Students need to speak to learn a language and the more students talk, the more they learn. Not according to Professor Stephen Krashen. For 40 years he has championed the concept that what students should be doing in class is reading (and listening), not speaking. In this episode, Stephen tells Ross some of the arguments against forcing students to speak, something which might not just be inefficient, but in some cases counterproductive.
Is Your Training Making a Difference? (with Niamh Ryan)
My friend Niamh Ryan, joins me to talk about evaluating teacher training. How can you tell if your training is making a difference?
Remembering More, Forgetting Less (with Lesley Painter-Farrell)
In this episode, I had the privilege of speaking with Professor Lesley Painter Farrell about how we can help students retain more language lessons for the long haul. During the podcast, Lesley outlines the difference between short-term learning and long-term memory. We discuss evidence-based techniques teachers can implement to optimize retention. Lesley also shares some simple but effective techniques such as recycling content across lessons, building in reflection time, avoiding cognitive overload, and using retrieval practices. Listen now to uncover how we can help our students remember more.
How can Language Teachers Use AI?
Dave Weller joins the show to discuss the benefits and limitations of AI for teachers. Dave explains how AI can help automate administrative tasks and free up time for the more creative aspects of teaching. He also talks about how AI can help teachers in lesson planning, creating customized materials, and analyzing student performance data to differentiate instruction. We also talk about some of the limitations of AI and why it is important to treat AI as a tool rather than outsourcing everything to it.
Teacher Evaluation - A Double Edged Sword (with Professor Kathleen Bailey)
Professor Kathi Bailey joins us to discuss teacher evaluation. Teacher evaluation can do so much good, but it can also end up doing even more harm. Professor Bailey tells us about what supervisors can do to earn trust, why supervision and evaluation is important, and how everyone can make the most out of the process.
Young Learners Doing Communicative Tasks (with Annamaria Pinter)
Spoken and Written Academic English (with Paul Thompson)
Paul Thompson from Birmingham University joins me to talk about English for academic purposes. What is academic English? How much does it vary between subjects? How can teachers assigned to teach academic English figure out what to teach? Which activities from general English classes translate best to academic English classes? And asides from listening to lectures, what do university students need English for?
Using Corpora (with Michael McCarthy)
Professor Michael McCarthy joins me to talk about using corpora in language teaching. Mike tells us how teachers should use corpora when planning lessons, the advantages and disadvantages of showing corpora to students. We discuss how teachers can create their own corpora and how to use corpora to create better materials.
Top-Down and Bottom-Up Listening Strategies (with Jonathan Newton)
Effective Online Teacher Development (with Thom Kiddle)
Making Relevant Materials and Making Materials Relevant (with Ceri Jones)
Lesson Staging for Young Learner Classes
How to Use Stories in Class (with Dave Weller)
Deliberate Learning (with Jeremy Harmer)
Observing New Teachers (with Matt Courtois)
Episode 200! Best and Worst Common and Uncommon Teaching Practices
We talk to friends and experts and ask two questions about changes they’d like to see in classrooms: what common teaching practices would you like to see less? And, which less common teaching practices would you like to see more? Guests include Penny Ur, Karin Xie, Ian McGrath, Kathleen Baily, Donald Freeman, Rod Bolitho, Anne Burns and Tessa Woodward.
How To Get To Know Your Students (with Anne Burns, Thomas Farrell and Karin Xie)
I ask Thomas Farrell, Anne Burns and Karin Xie how teachers can better get to know their learners. We discuss classroom activities teachers can use, what it means to get to know your students, and other ways of collecting useful data about our learners.
What Motivates Teachers to Develop? (With Amol Padwad)
I speak with Amol Padwad from Ambedkar University Delhi about teacher motivation and teacher development. What incentives make sense for teachers at different stages of their career? What demotivates teachers from wanting to develop? And how can schools encourage all their teachers to develop without forcing them?