C GROUP MEMBERS
S - Z
Sabrina Bechler
'I teach students who are doing their Master's degree in Education for Primary School at the University of Paderborn (Germany). My main task is to prepare them for their six-months school-placement and to support them during that time, when they give their first English lessons. I also work at a vocational school in Berlin (where I live). My students would like to become nursery nurses in the future, so I teach English for Specific Purpose. Previously, I worked in primary schools and taught English from grade 1 until grade 5. I really enjoyed that I could try out different things, such as an English Theatre Club, a Language Detectives Project (to raise language awareness), and a Reading Pen Project (to develop reading competences). Now I am one of the editors of a magazine that provides teaching ideas and materials for primary school teachers (Grundschulmagazin Englisch with Sally’s World). Besides, I write articles for it myself, make films with handpuppets and moderate a travel blog for children.'
Sarah Mercer
Sarah Mercer teaches at the University of Graz, Austria where she has been working since 1996. She completed her PhD at the University of Lancaster and her ‘habilitation’ at the University of Graz. Her research interests include all aspects of the psychology surrounding the foreign language learning experience, focusing in particular on issues of self and identity. She is the author of ‘Towards an Understanding of Language Learner Self-Concept’ published by Springer and is co-editor of ‘Psychology for Language Learning’ published by Palgrave and ‘Multiple Perspectives on the Self’’ published by Multilingual Matters. She also serves as one of the co-editors of the journal ‘System’.
Sharoon Sunny
My name is Sharoon Sunny. I live and work between the cities of Bangalore and Hyderabad in India. I was born and raised in India but lived a good ten years of my life in the United States where I graduated with a masters majoring in creative writing and literature. Upon graduation, I had the opportunity to teach English to young learners from immigrant families in Texas and then moved on to creating content for standards-based instruction in an educational startup.
I've been a teacher of English for over 15 years and enjoy helping learners acquire necessary skills that will enable them to become harbingers of collaboration and harmony via the many different skills they will use in the real world. My most recent experience has been to setup a writing lab at Christ University, Bangalore. I've since gone on to pursue research in several different areas. My primary area of research as a doctoral student since 2017 has been to explore creativity in the English language classroom. You can find me here: https://www.abetterword.in
I've been a teacher of English for over 15 years and enjoy helping learners acquire necessary skills that will enable them to become harbingers of collaboration and harmony via the many different skills they will use in the real world. My most recent experience has been to setup a writing lab at Christ University, Bangalore. I've since gone on to pursue research in several different areas. My primary area of research as a doctoral student since 2017 has been to explore creativity in the English language classroom. You can find me here: https://www.abetterword.in
Siân Etherington
'I’m currently a lecturer in TESOL and Applied Linguistics at the University of Salford, where I teach on our MA programme and also do some teacher development work for new academic staff. I’m interested in the role of creativity in teaching and learning in general as well as specifically within TESOL. One of the pieces of work I do with new academic staff is to help them become more creative teachers through the use of games in their teaching and learning. I’m also interested in positive aspects of psychology in language learning and how this can be researched and applied in different settings and by different participants. Before coming to Salford I studied for my Masters and PhD at Manchester University, UK and before that taught English in Germany and Greece. I’ve also been closely involved in English for Academic Purposes teaching in the past and ran pre and in-sessional EAP programmes for Salford University for several years.'
Sikha Gurung
'I am Sikha Gurung from a small yet naturally beautiful and culturally rich country Nepal. I live with my family in Banepa, near the capital city Kathmandu.
Academically, I am an MA in English Literature from St. Xavier's College, Kathmandu affiliated to Tribhuwan University. Currently, I am an MPhil Research Scholar in ELE at Kathmandu University School of Education, Kathmandu. My research area is in Art-Based English Language Teaching.
Professionally, I have had fun journey climbing up the ladder of my teaching career step by step since 2015. From Primary English teacher to Bachelor, every level has enriched me with new learning and thus helped me grow as a teacher. Currently, I am a Senior English Language Arts Teacher at Ullens School, Kathmandu and an English Lecturer at K and K College, Kathmandu.
Therefore, through the eventual teaching experience, I have learnt that teaching is much more than just reading out a book for our learners: it involves fun learning in and from creative expression.'
