The Minimal Pair: Episode 004 Show Notes: The Minimal Pair  Title: Less is More Episode no: 004 Date recorded: 3/24/14 Topics in Language Learning: TESOL 2014 Top priorities Grammar Academic writing Classroom flipping Pronunciation  Listening Technology in the classroom Cultural/social issues How do we hope this translates to the classroom? What do we hope to gain? Stephanie: “I hope to…” “…have more dynamic sessions in grammar.” “…walk away with more reading strategies.” “…see practical uses of flipping the classroom.” Jean: “I hope to…” “…gain confidence as a grammar teacher.” “…find new ways to incorporate technology in the classroom.” “…give more effective feedback.” Sessions to see: Hear Me Now! Improving Academic Skills with Student Created Podcasts (Amy Roither) Thursday at 11:30 Using Twitter, Storytelling, and Screencasting Apps to Reimagine your Classroom (Nathan Soelberg, w/ Abby Porter) Saturday at 11:30 (TESOL in Focus) Becoming a U.S. Citizen: The Naturalization Process (Christine Pool, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, USA) [PAUSE] Methodology: Feedback Less is more (Quality over quantity) Students: write less, edit more (especially in grammar classes) Teachers: mark less, but give more explanation/strategies Rubrics How do we make them? How do we determine categories? Are they more for us or more for students? Do we share them with students? Feedback on free writes & less formal assignments Positive feedback vs. negative: finding a balance Grade grubbing [PAUSE] Adjunct Antics: Unions NPR, All Things Considered: “Part-time Professors Demand Higher Pay; Will Colleges Listen?” by Claudio Sanchez (aired on 2/3/14 at 4 pm) 76% of all college instructors are part-time Published poet w/ Master’s Degree has been an adjunct for 20 years; the most she’s ever made in a year? $21,000  One sold her plasma; another moon-lights in a deli Institutions avoid hiring full-time tenured professors because they believe the cost of education would go up between 30-40% and the public would not accept this Adjuncts average $25-$27,000 per year One adjunct figured she made about $8 an hour SEIU (Service Employees International Union) 22% of adjuncts (nationwide) are now in unions Inside Higher Ed. “Union Raises for Adjuncts” by Colleen Flaherty 7/26/13 “Kezar said research comparing the working conditions of unionized and non-unionized adjuncts shows that those with collective bargaining power have better salaries and benefits and are more likely to have paid office hours, opportunities for paid professional development and guaranteed participation in governance and other faculty domains.”  Read more: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/07/26/adjunct-union-contracts-ensure-real-gains-including-better-pay#ixzz2ww63ccXh  “Adjuncts with union representation also were more likely to have access to certain health and retirement benefits and had greater access to institutional support. For example, 18 percent of adjuncts on unionized campuses said they were paid for course cancellations, compared to 10 percent of their non-union peers. Fifteen percent of unionized campus adjuncts had paid office hours, compared to 4 percent of other adjuncts, and 20 percent union adjuncts said they had some kind of job security – something only 4 percent of their non-union counterparts reported enjoying.”  Read more: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/07/26/adjunct-union-contracts-ensure-real-gains-including-better-pay#ixzz2ww5ph9DW  SHOUT OUTS: Amy Roither and Nathan Soelberg and @NewbieCELTA TESOL COUNT DOWN: 2 days Keep it minimal!