Table Of ContentAchieving Excellence through
Life Skills Education
technology
personality
problem creativity
solving public
career
speaking
enhancement
drama
health
public presentation the arts
emotional speaking skills
intelligence
empathy
literature drama
the arts
drama
time
being happy acwualrteunerasls management presentation
skills
life-long
interpersonal learning
skills
creativity
empathy
self- stress h
awareness management intrapersonal tt
skills p
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awareness
communication w
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March 8-10, 2012
Dubai Men's College
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Table of
Contents
Dedication to Our Patron 5
Acknowledgement of Sponsors 6
Letter from the President 8
Letter from the Conference Co-chairs 9
Conference Organizing Committee 11
Making the Most of the Conference 12
Food, Drink, and Transport at the Conference 13
Plenary Speakers 15
Featured Speakers 25
Professional Development Certificate Courses 44
Job Fair 46
Exhibitors 47
TACON FAQ 48
Innovative Materials Showcase 50
The Dubai Discussions and Forums 54
20 x 20 Powered by PechaKucha (New this Year!) 56
IT Village 60
Poster Sessions 61
TESOL Arabia Book Drive 62
Annual General Meeting (AGM) 63
Professional Service Awards 64
Dr Lisa Barlow Memorial Travel Grants 65
International Travel Grants 66
Professional Development Course Grants 67
TESOL Arabia Research Grants 68
Conference Proceedings Call for Papers 70
Franklin SpellEvent 71
TESOL Arabia’s International Affiliations 72
Special Interests Groups (SIGs) 74
Special Interest Group (SIG) Sessions 76
TESOL Arabia Chapter Representatives 78
TESOL Arabia Executive Council 79
Concurrent Sessions: How Are They Selected? 80
Concurrent Sessions 81
Floor Plan 140
Conference Feedback Form 144
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4
Dedication to
Our Patron
TESOL Arabia would like to dedicate this year’s conference to Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, Minister
of Higher Education and Scientific Research, for his continuous support and patronage of TESOL Arabia
(a non-profit, public professional development membership organization for educators) and its mission.
Through his support of our activities, we have been able to realize our goals of:
◆ Creating a network of educators and teaching professionals
◆ Promoting and developing excellence in teaching, research, and administration
◆ Providing high-quality professional development opportunities, publications, events and services
We would also like to acknowledge his support for the field of EFL/ESL with the internationally-renowned
TESOL International Research Fund (TIRF) Grants which provide doctoral fellowships to support the
teaching and learning of English in the Arab world. His Excellency has provided three doctoral dissertation
fellowships per year between 2008 and 2010.
At the Abu Dhabi University graduation in 2009, His Excellency said it well:
“ …investment in education is an investment in the country’s future, development and
security…We are grateful that the United Arab Emirates has become one of the most
prestigious academic centers in the region in terms of its offering of a comprehensive
learning environment to its citizens and expatriates living on its soil.”
We thank you Your Excellency, for without your support of education, English language teaching and
learning, and TESOL Arabia, we could not have become the organization we are today.
The TESOL Arabia Executive Council
5
Acknowledgement of
Sponsors
TESOL Arabia is a non-profit volunteer organization, and yet its Annual Conference Committee have put
English language teaching and testing in the Middle East on the global map.
To provide this high-profile, professionally recognized event, and other professional development
opportunities throughout the academic year, we depend on sponsors to help us. It is their help, generosity
and support that ensures our continued success.
Our sponsors help to make TESOL Arabia’s efforts a reality by providing quality professional development
for teaching professionals throughout the Gulf and around the world. We offer thanks to our sponsors for
their generous support.
Platinum
Platinum
Gold
6
Acknowledgement of
Sponsors
Silver Silver
Silver Silver
SSiillvveerr Silver
Bronze Bronze
Friends of TESOL Arabia:
Macmillan
National Geographic Learning
Special thanks for IT support from Zayed University and Dubai Men’s College
7
Letter from the
President
It is my great pleasure to welcome everyone to our 18th Annual International Conference here at the
impressive campus of Dubai Men’s College, part of the Higher Colleges of Technology system in the UAE.
We are very grateful to the Director, management, faculty, staff and students of Dubai Men’s College for
hosting us so generously and appreciate the consistent support they have given TESOL Arabia for many
years.
This year the Conference Co-chairs, Christine Coombe and Beth Wiens, have invited the widest range of
guest speakers I have ever seen at a TESOL Arabia Conference, covering just about every possible interest
in our field. In fact I doubt whether there is any other significant conference in the world that can offer so
much in terms of invited expertise. Not only are there many speakers new to us, but we are also happy to
welcome back some who have informed and entertained us in previous conferences. We are delighted that
people are so willing to make a return visit. We also have a large number of concurrent sessions selected
from the largest number of proposals we have ever received. This event is going from strength to strength
and is indicative of the significance of ELT in the region.