Academically, I am an MA in English Literature from St. Xavier's College, Kathmandu affiliated to Tribhuwan University. Currently, I am an MPhil Research Scholar in ELE at Kathmandu University School of Education, Kathmandu. My research area is in Art-Based English Language Teaching.
Professionally, I have had fun journey climbing up the ladder of my teaching career step by step since 2015. From Primary English teacher to Bachelor, every level has enriched me with new learning and thus helped me grow as a teacher. Currently, I am a Senior English Language Arts Teacher at Ullens School, Kathmandu and an English Lecturer at K and K College, Kathmandu.
Therefore, through the eventual teaching experience, I have learnt that teaching is much more than just reading out a book for our learners: it involves fun learning in and from creative expression.'
Stefania Ballotto
Stefania Ballotto is a teacher, teacher trainer, and trainer of trainers. She is a Lecturer at the University of Udine, Italy, and she trains pre-service and in-service teachers. She has presented at conferences all over the world and has been a PILGRIMS teacher trainer for nearly two decades. Her passion is her learners with whom she shares and grows together. Her main area of interest is beyond the traditional foreign language methodology teaching. She enjoys developing creativity, innovation and critical thinking. Stefania is South African-Italian and has an MA in Applied Linguistics from Cambridge University, UK.
Stephen J. Hall
Professor Stephen J. Hall is Head, Centre for English Language Studies, Sunway University, Bandar Sunway, Malaysia. The Centre provides preparatory intensive courses and over twenty English for Specific Academic Purposes courses. Stephen was an Inservice Teacher Training nation-wide Project Manager in Malaysia for four years and has served on Ministry Of Education, Malaysia advisory committees for TESOL pedagogy standards and curriculum development. Stephen has lived in South East Asia since 1991 and has been involved in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages for over forty years. His recent academic writing focuses on native speakerism, plurilingualism, reflective practice and teacher education. Stephen enjoys percussion, wine tasting and wine writing for some balance and as a Kiwi follows the bounce of an oval ball.
Website: www.stephenjhall.com
Website: www.stephenjhall.com
Steve Flinders
'I’ve been involved in teaching, training and teacher training on and off – more on than off – for nearly fifty years – and have always been keen to foster real communication in the classroom. I’ve lived and worked in the UK, Pakistan, Ireland, Sweden and France, and am now based in Malta where I work part-time as a writer, trainer, consultant and coach. Before coming here in 2014, I was for twenty years a director of York Associates, a UK training company which helps people develop their language, communication, intercultural and leadership skills for international working.
I’m interested in anything which encourages people to be more curious and creative, to relax and to have fun, and to understand how they are learning, inside the classroom and outside. I’m a novice in drama technique but am interested in the work of Augusto Boal, in games, and in ways to encourage people to write. I’m interested in having transforming conversations and understanding the processes involved in bringing them about.'
I’m interested in anything which encourages people to be more curious and creative, to relax and to have fun, and to understand how they are learning, inside the classroom and outside. I’m a novice in drama technique but am interested in the work of Augusto Boal, in games, and in ways to encourage people to write. I’m interested in having transforming conversations and understanding the processes involved in bringing them about.'
Sue Leather
'I’m an ELT consultant, teacher educator and author. I run an educational consultancy group, Sue Leather Associates ( www.sueleatherassociates.com ) specialising in teacher and trainer education and in the management of international ELT projects. My current interests are in teacher trainer education and in facilitating sustainable improvement in ELT classroom practice. I’m particularly interested in how teacher trainers can help teachers to transfer their learnings into practice.
I have also written some thirty original graded readers for a range of publishers. My reader Desert, Mountain, Sea has been in print since 1989. My reader Dead Cold won the Extensive Reading Foundation award in 2005. I was the Joint Series Editor of Page Turners, a Cengage/National Geographic readers series.'
I have also written some thirty original graded readers for a range of publishers. My reader Desert, Mountain, Sea has been in print since 1989. My reader Dead Cold won the Extensive Reading Foundation award in 2005. I was the Joint Series Editor of Page Turners, a Cengage/National Geographic readers series.'
