Author: Ed Itor

American Learning Lab

Posted on | by Ed Itor

NEAS congratulates American Learning Lab (ALAB) for becoming the latest Quality Endorsed Member. With a dedicated focus on teaching young learners in Vietnam, ALAB has partnered with global education company, Visang, to deliver English language programs to students aged three to six (Kindergarten English) and to students aged six to 11 (Elementary English).

With multiple Centres in different districts of Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), NEAS Quality Endorsement has been awarded to four ALAB Centres in the following HCMC locations:

  • 3rd Floor, Crescent Mall, 101 Ton Dat Tien Street, District 7;
  • Ground Floor, Cong Hoa Garden, 20 Cong Hoa Street, Tan Binh District;
  • 176 Hoa Binh Street, Tan Phu District; and
  • 3rd Floor, Vincom Plaza, 12 Phan Van Tri Street, Go Vap District.

Over the past months, NEAS’s Quality Assessor completed an in-depth assessment of ALAB’s application and supporting documents, and followed up with a Virtual Quality Endorsement exercise. Alongside structured meetings and interviews with ALAB management, teachers and operational staff, class observations also formed part of the quality audit.

Since May 2021, teaching has been delivered online only and this is likely to continue until February 2022. The programs contain interactive activities, which are purposely designed for young learners, and delivered exclusively by ALAB within Vietnam.

ALAB has appointed a Teacher Quality Manager (a role that does not have a teaching load) to oversee teaching. NEAS commends ALAB for deploying effective systems (including a Parent App) to engage and inform its valued customers and stakeholders. ALAB Education Consultants provide updated information regarding student performance to ensure parents enjoy complete knowledge of their children’s progress.

2022 Academic Speaker Announced!

Posted on | by Ed Itor

The 2022 NEAS Management Conference Academic speaker has been decided. We would like to welcome David Nunan to present on 5-6 May 2022.

David Nunan is Professor Emeritus of Applied Linguistics at the University of Hong Kong, President Emeritus and Distinguished Research Professor at Anaheim University, California, and Visiting Professor in Education at UNSW, Sydney. He is a former President of TESOL International and is currently on the Executive Committee of The International Research Foundation for Language Education (TIRF). He is a member of the UNSW Sydney Foundation Board (Hong Kong chapter).

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Community Of Practice Convenor

Posted on | by Ed Itor

Interested in leading a Community of Practice? Being a Convenor will give you opportunities to lead and be a part of a unique community.

The convenor role will be required to do the following:

  1. Lead and develop their Community of Practice
  2. Moderate and facilitate a COP workshop After Conference
  3. Run social media community

Nominated Convenors will receive a free ticket to the NEAS Management Conference.

Click here for more information

Call for Abstracts

Posted on | by Ed Itor

Going Glocal: Embracing ELT Communities of Practice

NEAS would like to hear from business owners, managers, Directors of Studies, teachers, education agents, service providers and students who have engaged with communities of practice to enhance their understanding and experience of Glocalisation.

  1. What does glocalisation mean to you? How have you experienced this in your workplace or classrooms?
  2. What communities of practice have you engaged with in the last twelve months and how has this enhanced your practice?
  3. What can NEAS do to promote further independent, industry-led, specialist Quality Assurance in English Language Teaching and Going Glocal?

If you are interested in applying to present at the 2022 NEAS Management Conference you can register your interest here.

Alternatively if you are ready to apply and provide your abstract you can do so here.

The 2022 NEAS Management Conference Theme

Posted on | by Ed Itor

We are excited to announce that the theme for the 2022 NEAS Management Conference is ‘Going Glocal: Embracing ELT Communities of Practice’.

The two day event (5-6 May 2022) will be held at Doltone House, Darling Island, Sydney, AND after the success of delivering the conference online in 2021, we are pleased to offer a blended learning, livestreamed event again in 2022! We understand our community is excited to meet face to face again and we also acknowledge that many of you may prefer to meet virtually, so we are working hard to create an awesome educational and networking experience for everyone.

The opening plenary presentation on ‘Glocalisation’ will be delivered by Mr Stan Grant. An accomplished journalist, author and filmmaker of over 30 years, Stan has worked as a senior international correspondent for CNN and with ABC News as an international affairs analyst. His breadth of understanding of ‘Glocal’ issues cannot be surpassed, and we look forward to hearing his insights into international education.

Following the opening plenary, the conference will offer an array of over 60 local and international speakers further covering the topic of ‘Glocalisation’ and the six NEAS ELT Communities of Practice. Communities of Practice are a valuable source of collaborative professional development, as they offer ELT professionals a supportive environment to share knowledge and build better practices. They provide a rich resource of knowledge, experience and expertise in order to achieve common goals, solve common problems and learn from one another to advance and grow. We are excited to integrate the following Communities of Practice into our 2022 event:

  • ELT Qualifications
  • Research in ELT
  • Leadership in ELT
  • High School Preparation
  • Arts Based Pedagogy in ELT
  • Education Agents

The conference will also feature two concurrent online streams (it’s all about content, content, content!), an industry awards ceremony, a gala dinner with entertainment, an onsite and online exhibition hall and various social networking events.

