BESIG 2010 is here!

I'm in Bielefeld for the annual BESIG conference, probably my favourite event of the year. For those of you who can't make it, certain sessions are being broadcast here.

I'm doing two talks this year. The first is with Mark Ibbotson, and I wrote a little about it here. The second is about collaboration in ESP course design and delivery, a topic that's becoming more and more important as technology plays an increasing role in our teaching. I'll be posting the slides from both talks early next week.

There was some great news at the opening party last night. English360 was declared the winner of the annual David Riley Award for Innovation in Business English and ESP. David was a legendary and visionary publisher in our field, and the award was set up to honour his memory. I never had the chance to work with him, but many colleagues did, all of whom speak of him in the warmest possible way.

I'm very proud to be Publishing Manager for English360, although all of the credit for last night's award goes to the team who have been slaving away for the last few years to make something that I think is truly unique in language teaching.

If you want to know more about English360, here's a short video which I think it sums it up perfectly:

English360 - Cambridge University Press from Atelier Transfert on Vimeo.

Enjoy BESIG!

My first book review / TESOL France

The lovely people over at TESOL France were kind enough to review Cambridge English for Marketing in the latest edition of Teaching Times. If you're a teacher based in France, don't forget that the TESOL France 29th Annual Colloquium takes place later this month. Full details here.

Here's the review, by Ros Wright:

Cambridge English for Marketing


You’re in good hands

If you’re already au-fait with the Cambridge English for ... concept, you’ll know that these titles are authored by experts from the field. CE for Marketing goes one better - Nick Robinson has a marketing background, coupled with ELT and editing experience. But if you’re still not convinced, then maybe the endorse- ment by The Chartered Institute of Marketing will clinch it for you.


Contents page

The contents page is proof positive that the 10 units, comprising 40-60 hours of teaching time, a glossary of key terms with additional photocopiables and online Teachers Notes are the stuff of real per- formance-based learning. From the initial SWOT and PESTEL analysis, the focus groups and promotional mix, through to the pitch and the final product launch, not forgetting a nod to Web 2.0: it is everything you would expect from a marketing coursebook.


Unit 4 - Language focus

Unit 4 finds Stephanos and Melissa discussing the target market segment and the USP for the potential launch on the US market of a brand of Greek olive oil. Communication breakdown is inevitable in any professional situation with varying degrees of possible fallout. While there is actually very little at stake with the example presented in Unit 4, it does serve as a platform for the language focus in question. The unit takes us through phrases that explain the reason behind the misunderstanding, demonstrate how to acknowledge it and move on; offering the speaker a way out that ensures their interlocutor is not left feeling uncomfortable. It’s a very positive approach that seeks to provide our learners with the communication strategies necessary to repair the breakdown while maintaining professional, and indeed, personal ‘face’ – in English, of course.

My memory of learners from this particular field is that they are lively, creative and always willing to participate in class - so, why not reward them with a coursebook that truly meets their needs. I’ll leave you to discover for yourselves why I think CE for Marketing possesses the USP that will have your students coming back for more!