CENTRO VENEZOLANO AMERICANO DEL ZULIA

CEVAZ ELT CONFERENCE

“ENLIGHTENING THE ELT PRACTICE”
AUGUST 27TH 2018
PROGRAM
MORNING SESSIONS
8:00-8:20 CONFERENCE CHECK-IN
8:20-8:30 AUDITORIUM OPENING REMARKS

TIME ROOM PRESENTER CONCURRENT WORKSHOPS

01 Zimry Ríos CATCH YOU ON THE “FLIPPED” SIDE
8:30-10:00 03 Yian Millán TEACHING KIDS: GOING BEYOND THE BOOK
05 Jesús Amado INTEGRATING CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS AND CULTURAL COMPETENCY IN ESOL
10:00-10:15 COFFEE BREAK
01 Valentina Díaz BLENDED LEARNING: ONLINE LESSONS + PERSONALIZED EDUCATION
10:15- 11:45 03 Carolina CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES FOR CHILDREN AND TEENS TEACHERS:
Bermúdez HOW TO SURVIVE!
05 Jesús Amado EDUCATION FOR VALUES: MORALS, ETHICS & CITIZENSHIP THROUGH ELT
11:45-1:30 LUNCH BREAK
AFTERNOON SESSIONS
01 Jesús Benavides IMPROVING LANGUAGE LEARNING THROUGH CULTURE.
03 Rafael Vivas TEACHING GRAMMAR COMMUNICATIVELY
1:30-2:4 5 Niss Gonzalez-
05 Maria Martinez- THE EFL APPROACH TO TEACHING HEARING IMPAIRED STUDENTS
Laura Núñez
2:45-3:00 COFFEE BREAK
3:00-4:20 AUDITORIUM Claudia Sánchez PLENARY SESSION:
American Spaces: Open Doors to American Culture
4:30-5:30 Rick Rosenberg PLENARY SESSION:
AUDITORIUM GAMING AND ACTIVATING THE EFL CLASSROOM: RESOURCES, COURSES, COMMUNITIES
5:30-5:45 CLOSING REMARKS/RAFFLES
CONCURRENT WORKSHOPS:

(MORNING SESSIONS)

CATCH YOU ON THE “FLIPPED” SIDE

The flipped classroom or inverted classroom approach is a strategy implemented in the learning of languages in which class time is used and
focused on language production and strengthening language abilities. This is a way of making the time in the classroom interactive, student
centered and engaging for all participants. The teacher becomes a facilitator/guide since the traditional lecture is not present in this type of
teaching. This presentation aims to promote the use of this teaching technique and have participants walk through a simulated class.

TEACHING KIDS: GOING BEYOND THE BOOK

Teaching kids can sometimes be hard, especially when you don’t know how to deal with them. The idea is to be able to control the classroom
without pressuring the group and having to raise the tone of your voice. In this workshop, attendees will learn new and interesting ways to get the
kids’ attention, activities to do with them and talk about if it’s good or not to play with them.

INTEGRATING CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS AND CULTURAL COMPETENCY IN TESOL

As one of the 21st century skills, critical thinking is a higher-level cognitive skill that teachers ought to look for in students, EFL learners are no
exception. In mastering L2, achieving cultural proficiency is the key. This workshop is designed to teach and promote cultural competency and
critical thinking skills for TESOL professionals. Through a series of experiential learning activities, participants will be able to integrate the teaching
of such skills into their daily practice, through the use of 2 frameworks, specially designed for integrating culture in an EFL setting.

BLENDED LEARNING: ONLINE LESSONS + PERSONALIZED EDUCATION

Blended learning is a formal education program in which a student learns through online lessons with some element of student control over time,
place, path and pace, with the main focus being that what’s happening online isn’t entirely disconnected from what’s happening in the classroom.
This program is not just about using technology for learning purposes, it’s about developing the students’ ability to learn on their own through
online lessons, empowering them with the skills, information and tools that they need to manage their own learning, where teachers act as
facilitators instead of lecturers, as interveners instead of explainers, and transitioning from teaching content to teaching skills and mindsets.
Blended learning also highlights the importance of providing personalized lessons and small group instruction. But how can we prepare students,
teachers and schools for this transition? How can we apply this when teaching English in a traditional classroom setting?
CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES FOR CHILDREN AND TEENS TEACHERS: HOW TO SURVIVE!
The purpose of this workshop is to provide the participants with useful strategies to handle their ESL or EFL classrooms more effectively, especially
when working with kids and teens.
We all know how hard and stressful it gets to teach children and teens sometimes, but believe me, you have what it takes to handle it!
Games, effective planning and resources are exactly what you need to succeed in your classroom so get ready to start!
By the end of this workshop, you will select the best strategies for your classroom and have fun while teaching.

