Tell Your Readers What You See, Feel, Hear and So On.

Two things: (1) I have been too busy recently. I have too many things to do, deadlines to meet and so on and so forth, and (2) I have had this inspirational workshop two weeks ago and I loved it. It made me reflect upon my creative writing. Some of the ideas I will use here will be stolen from my notes on my notebook – the notebook I used during the workshop.  

Let’s make it quickly, shall we?

Think about a place – maybe a local coffee shop you like – and try to describe it with as much detail as you can. Do not worry about the final result. You will have to edit it anyway.

[Use the pictures in order to help you]

Now, try to make your reader feel the place as much as he can. Let your reader imagine the atmosphere of the place. Let them “smell the place”.

Before describing your place, you should close your eyes and think about it trying to use all your senses.

What is it like? Does it smell good?

Instead of telling people about the place, let the place talk for itself. Use a lot of onomatopoeias – as much as possible – in order to help you.

Instead of saying he opened the door, use “Knock, knock”. And “make noise”. Let your reader touch the door as well.

From now on, we are going to use this site here (click here) so that we will be able to manage our time. 15 minutes are going to be all the time we need to practice.

Let’s see what you’ve got. Write your ideas on the comments here (below).  

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I hope you have enjoyed this post. I don’t know when I will be writing again, but I will try to make it as soon as possible.

See you guys around! 


If you haven’t read all the other post about creative writing, click here 

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T is for Teacher Knowledge

By Scott Thornbury

https://scottthornbury.wordpress.com/2013/05/05/t-is-for-teacher-knowledge/

What you do need to know in order to be able to teach?

The question concerns not only teachers, but also teacher educators and methodology writers, since the way we answer it impacts on the design of training programs and their related materials. Do teachers need to know a lot about grammar, for example? Second language acquisition? Educational theory? Curriculum design? Developmental psychology? And so on.

Those who study these things have hypothesized a number of different kinds of knowledge that appear to be implicated in teachers’ decision-making, including subject matter knowledge, general pedagogic knowledge (such as classroom management skills), and contextual knowledge, such as knowledge of the curriculum, of the students, of their social context and so on. At the same time, this slicing up of the pie should not obscure the fact that, in the actual business of teaching, these knowledge bases are deployed simultaneously and interdependently, and constitute ‘an integrated and coherent whole’ (Tsui 2003 p.59). ‘It is the melding of these knowledge domains that is at the heart of teaching’ (op. cit.p.58).

Nevertheless, in the interests of teacher training and evaluation, and for the purposes of  course design, it is often necessary to tease apart these diverse domains and organize them into a structured programme.

One such attempt at isolating and itemizing the components of teacher knowledge in our own field is embodied in the Teaching Knowledge Test (TKT), a teaching award offered by Cambridge ESOL. Aimed primarily at teachers whose first language is not English, and in response to a perceived need for affordable training opportunities in a wide range of contexts, the TKT was originally ‘designed to assess English language teachers’ knowledge about teaching, including concepts related to language, language use and the background to and practice of English language teaching and learning’ (Harrison 2007 p.30).

Initially conceived purely as a test of knowledge, the TKT did not at first include an assessment of teaching ability in the classroom. Yet there was evidence to suggest that, for some teachers at least, the TKT was perceived as being as much a test of ability as of knowledge. An impact study on the TKT in Uruguay, for instance, found that ‘even though TKT is a test ofknowledge, 61% of respondents seemed to expect the test to have an impact on their teaching practice’ (Valazza 2008 p.22). This expectation may well derive from the widely-held belief that knowledge does in fact equate with ability and that the more you know, the better you teach — that, in short, the naming of parts is tantamount to being able to use these parts. But, as Freeman (2002 p.11) observes, ‘One needs the words to talk about what one does, and in using those words one can see it more clearly.  Articulation is not about words alone, however.  Skills and activity likewise provide ways through which new teachers can articulate and enact their images of teaching’.

Just as important, therefore, as identifying, naming, and describing the knowledge bases of teaching is understanding how they are proceduralized in practice and developed over time.  It is now generally accepted that learning to teach involves a dynamic interplay between knowing and doing. As Tsui (op. cit. p.65) puts it, ‘teachers’ knowledge shapes their classroom practices, but their classroom practices in turn shape their knowledge, as they reflect on their practices during and after the action, and they come to a new understanding of teaching’.  For this reason, teacher training programs, whether pre-service or in-service, ideally (some would say necessarily) involve some kind of hands-on practical component, where planning-for-teaching, teaching, and reflecting-on-teaching are integrated into a continuous developmental cycle.

