Job Discussion Forums

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

I had a supervisor in Saudi who would give extra marks in evaluations to teachers who used COLOURED chalk !

cmp45 · Joined: 17 Aug 2004 Posts: 1475 Location: KSA

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

I am all for Simplified Spelling, but I await an International Commission to introduce it.

buravirgil · Posted: Fri Apr 10, 2015 4:53 pm Post subject:

I came across this six-month-old article from TheEconomist that addresses the OPs premise more than its direct query.
My reading of it, with its use of the term "elite", supports Sashadroogie's "Rome" interpretation more than my own assertion, not that it matters to me. Wink

HOW would you rank “important” languages? If asked to rattle them off, many people start with English, but after that are reluctant to go further. Important how, they ask. One approach would be to look at people and money: surely a language is important if it is spoken by lots of people, in countries with great wealth (and presumably, therefore, power).

But in December came a new approach. A group of scholars* approached the task by first looking at how languages are connected to one another, rather than viewing them in isolation. They then decided to see if this was a good predictor of how many famous people spoke a given language. If a language is well connected to others (a “hub” language with many bilinguals), its speakers will tend to be famous. And the names of the connected languages turn out to be rather interesting.

Greater focus and detail in the link.
Language Networks
When bigger isn't better
Dec 31st 2014

MuscatGary · Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2015 8:32 am Post subject:

Chalk is an example of technology in the form teachers use it, so are pens, tables, chairs, light bulbs. ... I could go on but despair at how many educated people confuse educational technology with computers. Actually whiteboard markers are space age technology!

buravirgil · Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2015 9:39 am Post subject:

MuscatGary · Posted: Sun Apr 12, 2015 5:21 am Post subject:

Part of the problem, a big part, is that technology is often imposed on teachers without training to know how, and when, to use it. Perhaps the best example is the expensive coat hangers known as interactive whiteboards. Without training they are useless but employers seem happy to spend money on equipment but not on training. Many teachers that I've trained over the last few years were unaware of the advanced features of Word such as the readability function and even of track changes. Even more were hostile to technology as they felt it was being imposed without any rationale. Btw I put my hands up and admit to being an educational technologist!

nomad soul · Joined: 31 Jan 2010 Posts: 11454 Location: The real world

Lack · Joined: 10 Aug 2011 Posts: 252

Within the next 10 or so years I think the market will continue becoming more restrictive in what it requires from applicants, although if demand continues outstripping supply of qualified teachers (globally) there may continue to be opportunities for the backpacker-fakes for a while yet.

Within 50 years, I could see countries gaining a huge amount of English proficiency and just using their own English speakers to teach it and phase out native English speaking teachers. Wages would go down for what jobs do remain for natives.

In the more distant future, perhaps English will go the way of Latin - break up and become other languages while itself dying out. The language would then shift to being used primarily by academics, scientists, etc. like Latin before it. If English doesn't break apart, I predict it would be because there is much technology in play. So many people around the world speak English that even if the Anglo-sphere countries died out, many other countries would likely carry on with their own forms of English which would remain familiar for a long time. And this, in turn, would largely depend on politics. (For example, the 20th century was about globalization. In a future post-globalization world, perhaps nationalism will reassert itself and most countries will wish to return to their roots. But we're in sci-fi territory here.)

Ah, I often think of how great it would be to have a time machine and hop back to 1995 for TEFL adventures. Maybe even just any year before the 2007/2008 financial crisis, but after 1990.

LongShiKong · Joined: 28 May 2007 Posts: 1082 Location: China

johnslat · Posted: Fri May 01, 2015 5:34 pm Post subject:

1995? How about 1978? Very Happy

Regards,
John

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

1973 would suit me. I was in the full of the vigour of youth and drinking like a fish.

Er, on second thoughts. Cancel that !

buravirgil · Posted: Sun May 03, 2015 11:14 am Post subject:

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

What have I DONE !?