The Modern English Teacher Spotlight Series

The MET Spotlight Series shines a light on key topics we’ve explored in Modern English Teacher. In these webinars, our fantastic MET contributors will explore their chosen topic in more detail, and share their expertise alongside practical tips, useful ideas and more. Anyone can sign up to these webinars for free, and can join us live for the session or watch the recording for up to two weeks after the webinar. After that, each webinar will become exclusively available for MET subscribers.

“No, I don’t mean THAT!”

A spotlight on managing emotions during feedback

Anna Hasper | Wednesday 23rd October 2024 | 16.00 – 17.00 (London time)

According to Hattie (2008), feedback is one of the most powerful performance moderators. Whilst providing feedback to learners – whether it is language learners or novice teachers – validates their efforts, constructive feedback is crucial for any learner to further develop their skills. However, receiving constructive feedback may be challenging to accept and thus trigger negative emotions. Interestingly, teachers and teacher-trainers are mostly trained in what to give feedback on, focusing on the cognitive dimension, while how to manage emerging emotions during feedback, the affective dimension, receives very little attention (Richards, 2020) in teacher education.

In this interactive webinar, we will examine the concept of feedback in a classroom setting and its importance before exploring various responses. We will then focus on some practical strategies to proactively manage learners’ emotions in order to safeguard the emotional well-being of both those receiving and providing feedback.

Inspiration will be taken from Anna’s article in the January/February 2024 issue of MET: Managing emotional wellbeing during group feedback.

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“I read it on the Internet, so it must be true!”

A spotlight on integrating Critical Thinking into the Language Classroom

Andrew Boon | Wednesday 27th November 2024 | 12.00 – 13.00 (London time)

In today’s multimedia landscape, the rise of fallacious arguments, “fake news,” and unreliable sources makes critical thinking skills essential not only in one’s native language but also when learning new languages. This webinar will explore the vital role of critical thinking in language education, with a focus on practical applications.

During this interactive webinar, Andrew will:

• Define critical thinking and its importance in the language classroom.
• Introduce a cyclical process for incorporating critical thinking into teaching.
• Demonstrate several classroom activities that encourage critical thinking.
• Share insights on embedding critical thinking into the curriculum.
• Provide an overview of a critical thinking course taught to 4th-year Japanese university students.

For additional reading, participants are encouraged to explore Andy Boon and Gregory Hadley’s article in the July/August 2023 issue of MET, “Designing a Book on Critical Thinking”. In the article, they reflect on the theoretical and practical considerations that shaped their co-authored book, Critical Thinking (Hadley & Boon, 2023).

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