June 23, 2008
The international conference on "Language Issues in English-medium Universities: A Global Concern" took place at the University of Hong Kong from June 18 to 20, 2008. 150 presentations, including plenaries, featured speeches, colloquia and six parallel strands of paper presentations addressed potential benefits and practical challenges of this expanding type of instruction from different angles and backgrounds. Presenters discussed previous developments, current state of affairs and future prospects of English as the medium of instruction from the points of view of language policy and planning, globalization and market demands, pedagogy and learner needs. ELC Assistant Director Claudia Kunschak shared STU’s successful model of gradual progression to English content courses currently in place at the Colleges of Business, Law and Journalism. A diverse audience including participants from Europe, the US, South Africa, the Arab peninsula as well as Hong Kong, Guangdong and other regions of China were involved in a lively exchange beyond the presentation proper. This timely event once again proves the direction STU has chosen for its programs right and bodes well for future collaboration among similar institutions in Guangdong, China and overseas. ELC is assuming an active role in order to promote this development and provide English-medium instruction at STU with the necessary support to optimize student learning.
May 30, 2008
By Kyle McIntosh, ELC Faculty
On Wednesday, May 28, we concluded the ELC Spring 2008 Film Series ("Advocacy in Action") with the 2006 adventure-thriller "Blood Diamond," starring Leonardo DiCaprio. While many of the 40+ students in attendance may have hoped to see the "Titanic" star in another romantic role, this violent, yet socially- conscious, film marked a radical departure for DiCaprio, who plays a white South African mercenary helping a black fisherman reunite with his family in exchange for a rare pink diamond. When it was first released, the film helped raise public awareness about the use of illegally-traded diamonds to fund civil wars in Africa. Judging from the shocked response of the audience during the viewing and the discussion that followed, it is continuing to have a notable impact.
May 13, 2008
Beneficiary of the English Enhancement Program
--My Reflection on the Thirteenth “21st Century Lenovo Cup” National English Speaking Competition
By Jamin Li (Li Zhimin), Senior Year Student, Electrical Engineering Major
"Li Zhimin, from Shantou University!" When the hosts were announcing the first prize winners, I heard my name. Amid the exclamation from all the ELC teachers who came to Beijing to cheer for me and the applause from the whole audience, I walked up to the stage, full of excitement. When I found out that I placed fourth among all the contestants, I was even more thrilled, and, at the same time, pleasantly relieved— my hard work had paid off.
May 12, 2008
By Kyle McIntosh, ELC Faculty
About 30 students showed up to ACC 3 this Sunday evening to kick off the ELC’s 2008 Spring Film Series. The premiere feature was Philadelphia, a sad and poignant tale about one man’s battle with HIV/AIDS and the discrimination he suffers as a result of this fatal disease. The audience was visibly moved by the layered plot and believable performances, especially Tom Hanks’ Oscar-winning portrayal of Andrew Beckett, a successful lawyer who loses his job after contracting the virus. Perhaps due to the somber tone of the film, the question- and-answer session took a little longer than expected to get started, but once it did, students contributed some interesting observations about the relationships of characters, the meaning of specific scenes, and the importance of certain technical aspects (color, sound) in coaxing a desired emotional response from the audience.
We look forward to even more stimulating conversation on Wednesday when we will view Erin Brockovich, the second film in the series.
May 12, 2008
By Claudia Kunschak, ELC Assistant Director
The jointly organized 25th Conference of English Teaching and English Learning and 2008 International Conference on English Instruction and Assessment was held at National Chung Cheng University from May 3-4, 2008 under the theme of "Change from Within, Change in Between". Plenary speakers Patricia Duff from Canada, Oryang Kwon from Korea, and Amy M. B. Tsui from Hong Kong explored this issue from the point of view of new directions in classroom discourse research, changing teacher roles and their impact on student learning, and resistance to change and ways to overcome it. Over 100 presenters then illustrated the conference theme with papers focusing heavily on computer assisted language learning, skill development in writing, and assessment. Claudia Kunschak presented her paper on Student-teacher Email Interactions: A Teachable Moment? which was not only well-attended but also vividly discussed. It also gave the audience the chance to find out about Shantou University and the English Language Center. Beyond the highly stimulating exchange of expertise among scholars, the conference provided practical applications to take home and integrate into the ELC program in order to implement changes effectively and sustainably.
