Tag Archives: EFL

Getting At The Whole Truth: More Quality Management Questions

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Magnifying_glass_2911This post is part of an ongoing series on Quality Management for language schools.

In my last post on quality management for language schools, I put forward some ideas on how to address a school staff when undertaking the development of a ‘home grown’ quality management scheme. I also covered questions aimed at teachers that should be included on a survey with a focus on the academic administration of a school. In this post I will continue to discuss such a survey and questions that relate to all employees concerning the school’s administrative and marketing operations.

To be honest, these two points may raise some hairs on the heads of school owners, specifically because they cut right to the core of a school’s management in terms of control and honesty, otherwise known as fair dealing. It’s true that leaders don’t normally like their authority or ethics questioned. Nonetheless, in relationship to ensuring quality no one is above reproach.

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Getting Started With Quality Management: Asking Teachers The Right Questions

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This post is part of an ongoing series on Quality Management for language schools.

So, you’ve decided to jump into the ‘quality’ pool. Your reasons for doing so may be varied, but most likely, if you are a school owner or have been charged with the task of establishing a system of quality management at the behest of the school owner, you are probably wondering where to start. Answering this question is what this post is about.

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Quality Management For Language Schools: A Preface To Establishing Your Own Scheme

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Quality Circle

What Is Quality Management? Do you really need it? Some claim to have it, others want it. Some offer it for a price, and others will ‘run for the hills’ if they hear word of it.

If you work in an organization long enough, eventually you will hear the terms ‘quality management’, ‘quality circle’ or ‘quality control’, as surely as you would hear the word ‘trendy’ if worked in the fashion industry. In fact, go to any bookstore, and you’ll find tons of books espousing all manners of theory and practice for business concerns.

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Freeganism: A Lesson Plan

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Note: this article was written and first published online by out dear friend and colleague,  ‘Teacher Dude’, on his blog: http://teacherdudebbq.blogspot.gr

I once came across an article about ‘Freeganism’. It was titled “One Person’s Dumpster Is Another’s Diner” and was written by Becca Tucker, and posted on AlterNet on March 21, 2007. The article begins: “A subculture of people make a statement by living off the waste of millions.” For three days, a reporter gave it a dumpster-diving go in the “freegan” paradise of Manhattan.” I thought that it would make for an interesting lesson. As the article is quite long and complex this would be best done by advanced students.

The link to the article maybe found here: http://www.alternet.org/story/49547

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The Cross-Curricular and Critical Thinking Connection

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Defining the Cross-Curricular approach to teaching is much easier than putting it into practice. This is because much forethought is needed into actually setting up a task or project as well as integrating different academic disciplines, matching said disciplines to component tasks, and then facilitating the usual management that comes along with any large-scale project. Whether you are contemplating a school level project involving many academic disciplines and class levels or you are an EFL teacher trying to weave different academic subjects into your class as material, the keyword, as mentioned above is “thought”. Yes, it takes much analytical thought. Critical analytical thought to be precise!

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Why Choose Teacher Development: A Personal Perspective

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Some years ago, I embarked on the arduous but professional and personally rewarding journey of undertaking the Cambridge ESOL (formerly RSA) Diploma for English Language Teachers of Adults (DELTA). When I finally received my diploma in the mail, I went back and reflected on the portfolio of work I had produced for this endeavor. Early on, I was asked to reflect on why I felt teacher development was important to me both at the general and personal level. Here is what I wrote:

I have been a teacher in a variety of contexts for a number of years now. Although I initially received some ESL specific teacher training early in my career, I have over the years, developed a sense of confidence in my teaching methodology based on my past teaching experiences, my personality and creativity, the influence of my other professional experiences as well as my desire to improve myself professionally. For sometime, I even believed that being a good teacher was something inherently within me. However, while in many ways teaching is indeed an art, I now believe that the required combination of organizational skills and talents to produce educational ‘masterpieces’ are not garnered via genetic predisposition, but rather via the result of teacher training and experience honed over time and practice.

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