Challenging themes: radio English for learners and teachers
•Download as PPT, PDF•
1 like•549 views
A joint presentation at the 2010 IATEFL conferecne by Paul Woods and Thelma Umeh
Recommended
Recommended
More Related Content
Viewers also liked
Viewers also liked (16)
Similar to Challenging themes: radio English for learners and teachers
Similar to Challenging themes: radio English for learners and teachers (20)
More from Paul Woods
More from Paul Woods (20)
Recently uploaded
Recently uploaded (20)
Challenging themes: radio English for learners and teachers
- 1. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers Thelma Umeh, English Projects Manager, Nigeria and Challenging Themes: Paul Woods, English Manager, Sub-Saharan Africa
- 2. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and CTehaacllheenrgsing Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers Our presentation is divided into four parts: I will describe the context which has led us to develop materials using radio as a channel Thelma will tell you about the Teacher Development programmes she produced in Nigeria I will describe “Teaching English Radio: an Introduction to Teacher Development,” and work we have done so far on LearnEnglish Radio There will be a few minutes at the end for questions
- 3. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers Context Context • There are approximately 11.4 million English language teachers and 1.1 billion English language learners in the world today. • 750,000 of these teachers and 100 million learners are in Sub-Saharan Africa There are approximately 11.4 million English language teachers and 1.1 billion English language learners in the world today. 750,000 of these teachers and 100 million learners are in Sub- Saharan Africa
- 4. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers This meant we had to explore different channels to reach target audiences at a distance Internet connectivity is patchy and expensive We wanted to reach many more learners and teachers using limited resources.
- 5. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and CTehaacllheenrgsing Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers Why radio? Accessible and cheap technology Reaches audiences in countries with low levels of school attendance Low investment for high impact More effective when backed up by support materials Effective at Improving listening skills Widely available in developing countries Cost-effective in extending reach
- 6. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers Nigeria: Context • Nigeria is a second language country with a population of over 195 million people • English is the lingua franca as it is the language of education, government and commerce • English in Nigeria is very poorly taught and learned with no attempt at innovativeness by the teacher • In spite of the many professional development programmes on offer, teacher professional development is seriously lacking
- 7. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers Nigeria: Why Deliver Classroom Language via Radio? There are a large number of English language teachers in Nigeria who need professional development in one form or the other • The British Council has a number of very rich teacher development courses for face to face delivery, of which Classroom Language is one • Face - to - face programmes have basic limitations that made it necessary to seek a more effective mode of delivery • Radio was one way to reach many more teachers in a cost-effective way, while still creating good impact
- 8. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers Nigeria: How was Classroom Language adapted for radio? • The course was very clearly defined, but had a skeletal nature which needed to be filled out. • To do this the services of 2 ELT consultants was enlisted and they derived from the global product, content which will be suitable for radio broadcast. • There was a script conference with ELT experts and radio producers and presenters where a production script was developed • After this, we were ready to start actual production
- 9. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and CTehaacllheenrgsing Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers Classroom Language by Radio: Challenges • Lack of personnel to work with • Getting a national radio station to partner with us • The matter of the withdrawal of the partners from the partnership • Challenge of getting additional content • Getting sponsorship
- 10. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and CTehaacllheenrgsing Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers Successes • We secured a 3 year partnership with a national radio station • Programmes were broadcast on the network belt of the federal radio 7.00pm weekly • Audience sizes were approximately 5 million to start with and steadily grew to 8 million in the following quarters • Feedback was very encouraging
- 12. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and ChTaelalecnhgeirnsg Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers Ω Twelve 15-minute radio programmes aimed at teachers of English working in schools where large classes, a lack of resources and few training opportunities are a reality. Ω The first set of programmes provides advice and training on teaching English at a basic level Ω These programmes are intended for teachers of English who may have low level qualifications and lack confidence in their knowledge of English. Ω The series includes clips from teachers and classes in several different countries to give the programmes global appeal.
- 13. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers Addressing key issues in classroom practice Motivating teachers and providing a ‘catalyst’ to improve morale Reaching as many teachers as possible Encouraging more learner-centred strategies and making learning more effective
- 14. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and CTehaacllheenrgsing Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers Supporting notes for teachers Programmes can be re-packaged and delivered via pod-casts Programmes can be adapted The British Council can support seminars or workshops
- 15. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers Topics • Finding and using resources • Using Group work in large classes • Pair and group work in practice • Developing Teachers’ English • Using English in the classroom • Teaching new language • Teaching reading and teaching listening
- 16. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers Promotional pack for radio Stations 10,000 sets of 3 audio CDS
- 17. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers Follow-on Series - topics Getting the most from the course book Managing different levels in one large class Introducing writing activities Using marking schemes and encouraging accuracy in written work What to correct and when to correct Encouraging students to help each other A visit to a reading class Teaching pronunciation Setting homework and doing revision Preparing for exams and tests More great activities Enjoying our teaching
- 18. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers Potential audiences Huge – eg MONUC’s Radio Okapi in DRC has 50 million listeners By 2013 we expect to reach up to 20 million listeners in Sub Saharan Africa with our programmes In Nigeria the Teacher Development series reached a potential audience of 8 million
- 19. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and CTehaacllheenrgsing Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers Challenges • We’d prefer not to have to pay for airtime • Finding locally delivery partners • It took far longer to produce the first series than we originally anticipated
- 20. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and CTehaacllheenrgsing Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers LearnEnglish Radio Developing the concept then looking for a strategic funding partner We wanted to tackle developmental themes We produced a flyer and approached a range of potential sponsors We approached potential strategic partners
- 21. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and CTehaacllheenrgsing Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers Results and next steps • So far we’ve not managed to find a strategic partner • We have widened the scope to include other regions (eg the Middle East and China) and changed the focus to concentrate on English for work situations • We are commissioning sample programmes which we will try out with focus groups • We hope to produce a core of material which can be used in different countries/regions but adapted/localised • We look for delivery partners at country level – eg to sponsor support materials
- 22. Challenging Themes: Radio English for Learners and CTehaacllheenrgsing Themes: Radio English for Learners and Teachers ? ? ? ? ?????
