SSLW 2009 = a success

Schmoozin-a-plenty and some exciting news about the location of IAWE 2010. Let's just say that when Larry Smith told me the next conference would be "a little closer" to where I live, that was an understatement.

The 16th Conference of the International Association for World Englishes, Inc. (IAWE) will be held in Vancouver, Canada from 25 to 27 July, 2010. Members of the association are invited to propose papers for presentation or participate by attending the conference. Please visit the website for latest updates:

Seeking Same

Confused PhD student seeks viable post-critical theory and/or pedagogy for socially engaged language-teaching practice. Must incorporate valuable insights from critical theory with very little of the jargon or cynicism. Must not see interrogation of dominant discourses as the end of academic inquiry. Must lack even the appearance of being motivated by radical political beliefs. Must not assume that the definitions of words like "equity" and "freedom" and "liberation" and "democracy" and "possibility" are fixed and mean the same thing to everyone. Must clearly articulate the meaning and desirability of "transformation."

Must be rooted in one or more of the following: hope, love, desire, ethics, joy, curiosity, the Emic, the Local, the Personal, the Ineffable.

Must believe another world is possible but not for a minute presume to describe it to me until I have described it for myself.

Some data on my SSLW project (Part II)

Finally making good progress on my SSLW project. (presenting this Thursday!)

It's turning out pretty cool & interesting. Just trying to fine-tune some stuff and try to explain how the findings/implications should be described. So much of academic writing is creatively leaving things out -- I'm looking for the balance between describing all the data and actually giving it a shape that's interesting and useful.

Some interesting stuff came up -- and keep in mind I am, for the most part, no longer "leading the witness" the way I did during my MA research when I didn't know any better. Students said stuff about Chinglish and varieties of English totally independent of anything I thought.

Some student quotes:

1.

"I think teacher should know what the students really need. Then help them to write that things and judge. For example, many students want to learn how to write resume. The teacher should give suggestions on how to write and tell the students what the HR suppose in one’s resume. The teacher may get all the resumes, tell the students which students will he/she take if he/she is HR. I think people will be interested in what they need. Many useful English writings are not difficult, but Western people have different way to write it…Teachers should let students know it."

2.

"A teacher regard exams as the final aim of writing would never attract students. So his task is not only teaching how to use words or sentences but also the culture.”

Using Theories

Putting together a presentation - suddenly a theory/orientation I didn't really like a whole lot when I first heard about it popped into my head -- "hey, if you use this, it will help prove your point." Theoretical pragmatism: using what works without being religiously devoted to any particular theory.

Critical Pedagogy As Oppression

"I came to realize that my implementation of critical pedagogy without taking into consideration students' goals, needs, and expectations was an imposition of my belief and that it was antithetical to my goal of student empowerment. I recommend that when attempting to implement a pedagogy, teachers should understand the limitations of the pedagogy and adapt to unique implementation challenges each class presents."

Jungmi Kim, "Implementing Critical Pedagogy in an English as a Second Language Writing Classroom"

SEE ALSO:

"WHY DOESN'T THIS FEEL EMPOWERING? Working Through the Repressive Myths of Critical Pedagogy" Elisabeth Ellsworth, Harvard Educational Review, Fall 1989 (electronic version not available, but you can read the abstract)

Professor Tony's English Classroom

This site is really interesting. Honestly it looks like there is a ton of stuff here and this could be a really, really interesting site for research on English writing in China. Professor Tony's English Classroom is a site for Chinese students of English writing, and

"its purpose is to provide the best possible help to any and all people here in China that want to improve their English. And the best part of it all is that everything is FREE OF CHARGE!"

TESOL Islamia

I seem to recall this site being down for quite a while, but I stumbled across it again today: TESOL Islamia is a one of few resources that takes the relationship between ESL and religion seriously.

China Holistic English

Up late working on a couple papers due tomorrow -- I see that Niu and Wolff, whose aggressive articles on Chinese EFL teaching (esp. the plight of the native English speaking teacher) have been both enjoyable and upsetting to me over the past few years, are gearing up for a pretty huge push with their whole philosophy over at China Holistic English.

While I'm really happy to see that someone is publishing a desperately needed book -- their forthcoming Teaching EFL in China: What Every Foreign Teacher Should Know Before They Go -- I'm disappointed to see that a) it is not being published by a reputable academic publisher and b) at first glance it does not appear to be substantially revised from the previous articles they have put up on their website.

Niu and Wolff are saying some really important things about a really important sector of global ELT, but their work frequently comes off as recalcitrant and unrealistic. I don't mean to be harsh, but hope their new book(s) will prove to be otherwise.