English Teacher Professional Development Distance Learning Program

Υπάρχει μικρή προθεσμία για όσους ενδιαφέρονται για τα courses του φθινοπώρου. Πρέπει να στείλουν email μέχρι την Πέμπτη 2 Αυγούστου ώρα 16:00.
Σαφώς και όσοι ενδιαφέρονται θα έχουν την ευκαιρία να κάνουν αίτηση αργότερα για τα courses του χειμώνα τηw άνοιξης και του καλοκαιριού. Θα επιλεγεί οπωσδήποτε κάποια-ος από τη Λέσβο για το φθινοπωρινό course. Δείτε το κείμενο που μας προώθησε ο Σχολικός μας Σύμβουλος κ. Οικονομίδης


The Office of English Language Programs (ECA/A/L) of the State Department announces the call for FY2012-13 E-Teacher nominations. E-Teacher online courses train foreign English teaching professionals in the latest U.S. methods of English language teaching via distance education (see below descriptions of the nine courses). Participation is open to teachers worldwide. The courses will be offered in the fall of 2012 and the winter, spring, and summer of 2013, though not all nine courses will be offered each term. Tuition and materials will be paid by ECA/A/L. Twenty-six of the E-Teacher course participants will be selected to attend a three-week professional development workshop in the U.S. in the summer of 2013. The deadline for submitting my nominations for the fall session is August 6, 2012. Candidates interested in participating should respond no later than Thursday August 2, 2012.
We may nominate a maximum of one primary candidate and four alternate candidates per course.

Participants are English teaching professionals who receive instruction in the most recent English language teaching methods and techniques, while also being introduced to American educational values. Participants use innovative distance learning technology to interact with U.S. experts.

Candidates for E-Teacher scholarships should be current teacher trainers or teachers. They should be highly motivated individuals who are dedicated both to their own professional development and to sharing the knowledge gained with colleagues through workshops or professional presentations. Candidates should also be committed to fulfilling the program requirements (dedicating on average 8- 10 hours of work per week) and completing the course. In addition, candidates should meet the following criteria:

English language skills:
--ability to do academic work at a U.S. university (an
advanced level of reading and writing, roughly equivalent to a
minimum TOEFL score of 525 or IBT score of 70);
--general understanding of technical terms in English relating
to computers and the Internet;
--good command of the necessary vocabulary for the course for
which the candidate is nominated.

Computer fundamentals:
--regular access to e-mail and the Internet
--ability to navigate in Windows or other appropriate programs
and create a Word document;
--basic familiarity with the Internet and web browsers;
--ability to type in English well enough to perform online
tasks in real-time and to submit written assignments in a
timely manner.

ECA/A/L will select candidates for the fall session by August 7, 2012.
ECA/A/L will select candidates for the winter session by October 15, 2012;

Nominees are requested to provide you their home address, e-mail and cell phone

Participant costs are covered through a cooperative agreement between ECA and the U.S. institution that conducts
the program. This includes tuition and the costs of any course materials sent from the institution, including CD-ROMs and
books, for each participant.

Course materials will include, but are not limited to, the following:

--downloadable or posted syllabi, assignments, and course
readings;
--asynchronous and/or synchronous contact between instructors
and participants, between other experts and participants, and
among participants;
--lectures via real-time, text, or audio-enhanced text;
--use of a bulletin board to post notes, assignments,
feedback, etc.;
--information on additional web-based resources;
--ECA/A/L resources for English teachers.


Participants who successfully complete the course will receive a certificate of completion directly from the course
provider (University of Oregon/University of Maryland)

Candidates may also download one-page course descriptions in for each of the 9 courses from the Office of English Language
Programs' website, located at:
http://exchanges.state.gov/englishteaching/ eteacher.html.
Note that this is a public site, and host country nationals may read and request information.

