Background to the British Council Seminar Series

Background to the British Council Seminar Series

Since 2010, the British Council Seminar Series talks and workshops, on a wide range of innovative English language teaching (ELT) topics, have supported the continuing professional development of over 400,000 ELT professionals, from 195 countries worldwide.We are now into our sixthseason and continue to provide a place for debate on current developments and to share innovative practice and methodology in English language teaching and learning.

Since 2012, we have increased participation through interactive live-streamed events, online video and teacher training DVDs. In 2015 – 16, we plan to continue to engage UK and global audiencesin events broadcast live from locations around the UK, including new locations.

Find out more about the British Council Seminar Seriesthrough our bank of films from over 100 past seminars, on EnglishAgenda and TeachingEnglish – and

Become a speaker in the British Council Seminar Series 2015 – 16

We are seeking seminar proposals from teachers, trainers, writers and researchers with a wide range of experience and expertise and from diverse backgrounds, to provide new learning, understanding, skills, or inspiring ideas for English language teaching professionals. As well as proposals from specialists, we would like to hear from practising teachers with innovative techniques from the classroom for building learners’ language proficiency. We invite you to put forward your proposal.

Becoming a speaker can have a positive impact on your career. Past speakers have reported that the opportunity to reach global audiences, to network within the ELT sector and to enhance their profile has resulted in further speaker engagements and opportunities in many countries around the world.

Past contributors have described the experience as ‘thorough’, ‘engaging’ and ‘worthwhile’. They felt confident in the support provided by British Council staff and felt that events were organised to a very high standard.

What makes a good seminar?

The British Council Seminar Series keeps high quality English language teaching at its heart.As a result, 87% of participants said they had taken away new learning in, or understanding, of English language teaching, while 81% said they would be able to introduce new ideas to the classroom, or to change something about the way they teach.

We are grateful to the English language teachers who have participated in past seminars and provided extensive feedback.This invaluable input provides the criteria for acceptance of proposals.Whether your background is in teaching, training, research, or other areas of ELT, when thinking about your proposal please keep in mind the three key features that make up a successful British Council seminar:

Is it practical? Can teachers take away practical activities or tips to take back into the classroom?

Will it inspire? Will my seminar create a thought-provoking discussion?

Can it have international relevance? Is it useful for English language teaching professionals in international contexts? Will it engage those attending in person in the UK and also those participating live around the world?

For ideas of topics, please find a list of priority areas on page 11 of this proposal document.

How do I put forward my proposal?

We have developed the following proposal form attached (pages 3 – 5) and guidance (pages 6 – 11) to capture your proposal. Please take some time to read the guidance, which will provide further detail to help you develop your proposal on: duration, audience, content and format. Information about location, travel and payment is also included.

Please put forward yourseminar proposal in no more than 250 words. It may also help with selection to identify the objectives for your session and intended outcomes for participants.

There are also a number of questions about the logistics around each seminar. We ask that you also complete these as fully as possible. (Your responses will not affect selection.)

Please email your completed proposal form to , no later than Sunday 15 March.

This year, in the case of very exceptional proposals, we may be able to provide travel expenses for a small number travelling from outside the UK. We welcome proposals from a wide range of backgrounds.

If you are not selected to deliver a seminar, there may be additional opportunities to become involved, such as in delivering awebinar, or producing complementary content (blog posts, articles, video, or teaching and learning materials).

Please refer to the guidance notes for full information. If you have any further questions, please contact or .

Please email your completed proposal form to
by Sunday 15 March 2015
Presenter contact details and proposal / *Please complete in full
* Name
* Email
*Mobile
Seminar title(e.g. ‘How to teach …’)
Presentation outline (approximately 250 words) (please refer to the guidancenotes)
Objectives for
your session
Intended outcomes
for participants
Who is/are the intended audience/s for your presentation/workshop?

Session objectives and intended outcomes

Requirements for your session

Data projector and screen / Yes / No
Loan of a British Council laptop (Windows 7 PC) / Yes / No
Use of a presentation – PowerPoint, Keynote, Prezi, etc.
Please note we will need to receive your final presentation 24 hours in advance / PowerPoint / Other (please specify below)
Use of WiFi for showing online resources / Yes / No
Playing audio files / Yes / No
Playing video / Yes / No
Will your session involve audience interaction (online and face-to-face)? / Yes / No
Sharing materials in advance, e.g. hand-outs, links to online resources
Required by an agreeddeadline / Yes / No
Sharing content during, or after the session (e.g. hand-outs) / Yes / No
Additional requirements, e.g. audio tape player, whiteboard, flipchart/pens, etc. (please state):
Would you be interested in creating any extra content related to your proposal?
(Please tick all those you would be interested in creating.)
Blog post / Webinar
Podcast / Lesson plan
Social media debate / Article
DVD / Other
Other (please state):

Your name and title (as you wish it to appear on film)

Name and title (e.g. ‘John Smith, ELT teacher and writer’)

Examples of past sessions

If you have examples (video or audio recordings, or resources) demonstrating engaging sessions you have given in the past, be it lessons or past talks or workshops, please provide a link here. (Please note that proposals without available examples will be given equal consideration.)