To their credit, Cambridge ESOL have now incorporated a practical test, involving 40 minutes of assessed teaching, into the packet of core modules on offer as part of the TKT.  This can only be a good thing. But ‘core’ does not mean compulsory, and there is always the risk that, because of pragmatic and economic considerations, the practical component will be side-lined, and the ‘knowledge modules’ alone will be considered a sufficient measure of classroom teaching ability.

As publishers, training and examining bodies scramble to address the very real needs of language teachers worldwide, shouldn’t we be asking: What is the minimum a professional development program should offer teachers?

References

Freeman, D.  2002.  ‘The hidden side of the work: Teacher knowledge and learning to teach’.  Language Teaching, 35/1.

Harrison, C. 2007.  ‘Teaching Knowledge Test update — adoptions and courses’. Research Notes, 29, University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations.

Tsui, A, B. M. 2003. Understanding Expertise in Teaching: Case Studies of Second Language Teachers.  Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Valazza, G. 2008.  ‘Impact of TKT on language teachers and schools in Uruguay’.Research Notes, 34, University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations.

This post is an adapted version of a review of Jeremy Harmer’s Essential Teacher Knowledge (Pearson, 2012) that appeared in the ELT Journal, 67/1, January 2013.

| ˈsiː ju təˈmɒrəʊ |

| ˈaɪ həv ˈnʌθɪŋ tə ˈseɪ təˈdeɪ | ˈaɪ əm ˈsɒri |

kʌm ənd riːd ɪt təˈmɒrəʊ | ˈsiː ju təˈmɒrəʊ |

The Long and Difficult Publication History of James Joyce’s Dubliners

This month marks the 100th anniversary of the publication of author James Joyce’s Dubliners. His collection of short stories depicting the everyday trials and tribulations of the residents of his hometown was released with minimal fanfare in June 1914, but—given the immense literary importance of his subsequent works like A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man and the groundbreaking 1922 Modernist masterpiece Ulysses—has since risen in significance.

But Dubliners didn’t just appear out of nowhere. In fact, its author—and its would-be publishers—endured a painful nine-year-long struggle before the book made it to print. The story of how Dubliners finally came to be printed is a fascinating tale of artistic frustration and persistence despite years of dismissal.

A PORTRAIT OF THE AUTHOR AS A TEACHER

In late 1904, Joyce was living abroad in self-imposed exile—partially for political reasons, and partially because he eloped with his wife, Nora—when he published three short stories (“The Sisters,” “Eveline,” and “After the Race”) in a weekly publication called The Irish Homestead.The author thought that he might publish a collection of stories in a book the following year, and wrote nine more stories for it; while he was trying to make a living teaching English at aBerlitz Language School in Trieste (now a part of Italy) in 1905, Joyce sent the collection to noted London publisher Grant Richards for consideration.

Richards eventually accepted the book in early 1906, and in February, Joyce sent along a new story called "Two Gallants" for the book. The publisher quickly drew up a contract for the eager—and financially strapped—writer-in-exile to sign in March of that year. And that’s when the trouble began.

A  BIG “BLOODY” PROBLEM

Richards didn’t bother to read “Two Gallants”

Oportunidade!

A Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto abriu o período de inscrição para as pessoas físicas e jurídicas interessadas em atuar traduzindo textos de português para espanhol, inglês, alemão e francês, além de realizar revisão dos artigos traduzidos ou fazer versão de textos em outro idioma para o português.

Os credenciados poderão atuar por 12 meses, conforme a demanda da universidade. As inscrições estão abertas e podem ser realizadas até o dia 17 de abril de 2015 na Coordenadoria de Suprimentos da UFOP ou com o envio da documentação feito pelos correios. No segundo caso, é importante que todos os documentos cheguem ao local no máximo no dia 17 de abril.

Os que forem aprovados para o credenciamento atuarão ajudando docentes da universidade na publicação de artigos científicos em periódicos e eventos internacionais e também em publicações da editora da universidade.

O valor total para esse projeto é de R$ 150.000,00 e a remuneração por cada um dos itens é estabelecida no edital. Por exemplo, os serviços de tradução de texto regime de extrema urgência de inglês x português têm como valor da lauda R$120,00. Já os serviços de revisão de tradução em regime normal têm como valor da lauda R$12,00.

http://br.blastingnews.com/concursos/2015/04/inscricoes-abertas-para-credenciamento-de-tradutores-e-revisores-00341845.html

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Is something important missing? Report an error or suggest an improvement. Please, I strive for accuracy and fairness. If you see something that doesn't look right, contact me!

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IV Colóquio Meridianum – O MAL

O Núcleo Interdisciplinar de Estudos Medievais – Meridianum convida todos os interessados a participar do IV Colóquio de Estudos Medievais, tendo como temática O Mal. O evento será realizado entre os dias 23 e 24 de Abril, no auditório do Centro de Filosofia e Ciências Humanas – CFH/UFSC.

