"It's  such social injustice to expect people to use English like native English speakers, whichever country they're in."

We dive into this and English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) with Jennifer Jenkins. 

Jennifer Jenkins is a British linguist and academic. She was Chair Professor of Global Englishes at the University of Southampton until her retirement in 2019 and is a leading figure in the study of English as a Lingua Franca (ELF),

In this episode, Jennifer tackles:

• what English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) is

• native speakers vs local speakers

• why she was shunned from many rooms for her views

• the cultural and linguistic bias in language testing 

• how tests are not predictive of academic success

• the myth that ELF lowers English standards

• the role of adjusting language rather than mimicking it 

• having a pioneer mindset even when people dismiss you

• how international universities have hypocritical linguistic standards 

• the future of English as a global language 

Learners can think a native teacher is a vaccine against poor pronunciation. Equally, native teachers can be misinformed in thinking that students should just follow them.

We dive into pronunciation, intelligibility, and teacher effects on learner performance with the great John Levis. 

In our conversation, John talks about:

• accent vs pronunciation

• the nativeness principle vs the intelligibility principle

• how he coined "the intelligibility principle"

• high and low value features of pronunciation 

• why some vowel sounds don't matter

• native and non-native teacher effects on learner performance

• learners viewing native speakers as a vaccine for poor pronunciation

• some native teachers believing learners should just follow them

• getting "caught" with accent

Native speaker or non-native speaker? Monolingual or plurilingual? Why do we have a binary bias in modern society?

These are some of the questions we tackled with Dr. Angelica Galante. 

n our conversation, Dr. Galante talks about:

• Linguistic and Cultural Discrimination

• Strategies to Combat Prejudice in Education

• Plurilingual and Pluricultural Competence

• Navigating Binary Bias in Language Discussions

• Exploring Common Ground in Controversial Topics

• The Role of Language in Identity and Mental Health

• Practical Applications of Plurilingualism in Education

• Balancing Plurilingualism and Language Acquisition

• Challenges and Facilitators of Plurilingualism

Why do some teachers thrive as entrepreneurs while others struggle? We dissect this question. 

Many teachers want to earn more, teach online, and gain more clients - but struggle to implement a sustainable strategy. We go over seven "Cs" to help. 

In this episode, we dive into the "seven Cs of success for teacher entrepreneurship" and discuss:

• confidence as a skill rather than a feeling

• getting granular on goals

• strategizing goal achievement at both the macro and the micro

• reflecting on why having a business is (or isn't) a priority 

• how consistency compounds over time

• why getting more clients is nearly impossible if you have nothing to sell

• normalizing struggle and self doubt

• first steps to starting your business in 2025

If you use vocabulary and grammar tests, you don't teach communicatively.  Audrey Rousse-Malpat tells us why. 

Audrey Rousse-Malpat is an assistant professor in second language acquisition at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands

In our conversation, Audrey talks about:

• thinking like a scientist

• schools as factories

• AIM (Accelerative Integrated Method) and how it works

• feeling like the Marry Poppins of error correction 

• structure-based teaching vs Dynamic usage

• why teachers need to relinquish control

• what went wrong with the communicative approach

• tips for implementing AIM

• multilingual approaches in higher education 

Education is designed around focusing on the learner first and the teacher as a medium to support the learner. Sarah Mercer tells us why this leads to unhealthy teachers. 

Sarah Mercer is a Professor of foreign language teaching at the University of Graz, Austria.

In this episode, Sarah expounds on:

• why connecting with learners is fundamental

• cell phone addiction and what we CAN'T do about it

• re-framing what "student-led" means

• defining "engagement" and pedagogical caring

• students faking engagement out of respect for their teacher

• burnout and stress are the result of the systemic element of teacher well-being

ELT is full of disasters, including the destruction of the communicative approach. In this episode, Dr. Enrica Piccardo tells us why.

Dr. Piccardo is a Professor of Applied Linguistics and Language Education at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto. Her research spans language teaching approaches/curricula, multi/plurilingualism, creativity and complexity in language education.

