CONFERENCE NEWS: 

The Quiz – On Friday evening of the conference, 7.15-8.15, come and be enthralled by our team of experts taking the ‘Mastermind’ challenge: our brave contestant include: Ula Kropaczewska, Geoff Tranter, Rob Howard, and Debbie West. Two Americans taking the plunge!  Specialist subjects involve Henry the VIIIth, Music up to the 80s, Monty Python’s Flying Circus, and Famous Black Americans. It will be an evening of fun and learning!

Conference Programme: https://iatefl.org.pl/conference/index.php?n=timetable

Transcripts: I am extending the deadline to the 17^th…so, please make every effort to write a worthwhile article promoting your presentation. If you are ready to present your topic, find a little time this week to write a precise, but engaging article, and send it to me at: newsletter@iatefl.org.pl

AGM:  The future of IATEFL Poland starts here, as important elections are being held this year. All posts are available, except those of the President and Vice-President. Do attend, and see if you can make a strong contribution towards IATEFL Poland’s future. The Association needs committed members.

https://iatefl.org.pl/iatefl-poland-call-for-elections-2021-agm-18-september-2021/

National Public Speaking Contest – Grand Final:  At 10.00 on Friday the 17^th, a splendid contest awaits. Teenagers from all over the country will be taking part in the Grand Final – these will be the Regional winners. So, listen to the talented contestants battle it out, displaying their knowledge of ‘Climate Change’. You will be amazed at the level of excellence they achieve. It will be a highlight of the weekend.

Public Speaking Contest Grand Finale:  When?: Sept. 17, 2021, 10:00 am

Register in advance for this meeting:
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwudO6prD0qE9Pdq3WuJH76bV7fqU5VnsZR

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Webinar Programme Returns!

It’s back after a short summer’s break. The organisers, Lucyna Wilinkiewicz Górniak and Marcin Stanowski, are presently compiling a new programme, a new, improved one. It started with a bang, as Anna Sołtyska and Grzegorz Śpiewak, teamed up on the 2^nd of September, to present a follow-up webinar to Anna’s previous webinar on ‘Cheating’. The subject this time was ‘Fair Assessment’, and there was an attendance of 40.

Feedback on the webinar was very pleasing, indeed, and this is what one reviewer commented: “Congratulations to all four of you (Lucyna, Marcin, Anna and Grzegorz). Yesterday’s webinar was great (super). I liked it very much. The content and the style meant that the formula was not just one person’s presentation, but a discussion. I hope there will be a follow-up.”

That review was written by Danusia Sołtyska, and I can hear you thinking, but she’s her mother! Danusia is in fact, Anna’s mother-in-law. So, it’s a rare example of a mother-in-law being positive about her daughter-in-law. J Danusia is proud of Anna, and her honesty is unquestioned, and the general feedback about the webinar actually matched Danusia’s comments. So, congratulations go to Danusia for being a super mother-in-law!

Meanwhile, on Thursday the 9^th, IATEFL Poland’s Vice-President, Małgorzata Bukowska-Ulatowska, presented the second webinar in the series, intriguingly titled: ‘How to go about 2021/2022’. More analysis of that session in the next E-Bulletin. Meanwhile, check your e-mail and the main website for news of further webinars.  If you would like to present a webinar, contact: Lucyna Wilinkiewicz-Górniak at: lucyna.wilinkiewicz@gmail.com  Many dates are currently available. Remember, all sessions are recorded.

Now for news and details regarding the massive opportunity to conduct research and be sponsored to do so. There’s no mention of how many awards will be made, but there are several for sure…and you could be one of them!  

TOEFL ELT Researcher/Practitioner Grants

The 2022 TOEFL English-language Researcher/Practitioner Grant Programme has just been announced by ETS. The purpose of this award programme is to enable practitioners to become involved in ETS’s efforts to promote English-language learning, and to support education and professional development for English-language teachers worldwide, through ETS’s assessments and services.

Award value: Successful applicants will receive funding of US $5,000-$10,000.

Eligibility: Practitioners who are teaching English in various contexts, including universities, intensive English programmes, study abroad programmes, primary schools, and secondary (middle or high) schools, are invited to apply. Prior research experience is not required, but practitioners with advanced degrees in language instruction, or a related field, will be given preference.

Application process:  Applicants must submit an application package via e-mail to TOEFLAwardsandGrants@ets.org by 11.59 pm, U.S. Eastern Time on 30/9/2021. The application package must include the following: 

***completed application form (PDF) and a curriculum vitae.

Important Dates: 

September 30^th - Deadline for receipt of application materials.

November 8^th - All applicants notified of selection.

November 22^nd -  Successful applicants confirm information about their research design and the TOEFL test they will use.

January 1^st, 2022 - Research projects commence.

December 1^st, 2022 – Deadline for submission of collected data, classroom materials, and a summary of study results (the deadline will be extended accordingly, if the project is planned to last more than a year).

****For full details, please go to the TOEFL English-Language

Researcher/Practitioner Grant Programme Webpage…(c.f. main website).

International tributes for IATEFL Poland’s 30^th Anniversary – Part 2:

Maria-Araxi Sachpazian TESOL Macedonia-Thrace Representative/Interim Controller

A not-so-short text to wish IATEFL Poland and its people, happy anniversary!’

