Winter PD Conference

Saturday February 6, 2016

Albert Street Education Centre440 Albert Street

On-site parking between Laurier and Slater Street

Members/ Students $20

Non-Members $30

Schedule at a Glance

8:30 – 8:55 Registration (light refreshments available)

8:55 – 9:05 Opening Address

9:05 – 10:20 Plenary Speaker

“Up Close and Personal: Immigration and integration”Denise Chong

10:20 -10:30 Break10:30 – 12:00 Workshops (choose one of four)

12:00 – 12:30 Light Lunch

12:30 – 2:00 Workshops (choose one of four)

www.teslottawa.com

(Online Registration closes Wed. Jan. 27, 2016, after this date on site registration only)

Workshop Details

Plenary Address

“Up Close and Personal: Immigration and integration”Denise draws on her published works to put a human face on the immigrant’s aspirations for a new life and on their early experience in a new land.

Denise Chong is an internationally published, award winning author of four books, set around the globe and ultimately, Canada: The Concubine’s Children, called “beautiful, haunting and wise” by the New York Times Book Review and a Globe and Mail bestseller for 93 weeks; The Girl in the Picture, about the napalm girl of the Vietnam War; Egg on Mao, about the tragedy of China’s one-child policy for a bus mechanic, that led to his defiant act in the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests; and most recently, Lives of the Family, linked stories exploring the arc of heartbreak and triumph in immigrant families who

left China for small town Canada, ending up in settling in and around Ottawa and typically, running the lone Chinese cafe in town. Denise lives in Ottawa. She began her working life as an economist, going on to become the economic policy advisor to then prime minister Pierre Trudeau in his last mandate, after which she turned to writing. In 2013, she was named an Officer of the Order of Canada.

A.M. Sessions

Session AThe Art of Learning the Science of LearningPresenter: Mohammad HashemiIn this workshop we will look at current cognitive and educational psychology research into common learning techniques that work and those that are practically ineffective. Participants will then put some of these findings to the test through both interactive and individual exercises. The workshop will help us teach more effectively and will enable us to guide our students toward becoming better learners.

Mohammad Hashemi is a teacher, editor, translator and author of several books including Famous Canadian Authors: Developing English Skills (2008), Formidable French: False Cognates in French and English (2010), O Canada: Integrated Skills through Canadian Music (2011), Reel Canada: Integrated Skills through Canadian Film (2012) and Communicating with Grammar 3: Skills for Life (2014). He has been coordinating and teaching English for more than two decades in Asia and North America He currently teaches ESL at La Cite collegiale in Ottawa, Ontario.

Session BTeaching Languages CreativelyPresenter: Marlaina Riggio “The most valuable resource that teachers have is each other. Without collaboration, our growth is limited to our own perspectives.” Robert John MeehanParticipants share and /or demonstrate one unique activity or teaching technique that they have successfully implemented in their English courses. Each participant is asked to bring the following: Ten (10) copies of a one-page description of their creative activity and /or teaching technique. This page should include what you do ( a set of instructions), why you do it, and why it’s successful.Participants may also wish to share their activity or technique using Google Docs:

Marlaina Riggio began her love affair with teaching 10 years ago. After completing her Bachelors in French Studies in Toronto, Canada, she spent a year abroad teaching English as a Second Language to learners of all ages in Seoul, South Korea. She then went on to pursue her Masters in Education to further her understanding of second language teaching and acquisition. Currently, Marlaina is a full-time English professor at La Cite in Canada’s capital city. Since then, she has been an integral part of several curriculum development initiatives, including the creation and implementation of two new hybrid English courses. Additionally, she has developed an online English community for faculty members in order to facilitate communication and sharing of resources. Marlaina’s teaching style nourishes the hidden strengths of her students while challenging them to reach beyond their perceived limitations. Her meaningful authentic lessons help students improve their English communication skills. You will leave her classes feeling inspired and confident.

