Cambridge Day

Cambridge today

La partecipazione a questo evento dà diritto all'ESONERO MINISTERIALE. Cambridge University Press è un ente accreditato alla formazione del personale della scuola, secondo la Direttiva Ministeriale n. 90/2003 del Ministero dell'Istruzione, dell'Università e della Ricerca, con protocollo 12652 confermato con Decreto del 28.07.2008.

PROGRAMME

La giornata inizierà alle 8.30 e consterà di alcune sessioni plenarie durante la mattinata e di workshops pomeridiani, per terminare attorno alle 16.00 circa. Ci sarà la possibilità di incontrare i nostri consulenti e agenti e autori e visionare il nostro materiale didattico.

Ospite di eccezione sarà il Professor David Crystal.

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Plenaries and workshops

David Crystal
Pragmatics: the final frontier

It has taken language scholars a long time to realise the centrality of pragmatics - the study of the choices we make when we use language, and of the factors governing those choices. This talk illustrates the way pragmatic factors enter into everything we say and write, and are a crucial factor in explaining why people use language in the way they do.

Guy Brook-Hart
Thinking beyond exams

I shall argue that exams and qualifications are stages in education and should not be thought of as an end in themselves. Valid language exams reflect the real-world needs of students, academic life and employers and therefore both General English courses and exam preparation courses should develop the same critical thinking skills which are then manifested through critical reading, writing and speaking skills. During the talk I shall outline some critical thinking skills which are central to the successful language classroom and some approaches and practical classroom ideas for developing these skills which will equip students to think, work and study effectively beyond the specific exams they are taking.

Using the Learner Corpus to promote Learner Autonomy at B2 level

We look at the information which the Cambridge Learner Corpus gives us about typical mistakes by Italian learners and from there we go on to consider a variety of classroom activities designed to eliminate common errors and promote greater learner autonomy.

Brendan Wightman
Squaring the digital circle: how to locate new technologies within standard pedagogy

Nurturing the minds and imaginations of young people is the single-most important challenge that schools face, and the role of the teacher in this process is both integral and essential. The recent explosion in mobile computing devices and connectivity, however, has brought into question the dynamics of relationships, both in and outside of the classroom, and has generated debates about the process and outcomes of traditional instruction. In some countries this has translated into an ideological battleground where the future of schools and the role of the teacher have been the focus of ministry-led scrutiny and mass media speculation.

This presentation will attempt to make sense of some of the big questions prompted by technological change within a neutral context that excludes mass media rhetoric. It will reflect on the essential question of what we already know about teaching and learning, before analysing recent technological developments and framing their potentials within a knowledge base that is already familiar to teachers. It will be both theoretical and practical, and technological expertise is certainly not a prerequisite for teachers who attend.

Mobile projects: using free apps and authentic materials for exploratory project work

Mobile devices offer immediate and efficient access to both a vast quantity of authentic language resources and free creative software. With a tablet and internet connection it is possible to harness the potential of text, audio, video and thousands of images as part of exploratory project work. The free apps provide an option to organise and present the materials and work in an engaging way that can be shared and saved.

Sarah Ellis
Thinking Skills

The ability to think critically and solve numerical and spatial problems – are becoming increasingly important in international education today. This short, practical session will introduce some of the key concepts in thinking skills, and look at how they can be assessed. It also aims to show how thinking skills relate to academic success more generally and will give participants the opportunity to wrestle with some problems themselves!

Deborah J. Ellis
Think About the 20th Century! - Contemporary Literature and Culture for the Post-reform Classroom

Reform classes have entered their 5^ anno for the first time this year and many of us are thinking about how to adjust the content and style of our teaching to suit the Indicazioni Nazionali and to move forward, hand in hand, with other core disciplines such as Italian and History.

Be not afraid! The twentieth century might not be the period which we feel most comfortable with as English teachers but it hides a wealth of stimulating and engaging materials we can offer our students. How to form and shape the mass of possibilities into a meaningful syllabus? Ay, there's the rub!