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21st Annual TESOL Greece – Athens College Event “Preparing the 21st Century Language User in Diverse Contexts”
5 February @ 9:00 am - 5:00 pm
21st Annual TESOL Greece – Athens College Event
"Preparing the 21st Century Language User
in Diverse Contexts"
Event Programme
Event Sponsor
10.20 - 10:30
Welcome - Opening Remarks
Plenary Speaker:
Mrs Sylvia (Kar) Karoumbali
10:30 – 11:20
Choremi Hall
“Are You an Empath?“
Summary: Are you an empath? Yes, or no? How does this affect you? How does it affect your friends and family? Most importantly, does it affect your students? In which ways might it have positive or negative effects. Can being an empath help prepare students for the 21st century classroom?
Sylvia Kar holds a Qualifications Bachelor of Arts from the University of Toronto and McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. She also holds a Master of Education from the University of Michigan, and a Teaching Certification from the University of Michigan. She has been an experienced teacher of English since 1977 at the Hellenic American Union and at Deree College. She is also a teacher trainer for various organizations among these being the Hellenic Ministry of Education. She is an examiner for all the American examinations (University of Michigan ECCE,ECPE,TOEFL and the Medical USMLE) which supplied valuable experience with regards to testing and the needs of the candidates. She is a founding member of TESOL Greece. She is a Writer / Author of more than 40 books for English Language Learning, +1 International publication for McMillan Publications.
Speakers
Maria Makra holds an M.Ed. in TESOL from the HOU and a B.A. in English Language and Literature from the UoA. She is currently the Head of the English Language Department at Metropolitan College (Peiraeus Campus) and Teaching Fellow for the University of Birmingham. She has presented in seminars and conferences both in Greece and the UK and has contributed to various newletters. She has served on the Board of TG both as Vice Chair (2013-2014 & 2018-2019) and Chair (2014-2015)
Maria Makra
11:30-12:15
Choremi Hall
“The Significance of Diversity & Cultural Awareness in the Classroom”
Summary: Diversity and cultural awareness signify our respect towards what seems different from the “norm”. This encompasses variables like race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religious/ political ideology, influencing how we interact with the world; as such, they should be promoted early on. This presentation will explore the reasons for such importance and suggest ways to successfully promote it in our classrooms.
Maria Mavraki graduated with an M.A. in Primary Education and Qualified Teaching Status from the University of Durham in the U.K. She taught as a Full-time Head teacher in Greece and England, before spending 16 years as a Full-time Head Teacher at private schools in New York City. She has also created curricula for Advanced English, Maths, and Science classes. Maria Mavraki has also completed courses in Mindfulness Fundamentals and Educators Essentials.
Maria Mavraki
&
Stamatia Kikilia
11:30-12:15
Room 321
“How Can STEAM Promote Second Language Acquisition”
Summary: How can STEAM reinforce second language learning in the early years? What is the role of the teacher in all five stages (ASK, PLAN, IMAGINE, CREATE, IMPROVE)? This presentation will show you step by step all the different language structures and skills acquired, documented, and evaluated in this engaging learning process. It will also aim to analyze how to facilitate a supportive learning environment which promotes questioning, observing, and presenting in English.
Stamatia Kikilia received her Bachelor’s in English Literature from the National Kapodistrian University of Athens and a Postgraduate degree in Applied Linguistics from the Hellenic American College in Athens. She also holds an Advanced Diploma in TESOL. Stamatia has also attended various seminars on dyslexia, dyspraxia, aphasia and ADHD at the Medical University of Athens. She has also participated in a one-year program on School Psychology held by the University of Aegean. Lastly, she has attended various online courses on Literature at the University of Harvard.