Individual course descriptions and criteria follow:

A. Introduction to Online Learning (Online Learning 5-weeks)
The goal of this 5-week course is to develop participants' knowledge and skills with the following tools and types of resources toward the goal of becoming
prepared for future online 10-week EFL teacher training courses. Final topics will be determined based on a pre-course needs assessment but will be EFL-oriented whenever possible with a focus on the following. - Email (e.g., netiquette, academic discourse, subject lines, signatures, greetings, closings, CC vs. BCC, attachments)
- File management (e.g., creating new files,
saving/naming, downloads, uploads) with a focus on MS
Word, Excel, PDF and web-based files
- Web: Searches, saves, evaluating resources, sources for
learning about intellectual property and citation
- Leading and taking part in online asynchronous
discussions (e.g., netiquette, academic discourse,
quoting others, building communities of practice). Join
and post to the E-Teacher Ning
- Setting up a Skype account and taking part in a
synchronous discussion

Requirements:
a. High Intermediate to Advanced English
b. Inexperienced or Experienced In-Service Teacher
c. Tech Illiterate
d. Works with children, youth, or adults.
e. Eligible for 10-week E-Teacher course in FY 2013

B. Practical Applications in Listening and Speaking Skills
(PALSS)
This course is designed to enhance:
- Speaking skills of participants in small group sessions
and with a weekly audio journal.
- Listening skills of participants in small group
sessions and with self-study activities.
- Teaching skills of participants in listening, speaking,
and pronunciation through readings and online
discussion, self-study activities, and their
participation in model lessons.
- Teaching networks by encouraging collaboration among
participants on weekly discussions, in small group
sessions, and with ongoing interaction through the
course social networking site (Ning).

Weekly components include:
- Small group meetings with the course instructor, who
will teach a model lesson and facilitate discussion
about the lesson (real time).
- Small group meetings with a conversation partner, who
will facilitate informal discussions (real time).
- Audio journal where participants reflect on what they
have learned each week.
- Self-study to improve listening and speaking skills
using online resources; participants record what they
did and their reflections in a self-study log.
- Reading and online discussion (asynchronous).
- Whole-group webinars at different times during the
course.
- Final project: a lesson plan that integrates new
methods and activities for teaching listening or
speaking.

Requirements:
a. Intermediate English (NOT Advanced)
b. In-Service Teacher
c. Tech Literate (knowledge of email, web browsers, and
file management)
d. Works with children, youth, or adults.

C. Introduction to Pedagogy and Practices for Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL Methods)
This course is designed to provide participants with current methodologies associated with teaching English language learners (ELLs) of different ages in various learning contexts. Participants will discuss and practice a wide variety of strategies and techniques for teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL). While exploring best practices for teaching English, participants learn how to create an effective and communicative language classroom for all ELLs. In addition, participants will examine what best practices means in the context of teaching English in the 21st century, where the use of English incorporates modern technologies.

Requirements:
a. High Intermediate to Advanced English
b. Inexperienced In-Service Teacher
c. Tech Literate (knowledge of email, web browsers, and
file management)
d. Works with children, youth, or adults.

D. Critical Thinking in Language Learning and Teaching (CT)
This course is designed to deepen participants' understanding of the theory and applied use of Critical Thinking principles and practices in the EFL classroom.
Innovations this year in the course include an overall deepening of student engagement in course content through the reorganization of course components plus the addition of new materials and reflective and collaborative activities. Ultimately, as a result of the changes, course participants have an even greater active learning experience and develop a greater level of autonomy.

Requirements:
a. High intermediate to advanced English
b. Inexperienced or experienced in-service teacher
c. Tech literate (knowledge of email, web browsers, and
file management)
d. Works with children, youth, or adults.


E. Building Teaching Skills through the Interactive Web (WebSkills)
Participants in this course deepen their understanding of the theory and applied use of Computers and Language Learning principles and practices in the EFL classroom. The course will model innovative online teaching practices, enable participants to understand and use appropriate technology to enhance learning outcomes for their students, and offer opportunities to share real-world applications of technology tools and practices. The course will provide educators with support and problem-solving mechanisms as they implement technology in their
local contexts. It will act as a train-the-trainers model so that participants can set concrete timelines and move forward during and/or after the course with concrete dissemination plans.

