Here you can find training materials in form of webinars for English and German.
To view a webinar, please click on the appropriate link.
English
2014
The CEFR as a Framework for Business English and ESP Training Courses
The 2014 MONDIALE-Testing Webinars concern themselves with the Common European Framework of Reference and its relevance for teachers and trainers in the field of Business English and English for Specific Purposes. Starting with a general look at the content and approach of the CEFR, the series of webinars will highlight a number of aspects that offer ideas and support for BE and ESP teachers, both in terms of content and methodology. The webinars are designed in such a way that they can either be followed as a course from month to month or be considered individual self-contained modules that can be attended in accordance with individual needs and interests.
- Webinar 1:
What does the CEFR offer Business English / ESP Language Trainers?
The CEFR was designed for virtually all language learning situations and contexts: all age groups, all types of educational institutions, for all language needs, etc. So inevitably, the content and the approach will not in all cases be of complete relevance and significance for any particular type of course. The aim of the first Webinar, which is intended to provide the background to the CEFR as a basis for the subsequent modules, is to show what there is of interest for BE / ESP trainers and where to find it.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p3muktafz0w/ - Webinar 2:
Implementing the CEFR Task/Action Based Approach in the Business English / ESP Classroom
Webinar 2 is looking at the ‘action-based’ communicative approach of the CEFR and highlights those parts of the document that indicate the content-based and methodological implications. In particular, the aim is to demonstrate how the task-based ‘getting things done’ approach that is essential in all BE/ESP courses is supported.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p23wohl6hhd/ - Webinar 3:
Looking at Levels – The Tell-Tale Signs Every Business English / ESP Trainer Needs to Know
The course programme says you are running for example a B2 course; the course book has got B2 stamped all over it, you’re preparing your students for a B2 examination, but – are your students really at B2 level? This is the situation often faced by trainers of BE / ESP courses. The aim of this Webinar is to show the signals trainers should be looking for in order to determine the present level of their students and to establish the learning needs to achieve the targeted level.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p6f60nikubd/ - Webinar 4:
Devising Appropriate Tasks for Business English and ESP Courses
The ‘getting things done’ approach that is an essential feature of BE / ESP courses requires the use of task-based activities with a high degree of relevance for the individual learners. The aim of this Webinar is to show the ways in which trainers in such courses can receive support and guidance from the CEFR when devising such tasks, in order to accommodate more closely the language and communication needs of individual students.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p6de94xwjdz/ - Webinar 5:
Training Receptive and Productive Skills in Business English and ESP
The CEFR offers not only the basic definitions of the five skills (Reading, Listening, Writing, Oral Production and Spoken Interaction), it also specifies a number of different sub-skills, e.g. Reading for Orientation, Addressing Audiences, etc. providing a wider range of skills that offer numerous ideas for teachers in the BE / ESP classroom, at the same time providing a checklist to ascertain whether the teaching materials presently in use fulfill all the students’ needs. The aim of this Webinar is to highlight the potential the CEFR offers and show how teachers can make optimum use of the ideas.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p5z7uwrm9mo/ - Webinar 6:
CEFR Strategies for Training Negotiating Skills
Negotiating is one of the most important skills required by students in BE / ESP classrooms, but very often there are questions that are not easy to answer for the trainer, e.g.: At what level can meaningful negotiating activities be started? What is the difference between negotiating activities at say B2 level compared with C1? And what are the linguistic, discourse and strategic components that need to be practiced before launching out on negotiating tasks? The aim of this Webinar is to examine the extent to which the CEFR provides answers to these and other relevant questions in order to help teachers to successfully train negotiating skills.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p5d8q7nj2gm/ - Webinar 7:
CEFR Strategies for Teaching Presentation Skills
For people in all areas of professional, business and academic life, successful presentations are of great importance, and to prepare students for this important skill, it is essential to have the answers to the questions already mentioned in the previous Webinar, e.g. At what level can presentations be practiced? What is the difference between B2 and C1 presentations? And what are the linguistic, discourse and strategic components that need to be practiced in advance? The aim of this Webinar is to examine the extent to which the CEFR can help teachers to successfully train presentation skills.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p9m0p367ry8/ - Webinar 8:
CEFR Strategies for Successful Report Writing
Although writing may not be the most important skill for all students taking part in BE / ESP courses, the ability to write good reports will be beneficial to students in the medical, financial or academic field, to name just three. And surveys have shown that there actually is a work-place related need. The aim of this Webinar is to highlight the features of this specific type of text and to show how the CEFR can support BE / ESP teachers.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p3omon5w3c9/ - Webinar 9:
When and How to Correct Errors in the Business English and ESP Classroom
Error-correction in the classroom can be a problem and teachers need a clear strategy in questions such as: when to correct and how to correct. The aim of this Webinar to look at and analyze a number of classroom situations from the point of view of “Correct or Not Correct? – That is the Question!” and to establish a kind of checklist to help teachers in this decision.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p2fytmm3hes/ - Webinar 10:
Accuracy / Communication: Which has higher priority?
