We've included a link to his PowerPoint document above.

OTHER PRESENTATIONS

Project CREATE: Improving Teacher Learning for ELL Instruction
James Nagle, Susan Jenkins, & Elizabeth O’Dowd of Saint Michael’s College discussed the rationale, goals and strategies of Project CREATE (Curriculum Reform for the Education of All Teachers of ELLs). Project CREATE intends to prepare all pre-service teachers at Saint Michael's College to instruct English language learners by developing a professional learning community among college faculty, practicing teachers, and pre-service teachers. James Nagle is co-principal investigator of Project CREATE and assistant professor in the secondary education program of the Education Department at Saint Michael’s College. jnagle2@smcvt.edu. Susan Jenkins is co-principal investigator of Project CREATE, professor and chair of the Applied Linguistics Department at Saint Michael’s College. Elizabeth O’Dowd is co-principal investigator of Project CREATE and professor of the Applied Linguistics Department at Saint Michael’s College. She has most recently published or presented on Grammar, Writing, and ESL-Content Collaboration for English Language Learners.

Effects of Multimedia Input on Reading Comprehension
James Whiting, Plymouth State University, presented from a research study, which investigated whether commercially produced audio and video input increased second-language readers’ comprehension of a short-story text. Classroom implications for the use of multi-media input in conjunction with authentic texts were examined. James Whiting is an Assistant Professor of TESOL/Applied Linguistics at Plymouth State University in New Hampshire. At Plymouth he teaches both graduates and undergraduates, and directs the graduate TESOL program. jcwhiting@plymouth.edu

Spotlight on English Content Vocabulary and Structures to Succeed: It’s More than Making Content Connections!
Hilary Grant, New England Educational Representative of Santillana USA, demonstrated Spotlight on English. Many ELLS struggle in academic content areas because they lack content vocabulary AND they lack mastery of the structures of Academic English that give meaning to language. The presenter demonstrated how Spotlight on English is designed to engage students in the use of academic English using the content area as the vehicle of instruction. Hilary Grant is the New England Educational Representative for Santillana USA. Previously, Ms. Grant has worked as a writer and as a senior development editor of educational materials and media for modern foreign languages and ESL. She worked many years in Latin America, first as a teacher, then as an independent media producer where she developed materials for a number of local and international publishers. Ms. Grant speaks several languages including Spanish and Portuguese. hilarygrant@aol.com

Getting Ready! The ESOL College Transition Program at UNH Manchester
Christine Noon, University of New Hampshire, discussed a program to help ESOL make the jump into college. ESOL students have the motivation and intelligence to go to college but hit obstacles when their skills are not up to the challenge. CTP-ESOL is an introduction to college academia for such students. The presentation included a Power Point overview, group activity, application procedures, and financial aid information. Christine D. Noon is the former Director of the Title III ESOL Program at the New Hampshire Department of Education in Concord, NH. She has taught English literature, English composition and ESOL, and has eleven years’ experience as an administrator. She is currently the Coordinator of the College Transition Program (CTP) for ESOL students at the Manchester campus of the University of New Hampshire. She is also a published nonfiction writer under the name Christine Davidson.

Poster: Are TOEFL iBT Words unquestionably TOEFL iBT Words?
Ercin Ayhan, Gulhane Medical Military Academy Etlik, Turkey, presented our first poster presentation ever! Vocabulary resources for TOEFL iBT overlap with most frequently used 2570 Word Lists (Nation & Waring, 1997). In this poster session, primary data collection and evaluation process were the focus. Attendees were advised on how to compare their word lists with on-line and off-line vocabulary profilers. Ercin Ayhan holds a BA, MBA, and M.ed. and has served in the Turkish Navy. He currently is an instructor at Gulhane Military Medical Academy, Ankara, Turkey.

ELLs with Suspected Language-Learning Disabilities: Guidelines for the Prereferral and Special Education Processes
Susan McDonald, Speech Pathologist, Burlington, aimed at providing ELL instructors with background knowledge and practical tools to use when they or another school staff member suspects that an ELL student may have a language-learning disability. The first part of the session outlined systematic methods to examine the various factors involved when an ELL student has been identified as not progressing in the classroom setting. The second part of the session gave an overview of the special education process and the role of the ESL instructor. Susan McDonald is an ASHA certified speech language pathologist with a K-12 ESL endorsement currently working in the Burlington Public Schools. mcdonaldsl@hotmail.com

Some Grammatical Difficulties Faced by Arab Learners
Mutahar Al-Murtadha, Saint Michael’s College, focused on grammatical areas such as articles, adjectives, adverbs, and interrogative statements. Mutahar Al-Murtadha is a Fulbright MATESOL Graduate Student at Saint Michael’s College. He has taught English as a foreign language in Yemen, his country, for more than seven years.

Exploring College Slang
Joe McVeigh & Alexis Mussomeli, Middlebury College, described a survey of college students to discover which slang terms are most commonly used on campus. You can access their online dictionary here. Joe McVeigh is a consultant in Middlebury, VT. He has taught students from more than forty countries and edited books for Cambridge University Press. jmcveigh@middlebury.edu. Alexis Mussomeli is a senior at Middlebury College with an independent major in linguistics who has lived in many countries around the world.

Recognizing T-groups and Focal Stress for ‘Rightside-up’Pronunciation Activities
Daniel Evans, Saint Michael’s College, explored current views of pronunciation teaching. His research shows they favor a top-down approach that emphasize suprasegmental aspects of oral production. He encouraged participants to raise their awareness of T-groups and focal stress in order to take advantage of the most current classroom practices for teaching pronunciation as communication. Daniel Evans, Associate Professor of Applied Linguistics at Saint Michael’s College, teaches in the MATESOL Program and English Language Programs. devans@smcvt.edu

Constructing Grammar: Putting the Interlanguage to Work
Elizabeth O’Dowd, Mahmoud Arani & John Halliwell, Saint Michael’s College, demonstrated a participatory approach to teaching grammar discovery. In this approach, the learners collectively construct knowledge of grammar, negotiate meaning, and notice gaps in their interlanguages in the context created by their own output. Elizabeth O’Dowd is co-principal investigator of Project CREATE and professor of the Applied Linguistics Department at Saint Michael’s College. She has most recently published or presented on Grammar, Writing, and ESL-Content Collaboration for English Language Learners. Mahmoud Arani is a professor of applied linguistics at Saint Michael's College. His research interest is in the application of discourse analysis in L2 instruction. marani@smcvt.edu. John Halliwell is an assistant professor of applied linguistics at Saint Michael’s College. His research interests focus on cognitive foundations of language learning and applications to pedagogical grammar. jhalliwell@smcvt.edu