Episodes

  • S1 Episode 6 - Critical Pedagogy

    S1 Episode 6 - Critical Pedagogy
    Dec 23 2020
    Steve Brown invites us to challenge the neoliberal hegemony in ELT. GISIG: gisig.iatefl.org JOIN: iatefl.org/get-involved/membership RESOURCES: https://stevebrown70.wordpress.com/2019/06/30/which-side-are-you-on-iatefl-in-a-messed-up-world/ https://scottthornbury.wordpress.com/2010/09/18/g-is-for-grammar-mcnuggets/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedagogy_of_the_Oppressed https://www.icrea.cat/Web/ScientificStaff/david-m.-block--allen-549 https://iris.ucl.ac.uk/iris/browse/profile?upi=JGRAY79 https://www.dcu.ie/salis/people/marnie-holborow https://www.derby.ac.uk/staff/james-avis/ QUESTIONS 02:09 For those who haven’t read your article (‘Whose side are you on? IATEFL in a messed-up world’), what was it about? 03:57 Should IATEFL have a more prominent role in advocacy, in your opinion? 06:54 What do you mean exactly by ‘dominant ideologies’? 11:45 Could you tell us a little bit more about the origins of critical pedagogy? 18:35 Why is Freire’s work (relatively) so unknown within ELT? 21:54 In your work you talk a lot about ‘The Emancipation Continuum’ as a model for education. What is it and why is it important? 28:19 Do you think that critical pedagogy is promoted in academia? 31:47 How can we enact a contemporary critical pedagogy in ELT? 38:56 On a practical level, what does that mean for individual teachers, or institutions? If they want to take a more emancipatory approach, what should they do? 44:44 How do you bring education for emancipation into your own work? DISCLAIMER Views expressed in The Global Issues Podcast or other GISIG publications are not necessarily those of the editor(s), of the IATEFL GISIG, of IATEFL or its staff or trustees.
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    19 mins
  • S1 Episode 5 - Indigenous Communities

    S1 Episode 5 - Indigenous Communities
    Oct 26 2020
    Elizabeth Bekes describes her experiences working with the Achuar in the Ecuadorian Amazon. GISIG: gisig.iatefl.org JOIN: iatefl.org/get-involved/membership RESOURCES: https://www.workaway.info/en/host/199873881424 https://teflequityadvocates.com/2017/07/31/why-nnests-international-english-and-the-implications-for-teacher-development QUESTIONS 01:22 How did you come to work with indigenous communities in Ecuador? 02:54 Could you tell us a little bit more about the project? 03:59 What was your life like day-to-day on the project? 05:12 Did you eat well when you were with them? 05:43 Could you tell us a bit more about the Achuar? 06:44 What were the benefits and drawbacks of working in a jungle environment? 08:57 How do you think involving the students in the creation of their own coursebook impacted on their learning? 12:56 What kind of English were you teaching your students? What exactly did they need it for? 15:51 What are currently the biggest threats to indigenous communities in Ecuador, and in particular the Achuar? 17:31 Did all of your students speak Spanish? 18:56 Do you see the spread of English and Spanish as an existential threat to the indigenous languages of the Achuar, or as an opportunity? 20:00 What do you think are the attitudes of people in these communities towards the more globalised world that we’re living in today? 21:33 How did globalisation affect you personally, as an English teacher? 23:00 What did this work teach you? 26:17 What advice would you give to other teachers who might be working in a similar context with indigenous communities, perhaps in other parts of the world? DISCLAIMER Views expressed in The Global Issues Podcast or other GISIG publications are not necessarily those of the editor(s), of the IATEFL GISIG, of IATEFL or its staff or trustees.
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    13 mins
  • S1 Episode 4 - Extinction Rebellion

    S1 Episode 4 - Extinction Rebellion
    Sep 22 2020
    Julietta Schoenmann tells us about her ongoing teacher-activism in response to the climate emergency. GISIG: gisig.iatefl.org JOIN: iatefl.org/get-involved/membership RESOURCES: https://rebellion.global/ https://www.greenpeace.org.uk/ https://www.facebook.com/gretathunbergsweden/ https://friendsoftheearth.uk/ https://350.org/ https://michaelmann.net/ https://www.monbiot.com/ https://naomiklein.org/ QUESTIONS 01:40 Why is the climate crisis such an important issue for you personally? 02:24 Could you tell us a little about how the language of climate activism has changed and why this is important to the cause? 04:57 Who do you think is driving this change in the language? 05:15 Do you raise these linguistic changes with students in class? 05:27 How do we contribute to the climate emergency as an industry? 06:50 What do you think about the way that the climate emergency has been presented in ELT coursebooks? 08:20 Could you tell us a little about Extinction Rebellion (XR) and what it aims to achieve? 11:33 Is XR a global movement? Does it have a presence in the Global South? 14:14 Has XR made any inroads into education? 15:47 What does the symbol of XR represent? 16:42 Is direct action the best way to bring about positive social or environmental change? 21:20 What can we in ELT learn from the work of XR? 23:15 What would you say to those who might feel overwhelmed by the scale of the climate emergency? 26:48 What are the dangers of denying the science on climate change? 28:50 How can we help students to fact check? 30:45 What action can individual teachers take to reduce their impact on the environment? DISCLAIMER Views expressed in The Global Issues Podcast or other GISIG publications are not necessarily those of the editor(s), of the IATEFL GISIG, of IATEFL or its staff or trustees.
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    16 mins
  • S1 Episode 3 - Racism