Session CTeaching Collocations: Overcoming ThresholdsPresenter: Olga MakininaWhat is the best way to teach fixed word combinations with inexplicable relations between their components? How to help adult ESL learners understand why we say 'heavy smoker' instead of 'hard smoker', and 'strong tea' but 'powerful car'? In order to develop an effective collocation-teaching methodology, it is important to determine what exactly impacts collocation acquisition and makes collocations difficult to learn. In this workshop, we will examine intra- and extralinguistic factors that might influence collocation acquisition and, consequently, the choice of teaching and testing strategies. We will also discuss communicative, lexical, and blended teaching approaches.

Olga Makinina has been teaching ESL and EFL at the university level in Canada, the USA, and Eastern Europe. She is currently a doctoral student in the Applied Linguistics and Discourse Studies program at Carleton University. Her research interests include formulaic language acquisition and ESL writing.

Session DLife in a Flipped ClassroomPresenter: Chris SmrkeThis presentation will discuss the presenter’s use of the “Flipped Classroom” model in his own teaching, specifically using self-made videos in a grammar classroom. There will be a discussion of this method’s core concepts, benefits, and shortcomings both in general and specifically found by the presenter through experience. Participants will be encouraged to share their ideas and experiences as well as help think of ways to overcome some of the shortcomings discussed. The second section of the presentation will talk about ways to make your own videos with a minimum of time, effort and cost. It will include some tips and tricks useful in the filming process that the presenter has discovered and implemented, including; necessary materials and tools to get started, free ways to modify your video, filming tips, free services to improve the ease-of-use and value for your students.

Chris Smrke is a Lead Teacher and Counselor at English School of Canada and a distance educator working for the LINC Home Study program. He always looks for ways to include technology in the classroom and also help students gain autonomy over their own learning both in and out of the classroom.

P.M. Sessions

Session AE-Portfolios to Foster Autonomy in Pronunciation Presenter: Jennifer St.JohnThe use of E-portfolios with advanced-level ESL learners who seek to improve their pronunciation motivates learners to develop specific self-monitoring and self-correction strategies, while furthering their understanding of the sound system. The pedagogical and practical aspects of an e-portfolio used in a dedicated pronunciation course will be demonstrated through student exemplars.

Jennifer St.John teaches in the University of Ottawa ESL credit program and focuses her attention on teaching oral communication skills and specifically teaching pronunciation to advanced ESL learners.

Session BIELTSPresenter: Cheryl D’SilvaSummary: In this workshop you will gain an insight into the exacting nature of an IELTS Test of English Language Proficiency and how to better help your students to prepare for it.

Cheryl has an MA in Applied Linguistics. She also holds a CELTA and DELTA. She has taught English at the British Council in Muscat and enjoyed running the Train the Trainer Course and IELTS Preparation Courses. She has worked at Algonquin College since 2013 and has been actively involved in administering the IELTS Exam, conducting IELTS workshops and training new invigilators. In her free time she enjoys spending time with her family.

Session CSyrian RefugeesPresenter: 613Refugee

More details to comes.

Session DIntegrating Personal Reflection and Storytelling in the ClassroomPresenters: Anna Bartoski & Huong LuSummary: This presentation focuses on personal reflections and storytelling. The learning process, enhanced through cognitive and transformative learning theories, will be outlined. We will each approach this topic from our own perspectives as LINC and ESL instructors. During the presentation, we will provide opportunities to discuss effective uses of storytelling through personal reflection, culminating in a discussion on SLL needs in diverse approaches. Get ready to build with us!

Anna Bartosik is a Sheridan College ESL Professor with 20 years in adult training, LINC, and ESL. Storytelling, classroom technology integration, and putting learning theories to practice engage Anna’s professional pursuits. She is working on her ID Certificate from Athabasca University and her MA at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education.

Huong Lu, a Sheridan LINC Professor, has 15 years in LINC/ESL. Her interests are in creating dynamic classrooms and fostering transformative learning through language coaching techniques, e-Learning tools, and learner reflections. She has certificates in Adult Ed., Language Coaching & Instructional Design and is currently working on her M.Ed at Athabasca University.