May 12, 2008
By Gabriel Fang, ELC Faculty
The conference, entitled “World Englishes and Second Language Teaching and Learning”, organised by the Linguistic Society of the Philippines, was held from 28-30th April, at the Thomas Aquinas Research Complex (TARC), University of Santo Tomas, España, Manila.
Claudia Kunschak and Fan Fang presented their paper entitled Intelligibility, acceptability, target-likeness: Teacher vs. student perspectives on the teaching of pronunciation within an EIL framework on the second day of the conference and received a series of positive responses and feedback. The presenters first shared the development and success of ELC and went on to discuss their findings on students' and teachers’ perspectives on teaching pronunciation based on the big picture of 'World Englishes'.
Attending this conference has been an enriching experience for ELC faculty, not only for their research and teaching English, but also to seek future professional development.
April 28, 2008
By Philippe Bierny, ELC Faculty
The ELC Faculty Lecture Series came to a close tonight with a presentation by Robyn Wall, Ada Wang and Alan Fenwick. They presented stories and photographs of their studies, their lives, and even their relationships in countries far from their homes, as well as some advice on how to make the most if the students ever found themselves with a similar opportunity. Most of all, they encouraged everyone to keep an open mind and show interest in people of all regions and cultures.
April 24, 2008
By Philippe Bierny, ELC Faculty
In this week's Faculty Lecture Series three ELC teachers, Kristin Helland, Claudia Kunschak and Rita Zheng, commemorated International Earth Day by describing the history of environmentalism in the US, Europe and China and encouraging students not only to talk about it but to take responsibility for their own impact on the environment and DO something! You can start small and save trees by carrying your own chopsticks to eat in the canteen or cut down on trash by bringing cloth bags when you go shopping and avoiding using plastic bags. Shut down your computer at night to save electricity and turn off the water while you brush your teeth. If you're more ambitious, you can even join one of the environmental groups on campus and participate in campus cleanups or recycling drives. Love the environment around you and spread the word!
Don't miss the next Lecture this Sunday (April 27th) from 7:30-9:30pm in Science Hall. Robyn Wall, Ada Wang and Alan Fenwick will regale you with exciting stories and beautiful pictures of their experiences living in countries away from home all over the world.
April 18, 2008
April 14, 2008 witnessed a successful event in the field of language testing and assessment marking the 7th 21st Century International English Language Teaching Forum co-organized by China Daily/21st Century Newspaper, Shantou University, TESOL, Inc, and University of Arizona. Professor Jun Liu, a past TESOL President and Executive Director of the English Language Center chaired the forum.
The morning session highlighted four keynote speeches by scholars and researchers from Educational Testing Service in US, Cambridge ESOL in UK, and BBC Learning in UK, and TBEST Inc. in China. The afternoon session started with an interactive panel discussion interacting with the audience on a number of pertinent issues related to test design and assessment of English speaking around the world followed by a featured speech on trans-cultural communicative competence and information exchange sessions. A fully packed agenda with a well-paced rhythm engaged more than 200 participants from more than 50 universities and middle schools in China in a resourceful intake that represented the highest level of professional fulfillment.
Professor Liu, the first keynoter of the day, passionately introduced an innovative on-line Task-Based English Speaking Test, TBEST, from its theoretical justification to its scientific design, from the selected task types to their assessment scheme. It gave the audience a renewed perspective of an emerging large-scale test developed over the years of hard work through numerous pilot studies with the joint efforts of a team consisting of its content designers in ELC led by Professor Liu, and technology developers in MindWorks. It received captured attention from the audience, and glowing recognition by ETS, Cambridge ESOL, and BBC Learning colleagues on the panel.
All ELC teachers at present experienced yet another great event of the year building upon 5 consecutive international symposia held at Shantou University. The significance of co-hosting an international forum in Beijing is far-reaching as it will transpire into our ELC teachers’ improved teaching practice and strengthen their belief in the ELC mission – Enhancing STU students’ communicative competences in order to compete in the international arena.