    S1 Episode 3 - Racism
    Aug 18 2020
    Harry Kuchah Kuchah unpacks racism, discrimination and unconscious bias in ELT. GISIG: gisig.iatefl.org JOIN: iatefl.org/get-involved/membership RESOURCES: hornby-trust.org.uk/decentring-elt QUESTIONS 01:40 What language do you use to describe your own identity, and why? 03:22 How important is your race or ethnicity is to your personal identity? 06:07 The language around race is constantly evolving. Are you aware of any recent changes in the language we use connected to race? 08:07 Is it important for IATEFL to have a black president? 10:27 Can we have fair and equal representation without tokenism? 11:50 (I believe) black teachers are underrepresented in the ELT industry. Why do you think that is? 16:26 Do you think that ELT is racist? 18:27 Have you experienced challenges in your own career as a result of your skin colour? 21:07 What was your reaction to the recent Black Lives Matter protests, how they make you feel and are you are in support of them? 22:54 IATEFL recently issued a statement condemning racism and police violence. Why did they do that? 25:10 Do value statements, like the one IATEFL produced, carry any weight? 26:31 What do you think IATEFL should be doing to address racial discrimination as an organisation, both internally, and within ELT more broadly? 29:14 What metaphorical statues should fall within IATEFL? 31:20 What advice do you have for teachers who want to discuss race and racism in their schools? DISCLAIMER Views expressed in The Global Issues Podcast or other GISIG publications are not necessarily those of the editor(s), of the IATEFL GISIG, of IATEFL or its staff or trustees.
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    16 mins
  • S1 Episode 2 - Taboos

    S1 Episode 2 - Taboos
    Jul 15 2020
    Adrian Wallwork discusses the inclusion of ‘controversial’ topics in our teaching materials. GISIG: gisig.iatefl.org JOIN: iatefl.org/get-involved/membership RESOURCES: tefldiscussions.com QUESTIONS 02:09 Could you tell me about the process of writing materials, from the initial concept to getting something into print? 04:19 So how much freedom do you think materials writers really have? 05:44 Is it difficult for new materials writers to know what is and isn’t accepted by mainstream publishers? 07:00 Your recent series of books (TEFL Discussions) are a little different to those produced by mainstream publishers. Could you tell us a little bit about them? 07:42 Could you give us an idea of some of the titles of some of the units or chapters in the books? 08:55 Which do you think is the most controversial topic in the books for you? 09:30 Why do you think it’s important to teach controversial topics or issues that students might find challenging in this way? 11:30 What kind of feedback have you received? 13:31 Do you think there is space then for teacher training in this area? 14:55 Do you think there is a place for global materials or should we be only producing local materials? 15:26 You told me you’re now preparing listening exercises to go along with the series… 16:52 You’ve mentioned that ELT has a history of problematising certain issues, and controversial issues tend to be grouped together and presented in less mainstream coursebooks. Is this the best way to deal with these kinds of topics? 18:13 What makes a good discussion, in your opinion? 19:21 Are you ever worried about causing teachers who read your books, or students in your classes, offence? 20:32 So causing offence isn’t always a bad thing? 20:44 What advice do you have for teachers who have never used more controversial materials in their classes before? 25:28 What would you say to teachers who don’t think it’s their place to give an opinion on these issues? DISCLAIMER Views expressed in The Global Issues Podcast or other GISIG publications are not necessarily those of the editor(s), of the IATEFL GISIG, of IATEFL or its staff or trustees.
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    2 mins
  • S1 Episode 1 - Criticality

    S1 Episode 1 - Criticality
    Jun 16 2020
    Emma Halliday discusses what it means to be critical in ELT. GISIG: gisig.iatefl.org JOIN: iatefl.org/get-involved/membership RESOURCES: storycorps.org/stories QUESTIONS 01:50 What do you think it means to be critical? 02:49 Would you describe yourself as a critical educator? 03:50 What events have changed how you understand criticality? 05:47 Do you think personal experience is one of the key factors in whether or not someone thinks critically? 07:23 Are there any other times in your life that you think helped you become the critical person you are today? 11:48 Do you think there is anyone in your life who has influenced your own criticality? 13:44 And do think you have taken on (your grandfather's) ability to question the status quo and have you brought this into your work? 14:36 Why do you think it is important to be critical? 15:17 Do you think your own teacher education has developed your ability to be critical? 16:49 In what other ways has your criticality been developed (or not) within your own teacher education? 17:52 How do you go about promoting criticality in your own work? 18:46 Are there are any other ways you can go about promoting criticality in your teaching? 19:27 Can you teach criticality? 23:08 The word 'critical' is a bit of a buzzword in education at the moment. Do you think it is ever mis-used? 24:04 Do you think it's ever a bad thing to be critical? 24:50 What exactly should we be doing more or less of in ELT? DISCLAIMER Views expressed in The Global Issues Podcast or other GISIG publications are not necessarily those of the editor(s), of the IATEFL GISIG, of IATEFL or its staff or trustees.
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    28 mins