I started learning (teaching myself) Polish in late 2014, in an attempt to study self-organised learning environments. At the time, I was convinced I would never actually speak the language. In fact, I was convinced that my journey in this new language was private and soundless. I am happy to say that I was entirely wrong. I applied for the IATEFL Poland Conference for the first time in 2015, and I was lucky enough to be accepted and able to visit the city of all cities, Kraków. A great journey of friendship started with that first conference.

What was it that drew me to IATEFL Poland?  I believe it has been the generosity of spirit and the many options provided to participants. This great conference is not simply a venue where one presents one’s work, it is a springboard for greater inspiration. What has fascinated me since the first conference I attended, were the Student Public Debates. In Szczecin in 2016, I was lucky enough not to find the conference venue, along with some of the finalists, and our joint experience led me not only to attend this clever and creative event, but also to invite some of them to write an article about their experience for the TESOL Macedonia-Thrace, Northern Greece magazine, ELTeaser. That was what made communication with IATEFL Poland even closer and more intensive.

Representing our TA in the IATEFL Poland Conference, and having joined our two associations with bonds of affiliation, meant that later in the year, we had the pleasure of welcoming Polish colleagues to our TESOL Macedonia-Thrace Conference in Thessaloniki, Greece. It turns out that the distance between our two countries was equal to our mutual desire to cross over. I am very happy that I have come to know this amazing country (and its delicious cuisine) through this great Teachers’ Association, and had the chance to speak my not-so-fluent Polish in authentic situations. Therefore, it is not a coincidence that when talking about my connection with Poland, I mainly talk about IATEFL Poland, as this was how I came to create bonds of friendship with several, distinguished, Polish EFL specialists. Yet, I will never forget the taxi driver who picked me up from the conference venue and was astonished that I was trying to learn Polish. “Thank you for learning my language“, he told me, and I replied: “Thank you for letting me share this treasure.” As a teacher of English, I was only too aware of the great responsibility I had as a learner. It is almost the same kind that as a teacher, I have towards my learners, when teaching English.

In the last few years, COVID and family problems have kept me away from possible visits to Poland. So, I am thankful that webinars and the on-line conferences allow us to still keep in touch, as I am always honoured to be considered an IATEFL Poland contributor and supporter. I am not sure I can list all the amazing educators I have come to meet via IATEFL Poland. I am confident I can call them friends, and they include: Magdalena, Rob, Lucyna, Marta, Anna, Marcin, Monica and Hanna, Grzegorz and Anna, Dorota, Joanna, Hanya, Renata and Samantha. I apologise to those I missed out. It has been an honour to meet you and participate in the same conferences with you all! Congratulations on staying true to your mission and supporting a strong, generous, and long-lasting teachers’ association. All the best for the future. My biggest hope and prayer is that when the Pandemic is over, we can meet again and exchange a real (not virtual) hug!

Sto lat, IATEFL Polska! Bardzo cię kocham!

One of the most regular visitors to our conferences, in recent years, has been Mark Andrews, a man who loves delivering live lessons. He works for and represents the SOL Language School in Devon. This is what he had to say about IATEFL Poland:

“The one thing that sticks out in my memory banks, was the talk by Jerzy Limon, at the Shakespeare Theatre in Gdańsk. When I heard he had died as a result of a COVID-19 infection in March, it made me so sad. I took a second look at the book that I bought that he had written about the theatre, and it brought back very happy memories.

Since I have been coming to IATEFL Poland, (the first time in September 2012 in Wrocław), I’ve always enjoyed the social events, and the warm way that you all welcome me and Grenville, and more recently, Kirsty, from SOL. The way you make international participants welcome, has always impressed me.

Your Live Lessons have been a wonderful innovation that I’ve always enjoyed being a part of; however, the evening with Jerzy and the tour of the theatre was a stunning evening, which will always stand out in my memory. Thank-you for that.”

We now move onto a colourful text from a colourful character, Nick, who has been to Poland on a couple of occasions, and is a worthy presenter. He adores the country, and would love to come again.                                                                                                                          

Nick Michelioudakis:  “Water. People don’t believe me when I tell them, but it is true. Recalling the magnificent feast that followed the first day of the IATEFL Conference in 2015, I  remember that drinking water was the one thing that was missing! They did have everything else, though. Fruit juice of all kinds, beers, wine, you name it. As for the food, it was out of this world!  Nor was this occasion an exception. Wherever I went, the food was delicious – and being Greek, I know good food when I taste it.

How do Polish people manage to be so slim and elegant? That was the question I kept asking myself as I looked around me. True, I mostly focused on colleagues of the female persuasion, but these days, you are not supposed to do so, or at least, admit to such things in public. So, I had to come up with another reason. It was all scientific curiosity. J

As I had expected, the event itself, was excellent - (yes, I did manage to concentrate during the talks, despite the distractions), - and the organisation was superb!

I will make some notes for my next trip to Poland, (hopefully soon).  1. Make sure I lose around 10 kg, so you can enjoy the food without any regrets. 2. Tell my girlfriend, I am going to Saudi Arabia, instead. 3. Bring a hip flask along. For the water, you understand.

That’s all, folks!  Enjoy the Conference.

Peter Whiley…(IATEFL Poland Journals and E-Bulletins’ Editor)