April 18, 2008
Sunday, April 13th, 2008 once again placed Shantou University squarely on the map of higher education and English language teaching in China. The 13th 21st Century Lenovo Cup National English Speaking Competition, which was held in Beijing that day, saw STU senior Li Zhimin, Jamin, sail through the semi-finals and finals with flying colors, leaving behind all other contestants except for one participant each from Beijing Foreign Studies University, Tsinghua University and Ningbo University. After a several-month-long selection process via regional contests, drawing over 10.000 hopeful participants, 63 speakers qualified to represent their schools in the Beijing event. The semi-finals in turn reduced this number further to the best 26 speakers countrywide, who yesterday competed for the honor of gaining the top award. These 26 outstanding young people won the audience's hearts, delighting listeners with thoughtful speeches, impeccable English language skills and a desire to show their best. Measuring himself against China's best-trained English language wizards, Jamin not only delivered a powerful speech on the challenges and opportunities of globalization, but left a deep impression on everybody due to his eloquence, poise and winning smile. Coming out number one among the first prize winners, Jamin achieved the highest honor in STU's history of participating in this renowned contest; he was rewarded with a study abroad opportunity in Australia and took away an unforgettable memory. We are proud to have him as our student and wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors. Our thanks go to Executive Director Dr Liu for organizing this inspiring event, the Li Ka Shing foundation for sponsoring the participation of the entire ELC, and Jamin's team of indefatigable tutors and supporters for contributing to this big success.
April 9, 2008
By Philippe Bierny, ELC Faculty
In the second lecture of the 2008 Faculty Lecture Series this week, in front of a crowded hall, Gabriel Fang and Mingming Yuan provided a comprehensive explanation of World Englishes as well as some surprising and amusing stories about the Chinese version, Chinglish. Gabriel introduced the topic with a brief history of English and how it became the global language that it is today. He continued to explain the differences between Standard English and other "Englishes" spoken in countries around the world. Mingming made this huge issue more personal for students by turning the discussion to what they knew: Chinglish! The audience was amused at some of her examples that they all knew and loved, and surprised at some revelations that they never expected.
For more interesting perspectives from ELC teachers, join Claudia Kunschak, Kristin Helland, and Rita Zheng on Earthday (Tuesday, April 22) in Science Hall, to hear about Environmentalism around the world and how YOU can help!
April 3, 2008
By Philippe Bierny, ELC Faculty
The 2008 ELC Faculty Lecture Series opened this week with a discussion about Passover and Easter, two Western religious holidays that take place this time of year. Teachers Ora Karee and Beth Rathe spoke to a crowd of students and faculty in Science Hall about the histories, meanings and evolving traditions of these two celebrations, including a practical demonstration of the joys of Easter Egg hunting! The audience also made itself heard, asking the two speakers dozens of questions, from the lighthearted to the profound.
Join Gabriel Fang and Mingming Yuan next week, on Wednesday, April 9th from 7-9pm in Science Hall for the next installment! They will be talking about English around the world, how it is changing as a world language, and why it matters.
Feburary 28, 2008
By Claudia Kunschak, ELC Assistant Director
From January 23-28, 2008, the English Language Center of Shantou University, under the guidance of Executive Director Dr. Jun Liu and with the generous support of the Li Ka Shing Foundation, undertook its to date most ambitious and most rewarding professional development effort. The entire faculty and staff traveled to Thailand to participate in the annual ThaiTESOL conference, one of the most prestigious events in English language teaching in the South-East Asian region. Shantou University was not only represented by 40+ teachers and researchers but contributed to the program of the conference with a plenary delivered by Dr Liu, eight academic papers presented by ELC faculty, a colloquium on changes in policy and practice and a much acclaimed Tai Ji performance and English teacher skit as part of the reception entertainment. Shantou University and the English Language Center were not only the most numerous delegation, but represented a model of professional collaboration, intercultural exchange and cutting-edge methodology that made an impact on attendees and organizers alike. This unique opportunity has allowed Shantou University to expand its already outstanding reputation in the South-East Asian English education community while contributing to program success through professional development, personal growth and team spirit for every member of its English Language Center.
Feburary 25, 2008
By Bangkok Post Tuesday February 12, 2008
Thailand hosts an international conference where teachers of English revise and refine their methods of teaching English as a second language.
ELC faculty attended the conference. Full story...
December 11, 2007
By Philippe Bierny, ELC Faculty
The Final of English Festival 2007 began on Friday, November 30th, with the Opening Ceremony sponsored by ELC’s Creative Expressions Club. First, STU Vice-President Dr. Gu Peihua and ELC Director Dr. Jun Liu thanked all those involved and gave some very practical and inspirational advice to the audience about their own English learning, followed by a performance by Shantou University’s most famous recent English success story, Lucky Li. The second half of the evening was a series of performances highlighting the theme of this year’s Festival, “Diversity in a Global Village.” The keystone of the evening’s festivities was “Shirley’s Engagement,” a short drama written, directed, produced and performed by STU students, which kept the audience smiling and laughing. Closing the night was a series of song and dance performances from around the world featuring gospel, country and rock music, and hip-hop, salsa, and ethnic Chinese dances.
