ELTA Newsletter: September-October 2016

ELTA

ISBN 1820-9831 (ONLINE)

NEWSLETTER SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2016

WWW.ELTA.ORG.RS

VOL. 10 NO. 5

ELTA Newsletter • September - October 2016 • Volume 10, No. 5

ELTA Newsletter ISSN 1820-9831 (Online) ELTA – English Language Teachers’ Association Nemanjina 28, 11000 Belgrade Serbia + 381 (0) 63 210 460 + 381 11 36 11 644 ext. 110 elta.kancelarija@gmail.com Olja Milošević, ELTA President serbia.eltapresident@gmail.com

Editor-in-Chief: Maja Jerković, Vocational Medical School, Zrenjanin, Serbia Co-editors: Milena Tanasijević, English Language Lecturer, Belgrade Metropolitan University, Serbia Branka Dečković, Vocational Medical School, Kragujevac, Serbia Milica Prvulović, PhD candidate, Faculty of Philology, University of Belgrade, Serbia Zorica Đukić, The School of Pharmacy and Physiotherapy, Belgrade, Serbia Bojana Nikić Vujić, MA, The School of Pharmacy and Physiotherapy, Belgrade, Serbia Vicky Papageorgiou, ESL Instructor, Metropolitan College, Thessaloniki, Greece Proofreaders: Milena Tanasijević, English Language Lecturer, Belgrade Metropolitan University, Serbia Zorica Đukić, The School of Pharmacy and Physiotherapy, Belgrade, Serbia Vicky Papageorgiou, ESL Instructor, Metropolitan College, Thessaloniki, Greece Editorial: Vicky Papageorgiou, ESL Instructor, Metropolitan College, Thessaloniki, Greece Milena Tanasijević, English Language Lecturer, Belgrade Metropolitan University, Serbia Cover designer:

Marija Panić, ELTA - English Language Teachers’ Association, Belgrade, Serbia Website: http://elta.org.rs/elta-newsletter/ Send your submissions electronically to: newsletter.elta@gmail.com

The authors bear full responsibility for the content of their articles.

ELTA Newsletter is published bi-monthly.

Send your submissions electronically to: newsletter.elta@gmail.com

Dear readers, September is already over, schools have already welcomed their students back and it’s this time of the year that we also welcome you back and wish you a yet another great school year! The truth is that we have not stopped working trying to make sure that we have some interesting articles for you to read. So here we go!

We know you loved the first two chapters so now we are ready for the 3​rd chapter of ​Ken Wilson’s​ novel, ​The Duke’s portrait, ​ in the ​Creative Corner​!

In our ​Feature Article ​section​, ​Adina Demetrian writes about her Erasmus Plus project about key competences for the future European citizens.

The ​Bookworms ​section has been busy, too. This time we have two great books reviewed. One is ​Marjorie Rosenberg’s ​Creating Activities for Different Learner ​ Types , reviewed by ​Teresa Carvalho (Brasil) and the second one is ​Film in Action by ​Kieran Donaghy​, reviewed by ​Vicky Papageorgiou​.

In ​First Aid Kit ​Jana Živanović ​talks about ​Dance and Language Teaching and how to boost a positive self image while ​Dragana Andrić ​tells us all about using drama techniques in ESL teaching and the benefits of it.

In ​ESP for Life ​Vesna Gregec, Svetlana Todorović and Stevan Mijomanović ​discuss the challenges of teaching medical language through all educational levels.

In the ​Borrowed From Section, ​Dr. Christel Broady presents some essential steps we need to consider when flipping the classroom.

For the ​Students’ Corner​, we can read ​Konstantinos Mavrommatis​’ essay, which was submitted to the 2016 student essay contest and Global Youth Forum of the United Nations where it competed with over 3000 other contestants.

As always, the ​Upcoming events ​is always here with announcements and news about ELT events for you to choose from.

Enjoy reading, ELTA Editorial Team

​ELTA Newsletter​ September ­ October 2016

UPCOMING EVENTS

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Conferences Webinars

CONFERENCES

* Call for papers still open for some of the conferences, check it out

✓ 25th IATEFL Poland Conference Date: 16­18 September 2016 Place: West Pomeranian University of Technology, Szczecin For more, follow the link: ​ IATEFL Poland

✓ 2nd Annual International SKA ELT Conference, Mind the Gap Date: 23­24 September, 2016.

Place: Košice, Slovakia

​ For more, follow the link: SKA Conference 2016

✓ Image Conference and 5​ ELT Malta Conference th​

Date: 6 ­ 8 October 2016.

​

Place: to be announced For more, follow the link: Image Conference & 5th ELT Malta Conference

✓ 26th International IATEFL Hungary 3D Conference Dimensions, Diversity and Directions in ELT Date: 7­8 October 2016

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​ELTA Newsletter​ September ­ October 2016

Place: University of Kaposvár, Hungary For more, follow the link: IATEFL Hungary

✓ International IATEFL Slovenia Conference, I Teach therefore I Learn Date: 9­12 March 2017 Place: Terme Topolšica For more, follow the link: IATEFL Slovenia

✓ HUPE Conference Date: 24 – 26 March 2017.

Place: Solaris Beach Resort, Šibenik For more, follow the link: HUPE Conference

✓ 51​st​ IATEFL Conference 2017 Date: 4­7th April 2017 (PCEs 3rd April) Place: Glasgow For more, follow the link: 51st IATEFL Conference 2017

✓ 15​th​ ELTA Conference Date: 19­20th May 2017 Place: Singidunum University, Belgrade For more, follow the link: 15th ELTA Conference

WEBINARS

✓ Macmillan webinars

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​ELTA Newsletter​ September ­ October 2016

Macmillan webinars

✓ OUP webinars OUP webinars

✓ SEETA Webinars SEETA Webinars ✓ NILE Webinars nile­elt

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Creating Activities for Different Learner Types: A book Review Reviewed by Teresa Carvalho, Cultura Inglesa, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil

Key words: Marjorie Rosenberg, learner types, learning styles, learning styles theories, book review, ESL teachers, materials writers, trainers, activities, teaching and learning theories, customization, self­study materials, instructions.

Marjorie Rosenberg’s latest book Creating Activities for Different ​ Learner Types, published by Waygoose Press, is not your typical resources book filled with one­size­fits­all classroom tasks for ESL learners. Rather, it is a ‘​how to’ book designed to help teachers and materials writers to unleash their imagination and create their own activities in order to cater for six different learning styles, as the author herself defines her latest book. Each section of this book functions as a building block that leads the reader from identifying different learner types among our students into creating activities and materials for these six different learners’ preferences and styles: Visual, auditory, kinesthetic emotional, kinesthetic motoric, global, and analytical learners. This book is neatly organized and accessible for both experienced and beginner ESL teachers and materials writers.

In her introduction, Marjorie Rosenberg explains that “most educators and writers tend to teach or write tasks in the way they themselves learn best,” so the idea is to rethink the materials we write and the lessons we deliver, ranging from self­study materials to

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more learner­friendly instructions, in order to make them more appealing to different learners . At the same time, we should add variety to our lessons based on the assumption that learners should be encouraged to stretch out of their comfort zones and adopt different strategies to learn a second language, if necessary.

To help the reader understand the applicability of the learning styles theory and what it entails in terms of concepts, classroom practice, and materials writing, ​the author presents seven tasks featured throughout the fifteen sections of the book. The reader is encouraged to draw on his or her own experiences to understand the way different learner types exhibit their learning styles and how to cater for them. Tasks include questionnaires to raise the reader’s awareness of which learner type he or she is, problem­solving activities, such as looking at activities and deciding which learner type they would appeal to, and deciding whether some beliefs about learning styles are true or false. Tasks that require background knowledge of learning styles are followed by commentaries to give the reader immediate feedback and to provide further information and clarification. The reader feels as if he or she were engaged in a conversation in which the author scaffolds the reader by gradually introducing new information so that he or she is ready before completing the next task.

In each one of the sections dedicated to the six different learner types, the author includes guidelines for giving instructions and personalized activities with clear and practical models of activities, such as ways to use storytelling with global learners, who respond well to the use of images and symbols to put a story together. For analytic learners, who like to see structure and detail about a topic, the author suggests word grids and magic squares, which are shown in detail. In these chapters the reader will find thorough explanations of how cards can be designed and used to help kinesthetic motoric learners learn vocabulary and how cooperative crossword puzzles can help kinesthetic emotional learners build confidence.

Section eleven, for example, helps teachers and materials writers quickly pinpoint the different activities for each learner type, e.g. Crossword puzzles suit visual learners while jigsaw reading suits auditory learners. However, as the author puts it, we should ensure a mix of activities throughout a class or a course so that all our learners’ needs are met.

Section twelve, which focuses on instruction giving, invites the reader to decide which instructions would appeal to each learner type and why, based on the choice of

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sensory­related words and language. Words such as ‘agree,’ ‘speak,’ and ‘draw,’ may impact on different learner types in different ways. In the task presented in section thirteen, the reader is invited to decide which type of ​learner the activities would appeal to most, and section fourteen features a task that involves deciding which types of activities for self­study would appeal to the different learner types. The glossary at the back of the book helps the reader with the newly introduced terms and their definitions.

It is easy to use and easy to understand.

Rather than prescribing activities and concepts, Creating Activities for Different Learner Types triggers self­reflection and empowers teachers and materials writers to make their own decisions based on their teaching situations and their learners. Ultimately, this book encourages us to stretch out of our comfort zone ourselves and try out a wider variety of activities with our students once we are introduced to the theory of learning styles and to different teaching and learning techniques. Theories should not be straight jackets; on the contrary, they should be viewed as a springboard for awareness raising and better understanding of second language learning. Ultimately, this book is not only about learners. It is also about us: it is about how we learn, how we teach, and how we write our materials.

