In order to continuously improve the quality of classroom teaching, Professor Sui Lin Goei and Dr. Shirley Tan from Windesheim University of Applied Sciences in Netherlands were invited to conduct teacher professional development training for English teachers in our school from May 13th to 18th, 2024.
On the morning of May 15, the two specialists delivered lectures entitled "The Latest Theories and Practices of International Lesson Study" and "Teaching Listening and Reading in an EFL Classroom: Ideas and Techniques" in the Foreign Language Builiding’s Lecture Hall on the 6th floor. Professor Pan Haiying, Dean of the School of Foreign Language Education, attended the lectures. The lectures were hosted by Prof. Yun Tianying, Director of the First Teaching and Research Department of College English. The lectures were also synchronized with the live broadcast of the Tencent Meeting.
Professor Sui Lin Goei, an internationally renowned expert in the field of teacher professional development methodology and one of the co-founders of the Association of Netherland Lesson Study, focused on the methodology and design principles of Lesson Study, and demonstrated its application in teaching reform, teacher professional development and curriculum design with examples.
Lesson Study is a teacher-oriented teaching cycle study, which is based on the teacher's teaching practice. Through the description of the whole course or part of the teaching events of a class, it forms the objective of personal reflection, the material of theoretical research or the example of others' learning. In addition, Lesson Study emphasizes continuous practice improvement, reaching the stage of new behaviors through repeated practice and reflection for better teaching and learning.
Dr. Shirley Tan holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in TESL as well as a CELTA and has taught English in Malaysia, Japan and Switzerland. Designed specifically for second and foreign language teachers, her lecture aimed to introduce new ways to improve listening and reading skills in foreign language classrooms. During the lecture, she interacted with the participants, using specific units of the textbook as examples to demonstrate various English listening and reading skills and methods, and demonstrated the whole process from the integration of unit themes and real resources to the implementation of classroom interactive activities. The practical steps provided the participating teachers with concepts and practical strategies that can be immediately applied to their own classrooms.
In the questioning session, the participating teachers and students had a wonderful discussion with Professor Sui Lin Goei on how to carry out Lesson Study and how to conduct effective classroom observation. In the interaction with Dr. Shirley Tan, she provided strategies and practical examples to address the confusion in teaching raised by the participating teachers.
On behalf of the school, Dean Pan Haiying welcomed the visit of the two experts and presented them with honorary certificates to thank them for their operational guidance and assistance for the professional development of teachers in our school. Meanwhile, Dean Pan expressed her expectation for more cooperation opportunities in the future to jointly promote the transformation and development of foreign language education in school.
Finally, Professor Yun Tianying made a concluding speech. She pointed out that the successful holding of this lecture had provided new directions and new ideas for the teaching practice and scientific research of the teachers of our school and was of great benefit to the scientific research development and talent cultivation of the school.
The participating teachers also expressed that the lectures were vivid and insightful, which could help them apply the new methods, new technologies, and new ideas to classroom teaching practice in a timely manner and was conducive to continuous improvement of their teaching level.