Susan Hillyard
Susan Hillyard has work experience in seventeen countries as a teacher, Head of Department, Director, speaker, workshop facilitator, consultant, researcher, Professor and on-line tutor. She was Prof. Language IV in Lenguas Vivas and UTN Teacher Training Colleges, Buenos Aires, Argentina. She has been involved with two Theatre in Education troupes, based in Buenos Aires, as diction teacher, backstage hand and as an adviser. Presently Susan is author and tutor on-line for the Masters in ELT for Language and Globalisation at La Sabana University, Colombia, SEN Network coordinator and committee member YLTSIG for IATEFL and, her most creative job to date, as Coordinator, English in Action, teaching English through Drama using ActionSacks in Special Education, Ministry of Education, City of Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Website: http://susanhillyard.blogspot.com.ar/
Website: http://susanhillyard.blogspot.com.ar/
Svetlana Fedotova
Svetlana Fedotova has been an EL teacher since 1994. She got her fundamental experience of teaching at Russsian University of Economics. Svetlana’s exposure to new teaching approaches resulted in transforming her classroom routine into lively workshops . Inspired by innovative ideas, she tailored her own English course based on case studies which focuses on developing interpersonal and professional skills. At that time Svetlana worked out her pro credo - teach and learn, learn and teach. In 2012 as an EL corporate coach she had to change the focus from tasks to learners and positive results turned up. The learners became aware of their needs and incorporated their interests in creation of their own way of learning. Svetlana’s genuine professional passion lies in creating an EL case studies course with the focus on developing critical thinking and communication skills.
Working now at a Moscow secondary school she is introducing a more humanistic approach to teaching children which helps them feel free within formal school constraints. Svetlana strongly believes that an assertive teacher is able to raise assertive people.
Working now at a Moscow secondary school she is introducing a more humanistic approach to teaching children which helps them feel free within formal school constraints. Svetlana strongly believes that an assertive teacher is able to raise assertive people.
Svetlana Zhavoronkova
At the moment I am working as a teacher of English and a teacher trainer at the Moscow State Pedagogical University. I teach English to teachers-to-be, develop syllabuses for methodology courses and teach them. I also have a part-time job at the international language school Language Link where I develop and run teacher-training courses.
After graduating from a teacher-training university in Moscow, at the start of my career I worked at the Suggestopedic centre (suggestopedia in my opinion stands for tripled creativity), from there I travelled to do a Master’s in TESOL at Teachers College Columbia University in New York, intrigued by the mystery of Second Language Acquisition; upon return home got involved in a coursebook writing project with the British Council and became a co-author of the coursebook New Millennium English for mass secondary schools.
I feel proud to say that I have been a career teacher, a practitioner at the board in the classroom for almost 31 years. And believe it or not I am still enjoying it! Every lesson is like a completely new open-ended adventure in search of the best method and the clue to the mystery of language acquisition. Teaching a language happens on the border between the physical world and the world of psycho. Being a “material woman” with strong Marxist views on language and activity theory I believe the enigma of language could be unravelled through the study of physiology and adaptive behaviour.
After graduating from a teacher-training university in Moscow, at the start of my career I worked at the Suggestopedic centre (suggestopedia in my opinion stands for tripled creativity), from there I travelled to do a Master’s in TESOL at Teachers College Columbia University in New York, intrigued by the mystery of Second Language Acquisition; upon return home got involved in a coursebook writing project with the British Council and became a co-author of the coursebook New Millennium English for mass secondary schools.
I feel proud to say that I have been a career teacher, a practitioner at the board in the classroom for almost 31 years. And believe it or not I am still enjoying it! Every lesson is like a completely new open-ended adventure in search of the best method and the clue to the mystery of language acquisition. Teaching a language happens on the border between the physical world and the world of psycho. Being a “material woman” with strong Marxist views on language and activity theory I believe the enigma of language could be unravelled through the study of physiology and adaptive behaviour.
Sylwia Zabor-Zakowska
‘My work in Rzeżucha Studio lets me combine such fascinating fields as foreign languages, developing creative potential in children, painting, poetry and certain knowledge of nature. Apart from my fondness for the mentioned areas I possess appropriate knowledge and qualifications which I gained studying English Philology at Warsaw University (Poland) specializing in teaching, Horticulture at Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Psychology of Creativity at Jagiellonian University in Cracow. I also graduated from Painting at Maria Sklodowska-Curie University in Lublin. I am a pioneer to introduce the idea of teaching English through Art in Poland and to combine art classes with the achievements of psychology of creativity.