Finally, the author wraps up her book with a heartfelt reflection on her own views of learning styles and a vivid account of her experience in the Learning Styles Institute in Seattle and how her experiences both as a teacher and a materials writer led her to

incorporate learning styles theories into her practice. It is an insightful reminder that one teacher’s journey can and should be inspired by others​, so here is your chance to be inspired. ***** Teresa Carvalho holds a B.A. in Linguistics and Delta Modules 1 and 2 Certificates. She is a teacher and mentor at Cultura Inglesa – a language institute in Rio de Janeiro and has presented at webinars and both at local and ​international Conferences including ABCI in Brazil and IATEFL. She is now pursuing a Specialization degree in English Language and contributes to Richmondshare.com, an ESL Teachers’ blog based in Brazil.

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Film in Action: Teaching Language Using Moving Images: A Book Review Reviewed by Vicky Papageorgiou, Metropolitan College, Thessaloniki, Greece Keywords :​ Kieran Donaghy, spectacle, film literacy, mobile devices, producing short films, critical thinking, creativity, cultural awareness, film integration in scholastic syllabus

Images dominate our lives. We see them around us every day, they have a powerful hold on us and they define us. In our image­saturated society and way of life, the spectacle is now the visible world itself, increasingly defining our perception of life itself, as Debord (1967) put it.

Film has long been a fertile field of the spectacle and one of our society’s most popular ones. Educators have not overlooked this fact but instead they tried to exploit it in multiple ways. A book that illustrates exactly this, in a practical as well as a ​ sophisticated way, is ​Kieran Donaghy ​’s ​‘Film in Action’, published for the ​DELTA Teacher Development Series.

The book is divided in ​3 sections.

Section A serves in a way as an introduction to the whole book­project. It sets the framework of what the author is trying to do, his beliefs, his aspirations, starting with the theoretical background of the role film has within society, education and language learning. He moves on to analyze film literacy in the twenty­first century and the educational benefits that can derive from creating films. He closes this chapter with suggestions about using film in the classroom which is followed by a short but important section where Kieran recommends several resources that educators can use should they require further reading. A quite comprehensive list of bibliographical references is also included in the very end of the chapter.

Section B is dedicated to more practical activities that teachers can use in the classroom. ​Chapter One presents a lot of communicative activities that encourage learners to watch films with a critical eye. ​ Hence the title ​‘Watching actively’! There are nearly 70 suggested activities which cover topics from making predictions, ordering scenes, identifying stereotypes to debating the conventions and aesthetics

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of TV ads, describing a visual poem and to looking at the importance of paralinguistic facts.

Chapter two​, called ​‘Actively Producing’ is a special one and one that distinguishes this book from others. The author, acknowledging the importance that mobile devices have nowadays in our everyday life, dedicates a whole section to a range of activities that can lead learners to produce their own short film texts outside or inside the classroom. ​Donaghy underlines also how inexpensive this is since all that the students need is a mobile device, which most of them already own.

Some of the best suggested activities are : ‘From sky to screen’, ‘A natural voice­over’, ‘Revoice’, ‘I am what I am….or am I’, ‘Linking up’, ‘60’’ descriptions’, and several others which encourage learners to be creative and resourceful.

The last section of the book, ​section C​, looks into the possibility of establishing film as an integral part of the scholastic syllabus rather than treating it as an add­on subject. In doing so, the author recommends four significant projects that schools can adopt : a ​Film ​ club, a Film circle, a Film course and a Film chronicle, all of which promote critical thinking, creativity and cultural awareness. In this section, ​Kieran Donaghy also gives organizational ideas on how to implement any of these projects in our schools.

What makes then this book special in English language teaching?

1. The theoretical framework that the book provides ▪

Kieran tries to frame a theoretical background in the most well rounded way this is possible because his aspiration is that film is fully integrated in the scholastic syllabus.

▪

The book is also quite well documented so that educators can use it easily as a reference book.

2. There is a very practical side of it.

▪

What is offered is a wide range of activities which, besides being quite easy to use, they also leave a lot of room to the teacher’s creativity and experimentation as they are not meant for a specific film/documentary each time. These are only suggestions and they can cater for different tastes/choices in films

▪

Finally, useful links are provided to facilitate the teachers’ search for suitable film clips or short films (e.g. pages 39, 48, 49, 50 and many more) or opening titles (p.36) and websites with ads (p. 38).

"What is essential is invisible to the eye", as ​de Saint Exupéry says (2000). Film, in fact, is one of those multifaceted media that because they are primarily the result of artistic expression, they can be open to multiple interpretations, making it a rather fascinating and challenging medium for educators and learners, among others of course. Kieran has obviously risen to this challenge!

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References ●

Debord, G.­E. (1967). ​The Society of the Spectacle. Retrieved from http://library.nothingness.org/articles/SI/en/pub_contents/4​ [accessed on 7/9/2016]

●

De Saint Exupéry, A. (2000). The little Prince. Florida : Mariner Books.

Vicky Papageorgiou ​is a foreign language teacher (English, Italian, Greek) with approximately 20 years of experience, mainly with adult learners. She holds an MA in Education (Open University of Cyprus) and an MA in Art (Goldsmiths College, UK) and she has just completed her PGCE in Technology Enhanced Learning at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David for. She studied in Greece, Italy and the UK but also participated in an international project for the McLuhan program in Culture and Technology for the University of Toronto, Canada. Her fields of interest are Technology enhanced learning, Art in ESL, critical thinking, Inquiry Based learning and teaching adults. She is currently based in Thessaloniki (Greece) working as an Adjunct Lecturer at Metropolitan College.

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EdTech in ELT: Flipping the Classroom—Essential Steps for Success

Used with permission from ​TESOL Connections,​ copyright 2016 by TESOL International Association. All rights reserved.

Dr. Christel Broady, Georgetown College, Kentucky

Keywords : ​flipping classrooms, educational technology, Personalized Learning, Grammar Translation Method, Audiolingual Method, Communicative Approach, Constructivism, 21st­century skills

On a very simplistic level, in a flipped classroom, students learn new concepts and materials outside of the school and apply them in the classroom. There is a common perception that teachers using this concept provide pre­teaching materials, videos, handouts, worksheets, and such to be completed alone and in isolation. Many teachers also believe that class time is used to let students do their homework. Some teachers are relieved not to have to create detailed lesson plans anymore. But, in reality, truly flipped classrooms require careful planning and preparation to create the most optimal learning environment at home and school.

Essential Components of Flipped Classrooms The International Society for Teaching in Education (ISTE) lists four components required for a flipped classroom: relationship building, personalized learning, passion­based learning, and project­based learning (Bergmann & Sams, 2015; See an excellent infographic on the ISTE website, “4 Signs You Have a Real Flipped Classroom.”)

1. Relationship Building Language and communication are more authentic when users have positive relationships with peers and teachers in their classrooms. It is easy enough to feel embarrassed when making mistakes, and a safe classroom allows for students to express themselves without fear of ridicule.

2. Personalized Learning Students learn in different ways and different paces from each other. Personalized learning opportunities address diverse learning styles and abilities. Teachers should complement lessons with personalized formative and summative assessments

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allowing students to demonstrate what they learned. After each lesson, teachers should know whether students have learned the material or skills or not. In language classes, this is easily done with authentic communication.

3. Passion­Based Learning Flipped language classrooms offer great opportunities to students to explore their passions in authentic communication that is high on Bloom’s Taxonomy level, thus creating deeper mastery of English.

4. Project­Based Learning PBL allows students to apply their skills hands­on within the context of real life situations, perfect for authentic English communication.

Flipped classrooms and English classes appear to be perfect companions, because they both seek to establish authentic and meaningful communication and products.

Language Pedagogy and How It Connects to Flipped Classrooms How we teach English classes is closely aligned with the way we were trained. How we were trained is a direct result of learning theories. Many teachers ground themselves in behaviorism, a way of conditioning students by providing a stimulus and soliciting a certain response. Some teachers adopt a method anchored in cognitivism, a learning theory that uses mental processing to reach learning outcomes. Another widely adopted learning theory is constructivism, which is a way of viewing learning as an active process, highly individualistic to each learner who has to create his or her personal outcome. (See Ertmer & Newby, 2013, for a comparison of these theories from an instructional design perspective.)

When considering a flipped classroom, it is important that you are aware of your pedagogical framework, which frames how you view teaching, learning, and the role of the classroom materials and the environment. Here are several major language learning methods and approaches: Grammar Translation Method Historically, this method is the most traditional way of teaching language studies.

Teachers plan a lesson around grammar rules, add a list of vocabulary, and then expect students to translate something. This method is based on reading and writing.

Audiolingual Method

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Contrary to the grammar translation method, the Audiolingual Method focuses heavily on listening and speaking. Prescribed dialogues and drills are in the center of instruction. Authentic communication is not the goal of this method—rather, it is that students master preset dialogues.

Communicative Approach The Communicative Approach seeks to build communicative competence. Therefore, it encourages lessons to be built on communicative functions and the process of communication, and students to meet tasks of social interaction.

Constructivism Constructivism bases instruction on how students learn. The focus drastically shifts from teacher actions to student ones. Constructivism is based on the assumption that each learner has a different experience of the world around him or her and thus connects to new learning situations in his or her personal way. Constructivist classrooms encourage active participation, creation of products, and the opportunity for each learner to create his or her knowledge. For students to be successful, teachers need to prepare a nurturing ​classroom environment and use spiraling and recycling strategies to allow all learners to connect with the materials.

Which pedagogy do you employ in your classroom? It is important to note that a flipped classroom has little chance of success unless you employ constructivist pedagogy.