EDUCATION FOR VALUES: MORALS, ETHICS & CITIZENSHIP IN ELT

Now more than ever, given the current state of events, it is important for teachers, even EFL instructors, to incorporate moral values into their
TESOL curriculum and lesson planning; thus becoming elements of change in contemporary society. Participants to this workshop will be presented
with key concepts and issues to reflect upon, and will be asked to consider the relevance of why and how to include values-enriched language
lessons into their teaching practice. The sample activities presented during this workshop, will help those who attend get a hands-on experience,
and the effects these have in encouraging and improving their students’ critical thinking and language skills.

(AFTERNOON SESSIONS)

IMPROVING LANGUAGE LEARNING THROUGH CULTURE.

In this presentation, the importance of teaching culture, alongside language teaching, will be stated; starting with a wider definition than the one
we know of Culture and escalating to why and how culture and language are bound together. An example, proving and stating the reality of the
improvement shown by combining culture and language together, will be given and finally the practices, techniques, or approaches used to achieve
this, will be shown and explained.

TEACHING GRAMMAR COMMUNICATIVELY

In this workshop participants will explore how to adapt grammar instruction to meet their students’ needs. They will also focus on integrating
grammar instruction with teaching language skills, varying grammar instruction in their classes, and using available technology effectively to
enhance grammar learning inside and outside the classroom. Participants will discuss different challenges their learners may have with learning
grammar, and discover how they can help learners use grammar to improve fluency and accuracy.
THE EFL APPROACH TO TEACHING HEARING IMPAIRED STUDENTS
DHH students from non-English-speaking countries, such as Venezuela, like their hearing peers, often have to learn English as a foreign language
in order to communicate in the field of education, work, and entertainment. This quest implies the major challenge of language fluency, and DHH
individuals often have problems using their national spoken/written languages, foreign language learning creates a new challenge for both deaf
students and their teachers. This learning process is unique in two ways: (1) lack of hearing is, first of all, a language problem as it represents a
wide range of opportunities; (2) teaching languages differs from teaching other subjects. These two facts mean that the teaching and learning of
foreign languages to DHH individuals is a specific and new domain that has to be recognized, researched and experienced.

PLENARY SESSIONS:

AMERICAN SPACES: OPEN DOORS TO THE AMERICAN CULTURE

American Spaces showcase American culture and values, promote English language learning, encourage study in the United States, and foster
goodwill and mutual understanding between the United States and host countries communities. Join this plenary and find out what the real essence
of these spaces is, and discover what makes each one of them special when it comes to exploring American culture at its best... from abroad.

GAMING AND ACTIVATING THE EFL CLASSROOM: RESOURCES, COURSES, COMMUNITIES

The presenter will illustrate Activation and Gamification techniques with a variety of readily available and downloadable free materials including
Edugraphics, audio books, and a video game, Trace Effects (available at [Link]). Information will also be shared about how to
join online MOOCs, courses, and webinars that provide opportunities for professional development through participation in engaging, interactive
communities of practice with other educators from around the world.

BIOGRAPHIES:

ZIMRY RIOS
Mr. Rios holds a B.A. in Mass Communication and a Master’s degree in Spanish Linguistics and Literature. He has had 14 years of experience
teaching English and Spanish both in Venezuela and in the USA. He has been approved by the Texas Education Agency (TEA) in bilingual education
and Spanish. He works as EFL teacher at CEVAZ.
YIAN MILLAN
Mr. Millan is an Electronic Engineering student and has been teaching at CEVAZ for more than 2 years, mainly working with the Giant Steps
outsourcing program, teaching English in private schools. He has been teaching kids for more than a year; during this time he has gained experience
in attracting and keeping young learners’ attention through dynamic and fun activities which keep students motivated. He also has had experience
teaching adults, yet he confesses to have always loved teaching kids and he helps and encourages others to do so.

JESUS R. AMADO
Mr. Amado received a BARCH from the University of Miami in 1987 and a MARCH from Yale University in 1991. He has successfully completed
several EFL Teacher Trainer on-line courses through the University of Oregon American English Institute, sponsored by the U.S. Department of
State, and with UC Berkeley, from 2014-2015. His interest in American culture led him to enroll in the Smithsonian Institute’s “Objects that Define
America” course in early 2017. He recently completed a Teacher Trainer and ESP Curriculum Design program in Costa Rica in 2017, with a
scholarship from the US Embassy. Mr. Amado successfully completed the “Integrating Critical Thinking Skills through the Exploration of Culture in
an EFL Setting” course in 2018 as part of the American English E-teacher Program. With nearly 6 years of experience teaching English to children,
teens and adults, he is the former Extracurricular Coordinator and the current Academic Director at CEVAZ. He is also VenTESOL ZULIA State
representative.

