'Sole Mate' - a zero prep game

In this episode I am joined by the wonderful Alba Casado, who runs the C2 Proficiency Quest podcast and Facebook page (find out more - https://www.facebook.com/c2proficiencyquest/). We talked about what it takes for learners to achieve a high level of English (C1 and above), and what EFL teachers can do to help their students get there.

One of my favourite things about being an EFL teacher these days is going to conferences, and among the very best conferences is the International House Torun Teacher Training Day. In this video, I talk with Glenn Standish about ELT conferences - why they're useful to go to, what it's like to speak at a conference, and, since Glenn is so heavily involved in the IH Torun TTD, what you need to think about when you host a conference of your own.  You can find Glenn on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and on the day of the conference (hosted annually in March) you can follow events via the hashtag #ihtorunttd.  Find out more about Glenn's school here:  https://www.torun.inthouse.pl/

In this episode I am joined by the magnificent André Hedlund (www.edcrocks.com - he's on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn... everywhere, really) to talk about the ever-fascinating topic of bilingualism - what it is, what it does for you, and what it means in the world of education. André also describes his Bilingualism: Languange and Cognition Online Course that can be purchased and accessed through his website.

Daniel Anweiler (on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok as @danielanweiler) is a good friend of mine, and kindly agreed to take some time out of his busy schedule to talk to me about his experiences learning English for a specific purpose - in his case, Legal English.

We're halfway through the year, and, as always, the students have fallen into the usual habits - they sit in the same place, they work with the same partner, and they're resistant to change. 'Sole Mate' is a simple, zero prep game you can play to mix things up a bit.

In this first episode of the Closely Observed Teaching podcast, I look back at my career as a teacher so far - what I've done, where I've worked, and what I've learned from it all.