Elon University English Language Teaching Symposium

Call For Proposals

Bridging Divides | Creating Community

Saturday, February 16, 2019

Elon University

In an increasingly globalized society, people are crossing borders and communicating across distances more than ever before. Accordingly, schools and universities are becoming more culturally and linguistically diverse with increased pressure to prepare students to live in this interconnected global world. As teachers, we want to prepare our students for success. To do this, we must create inclusive spaces, develop culturally-diverse pedagogies, and build our communities of practice. Ultimately, we must aim to bridge divides in order to support all students’ learning goals.

We invite you to join us for an English Language Teaching Symposium focused on the needs of Alamance/Burlington’s students. To develop a community of practice among teachers in our community, we are seeking proposals from faculty, teachers, and staff for fifteen-minute individual presentations or sixty-minute group presentations that share pedagogical innovations, ask difficult questions, and aim to support students of all backgrounds.

In thinking about this year’s theme, begin with these questions:

  • How can we create learning environments where every student’s voice is valued and represented within the content of the course?
  • How can we prepare future teachers to bridge divides in their classrooms?
  • How can we use our professional learning networks to improve experiences for ESL students?
  • What actions can we take to help all students succeed in the classroom and beyond?
  • How can we curate classroom libraries and decor (signage, posters) to create inclusive spaces for all students?

When we meet at Elon University in February 2019, we will focus on ways to make the classroom a welcoming space so that students will be empowered and become leaders in their communities. We will come together to create a community of classroom teachers that will, in turn, create an inclusive community for students.

For questions, contact Courtney Kobos ckobos@elon.edu or Jennifer Eidum at jeidum@elon.edu.

Proposal DEADLINE EXTENDED: January 21, 2019.
Decisions will be announced on a rolling basis.