Workshop slides from presentation given at MEXTESOL 2018 (Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco: October 25-28)

1. Negotiating Language,
Literacies, and Learning
MEXTESOL 2018: Workshop Friday, October 26
Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
C C B Y 3 . 0 l laura.sagert@cide.edu

2. An ongoing challenge
In every class…

3. After
searching for
many years…
Image credit: Adelaide Hanscom
Leeson + Blanche Cumming (1905,
1912). Earth Could Not Answer. Public
domain] via Wikimedia Commons

4. (I’m afraid I don’t know)
“The Secret”
Image credits: ptitnuage (2013). Magic Wand and Top Hat. Public Domain via opencilpart.org ; John
William Waterhouse (1902). The Crystal Ball. Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

5. The Truth?
Image credit: The Strobridge Litho. Co. (1900). The Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show on
Earth…- Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
More often than I
would like to admit…

6. The Solution?
The shared
challenge of
choosing—and
then trying to
keep—a certain
balance
Image credit: Sam Korn (2005) Unbalanced Scales. Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons.

7. Objective: TO SHARE
• perspectives
• challenges,
frustrations, successes
• experience
• ideas
• (information)
Image credit: Jacinta Lluch Valero (2012). 2 especies de Coccinellidae.
CC-BY SA 2.0, via Flickr

8. Implication:
So that you can be as honest as
possible with others (and,
perhaps, yourself):
make sure you are sitting
where you can talk to two or
three people you don’t
already know well;and
if necessary, turn around or
move over a bit.

9. Task 1: Discuss
1. In the reality of your day-to-day context,
what exactly does teaching or learning
English involve?
2. What constraints do you face?

10. Task 2: Make a note to yourself
1. What do you wish you had more of?
(as a teacher, learner, or other ELT
professional)

11. My Wish List
Image credits: David Vega (2011). Time. CC BY 2.0 via Flickr; Richard Allaway (2008). Royd Moor Wind Farm. CC BY 2.0 via Flickr; Lailaquan (2014) Attention. Public
Domain via Flickr; photophilde (2009) Magic Wand. CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons. HarshLight (2011). Magic Mirror Realm. CC By 2.0 via Flickr
₤¥€$

12. LANGUAGE

13. Task 3: Reflect, then share.
1. What is language?
2. What does using language effectively
involve?

14. Ideas
What exactly is language anyways?
Image credits: Nizips (2015). Deaf Alphabet B via Openclipart; Chris Chan (2005) Brain. CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons; Firkin (2017) .Traffic light. Public
domain, via openclipart.org; osde8info (2014) Coke Cola. CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Flickr
𝑨 = 𝝅𝒓 𝟐
BTW
HTH
什麼是
語言
無論如何 ˈɪŋɡlɪʃ
ˈlæŋɡwɪdʒ
ˈtiːtʃɪŋ

15. Language
a system of shared understanding—within a given
community—based on
symbols (sounds, visible marks, gestures)
patterns (grammar: syntax, morphology
meanings (lexis, semantics)
To think about:
What about the degree and nature of the relations between language
and thought?
Image credit: dear-theophilus (2018). Wishing Well via Openclipart

16. Communicative competence
(broad areas)
Sociocultural
FormulaicLinguistic
Interactional
Celce-Murcia, 2008
Strategic

17. Communicative competence
multiple skills, behaviours, values + knowledge
effective, context-
appropriate, cohesive,
coherent message
social
cultural
*intercultural
collocations
set expressions
fixed chunks
idioms
phonology
lexis
morphology
syntax
how to: functions
+ non-verbal
Celce-Murcia, 2008
language
as a
system
language as
blocks retrieved
from memory
(formulae)
communication
+ learning
strategies and
behaviours

18. Task 4: Discuss
1. Which aspects of language do
you prioritize in your teaching
[or learning]?
(Tip for teachers: Think about how you
evaluate students when grading.)
Gustave Doré + Héliodore-Joseph Pisan (1906). The History of Don Quixote, Part 1, chapter 1, Plate 1. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