On Saturday, five Shantou University students and three students from Shanghai’s China’s East Normal University, Hong Kong Baptist University and Thailand’s Chulalongkorn University presented prepared and impromptu speeches and answered questions in the Final of the Intercollegiate Speech Contest. All the contestants gave impressive performances, but the judges finally awarded two 3rd Place prizes to Shantou University’s Rexy Ke and Shanghai’s Faith Yin. 2nd Place went to Hong Kong’s Aggie Ng and 1st Prize went to Thailand’s impressively fluent Chutinan Chutima.
The last and most popular of the weekend’s events was Sunday’s Singing Contest. Eight more contestants each sang two songs, from rock to Broadway musicals. After two exciting hours the judges came back with the results. STU students took three of the four prizes, with Lena Liu and Alice Zhao coming in 3rd and April Zhai claiming the first-ever 2nd Prize in English Festival for an STU student. 1st Prize was taken by Thailand’s Natchapol Sirisawad.
December 7, 2007
On Sunday morning, November 18, 32 students at Shantou University took up the challenge to “Think global, act local.”
Putting their ideals and hopes for a cleaner tomorrow into practice, the students grabbed rakes, shovels and other implements provided by the university’s facilities department and got to work to clean up the road behind campus leading to the Taoist temple by the reservoir. The students had fun as they worked, enjoying the comradery of classmates and new friends and getting exercise in the fresh air while practicing their English.
The effort was spearheaded by ELC English teacher Kristin Helland whose previous experience in protecting the environment in her hometown in Wisconsin inspired her to carry out a similar activity at Shantou University. She was assisted by her post-graduate student, Alex (Liu Yong), who spoke in each of her English classes to invite students to participate and contacted the campus environmental group and the university’s facilities department. Helland said, “without Alex’s leadership and excellent coordination the clean-up would not have been so successful.”
Students from each of her three post-graduate English classes joined together with members of the campus environmental protection organization, Pat McKenzie, another ELC teacher, and cleaners from the university to undertake the clean-up effort.
Stopping only briefly to take a break, the students spent over 3 hours bending over to pick up trash, raking and shoveling piles of litter along the road. By the time they reached their final destination, the Taoist temple, the students had collected two full carts of trash consisting of plastic bags, discarded shoes, clothes, Styrofoam food containers, plastic bottles and cans, as well as paper money to be burned at the temple.
At the temple they rested and enjoyed the peace and beauty of the temple and the view of the reservoir. The elderly caretaker of the temple offered Gongfu tea to Helland and expressed his pleasure with the students’ efforts, “These young people are the hope for the future.”
Helland was impressed by the students’ eagerness and willingness to keep the campus area beautiful. “Shantou University is our home away from home. By cleaning up the environment around us we are keeping our home clean and leaving it in better condition for future students to come. Littering is a problem not only China, but worldwide. This effort shows that when people work together they can achieve a lot.”
As the group headed back to campus along the litter-free road for a meal together at the canteen, the students sang songs and expressed satisfaction about what they had accomplished. One student said, “I will never throw anything away again.” Another added, “It is our campus – we should keep it clean.” Encouraged by the enthusiastic response and success of this first joint effort by English students and the campus environmental group, Helland said that more clean-up efforts are expected to follow.
November 25, 2007
By Duff Johnston, ELC Faculty
The final film in the Fall 2007 series (November 24) was High School Musical (2006), a hit television movie phenomenon that has spawned a sequel as well as a host of popular concerts and albums in the United States. Following a movie quiz on the subject on television programming in the US, host Duff Johnston briefly introduced the film to a full house of approximately one hundred students and teachers.
As Johnston explained, some critics feel the High School Musical’s success comes not from teen audiences, many of whom might find the film’s premise childishly unrealistic, but from a different demographic—tweens. Defined roughly as the age group between 8 and 13-years of age, tweens represent a powerful new force in the American culture and consumer economy. For this group and their parents, the innocent and optimistic story and characters of the film offer an idealized look at a high school experience devoid of the sex, drugs, and violence that often are found at contemporary US schools.