In this episode, Dr. Piccardo discusses: 

• leveraging the messiness of learning

• how Headway destroyed the communicative approach

• multiple disasters in ELT: the separation of languages, the native speaker model, organization curriculum around grammar, and others

• how we're still teaching in a grammatical way because it's easier

• what mediation is, its role in learning, and its 3 types

• updating the CEFR to include mediation 

• the link between mediation and plurilingualism

• the action-oriented approach and its benefits

• why teachers need to delegate learning

What do toad venom, the 5 stages of grief, and precarity all have in common? Andrew, Leo, and Mike explain. 

In this episode, we discuss strategies to earn more by creating your own offer. Specifically, we dive into:

• the 5 stages of grief pertaining to precarity

• two paths teachers have: stay in ELT or move on

• why earning more money is a requisite to stay in the industry

• how to create a compelling offer that will actually sell

• why focusing on lesson frequency is restricting

• not creating solutions to problems no one cares about 

• toad venom and how you can apply it to your teaching business

ELT provides the wrong input: language as it should be spoken not as it is spoken. This is wrong and Sheila Thorn gives us another way. Sheila is a renowned teacher, trainer, and materials writer. She also founded The Listening Business in 1998.

In this episode, Sheila discusses: 

• ELT having the wrong input 

• coursebooks as impoverished language

• learners being scared of real language 

• how teacher training fails teachers as much as coursebooks fail students

• the 5 listening goals every learner should have

• a 3-pronged approach to teaching listening

• the problem she is trying to solve in ELT

Grammar instruction or grammar learning? We dive into this with today's guests, Silvina Montrul and Tania Ionin.

In this episode, they discuss: 

•  grammatical knowledge in the context of language acquisition

• what intervention research is

• why we expect too much of adult learners 

• how instruction contributes or doesn't contribute to grammar acquisition

• efficacious conditions for grammar instruction 

• how educators can influence the learning of grammar

• why studying monolinguals helps to understand L2 acquisition

• literate vs illiterate native speakers for a study on grammatical knowledge 

So many teachers focus on teaching when they should focus on something else. In this episode, we dive into this with the great Bill VanPatten. Bill VanPatten is an award-winning scholar and teacher with an international reputation in the fields of second language acquisition and second language teaching.

We chat with Bill about why:

• the majority of teaching is not in accordance with SLA research

• Krashen was right

• Krashen's theories are not used in language education

• teachers need to get rid of the "Atlas Complex" 

• most people don't understand what a communicative classroom means

• grammar rules are not psychologically real

• many researchers don't want to talk to teachers

• understanding how non-college educated L1 speakers process language shows explicit instruction's ineffectiveness 

• if learners can do your assignments using AI, the assignment is flawed

So many teachers feel they can't teach pronunciation if their speech doesn't sound a certain way. Listen to this episode to discover why that isn't true. 

Robin Walker and Gemma Archer are pronunciation specialists who co-authored "Teaching English Pronunciation for a Global World," which aims to encourage pronunciation instruction from a lingua franca and intelligibility perspective. 

We chat with Robin & Gemma about:

• intelligibility, comprehensibility, and accentedness

• why the Lingua Franca Core is what teachers should learn

• their disdain for Jennifer Jenkins' criticism of them - before realizing she was right

• how intelligibility is the thing that allows pronunciation to do its job

• weak forms and why they're not necessary for intelligibility 

• why the goal of international intelligibility doesn't exclude other goals

• how to measure intelligibility & use Linca Franca Core diagnostics with your students

Lara Bryfonski is an applied linguist and assistant professor of linguistics at Georgetown University. She recently co-authored the book The Art and Science of Language Teaching with Alison Mackey.