19. LITERACY
Who is responsible? What is involved?

20. Ever-expanding definition
LITERACY
“The ability to identify, understand,
interpret, create, communicate and
compute, using printed and written
materials associated with varying
contexts. Literacy involves a continuum of
learning in enabling an individual to
achieve his or her goals, develop his or
her knowledge and potential and
participate fully in community and wider
society. (Source: UNESCO 2005a). New
forms of literacy needed in modern life are
also increasingly taken into account in the
curriculum, in particular those related to
new technologies such as digital literacy,
information literacy, mass media literacy
and social media literacy.” — IBE/UNESCO,
2013 p. 39
MULTIPLE LITERACIES
“A concept calling for a broader view of
literacy, also referred to as ‘new literacies’
or ‘multiliteracies’. The concept is based
on the assumption that individuals ‘read’
the world and make sense of information
by means other than traditional reading
and writing. These multiliteracies include
linguistic, visual, audio, spatial, and
gestural ways of meaning-making. Central
to the concept of multiple literacies is the
belief that individuals in a modern society
need to learn how to construct
knowledge from multiple sources and
modes of representation. “ —Seel, 2012 in
IBE/UNESCO, 2013, p. 43

21. Multiple
Literacies digital
visual
media
information
data
coding
game
health
financial
legal
civic/political
oral etc.
emotional
assessment
foreign language
and so forth…
• beyond the 3 “R”s
• basic (traditional or foundational) vs.
functional literacy
• mathematical (numeracy)
• cultural, cross-cultural, intercultural

22. Conceptualizing the impact of literacy
AUTONOMOUS
-yes/no cognitive skill (literate vs. illiterate)
-hierarchy of skills consistent across
languages, cultures, and contexts
-something measurable (literacy rates) that
correlates to some sort of change in
individual status and opportunities
(economic mobility) and to changes in
economic, political, and social structures at
a national level (development)
literacy → economic mobility
IDEOLOGICAL
-contextualized, and thus variable, social
practices
-difficult to measure + define
-linked to community power structures and
affected by contexts well-beyond formal
educational
-cultural and social constraints
-institutionalized (“correct”) vs. user-driven
literacy → networks → economic mobilitySee: Bartlett (2007) and Hasselbacher (2017)

23. Identifying and
addressing
gaps?
Who?
What?
When?
Where?
How?
digital
visual
media
information
data
coding
game
health
financial
legal
civic/political
oral etc.
emotional
assessment
foreign language
and so forth…
WHY?
• basic (traditional or foundational) vs.
functional literacy
• mathematical (numeracy)
• cultural, cross-cultural, intercultural

24. Task 5: Discuss
1. Which aspects of literacy do you work on with
your students?
2. Have you encountered L1 gaps? If so, to what
extent have you tried to address them? How?
3. How aware are those you work with of their own
literacy gaps? How actively do they try to address
them? How well do they succeed?

25. Why bother?
Isn’t that someone else’s job?
Long-suffering linguistic scholar
or school teacher
DEVIL’S ADVOCATE
Image credits: Guido Reni (c. 1634). Saint Jerome. Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons ; Innocenzo di Pietro Francucci de Imola (c. 1500). Martyrdom of Saint
Cassian of Imola. Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons. Tim Green (2011) The Devil is in the Details. CC BY 2.0 via FLickr

26. Literacy rate: 94–98%.
No problem, right? Well, …
PIACC: Programme for the International Assessment
of Adult Competencies (adults in the country at the time of the survey who
respond)?
PISA: Programme for International Student
Assessment (15 year olds)

27. UNESCO 2030 Sustainable Development Goals
Commonwealth
of Learning

28. Related issues
from language
teaching:
immersion
marked gap between receptive and
productive skills
lack of accuracy (grammar)
limited specificity and range of
vocabulary
restricted ability to deal with
conceptual complexity (→L1 instruction
@higher levels to ensure fuller
understanding content)
limits to range of register and to
appropriate sociolinguistic usage
Common
problems
Cammarata
and Tedick,
2012

29. Common
challenges
immersion
teachers face
Five key dimensions of experience
1. Shift in identify to see selves as teachers of
both content and language
2. External challenges beyond teachers
control: time, resources, government
policy, etc.
3. Increasing sense of isolation: “on my own”
4. “Awakening”: ↑ sense for
interdependence language and content
5. Difficulty deciding what language to focus
on: “a stab in the dark”
Task 6: And You?
Cammarata and
Tedick, 2012

30. “A stab in the
dark”
“Content-obligatory” vs. “content-
compatible” [Snow, Met, and Genesee (1989)]
Content + cultural concepts
Genre: discourse and linguistic features
Vocabulary + patterns (structure) [Fortune
and Tedick (ND)]
Language
Non-obvious L1 + L2 differences
Infrequent in classroom interaction
Easy to ignore (low communicative load)
Likely to confuse/annoy NS [and other
target-language users] [Harley, 1993]
What aspects
of language to
teach?
Cammarata and
Tedick, 2012