It is often said that in BE / ESP contexts, communication (= getting across the message and getting things done) has a higher priority than using language correctly. But is this true? Is this always true? The aim of this Webinar is to look at various aspects of accuracy with reference to teaching situations at different levels and to help teachers to develop a strategy for the BE / ESP classroom.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p5suc3sh88b/ - Webinar 11:
Preparing Informal Assessment Tests for Business English and ESP Students
An important factor to remember when teaching BE / ESP is that students respond positively to regular feedback on their progress, so that meaningful and relevant forms of assessment are required. Courses often finish with one of the many recognized qualifications that are commercially available, but informal progress checks in the classroom usually need to be devised by the trainer. The aim of this final MONDIALE-Testing Webinar in 2014 is to provide a practical framework for preparing valid informal tests that can be integrated into the course and provide the necessary information for both students and trainer.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p1fgi5mlkge/
2015
The 2015 MONDIALE-Testing Webinars concern themselves with the Common European Framework of Reference and the implications of the communicative ‘action-based’ approach for language teaching in general. Each of the webinars will focus on one particular linguistic competence as described in the CEFR and suggest ways of dealing with this in the communicative classroom. The approach will be two-fold: firstly a brief introduction to the topic followed by a variety of suitable practical teaching ideas and teaching tips that teachers can easily adopt in their own courses.
The webinars, which are suitable for both general and ESP language courses, are designed in such a way that they can either be followed as a course from month to month or be considered individual self-contained modules that can be attended in accordance with individual needs and interests.
- Webinar 1:
Dealing with Grammar at Levels A1 – B1
Even though language training through A1 – A2 – B1 normally focusses on communicative skills, there is already a need for some form of grammar teaching to develop an initial awareness of and a feeling for the structure of the language. But how can this be implemented without making learners feel insecure, which will inevitably have an adverse effect on their willingness to produce language both in and outside the classroom?
The aim of this first Webinar is to show possible approaches towards dealing with the rules of grammar to enable the whole class to follow, and to present and discuss appropriate practical activities that can easily be adapted for use in most classrooms.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p2bpskjqxg4/ - Webinar 2:
Dealing with Grammar at Levels above B1
Whereas CEFR-based teaching at B1 and below should have communicative skills as the major priority, the approach needs to change at the higher levels. To be an effective language user at B2 and above, it is necessary to have a higher degree of language accuracy. This has a number of consequences for language teaching, including the development of the learner’s use of a wider range of different structures and the use of more complex sentence structures.
The aim of this second Webinar is to see to what extent methods need to be adapted to this new situation and to look at classroom activities that help to promote the use of a wider repertoire of higher-level structures in the language classroom.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p7chwqf9egs/ - Webinar 3:
Developing Vocabulary-Learning Skills
Teachers wishing to promote vocabulary learning skills need to consider three different phases: firstly input, i.e. how to present new vocabulary, secondly retention, i.e. helping learners to get the new words from their short-term memory to long-term memory and finally access, i.e. being able to produce the words when needed.
The aim of this Webinar is to talk about principles teachers need to have in mind when dealing with these three phases and the present a number of activities to support vocabulary learning.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p1obmgh6ph1/ - Webinar 4:
Compensation Strategies to Help Cope with Communication Problems
Have you ever got lost mid-sentence? Have you ever been in a situation where the word is ‘on the tip of your tongue’ but won’t appear? It happens equally to learners of a language and to native speakers, and as a result, learners may be reluctant to talk, unless they have at their disposal a repertoire of compensation strategies that enable them to deal with such problems.
The aim of this Webinar is to look at the strategies required and to present a variety of practical classroom activities to give learners more confidence in the communication skills.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p695i2985me/ - Webinar 5:
Choosing the Right Texts for My Course
An important feature of the communicative approach of the CEFR is the need for authenticity, which also includes the use of authentic texts. For the teacher this poses at least three important questions: firstly what texts are appropriate both in terms of content and level, secondly where can I find such texts and finally how can I use authentic texts in the classroom.
The Webinar will focus on these three questions with a number of practical tips and interesting classroom activities that can be used at different levels.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p8to4m3zoz4/ - Webinar 6:
The Intercultural Aspects of Language Training
The CEFR communicative approach with its emphasis on authentic everyday communication requires intercultural skills to be included in language training, but – especially at the lower competence levels – most language classes mostly work through a specified course book.
The aim is to present and discuss a number of practical activities that allow teachers to use their course book as a bridge for developing intercultural awareness.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p48ubynp8qg/
German
2015
Methodik des Fachsprachenunterrichts Deutsch
- Webinar 1:
Fachtexte – das effiziente Training des Hörverstehens
Die Fertigkeitsbeschreibungen des GERR strukturieren die Entwicklung des Hörverstehens. Wie kann Hörverstehen effektiv im Fachsprachenunterricht trainiert werden? Welche Übungsformen lassen sich hierzu gestalten? Das Webinar gibt eine entsprechende Anleitung und liefert einige Ideen.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p43itfc6mz1/
- Webinar 2:
Sprechen – Training der Sprachfertigkeit im Fachsprachenunterricht
Fachsprache – wann und wo wird sie gesprochen? Welche Übungsformen dienen zur Entwicklung der Sprachfertigkeit der Lernenden? Das Webinar gibt methodische Tipps zur Stimulierung des Sprechens für unterschiedliche berufliche Szenarien.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p58n4gngeee/
- Webinar 3:
Schreiben – Training und Auswertung
Der Fachsprachenunterricht ist geprägt von besonderen Textformen. Die Schreibaufgaben sollten sich direkt an den authentischen Anforderungen der Berufswelt orientieren. Szenarien basierte Inhalte helfen den Teilnehmer/innen, anschaulich zu üben. Das Webinar stellt passende Aufgaben vor und gibt methodische Unterstützung.
http://meet97027820.adobeconnect.com/p6drffs0g02/