In this episode, Lara dives into:

• if "TBLT" is a fad

• the myth that novice teachers can't handle TBLT

• why experienced teachers are often the most resistant to try it

• using a TBL approach within a strict syllabus 

• where grammar instruction fits into a TBL approach

• what a task is and isn't

• navigating a learner's internal syllabus 

• task design and how to apply it in your courses tomorrow

• Twitch, gaming, and asynchronous TBLT 

• her advice for aspiring TBLT practitioners 

Donna M. Brinton is a methodologist, trainer, author, and distinguished figure in applied linguistics. A key aspect of Donna's work is her advocacy for Content-Based Instruction (CBI).

In this conversation, Donna expounds on:

• her beginnings as a teacher & her struggles with methodology

• why she decided to focus on methods as a point of emphasis

• content-based instruction and how it impacts language learning

• developing and using a CBI syllabus

• the 6 "t's" framework & the 3 CBI prototypes

• CBI case studies around the world

• the problem with minimal pairs and what can be done instead

• the future of methodology & teacher development

Leo, Mike, and Andrew grab some nog, get in the holiday spirit, and chat about authenticity - Merriam-Webster's word of the year for 2023. We delve into what the word means to us and how we and anyone building a business can bring as much authenticity as possible into 2024. 

Specifically, we dive into:

• our process and struggles with niching down

• why the response "teachers will love that" to our first offer was a bad answer

• the "do one thing" philosophy to business growth

• how you can develop sustainable practices in your business in 2024 

Cecilia Nobre is a PhD candidate, teacher, trainer, and author. She has been an EFL teacher for over 20 years, and is a trainer on DipTESOL, CertTESOL, and Celta trainer. She recently co-authored the book "Using Video to Support Teacher Reflection and Development in ELT" with Steve Mann and Laura Baecher.

In this episode, Cecilia touches on:

• video-based observation as a form of development

• how videos can foster more critical reflection

• using video recordings in both the physical and digital classroom

• why every teacher should record their own lessons - and then watch them

• how video observation can be incorporated into pre-service training courses

• why video observation reduces the hierarchical relationship of traditional observation and how it can foster community building 

• advice for new educators just getting started 

Geoff Jordan is a teacher, trainer, academic, and author. Geoff has a Ph.D. in Second Language Acquisition, has worked at ESADE, Barcelona for 28 years, and recently co-authored a book with the late Mike Long called "ELT Now and How It Could Be."His main academic interests are: theories of SLA, psycholinguistics, teaching practice and computational linguistics.

Specifically, Geoff touches on:

• his beginnings in the ELT industry

• working alongside Mike Long, Peter Skehan and Henry Widdowson in the early days

• his new book "ELT Now and How It Could Be," co-written with the late Mike Long

• how commercialization has hurt the language industry

• why students should be angry after 300 hours of study when they still can't "go to the pub in London"

• why task-based learning is the only way to go

• why "presenting" language is inefficacious 

• how the future of the industry is in niche courses

• advising students to be more resourceful in their learning 

• listener questions

Paul Nation is an Emeritus Professor of Applied Linguistics and renowned researcher and author in our industry. He joins us for a discussion on learning, putting research into practice, and - of course - the four strands 27 years later. 

Paul touches specifically on:

• his vocabulary niche

• the birth of the four strands

• how it's a basis for course construction, not lesson design

• how he learned Greek on a 2 hour flight

• why teachers who do extensive reading are brave

• why teachers need to believe that by not teaching, people can learn

• the only 3 things that matter in learning

• if there is a fifth strand

Andrew, Mike, and Leo sit down and ponder Dogme....as a new approach? It certainly has experienced a resurgence since the pandemic and we are curious why that is. 

We also dive into:

• the role of the teacher

• the shift away from planning & towards reacting

• what authentic communication actually means

• how teachers can model lifelong learning habits

• using Dogme in your business and using the less is more philosophy

Dylan was born just outside London and has been working in the ELT sector for nearly 25 years. About 12 years ago, he discovered Dogme, or as he prefers to call it “Teaching Unplugged.”

In this episode, he shines a light on:

• how freelancing led him to Dogme

• why he includes reactive teaching in his tool kit for the modern teacher

• the RDS method for dealing with emergent language

• key considerations for designing materials with a reactive mindset

• the future of ELT, AI, and how teachers can innovate