We are proud to present a selection of our teachers' work which has been published in respectable language teaching journals.

Hands on: Surviving (or Reviving) Revision

Hits: 5736

Δημοσιεύθηκε στο ηλεκτρονικό newsletter hyphen τον Ιανουάριο 2005

You have spent three months trying to get your students motivated, and into good habits. And just when you saw the first glimpses of progress, it’s the holidays …! Now you’re back into class hoping your students still remember some of what has been taught, while everybody sighs ‘ah, review time!’ Here are a few ideas to make review time a bit more fun. 

Read more ...

Επικοινωνία με το Κέντρο Ξένων Γλωσσών: Ο έλεγχος και η ημέρα γονέων στο ΚΞΓ

Hits: 6095

Δημοσιεύθηκε στο περιοδικό Parents Only τον Ιανουάριο 2005

Ο έλεγχος

Έφτασε η ημέρα των ελέγχων! Αλήθεια, θυμάστε την αγωνία όταν ήμασταν μαθητές; Και πώς θα τους πηγαίναμε σπίτι…! Από την πλευρά του γονέα, πλέον, αντιμετωπίζουμε διαφορετικά τα πράγματα. Ο έλεγχος, η βαθμολογία είναι ένα βασικό πρώτο βήμα στην ενημέρωσή μας για την πρόοδο του παιδιού μας στο κέντρο ξένων γλωσσών.

Κατά τη διάρκεια της φοίτησης του παιδιού σε ένα κέντρο ξένων γλωσσών, θα προσκληθείτε τουλάχιστον μία φορά το χρόνο να λάβετε έναν ‘έλεγχο’. Ο έλεγχος θα περιέχει τουλάχιστον μια βαθμολογία ως προς την απόδοση του μαθητή στις βασικές δεξιότητες:

Περισσότερα...

Hands-on by Patritsia Andrioti

Hits: 5098

Δημοσιεύθηκε στο ηλεκτρονικό newsletter hyphen τον Σεπτέμβριο 2004

Classroom warmers to stimulate interest’

Whatever the level and the lesson, it is always a great idea to start off the new academic year with a couple of warm-up activities to get the students to meet new class members (and perhaps, you as a new class teacher, too!), and to get them to communicate in English straight from the first lesson. It will also help break the ice after such a long break and of course, remind everyone how fun it is to learn English!

So, why don’t you try this few ideas, for a fun start to the lesson?

Read more ...

Who needs critical friends? by Patritsia Andrioti

Hits: 6213

Δημοσιεύθηκε στην κλαδική εφημερίδα ELT NEWS τον Μάιο 2004

It is true that ‘the art of teaching’ is a complex process that requires certain skills and techniques, and of course the ability to use them strategically and effectively. This ‘skill’, however, of becoming an effective and successful teacher also requires self analysis and feedback from others.

Professional development usually starts with initial training courses (pre-service or in-service) and is followed up with shorter seminars or courses, reading, personal effort and desire for improvement. How do you keep up professionally? How do you ensure your continuing development as a teacher throughout your years of work? Is it time then, you found a critical friend?

Read more ...

All PRO teachers pack and go! by Patritsia Andrioti

Hits: 5339

Δημοσιεύθηκε στην κλαδική εφημερίδα ELT NEWS τον Απρίλιο 2003

Spring is already knocking on the door and most of us are already counting down the days to the peace and quiet of the last weeks of the school year. Some of us have even started planning our summer holidays; September is a long five months away and a well-deserved break is just ahead, so don’t worry! Just think of what you are leaving behind; classroom stress, exams stress, syllabus stress, parents stress, financial stress, competition stress ... hmm … packing and going doesn’t seem like a bad idea, after all. However, are you sure you won’t face all this again come September? Will all the stress be blown away in the summer breeze?

Read more ...

BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU and winks knowingly (part II)

Hits: 6253

Δημοσιεύθηκε στην κλαδική εφημερίδα ELT NEWS το Μάρτιο 2002

Another winter evening in, comfortably sitting on my sofa with my lap top on my, well… lap, thinking of possible ways the popular TV ‘show’ can be adapted for our learners. As promised in the previous article, I should be providing you with a plan for organising possible activities.  Just to recap- the Big Brother TV programme had given me an idea that it could be easily adapted for our language classes. I made the association between the TV programme's contestants’ TBL (Task-Based Life) and TBL (Task-Based Learning) in ELT. The semi-real situations/tasks that we could devise for our students are unlimited and could provide us with the golden key to the much-discussed authenticity issue in language classes. So how can we develop BB tasks and what’s their value?

Read more ...

BIG BROTHER'S WATCHING YOU and winks knowingly!

Hits: 5336

Δημοσιεύθηκε στην κλαδική εφημερίδα ELT NEWS τον Δεκέμβριο 2001

The idea

So here I am comfortably sitting on my sofa waiting for the Big Brother 'show', wondering whether our everyday heroes have managed to succeed in their weekly mission. Just let me get a nice cuppa and then I can satisfy my nosiness, a secret intruder in their TBL. Now, wait a minute, did I just say TBL? Has BB got an educational value after all?!

So I thought about it for a moment and the answer is that the programme per se probably not, but it certainly can spring ideas to all inquiring language teachers. I have two words for you: motivation and authenticity. Now, I'm thinking of buzzing classes, student-to-student interaction patterns, co-operation… 'So where does BB fit in?' you'll ask quite rightly. Well, the show's participants lead a TBL (Task-Based Life) that we can adapt for our students in TBL (Task-Based Learning). Get it?

Read more ...