31. Lessons from
immersion
teaching of
heritage native
languages
Yup’ik Southwest Alaska
difficulty of finding teachers who have training in content area subject
matter, immersion language teaching pedagogy , and language
lack of training opportunities for ongoing development of teachers in
the use of the target language through which they are currently using as
the medium of instruction
complexity of defining what exactly constitutes language proficiency
effects and limitations of standardized testing
lack of materials (rate of cultural loss →sense of urgency) that connect
key cultural content to the state mandated academic curriculum
“…highly qualified teachers do not develop in a
vacuum. They require help from two other essential
elements: ongoing institutional support and
local/community leadership.”
— Siekmann, S. , J. Parker Webster, S. Angass’aq Samson + C.
Keggutailnguq Moses (2017)
Image credit: Myrabella (2011). Yupík Mask. CC BY –SA
3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

32. Practice, perception, evaluation:
misunderstanding and misapplication?
David Marsh, one of the leaders behind the development of Content and Language integrated Learning (CLIL)
“El aprendizaje de un idioma exige fórmulas para intercambiar conocimiento y cooperar. Lo que está pasando en España y en
otros países europeos es que se usa el método monolingüe, esto quiere decir que se intenta enseñar inglés con la misma
fórmula que se emplea en la clase de lengua española. Se ha demostrado que eso no funciona. CLIL es una metodología que se
basa en el trabajo en grupo, en la conversación constante. En aprender un idioma a través de otras materias. El discurso del
profesor ya no sirve. En la mayoría de países, las escuelas bilingües están ubicadas en zonas privilegiadas, donde los alumnos
proceden de familias con altos ingresos y viajan al extranjero. No son ejemplos reales, sino una excepción. El término
bilingüismo es capcioso. ”
“Cuando empezamos a desarrollar CLIL, el primer pensamiento fue llamarlo mainstream bilingual education (en español,
educación bilingüe generalizada). Pero detectamos un problema: la palabra bilingüe es peligrosa y genera falsas expectativas.
Esas expectativas alimentan la ignorancia. Mucha gente piensa que ser bilingüe es dominar en la misma medida dos lenguas. Los
padres creen que si llevan a su hijo a un colegio bilingüe adquirirá otra lengua a corto plazo.”
“En el caso del inglés, ¿qué son los certificados, por ejemplo, los de [a well-known examination board] ? Son pruebas
estandarizadas que se basan en algoritmos y que muchas veces fallan, no son sensibles con las competencias de los alumnos. Los
certificados se basan en un número, son muy caros y los empleadores ya no miran eso. Prefieren sentar a los candidatos y ver
qué pueden hacer. No todo se basa en el número de palabras que dominas, sino en tu capacidad de generar un discurso. Se
trata de enseñar a pensar.” Interview in El País: September 24, 2018

33. Task 6: Discuss
1. What is your view on the effectiveness of
immersion or bilingual education?
2. How confident are you in the results of
standardized evaluations of English-language
proficiency?

34. TEACHING LEARNING
“You really cannot teach a language; it has to be learned.
Fostering the student’s motivation is not only important, it’s
essential.” —Dr. Tim Keeley (As cited in Cartwright, 2018)

35. Defining learning
•complex and long-term psychosocial process […]
•acquisition or modification of information, knowledge, understanding,
attitudes, values, skills, competencies or behaviours through experience,
practice, study or instruction […]
•definition […] depends on the philosophical and psychological approach:
behaviourism: […] measurable change of behavior as a result of the joint
action of a number of environmental factors.
cognitive theories: […] internal mental organization of knowledge
(acquisition, information processing, mental structures)
constructivism: […] learner actively uses prior knowledge and/or
experience to construct new concepts
—Adapted from UNESCO, 2013: p. 35

36. LEARNING
Self-efficacy and accountability?

37. Consider the
Possible Impact
of Learned
Helplessness
Our reactions to stressors we cannot control
lead to certain cognitive, emotional and
motivational responses.
The way we interpret these stressors
(attributions) affects the likelihood of our
 dealing effectively with the situation (optimistic
attribution), or
 developing a sense of being unable to control
outcomes (pessimistic attribution).
Learned helplessness has long-lasting
negative effects on mental and physical health
and on the manifestation of symptoms after a
traumatic event (post-traumatic stress disorder:
PTSD). It is also closely related to
[de]motivation.
Assess the possible
impact on learning of
he impact of negative
prior experiences—
inside and outside
classroom contexts.
Adapted from Swanson and Dougall,
(2012)

38. Layers of experience
Complexity of self-concept and perception of others
Image credit: Georgie Paiwels (2014). Self in Elevator. CC-BY 2.0. Via Flickr.
Own photos

39. Task 7: Reflect and then discuss
1. To what extent do your students assume control and
responsibility for their own learning processes? (And you?)
2. What factors might affect learners’ sense of self-efficacy and
accountability for learning outcomes? (In other words, why
might some learners seem to be more in control of and
responsible for their learning than do others?)
Self-efficacy: “Yes, I can!”