Resources for Teacher Professional Development Teachers can find webinars, short articles, blog posts, and more to acquire skills needed. A good and reliable starting point is to visit the ISTE website and the TESOL International Association website. As in all teaching, lifelong learning is essential, and technology skills should be on top of the priority list for professional development to help teachers effectively relate to learners. Here are some specific resources to get you started: • Flipped Classroom: A collection of articles and resources for the flipped classroom (edutopia)

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• Flippedlearning.org: A website devoted to helping educators successfully implement flipped learning. (Flipped Learning Network) • Flipped Institute: A website devoted to helping educators flip their classroom, providing articles, resources, examples, and video content management.

• Tech Tools of the Flipped Classroom: A site explaining and linking to resources for the tools necessary to flip a classroom—video hosting, video creation, video interaction, and learning management. (Flippedclass.com) Tips to Start Your Flipped Classrooms 1. Get to know your students. What interests them, what technology do they use, what technology is available to them at home and in your school? Consider sending out surveys to find answers.

2. Define your approach, method, and personal preference. Be aware of how you prefer ​to teach and why. Consider what could stand between your favorite teaching approach and what the flipped classroom would require. Be prepared to unlearn strategies and methods and to reinvent your teaching to be relevant to your learners.

Be the teacher who is a partner in learning to the students.

3. Create an environment of constructive and communicative learning. This environment should exist both at home and school, should have built­in collaboration opportunities for students, and should provide students with the tools to navigate it successfully.

4. Start Slow. One activity/lesson at a time. There is no need to change all your units at​ ​once. Start with one group and one lesson.

5. You cannot over prepare for flipped instruction. For students to work effectively at home and without teacher guidance, students need meticulously prepared materials and activities.

6. Use Bloom’s Taxonomy. Provide experience on various levels. Try to provide instruction for understanding and remembering at home, and reserve classroom time for applying, analyzing, evaluating, and creating.

7. Provide clear instructions. They must be unambiguous and clear to all learners.

8. Make yourself available. It is extremely beneficial to students to be able to reach you

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after school hours to clear up any learner confusion. Consider virtual office hours or availability via email and phone.

9. Maximize collaboration and social interaction. Consider how collaboration among students can be maximized. Provide technology tools for this purpose.

10. Use constructivist methods. Provide ample opportunity for all learners to be able to​ ​construct knowledge in their way and to be able to show mastery.

11. Consider low technology environments. Think of ways that the flipped classroom will​ ​work if students do not have access to technology at home and at school.

12. Teach digital literacy. Infuse learning with 21st­century skill activities. Using teacher­ ​created PowerPoint presentations will not do. Students can only learn digital skills if they can manipulate technology themselves in meaningful learning situations.

Connect 21st­ century skills and digital literacy to English language instruction.

13. Assess efficiently. Create activities that double as formative assessments. Let students​ ​create different products to show mastery.

14. Utilize data. Collect and analyze student learning and outcome data to monitor how​ ​successful your instruction is. Revise your processes if needed.

15. Commit to lifelong learning. Engage in ongoing professional development, even if your​ ​institution doesn’t provide it.

I hope that you will consider embarking on the journey of collaborating with your students on English learning in meaningful and authentic ways in your own flipped classroom!

References

● Bergmann, J., & Sams, A. (2015). Infographic: 4 learning strategies for flipped learning. Retrieved from https://www.iste.org/explore/ArticleDetail?articleid=14

● Ertmer, P. A., & Newby, T. J. (2015). Behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism: Comparing critical features from an instructional design perspective. Performance Improvement Quarterly, 26(2), 43–71. Retrieved from ​http://northweststate.edu/wp­content/uploads/files/21143_ftp.pdf​ . doi: 10.1002/piq.21143

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Used with permission from ​TESOL Connections,​ copyright 2016 by TESOL International Association. All rights reserved.

****** Dr. Christel Broady is a professor of graduate education, chair of advanced graduate programs, and director of the online program for ESL teacher education at Georgetown College. She is an internationally and nationally known keynote speaker, presenter, and author of a book, book chapters, and articles as well as a consultant to educational organizations. Christel is a past president of the Kentucky TESOL, former chair of the TESOL International Association EEIS, and current TESOL CALL steering board member. She is the quality assurance manager of online education with “Quality Matters” for her workplace as well as for all Kentucky independent colleges.

She is the manager of “Broadyesl,” a worldwide ELT Community of Practice on Facebook, Wordpress (ESL and technology), LinkedIn, and Twitter.

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Ken Wilson

1

The Duke's portrait

The Duke's portrait A novel by Ken Wilson

Chapter 3

Charles, take off your clothes

The walls of Willow Cottage had clearly not seen a coat of paint for decades and the windows were caked in dirt. Polly knocked on the black wooden door and waited. There was no sound from inside. Charles looked down at the mud on his jacket and trousers and wondered how he was going to clean himself up.

"There's no one here," said Charles. "And I need to ­­­" "Just be patient," said Polly.

Eventually, an upstairs window creaked open and a large head covered in tangled black hair appeared, slowly followed by an equally enormous face, most of which was concealed behind a black beard. The face had clearly been asleep and the eyes blinked slowly two or three times and then opened wide to focus.

"What ho, Garth!" called Polly. "Wakey wakey, you have visitors."

Garth said not a word. He looked at Polly, then at her mud­stained companion, withdrew from view and closed the window. Charles heard heavy footsteps coming down a wooden staircase and across the floor to the door. One by one, three bolts were slowly unlocked and the door creaked open. The occupant then bent his enormous frame almost double to get through the door and stand in front of them. He looked like a giant in a children's story, emerging from a house occupied by much smaller people that he had probably just eaten.

Garth was well over six feet tall and broad shouldered, with muscular arms protruding from the rolled­up sleeves of a brown woollen shirt. He was wearing army issue khaki trousers held up by a pair of black braces. He had no shoes and the thick brown sock on his right foot had a hole in it, out of which protruded a long big toe, the nail rimmed with dirt. The left foot was covered by an unmatching grey sock, free from holes.

The gardener pushed back his long straggly hair and revealed a pale forehead of Neanderthal proportions. He looked Charles up and down and his features darkened. Charles

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Ken Wilson

2

The Duke's portrait

smiled weakly, his knees turning to jelly. He felt sure that Garth could, if he wished, knock the wind out of him with even an accidental blow from one of his enormous hands.

Polly stood on tiptoe and kissed Garth on the cheek, an action which caused a brief smile to flicker across his face, visible in his eyes despite his mouth being camouflaged by facial hair.

"Garth, this is my brother Charles," said Polly. "You two are going to get on like a house on fire."

Charles was not sure that Garth agreed, but to reinforce the message, he put out his right hand. The gardener stared at the hand for a moment, then held it in a tight grip which made Charles's eyes water.

"Sooooo pleased to meet you," said Charles, his face screwed up in pain.

"Come in," said Garth. He sounded like a juvenile whose voice was breaking. Having expected the large man's words to rattle the eaves, Charles had to bite his lip to avoid chortling out loud at this unexpected sound. He didn't feel quite so intimidated any more.

Garth turned and walked into the cottage, the downstairs of which was one large dark room with two windows and a door at the back and a staircase off to the right. The room was tidy, even though every piece of furniture was ancient or in need of repair. There was a threadbare sofa against the left­hand wall and a high­backed leather armchair next to it, which looked like something handed down from the main house. On the wooden table in the middle of the room, there was a candlestick, a single plate and a large mug. Behind the table was a thatched wooden chair. There was a stove against the back wall and a shelf with a water bowl on it. On the right, there was an unlit fireplace with a large clock on the wall, and on the mantlepiece, there was a single photograph, of a child in a white dress. All round the room, there were piles of old books.

"Garth, poppet," said Polly. "Charles needs to clean up a bit. What do you suggest?"

Garth looked at Charles's mud­stained clothes and walked to the back of the cottage and opened the back door. "There," he said, indicating a well surrounded by trees.

"Perfect," said Polly. "Charles, take off your clothes."

"What?"

"Take off your clothes."

"But­­­­" "Charles, please just do as I say. We're supposed to be at the house in time for dinner."

She looked at the clock. "We have about twenty minutes to turn you into Walter Washbrook."

Charles stood still, a creeping paralysis spreading through his body. Polly moved towards him and took off his jacket, throwing it onto the sofa. She then began to unbutton his white shirt, which had mud stains on the collar.

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Ken Wilson

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The Duke's portrait

"I say, do you mind?" said Charles. "I'm perfectly capable of undressing myself."

"Then do it!" said Polly. "We have to press on. Garth?"

The giant appeared before her like an obedient servant.

"Garth darling, go to the well and put some water in the bowl. I'll scrub the mud off Charles's suit. Charles, do you have another shirt in your suitcase?"

"Yes," "OK, I'll go and get it while you're getting washed. By the way, I'm going to call you Walter from now on, to get you used to your new identity."

Charles took off his trousers and gave them to Polly. She glanced at his flannel vest, long johns and gartered socks and laughed. "I can see you don't buy your underwear at Harrods," she said, giving him a dazzling smile. Charles quickly made his way out of the cottage to avoid the embarrassment of her seeing him aroused.

When he came back, Polly and Garth were standing in front of the fireplace talking quietly to each other. Charles felt a pang of jealousy, but tried to comfort himself with the thought that Polly really couldn't be interested in a huge muscular gardener. Could she?

"I'm afraid your jacket is split down the back, Walter," she said. "It must have happened when you fell in the mud."

"What am I going to do?" asked Charles. "It's the only jacket I have. I can't turn up in my shirtsleeves. It's November, for goodness sake."

"Don't you have an overcoat or something?"

"No. I'm too broke to buy anything at the moment. I was going to buy some new clothes when I got the fifty pounds for painting the Duke's portrait."

"I'm sure Garth has something," said Polly. "But sit down, I have to turn you into Walter Washbrook."

Fifteen minutes later, Charles walked out of the cottage a transformed man. Despite his protests, Polly had managed to glue a white beard onto his cheeks and chin and there was a grey wig on his head. He was wearing an old black raincoat of Garth's that stretched down almost to his feet, with the sleeves rolled up. His eyes were covered by a pair of dark spectacles and he was walking with a stick.

