The TD SIG’s Teacher Journeys conference will be held in-person at Tokyo City University (Setagaya Campus) on Saturday, October 12th.

The presentation schedule is currently being prepared. In the meantime, pre-registration for the conference is now open and is ¥2,000 for JALT members and ¥3,000 for non-JALT members. Click here to pre-register.

Teachers’ stories are instrumental in shaping our professional growth and practices. This event is a prime opportunity to inspire and connect with others, enriching our collective understanding and contributing to our development as educators. We look forward to seeing everyone on the conference day!

Teacher Journeys is back! This year, the conference will be held in-person at Tokyo City University (Setagaya Campus) on Saturday, October 12th.

We invite you to submit a proposal and share your unique experiences as a teacher. Our stories are instrumental in shaping our professional growth and practices. This event is a prime opportunity to inspire and connect with others, enriching our collective understanding and contributing to our development as educators. Don’t miss out on this chance to make an impact!

You can propose either a 30-minute presentation or a 75-minute workshop, both of which will include time for Q&A.

Please use this Google Form to submit your proposal: https://forms.gle/UBd5rH6St3zJ3xRP8

Join the TD SIG Forum at PanSIG 2024 with our three panelists and dive into their take on the “Boon and Bane of Digitalized EFL Education”.

Although we commonly share the recent period of tech-based EFL lessons, we may differ as to which side of the fence we are on: the boon side or the bane side. This forum features presenters who will share their specific views and experience of recent large-scale technology implemented lessons, realizations and revelations stemming from those, and how their technology use connected to fundamentals of EFL education/lessons. Our interactive discussion with the audience centers on either support for increased use of technology (boon) or the notion that technology is overused and/or inefficient (bane).

Our three presenter topics relate to: (1) the paradox of advancing educational technologies, such as AI and VR, and their demand for educators to not only deeply understand these tools but also to increasingly apply traditional teaching methodologies; (2) the implementation of Virtual Exchange (VE) to maximise learning outcomes by offering students more comprehensible input while encouraging output and the negotiation of meaning; (3) the need to avert overreliance on technology tools and common classroom failures by supplementing traditional pedagogical approaches more strategically with technology to create unique opportunities exclusive to language classrooms.

Date: Sunday May 26th
Time: 10:10 – 11:40
Room: 2-703

The Teacher Development SIG will be holding a forum at the JALT 2024 national conference in Shizuoka (November 15-18).

At this year’s conference, the prompt words ‘opportunity’, ‘diversity’ and ’excellence’ related to the future, have been selected in order to generate, discuss and share related ideas.

The format for the forum will be an interactive workshop. We would like to emphasise the “interactive” component of this year’s forum to potential workshop leaders.

Within the 30 minutes given, each workshop leader will:

• Share a story related to themselves and/or their teaching context in connection with the JALT theme prompt words (opportunity, diversity, excellence), and how their identity or practice as an educator will or may evolve moving into the future.
   
• Involve and encourage attendees to participate in discussions and idea sharing related to their story, and allow them to connect their experiences, ask questions, and/or give comments or ideas about the workshop leader’s story.

We strongly ask people applying to be workshop leaders to keep the above two guidelines in mind related to this forum. We ask that the format of your proposed workshop not be presentation heavy, not involve too much of your talk time, and not have the interactive component be just Q&A at the end of a presentation.

The deadline for proposals is Sunday April 28th, 11:59pm. Click here for more details and the proposal submission form, or scan the QR code on the poster below.

The Teacher Development SIG is inviting researchers and teachers to join our debate forum at the upcoming PanSIG Conference.

The theme of the forum is “The boon and bane of digitalized EFL education: Building a new foundation for the future”. If you are interested, you can choose which side of the fence you are on: the boon side or the bane side.

This format will have a presenter sharing a specific view on the theme with a round-by-round format. Initially, speaking for 3-5 minutes each to explain their experience of the recent large-scale technology implemented lessons, their realizations/revelations that stemmed from that and which relate to the fundamentals of EFL education/lessons, and finally their support for increased use of technology (boon) or that technology is overused and that more traditional approaches are more efficient and effective (bane).

We want you, the educator with experience in the technology zoom-boom of the last years, to share with us your takeaways and wisdom which you can aptly apply as we move back to basics.

We are targeting these topics for forum presentations:

• teachers’ and students’ technological skills as a pivotal factor
• maximizing learning outcomes through the use of technology or not using technology 
• a move back to basics, everything digital, or amenable balance : as a problem of practice

Some potential questions for proposal submitters:

• How does learning theory and design impact your choice and/or use of technology?
• How did you maximize learning outcomes via technology? 
• In what ways did you consider the development of technological skills (for yourself and students) as a pertinent aspect within learning? 
• What can we pull out of this recent flood of online education to build a better basic foundation of EFL teaching?
• How will you be moving forward with a redeveloped sense of “back to basics”?

Please note that the PanSIG 2024 Conference is an in-person-only event from May 24th – May 26th, 2024. You must physically travel to Fukui University of Technology to participate in our forum.

You can apply via Google Forms until March 10th by sharing the following information:

• an indication of the targeted topic(s) you intend to submit for (listed above)
• a potential title for your presentation
• an abstract (up to 220 words)
• a basic explanation of your presentation content (3-4 main aspects in point form)

The Google Form is here: https://forms.gle/5Mm1esAhYyyC9hiu9

Thank you in advance for your application. We will respond within 2 weeks of your submission.

