- This event has passed.
TESOL Greece Start-of-the-Year & Big SIG Day 2025
21 September
TESOL Greece Start-of-the-Year & Big SIG Day Event 2025
"Contemporary Faces of ELT"
Sponsored by
Plenary Presentations
Stella Floras 35 years in EFL have taken me from classrooms to seminar halls, from designing courses to examining students. My proudest creation, HeartSmart Heroes, weaves essential life skills into English lessons that spark confidence and curiosity.
Stella Floras
“Reborn Subtitle:“How AI is Shaping the Teacher We’re Meant to Be”“
10:00-10:50
Summary: The future of EFL is being rewritten right now—by algorithms. Will you stand by and let that happen? This urgent, theatrical, and humorous plenary warns: evolve or be replaced. It challenges you to reclaim your uniquely human qualities no AI can ever duplicate as the future belongs to those who choose to be truly human. Are you up for the challenge?
TESOL Greece SIG Presentations
Adult Learners SIG
Dr. Demetra Papaconstantinou
Dr.Demetra papaconstantinou & Lydia Stavropoulou
One step at a Time: From Adult Students to Adult Learners (or Empowering Adult Language Learners Beyond the Classroom)
11:00-11:40
Summary: This session introduces practical coaching strategies that support adult EFL learners beyond the classroom. Although many adults are motivated, fixed mindsets, past experiences, and perfectionist expectations often lead to anxiety and a lack of confidence. As teachers, we can become language coaches—helping learners shift their perspective, embrace experimentation, and build confidence through small, consistent wins. This presentation will offer tools for nurturing learner autonomy, encouraging growth mindsets, and fostering a positive, resilient approach to language acquisition.
Lydia Stavropolou
Drama & Literature SIG
Yulie lamprou-sklia
“Living the Language: Drama Pedagogy as a Whole-School EFL Experience”
12:50-13:30
Summary:
What happens when an entire language school becomes a stage?
This session presents a 15-day, multisensory, school-wide drama pedagogy that transforms EFL learning. Students -from Juniors to Proficiency- including those shy or with special needs, actively embody language via intensive rehearsals, songs, and movement.
You are invited into a world where drama becomes a dynamic, holistic vehicle for differentiated teaching and deep communicative competence.
Yulie Sklia, Co-founder, Academic & Executive Director of Sklia Education Centres, is an English language educator, SQA certified specialist in learning difficulties, NLP Practicioner, and Life Coach.Creator of StepNOW, her signature educational philosophy, she designs innovative, multi-sensory EFL experiences integrating drama, movement, and coaching strategies, fostering creativity, confidence, and personal growth.
Learning Technologies SIG
Dr. Vasilis Manousakis is a writer, mental health counselor, and university instructor. He has taught in many universities in Greece and abroad. He writes and publishes poetry and short prose in Greek and English. His last book is Tango in Blue Nights, Pigi Pubs (2024). He currently also works privately as a Mental Health Counselor, specializing in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Mentoring for students and young adults.
dR. VASILIS MANOUSAKIS
“AI as in Accommodating Identity: Best Practices for the Use of AI in EFL/ESL Classrooms”
11:55-12:35
Summary: This presentation will focus on examples of the use AI in EFL/ESL classrooms and the character strengths needed to create best practices for using it without losing our originality and creativity. We will discuss how it could be a powerful tool for modern students which will help them grow in class.
Specific Learning Differences SIG
aNTHI kOKKONI
“Know the terms. See the needs. Change the teaching.”: Understanding and Supporting Students with Neurodevelopmental Disorders”
16:05-16:45
Summary: Over the years, we’ve come across reports with terms like: Learning Disabilities, SpLD, ADHD, Language Disorders, Borderline Intelligence. But do we truly understand what they mean in everyday school life? This interactive presentation aims to turn theory into practice. Together, we’ll create a 3-step action plan: a) How to approach parents and students, building trust and cooperation, b) How to truly know our students and understand their needs, c) How to interpret assessments and apply appropriate classroom strategies. Through examples, experiential activities, and practical tips, we will strengthen the role of the English teacher as an empathetic supporter of neurodiverse learners.
Anthi Kokkoni is a Special Education Teacher with a master’s degree in Dyslexia and Dyscalculia from Swansea University (Μ.Ed). Founder of the “Leximathia” center, she has many years of experience, scientific activity, book writing, collaborations with universities and private colleges, she is a certified adult educator and member of the Board of Directors of PEEP. She is fluent in English, French, and sign language.
Teacher Development and Research SIG
Leda Lampropoulou is Head of Research at LanguageCert, with over 15 years’ experience in second language acquisition, teaching and assessment. She coordinates the organisation’s research programme and contributes to maintaining standards and supporting the validity and fitness-for-purpose of its exams.
leDA LAMPROPOULOU
“From Scribbles to Speech: Research Insights and Strategies for Effective Note-making in Speaking Exams”
14:15-14:55
Summary: Speaking is among the most sought-after skills, yet often the hardest to teach and the least practiced. Teachers preparing learners for exams are frequently criticised as “teaching to the test,” a practice seen as limiting and inauthentic. This session challenges that view, showing how exam preparation can also be communicative. Focusing on note-making to support monologues, a core exam task, we draw on research and exam data to identify common weaknesses and share practical strategies to help learners perform more effectively.
Young Learners SIG
Julie Labropoulou is a passionate educator specializing in early childhood English learning through drama and storytelling. With experience across preschools, primary schools, and creative play environment, she blends embodiment techniques with language teaching to nurture emotional intelligence and fluency. Bilingual, certified, and deeply committed to engaging young minds.
jULIE lABROPOULOU & aTHINA BOUZOULA
“CLIL-ing It: Mapping Our World for Young Global Explorers”
15:10-15:50
Summary:This interactive workshop explores Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) implementation through simple English for young learners across subjects such as Geography, Environmental Science, and Global Citizenship. Participants will discover practical design strategies, hands-on activities, and solutions to common challenges. Leave equipped with ready-to-use resources and confidence to create engaging, meaningful CLIL experiences that develop both content knowledge and language skills.
Athina Bouzoula has sixteen years of experience as an ESL teacher, delivering classes to learners of all ages and language ability levels. Five years of experience teaching EAP and ESP modules to college students. Most recent achievement: organising and delivering Environmental Science and Global Citizenship classes to young learners using the CLIL methodology. She holds an MA in English Literature from Dalarna University, Sweden, and a BA in English Language and Literature from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. She also pursued postgraduate studies in Irish Literature at Dalarna University. A technology enthusiast, she strives to equip her students with digital and other invaluable soft skills. Her aim is to build strong bonds with each learner and create fun, memorable learning experiences.
SIG Elections
11:40-11:55 Adult Learners
12:35-12:50 Learning Technologies
13:30-13:45 Drama and Literature
14:55-15:10 Teacher Development & Research
15:50-16:05 Young Learners
16:45-17:00 Specific Learning Differences