"I must look like a bally blind person," he said.

Polly ignored his complaints. "Walter, do try to walk like a sixty­year­old," she said.

"How do sixty­year­olds walk?" he asked.

"Well, they're at death's door, aren't they?" she replied. "I expect they huff and groan a lot.

Try huffing and groaning any time you move."

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Ken Wilson

4

The Duke's portrait

They got into the Alfa Romeo and she drove up the lane, turned left and then accelerated along the wide driveway towards the house. The line of trees ended to reveal a massive area of parkland and eventually a dark Gothic building loomed into view.

"When we arrive, we'll be met by the butler," she said. "His name is Pickles. He'll probably get some underling to take your suitcase to your room and I'll ask them to take all your painting stuff to the studio. You must go directly to your room and wait there until I come and see you."

"Why?" "Just trust me, will you? I want to make sure everything's in place."

Charles felt a rising sense of anxiety as the car sped along, and by the time Polly pulled up at the front door of the house, he was close to panicking. Polly parked behind a black car, switched off the engine, pulled up the hand brake and got out.

Great Park was even bigger than Charles had expected, a large square building, presumably with some kind of courtyard in the middle. It was three floors high, and at the front, there were five or six windows on either side of the massive double doors.

One of the doors opened, and a short dapper man in a black suit walked out and down the steps towards them. The man had a pale face and a long thin nose, the top of his head was egg bald and at the sides he had wispy hair which was dyed black. He had the build and demeanour of an ancient ballet dancer and looked as if the merest puff of wind would knock him over "What ho, Pickles!" said Polly. "Meet Walter Washbrook."

Pickles glanced at Charles, with just the slightest look of puzzlement on his face.

"Welcome to Great Park, Mr Washbrook," he said. "I trust you had a pleasant journey."

Before Charles could reply, Pickles turned to Polly. "Miss Capstan," he said, "the duke has asked most specifically that you go and see him immediately, and he wants to meet Mr Washbrook at the same time."

"Oh, I say," said Polly, "can't the old chap have a moment to snooze? He's had a long journey and he's positively pooped. Aren't you, Walter poppet?" she added in a loud voice.

Charles nodded and felt the wig shift. He made a mental note not to do that again. "Yes," he said, and was horrified to hear that his first attempt at a sixty­year­old voice emerged as a piping falsetto.

"I'm sorry, Miss Capstan," said Pickles, "but there has been something of an altercation in your absence. I really must insist that you attend the duke forthwith. He's in the blue drawing room. I'm most awfully sorry, Mr Washbrook!" he shouted in Charles's face, making him jump.

"Please follow me."

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Ken Wilson

5

The Duke's portrait

Pickles turned and walked elegantly up the steps to the front door. Polly tripped lightly after him, and Charles leaned on the stick and huffed and groaned in a high­pitched falsetto as he followed them. They walked into the dark interior of Great Park and down a central corridor.

Pickles stopped at a door and knocked. A voice inside the room said "Come!" and he opened the door, indicating that Polly and Charles should go in before him. There were two people standing in the middle of the room and a man sitting in an armchair.

"Hello all!" said Polly. "Let me introduce the incredibly famous portrait painter, Walter Washbrook."

Charles was alarmed to see that two people who were standing up were wearing police uniforms. He was even more alarmed when he saw that the man sitting in the armchair was the Stanford Saint Mary stationmaster.

Ken Wilson is an ELT author and trainer and has worked in English language ​ ​teaching for more than forty years. He’s written more than thirty ELT titles, including a dozen series of course books, and also writes radio and TV programmes, sketches, songs and drama resources.

His first ELT publication was an album of songs called ​Mister Monday, released when he was 23, which at the time made him the youngest published ELT author ever. Since then, he has written and recorded more than two hundred songs for English learners.

Until 2002, Ken was artistic director of the English Teaching Theatre, a company which performed stage­shows for learners of English all over the world. The ETT made more than 250 tours to 55 countries on five continents.

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Teaching Medical Language Through All Educational Levels

​Vesna Gregec, Primary School “Branko Radičević”, Belgrade; Svetlana Todorović, “Third Belgrade Grammar School”; 1

Stevan Mijomanović, “Faculty of Medicine”, University of Belgrade;

Keywords: medical language, medicine, teaching, young learners

Teaching young learners is a real challenge. Teachers need special skills and helping

the child to learn and develop becomes more important than simply teaching the language.

The approach, techniques, and types of activities have to be different in each class and depend on teacher’s knowledge of children’s interests, abilities, and attitudes. Children are curious, energetic and eager to learn. They are great mimics, often unselfconscious and do not worry about grammar. Therefore, it is easy to motivate them and make English class an enjoyable, funny and magical experience.

Now we shall go through the activities used in the first grade of a primary school. The

course book is ​Our Discovery ​ Island­starter, by Pearson Longman published in 2012 and it is being used in the primary school “Branko Radičević”. It follows the national curricula for the first grade of primary education, and it involves no writing.

The book assumes no previous knowledge of English and takes a „5P“ approach to

communication­presentation, practice, production, personalization and pronunciation. The unit has eight lessons. The teacher first presents and practices new vocabulary. He or she indicates his/her own body and says: “This is my head, my leg, my arm, etc.”; Then asks students to point to the appropriate part of their own body. The teacher plays CD, pupils listen, point to the parts of the body and repeat the words. He/She calls out a part of the body and students move their legs, arms or feet. He/She says some true or false statements: touch your arms and say ”my arms“. Pupils clap. Now touch your legs and say ”my feet“.

Now pupils remain silent. Then these activities can be personalized. Students draw an outline of their bodies. The teacher invites them to the board, and they describe their drawings. They can make pictures and then dictate to one another. The game ​This is Peter’s (arm, leg) is popular with children. They make sentences. This is Peter’s foot. It is small/big.

Adjectives and colours can be revised in this way.

Corresponding author: ​stevan.mijomanovic@gmail.com

1

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​

The new structures and vocabulary are presented and extended in chants and songs

(e.g. ​Head and shoulders, Hokey Pokey). Pupils practice vocabulary, and there are also some karaoke versions, which can be personalized too. Revision units involve different speaking and interaction skills. The unit includes a story which is presented with audio support. Storytelling activities include Q&A, repetition and total physical response (students mime different actions). Teachers encourage students to predict (what colour is Zak’s hand, arm, what do you think, has he got yellow hands?). Pupils can draw Zak’s hands and colour them. After storytelling teacher checks predictions. During these activities teacher monitors and helps pupils.

New language is also presented through a cross­curricular topic in English. In this unit, it

is social science. They discuss the importance of brushing teeth, keeping clean and things we use on a daily basis relating to personal hygiene (soap, sink, shower). Pupils can do mini projects. They draw posters and make collages about personal hygiene. The last step is consolidation ­ ​I can do it. Pupils use the vocabulary stickers to further consolidate and personalize the body language. They can be divided into pairs or groups and act the story out. The activity ”Information gap“ is a kind of activity where each child has part of the information and can only get the ”the whole picture“ by asking his or her classmates. The gaps are easy to prepare, and teachers can use flashcards, posters, stories and pictures.

Finally, pupils evaluate their own work. They draw smileys­happy and sad. Of course,

most young learners are usually satisfied with their success and knowledge and the teacher will see plenty of smileys.

Different teaching methodologies (the audio­lingual method, bodily­kinesthetic activities,

TPR activities, the silent method) will boost pupils’ confidence and build up a positive attitude towards language learning. Pupils are active, and they react to instructions and questions, and they are involved in communication. Communication approach encourages them, and productive skills are emphasized. Activities are dynamic, creative and interactive. By the end of the unit, pupils should be able to use new words related to the parts of the body, improve speaking and listening skills, understand the story, interact in a pair and group work and develop critical thinking. They will be able to identify parts of the body and even use some short structures with “I have got“. Different methods make learning easier to visual learners (flashcards,

posters,

pictures),

auditory­learners

(songs,

stories,

chants)

or

kinesthetic­touching and doing learners (movements, acting).

Unfortunately, some activities, methods and techniques cannot be used as we are faced

with large, mixed ability classes. In this case, it is important to remember to adapt materials

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and make activities easier or more difficult by using more or less complicated language or offer extension activities.

Nevertheless, teaching young learners is tremendously rewarding. Children respond

instinctively, emotionally and with excitement to all our efforts.

The course book for eight graders is English Plus 4, by Oxford, published in 2014.

Teaching eight graders means to motivate them by all means. Teenagers are smart, intelligent, but the lack of concentration, interests and eagerness is characteristic for them.

Teachers should engage and motivate them by various activities, such as project work, research, using ICT, provoking a debate by posting controversial statements or web­based activities.

The unit is ”Health matters“ and pupils learn vocabulary related to medical science,

health, and lifestyle. The first vocabulary set establishes the topic of the unit. It is presented and practiced, and the teacher uses a variety of comprehension exercises. The vocabulary and grammatical structures are contextualized in a quiz or questionnaire. These activities develop critical thinking. (Why didn’t people use anaesthesia and what did doctors do to treat people? What medicines did they use?).

The eight graders extend and build their vocabulary by using noun suffixes (nouns and

verbs­ discover/y; treat/treatment; operate/operation). Vocabulary is recycled and reinforced in texts and exercises. The teacher should encourage pupils to practice words and phrases, to memorize a short list of words and then ask them to use the words in their own sentences.

The pupils will be able to discuss alternative therapy after reading the text about

alternative medicine. Moreover, they can express their own opinion on alternative medical treatments, talk about modern treatments involving pets. They learn about health and lifestyle and they listen to a conversation about living longer.

At this point, the teacher introduces past modals. Pupils learn how to express possibility

and certainty, practicing speculating about the past. (He can’t have been 70 years old. He was still working./ He might have had an operation./ She must have given up smoking./).

