This article introduces the use of public exam questions in fishbowl debate to engage highly exam-oriented secondary students with communicative language teaching (CLT). The practice aims to address the issue that many teachers of English as a second language (ESL)/English as a foreign language (EFL) in Asian contexts either teach to the test or…

Since its establishment in the late 2015, the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) with English as the official language has forced its participating countries to improve the quality of English language teaching, in the hope to prepare their people to be globally competitive, as the lack of English proficiency remains the main challenge across the…

The countries that use English as a foreign language need effective activities which propel students to practice skills of the language properly inside as well as outside classrooms. Debating is a practice that inspires learners to open their mouth, get into discussion, defend their own positions, place counter arguments and also conduct research…

This paper outlines the theory of the six-step method developed by personnel in the Language and Learning department at Caledonian College of Engineering, Oman. The paper further illustrates the application of this method in teaching Project, Listening, Reading, Writing, and Speaking & Debate at Foundation level. The assumption in applying the…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) Debating Education: Obama and Romney Promote Education Records, Importance of Education to the Economy and Public Safety During…

In this article the author introduces the roles he created for two phases of a simulation on language planning in Malaysia. The first phase is a radio call-in show. This is followed by a debate before a panel of arbiters concerning a recent dispute related to English language teaching in Malaysian schools. The final phase involves debriefing (for…

Describes the process of selecting and developing a debate team at the University of New South Wales (Australia) to compete in an international Modern Standard Chinese debating competition. Discusses issues in selecting team members, training needs and strategies (particularly self-directed learning), time pressure, and the success of the…