Modern Teaching English Strategies
The Third Annual Forum on English Language Teaching (ELT), entitled "Modern Teaching English Strategies," was held on April 14, 2018, at the Mercure Hotel in Khamis Mushait, Saudi Arabia. The Faculty of Languages and Translation at King Khalid University, in collaboration with Al Khaleej Company, organized this esteemed event. The primary goal was to exchange ideas about contemporary teaching methodologies. The forum comprised two sessions and ten insightful presentations.
The inaugural session launched with Ian Albert's presentation on "Use of Visuals for Use with Touchstone". Albert demonstrated how coursebook images can be effectively leveraged in grammar teaching. Myles Michael followed with his engaging talk on "Motivation in the Classroom," emphasizing how classroom activities can be tailored to foster genuine motivation and transform extrinsic motivation into intrinsic motivation.
Subsequently, Anhar Redmond’s presentation, "Games Related to Touchstone," illustrated the practical use of games and activities in conjunction with the "Touchstone 1" coursebook. Abubakar Elasha discussed "Multiple Intelligence," focusing on which teaching strategies language teachers should utilize based on their intelligence type, including logical, verbal, interpersonal, naturalistic, and others. Concluding the first session, Murshid Haider Choudhury delivered a thoughtful discourse on "Teaching Target Culture to Saudi EFL Students in the 21st Century." He stressed the careful integration of local and L2 cultures in textbooks and highlighted the necessity of teacher training on culturally sensitive teaching methods.
The second session commenced with a workshop by Sheila Simpkins titled "Cooperative Learning Groups: More Than Just One Group Work." Simpkins demonstrated how to engage students in reading lessons through group work, emphasizing the value of cooperative learning where each participant actively contributes. Mohammad Adil followed with his presentation on the "Use of Discovery Learning in Teaching Content Courses," illustrating how discovery learning can enhance lecture comprehension, promote learner autonomy, and make content lectures more engaging for students.
Sara Huseynova addressed "Cultural Differences in Learning and Teaching & Why and How to Promote Group Work Education," asserting the need for collectivist cultures to adapt to group work and promote learning from others. The final presentation by Harry Ernest, titled "Teaching EFL from Psychological and Cognitive Perspectives," revolved around neurolinguistics. Ernest underscored how positive emotions and a relaxed teaching environment could facilitate learning.
Overall, the forum marked a remarkable success, offering a vibrant platform for exchanging ideas and best practices in modern English teaching strategies.