VALENTINA DÍAZ
Ms. Diaz is an electrical engineering student and passionate about learning languages. She learned English at a very young age and later proceeded
to study Portuguese and German. She has been teaching English to kids, teenagers and adults for two years, working at institutions such as CEVAZ
and Lead Academy.

CAROLINA BERMÚDEZ
Mrs. Bermudez was part of the Academic Coordinator staff at CEVAZ for six years. She has a diploma in Merchandising and a degree in Mass
Communication from LUZ. She has been teaching EFL since 2000. She has wide experience teaching children, teenagers and adults. She successfully
completed a TEFL certification program accredited by both CEVAZ and Hunter College of The City University of New York. She completed an online
ELT Writing course for English Teachers sponsored by the Regional English Language Office of the State Department of the United States in 2012.
Additionally, she also completed a Training Teachers and Curriculum Design Program in Costa Rica in 2017; she was in charge of the teachers
training program at CEVAZ from 2016 until May 2018. She also tutors students who need to take SAT & TOEFL. She is currently focused on training
teachers both in Maracaibo and the rest of the country.
JESUS BENAVIDES
Mr. Benavides is 20 years old yet he has known English half of his life. He started studying English when he was around 8 years old and kept on
studying it for 8 years at Centro Electrónico de Idiomas. He’s a journalism student and an actor and he studies French as well. Never in his life did
he expect to become a “researcher” of sorts, but when he realized that the best way to learn a language was through culture, he knew he had to
do something so that this could be done by every teacher interested in improving their students’ learning.

NISS GONZÁLEZ
Ms. Gonzalez has been an ESL instructor at CEVAZ Cabimas, since May 2017. She is currently taking the 5th semester of Modern Languages
Education at La Universidad Del Zulia. She received her Certification of the Communicative English Intensive Course at CEVAZ in February 2016.

MARÍA VIRGINIA MARTÍNEZ

Ms. Martinez is currently an ESL instructor at CEVAZ Cabimas, since July 2017. She worked at the Saturday courses of the extension of the
Department of Modern Languages of La Universidad Del Zulia as an ESL instructor from September 2016 through June 2017. She is currently taking
the last semester of Modern Languages Education at La Universidad Del Zulia. She received her Certification of the Communicative English Intensive
Course at CEVAZ in December 2015.

LAURA NÚÑEZ FERNÁNDEZ

Mrs. Núñez is an experienced language (ESL/EFL/Spanish/Literature) teacher graduated from LUZ. She holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Education
and is currently working towards a second degree in Special Education, with a particular focus on speech and hearing impairments. She has also
worked as a speech therapist at a school for Deaf and Hard of Hearing students in Cabimas. Mrs. Núñez participated in the International Visitor
leadership program in 2016 sponsored by the U.S. Embassy. She has a TESOL certificate from the University of Arizona and has successfully
completed on-line courses from the University of Oregon on ELT. She recently completed a course on ESP Curriculum Design and teacher training
in Centro Espiral Maná, in Costa Rica.

CLAUDIA SANCHEZ
Ms. Sanchez is the EducationUSA Adviser and Coordinator of the EducationUSA Advising Center at Centro Venezolano Americano del Zulia (CEVAZ),
in Maracaibo, Venezuela. She is a journalist. She holds a Master of Business Management from Universidad Privada Dr. Rafael Belloso Chacin, and
a graduate certificate in radio broadcasting from Universidad del Zulia. Ms. Sanchez is a U.S. Department of State International Visitor Leadership
Program alumna.
Before joining the educational advising field, Ms. Sanchez worked as the corporative program coordinator at CEVAZ, where she also taught English
for over 10 years. In addition to this, she was a reporter for a major local newspaper, and she performed as a customer service agent for an
American airline.

INTERNATIONAL GUEST SPEAKER:

RICK ROSENBERG
Mr. Rosenberg is the Regional English Language Officer (RELO) based in Panama, covering Colombia, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Venezuela, the
Dominican Republic, Haiti, and the Caribbean. Rosenberg was previously The RELO posted in Brazil, the Materials Branch Chief for the Office of
English Language Programs in D.C., and was the RELO covering Jordan, Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Israel, the West Bank and Gaza. Rosenberg is widely
known as the “Papa” of the TRACE EFFECTS language learning 3D video game. As Materials Chief, Rick directed teams of writer/editors who
published extensive online, print, and mobile content and developed the American English portal for EFL educators and learners worldwide
([Link]). Rick was a Fulbright scholar in both Mostar and Nicksic, (former) Yugoslavia, worked at the Associacao Alumni BNC in
Sao Paulo, and has taught, done teacher training, and administered language programs in many other countries. Rick’s professional areas of interest
include materials development, English for specific purposes, computer aided language learning, and peace education.