Editor's Notes
- Our presentation is divided into four parts: I will describe the context which has led us to develop materials using radio as a channel Thelma will tell you about the Teacher Development programmes she produced in Nigeria I will describe our new product “Teaching English Radio: an Introduction to Teacher Development,” and the work we have done so far on LearnEnglish Radio There will be a few minutes at the end for questions
- Context There are approximately 11.4 million English language teachers and 1.1 billion English language learners in the world today. 750,000 of these teachers and 100 million learners are in Sub-Saharan Africa
- Internet connectivity in Africa is still patchy and generally too expensive for teachers and learners The British Council wanted to reach many more learners and teachers using its limited resources. This meant we had to explore different channels to reach our target audiences at a distance – including radio, newspapers and mobile phones
- You may say – radio is old hat. It’s all been done before by BBC English. True, radio has been around for a long time, but there are still very good reasons for using it, especially in Africa.
- There are a large number of English language teachers in Nigeria who need professional development in one form or the other The British Council has a number of very rich teacher development courses for face to face delivery, of which Classroom Language is one Face - to - face programmes have basic limitations that made it necessary to seek a more effective mode of delivery Radio was one way to reach many more teachers in a cost effective way, while still creating good impact
- Twelve 15-minute radio programmes aimed at teachers of English working in schools where large classes, a lack of resources and few training opportunities are a reality. The first set of programmes provides advice and training on teaching English at a basic level. These programmes are intended for teachers of English who may have low level qualifications and lack confidence in their knowledge of English. The series includes clips from teachers and classes in several different countries to give the programmes global appeal.
- Objectives Addressing key issues in classroom practice by exploring and sharing well tried strategies to improve the teaching and learning of English. Motivating teachers and providing a ‘catalyst’ to improve morale Encouraging more learner-centred strategies and making learning more effective. Reaching as many teachers as possible.
- 24 pages of supporting notes for teachers are being supplied to educational institutions, teacher training colleges, etc in advance of the broadcasts. Programmes can be re-packaged and delivered via pod-casts, thus also reaching more technologically-equipped communities. Educational broadcasters can adapt the series to suit their own needs, eg by adding an introduction in the listener’s own language, or a studio discussion on the topic. The British Council can support seminars or workshops to help strengthen the use of An Introduction to Teacher Development as part of a teacher development and distance education outreach project.
- We have produced a promotional pack for radio stations containing notes for broadcasters In Sub-Saharan Africa are producing 10,000 sets of 3 audio CDS which will be released to training colleges and other organisations for use on Pre and In-set training courses once the programmes have been broadcast.
- These are huge – eg MONUC’s Radio Okapi in DRC has 50 million listeners, more than RFI For both learners and teachers, we expect by 2013 to reach up to 20 million listeners in Sub Saharan Africa with our programmes In Nigeria the Teacher Development series reached a potential audience of 8 million (not all teachers!)
- Challenges We’d prefer not to have to pay for airtime, but recognise that in some countries, and for teacher programmes which have small target audiences, we may have to Finding locally delivery partners (e.g. NAMCOL in Namibia) to ensure the programmes are embedded within local initiatives It took far longer to produce the first series than we originally anticipated – reasons included waiting for feedback from focus groups; getting authentic clips from countries like Afghanistan; delays in production, but we have learnt a lot from the initial experience.
- LearnEnglish Radio We decided to adopt a different tack – developing the concept then looking for a strategic funding partner We wanted to tackle developmental themes relevant to Africa and our target audience of 16-30 year old both in and out of school We produced a flyer and approached a range of potential sponsors who were known to support educational initiatives and had corporate social responsibility programmes We approached potential strategic including Coca Cola, Nokia, and mobile phone companies such as Telkom, Zain and Sonatel
- Results and next steps So far we’ve not managed to find a strategic partner We have widened the scope to include other regions (eg the Middle East and China) and changed the focus to concentrate on English for work situations We are commissioning sample programmes which we will try out with focus groups We hope to produce a core of material which can be used in different countries/regions but adapted/localised We look for delivery partners at country level – eg to sponsor support materials
- Any questions or comments?