Motivating learners by Susa Brodar

1. Susan Bodar talked about what she does. She’s also translator and interpreter, also
a language coach. She’s trying to teach herself Spanish. She speaks several
languages.
She talked about what she does. She’s also translator and interpreter, also a
language coach. She’s trying to teach herself Spanish. She speaks several
languages.

2. She teaches children, teens and adults

3. • First thing she does: She likes to make people autonomous and take
learning in their own hands so she starts trying to establish a filesharing
contact. She uses dropbox. She speaks 95% in English as she feels it’s the
best way to learn it.

4. • Example of Files in dropbox:

5. • Another class: She includes different varied material: audio,
grammar, self-correction tests, reading.

6. • The second thing she does is coaching learners for autonomous learning. She offers a
number of websites, audio-books (read & listen), elemental.com (for pronunciation), post-its
(to put them anywhere for things you want to remember), she explains about podcasts, Ted-
Talks, Voscreen (excellent for listening practise).
• She recommended some sites:
• ORORO TV series Y films with subtitles http://ororo.tv/en/

7. • Reading

9. • She teaches unplugged. She doesn’t follow just one book but takes
information from several ones and doesn’t stick to a book rigorously.
• Students need oral English she tends to do exercises orally so that they
practise pronunciation.

10. • Susan uses technology. Feedly is a kind of magazine you create for yourself, save
there what you want to read later.
• Mindmaple light: for mindmaps. It’s easy and flexible.
• Barefoot World Atlas: an app for children. She recommends it highly; you can see
pictures, photos and oral explanations.
• Explain everything: app with which you can create material.

11. • We learn better as children or if we’re living in the place where it’s spoken. So she
uses what we can see in the slide. She has even cooked with her students!
Students are living the language this way.

12. • Susan doesn’t have much experience teaching online. She
uses Zoom. At the end of the lesson she includes feedback.

13. • Pros: you go with the flow, you see what they need and give it to them.
• Cons: you can’t get off track, you need to finish the program.

14. • Conclusion: her students keep coming back, we can assume her method is good.
Her best students are always on YouTube following their favourite you tubers so
they pick up the language; they take their learning into their hands.