Following the screening a group of some two dozen students and teachers stayed behind for a discussion of the film that compared school experiences in China and the U.S.
November 18, 2007
By Duff Johnston, ELC Faculty
The fourth offering in the film series (November 17) was Elephant (2003), director Gus Van Sant’s controversial look at school violence in the contemporary United States. Loosely based on events that took place at Columbine High School in 1999, the film follows a handful of students as their lives intersect over the course of one fateful day. The story is provokingly told with unusual film techniques that ask more questions about events than they answer.
Before the screening, host Duff Johnston introduced the film to a capacity audience of over one hundred students and teachers by discussing popular theories on the causes of school violence in the US. These theories hold violent music or video games, the gun culture in the United States, bullying, and poor relations between parents and teens as possible reasons for such violence. After the film over fifty members of the audience stayed for a lively discussion of the film and the cultural issues that it raised.
November 16, 2007
By Robyn Wall, ELC Faculty
This third film in our series on Teenage Culture in the US brought to light a wide range of social situations faced by this age group. However alien these issues may have seemed to some members of the audience, especially the Chinese students, they are essential to developing a full understanding of a very complex and influential segment of American society. By the time they reach high school, the majority of teenagers in the US have been either exposed to or involved in drugs, sex, violence, bullying and discrimination based on socioeconomic status and popularity. Oftentimes, they are pressured to distance themselves from their parents, even to the point of feeling embarrassed to be seen with them in public places. Whether real or imagined, this idea of struggling with one’s parents and accusing them of neglect or abuse on some level permeates the music, fashion, film and language embraced by teens both then and now. As if this is not difficult enough, teens must also navigate the treacherous waters of peer groups within their high schools. Represented in the film are a Jock, a Princess, a Criminal, a Brain and a Basket Case who did not realize how much they had in common until they were forced to spend an entire day together as punishment for misbehavior. Fighting against boredom, they lowered their defenses long enough to build bridges between them, if only for a day.
Not surprisingly, audience members expressed deep concern over this rift between teens and their parents, sharing that this phenomenon of openly criticizing one’s elders is not acceptable in China. Audience members were shocked to hear that these controversial issues are now being faced by students far younger than those depicted in the film, sometimes even as young as 11, 12 and 13 years old. Potential causes were explored, including the cultural norm of demonstrating independence at an early age, the explicit images constantly being disseminated by mass media and the built-in expectation that the teen years are always difficult. Some connections were made between the generational conflicts depicted in the film and the immense pressure students in China routinely face from their parents in relation to high academic performance. Geographic location aside, the transition from adolescence to adulthood is profoundly challenging.
For more information on this event, click here...
November 6, 2007
By David Law, ELC Staff
The teenage years are a time to find or even reinvent yourself. The screening of the film Breaking Away this past Saturday at ACC certainly stirred up discussion about this topic.
Teenagers are eager to find out who they are and to prove themselves for the sake of forming their own identities, and it is not that easy. For Dave Stohler in the film, it was not only about bicycle racing, but about family, friendship and love. Yet in the end, the victory of the race provided the answer, and made everything alright. Perhaps unlike the four kids in the film, after high school, most Chinese kids do not hesitate to go to college if they can; and many of them have not experienced such a dramatic life-changing event as winning a big bicycle race, but it is definitely a time of transformation for every one of them. Changes can cause people to lose themselves. So this is how it works, "In losing yourself you find yourself," as Kristin Helland, an ELC instructor, commented.
The young audience at the film screening also discussed the difference between teenagers in China and the United States - the way they behave when expressing themselves, attitudes toward family, and even their favorite sports.
Next Saturday, a 1985 film, The Breakfast Club will show you how some teenagers’ lives change in the matter of a day.
For more information on this event, click here...
November 1, 2007
By David Law, ELC Staff
The evening of Oct. 27 marked the beginning of ELC’s fourth Film Series. Hosted by ELC faculty Duff Johnston, this month-long film exhibit focuses on "American Teens on Film" because, as Duff says "to understand American Culture today, we must understand American teenagers."
The series was launched with the showing of Rebel Without a Cause, at 6:30pm in conference room #3 of ACC. To spice up the event, instead of lecturing, Duff introduced the topic with a show-style quiz game on "United States Geography and History" in which audience, who had entered a lottery upon arriving at the event, could participate and win the original film poster. Future lottery prizes will include a film theme T-shirt, a DVD, and an OST CD for the upcoming screenings.