By the end of the unit, pupils should be able to talk about health, lifestyle and to exchange

opinions. All activities will urge them to speak. Productive and receptive language acquisition is being accomplished through developing all language skills ­ speaking, reading, listening and writing. They will be able to make a questionnaire on health or, for example, prepare a poster against using animals to test cosmetics. Pupils can go online and find information about other types of alternative medical treatment (they can use their mobile phones and each group will try to find something different e.g. acupuncture, homeopathy, acupuncture).

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Most teenagers are shy, embarrassed and even afraid to speak. The teacher’s task is to

create a pleasant atmosphere and by using different methods make them speak. The communicative approach, the direct method, and the audio­lingual method are the most successful in teaching teenagers. Changing the rhythm of the lesson is a must. As we have already mentioned, teachers know that their students have different strengths and different learning styles and they should adjust teaching to each of them.

When it comes to secondary education, in this presentation we chose to present those activities aimed at students of the 1​st grade as they represent a logical and close continuation of the 8​th​­grade activities. High school students extend on the medical vocabulary from the 8​th grade by working on more lexical units, and they also get introduced to a set of an anatomy­related vocabulary. The vocabulary introduction is done through visualization and by matching the words with the shown body parts.

For 1​st​­grade high school students, we shall describe activities from the course book Solutions, Intermediate, 1st edition, published by Oxford in 2008.

What is important to note is the introduction of idiomaticity related to body parts. The notion of idioms is first presented to students as fixed expressions with a certain metaphorical, that it is to say, non­literal meaning. They work around a set of idioms related to body parts, where there is usually one idiom per body part. They are asked to define the idiom in English as well as to reproduce it, and in the final stages of revision, to use it in actual situational dialogues. Some of the idioms are often easily processed by students, but there are always some which require further attention from the teacher. The stronger students can easily add to the list of idioms they are already familiar with. They would then work on those idioms in the same way, by defining them and using them in actual dialogues.

Another important vocabulary building activity has to do with a variety of collocations related to different injuries and illnesses. Students are introduced to collocations such as ​to have a stiff neck/to dislocate a shoulder and they need to use them in their own dialogues usually by asking present perfect questions connected to past experiences.

In terms of word formation activities, they work on a new set of prefixes e.g. Latin and Greek prefixes: mono­, multi­, pseudo­, semi­, auto­, micro­, sub­, ex­ and are required to form new words by using the correct prefix.

The consolidation is done through previously mentioned situational dialogues where students are asked to include all the previously taught lexical units, collocations, and idioms in their speech around at the doctor’s topic.

At the university level medical English is further developed at the Faculty of Medicine.

Students have two mandatory years of the English language and can choose English

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language 3, 4, and 5 as electives. Apart from covering grammar, students also learn medical terminology, specificities of medical discourse, and are prepared for their future professional communication, writing of research articles and presenting at conferences, symposia, and congresses.

Medical terminology is taught from an etymological, morphological and lexical perspective. Students are also taught the correct pronunciation of medical words that are mostly of foreign origin. Medical language is based on Greek and Latin words. Thus the students learn about different foreign affixes that are the building blocks of many medical terms: endo­/exo, myo­, hyper­/hypo­, cerebro­, ren­, necro­, ­algia, ­ectomy, ­itis, etc. The students also need to master uncommon plurals that are abundant in medical terminology: virus/viruses,

bacterium/bacteria,

bronchus/bronchi,

vertebra/vertebrae,

mitochondrion/mitochondria, diagnosis/diagnoses, etc. Both affixes and plurals are further explored via lists and definitions that students make with the help of the lecturer.

Locative adjectives and adverbs are profusely used in the medical language, and our students need to be familiar with them and their usage. They learn about the different usage and synonyms such as anterior/posterior and ventral/dorsal. Students also learn about compound adjectives such as: tracheo­bronchial, costoclavicular, hepatorenal, etc. We use different diagrams, graphs and body sections that the students describe using the above mentioned­adjectives and adverbs.

A major part of teaching medical English is connecting medical terminology to plain language. This is of great importance since our students will work mainly with patients that are not versed in medical terminology. Thus, they also have to know how to express themselves in a way that will be clear to patients. Our students learn plain language synonyms for those terms that have them, for example: shoulderblade/scapula, collarbone/ clavicle,

tailbone/coccyx,

kneecap/patella,

windpipe/trachea,

voice

box/larynx,

throat/pharynx, gullet/esophagus. Plain language is also practiced via hypothetical situations of doctor­patient communication.

The English language courses follow medical courses (anatomy, histology, genetics, etc). The textbook used is ​English for Medical Purposes by Prof. Sofija Mićić Kandijaš, and it entails topics ranging from medical ethics, body systems, to examination and history taking, and illnesses and diseases. Additional materials used include a range of contemporary research articles and journals, YouTube and TED Talks videos on advances and achievements in medicine, educational medical comics, and graphs, diagrams, etc. The focus of the courses is on medical terminology, i.e. understanding, use, pronunciation, and translation.

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It has been a long journey­ from teaching the first graders to the students at university. But isn’t it worthwhile? Their joyful faces when they start speaking English and express even the most complex thoughts about health and medicine convince us that we have succeeded as teachers and that it has not all been in vain.

Literature: English Plus 4, ​Oxford University Press​ (2014).

LIER, LEO AW. "Techniques and Principles in Language Teaching: Diane Larsen​‐F ​ reeman." ​TESOL Quarterly 21.1 (1987): 146­152.

Mićić S., English for Medical Purposes. Medicinski fakultet Univerzitet u Beogradu: Libri Medicorum, (2013).

Our Discovery Island­starter, Pearson Longman (2012).

Phillips, Sarah. ​Young learners. Oxford University Press, (1993).

Solutions, Intermediate, 1st edition, ​Oxford University Press​ (2008).

PowerPoint Presentation: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9MZUtUfRA2xU0dqQ3ZvR3VmOGFDbGR5MnNWLW5uY1 hNeGtj/view?usp=sharing

*****

Vesna Gregec is an English teacher in primary school "Branko Radicevic", Belgrade. She has been teaching English mostly to young learners and teenagers for quite a number of years. Her present interests include drama in English language teaching, classroom interaction, and CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning). She thinks that being an English teacher is a privilege and that it's not just a profession but a vocation.

Svetlana Todorović is an English teacher at the Third Belgrade Grammar School. She is currently in her fourth year of doctoral studies at the Faculty of Philology, University of Belgrade.

Stevan Mijomanović is a Teaching Assistant of English at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade. He is currently in his fourth year of doctoral studies at the Faculty of Philology, University of Belgrade.

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Erasmus Plus KA1 Staff Mobility­Opportunity for Teacher Development Project 2014­1­RO01­KA101­001108 „Key­Competences for the Future European Citizen” Adina Demetrian​, ​Colegiul „Stefan Odobleja”, Craiova, Romania

Key words: ​Erasmus Plus, European Comission, structured course providers, European Development Plan

Abstract This article describes an Erasmus Plus project that our school has implemented between 2014 and 2016. It is our first project under the new Erasmus Plus programme. Its unique character stems from the fact that Erasmus Plus allowed more teachers from the same school to attend the same structured course, as opposed to the former LLP programmes.

Therefore, we perceived this as an opportunity to create group cohesion and enhance teamwork abilities for the teachers in our school.

The project included four courses, with 8 participants for each course, so it included a total of 32 mobilities over the two years of implementation.

The project started in 2014 and it was carried out over a period of two years, until August 2016. It had four training directions: integrating modern techologies in designing class activities, forming the competences for using group dynamics in order to ensure an effective management of the students and to design learning activities that are competitive and motivating, approaching teaching and learning from an interactive point of view and increasing European cooperation in order to integrate in educational systems at European standards.

Following the training needs identified in the European Development Plan, we chose four courses that would address these needs: „Successful European Project Design”, „Interactive Teaching and Training Techniques” (course provider Esmovia Sistema Practices, Spain), „Empowerment of ICT Skills­Making Use of Technology Tools” (course provider Executive Training Institute, Malta) and „Group Dynamics and Social Skills in the Classroom” (course provider European Bridges Consulting, Finland). Each course was attended by 8

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teachers from Colegiul „Stefan Odobleja”, as it included a total of 32 mobilities throughout the 2 years of implementation.

The four themes are in agreement with the school staff development requirements in that they have satisfied the teachers’ needs for personal and professional development and have brought about the use of modern approaches and teaching techniques. The participants have acquired new knowledge regarding the use of media as support for teaching and learning activities, have understood that the individual functions as part of a group and have learned to identify learning instances that are relevant to the students in the society nowadays.

All the teachers in our school have great academic preparation, but many of them had never taken part in an international training mobility for various reasons, like the lack of foreign language competences, the lack of experience regarding applications for European projects or reluctance to attend a training course in another country. The activities of this project have given the teachers from Colegiul „Stefan Odobleja” an opportunity to enhance their professional training, to develop teamwork abilities and to increase the cooperation with other European schools in order to adapt to other effective educational systems.

The project had been formed in 2011, following the merger of four pre­existing schools. Obviously, there was a need to create cohesion among staff, to increase cooperation and teamwork, in order for the school to function as a unit. Since then, we have learned to share our experience, to set common goals and to make common efforts.

Colegiul „Stefan Odobleja” has had more projects approved by the European Comission and we are trying to obtain the title of „European School”. The cooperation with other European schools, as well as the integration of knowledge and experience acquired during European training has increased students’ interest in what our school has to offer.

