The document summarizes a talk given by Peter Levrai and Averil Bolster about futureproofing English language teaching. It discusses how teaching moved online during the COVID pandemic, and identifies 7 steps to make teaching more resilient to change: backward course design focused on outcomes, collaborative learning, effective communication, keeping methods and tools simple, integrating old and new approaches, maintaining well-being, and embracing collegiality. The talk argues that by following these steps, teaching can continue to evolve even with new challenges like artificial intelligence.

1. Key takeaways from
"Fast-forwarding toward
the future of EAP
teaching in 'the happiest
country in the world'”
Peter Levrai & Averil Bolster
University of Turku
Language Centre Days 2023

2. Today’s talk
Education underwent a huge shock during COVID
We wrote a chapter about the pandemic pivot in
Finland
There will always be new challenges in a
changing world
We’re going to share 7 steps that can help
shock-proof our teaching

3. The pandemic pivot (Bolster & Levrai, 2022)
Teaching went
online over a
weekend
There were no
digital natives to
online learning
We all had to
learn

4. What we learned: 7 shock-proofing steps
7
steps
Course design
Collaborative
learning
Communication
in any mode
KISS
'3rd way'
teaching
Well-being
Collegiality

5. Course Design
• 3 approaches to course design (Richards, 2013; Wiggins & McTighe
1998)
Forward
design
Content Process Outcomes
Central
design
Process Content Outcomes
Backward
design
Outcomes
Evaluation
tools
Content

6. Why design backwards?
Learning
outcomes
Students can
produce
academically sound
argument
Students can follow
the conventions of
academic discourse
Students can
reference using APA
Evaluation
tools
Content
Sustainability
Argumentative
essay Ethics
Urbanisation
Persuasive
presentation
Clear outcomes ensure
you know what you’re
aiming for
Assessment tools can
provide positive
washback
Content can be updated
and changed with little
disruption

7. Collaborative learning
• Collaborative learning provides more affordances for learning
(Levrai & Bolster, 2018).
Students have
more
opportunity
to
communicate
Students can
scaffold and
support each
other through
challenges
It helps
prepare
students for
their futures

8. Communication, whatever the modality
• We have a rich variety
of course modalities
available.
• Ensuring opportunities
for teacher-student /
student-student
communication is vital.
Bolster & Levrai (2022, p.16)

9. KISS – Keep It Simple, Seriously
• There are a lot of online tools we could
introduce to our students.
• It’s tempting to run after the new shiny
toy.
• It’s not the tools that matter, but how
those tools fit into our (and our
students’) practices.
A tool needs to
remain a tool,
not a
centrepiece

10. ‘3rd way’ teaching
• Amanda Little (2020)
proposed a 3rd way of
food production.
• The 3rd way can equally
be applied to teaching.
• We need to marry the
best of the old and
new.
Wisdom
of the
ages
Innovation
and new
tools
3rd way
production
teaching

11. Maintaining well-being
• Our health, and our students’ health, matters.
• Don't lose sight of people when figuring out a solution to a problem.
Things to consider in the face of AI.
How does a student feel
today when a computer
can write a better essay
than them?
How does a teacher feel
when a computer can
write a lesson plan
in moments?
How can we prosper as
educators in the age of
AI?

12. Embracing collegiality
• The flurry of ChatGPT webinars and online
conferences this year demonstrate the
urge for teachers to talk.
• But we shouldn’t just talk about the big
challenges.
• We all have classroom practices and ideas
that would benefit our community.
It’s good
to talk

13. Conclusion
We got through COVID and our teaching
practices got richer
We’ll get through ChatGPT and our
teaching practices will continue to evolve
We’ll get through the thing after that

14. References
Bolster, A. & Levrai, P. (2022). Fast-forwarding toward the future of EAP teaching
in “the happiest country in the world”. In J. Fenton, J. Giminez, K. Mansfield, M. Percy &
M. Spinillo (Eds.) International Perspectives on Teaching and Learning Academic English
in Turbulent Times. Routledge.
Levrai, P. and Bolster, A. (2018). A framework to support group essay writing in English for
Academic Purposes: a case study from an English-medium instruction
context. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 44(2), 186-202.
Little, A. (2020, October). Climate change is becoming a problem
you can taste [Video]. TED Conferences. https://www.ted.com/talks/amanda_little_cli
mate_change_is_becoming_a_problem_you_can_taste?language=en
Richards, J. C. (2013). Curriculum approaches in language teaching: Forward, central, and
backward design. Relc Journal, 44(1), 5-33.
Wiggins, G.P., & McTighe, J. (2005). Understanding by design. Merrill/Prentice Hall.

15. Comments or Questions
averil.bolster@utu.fi peter.levrai@utu.fi