Passing Cambridge P.E.T. Our success story with JP004

My students in a Business English class were finally persuaded to prove to themselves how good their skills have become. They were obviously delighted to be presented with their certificates, and more than happy to share the secrets of their success.

I suggested they brainstorm ideas & map out a general plan on the board, and the video is the outcome. I think they're making superb progress, and passing P.E.T. (Cambridge Preliminary) a very solid milestone for them to chalk up.

Looking forward to them updating their profiles on LinkedIn! Comments very welcome - and why not subscribe to Luna's YouTube channel?

Where in the world are our readers?

 

The above word cloud was generated from the clustr maps widget on this blog, showing us roughly where our readership is based.

Thank you readers - we'd love to hear your international comments too!

Jim's top ten blog response

This is a blog posting I wrote in response to an original article posted on ELT Experiences - Experiences of an English Language Teacher . I thought I`d share it with Luna`s readership, but invite everyone to go read Martin`s original article and other follow ups.

 

Jim George8 September 2012 01:23

Through twitter @ELTExperiences aka Martin asked me if I had a Top Ten - I don't, but here are nine (in no particular order) I find myself paying more attention to than others! Homage to Mick Stout who got me going in the first place.

1. Ana Cristina Pratas blog CristinaSkyBox is not a weird toyshop but her Ed Tech blog home. An awesome Scoop It curator and tireless inspiration on twitter Ana seems be busy 24/7!
2. Former children’s laureate & Youtube star of “Going on a Bear Hunt” Michael Rosen is usually in fine form railing against inane Government/education/school policies. Whether or not you agree with him is besides the point; excellently written and wonderfully argumentative
3. Although not an iPad user myself, I find Around the Corner-MGuhlin  a very good corner to lift & find techno tips
4. Short, unbiased & to the point blog about tech in the classroom, usually the first place to find new sites reviewed  iLearn Technology
5. Nik’s Quick Shout has been a bit quiet lately, but another prolific ‘discoverer’ Scoop It curator
6. Martin Byrne must have a brain the size of a planet; his Free Technology for Teachers is always a wealth a superb new bits & pieces that help get the job done.
7. An inspiring teacher & presenter I actually know personally is Barbara Sakamoto, known to many through her Teaching Village blog which hosts her global network of friends’ contributions shedding light on our classroom challenges!
8. Like Martin, I find Dave Dodgson’s Reflections of a Teacher & Learner an excellent source of calmness & rational reflection, and often find myself wishing “I’d said that”
9. Although commercial, I have found Oxford University Press recently to be serving up a regular serving of high quality postings
10. I am hoping that Personal Reflections of JALT Conferences Past will become an instant classic, as my blogging inspiration Mick Stout asked me to tackle another blog challenge i.e. asking teachers & learners who have attended previous incarnations of Asia’s largest teachers’ conference to share their thoughts…  contributors are so far a bit shy, but very welcome (email me oyajim@gmail.com to get an invitation) and I hope will feature plenty of updates during & after our jamboree Oct 12-15.

Of course Martin’s blog here is on my list, and I have enjoyed following your journey east. Keep going and we’ll see you in Japan sooner or later! Thank you for putting my school’s blog in your original ten Martin. It is very humbling to be in such stellar company – and a massive acknowledgment for our students’ work/bravery in posting online.

Looking forward to seeing this feature mushroom!

Avid readers and bloggers from one of my business classes, deserve a pat on the back for their hard work and imaginative use of this extensive reading opportunity. As you can see we have mostly used CUP Graded Readers this time around, supplementing our catalogue with some OUP Factfiles (the new edition ones are excellent). Students have generally really liked the titles; this group has produced a posting each on six titles over the last twenty weeks. Well done lads, proud of you!

My second group has produced fewer postings overall, but the quality of those generated has been high...and there has been a flurry of last minute postings in the last couple of days. Thank you for your hard work in and out of class; look forward to seeing/teacing you again soon.

I think we will have to choose a new series of readers, and maybe go up a level?

Jim