In 2016 I wrote and published a book "Poetry and Art for Creativity" which has been rewarded with European Language Label - a prestigious prize for creativity and innovation on a European scale and in 2017. Now I am setting up a "Cogito" Foundation for gifted children. You can get more information and contact me here http://rzezucha.com/
In 2016 I wrote and published a book "Poetry and Art for Creativity" which has been rewarded with European Language Label - a prestigious prize for creativity and innovation on a European scale and in 2017. Now I am setting up a "Cogito" Foundation for gifted children. You can get more information and contact me here http://rzezucha.com/
Tamas Kiss
'I have been involved with language teacher education programmes in a variety of countries in Europe, the Middle East, South Asia, Latin America and South East Asia as a participant, trainer or consultant. I particularly enjoy working with teachers with different backgrounds and experiences. As one of the founding members and committee member of ELTeCS Europe and Central Asia I had the chance to oversee many international teacher-initiated projects. I was also involved with ELTeCS East Asia and ELTeCS Latin America. My main interests include language teacher education, materials analysis and design – with a special focus on (inter)cultural learning. I am also fascinated by complexity science and new ways of thinking about (teacher) education. I have a Master’s Degree from the College of St Mark and St John (UK) and a PhD from the University of Warsaw (Poland). I am currently an Assistant Professor at the English Language and Literature Academic group of the National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.'
Tan Bee Tin
'I am from Burma (Myanmar) and started my career as an English language teacher in Yangon in 1985. I came to New Zealand in 2004 to teach in the Dept of Applied Language Studies and Linguistics at the University of Auckland. My research interests are in the areas of materials development, studies of academic discourse and the ‘affective’ and ‘creative’ aspects of language teaching and language teacher education. My current research projects are conducted in Asian countries (e.g. Indonesia, Burma, Nepal). Being an Asian myself, my passion is to explore and understand the cultures of teaching and learning in Asian contexts. I have been a member of the Asian Teachers Creative Writing Group since 2003 and have run workshops in different Asian countries, fulfilling the aims of our group: fostering creativity in language teaching and producing published materials (short stories and poems) written by Asian teachers.'
Tania Pattinson
I have enjoyed the creative process of materials development for over two decades. My career started in Taiwan and South Korea; within a few years of getting my initial teaching qualification, I was dabbling in materials writing. My first publications were two series of coursebooks for adult learners, which allowed me to be as creative as I wanted to be, and a series of Ministry of Education books for teens, which did not. On my return to Canada in the mid-90s, I specialized in EAP. I was always one of those teachers who could never use a coursebook as it was intended; I always wanted to change things, supplement, and bring my own ideas to my teaching. Eventually, I was assigned a course for which I could not find a suitable coursebook, so I wrote one. This was 'Critical Reading', published by Pearson in 2015. I’m now a freelance writer specializing in EAP and academic upgrading. I’m also an editor; I’ve worked with a number of publishers, but I’m perhaps best known as editor of IATEFL’s 'Voices' and 'Conference Selections' publications.
Tanya Matthew
'I work at the University of Paderborn, Germany, in the 'Englishe Sprachpraxis' or the department of English language practice. I teach mainly two grammar based courses to students who are doing their Bachelor's degree in linguistics, literature or education. My areas of interest include the teaching and learning of grammar, developing learner autonomy and learning through tandem programmes. Over the last two semesters I have also been offering a voluntary course for students interested in becoming more autonomous learners. In June 2015, I gave a presentation in the MATSDA conference about this course.
Before moving to Germany, I taught English at the British Council in New Delhi for two and a half years after doing the CELTA. My educational qualifications also include Bachelor's and Master's degrees in English Literature. In my free time I love reading, painting and playing the piano.'
Before moving to Germany, I taught English at the British Council in New Delhi for two and a half years after doing the CELTA. My educational qualifications also include Bachelor's and Master's degrees in English Literature. In my free time I love reading, painting and playing the piano.'