Please provide a link/s to the example/s

Twitter

We promote the Seminar Series using Twitter @BCseminars. If you use Twitter as part of your work, please let us know so we can stay connected. / @

If successful, would you have any preference for the date of a seminar in 2015 – 16?

If for any reason you cannot take part in a certain month please mark with an ‘N’.

Apr / May / Jun / Jul / Aug / Sep / Oct / Nov / Dec / Jan / Feb / Mar

Would you have a preference for the location of your seminar?

Usual place of residence (please state) / UK region / London / No preference

Access requirements

Do you have any special access requirements? / Yes / No

Payment

Have you worked with the British Council before? / Yes / No
If you have worked with us in the past you should have a unique ID number for payments known as a vendor number. A vendor number is usually six or seven digits long, i.e. 1234567. / Vendor number (if known)

Signature

Please provide your signature to confirm that you have read and agree with the notes.

Signed by: / Date:
/ Notes to help you complete your proposal
Lixian Jin & Martin Cortazzi– Cultures of learning: What can we learn from international students? British Council Spring Gardens, London
Planning your proposal
Duration: 20 to 50 minutes (approximately) + extra for Q&A
When preparing your proposal, it will help to keep in mind that your session may be 20 – 50 minutes in duration. (If a 20 minute session seems short, consider that TED talks can convey very complex ideas in just 18 minutes or less!) You may put forward your proposal for a 20, 30 or 50 minute session, taking into consideration that you may be asked to extend or condense the session if successful.
The exact length of a session will be determined by the seminar programme. Related topics may become part of a seminar with single, dual, or multiple sessions. Please see the sample programmes below.
A Q&A session will be added to the programme in addition to the 20 – 50 minutes for your session. Where there are multiple sessions, you may be asked to join a Q&A, or a panel discussion with another speaker, or speakers. (We also positively encourage audience interaction within your session.)
Sample programmes
Single seminar (approx.)
1830 – 1900 / Welcome reception
1900 – 1910 / Welcome address
1910 – 2000 / Single session
2000 – 2010 / Q&A
2010 – 2030 / Networking reception
/ Dual seminar (approx.)
1800 – 1830 / Welcome reception
1830 – 1840 / Welcome address
1840 – 1910 / Session A
1910 – 1940 / Session B
1940 – 2000 / Q&A
2000 – 2030 / Networking reception
Multiple seminar (approx.)
1800 – 1815 / Welcome reception
1815 – 1825 / Welcome address
1825 – 1845 / Session A
1845 – 1905 / Session B
1905 – 1925 / Session C
1925 – 2000 / Panel discussion
2000 – 2030 / Networking reception
The audience: English language teaching professionals in the UK and around the world
The British Council Seminar Seriesis intended for English language teaching professionals in the UK and globally. All seminars are now streamed live online and short films created to increase participation and access to continuing professional development around the world. Each seminar may attract participants from 80+ countries.
Participants have a wide range of roles and experience in ELT (from pre-service and novice, to 10+ years) from a variety of backgrounds and sectors (from state schools, private language schools and higher education; from EFL and ESOL, to EAP, ESP,CLIL and EAL).
Audience size for seminars can vary. Depending upon location and capacity, the number of participants in person can range from 30 to 90. The size of the audience participating live online can be from 100 to 800.
Please state for which audience/s your session may be most suitable on the proposal form.
Content: Practical, inspiring and international
Whether your background is in teaching, training, writing, research, or other areas of ELT, when first thinking about your proposal, it may assist to keep in mind the three key features that make up a successful British Council seminar.

• Is it practical?Willparticipants take away practical knowledge, activities or tips totake back into the classroom?
• Will it inspire? Will my seminar create thought-provoking discussion, leading to increased or improved understanding?
• Could it have international relevance? Will it be useful for English language teaching professionals in international contexts? Will it engage those attending in person in the UK and those participating live around the world?