The audience filled the conference room for this pilot show. During the discussion session after the film, many students, who had recently experienced their own teen-age years, had a lot to share. Parental problems, communication, teenagers' indescribable sense of insecurity and loneliness, and the generation gap were a few of the topics in the discussion.
Next week, a 1979 film, Breaking Away, will be screened. How is bike-racing mixed with friendship and family among other challenges? Keep your attention for this upcoming Saturday's show!
For more information on this event, click here...
September 14, 2007
By Elinor Westfold, ELC Faculty
The English Corner (EC) and Creative Expressions Club (CEC) pooled their considerable talent for Tuesday’s promotion night, presenting an exciting program of games, presentations and performances in the gym’s dance room. EC is a weekly event open to the entire campus in which student staff members put on an interactive program of English language activities. CEC is an English language performing arts group. Tuesday’s event served as an introduction to the two groups for new students and faculty.
CEC started the night with a dynamic adaptation of a traditional Chinese story about a couple and their meddling mothers. Masters of ceremonies More and Rose then introduced two EC members who led a warm up game. Although the student audience was timid at first, they became increasingly lively as they successfully answered tricky riddles. Then followed songs by CEC advisors Pat and Henry and CEC member Joanne, a presentation on Chinese Kung Fu, a conversation with EC advisors Elinor and Augustine about freshman life in the United States and a game called “Let’s Learn English.” The program ended with Around the Corner, a regular EC program in which students use role playing to get experience speaking English in a variety of situations. In a series of practice interviews students pretended to be foreign teachers applying to teach in Shantou, aid workers in a rural village and students applying to EC’s student staff.
After Around the Corner, students remained in the gym to practice speaking English with both ELC faculty and each other. Some of the freshmen enthusiastically proclaimed that after only one night of EC and CEC programs, they were already gaining more confidence in their English abilities. Both clubs felt that the evening went well and hope to recruit many new members from STU’s incoming class.
September 14, 2007
By David Stearns, ELC Faculty
This Tuesday night the English Lounge opened with a bang, welcoming over two hundred first year students to its brand-new location on campus near the flag pole. First year students came to the event to discover what the English Lounge is all about and to get to know the EL staff members and ELC teachers. Attendance to the event exceeded all expectations reflecting a vibrant interest in improving English proficiency on the part of this year’s freshman class.
Those who attended were treated to a fun night of conversation and games. Always a crowd pleaser, ELC teacher Eric Morris got the night rolling by teaching the room full of eager students a thing or two about rapping. The emcees then turned everyone’s attention to a video from the director of the ELC, Dr. Jun Liu. Dr. Liu reminded students of the importance of taking advantage of opportunities to practice their English outside of class in a setting that allows them to discuss topics that are interesting to them. After the video, everyone got the opportunity to form into the casual discussion groups that are the ELC’s trademark.
Students came obviously eager to use their English to talk about subjects with substance. Conversations ranged from history to geography to politics to culture. ELC teachers attended in full force to share their experiences and cultures with students who had no shortage of questions to ask.
We can only hope that the momentum that started with our opening night can continue and even grow over the following year!
September 10, 2007
By Eric Morris, ELC Faculty
The Freshmen Orientation was a fun event in which the English Language Center (ELC) hosted an introduction for the incoming freshmen. ELC Director, Dr. Jun Liu, explained that Shantou University (STU) English Language Center is unique in its progressive thinking toward the future as it prepares China's workforce of tomorrow with the skill set needed in the emerging market place.
ELC does this through encouraging and insisting that STU students learn English to the highest level possible. In so doing, they prepare them for the international market no matter where the job market takes them.
The focus of the program was to show students the many ways the ELC could give them the leverage needed to succeed. Not only will they be put into a starting level designed for where they are now, but succeeding classes are available as they progress through the basics to fluent speech and thorough comprehension.
There are many options available to the students through co-curricular activities such as the English Corner, English Lounge, Shantou Beat newspaper, Creative Expression Clubs, the English Festival and other lecture series.
There is nothing like real-life experience so the Dr. Liu has brought in teachers from all over the world who speak and teach English as well as local teachers who are fluent in English and who understand the impact of this skill in the worldwide market place.