Conference time provides an opportunity to explore new professional avenues, share ideas and experiences
with others, meet old friends and make new ones. I hope everyone makes good use of all that’s on offer,
as well as joining in with the friendliness and willingness to share that is a characteristic of TESOL Arabia
Conferences. We will then return home after the close on Saturday feeling fulfilled, reinvigorated and
enthused for the months ahead.
Happy conference-going!
LLeess KKiirrkkhhaamm
TESOL Arabia President, 2011-2012
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Letter from the Conference
Co-chairs
Christine Beth Wiens
Coombe
Dear TESOL Arabia members and conference delegates,
On behalf of the organizing committee and the TESOL Arabia Executive Council, we would like to welcome
you to the 18th Annual TESOL Arabia International Conference and Exhibition.
This is the premier conference in the region for EFL/ESL teaching and learning. This year, we have nearly 250
different sessions throughout the conference, including nine world-renowned plenary speakers, many well-
known featured speakers, as well as SIG and development course sessions. We also host a very successful
Job Fair and Exhibition. The success of this event is due to the hard work of many volunteers. So much work
is done behind the scenes, yet many people don’t know about it because the annual conference is such a
successful event each year.
This year’s theme, “Achieving Excellence through Life Skills Education,” reflects our desire to help delegates
see with new eyes; to help all of us better understand ourselves and learn how we can be better teachers,
educators and administrators. We want to show that personal development can also help you develop
professionally, and that education is not limited to the classroom.
As in previous years, we have an excellent Exhibition with many publishers, materials distributors and
educational institutions. If you are searching for employment, the TESOL Arabia Conference Job Fair is one
of the best employment clearinghouse opportunities for both job seekers and recruiters in the region. We
also have great Pre-Conference Professional Development Courses, Conference Certificate Courses, Dubai
Discussions and Forums, the IT Village, Poster Sessions, and the new 20X20 (powered by PechaKucha). So
much is offered, it is the professional development opportunity of the year for those of us in the profession.
We would like to thank Dubai Men’s College as our gracious host this year. Their support as our TESOL
Arabia Conference 2012 venue has been outstanding.
Finally, we would like to thank our patron, His Excellency Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, for his
support over the past 20 years. We have dedicated this conference to him for his commitment to education
and the field of English Language teaching and learning.
Please enjoy the conference!
Dr Christine Coombe Beth WWiieennss
Conference Co-chair Conference Co-chair
9
Your success
Education for productive minds
in academic
study starts here
Arab Gulf
February February Summer
2012 2012 2012
Education
a‘Lecture and seminar’ strand specifically focused
on listening skills in academic contexts, based on
Universityy of Cambridgge seminars and lectures.
aIntegrated skills approach with each unit covering
all four skills.
Cambridge University Press, aFlexible structure allows teachers to focus on
Office F-27, Block 13 particular areas to suit courses of different lengths,
Knowledge Village, or to follow the course from start to finish.
PO Box 502915 Dubai,
United Arab Emirates aPLUS! The DVD contains authentic lectures by
the University of Cambridge experts, seminars
email: offi[email protected]
Arab Gulf tel: +971 4 3672166 and vox pops of students talking about their own
Education Center fax: + 971 4 3678632 experiences of university life.
Arab Gulf Education - Al Nahda Road, Al Qusais 2 - Dubai , UAE - Tel: 00971 4 2204007 - Fax: 00971 4 2204011
www.cambridge.org/elt/academicenglish
The Collaborator
THE HIGHER COLLEGES OF TECHNOLOGY
Careers at the
United Arab Emirates
Higher Colleges of Technology
As the largest college system in the United Arab Emirates,
the Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT) prides itself as
being one of the most progressive and innovative centers
for higher learning in the Middle East. With over 19,000
UAE National students and 2,000 employees located at 17
campuses, the HCT is a federally-funded national system
dedicated to providing post-secondary education from
Foundation to Masters Level qualifications.
HCT is also known for hosting international education
events such as Education Without Borders (EWB) and
the Festival of Thinkers conference. EWB is a biennial
international student forum geared towards designing
solutions for world challenges such as sustainable
development and renewable energy. The Festival of
Thinkers provides a platform for youth, Nobel Laureates
and other distinguished speakers to collaborate on
Please visit us at innovative thoughts and ideas that inspire action.
our booth at The success of these events is made possible by the
TESOL Arabia HCT leadership and staff dedicated to delivering
applyo ronline world-class education. To remain at the forefront of
contemporary educational practices, the HCT is actively
to paret -tbhoeo TkE ySoOuL1r A in0ratebrivaiew soeuerk tienagm d.edicated and collaborative professionals to join
Job Fair.
Learn more at http://recruit.hct.ac.ae
Description:Jim Scrivener. Head of Teacher Development She has worked as a teacher
trainer on Cambridge-ESOL CELTA courses, and has given seminars, in-service