ICIS Newsletter - February 2013 (Plain Text Version)
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LEADERSHIP UPDATES LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
What an exciting time as we fast approach TESOL’s Annual Convention! Because this is but one of many opportunities throughout the year to immerse ourselves in knowledge sharing, networking, learning, and re-energizing as we come together in collective pursuit of improving the quality of our language teaching and learning, it is my sincere hope that if you will not be able to make the trip this time, you will find a conference or symposium somewhere near you in the coming months in order to take advantage of the synergy that arises from such events. In the last few days, I have returned from just such a weekend hosted at the University of Macau and sponsored in part by the U.S. Embassy in Beijing. This particular conference impressed upon me not only the need for us to share generously and often from our abundant wealth of “big C” Cultural knowledge and experience, but from our “little c” cultural knowledge and experience as well. The tag line of this particular English language teaching conference was “Many Voices, One Vision,” and that is exactly who we are, as an interest section, whether we are teaching in the East or West, North or South; in primary, secondary, or tertiary institutions, we have a common vision to instil a culture of inquiry, openness, and acceptance among students. In this issue of InterCom, the articles address meeting students’ needs by helping them express themselves and develop their identities through both written and spoken communication. The articles look at how their own skills and knowledge base are reflective of their cultures and educational background and the learning curve that comes with intercultural encounters, whether from reaching across the miles through technology or physically relocating to study in host-country immersion environments. Either way, as teachers, we can create opportunities and learning projects that support students’ discovery and language learning in a way that inspires and encourages them to embrace culture and language and the doors it opens to them. We hope that you, too, will be inspired to create opportunities for intercultural communication and learning and will choose to share them with your membership in upcoming issues of InterCom. After all, we, too, represent “Many Voices, One Vision” and are only strengthened by voicing the ideas and experiences we learn from in all corners of this ever-shrinking world. |
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