Requirements:
a. High intermediate to advanced English
b. Inexperienced or experienced in-service teacher
c. Tech literate (knowledge of email, web browsers, and
file management)
d. Works with children, youth, or adults.

F. Assessment: Summative and Formative Practices in Language Learning and Teaching (Assessment)
This course will involve participants with the theory and practice of the major components of assessment, with a particular focus on English as a Foreign Language (EFL) and addressing all four skill areas. Assessment topics covered include needs assessment, diagnostics, proficiency, achievement, formative, alternative, summative, standardized, strength-based, and differentiated modalities. Participants will also explore aligning assessment to behavioral objectives and course goals, giving learners effective and helpful feedback, developing rubrics and tests, evaluating assessment with item analysis, and looking at reliability and validity.

Requirements:
a. High intermediate to advanced English
b. Inexperienced or experienced in-service teacher
c. Tech literate (knowledge of email, web browsers, and
file management)
d. Works with children, youth, or adults.

G. English for Specific Purposes, Best Practices for Courses and Materials (ESP)
This online course will develop participants' skills in designing, implementing and evaluating English for Specific Purposes (ESP) courses based on best practices in the field. Because the foundation of this course is in best practices, new and experienced ESP practitioners are welcome from all areas of the field. Course participants may be addressing the needs of pre-experience learners (preparing to enter a specific discourse community) who
need English for Academic Purposes (EAP) for courses in specific disciplines in universities or Vocational English for Specific Purposes (VESP) for courses at
vocational and technical secondary schools. Other course participants might be focused on English for Occupational Purposes (EOP) courses in the business sector or other fields that are intended for pre-experienced or experienced learners already in the workplace who need English as a tool for their job. Participants create a personalized "ESP Toolkit," a folder on their own computer or external drive for documents and resources for use in creating and delivering their own ESP courses.

Requirements:
a. High intermediate to advanced English
b. Inexperienced or experienced in-service teacher
c. Tech literate (knowledge of email, web browsers, and
file management)
d. Works with secondary or post-secondary students.


H. Special Education and Differentiated Instruction in an EFL Context (SpEd TEFL)
This course is designed to be a survey of teaching methods that support learners with special needs within the context of the teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) classroom. Participants will read articles, analyze web-based resources, and discuss practices that provide teaching strategies for diverse learners with a wide variety of skills and varying levels of performance. The focus is placed on inclusive teaching models, with exploration of the current best practices. As a community of professionals, participants will engage in ongoing dialogue, sharing their experience, success and concerns in their teaching. A support system will be established with exposure to resources found within individual teaching communities and external locations such as online forums and information centers. Emphasis will be placed on the creation of a resource to take back for sharing among participants' local communities (e.g.,
classroom, schoolwide basis, parents or larger community).

Requirements:
a. High intermediate to advanced English
b. Inexperienced or experienced in-service teacher
c. Tech literate (knowledge of email, web browsers, and
file management)
d. Works with children, youth, or adults.


I. Teaching English to Young Learners (TEYL)
Students ages 5-10 are cognitively "primed" to acquire English in an integrated skills and content-based, experiential approach. Educators who understand the cognitive and social processes of language acquisition for Teaching English to Young Learners (TEYL) are better equipped to help learners while also creating a fun, positive environment. In many cases, TEYL educators in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) settings have limited time to reach their teaching goals and meet local requirements on the use of specific texts, tests or other materials. A low-resource environment can also pose challenges. In this course, participants explore solutions for such challenges through an overview of current research and "best" practices (always context- dependent) for TEYL, plus hands-on experimentation with a wide array of freely available online resources. Participants can also opt to identify resources and create final projects for teens ("pre-teens," ages 10- 12).

Requirements:
a. High intermediate to advanced English
b. Inexperienced or experienced in-service teacher
c. Tech literate (knowledge of email, web browsers, and
file management)
d. Works with primary students.




Feel free to contact me for additional information.

Best,

Dr Agapios Oikonomidis

Email: agapiosoik@yahoo.gr