Yes! Gary Anderson has accepted to be interviewed for our 2015 Shades of ELT conference. We´re super excited about it and can´t wait to meet him in Uherské Hradiště. Make sure you check his blog before you come – On the Road with Gary: Trips and Tips. By the way, you can STILL register, too!
Portrait Publication – COPYRIGHT CHOM-2013
Gary Anderson was Pedagogical Director of the language program of the former American Center in Paris where he taught and co-ordinated classes for all ages of learners. He was President-elect of TESOL France when he joined Cambridge University Press as International Teacher Trainer. He has since given talks in over 60 countries on five continents, including several times in the Czech Republic and twice at previous ATECR conferences. He writes a blog On the Road with Gary: Trips and Tips at www.cambridge.org/elt/blog.
Let´s ask Gary first a few things about teacher training. What are the 3 things…?
3 things you love about teacher training
Traveling, meeting teachers, and finding out more about different local teaching situations.
3 thing you find difficult about teacher training
Traveling, sometimes eating and drinking too much, and occasional passive audiences.
3 things you can´t do without as a teacher trainer
My remote slide changer, theme songs and friendly, interactive audiences.
When did you decide to become a teacher and why did you choose this field? How have your former teachers influenced your teaching career?
My mother was an English teacher, but the real reason I’m a teacher is probably because of my French teacher in high school, Madame Leatherberry, who shared her passion and persuaded her students to be interactive and communicative with role plays, songs et al. I once read a scientific article which listed the seven keys to happiness and one was to thank your mentor. Alas, Madame Leatherberry fell from her horse and broke both hips, suffered and died before I could thank her and… I’ll always be a somewhat less happy person. So thank your mentor and be happier!
What do you think is the greatest challenge teachers face today? What is the most difficult aspect of teaching today?
People used to talk about the digital divide between digital immigrants and digital natives. But that’s so last millennium! Now digital is the new normal with digital visitors, such as myself and a lot of teachers, and digital residents, such as my children and probably most of your ‘screenager’ students. The challenge is for teachers to increasingly integrate digital into their teaching and for students to understand that digital is also a means to learning.
What are 3 things that make for a successful conference?
Inspiring and useful talks and workshops, ample time for networking and visiting the stands, and good receptions and parties.
Are you looking forward to coming to Hradiště? What are you going to talk about?
I was in Zlin once a number of years ago for a conference, but I‘ve never been to Hradiště before. So I look forward to discovering the city, seeing the surrounding Moravian countryside and drinking some of the local wine—in addition to attending the ATECR conference.
In my plenary, I’ll be talking about Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) and both what I call ‘real CLIL’ as well as ‘CLIL lite’. We’ll also touch on Quentin Tarantino films and sing a song together.
Thank you very much for the interview, Gary, and see you in Hradiště!
2015 Shades of ELT 