Other Information

All of our teacher development courses are eligible for ERASMUS+ funding

Course Overview
Testing is frequently the key aspect of education, determining not just what is taught, but how. In such situations it is crucial that the systems in place are not just robust and reliable, but are relevant to the needs of the educational context, as identified by all the stakeholders, including students and staff. Where testing can be more flexible it is essential that those designing the systems are aware of the options, such that the best use can be made of this flexibility maximising student motivation and engagement.

Who is the course suitable for?
This course is aimed at ELT professionals working at all levels and with different age groups, who are interested in:

• improving their understanding of what spoken English is really like
• enhancing their ability to explain and exemplify the key aspects of spoken English
• learning how to teach spoken English more effectively
• learning how to test, examine and assess spoken English more effectively

Participants should have a minimum language level corresponding to B2/C1 on the Common European Framework.

What will the course include?
All course participants receive a pre-course questionnaire, which should be returned prior to the course. This is to ensure that the areas of most relevance to participants are covered. The main strands of the course will be carefully integrated but will include attention to some or all of the following, in line with participants’ needs and interests:

• Reviewing how spoken English is used in a range of authentic contexts
• Exploring the differences between the grammars of spoken and written English
• Reviewing the principles and practice of teaching spoken English to non-native learners
• Introducing and critically surveying recent developments in materials and methodology for the analysis, teaching and testing of spoken English
• Examining the relationship between teaching and testing spoken English
• Evaluating existing materials for stimulating spoken English in class and in tests
• Examining existing assessment criteria and develop new criteria for different contexts
• Providing practical hands-on experience of spoken language assessment
• Encouraging participants to re-examine their own practice in the light of the above

Time will be built into the course for reflection and for participants to consider how to adapt ideas from the course to classrooms in their own professional contexts.
All NILE’s courses involve a significant element of English language improvement and/or development of language awareness.
How long is the course?
The 50-hour course provision includes intensive tuition by trainers who are experts in the field of teaching, examining and assessing spoken English, as well as opportunities for reading and research and guest lectures from well-known figures in the field of ELT. Classes are held from Monday to Friday and take place as detailed in the course-specific timetable but always within the hours 0915 – 1715.

What approach is used?

• Classes will be practical and ‘hands-on’, but with reference to relevant theory.
• Courses are participant-centred involving tasks providing memorable learning contexts.
• Tasks will be used to illustrate the key course objectives through procedure and content.
• The approach includes opportunities for exploring key and contemporary issue
   

Facilities and resources

NILE course participants have free access to an extensive ELT library and a modern suite of computers with a broadband Internet link. The NILE course venues have a wireless (Wi-Fi) environment. Each course has a Moodle online learning environment where course materials and views of course participants can be shared digitally. This is kept active for at least six months beyond the course so you can keep in touch with your course mates