Tessa Woodward
Tessa Woodward is a teacher, teacher trainer, and the Professional Development Co-ordinator at Hilderstone College, Broadstairs, Kent, UK. She also edits The Teacher Trainer journal for Pilgrims, Canterbury , UK . She was President of IATEFL from 2005-6. She is the author of many books and articles for language teachers and for teacher trainers. Outside work, and as you can see from the photo to the left, sometimes inside work as well, she likes singing and dancing. Also, creative writing, walking, horse riding, seeing friends, reading. More. Much more. Anyway, her latest creation within the profession is The Fair List, an award for excellence in gender balance of plenary speakers and panels at UK, ELT events.
Thom Kiddle
Thom Kiddle is currently Director at NILE in Norwich, having previously been a teacher, trainer and language tester in Portugal, Australia, Thailand and Chile. He is interested in creative approaches to teacher training, the use of technology in learning, teaching, training and testing, and exploring creativity in language assessment.
Tien Minh Mai
‘I hold an MA degree in Applied Linguistics from Curtin University. My professional interests include action research, creativity, authenticity, drama techniques, and effective technology integration. Since 2008 I have been working as a Secondary English Teacher at a private bilingual school in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, where I am constantly inspired by my teenage learners. Having opportunities to present at TESOL Talks (Vietnam), CamTESOL (Cambodia) and IATEFL (as a Cambridge scholarship winner), I've learned that there’s no limit to professional development activities and values: the concept of getting ‘enough’ could be detrimental. Besides teaching, I read non-fiction books and also blog at tienmaiminh.wordpress.com.'
Uwe Pohl
'I work as a university-based teacher and teacher trainer in Budapest, Hungary. I’m a German national who has been living in Hungary for many years and whose professional language is English. Some of my in-service work has also taken me to other countries and provided many fascinating and thought-provoking experiences. For all these reasons, one of my main professional interests has been intercultural communication and learning. My personal passions are table tennis, playing the guitar, mushroom hunting and swimming in any kind of water.
As a cultural in-betweenie, I've become aware of the need to be creative in most intercultural encounters, where you tend to make do with limited and somewhat unreliable linguistic and cultural resources. I usually also have to try and relate to an alternative viewpoint, which, for me, is a creative act. And I'm interested in encouraging other forms of 'everyday creativity' in my students, e.g. the ability to ask 'what if' and to articulate and play around with half-baked ideas.'
As a cultural in-betweenie, I've become aware of the need to be creative in most intercultural encounters, where you tend to make do with limited and somewhat unreliable linguistic and cultural resources. I usually also have to try and relate to an alternative viewpoint, which, for me, is a creative act. And I'm interested in encouraging other forms of 'everyday creativity' in my students, e.g. the ability to ask 'what if' and to articulate and play around with half-baked ideas.'
Varinder Unlu
'Teacher, Teacher Trainer, Academic Manager and Principal. Have worked in ELT for over 25 years in a variety of contexts from Language schools to Higher Education. I love using literature and poetry in the classroom to help my learners learn English. I also regularly use art and with my students and create my own materials to support learning.'
Vasiliki Lismani
'I hold a BA in Modern and Medieval Greek Literature from National Kapodistrian University of Athens, an MA in Special and Inclusive Education from Nottingham Trent University, UK and I am CELTA qualified and I have attended many seminars, and online courses. I have been a board member of Tesol Greece Teachers’ Association for the last two years. English as a foreign language has been my passion since I was a student, so EFL teaching came naturally. For the last 20 years I have been working in foreign language schools in the area of Piraeus, Greece. Professional development is a key issue for me and I am keen on attending conferences and presenting myself. Recently, I have written articles for EFL Magazine. As I see it, English as a Foreign Language is not just another linguistic subject but mainly a tool to explore the world. This is the attitude that I have been trying to inspire to my students all these years. Projects, posters, comic stripes - drawings are some of the means which I have used to support teaching and to show my students that a “foreign” language can be more as close to as their mother tongue. More ideas about my work in my Facebook Group: EFL in Piraeus.'
