English Studies Dept. Staff, Students and Graduates meet at the 25th Annual International TESOL Macedonia-Thrace Northern Greece Conference
Κολέγιο CITY College
Main Campus, Thessaloniki, Greece
05 March 2018

English Studies Dept. Staff, Students and Graduates meet at the 25th Annual International TESOL Macedonia-Thrace Northern Greece Conference

The English Studies Department was actively represented by both students and Lecturers in the 25th Annual International TESOL Macedonia Thrace Northern Greece Conference, held on 23-25 February 2018.

The International Faculty English Studies Dept. Staff, Students and Graduates meet at the 25th Annual International TESOL Macedonia-Thrace Northern Greece Conference

On Saturday, 24/02, Dr Luke Prodromou, one of the invited Plenary Speakers, delivered his session entitled "Top Ten Secrets of Effective Teaching" in which he reported on a life-long search for the good language teacher and on recent research into effective teaching practice. Some of the questions Dr Prodromou attempted to address were "What exactly do expert teachers do?" and "What kind of relationships do they encourage in the classroom?" By tracing his own journey both as a learner and teacher, he concluded that although certain qualities or characteristics of the effective teacher seem to have emerged through the years, the role of the effective teacher is constantly shaped through an ongoing process of personal and professional development.

Dr Luke Prodromou delivered his session entitled "Top Ten Secrets of Effective Teaching"Dr Luke Prodromou delivered his session entitled "Top Ten Secrets of Effective Teaching"

Dr Prodromou's follow-up session was a performance with his brainchild, the English Language Theatre, during which attendees had the chance to watch the members of the theatre group perform along with two more of the Conference's plenary speakers, Agapi Dendaki and Michael Robbs. The performance entitled "Ladies in Love and Marriage" consisted of five sketches inspired by the work of Jane Austen, Charles Dickens and Oscar Wilde, on the theme of women in love and the delights and disappointments of marriage.

The Department was also represented by Ms Margarita Kosior who delivered on the same date her session entitled "Difficult topics made easy with film."

Apart from Dr Prodromou, the Department was also represented by Ms Margarita Kosior who delivered on the same date her session entitled "Difficult topics made easy with film." Ms Kosior focused on how film, in both its broader sense of the motion picture as well as in the form of short, inspirational videos, can be used as a tool through which global issues can be approached in the classroom setting. As Ms Kosior demonstrated, this can be achieved due to the audiovisual nature and authentic appeal of films themselves which allow real life to immerse in the classroom and provide a context in which language learning takes place more effortlessly, difficult issues are discussed with more confidence and ease, and student motivation and engagement increase.

Erëza Mehmeti's session "Practical Application of Game-Based Learning: Play. Learn. Grow."

On the same date, conference participants also had the opportunity to attend sessions delivered by the Department's MA students. Erëza Mehmeti's session "Practical Application of Game-Based Learning: Play. Learn. Grow." underlined the significance of game-based learning in the creation of a comfortable class environment as it provides multiple opportunities to learners to acquire knowledge. Ms. Mehmeti's session also offered practical suggestions on how game-based learning can be implemented in the ELT classroom.

Rina Krasniqi invited us all to overcome our feelings of stress and anxiety during our first week of classes in her session "Let's Ice-break."

Rina Krasniqi invited us all to overcome our feelings of stress and anxiety during our first week of classes in her session "Let's Ice-break." In her inspiring workshop, Ms. Krasniqi demonstrated a series of carefully chosen icebreakers which participants could use with students of different ages and levels. As Ms Krasniqi noted, apart from being interesting and fun, the icebreakers presented were sure to create a positive learning environment and help build rapport with students.

Last but definitely not least, Ms. Maria Gourmou presented a talk entitled "Teaching English to young learners in Greece: Obstacles and Practical Solutions."

Last but definitely not least, Ms. Maria Gourmou presented a talk entitled "Teaching English to young learners in Greece: Obstacles and Practical Solutions." In an attempt to explain how obstacles can be overcome in a young learner teaching context, Ms. Gourmou first presented the attributes of young learners before moving on to suggesting practical solutions all teachers can use. As Ms. Gourmou remarked her hope is that the suggestions and ideas offered in her session will inspire more English language teachers to take on the challenge of teaching young learners in the future.

The English Studies Department could not feel prouder and warmly congratulates all its members for their amazing and thought-provoking presentations!!!

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