This was the first project application under the Erasmus Plus programme, as well as the first project in which the school as a whole was involved. Colegiul „Stefan Odobleja” is presented in detail on the school Web page, in the section of European projects. http://stefanodoblejacv.licee.edu.ro/portal/index.php http://keycompetences.wix.com/Erasmus

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Dance and Language Teaching – Boosting Skills and a Positive Self­Image Jana Živanović, master student at the Faculty of Philology

Key words: d ​ ance, teaching, skills, mixed groups, learning styles,​ l​ earning environment

The first job I got after the graduation was teaching a mixed group of students and, to be honest, I had never even attended such language courses. Salsa classes were the only classes where there was a variety of people of different ages, skills and needs. The other reason for making this kind of comparison is because, as it says, “Dance is mother of all languages” [Margolis in Copeland–Cohen, 1983: 381]. First of all, dance employs gestures to express and communicate intention and emotion. We can consider movements as phrases, while individual positions are words. Then, in language we have formation and derivational rules, as well as constraints or exceptions. Rules are present in language, too, as every figure is performed in a specific way due to anatomical restrictions. If we do not learn how to make a turn correctly, we may have difficulties in dancing, or even harm our shoulder, whereas incorrect language production may cause misunderstanding in communication. Furthermore, just like one can never finish learning a language, dance is also a never­ending process. Finally, no matter how long one has danced, if they do not maintain the skill, it will fade away as time goes by. This is fully applicable to language learning and it reflects in very common situations when a word or expression is on the tip of our tongue, yet it cannot reach the part of our responsible for utterance production.

Structuring a lesson In a mixed group of language or dance students, it is important to know we are dealing with people of different ​ages,​ who possess various ​skills.​ Not every middle­aged female person will be able to move her hips, let us say, in the rhythm of music, like a younger one. This does not mean that she will not make the right movement; the point is that her movements might not be that subtle. In a language class, older students will produce correct grammatical sentences, but they may not sound native­like. Another factor to be considered is the ​reason for learning.

Some students will want to improve their language or dance skills; others are curious to speak a language or learn a new dance, or, there will people who plan to travel abroad and want to have some basic understanding and elementary communication skills, just like those who would like

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to go to salsa parties, but they do not want to get embarrassed just because they do not know basic steps.

Employment of different ​learning styles is crucial. Dance, by its nature, is mostly based on kinaesthetic style, and one would not expect their instructor to write figures on the board.

However, both in language and dance it is vital that we have individual, group and pair work, and that both auditory and visual type of people is satisfied. A mutual characteristic for both verbal and non­verbal type of language is ​interaction.​ One cannot use language completely on their own and it takes students as much time to learn a vocabulary or grammar unit, as to acquire a movement. Therefore, in dance we first do warm­up part and individual footwork before dancing in pairs. Similarly, a language class begins with a warm­up game, subtly moving through written exercises with filling in or matching before putting it into practice through live communication that can be compared to dancing in pairs. Finally, it is difficult, especially for novice teachers like me, to allocate enough time for each student and activity. A problem we all encounter refers also to the speed of explaining, especially because we should neither be super slow nor “flying with the fastest”. Now, let us see how this works when we put all ingredients in a pot.

Employing ingredients in a lesson What we first do is the abovementioned warm­up which has two aims – to help students relax their muscles and get them ready for dance. It also serves for starting with refreshing what all of them already know and this way the affective filter is down, since everybody has the feeling of success. Having made the ground for introducing the new content, the instructor always announce what will be learnt during the lesson, e.g. “Today we will learn some new figures, ‘Enchufla’, ‘Sombrero’ and ‘Juana la Cubana’. Then we will make choreography with the ones from the last class.” Or, “Today, we will do some styling”, which is like a language class dedicated to pronunciation and intonation. Depending on the complexity of a figure, it happens that we learn only one new figure during the class and sometimes we do not do anything new during the following lesson, just consolidation. Translated into language conditions, this means that if we teach passive voice or indirect questions, we may have to dedicate a whole week to such a unit, unlike forms such as ‘used to’ that can be taught in less than five minutes.

I have already mentioned learning preferences where some students grasp content visually, by seeing a demonstration in dance, or written on the board, or given on a handout, in terms of

33

language. Others prefer both hearing and seeing, such as: “You control your partner by holding her around her waist” and at the same time showing it in practice. In a language classroom it means we will write on the board and say what is being written. As far as kinaesthetic aspect is concerned, teachers can always incorporate it through mimes, especially in vocabulary revision, through role plays and tasks with buzzing around (Find a person who…). There is a special, ‘magical’ word, ​polakito, that the dance instructor uses when he wants to slow ladies down, so that they follow him when he is their dance partner, since we change partners during the class. I apply it to my classes in situations when students are in the process of learning a new tense or construction, but they are not ready to reproduce it in fast speech; yet they want to use it correctly and fluently.

When it comes to the two extremes (‘super slow’ and ‘flying with the fastest’), I prefer putting a weaker and a stronger student together, or asking a stronger student to give explanations to a weaker one. As adults already have a developed personality and are aware of their level of knowledge, they usually seek for help themselves. What is more, the fact that their colleague explained something to them will not influence their self­esteem. This way, I can give a task to a student who has a grasp on the content and minimize TTT (teachers’ talking time), at the same time providing the weaker student with additional information from a different aspect – a fellow will always retell teacher’s words and explain the content in their way. Another method I use is asking weaker students to present what was done during the previous lesson to students who were absent. Once they manage to give a report successfully, their self­esteem is up and serves me as feedback that the information has been taken in. Speaking of pacing, I would like to highlight the importance of lowering the pressure and putting aside imperatives of our lesson plan. Students should not be demoralized after the class by what they did not manage to cover, but rather be proud of what they learnt.

One of the key ingredients is interaction which can be found both in a dance hall and a language classroom. We learn to communicate our ideas to others – through speech, or through body movement. Interaction also fosters cooperation and social encounter – as a proverb says, it takes two to tango, or salsa, in this case. What we gain in these classes is discourse competence, to recognize our partner’s signals and respond to them by using our knowledge of movements. For example, not until I went to my first salsa party did I realize the importance of

34

following the partner. There was no instructor to dictate figures and I could not know in advance which figure my partner would want to pursue.

Finally, students learn most effectively if the environment is challenging and enjoyable. Easy goals and slow pace will result in bored students, whereas pressure can cause frustration and anxiety. In dance, we are occasionally given the freedom to experiment with movements. This means that the instructor does not dictate figures, but allows students to dance the way they feel music. By the same token, we can give our students from time to time to choose a topic they want to write or talk about and give them space to use any linguistic means they possess.

Teacher’s role No matter how much the teacher steps aside and gives space to students, out of multiple influences, the teacher’s impact is central. Teachers can choose a more authoritarian or a student­centered style; however, their role is to maintain a disciplined atmosphere, simultaneously encouraging learners through energetic and constructive criticism and praise.

Students need encouragement to nurture self­esteem and to instill self­belief. When they struggle to achieve best results, the teacher’s confidence in students’ abilities provides the necessary encouragement and motivation. Be it verbal communication, such as when our instructor applauds to us, accompanying clapping with “Excellentissimo!” or “Maravilloso!” (although we are far from perfect), or body language like nodding our head, they all convey the teacher’s attitude. Constructive criticism is the most delicate both for teachers and students. It usually influences students future attitude towards the subject, be it a dance or a language. The first time I made a couple of movements, I was terrified to dance with my instructor. Not because he was strict, but because I did not want to embarrass myself by stepping on his feet. Besides, he is a performer from Cuba, not an ordinary dance instructor, which made me put additional pressure on myself. To achieve perfection, I had to keep my eyes on my feet, which turned out to be worse than making an actual mistake in steps, as dancers should always keep their head up. However, he did not criticize me, but rather warned everybody of that common mistake.

Nobody is called out in classes for misunderstanding rules, but we are all informed on what should (not) be done.

Another way of correcting mistakes is peer teaching. Since female students are unavailable to dance all figures without partners, they observe other pairs when there are not enough male students and then they are ‘on pause’. Later they tell each other who made a mistake and what

35

was wrong, and sometimes, students even ask each other for help. I adopted this approach in my classroom, trying to restrain myself from correcting students without giving them a chance for self­correction beforehand. So, when weaker students speak, they sometimes need support when they are unsure about correctness. As they know each other, they feel comfortable to seek assistance from their colleagues. In such situations I jump in only when the whole group needs guiding. What I particularly like in this kind of collaboration is that when the ‘stronger’ side speaks, the ‘weaker’ ones feel equally free to correct them, too.

Secret potion To make all this work, there is a secret potion which usually comes spontaneously. It is in the way we speak, behave, the way in which we slide from one stage to another. While jumping from one part of the classroom to another in the rhythm of music is acceptable for a dance instructor to do, and funny even for adults, a language teacher may be seen unprofessional among adult students. However, this can always be substituted by specific language we will use in the classroom to announce a certain type of activity. For the sake of creativity, those phrases do not even have to be existent in our mother tongue or in the target language, or may be irregular – which could be hazardous since students can remember the wrong way of saying something. On the other hand, it can work quite opposite, so they will learn how something should not be said. In dance, for instance, the instructor can announce pair work by telling students to take their partner, or as my instructor says “Momcis, uzmite ženas”. When it comes to English, I felt free to borrow a phrase that my teacher used in classes to announce some irregularity: “But the English wouldn’t be the English if they didn’t complicate.” It serves as a kind of ‘nota bene’ and students get accustomed to it to such extent that I just say “But…” and they finish the sentence.

Making a sense of community Salsa is the place where we are all equal, making a huge family. There is no space and no reason for competition.

Although we are adults, we learn how to show respect to our partner during the dance

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and how to coordinate movements in space. If one does not know how to push or

​Picture 1 –

Salsa family at a pre­New Year’s party pull or lead their partner in a gentle way, it is as if they were being verbally rude to her. There is time for working, but also for making fun and by balancing the two, the teacher makes a friendly­working environment.On a final note, I believe that a teacher who is energetic and passionate about their subject can spread their charisma to the whole class and contribute to the improvement of students’ skills and capacities.

