MICELT 2012: 8-10 Oct 2012, Kinta, Perak

(credit: MICELT website)

The Malaysian International Conference on English Language Teaching is a well established ELT conference in the Asia Pacific Region and has consistently attracted at least 400 participants and presenters at every occasion. Held every two years at various locations in Malaysia, it is now in its ninth edition and will this year be held at the Kinta Riverfront Hotel in Ipoh, Perak. The aim of the theme of the 2012 MICELT Conference, “Aligning ELT Classroom Practice with Real World Needs”, is to explore ways to ensure that English Language Teaching remains dynamic and relevant to meet the demands of today’s world. These real world needs are not limited to the work place alone but in today’s global village, applies also to personal needs that can stretch across national boundaries through social networking. This theme was selected as the conference intends to garner opinion from educators and researchers at all levels of education – primary, secondary and tertiary – as well as those involved in industrial training, in order to obtain answers to a host of questions that English language educators ask daily throughout the world. Some of the questions that this conference wishes to address are: How can we motivate and sustain the motivation of students in learning English? The sub themes for the 9th MICELT includes but are not limited to the following:

• Teaching English Language in Challenging Environments;
• Effective Utilisation of Technology in Language Teaching;
• Tried and Tested Ways in Teaching English Language Skills;
• Teaching English as a Second Language to Adults, Children, and Young Adults;
• Curriculum, Programmes and Projects in Teaching English as a Second Language;
• English Language Needs after Formal Education;
• Motivation and Affective Variables in Learning English;
• Understanding the English Language Learner; and
• Assessment and Measurement of English Language Learning

I've always loved MICELT besides MELTA. Here's more opportunities for your professional development teachers! In the recent MELTA, I bumped into enthusiastic teachers from Sabah who paid their way to the conference, all for the sake of developing themselves. I used to wait for sponsorship (which is nice) but you can't rely on something uncertain. You've got to dig into your own pockets so you appreciate the knowledge and experience you will receive. As a teacher, I need to keep up with the times and find ways to continuously grow (the reason for sharing CPD matters this blog in the first place). If someone who has done 26 years still needs to learn, what about those who just began their teaching careers?

The Thinking Teacher