Vera Cabrera Duarte
Vera Cabrera Duarte is a professor of the English Language Department at the Catholic University of São Paulo, where she obtained her Master’s and Doctorate Degrees in Educational Psychology. Currently, she leads a research group, developing a project entitled “Living Drama: theory and praxis in English language teaching and learning contexts”, and participates in the research group “Continued education for teachers of English: a context for the reconstruction of practice”. Vera is also a lecturer in the Lato Sensu graduate programme Reflective Practice and the teaching-learning of English in state schools in São Paulo. Besides, she coordinates the Centre of Language Learning Studies at the Catholic University of São Paulo, Brazil.
e-mail: [email protected]
e-mail: [email protected]
Véronique Buffat
'I’ve been teaching English at lower secondary level since 2003 and I still find this job fascinating. To keep up my motivation, as well as my students’ motivation, I constantly try new things and develop material. I’m especially interested in songs, videos and creative writing. Moreover, since I’m also a Geography teacher I often use CLIL sequences.
As the English coordinator for my region, I took part in the writing of a curriculum for primary and secondary schools and in the adaptation of an international coursebook to our needs. I’m also a teacher trainer and have taught sessions about creative writing; using songs in the classroom; the evaluation of productive skills; the English-speaking world; teaching mixed ability classes. In 2017, I published an article in HLT Magazine entitled Using Songs with Teenagers. I am an active member of ETAS – English Teachers Association of Switzerland – and have given workshops on similar topics during our annual conferences.
I finished my MEd TESOL at the University of Exeter in 2015. During these studies, I investigated teachers’ beliefs and developed an interest in reflexive practice. I continued my education in this field and I’m now entitled to facilitate practice analysis groups.'
As the English coordinator for my region, I took part in the writing of a curriculum for primary and secondary schools and in the adaptation of an international coursebook to our needs. I’m also a teacher trainer and have taught sessions about creative writing; using songs in the classroom; the evaluation of productive skills; the English-speaking world; teaching mixed ability classes. In 2017, I published an article in HLT Magazine entitled Using Songs with Teenagers. I am an active member of ETAS – English Teachers Association of Switzerland – and have given workshops on similar topics during our annual conferences.
I finished my MEd TESOL at the University of Exeter in 2015. During these studies, I investigated teachers’ beliefs and developed an interest in reflexive practice. I continued my education in this field and I’m now entitled to facilitate practice analysis groups.'
Vicky Papageorgiou
Vicky Papageorgiou is a foreign language teacher (English, Italian, Greek) with approximately 20 years of experience with mainly adult learners. For over 15 years she has been preparing students for English language exams of various exam boards. She holds an MA in Education (Open University of Cyprus) and an MA in Art (Goldsmiths College, UK) and she has just completed her PGCE in Technology Enhanced Learning from the University of Wales Trinity Saint David for. She studied in Greece, Italy and the UK but also participated in an international project for the McLuhan program in Culture and Technology for the University of Toronto, Canada. Her fields of interest are Inquiry Based learning, ESL and Art, translation, and the use of video. She is currently based in Thessaloniki (Greece) working as an English instructor at AMC College for the past 5 years. Since the beginning of 2015, she is part of the ELTA Serbia Editorial team for their publications. She writes articles and blogs about educational matters. Her two blogs are:
https://vickypapageorgiou.wordpress.com/ and https://ieltsacademicresource.wordpress.com/
https://vickypapageorgiou.wordpress.com/ and https://ieltsacademicresource.wordpress.com/
Vicky Saumell
'I am a teacher, teacher trainer and materials writer. I am based in Argentina, where I was born and where I teach at secondary school. I teach New Learning Environments for the Master’s in ELT at Universidad de La Sabana in Colombia. I am also a presenter at professional development conferences, especially in Latin America. My interests are technology integration and the development of creativity in the students. These interests have led me to explore creative development on its own and enabled by new technologies, and have shaped my professional views about language teaching and learning.'
Website http://vickysaumell.blogspot.com.ar/
Website http://vickysaumell.blogspot.com.ar/
Victoria Hlenschi
'I currently work at “Gheorghe Lazăr National College”, Sibiu, Romania and I am a founder member of EDAR (Educational Drama Association in Romania). During my career as teacher of English and teacher trainer I have participated in numerous training courses and conferences, many of which focused on creativity and its use in the classroom. This has also been the focus of some workshops that I conducted and articles that I published, such as: Creative Ideas for Open-minded Teachers and Happy Students (Euphoria, 2007) or Actions Speak Louder than Words (Creative Ideas with Teaching Flavour, 2009), Multimedia Resources in TEFL. Teaching Responsible and Creative Use (RATE Issues, 2011). My interests also cover the use of new technologies in the English language teaching and I have some background in assessment as well. I have designed tests for national contests and examinations and I am a Cambridge speaking examiner.'