40. Marilyn Taylor’s
Model of the
Learning Cycle
(1979 + 1987)
DISORIENTATION
EXPLORATION
REORIENTATION
EQUILIBRIUM
As cited in
MacKeracher
(1997)

41. Gavin and Taylor
Decremental
Cycle of learning
(1990,1992)
↑↑ DISORIENTATION
→blame others
CONSTRUCTION
*collect evidence to
support other-
focussed blame
*mask own feelings
CONSOLIDATION
*return to previous
beliefs, ideas, habits
DECREMENTAL
EQUILIBRIUM
As cited in
MacKeracher
(1997)

42. Cognitive Dissonance (Festinger, 1957)
Conflict: contradiction among
attitudes, beliefs, behaviour
• State of dissonance
Change
Cognitive
consistency
• Harmony
Self-justification: new
information to outweigh
dissonance
Change: attitude,
belief, behaviour
(Learning)
Vary importance of
cognition/change perception:
rationalization

43. Consider openly
addressing prior
negative language-
learning
experiences
Although teachers may not have explicit knowledge of these
concepts, they often use them intuitively. A recent study in
Cyprus, for example, indicated that the higher teacher’s level
of EI the more likely they are to report using deliberate
strategies to create a conducive learning environment.
“Descriptive statistics demonstrated that
teachers with above average and high trait
EI, for instance, put more emphasis on
developing personal responsibility, positive
thinking and skills to overcome negative
experience. At the same time, participants
with below average trait EI showed
empathy and their personal interest in class
less frequently.” (Kliueva + Tsagari, 2018: 46-47)
Emotional
literacy (EL) and
emotional
intelligence (EI)

44. Seek ideas and
inspiration from
outside ELT
“To know a
language well,
you must
understand intent
before words.”
—Amy Tan (2017: 321)
breadth →
perspective and
humility

45. Task 8: Discuss
1. In what sorts of unexpected places might you find
inspiration and ideas for fostering effective language
learning?

46. Teach Like a Champion 2.0: 62 Techniques That
Put Students on the Path to College
—Douglas Lemov (2015)
“..trying to do everything at once is a recipe for lack of action…Often very small
changes can have a large and profound effect on big problems.” (pp. 9-10)
Other recommendations:
Foster positive classroom culture: “discipline, control, management,
engagement and influence”
Hold high expectations: academic rigour
Check for understanding: plan your questions in advance
Include time for both participation and thinking: discussion, reading, writing
Ensure students have a knowledge base (facts) to draw upon before trying to
have them do activities designed to have them think deeply and critically.
“Know thyself”

47. The Learning Scientists
Free posters, bookmarks, and reward stickers to download (learningscientists.org)
Elaboration: add details to explain and describe
Retrieval practice: recall information and ideas
Spaced practice: spread out study over time
Dual coding: use both words and visuals
Interleaving: switch between topics
Concrete examples: link abstract ideas to
specific examples

48. Learning How to Learn: How to Succeed in School Without
Spending All Your Time Studying, A Guide for Kids and Teens
(Oakley + Sejnowski, 2018)
Barbara Oakley: MOOC, Learning How to Learn; Book, A Mind For Numbers)
TOP TIPS
Use focused and diffuse nodes of thinking
Practice, repetition, recall→brain links
Change the techniques you use for practice
Space out learning
Do physical exercise
Test yourself; teach others
Use memory techniques (palaces, funny pictures,
metaphors)
Apply the Pomodoro technique (timed study blocks +
break)
Do the hard stuff first
Look for opportunities to learn actively, outside class
PITFALLS
Not getting enough sleep
Passively reading and rereading
Highlighting or underlining
Looking at the answer and thinking you thus
know how to solve the problem
Cramming
Practicing only what is easy or enjoyable,
avoiding difficult work
Ignoring the textbook
Not clarifying points of confusion
Permitting distractions while studying
Taking part in chat groups vs. study groups