Picture 2 – Class before the New Year ​Picture 3 – Teacher in class before the New Year References:

The A​ustralian Guidelines for Teaching Dance < http://ausdance.org.au/articles/details/effective­dance­teaching­methods#toc­_use_effective_an d_safe_teaching_methods:_demonstrate_positive_communication_skills​.

Joseph, R. 1993 ​Dancing: The Languages of the Body in Motion.​ The Naked Neuron Plenum Press, New York

Peick, M. 2005 ​Dance as Communication: Messages Sent and Received through Dance. UW­L Journal of Undergraduate Research VIII

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Jana Živanović has graduated from the Faculty of Philology, the English language department and is currently attending master studies at the same faculty, with a hope to enroll doctoral studies. In 2014 she volunteered as an English teacher at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering within the project Students to Students and in 2015 she taught in a private school.

She is a great Harry Potter lover, chatterbox and social networks addict. In her free time, she enjoys going to salsa classes, hoarding teaching materials and volunteering in various organizations, one of which is Translator's Heart where she coordinates and translates medical documentation free of charge.

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Using Drama­Based Instruction in the EFL Classroom Dragana Andrić​, ​Primary School ”Heroj Radmila Šišković”​, ​Smederevska Palanka, Serbia

Keywords: ​drama, techniques, performance, imagination, creativity

INTRODUCTION Teaching a foreign language, however demanding and filled with responsibilities and tedious paperwork, is a field of work which allows an individual to use creativity and imagination on a daily basis, to constantly learn and improve professional performance. There is space for exploring, experimenting and introducing innovative teaching practices into the lesson plan.

There is a wide range of methodological approaches teachers can choose from, according to their personal preferences and the aims they want to achieve. This article will focus on using drama­based instruction to engage students, improve their language skills and create opportunities for cross­curricular learning.

THE BENEFITS OF USING DRAMA­BASED INSTRUCTION Fluency is an aspect of a foreign language which is very hard to achieve in an environment as artificial as a classroom, especially when the group consists of learners who share the same mother tongue. The language interchange can only happen when the purpose of a conversation is meaningful and when the students can perceive the outcome of their efforts.

This is why we need to provide the students with appropriate incentive. Using drama puts language in a specific context, adds purpose to the conversation and with a bit of imagination the classroom becomes a shop, a street or a whole different planet.

At a very young age the students are really eager to take part in various classroom activities, to experiment and explore and they are willing to participate in activities that break the existing classroom routine of repetition and reproduction. Bringing different aspects of drama into the language lessons allows students to actively take part in the learning process and to express their individual creativity. Very often those who are shy and reserved while seated at their desk, surprise us with the uniqueness of their performance, brilliant ideas or original points of view. Being able to step into someone else’s shoes for a while, gives the students an excuse to step away from their everyday persona, out of their comfort zone and to behave as a character that is quite different from the people they’ve met in their real lives.

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Drama­based instruction often involves joint efforts of several very different individuals and this approach to teaching gives us a chance to work on students’ social competencies.

Agreeing, disagreeing, arguing your point and making a compromise are only some of the lessons learned along with completing the task on time. It’s not only the social, interpersonal interaction that is beneficial to the development of social competencies, but the goal of the activity can also provide a space for the students to improve their critical thinking skills, to evaluate certain situations and suggest solutions for miscellaneous problems, whether they are connected to their own lives (friendship, love, bullying) or to the broader network of issues (global warming, pollution, human rights).

Taking into consideration that young learners have very little life experience, it is imagination what they draw on while creating their fictional characters. This gives their involvement into drama activities a very personal note, thus adding to their motivation. Other than allowing a personal expression, let’s not forget that a great source of motivation is the prospect of having fun during the lesson, and that’s exactly what bringing drama into the classroom caters to. Actions and movement facilitate the learning process. Role­play, acting and miming can provide a safe, supporting and pleasant learning environment, especially if we consider that there aren’t any right or wrong interpretations.

DRAMA TECHNIQUES When it comes to using drama in English language teaching, we should take notice of the fact that it could be used as a part of a lesson with the aim to acquire or improve language skills, or it could be used as a tool to create a play as a final product of all the activities. In the first case, we are talking about the process drama, a teaching method which involves both teachers and students into creating an imagined reality in order to explore a certain situation or a problem, but without the intention of creating a performance for the audience. In this case, the participants are at the same time the actors and the audience. They can step into and out of their roles.

Drama techniques, also known as drama strategies or drama conventions, are the tools teachers use to create an imaginary reality in order to explore a topic or an issue or to bring literature to life. Whereas some of them are very demanding and require considerable preparation time of both the students and the teacher, there are those we use every day, without even giving them much thought.

Pantomime can be used to illustrate an action or an emotion, but it can also be used to act out a story or a part of it. ​Still Image or ​Tableau involves a group of students into presenting

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a picture by taking up poses. ​Freeze Frames are another form of Tableau, where the participants re­enact the story by creating a sequence of still images representing actions.

Narration can precede, interrupt or follow Still Images, but it can also be used on its own, to create the atmosphere for the story that follows, to regulate the pace of the action, move it on or give information. ​Flashbacks ​and ​Flash Forwards work well with Still Images since they create the context for the existing situation, showing what led to it or pointing out some possible consequences or outcomes.

Using drama techniques minimizes the teacher’s role in the learning process and gives the students more freedom to make the most of the little time they have in a language classroom.

Although the teacher can take an active part in the performance (​Teacher in a role​), there are numerous techniques that allow the students to take control of what happens in the classroom and take responsibility for the outcomes of a lesson. There is a wide range of drama tools, from those very well­known and often used, such as ​Role Play or Improvisation​, through variations of those, such as ​Collective Role Play​, where more students play a part simultaneously, to those which need not only imagination and creativity, but also thorough knowledge of the subject.

Hot Seating​, for example, can be done even without any preparation, but since one or more students take the “hot seat” and are expected to answer the questions of their peers in order to gain more information or shed more light on a certain character or event, it is preferable that those who are supposed to give the answers know their subject well, whether they are taking on the role of a historical character, such as a king, an army leader, a scientist or a poet, or a fictional character from a text the class is working on. This technique can be used not only in a language classroom, but it can be quite useful in teaching any other subject in the curriculum. I believe that the students would have numerous questions for Charles Darwin, Isaac Newton, Mozart or any other important historical figure. A technique that offers a lot of insight into a situation, profession or a certain point of view ​is Mantle of the Expert​, where students act as if they are experts in a specific field which is relevant to the situation of the drama.

Students can explore various issues by taking on a role of a reporter (​Interview​) to exchange and find new information or that of a meeting attendeewhen different points of view are taken into a discussion to solve a problem or make a plan for action (​Meetings​). They can look even deeper into a character by expressing someone’s thoughts (​Thought­tracking​) or describe an event or a character from the point of view of an object which was involved in a situation or present at a certain time (​Speaking Objects​).

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Forum Theatre is one of the most complex drama techniques, and it can be used both on stage and in an educational context. A play or a scene is performed in front of a participating audience twice, for the first time to present a situation and then again to find a solution for the problem presented in the drama. Participants from the audience can take part in the performance directly, replacing one of the actors, while the others remain in their roles and the play continues as an improvisation. The performance can be stopped at any time, and even new characters can be introduced, until the satisfactory closure is achieved. This technique is particularly useful when it comes to addressing some practical problems our students experience in their real lives, like bullying, peer pressure, bad grades or parents­children issues.

CONCLUSION Taking everything into consideration, drama is not only a tool for teaching a foreign language in a creative manner, it is also a sophisticated teaching method which caters to different learning styles, promotes critical thinking, brings variety into the language classroom and creates opportunities for the cross­curricular learning. It brings the fictional characters to life, provides that the lessons are filled with fun activities and aids motivation.

Using

drama­based instruction gives students a chance to improve both their linguistic (pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar) and non­linguistic competences (presentation competence, teamwork skills, time management). Whether the teacher is willing to use drama as the dominant teaching method or just as an occasional treat to spice up the lesson, I believe that the students will benefit to a great extent.

References: Susan Hillyard B.Ed. (Hons) Ma. Fernanda Molla, (2011), Process Drama Conventions, EVO 2011 ​https://tesoldrama.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/process­drama­conventions.pdf Chris Boudreault, (2010 ), The Benefits of Using Drama in the ESL/EFL Classroom, ​The Internet TESL Journal, Vol. XVI, No. 1, January 2010 http://iteslj.org/Articles/Boudreault­Drama.html

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Dragana Andrić has been teaching English for more than 15 years. She has worked with young learners and teenagers. She is a member of ELTA Serbia and SEETA teachers’ associations. She is highly interested in Learning Technologies, Using drama in ELT and Special Educational Needs.

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Global Citizenship, Cultural Understanding and the Role that Multilingual Ability can Play in Fostering these Konstantinos Mavrommatis, 4th year Speech and Language Therapy student, Metropolitan College, Thessaloniki, Greece

"One does not inhabit a country; one inhabits a language. That is our country, our fatherland ­ and no other". When Emil Cioran, a French and Romanian­speaking citizen of the Austro­Hungarian Empire, as well as philosopher and essayist, wrote this phrase in his book Aveux et anathèmes (Cioran, 1998)1, he couldn’t fathom that, in the 2010s, global citizenship and multilingualism would become such widespread realities outside of conqueror empires and in the newly emerging, at the time of his writing, free world of nations.

Greek, being my mother tongue, gave me the opportunity to read ancient Greek philosophy at a relatively early age. That is when I came to see the potential in shaping oneself into a global citizen. The concept is older than one could imagine as Diogenes of Sinope, among the first Cynics, first mentioned the idea of Cosmopolitanism (Kleingeld & Brown, 2014).

The word mentioned was “​kosmopolitės” and is derived from the Greek words “​kosmos” and “​politės”, meaning “world” and “citizen” respectively. When asked about his place of birth he identified himself as a “k​ ​ osmopolitės”, a citizen of the world.

