Global Bloggers

  • Kia Ora to our latest Global Blogger

    Published on 5th July, 2010 in Global Bloggers by Matt Kay

    We have a new Global Blogger starting with us this week. He’ll be with us over the next couple of months and giving us a Global perspective from the other side of the world. Over to Martin… My name is Martin McMorrow. I am from London and have taught English more…

  • When an ESL classroom can be a musical feast!

    Published on 29th June, 2010 in Global Bloggers by Patrick Talty

    Picture the scene. My IELTS students have just completed a rigorous 90-minute Reading exam. The mood is low. What do you do? How about several renditions of ‘Happy Birthday’ in several different languages? This scenario unfolded last week, for Asel, from Kazakhstan, whose birthday we celebrated. It got me pondering more…

  • Thank you, Global!

    Published on 24th June, 2010 in Global Bloggers by Vicky Loras

    I would like to thank everyone at Global and especially Lindsay Clandfield and Matthew Kay for giving me the opportunity to be guest blogger on the Global website and also for the material I received! My last blog post is dedicated to everyone at Macmillan! As this is my last more…

  • Just happy to be here: sometimes teaching can be a very humbling experience

    Published on 22nd June, 2010 in Global Bloggers by Patrick Talty

    With the World Cup party in full swing, I asked my low intermediate conversation class which group of fans they thought were the most colourful. The majority went with the South Africans who they felt celebrated regardless of the team’s result, and who just dressed happily as Bruno, my Brazilian more…

  • The working life of an ESL student

    Published on 15th June, 2010 in Global Bloggers by Patrick Talty

    My afternoon Vocabulary/Conversation class had asked me recently if we could do a class focusing on the topic of work and all its related issues. They are an outgoing group of various levels and had suggested at the beginning of the session that they select the topics of discussion. I more…

  • Brazilians and Borsch! Koreans and Kebabs! There’s nothing like food to bring your students together.

    Published on 9th June, 2010 in Global Bloggers by Patrick Talty

    I had a wonderfully enjoyable time with my IELTS students last week. To say ‘thank you’ for all their efforts, I brought two apple pies into class. They were delighted, and, as always, I marvelled at how effective food is as a conversation topic. I decided to combine good food with more…

  • English and German from many aspects

    Published on 8th June, 2010 in Global Bloggers by Vicky Loras

    Last Tuesday at the bank we read David Crystal’s excellent text under the title of Global English: Same language but different in Global pre-intermediate, which is about how American and British English differ in terms of vocabulary, informal and formal language and abbreviations. They really enjoyed reading it out loud more…

  • Multiculturalism and maple-leafs: never a dull moment as an ESL teacher in Toronto!

    Published on 1st June, 2010 in Global Bloggers by Patrick Talty

    Hi there and welcome to Toronto, Canada. My name is Patrick Talty, and I have been living and teaching in this fine city for almost five years. I grew up in the picturesque west of Ireland where I went to high school and university, and where I worked before taking more…

  • Codes of Communication in Different Cultural Settings

    Published on 27th May, 2010 in Global Bloggers by Vicky Loras

    The lessons at the bank I teach are becoming more and more interesting every time we meet on Tuesday morning! The group I teach are so enthusiastic and willing to contribute to the lesson in any way possible and learn – and Global truly gives rise to great discussions! That’s more…

  • Language – the mirror of our soul

    Published on 17th May, 2010 in Global Bloggers by Leah Kaplan

    Sometimes when I’m reading a book in Italian, I’ll stop and look at the page, surprised that I understand those words. I’ll unfocus my eyes and look at the words and letters as an abstract piece of art, as I did when I was 16 and came to Italy for more…

  • Talking about Social Networking Through Global

    Published on 14th May, 2010 in Global Bloggers by Vicky Loras

    The last year has seen my teaching career move in a new direction, as I have commenced networking with other educators around the globe. There are numerous tools that allow an educator to connect with others. Two tools that I make great use of are my educational weblog (blog) and more…

  • ‘All will come in due time’

    Published on 4th May, 2010 in Global Bloggers by Leah Kaplan

    This is a concept that’s understandably difficult to teach to students that are using their precious time to learn English. Learning a language is a long-term process, and it’s an even longer-term process for those students who don’t have the luxury of living in an English speaking country. Some students more…