In the current issue of Modern English Teacher...

Editorial

A note from the editor, Robert McLarty

Teacher development

The elephants in the classroom
Craig Thaine describes useful ways of involving students in teacher development by using their opinions and looking at the class through their eyes.

7 steps to effective peer observation
John Hughes describes ways of introducing peer observation to a school as part of regular PD.

Reflective practice: a process of discovery
Celine Kearney discusses the importance of reflection as a development tool.

21st century skills in ELT
Christopher Graham describes the importance of integrating 21st century skills into teacher training and development programmes.

Teacher Growth
Kat Robb discusses her own personal strategies for maintaining professional development.

Use it or lose it: how to activate professional knowledge
Kirsten Holt describes a 5 step process for activating and applying new ideas.

Sort activities in teacher training
Looking for a learner-centred activity for PD? Laura Hadwin describes some sorting and matching activities.

Virtual mentoring – a social and participatory approach
Lucas Krohnke looks at ways of setting up a successful and sustained mentoring programme.

How can I get better?
In the second of a series, Nick Michelioudakis looks at ways of self-improvement.

Teacher talking time
Brian Cooke looks back over his career and describes what topics continue to engage teachers in the staffroom.

Eliciting student voice
This article describes single question surveys which encourage students to make suggestions and seek advice as learners.

You can take them with you
Robert McLarty lists ten transferable skills we can take with us from the classroom.

Do you recharge yourself as much as you recharge your phone?
Ushapa Fortescue recommends taking good care of yourself if you want to retain a good level of professionalism.

Doable strategies for getting conference proposals accepted
Thu Tran offers ideas and a process for making sure your proposals are well prepared and well written.

But how do you know?
Luiz Otávio Barros describes questions to consider before and after teaching to improve your students’ learning.

Business English

Mastering the art of delegation in Business English
Ben Dobbs discusses the language and soft skills required to delegate in English.

Practical ideas

Embracing students’ cultural backgrounds
Jeffrey Wilang and Michelle Garcia present five review activities aimed at the quieter, more passive learner.

Inside out
Ally Shepherd describes some of the differences between real-world and classroom conversations and shows how we can get our students ready.

Supporting self-study
Clare Maas offers some approaches to self-study for large classes which allow for more learner-centred choices and activities.

If a picture paints a thousand words…
Some interesting activities based around galleries and museums for encouraging language development.

Methodology

Small teaching: motivating
In the last of a series Hall Houston and Andrew Starck discuss motivation techniques.

Teaching listening

Listening logs
Richard Cowen describes how to set up listening logs to encourage independent listening practice monitored by the teacher.

Teaching pronunciation

From being intelligible to being themselves: pronunciation for today
Robin Walker argues that every learner should aim for their own level of international intelligibility.

Teaching reading

Delving into literary texts
Irina Malinina describes how she tries to get her learners hooked on books.

Teaching vocabulary

The corpus-informed teacher
How can we use corpora? Gerard O’Hanlon offers some useful insights into these important tools.

Testing writing

A read to write approach:
testing writing in an EAP
programme
How two teachers set about making their writing assessment more reliable by introducing a reading element.

Giving feedback on writing
Hung Huang Le offers some ideas on raising students’ awareness on the importance of feedback.

Write a letter to your future
self
Jun KAI describes an activity to help develop writing skills through personalisation.

Assessment

Mediation: the fourth mode
of language activity
Ethan Mansur offers a fascinating insight into mediation and suggests ways we can develop this new skill in class.

Teaching English as a Lingua Franca
Russ Mayne

Pronunciation Card Games
Edward Alden

50 Tips for Teacher Development
Catherine Thorpe

Summary of books reviewed