guilds Handbook for Teachers accompanied by a DVD and sample copies of books to help them prepare students for the City & Guilds exams as well as a certificate of attendance. 7

8 Issue 1 September 2009 Latest News > More Support for Teachers > IESOL Scoring becomes City & Guilds Handbook for Teachers friendlier and fairer The academic department of City Teachers & Guilds has produced a handbook for teachers to help you prepare students for the City & Guilds exams. As a result of the alignment of the The City and Guilds Handbook for is divided into three parts: IESOL & ISESOL exams to the Common European Framework of Refer- the City & Guilds background information chapter includes information on the content and overview of the IESOL and ISESOL exams along with other useful information for ence for Languages, City & Guilds teachers and is accompanied by an audio CD has announced new marking criteria the City & Guilds Writing chapter includes a description of the writing parts of the exam, effective as of May 2009 for the the analytical scale for marking and samples of writing tasks IESOL (written) examination. the City & Guilds Speaking Test Videos chapter includes sample interviews as well as the assessment criteria for the ISESOL exam and is accompanied by a DVD According to these, marks are aggregated, so that a candidate may be awarded a pass even if she narrowly fails one of the three parts (listening, > Examination Dates As always, you can register students online, by visiting or by filling in an application form and mailing it to us. Examination Date On-line Registration Registering by Mail October August-28 September 31 August-21 September December October-23 November 26 October-16 November January 2010 to be announced to be announced March 2010 to be announced to be announced May 2010 to be announced to be announced reading, writing) of the exam. In more detail, according to the new scoring criteria, if a candidate narrowly fails one part of the exam but passes the other two parts, then she will pass the IESOL exam. Candidates who fail one part of the exam and candidates who narrowly fail or fail two or more parts, will not pass the exam. City & Guilds Support Centre We take pride in our state-of-the-art telephone suppport centre. 30+ people are always there to take your calls. Our Support Centre is open from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm every day, seven days a week, on Dimitra Staikou and Dimitris Kalavris, City & Guilds customer service & support agents, at the 2009 TESOL Convention in Athens 8