The ELC teachers had an opportunity to introduce themselves and encourage the students to join in. Dr Liu encouraged the teachers to be humorous so as to capture the imagination of the student body and encourage them to step outside of their comfort zone and learn English.
The program finished with English language speeches and skits performed by Shantou University students.
July 10, 2007
On Thursday night, July 5, 2007, the English Language Center held its 24th Conversation Series in the Science Hall. Dr. Jun Liu, Executive Director of ELC interviewed the 1997 Nobel Laureate for Physics Dr. Steven Chu on the topic of “From Black Sheep to Nobel Laureate”. Before an exuberant crowd of students and teachers, Dr. Chu shared many interesting stories about his family, education and work, which helps the audience know more about the life of a devoting scientist.
June 4, 2007
On May 16-21, 2007, the 5th International Conference on ELT in China and the 1st Congress of Chinese Applied Linguistics were held jointly at the FLTRP International Convention Center in Beijing, attracting about 1500 participants from all over the world. Besides Dr. Jun Liu, Executive Director of ELC, who gave a much acclaimed plenary speech on Realities, Challenges and Promises - Promoting the Next Generation of English Teachers in China, ELC was represented by four more faculty members. While Claudia Kunschak and Marcia Peterson presented their joint study on Training in Error Identification: Paving the Way Toward Learner Autonomy, Shirley Gao contributed her findings from A Needs Analysis Survey on Oral Skills Among College Students with Different Proficiency Levels in China, and Lily Zhang shared her research on The Potential of Peer Response Activities in College English Classes in China. All four presentations attracted a sizeable audience and led to animated discussions afterwards. The topics represented the wide variety of action research projects undertaken by ELC faculty and fit well into the overall themes discussed at the meeting. Valuable experiences have been acquired from key note speeches, symposia, workshops and parallel sessions and will be incorporated into ELC's further development.
June 4, 2007
The last screening of this year’s Film Series hosted by ELC was presented last Thursday at ACC. After showing of movies concerned about animal protection, forest preservation, and air pollution, as the finale of this year’s theme movie event, this last sci-fi movie, “The Day After Tomorrow” was about human being itself, and about hope of surviving Nature. The event attracted not only local students but also the visiting student group of 10 from Georgia College and State University, and it was considered a success.
May 28, 2007
ELC Film Series 2007 presented the 3rd screening last Thursday at ACC. You might have heard about global warming, but it was the first time a formal Vice President of the US, Al Gore, spending an hour and a half on the screen, presenting to you his global tours on this issue and his personal backgrounds why he did this. In addition, the informative data and graphical expressions, this documentary provided the audience a very convincing situation of the seriousness of global warming and finally what everyone could do to help ease it. Interesting facts captured students’ eyes and ears at on the screening on Thursday night, and of course, their thoughts, which led to different inspiring discussions afterward the film. The last screening will be next Thursday.
May 18, 2007
The 2nd screening of this year’s Film Series was presented last night. In the theme of Human. Nature, this time, two cartoon movies from the 70’s, The Lorax (1972) & It's Arbor Day, Charlie Brown (1976) were shown. Discussion after the movies lasted longer than last time because the audience was inspired by how cartoon can be used to present serious issues. To quote the students, “Cartoon can also help the children to understand the meaning of environmental protection when they are young...”; “Because when kids grow up, they will be working in different industries and they will remember what they learned as children”. Students were interested in the different characters in the movies because they found truth about human beings reflected on them. Next week, a documentary on air pollution, An Inconvenient Truth (2006), will be presented.
May 11, 2007
What is the relationship between human beings and the natural world? How is the human process of cherishing, depending upon, controlling and exploiting the environment? What are the consequences of our choices and where do human beings go from here? These are the questions you need to take to ACC conference room 3 with to see the movies of this year’s ELC Film Series. Kicking off with America’s first Monster Movie, King Kong, this event attracted many students to join last night with Jennifer Nowicki, the Series Director. Parts of both the 1933 and the 2005 version of the King Kong movies were creatively shown while the entire story line was perfectly kept so that the audience could view the best parts of these two movies at the same time. During the afterward discussion session, students shared with each other their opinions, or feelings, about the movie, to be exact, because they were so touched by the movies that they did not even want to leave in the end. The upcoming movie screening will be next Thursday, same time, same place.