THANK YOU!

Posted on | by Ed Itor

As a participant in the recent NEAS Australia Vietnam Workshop Series, we want to thank you for your attendance and commitment to professional development!

NEAS was delighted to curate this unique series, showcasing best practice in quality assurance and online delivery in English language teaching. We were thrilled to feature keynote speakers from the Australian Embassy, Vietnamese National Foreign Languages Program and Ministry of Education in Vietnam.

Separate to the live events, we hope that you also enjoyed the 13 pre-workshop video presentations listed below:

  • Putting Students in the Driver’s Seat – Macquarie University International College & English Language Centre
  • Professional Development During Change: A Case Study – South Australian College of English (SACE)
  • The Importance of Oral Skills Development for Online ELICOS Students – Albright Institute of Business and Language
  • It’s Always, All About the Student! – Ivanhoe Grammar School
  • The Future of Pathway Programs and Teaching: Introducing an Entrenchment Model – ELSIS English Language Schools
  • Simulcasting: Your Studies, Your Way! – ILSC Language Schools
  • Partnership Creation Through John Paul International College Academy – John Paul International College (JPIC)
  • Principles of Online English Language Teacher Training – The University of Sydney, Centre for English Teaching
  • Developing and Delivering a Professional Development Framework – Australian Catholic University (ACU) English Language Centre
  • English Language Teaching and Learning in a Digital Age – Macquarie University, Department of Linguistics
  • Rethinking Pedagogy for Online Teaching and Learning – Mitchelton State High School
  • Engaging Asian Students Online Towards a More Communicative Approach – SMEAG English
  • Incorporating External Testing into an EAP Program for Direct Entry – The University of Newcastle, Pathways and Academic Learning Support Centre

If you missed out on any of the above, all content from the series is now available for viewing via NEAS Online.

Thank you once again for your participation! NEAS remains dedicated to bringing Quality Assurance in ELT to the forefront, and hopes to facilitate more cross country events to the ELT community in future.

Avalon College

Posted on | by Ed Itor

Avalon College delivers English language and school preparation programs with a full boarding school experience for primary and secondary students, aged 10 to 17 years. The College is situated on a historic, rural property by the sea, and its students are well cared for by experienced and dedicated professionals. We congratulate Avalon College on the successful Quality Endorsement of its two courses: Online English Language Preparation for Primary Schools and Online English Language Preparation for Secondary Schools. Traditional face-to-face courses were redesigned to be delivered online through the ClassIn application, a bilingual Learning Management System (LMS), which has been configured to cater for young learners and also to service the students’ parents, guardians and agents. International students are currently engaged remotely from China and Thailand and are also learning locally. Course design and delivery is geared towards helping students succeed in mainstream school programs.

The ClassIn application was seen to be working well in the observation lessons. Of particular note was the thorough staged and scaffolded online orientation, which includes email introductions, pre-registration forms, and confirmation checklists. The online programs benefit from good navigation and signposting, as well as a variety of learning tasks and modes. Additional learning technologies, such as Vocaroo, Kahoot and WeChat, have been implemented into the courses to engage students’ differing technical skills. There is also provision for team teaching using breakout rooms, which is highly commendable.

Mahidol University International College (MUIC) online endorsement

Posted on | by Ed Itor

Established in 1986, Mahidol University International College (MUIC) is Thailand’s first public international college and part of Mahidol University, widely considered to be the best university in Thailand. MUIC’s Preparation Center for Languages and Mathematics (PC) was formed to enhance the English language skills of students and prepare them for mainstream studies at MUIC. The Centre delivers four levels of English language instruction, from Elementary to Upper-Intermediate, and in addition to enrolling Thai students, attracts international students from Asia, Europe and the United States.

We congratulate MUIC – PC on the successful Quality Endorsement of its two online courses: General English and English for Academic Purposes (EAP). The Centre rapidly transitioned to an online learning environment in 2020 and has successfully used Google Classroom to create and integrate online content. The Zoom application has been employed to deliver synchronous lessons of 20-24 hours per week. A rigorous and secure online exam system has been implemented through the use of Exam.net and by using students’ mobile devices to proctor exams. Where students required additional support, after hours online workshops are held to focus on developing further particular skills. Integration of the Turnitin plagiarism detection service into the online experience has given students insights into and practice understanding academic integrity. Clear navigation and signposting are consistent features of the courses, and students expressed their appreciation for the personalised academic counselling they received online as part of their program

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