PROGRAMAÇÃO

Dia 23/04 – Quinta-feira

14h30 - Palestra: “A Ambiguidade do Mal e a Salvação do Diabo”
(Prof. Dr. João Lupi – UFSC)

18h30 – Palestra: “Continuidades e Transformações na Construção da Serva do Diabo: da Eva tentadora à bruxa demoníaca”
(Profa. Dra. Sílvia Liebel – UDESC)

Dia 24/03 – Sexta-feira

14h30 – Palestra: “A Gramática do Mal em Anselmo de Cantuária”
(Prof. Dr. Paulo Ricardo Martines – UEM)

16h30 – Palestra: “Escatologia Hibérnica – O fim dos tempos na tradição Hiberno-Latina”
(Prof. Dr. Dominique Santos – FURB)

MESAS DE APRESENTAÇÕES DE PESQUISA

Dia 23/04 – Quinta-feira

16h30 - Mesa I

o    “Satanás, funcionário de YHWH” (Elaine Melim – Graduada em Filosofia – UFSC)

o    Sobre a morte e o morrer na Idade Média: reflexões a partir da “Ars Moriendi” (século XV) – (Alisson Sonaglio – Graduando de História – FURB)

o    “As Noções de Livre-arbítrio em Santo Agostinho e no Reformador João Calvino” (Alexandre Drausio Rodrigues Fortes - Graduando em Filosofia – UFSC)

 Dia 24/04 – Sexta-feira

9h – Mesa II

o     “A besta por trás do mito: uma leitura da representação de Lúcifer no Inferno de Dante. (Daniel Lula da Costa – Doutorando em História Cultural – UFSC)

o    “A natureza é a Igreja de Satã”: saberes e práticas da heresia cátara medieval e sua expressão no filme Anticristo de Lars Von Trier (2009).  (Adriano Denovac – Graduado em História – UFSC)

o    “Entre inimigos e anjos: o Llibre dels Feyts e as relações entre cristãos e muçulmanos na Coroa de Aragão (1213-1276)”  (Rodrigo Prates de Andrade – Mestrando em História Cultural – UFSC)

10h 30 – Mesa III

o    “Mais feio que o Diabo: O simbolismo por trás das representações medievais do Demônio”. (Guilherme  Raul Blaese Pasold  – Graduando em História – UFSC)

o    “Minervas medievais: as donzelas em De mulieribus claris e A Cidade das Damas” (Leonardo de Lara  Cardoso- Graduando em História – UFSC)

o    As várias faces do mal: analisando o imaginário medieval a partir das representações do diabo nas iconografias religiosas (Kahina Thirsa e Hugo Grubert – Graduandos em História – FURB)

Inscrições gratuitas através do e-mail meridianum.ufsc@gmail.com, para o qual devem ser enviados o nome completo e o CPF do participante.
Serão emitidos certificados de 16 horas para aqueles que tiverem 75% de presença

PORTAL DA LÍNGUA INGLESA has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-partly internet websites referred to in this post, and does not guarantee that any context on such websites are, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

In some instances, I have been unable to trace the owners of the pictures used here; therefore, I would appreciate any information that would enable me to do so. Thank you very much.

Is something important missing? Report an error or suggest an improvement. Please, I strive for accuracy and fairness. If you see something that doesn't look right, contact me!

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Everyday vs Every day

Everyday and every day are commonly confused in English. There’s no difference in pronunciation, but using the wrong one when writing is a mistake in the everyday English you use every day.

Everyday

Everyday is an adjective that means commonplace, ordinary, or normal.

These shoes are great for everyday wear.

You shouldn’t wear an everyday outfit to the wedding.

Don’t use the everyday dishes – it’s a special occasion.

Every day

Every day means "each day."

I go to the park every day.

I have to work every day this week except Friday.

Every day I feel a little better.

The Bottom Line

Everyday is a single word and is an adjective, so it’s the one that is used in front of a noun to describe something as normal or commonplace. Every day is an adjective (every) plus a noun (day), and it means each day.

http://www.elearnenglishlanguage.com/blog/english-mistakes/everyday-vs-every-day/   

PORTAL DA LÍNGUA INGLESA has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-partly internet websites referred to in this post, and does not guarantee that any context on such websites are, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

In some instances, I have been unable to trace the owners of the pictures used here; therefore, I would appreciate any information that would enable me to do so. Thank you very much.

Is something important missing? Report an error or suggest an improvement. Please, I strive for accuracy and fairness. If you see something that doesn't look right, contact me!

Did you spot a typo?

Do you have any tips or examples to improve this page?

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