April 29, 2007
This year’s Faculty Lecture Series came to a close on Friday, April 28th, with a presentation on storytelling by ELC teachers Susan Liu, Peter LaTerra, and Jen Nowicki. Susan opened the evening with an introduction to traditional Chinese Kuaibanr, or Clapper Talk. Peter gave a brief discussion of the universal importance of the love story. He read the audience a poem by Edna St. Vincent and encouraged everyone to live a life with love and without regret. Jen described two more very different forms of storytelling. First, she played a recording of a short Native American oral story about “How the Rabbit Got Long Ears” and talked about that culture’s close ties to nature. Finally, she introduced the audience to her specialty, digital storytelling, perhaps the most modern version of a practice that has existed since humans first learned to communicate. To demonstrate, she showed a sneak preview of several digital stories just recorded under her instruction here at Shantou University using easily available tools. Her group of 11 participants included students and both local and foreign teachers and their stories ranged from moving to amusing, but they were all inspirational and worthy additions to the world’s stories.
April 19, 2007
Last Monday (April 16), in the latest installment of the Faculty Lecture Series, ELC teachers Lily Zhang, Robyn Wall and Paul McPherron presented on the differences and similarities between three different styles of dance to a crowd of students in Science Hall. Lily described a number of traditional Han and minority folk dances with a demonstration by her instructor Lily Cheng and several videos. She was followed by Robyn, who showed several forms of Latin dance from the Caribbean, encouraging the men in the audience to learn and impress their lady friends. Finally, Paul gave students a taste of the modern with his presentation on Hip-hop culture and Rap music in America and China, including a live demonstration by an STU student. They closed the evening by teaching several Latin dance steps and inviting students to join them on stage and join the party.
April 11, 2007
On Wednesday (April 11) night, three ELC teachers, Claudia Kunschak, Amy Kunkel-Patterson and Philippe Bierny presented the most fantastic lecture on Budget Travel around the World in Academic Conference Center(ACC). Within two hours’ presentation, three of them took the present audience to travel from America to Europe, and finally back to Southeast Asia. They not only talked about different architect styles and food dynamics, but also provided the tremendous pictures taken on different places. Furthermore, they also share their experiences and tips on transportation and safety with the audience. Many students think this lecture helps them open their mind to the world and they would definitely love to see this place themselves in the future.
April 2, 2007
On Monday night, April 2, 2007, the English Language Center held its 1st Lecture in the 2007 Spring ELC Faculty Lecture Series. During the 100 minutes’ lecture, two ELC faculties Li Yuan and Kate Hardeman shared their experiences and opinions of studying abroad before a packed audience of students. They talked about how to get prepared for the university application and visa, how to adapt to a new environment in another country and what the international students need to pay attention to when they arrive in a new place. During a highly informative Q&A with students eager to participate in the discussion section, Li Yuan told students to consider the priority when they are facing too many choices and Kate encouraged students to make effort to make new friends and get familiar with the community when they study in a new environment.
March 6, 2007
Happy New Year everyone! Welcome back to school. The ELC faculty has already been hard at grading the TBEST and Essay Writing sections of the 03 Posttest on March 2nd and 3rd. Like last semester, the ELC will not only provide the regular classes for all students at STU, but will also offer some co-curricular activities. For this term, the English Corner and English Lounge will be open as usual, and we will start two new activities for you: the Faculty Lecture Series in April and the Film Series in May. The schedules will be posted soon so please keep a close eye on the website.
Dr. Jun Liu, ELC Executive Director was selected as one of the ten most renowned experts in English Education in the year of 2006 by the 21st Century ELT Review. According to the newspaper, Dr. Liu not only secured the TESOL Symposium to be held in China for the first time in history but also used his own story to tell the world that even a non-native English speaker is capable of attaining such an achievement in the field of English Education.
On February 13th, Dr. Jun Liu, ELC Executive Director, gave a talk on "Unlimited Boundaries in Promising Asia" at the 27th Thailand TESOL International Conference. Dr. Liu reiterated that Asia holds great promise in education, particularly language education, mainly because of its sheer size of population and economic growth. Due to these factors, he said, being a language teacher in the Information Age when most of what students study in the first year of college will likely be outdated by their third year is not an easy job. In terms of English language teaching and learning, it also means that the model has shifted from an emphasis on linguistic forms to communicative competence. Later, Dr. Liu gave an interview to the Bangkok Post and shared his insight on how countries should approach English language teaching and learning within the global English context.