Dimitri kokoroskos
12:30-13:15
Room 321
“Enhancing Student Engagement with Multimodal Learning”
Summary: With recent advancements in technology, teachers are increasingly employing multimodality to enhance their students’ learning experience. These modes range from – but are not limited to – storyboard activities, picture description tasks, flashcards, audio- and video-based files, multimedia projects, infographics etc. This presentation will touch upon the prospects and limitations of multimodality, and it will demonstrate through practical and interactive activities how teachers can design multimodal activities that promote authentic engagement in language learning. Specifically, this will be illustrated using stories, which are in essence multimodal events, to create opportunities for meaningful learning while also developing additional outcomes such as higher order thinking skills, narrative literacy, and empathy. The overarching aim of this presentation is to discuss how multimodal tasks along with thoughtful teaching can be integrated effectively even in highly prescribed L2 curricula to create positive learning outcomes.
Dimitri Kokoroskos has been working in the field of English language learning for more than 10 years. He has taught English as a second/foreign language across different age groups in Greece and abroad. He also has extensive experience in curriculum design and materials development with ELT book publishers and language testing and assessment organizations. His areas of interest include sociocultural theory in learning, materials development, and psychological aspects in second language acquisition. He holds a BA in English Language from the University of Athens and an MA in English Literature from UCL.
Yiannis Papargyris (PhD, CEA) is an education management professional with over 20 years’ experience in the fields of English-medium Higher Education, Qualification Development and Educational Assessment. At PeopleCert, he holds the position of Language Assessment Development Director and is responsible for the development of the LanguageCert exams portfolio.
Yiannis Papargyris
12:30-13:15
Choremi Hall
“Digital Assessment Literacy: New Contexts for Online Learning and Assessment”
Summary: As the fields of online learning and assessment experience unprecedented growth, educators and assessors find themselves adapting to new frameworks. In my talk, I will try to identify and present a series of digital practices which redefine what is expected of both teachers and test developers, and lead to a reconsideration of key conventions governing language use.
13:15 – 14:15
Lunch Break & TESOL Greece Pitta Cutting
Agapi Dendaki has a long experience as a teacher of English in the public and the private sector in Greece. She is also a teacher trainer with expertise in Special Education and Counselling and has designed and coordinated several CPD programmes in collaboration with many educational institutions, public universities and private colleges.
Agapi Dendaki
14:15-15:00
Choremi Hall
“Omnipotence Limited: The Teacher as an Advocate of Inclusion in and Out of the Classroom”
Summary: After years of official advocacy of inclusion in education, at least in the western world, respect to diversity should be assumed to be a given, not a challenge. Yet, teachers often have to struggle to overcome obstacles to inclusion in societies -and schools- that are still fearfully biased or becoming even more conservative. Above all, they need to acknowledge and fight the most insidious obstacle of all, their overtly or covertly biased self.
Faye Kafetzopoulou is an IB PYP English language teacher with an MA in Media and Communications from the University of London, Goldsmiths College, and a BA in English and Greek Language and Literature from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. She has also successfully completed postgraduate courses on Leading Inquiry Based Development run by the University of Cambridge and on Differentiating Instruction, focusing on Strategies for Teaching English Language Learners, run by the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She has over 20 years of teaching experience in Greece and the UK and since 2008 she has been teaching English at Athens College Elementary School, where she is currently Head of the English Department.
Faye Kafetzopoulou
&
Ariana Rapti
14:15-15:00
Room 302
“Switch On and Blend In!”
Summary: The post-pandemic landscape of education has changed drastically as the unprecedented crisis has inspired educators to rethink and redefine the pedagogical approaches that can be applied in various educational contexts. As a result, more and more schools are now moving towards blended learning, since it allows educators to leverage the best of human connection and the best of technology to ensure each student’s needs are met. But what exactly is blended learning and how can it help us optimize the learning experiences of students in and outside of the classroom? Is there a way we can ensure that we meet individual student needs both online and offline? In this hands-on workshop, we will explore different strategies and digital tools that could enhance differentiation in order to support learning for all students. Are you ready to blend in?
Ariana Rapti is an IB PYP English language teacher with a Master of Arts focused in Digital Media, Culture and Education from UCL Institute of Education.She is also a raising awareness manager of the first Non-Governmental Organization in Greece with the scope of protecting human rights in the digital age. Her professional and research interests focus on learning by creating.