The Teacher Development SIG are excited to be holding our first face-to-face conference in years at Hakodate University, Hakodate, Hokkaido, this Saturday February 17th (09:00-17:00).

“Moving Towards Sustainable Education” has three tracks of research and will feature round-table speakers from the English Program of Utsunomiya University who will provide insight into their progressive teacher-led research agenda.

Our final schedule is all set – we have a full day of presenters with exciting and innovative research topics.

Please use the QR code on the publicity flyer, or click here, to register for the conference.

The Teacher Development SIG is inviting researchers and teachers to join our debate forum at the upcoming PanSIG Conference.

The theme of the forum is “The boon and bane of digitalized EFL education: Building a new foundation for the future”. If you are interested, you can choose which side of the fence you are on: the boon side or the bane side.

This format will have a presenter sharing a specific view on the theme with a round-by-round format. Initially, speaking for 3-5 minutes each to explain their experience of the recent large-scale technology implemented lessons, their realizations/revelations that stemmed from that and which relate to the fundamentals of EFL education/lessons, and finally their support for increased use of technology (boon) or that technology is overused and that more traditional approaches are more efficient and effective (bane).

We want you, the educator with experience in the technology zoom-boom of the last years, to share with us your takeaways and wisdom which you can aptly apply as we move back to basics.

We are targeting these topics for forum presentations:

• teachers’ and students’ technological skills as a pivotal factor
• maximizing learning outcomes through the use of technology or not using technology 
• a move back to basics, everything digital, or amenable balance : as a problem of practice

Some potential questions for proposal submitters:

• How does learning theory and design impact your choice and/or use of technology?
• How did you maximize learning outcomes via technology? 
• In what ways did you consider the development of technological skills (for yourself and students) as a pertinent aspect within learning? 
• What can we pull out of this recent flood of online education to build a better basic foundation of EFL teaching?
• How will you be moving forward with a redeveloped sense of “back to basics”?

Please note that the PanSIG 2024 Conference is an in-person-only event from May 24th – May 26th, 2024. You must physically travel to Fukui University of Technology to participate in our forum.

You can apply via Google Forms until March 10th by sharing the following information:

• an indication of the targeted topic(s) you intend to submit for (listed above)
• a potential title for your presentation
• an abstract (up to 220 words)
• a basic explanation of your presentation content (3-4 main aspects in point form)

The Google Form is here: https://forms.gle/5Mm1esAhYyyC9hiu9

Thank you in advance for your application. We will respond within 2 weeks of your submission.

We are excited to announce our upcoming face-to-face conference being held in Hakodate, Hokkaido, on Saturday February 17th.

“Moving Towards Sustainable Education” has three tracks of research and will feature round-table speakers from the English Program of Utsunomiya University who will provide insight into their progressive teacher-led research agenda.

Scanning the QR code on the flyer above will let you register and check which options you would like our help with. For example, after the event, we will likely be holding a dinner, which participants may join. As well, the following day (Sunday morning), a small sightseeing agenda is in the works. While these activities are optional, and will have some walking and personal costs to cover, we hope to spend an enjoyable time together. 

Please use the QR code on the publicity flyer to let us know your attendance at the conference, or click on the following link: https://forms.gle/9MpG5V3bXchkyBQ39

We have an exciting schedule of speakers coming – keep an eye on our social media for details: https://www.facebook.com/TeacherDevelopmentSIG/

On Saturday December 16th (15:15-18:45), the TD SIG’s Teacher Journeys will host five insightful individuals who will share their professional and personal transformations with the audience online.

The conference will cover a range of topics, from changes in one’s teaching approaches, to ways to reflect on one’s own past to pave the way for the better future self.

The conference will start with a discussion session by Devon Arthurson based on her thought-provoking video presentation (which we strongly urge you to watch before attending) followed by interactive presentations by four other guests. Come meet us and our presenters tomorrow from the comfort of your home, café, or wherever you find yourself at that time.

Schedule

• 15:30-16:00 – Reflecting on Academic and Career Paths by Devon Arthurson (please watch this video before attending for the full experience)
• 16:10-16:40 – My Journey to Translanguaging in the Classroom by Davis Shum
• 16:50-17:20 – Using the Pebble-in-the-Pond Model to Improve EFL Instruction by Jon Thomas
• 17:30-18:00 – The Art of Gathering in the Japanese EFL Classroom by Cam Hill
• 18:10-18:40 – Apathy in the English Classroom by Jason Hobman

The conference will take place on Zoom (link below) and is free to attend. Please visit and bookmark the official conference page for all relevant information, including the schedule and the link to the Zoom session.

We are all looking forward to seeing you there.

One of the Teacher Development SIG‘s first self-hosted face-to-face events in years will be held on February 17th, 2024 at Hakodate University!

We are accepting proposals from JALT and NON-JALT members who are interested in presenting about the topics listed below:

Track 1: Curriculum Reform & Professional Development
Track 2: Activating Learning & Educational Technology
Track 3: English for Specific Purposes

Other topics will be considered depending on the presentation theme. Presenters will be able to choose between a 25-minute or a 45-minute presentation.

Submit your proposal through this link: https://forms.gle/PfzjxShDVhTET2YFA

The proposal deadline is January 7, 2024.