CamTESOL Conference 2013
One of BEA's goals is to help empower Cambodian teachers with access to the latest teaching methods and localized materials for their classrooms. One way we are realizing this goal is through carrying out research projects at BEA and then presenting our findings through presentations and workshops at the CamTESOL conference. CamTESOL is an international conference held every year in Phnom Penh at the end of February. It is a chance for local and international experts in the field of teaching English as a foreign/second language to share their research.
For the 2013 conference, Nicole and Shally presented on BEA's Letter Writing Exchange Program between BEA and Aoyama Gakuin University (the university where Nicole teaches at when she's not working in Cambodia). Their presentation investigated how EFL letter writing can be used to develop intercultural awareness. Prior to the start of the letter exchange, many of the Japanese learners had stereotypes and prejudices towards those living in developing countries, such as Cambodia. Through letter exchanges, class discussions and presentations, students were able to recognize this cultural bias. They then underwent changes in their perceptions of not only Cambodian culture, but Japanese culture as well. Essentially, the results showed that direct contact with another culture is not necessary to attain cultural awareness and cultural empathy.
For the 2013 conference, Nicole and Shally presented on BEA's Letter Writing Exchange Program between BEA and Aoyama Gakuin University (the university where Nicole teaches at when she's not working in Cambodia). Their presentation investigated how EFL letter writing can be used to develop intercultural awareness. Prior to the start of the letter exchange, many of the Japanese learners had stereotypes and prejudices towards those living in developing countries, such as Cambodia. Through letter exchanges, class discussions and presentations, students were able to recognize this cultural bias. They then underwent changes in their perceptions of not only Cambodian culture, but Japanese culture as well. Essentially, the results showed that direct contact with another culture is not necessary to attain cultural awareness and cultural empathy.
CamTESOL Conference 2012
The 2012 conference was held on February 25-26 at the National Institute for Education (NIE). The conference's theme was Language and Development, which is exactly what we're doing at BEA. Nicole and Shally presented together on BEA's English language and teacher training programs. Their presentation focused on how to adapt Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) and Task-Based Learning Teaching (TBLT) in the Cambodian classroom. Their presentation was a great success with over 100 conference participants attending their 45-minute session with some even standing in the hallway listening in through the open windows. At the end of the session, many stayed behind to praise their efforts to improve the quality and raise standards of NGO English language education throughout the country.
CamTESOL Conference 2011
The 2011 CamTESOL conference was held on February 26-27 at the National Institute for Education (NIE). The theme of the 2011 conference was English and Mobility. Both Nicole and Shally gave their own presentations at the conference. Nicole ran a workshop on how to teach business letter writing in a Cambodian context while Shally gave a workshop on how to localize EFL speaking lessons for Cambodian students. Both their powerpoint slide presentations and supporting materials are available for download.
Nicole's Workshop: English for Occupational Purposes (EOP) in Cambodia
Nicole's presentation was a writing workshop that introduces the 'process method' and outlined its benefits for English for Occupational Purposes (EOP) in the Cambodian classroom. The first part explained the stages of process writing (pre-writing, planning and drafting) and demonstrated activities for each stage. The second part examined how to personalize and localize lessons for teaching business writing. In addition, the workshop provided teachers with core and supplementary materials, including activity explanations and lesson plans. The workshop was based on the two-weeking writing program Nicole ran for the pre-intermediate course at the beginning of February 2011.
| Slide Presentation |
| Supporting Presentation Materials |
Shally's Workshop: how to localise EFL speaking lessons for Cambodians
Shally's presentation was a workshop that shows Cambodian EFL teachers how to incorporate parts of western-published textbooks into lessons while at the same time how to focus on Cambodian culture and values. The first part of the workshop outlined the “present-practice-use” (PPU) method for EFL speaking lessons. The next part focused on how to localize lessons and gives activity demonstrations. Finally, the workshop provided teachers with core and supplementary materials, such as lesson plans and instructions for classroom activities. All workshop materials were used in the basic and pre-intermediate EFL courses during the first semester of the 2010-11 school year at BEA.
| Slide Presentation |
| Supporting Presentation Materials |
