Why Are So Many EFL Textbooks So Bland, Boring, and Culturally Tone Deaf?
Why are so many EFL Textbooks so bland, boring, and culturally tone-deaf? Allow me to ask a more polite question. How can English teachers working abroad and international English textbook publishers both respect local cultures and create more engaging English classroom lessons? The challenge may be more complicated than you might suspect. A long, informative, and detailed exchange on a TESOL...
Read MoreThe Language of Opportunity – Wabash profiles an English Teacher
Small American colleges often love their ambitious graduates. Wabash College, my alma mater and outstanding private liberal arts college in Indiana, certainly celebrates her favorite sons and treats them like stars. This fall’s Wabash Magazine advises graduates to “Look East, Young Man” as it celebrates the opening of the College’s new Asian Studies Center. Inside, the magazine editor...
Read MoreEnglish Teachers Confront the Billion-Person Question
“How can rural Chinese students develop their listening and speaking skills with very limited opportunities to speak with actual native speakers in person?” This question remains the billion person question! English language learners across Asia – in China, Thailand, and Vietnam – and the entire globe – confront this profound problem. As somebody who has only taught English for a...
Read MoreAn ESL Author Looks at an ESL website with New Eyes
Sometimes we don’t see what is in front of our eyes. Today I learned a bit more about my own website from a fellow English teacher and friendly fan. A gentleman from Tennessee called my home, thanked me for the sample conversation materials, and asked some insightful questions about the updated Compelling Conversations website. I appreciate his call – and his giving a practical...
Read MoreDwell in Possibility: Discussing Books Enlivens ESL Classes
“A word is dead when it is said, some say. I say it just begins to live that day.” Emily Dickinson Cheap pleasures can sometimes be the most satisfying. Reading, an activity that often costs nothing, falls into that category. Reading provides many pleasures and many insights. So does talking about reading. Following a December ritual, I’ve been reviewing the year and find many...
Read More
