telc English!
telc at IATEFL Birmingham: Language and Migration
An exciting IATEFL conference, from April 13 to 16 in Birmingham, has come to an end. With a total of 8 workshops and 4 events, telc English! made an impressive contribution at this year’s IATEFL. Once again, telc was one of the key exhibitors at the conference.
For the opening ceremony, Mayor Peter Feldmann sent his greetings to Frankfurt’s twin city Birmingham, speaking about the importancy of language and migration. The partnership between Birmingham, a multi-cultural city itself, and Frankfurt was established in 1966, so not only IATEFL was celebrating its 50th conference this April: The twin cities Birmingham-Frankfurt celebrate their 50th anniversary, too!
To expand on the topic, as an immigration expert and in light of the current political situation, telc highlighted the subject migration and language in its signature event. Participants debated the question: How much language really is needed for participation in society? At the telc stand, delegates from all over the world joined the discussion during tea time in our cosy reading corner, where not only our dual-level examinations and the telc Online Placement Test but also our materials for teaching migrants and our English Practice Material were of great interest.
We were overwhelmed by the number of delegates who showed interest in our workshops. Here is a brief introduction of our experts and their workshop topics at the IATEFL 2016:
• Jenny Giambalvo, Volkshochschule Kassel: Self-marketing for English teachers - use your strength for competitive advantage
• Mia Aghajari, Volkshochschule Köln: Digital activities as in-class games: combining game-based learning and e-learning
• Diana Metzner: Deaf-blind to Inclusion? Adapting examinations fairly to disabled candidates
• Alexandra Haas, Volkshochschule Rhein-Sieg: Into the Mind – how to teach vocabulary effectively
• Thom Jones, English Consultant: Sentiment on the syllabus?! The value of harnessing emotional intelligence in language learning
• Suzanne Vetter-M'Caw, telc examiner and author: "Fiero" and "Naches" in Language Learning
• Simon Banwell, Volkshochschule Berlin: Pain or Pleasure? Using video in the classroom
• Laura Edwards and Sean McDonald, telc experts and authors: The gap between classroom and online learning – closing the circle
We thank the IATEFL board for having chosen our experts to give a presentation or workshop.
Not to forget, also in 2016, the telc bike team was covering miles for charity. Together with Gary Motteram from IATEFL, English expert Thom Jones and cyclist Julian Sayarer covered the 258 km journey from the Welsh National Writing Centre in Ty Newydd to the IATEFL annual conference in Birmingham in 4 days, collecting funds for IATEFL projects, an impressive sum of over £ 4,500 in total. You can still help, too: Go to gofundme.com and donate to support IATEFL projects!
To get an impression of the vibrant programme at the 50th IATEFL, view the pictures and articles about the conference at www.telc.net/iatefl and in our media gallery!