Where possible, we would like to receive session objectives and intended outcomes along with your proposal.There is an optional section on page 3 the proposal form to capture this.
For topic ideas, please look at the priority areas on page 11. These areas are intended as a guide and are by no means exhaustive. We are especially keen to hear of new and innovative practice and methodology which is not included.
Content: Presentation and hand-outs
We encourage the use of presentations to convey your ideas to the audience in person and online. (A presentation can be especially beneficial for those participating online.) It can also help you to identify clearly defined sections to your session, which can also be helpful in editing footage from your seminar. A British Council branded template will be shared with those selected.
Please feel free to make use of a variety of different content to bring your objectives to life, including ideas, information, data, illustrations, diagrams, charts, facts, figures, statistics, images, video, audio, animations, etc.
We will ensure your seminar runs smoothly, by meeting technical requirements for your presentation, e.g. for showing or demonstrating online resources, playing video or audio, etc.
You may wish to share materials related to your session in advance, during, or after the seminar in the form of a hand-out. As an example, this may include session notes, a short ‘before you attend’ activity, activities for real-life practice to follow the seminar, top tips, resources for staffroom discussion, links to further reading, a short biography, etc. We ask that materials are provided in a hand-out (of no more than two sides) to be shared electronically with participants. Any resources for face-to-face attendees will also need to be shared with online participants.
Please indicate your requirements on page 4 of the proposal form. Presentations, links to online resources, audio and video files, and hand-outs will be required by agreed dates.
Content: Audience participation
Audience participation is positively encouraged and should consider involvement of those participating both in person and live online. Additional microphones and audio equipment will be arranged for presentations in which participation is key.
Technical requirements are put in place for each seminar, to facilitate the involvement of the face-to-face and online audience, via social media. A chair and moderator are available at each seminar to manage involvement of both face-to-face and online participants. This makes each seminar a truly international event.
Content: Intellectual Property and copyrighted materials
Due to Intellectual Property Rights in the UK and internationally, we musttake extra care to ensure the presentations within the Seminar Series properly attribute the creators of work where this is due. (As we will, in turn, properly attribute your work.)
Upon selection, if you plan to make use of material which does not belong to you (i.e. bodies of text, images, video, or music) we expect that you will take responsibility for requesting permission to use any copyrighted material from its creator and, as far as possible, ensure that permission is in place in advance of the date of your seminar.
Content: Intercultural communication and valuing diversity
Participants in person and online at each seminar range, come on average, from 80 countries worldwide. Through sharing knowledge and creating forums for dialogue across borders on English language teaching, the British Council Seminar Series contributes to the organisation’s main objective of building meaningful, enduring and respectful relationships across different cultures.
All presenters should check their content for jargon or acronyms. In addition, we suggest that field-specific or UK-centric terms essential to your presentation are briefly explained, or exemplified – although never dumbed down! For example, ‘the Equality Act is a key piece of UK law to prevent discrimination of people within different groups and with diverse identities’.
As the UK’s principal cultural relations organisation the British Council is strongly committed to equality, inclusion and valuing diversity.A good example of a seminar covering this is Exploring equality and diversity in the ESOL classroom.
Please find further information on our website about the British Council’s approach to equality, diversity and inclusion.
Content to complement seminars
We also commission extra content around certain seminars. This can include:

• Blog posts or articles on TeachingEnglish, EnglishAgenda, or British Council Voices
• Webinars on TeachingEnglish or EnglishAgenda
• Creating extra teacher training or classroom materials
• Extra interviews or pieces to camera for DVDs or podcasts

There may also be the opportunity to manage the production of a DVD or podcast and also to moderate a social media chat, or blog, before or after live-streamed seminars.
Please note that separate fees are payable for extra resources. Please indicate your interest in the relevant section on page 4.
Logistics
Seminars live online and on-demand
All seminars are carefully planned and managed to a very high standard, to enable presenters and participants online and face-to-face to get the most out of the seminar. If selected, our experienced team will provide support and guidance from start to finish.
Following the seminar, films of your session will be available to watch on demand, both as a full versions and in shorter, edited clips. In addition, we also produce teacher training DVDs using content from the seminars.
Therefore, by submitting a proposal to take part in the British Council Seminar Series, you agree to the live-streaming and filmingof your seminar and to the recordings to be used in a variety of ways, including the above.
You can see some of the ways in which the seminars are made available on our websites:

• EnglishAgenda –
• TeachingEnglish websites –
• British Council Seminar Series YouTube channel –
• British Council Seminar Series teacher development materials –

Seminars around the UK
The British Council Seminar Series 2015 – 16 is set to take place in cities and towns around the UK, including (but not exclusive to): Cardiff, Derry-Londonderry, Glasgow, Hull, London and Newcastle. Each seminar will also be streamed live online, to include virtual participants from the UK and around the world.
We use a variety of suitable, accessible venues in locations around the UK,including our head office in London (Spring Gardens).
Seminars usually take place mid-week, in the evening (approximately 1800 to 2030). However, times may vary to include afternoon sessions (approximately 1200 to 1800) to permit virtual participants to attend across time zones.
Travel and accommodation aroundthe UK /
Hilary NesiThe essay and beyond: writing for different purposes in British universities, Liverpool
When selecting proposals we will endeavour to match successful presenters with an appropriate location. Please use the section of page 5 to indicate your usual place of residence and general preference for the location.
Depending upon the usual place of residence of presenters certain travel expenses will be reimbursed, such as tickets for train travel, and overnight meal expenses. If driving, a specific sum is redeemable by mileage. Presenters selected should keep tickets and receipts as proof of purchase and send them with your invoice (or as scanned copies).
Upon selection, you will be asked to make your own travel arrangements. (As an exception, for those with low incomes, it may be possible that we can assist with booking travel.) If travel is more than 2 hours, overnight accommodation may be arranged and paid for you.

Proposals from those outside the UK