For the last decade the world has become increasingly globalized due to an ever skyrocketing population and its effects on the world economy. This new “iteration” of globalization has allowed world growth to soar on a binary global and local level (Kuwana, 2012). In the forefront of aiding this notion become a reality, UNESCO has recently formulated its Global Citizenship Education (GCED) approach as part of the Education 2030 agenda under the Sustainable Development Goals (United Nations, 2015). These goals were devised in response to the global developments mentioned above, by the United Nations General Assembly on 25th September 2015, as a means of eliminating poverty, ensuring prosperity and human rights in all countries by holding them to universal high standards of education while also respecting local particularities. The approach aims to rally countries around the flag of education as a tool for shaping the citizens of tomorrow into expedient, self­actualized individuals able to resolve worldwide issues. This is achieved through value­based, transformative, universally available education and constitutes a timely maneuver in the face of many challenges threatening the human race in the long term.

Being multilingual in today’s world is paramount to access. Access to other views, access to other realities, access to other parts of the world. Travelling in order to plainly see the 1

first published in 1987

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world and to experience other cultures is a cornerstone of self­development. However, experiencing other cultures and visiting distant places with the aplomb and repose of their natives is certain to truly open one’s eyes to the world. The whole world is bound to become one’s home. The person who is able to speak multiple languages has that deciding advantage.

As a Speech and Language Therapy student, communication and language are human achievements I hold to high esteem. Humanity invented language to augment communication and to unite those in close proximity into a form of proto­community. Due to lack of proximity however, this resulted in irreparable cultural rifts with other communities that spoke their own languages, resulting in a communication chasm. That was often a cause for conflict and strife as they were unable to convey their needs and desires, resulting in mutual faux pas that were perceived as deliberately insulting to their respective societies.

I believe we are at an exciting juncture, able to see and experience a glimpse of other cultures in the comfort of our own home. The advent of internet and the “information age” have been closing the proximity gap that once existed for the last 20 years. A student in Germany can meet a student in Spain through the internet. A relationship between two people so far apart, living in countries so different, can blossom if they possess the common medium in which to communicate. That medium is language. Concepts, places and people once foreign to us can become a part of our lives if we let them and multilingualism ultimately excises any divergence.

Multilingualism is an additional layer of extraordinary human achievement that furthers the purpose of language to that beyond of what its inventors had ever imagined.

Despite the fact I was born a Greek citizen to Greek parents, I can address you at this very moment even though pre­supposedly you are citizens of another country. From a young age, most people in my generation, myself included, were taught how to read, speak and write in the English language. This practice was held across the majority of the globe. The result of this is the de facto designation of English as the closest alternative that exists to a modern lingua franca. However, although this is effectively the case, this idea has been met with some resistance.

The French Revolution in 1789 sparked independent nationalism in global politics and empires have been at their weakest ever since. The use of a lingua franca carries the stigma of oppressing empires, thus raising the point of potential imbalances of power in favor of the language’s country of origin. This has given rise to both tenacious resistance to the concept of a global language and the mindfulness to conserve national and cultural identity through preservation of language. As a result, a tourist from Italy is very likely to research the nuances of Thai culture before travelling there and avoid any embarrassing or disrespectful mistakes in how they conduct themselves during their stay. However, to access this information they would need to be able to read and write in Thai. Due to the de facto global reach of the English language however, people native to Thailand can share this information in travel blogs and publications in English for the world to see. This way, local culture is documented so it is not lost with the passage of time and through multilingualism intercultural misunderstandings can be avoided.

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Multilingualism is not only a positive asset for travelling around the world and forging relationships with people of other cultural backgrounds. As a soon to be young professional in a country where there is an extensive financial crisis with currently no end in sight, immigration is a very likely measure I will have to take to ensure a healthy income and the desired quality and way of life to myself and to my future family. However, I firmly believe that one must not be alienated from the environment they are living in and to avoid this, they must be able to speak the language of the country that offers its hospitality. One must also keep their cultural identity but not offend the culture of the country they live in. Through speaking the country’s language and understanding its culture, adapting without completely assimilating is possible and a person far away from their home country may feel equally at home in a foreign one. However, there are also benefits on the receiving country’s side. When a person moves to another country they carry with them, not only their belongings but also their occupational specialization, knowledge, education and in many cases innovations specific to their culture. Through keeping their culture and language, one does not become a modern day “vassal” of a stronger state.

Instead they further the development of the country that welcomes them, while also facilitating their personal development. The “dominant­submissive” cultural paradigm is completely circumvented and thus cannot prevent harmony and peace.

In a way, this is how one of the youngest nations was essentially built. The Post­Revolution United States of America is comprised of a mixture of naturalized citizens from various European nations. While the conditions and treatment were not always ideal, the concept was quite ahead of its time and only possible through the use of a common language.

So many men and women, despite their national or cultural differences lent their unique skills, traditions and cultures to their receiving country. Therefore, by coexisting in this proverbial melting pot without completely assimilating and forsaking their roots, they succeeded in creating something of greater magnitude than the sum of their parts. This is apparent to any visitor as a pizza parlor and a traditional Japanese family restaurant can be seen operating within a hundred meters of each other in the major cities but that of course is only the surface of the extensive multiculturalism and cosmopolitan nature present.

In the past decades since, more countries have become open to the idea of a person becoming the adoptive citizen of a foreign country and the enormous industry behind globalized education such as overseas collaborative degrees and the IELTS or TOEFL English certification tests, which are regularly held around the world, can attest to this fact. Globalized countries have established a system that enables them to tap into a talent pool that literally knows no borders and the collective youth as well as the scientific community around the world has been stronger and more cohesive than ever as a result. For example, a hard working student with potential, who comes from a small country, can become a part of the world’s premier research teams and/or academic faculties. Their hard work is not enough. Multilingualism and awareness on a global level are a necessary prerequisite for that. Of course, this is not only a pragmatist vehicle for personal ambition but also aids in driving science ever onwards. With a multicultural makeup in the scientific community, science is becoming less and less a privilege or even path to shifting the power balance in favor of powerful countries and becomes progressively more

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humanistic. In addition, universities with open doors to a multinational student body are an arboretum of idea exchange for young citizens of the world. Worldwide issues are becoming just as important as any local issue and just as contemplated. The idealism of youth need not be blind. With global awareness, it can gain the temperance and direction needed to truly shape the world and lead the way into the future. A future where the powerful do not let the needy to fend for themselves, where strife and division are not the norm. No hypocritical pity and no powerlessness in the face of geo­cultural remoteness, enabling the placement of thought into actionable and realistic initiatives to help the less fortunate.

The Médecins Sans Frontières or Doctors Without Borders, founded in 1971 (MSF, 2016), in the aftermath of the Nigerian Civil War by a group of French doctors, is such an initiative. Despite the fact their profession would very likely afford them a comfortable life with the financial ability to help through the occasional charity gala and lament the misfortunes of the people in faraway lands ravaged by conflict, they chose to actualize their will to act. Their idea was simple: offer medical care to those in need without discriminating against their race, origins or language. That idea was put into action and through a lot of hard work, today, this NGO has evolved from being a small group of French doctors to a multi­chapter organization with a far greater reach in many areas across the world and well over 30.000 volunteers of various cultural backgrounds who make a difference every day in the lives of people despite the many associated dangers. This spectacular growth came as a result of the information age and global awareness. Multilingualism enabled the subsequently inspired individuals to actually volunteer without any concern for language barriers between them and their fellow team members. Many similar initiatives were inspired by their vision, even adopting the Sans Frontières part of the name verbatim involving many different professions offering their unique skillsets to those in need.

Even if one has no desire to participate in initiatives of this scope and scale, multilingualism and cultural awareness enables providing help on a local level by aiding the assimilation of naturalized citizens and relieving tensions resulting from cultural differences.

Knowledge is power and knowing a great part about the culture and language of one’s recent neighbors from abroad or even having the curiosity and open­mindedness to acquire this knowledge will be a pleasant surprise. Knowledge of the situations that brought them to one’s country is sure to make one realize they are human all the same with the same driving fears, hopes and ambitions as everyone. In the words of Dale Carnegie: “to be interesting, be interested” (Kemp & Claflin, 1989) and who knows, you might be surprised by the foreigner living next door.

Our planet is changing and change begets adapting or running the risk of staying behind the times. In the face of serious humanitarian, political and environmental issues, stagnation may spell doom for the entire human race. Adapting is realizing that discrimination and barriers between the peoples of the earth whether they are linguistic, racial or cultural is not the way forward and out of the abyss. The abyss is larger than the sum of the parts opening it; we must be larger than the sum of our parts to close it.

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Konstantinos Mavrommatis is a 4th year Speech and Language Therapy student at Metropolitan College (Thessaloniki, Greece). This is an essay he wrote and submitted to the 2016 student essay contest and Global Youth Forum of the United Nations where he competed with over 3000 other contestants.

REFERENCES ● ● ● ●

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Mẻdicines Sans Frontiẻres International (2016). About MSF [online]. [viewed 27 March 2016].

Available from: ​http://www.msf.org/about­msf Cioran, E. M. (1998). Anathemas and admirations. Translated from French, by R. Howard. New York: Arcade Pub. Kemp, G., & Claflin, E. (1989). Dale Carnegie: the man who influenced millions. New York: St. Martin's Press.

Kleingeld, P., & Brown, E. (2014). “Cosmopolitanism”, The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2014 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.). Retrieved March 31, 2016, from http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/cosmopolitanism/ Kuwana, Y. (2012).​ Our Next Generation Global Citizens. [online] Global Citizens Initiative. [viewed 24 March 2016]. Available from ​http://globalci.org/wp­content/uploads/2013/10/ GCI­FINAL­09­08­2012.pdf United Nations, (2015).​ Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 25 September 2015 [online]. General Assembly. New York: United Nations. 1­35. [viewed 28 March 2015]. Available from: ​http://http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/70/1&Lang=E

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