Gwangju-Jeonnam KOTESOL April Chapter Meeting

Gwangju-Jeonnam Chapter Meeting - April

Time:  Saturday, April 12, 2014 (1:45-5:30 pm)
Place:  Chosun University (Gwangju), Main Building (본관), Room 4211.

Program
1:45 Sign-in and Meet-and-Greet
(Admission is free. Future membership is welcomed.)

2:00 PRESENTATION 1
>> Yielding the Floor: Tips and Techniques forStudent-Centered Teaching
Lindsay Herron (Gwangju National University of Education)

2:45 Refreshment Break

3:00 PRESENTATION 2
>> Utilizing Principles of The Montessori Method in the ESL Classroom
Seneca Ryan (Chonnam National University)

4:00 Swap-Shop Session
Everyone is invited to Share one of your Teaching Ideas, Classroom Activities, and ELT Games, Books, etc. (Participants include: Jocelyn Wright, Jeongsoon Park, Keri Onyeji...)

4:30 Announcements / Drawing for Door Prizes / Closing

!!!!! Reflective Practice SIG (Special Interest Group) Meeting (10:30 am to noon).

!!!!! Chapter Newsletter, April Issue, attached at far bottom of this webpage.

Presenter Abstracts and Biographical Sketches

Yielding the Floor: Tips and Techniques for Student-Centered Teaching
By Lindsay Herron

Presentation 1
A student-centered approach to teaching can help improve students’ motivation, retention, and confidence. It encourages active learning and moves the focus of attention from the teacher to the students, putting a priority on students’ thoughts and experiences. Student-centered teaching has been demonstrated to be more effective than the more traditional “banking” model of education, in which the teacher’s job “is to ‘fill’ the students with the contents of his narration” (Freire, 1970, p. 71). But what is student-centered teaching? How can teachers use it? This introductory workshop will provide teachers with a working definition, a possible framework, and practical tips and techniques for making their classrooms more student-centered.

The Presenter
Lindsay Herron has been a visiting professor at Gwangju National University of Education since 2008. Prior to that, she taught English at a boys’ high school in Jeju-do. She has a master’s degree in cinema studies from New York University, and is working on a master’s degree in language education from Indiana University-Bloomington.

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Utilizing Principles of The Montessori Method in the ESL Classroom
By Seneca Ryan

Presentation 2
Dr. Maria Montessori was one of the most widely known educational innovators of the early 20th century. Though the majority of her theories and methods have been confirmed by modern research, they go largely unused in schools and remain revolutionary even by today’s standards. In this presentation, we will be discussing the Montessori system of education and specifically two of the fundamental theories, movement and independence, which are central to all Montessori classrooms. We will explore how we can adopt these concepts in our ESL classes and look at a sample lesson, which incorporates both concepts. Though these practices can be used with any age group, we will be focusing mainly on young learners. Participants will come away with an introduction to The Montessori Method and ideas with which to better meet the needs of their students.

The Presenter
Seneca Ryan has been teaching at Chonnam National University in Gwangju since 2012. She received her MA in Education in 2008 with an emphasis in the Montessori pedagogy and continues her research in the history of education and international educational policy and reform. Prior to coming to Korea she lived and taught in Mexico, Germany, and the USA.   

Photo: View from the North (Left) Wing of the Main Building at Chosun University, the location of the April 12th Gwangju-Jeonnam Chapter meeting.