Listen up folks!

Another fascinating talk by Julian Treasure. This is extremely relevant for me personally, but I also want to share this with my students, other teachers and Directors/Trustees at my daughters school.

Curriculum-Based Readers Theatre

Another innovative approach to teaching that I came across. Considering how we might use this in our Content-Based Instruction (CBI) English Program at Konan University. Very intriguing.

The History of English

A friend forwarded this to me and I thought I would post a link.

Mindset

I am just finishing Carol Dweck’s book Mindset and wanted to share some thoughts. First, the book is a very easy read and includes quite a few AHA moments. The information and suggestions in the book should be appealing to parents, teachers, consultants, trainers, and almost everyone else. The ideas in the book come from extensive research with a variety of age groups and in a variety of contexts. The argument is that people have or develop one of two mindsets, fixed and growth. People with a fixed mindset basically believe that intelligence and talent are fixed and not amenable. Either you got it or you don’t. They do not like to fail or try hard when faced with a challenge. They would rather stay in their comfort zone, and believe effort is a sign of weakness or lack of intelligence or talent. Conversely, the growth mindset individuals thrive on challenge and see failure as a sign that they need to work or train harder.

Important lessons for educators (and parents) include that the need for thoughtful praise . . . the type of praise we give includes messages about success and failure. Praise about effort and determination are the best.

Carol Dweck’s website includes a questionnaire to test mindset as well as suggestions for how to foster a growth mindset.

http://www.mindsetonline.com/

The book includes even more. I already have plans for including these ideas and suggestions in my own classes as well as workshops and seminars for faculty development meetings and teacher-training workshops. Please let me know if you are interested in collaborating on something MINDSET related.

Cheers!

Mindset – A set of beliefs or way of thinking that determines one’s behavior, outlook and mental attitude.

Martin Seligman – Positive Psychology

Similar content to his ted.com talk but a little more depth.

Positive Psychology

I just finished reading Martin Seligman’s new book on Positive Psychology (Flourish) and am compiling a short list of resources for upcoming presentations and classes. Thought I might share them here as well. Hope you enjoy.
Books
Character Strengths and Virtues, by Peterson & Seligman
Authentic Happiness: Using the New Positive Psychology to Realize Your Flow: the Psychology of Optimal Experience, by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Happiness: Unlocking the Mysteries of Psychological Wealth, by Ed Diener and Robert Biswas-Diener
The Happiness Hypothesis, by Jonathan Haidt
Introduction to Positive Psychology, William Compton
Learned Optimism: How to Change Your Mind and Your Life, by Martin E.P. Seligman
The Optimistic Child, by Martin E. P. Seligman, Karen Reivich, Lisa Jaycox, & Jane Gillham
Flourish, Martin E.P. Seligman

Websites

http://www.searchhappiness.com

http://www.meaningandhappiness.com/

University Pages
University of Illinois

http://www.psych.uiuc.edu/~ediener/

University of Pennsylvania

http://www.ppc.sas.upenn.edu/

Productive Thinking Model

I just finished reading Tim Hurson’s book Think Better and found this Ted talk.

I am planning on using some of the productive thinking model in a couple of contexts. First, I want to include this in a workshop on creative and critical thinking in Kyrgyzstan with Teachers Helping Teachers. I also plan on designing a workshop on this framework for the Board of Trustees retreat for Marist Brothers International School in September.

THT 2011 Proposals

THT 2011  – Presentation Proposals

Proposal 1

Title: Content-Based Instruction (CBI) for Language Teachers

Abstract: In this presentation, participants will be introduced to both the theory and practice of Content-Based Instruction (CBI), with special emphasis on the affective learning domain. After looking at the various benefits of a CBI approach, the presenter will introduce an example of a CBI program that is currently being used in a tertiary-level English program for management course students in Japan. Participants will go away with the knowledge and tools for successfully developing and implementing their own content-based classes, as well as lists of potential pitfalls and suggested further readings.

Proposal 2

Title: Service Learning for Language Teachers

Abstract: This presentation offers Service Learning (SL) as a powerful and effective addition to the language teacher’s toolbox. The presentation will start with a general introduction to SL, including various definitions, the process, potential affective benefits and possible target-language learning outcomes. The presenter will then go on to outline two SL projects that he has recently developed for Japanese university students learning English. One of the projects involves students in working with groups of indigenous children on the island of Mindoro in the Philippines. The other project introduces students to volunteer work in the form of preparing for and hosting a Peace Conference. Participants will go away with various job aids to assist their own SL-focused endeavors.

Proposal 3

Title: Creative and Critical Thinking Workshop

Abstract: In this workshop, participants will get hands-on experience working with tools for better thinking and creative problem solving. Specifically, the facilitator will walk participants through a series of activities aimed at familiarizing them with the Productive Thinking Model developed by Tim Hurson and his think^x (www.thinkxic.com) team. Participants will go away with a fundamental understanding of the five steps in productive thinking: (1) What’s Going On? (2) What’s Success? (3) What’s the Question? (4) Generate Answers & (5) Forge the Solution. The knowledge and skills introduced in this workshop should help participants develop better thinking at both the personal and organizational levels.

Pecha Kucha Night Nishinomiya Volume 9 is scheduled for July 1. Come join in the fun.

http://www.pecha-kucha.org/night/nishinomiya/9

PGL 2011 Call for Papers

Here is the call for papers for the PGL 2011 conference that will be hosted here at CUBE this year. Please pass it along to all your peace loving friends. Also, we are looking for someone to do the artwork/layout for the Conference Poster. Know anyone?pgl2011_call