Yassine El Idrissi Touran
Yassine El Idrissi Touran is a state senior high school teacher. He has been teaching English as a foreign language for three years in private schools and two years in the public sector. He has also taught English in a few language institutions. He has got his BA in linguistics from Caddi Ayadd University, Morocco. He has a State Certificate of Qualification in Pedagogy and Language Teaching. He is now working on a classroom library to sensitize learners to befriend books so as to develop themselves linguistically and spiritually. He has a conviction that the more intellectual one is, the more imaginative and creative they are.
Ying Ying Huang
Ying Ying Huang is an EFL teacher in South China. She is now an MA student of TESOL at IOE (Institute of Education), London University. In 2014, she was selected as the winner of the MATSDA Creative Use of the Coursebook competition. She likes teaching language because she enjoys the pleasant of seeing people using language to learn about world and to express what they think about the world. Languages are message carrier, which reflect people’s inner world: thinking, feeling and wanting. Teaching a language, she says, provides her a telescope to know more about the universal of herself’s and other people’s mind.
Wade Alley
Wade Alley has worked as a professor of EFL and German for over twenty years. He has lived in Guadalajara, Mexico since 2005 where he has worked at public and private universities. After becoming a professor at the Universidad Panamericana, Wade won a research award for a project that included the use of creative tasks in a gamified class setting. The project proved to be very successful, and has led to colleagues in his department and in other subjects to adopt similar teaching strategies. With the creativity content of his previous course as a starting point, Wade will be adding more material to undertake a new experiment in teaching by focusing exclusively on creativity training as the subject matter for an EFL course.The teaching techniques will focus on creative instruction, student autonomy, and maximizing engagement with the idea that greater student creativity and improved achievement test scores will result.
Wei Keong Too
'I have involved in English language teaching since 2001. I started my career as a secondary school teacher, and now I am the Coordinator for MA TESOL at the School of Education, University of Nottingham, Malaysia Campus. I hold a M.Sc. and PhD from Universiti Putra Malaysia. I believe that creativity is innately in us, the teachers, and our profession allows us to engage in creative processes which are meaningful to our students and us. I have experience working with pre-service and in-service teachers on incorporating technology in teaching, teaching methodology and curriculum development in ELT and literature in English. My research interests are technology enhanced learning, teacher professional development, teaching literature, and young adult literature.'
Zarina Markova
'I have worked as a teacher, teacher trainer (pre- and in-service), supervisor of teaching practice and master’s dissertations, editor. In all these roles, I have been trying to create conditions for ‘pedagogised’ creativity, i.e. personal and social creativity that can emerge, and be enhanced, in the context of effective and meaningful English language teaching and teacher training. These attempts have brought me to the C Group.'
Zaure Kulchikenova
‘After graduating of Astrakhan State University, I began to work in secondary school of Volodarsky region, as a teacher of English and methodologist in the regional department of education, then I was recommended as a specialist of international collaboration in Astrakhan department of common and professional education to develop international program, organize competitions of national languages (Kazakh, Tatar, Nogai and others) for schoolchildren, seminars for teachers during the program of American Council of teachers of Russian (АСПРЯЛ). During the past eight years I lived in Kazakhstan and worked as a teacher of English in Maly Academy of Art, organized an exhibition of artist's work for foreign guests, then as a translator and a teacher in Cape Industrial services in Atyrau branch, taught workers. More than two years was a consultant in InterPress company, held presentations of new English textbooks, provide all educational establishments of Western Kazakhstan (Atyrau and Aktau) new English textbooks of world famous publishers. I had a good chance to visit Oxford University Press conferences in Morocco, in Turkey, held international seminars for teachers and chaperone famous lecturers. Now I live in Russia, Astrakhan city work as methodologist in educational center, at the same time collaborate and work closely with Kazakhstani teachers.’