Dear HLT Readers,

Welcome to the April issue of HLT. I hope you are all well and keeping your heads above the water in these hard times.

This spring we won’t meet at the IATEFL Conference again!  No inspiring sessions, no Pilgrim’s stand for chats and laughs, and no chance to meet the Pilgrims trainers face to face.

However, there is a chance we can touch base during the Pilgrims Café and online workshops. Since the Café and the workshops have been very successful, we are planning to run more. And of course, we can meet in June during IATEFL online. We hope to see you there.

As for the Pilgrims summer programme, you may already know it is moving to the University of Limerick in the Republic Ireland. Please be aware that in compliance with local laws, the University of Limerick and Pilgrims will be operating under strict regulations so to guarantee everyone’s safety during their stay with us. For more details read Pilgrims News by Chaz Pugliese, Director of Education.

Another thrilling piece of news is that our sister magazine, or perhaps I should say ‘brother magazine’, the Pilgrims Teacher Trainer Journal –TTTJ will soon be back online. Those who subscribed to it and read it in the past will see that there are some changes, but the main spirit and ethos of the journal will live on. You can read more in A Welcome Message from the New Editor of the Pilgrims Teacher Trainer Journal –TTTJ by Phil Dexter, where you will find out more about the topics and find a call of papers you may respond to. I would like to take this opportunity to welcome Phil in his new role and wish him a lot of wonderful contributions to TTTJ and many regular subscribers.

Talking of teacher training, this issue of HLT offers some interesting articles on the subject: Creating a Culture of Welcoming Feedback and Encouraging Reflections: A Pathway for Professional Development by Al-Mahanad Al-Badi, and Keeping Our Heads above Water in the New Normal by Gill Johnston. These texts are thought provoking and very practical.

In these hard times we need to find ways of motivating ourselves and our learners. You can find some ideas on motivation, self-esteem and emotional intelligence in Motivational Strategies in Essay Writing: What Are Students’ Perceptions? by Puspa Dewi,  South Korean High School Students’ Perceptions of and Performance during University Level English Conversation Classes by Shaun J. Manning and  Jeeyoung Song , Coaching English in Class or Online: For Lower Intermediate Level and Above by Emmanuelle Betham, and  How to Increase Participation in the English Classroom by Daniel Rhodes. In this issue there are books reviews of titles refering to this area in Short Book Reviews by Hanna (Hania) Kryszewska and Autonomy in Language Education: Theory, Research and Practice by Manuel Jiménez Raya and Flavia Vieira reviewed by Brian Welter.

These days it would be hard to put together an issue of HLT without mentioning COVID and teaching in the times of the pandemic. The articles on this subject include: The Impact of COVID-19 on Higher Education by Azzeddine Bencherab, Adult and Young Language Learners’ Resilience in Times of COVID-19 by Emmanuelle Betham, and Remote Teaching, a Brave New World, and an Amber Restorative by Terence McLean.

Teachers  of young learners will enjoy Content-based Instruction for Young Foreign Language Learning by Mija Selič, Joining the Circles in ELT Pedagogy: Teacher Innovations in a Japanese Elementary School by Dat Bao, and Peer Interaction: Beliefs of Primary English Learners and Implications for the Classroom by Carolyn E. Leslie.

There are practical ideas for the lessons on using: fine arts, critical thinking, YouTube stories, logical-mathematical intelligence as a springboard for speaking and creativity through constraints. There are also ideas for writing stories and poems in class.

Enjoy the April issue of HLT and please respond to the call for papers to contribute to HLT. In the times of COVID and lockdown it may be a good diversion and also you may have more time to go through your notes and share your lesson ideas, voice an opinion on an issue related to language teaching that is close to your heart, share your observations or just write an article. Be my guest! I will be happy to help you publish. Who knows perhaps you will discover you have a new hobby i.e. ELT writing.

BTW. Please note the change of my email address.

Keep in touch

 

Best
Hania Kryszewska
HLT Editor
Email: hania.kryszewska@pilgrimsteachertraining.eu