49. Visible Learning and the Science of How We Learn
(Hattie & Yates, 2014)
Time + effort (underestimated, overconfidence effect +/-)
Prior knowledge (+/- effects)
Social learning (importance of exposure to information
presented by other human beings)
Cognitive load
Motivational effect (difficulty of truly fostering)
Personal regulation (self-control + delayed gratification)
Emotional needs
Social brain
Fallacies:
“digital natives”
multitasking
Internet → shallow
thinking
Mozart effect (music
↑mood↑alertness≠
↑learning, when trying
to focus, risk↑irritation
↑distraction↓learning)

50. As we draw to a close…
take a moment to reflect
1. What questions or comments come to mind?
2. What do you want to remember from this
session?
3. Can you add anything to your “wish list”?

51. The Art of Effective
Language Teaching?
Image credits: Strobridge Litho. Co., Cincinnati & New York (1899) [Restoration by trialsanderrors and
Morn. Zin Zag performing with rabbit and roses, including hat trick and levitation. CC BY 2.0, via
Wikimedia Commons; j4pn (2018) Balance-Colour Public domain via openclipart.org.

52. References
Bartlett, L. (2007). “Literacy’s verb: Exploring what literacy is and what literacy does”. International Journal of Educational Development, 28 : 737-753.
doi:10.1016/j.ijedudev.2007.09.002
Cammarata, L. and Tedick, D. J. (2012). “Balancing Content and Language in Instruction: The Experience of Immersion Teachers”. The Modern Language Journal, 96:
251-269. doi:10.1111/j.1540-4781.2012.01330.x
Cartwright, C. (20i8) “Finding Inspiration in Diversity” Language Magazine https://www.languagemagazine.com/2018/10/09/finding-inspiration-in-diversity/
Celce-Murcia, M. (2008). “Rethinking the Role of Communicative Competence in Language Teaching” in E. Alcón Soler and M.P. Safont Jordà (eds.). Intercultural
Language Use and Language Learning. Springer: 41-57.
Festinger, L. (1957). A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance. Evanston, IL: Row & Peterson.
Hasselbacher, S. (2018). “Introduction: Literacy ideologies”. Language and Communication, 61: 71-74. doi: 10.1016/j.langcom.2017.09.002
Hattie, J. and G. Yates (2014). Visible Learning and the Science of How We Learn. London and New York: Routledge..
Kliueva, E. and D. Tsagari (2018) . “Emotional Literacy in EFL Classes: The Relationship Between Teachers’ Trait Emotional intelligence Level and the Use of Emotional
literacy Strategies”. System 78: 38-53 doi: 10.1016/j.system.2018.07.006
Lemov. D. (2015) Teach like a Champion 2.0: 62 Techniques That Put Students on the Path to College. San Francisco: Josey-Bass.
MacKeracher, D. (1997). Making Sense of Adult Learning. Toronto: Cultural Concepts Inc. Publishers.
Menárguez, Ana Torres. October 20, 2018 “Entrevista a David Marsh, Experto en bilingüismo” . El País.
https://elpais.com/sociedad/2018/09/24/actualidad/1537811034_517768.html
Met, M. (2008). Paying attention to language: Literacy, language and academic achievement. In T. W. Fortune& D. J. Tedick (Eds.), Pathways to multilingualism:
Evolving perspectives on immersion education (pp. 49–70). Clevedon , England : Multilingual Matters.
Oakley, B and T. Sejnowski (2018). Learning How to Learn. How to Succeed in School Without Spending All Your Time Studying: A Guide for Kids and Teens. New York:
Penguin Random House.
Sabine Siekmann, J. Parker Webster, S. Angass’aq Samson, C. Keggutailnguq Moses & J. Carjuzaa (2017) ”Teaching our way of life through our language: Materials
development for Indigenous immersion education,” Cogent Education, 4:1. doi: 10.1080/2331186X.2017.1362887
Swanson, N. J. and A.L. Dougall (2012).“Learned Helplessness” Encyclopedia of Human Behavior: 525-530. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-12-809324-5.06475-0
Sumeracki, M. , Y . Weinstein and collaborators (2018) . Poster. The Learning Scientists: http://www.learningscientists.org/posters
UNESCO-IBE (2013). IBE Glossary of Curriculum Terminology. International Bureau of Education: Geneva

53. Thank you
For a copy of the presentation slides, please write
me at:
laura.sagert@cide.edu