Enlaces de interés

Descarga de programas muy útiles:
http://www.mansioningles.com/Descarga.htm

Diccionario inglés-español español-inglés muy completo:
http://www.babelpoint.com

Gran cantidad de recursos tanto para profesores como para alumnos:
http://recursos.pnte.cfnavarra.es/inglesep/

Listening, radio y tv online:
http://www.saberingles.com.ar/radio-tv.html

Comprueba tu nivel de inglés:
http://www.inlinguavancouver.com/es/registration/placement_tests/

75 ideas para usar en clase

1. Alter the pacing of your class. If you rush through your class at full speed, slow things down and take time to ask your students personal questions based on the materials you are using. If you tend to proceed at a snail's pace, prepare some additional activities and push yourself to accomplish more than you usually do.
2. Ask a student to demonstrate a dance, and assist the student in explaining the movements in English.
3. Ask students to name as many objects in the classroom as they can while you write them on the board.
4. Ask students to present to the class a gesture that is unique to their own culture.
5. Ask students to write one question they would feel comfortable answering (without writing their name) on an index card. Collect all of the index cards, put them in a bag, have students draw cards, and then ask another student the question on that card.
6. Ask your students if there are any songs running through their heads today. If anyone says yes, encourage the student to sing or hum a little bit, and ask the others if they can identify it.
7. Assign students to take a conversation from their coursebook that they are familiar with and reduce each line to only one word.
8. At the end of class, erase the board and challenge students to recall everything you wrote on the board during the class period. Write the expressions on the board once again as your students call them out.
9. Begin by telling your students about an internal struggle between two sides of your personality (bold side vs. timid side OR hardworking side vs. lazy side), providing a brief example of what each side says to you. After a few minutes of preparation in pairs, have students present their struggles to the class.
10. Bring a cellular phone (real or toy) to class, and pretend to receive calls throughout the class. As the students can only hear one side of the conversation, they must guess who is calling you and why. Make the initial conversation very brief, and gradually add clues with each conversation. The student who guesses correctly wins a prize.
11. Bring a fork, knife, spoon, bowl, plate and chopsticks (if you have them) to class, and mime eating some different dishes, letting students guess what they are. Then let your students take a turn.
12. Bring an artifact from the student's culture to class, and ask them questions about it.
13. Bring in some snacks that you think your students haven't tried before, and invite the students to sample them and give their comments.
14. Call on a student to draw his or her country's flag on the board, then teach him or her how to describe the flag to the class (It has three stripes...).
15. Choose one topic (food, sports) and elicit a list of examples (food - chicken, pudding, rice). Then have your student come up with the most unusual combinations of items from that list(chocolate-beef or wrestling-golf).
16. Collaborate with your students on a list of famous people, including movie stars, politicians, athletes, and artists. Have every student choose a famous person, and put them in pairs to interview each other.
17. Come to class dressed differently than usual and have students comment on what's different.
18. Copy a page from a comic book, white out the dialogue, make copies for your class, and have them supply utterances for the characters.
19. Copy pages from various ESL textbooks (at an appropriate level for your students), put them on the walls, and have students wander around the classroom and learn a new phrase. Then have them teach each other what they learned.
20. Copy some interesting pictures of people from magazine ads. Give a picture to each student, have the student fold up the bottom of the picture about half an inch, and write something the person might be thinking or saying. Put all the pictures up on the board, and let everyone come up and take a look.
21. Describe something observable in the classroom (while looking down), and tell students to look in the direction of what you described.
22. Draw a map of your country or another country that your students know well. By drawing lines, show students where you went on a trip, and tell them about it. Then call on several students to do the same. The trips can be truthful or fictional.
23. Draw a pancake-shape on the board, and announce that the school will soon be moving to a desert island. Invite students one by one to go to the board and draw one thing they would like to have on the island.
24. Draw a party scene on the board, and invite students to come up and draw someone they would like to have at the party.
25. Empty a bag of coupons onto a table, and have students find a coupon for a product that they have no need for.
26. Experiment with how you write on the board, altering your writing style, the size of the letters, the direction you write, and the color of the chalk/pens.
27. Explain to your students what it means to call someone a certain animal (dog, pig, fox) in English, and then ask them what these mean in their languages.
28. Fill the board with vocabulary your students have encountered in previous classes (make sure to include all parts of speech), and get them to make some sentences out of the words.
29. Find out what famous people your students admire, and work together with the class to write a letter to one of them.
30. Find out what your students are interested in early on in the semester. Go to the Internet from time to time to collect articles on these subjects for students to read during the class period.
31. First, instruct your students to write on a slip of paper the name of one book, CD, or movie that changed them in some way. Collect the papers, call out the titles, and ask the class if they can guess who wrote it. Finally, let the writer identify him or herself, explaining his or her choice.
32. Give each student a piece of chalk/pen and tell them to fill the board with pop song lyrics. Then put them in pairs, and get them to use the words on the board to create a new dialogue.
33. Give students a reward (such as a candy or a sticker) each time they take the artificial language in your textbook and turn it into an authentic question or comment about someone in the class.
34. Hand a student a ball of yellow yarn. Have him toss it to another student, while saying something positive about that student and holding onto the end of the yarn. Continue in this manner until there is a web between all the students.
35. Hand each student an index card, and tell them to write down a sentence that includes an error they have made this week, along with the correct version of the sentence. Next, tape all of the index cards on the board for students to look over.
36. Hang up four different posters (example - one of a world map, one of a famous singer, one of a flower, and one of Einstein) in the four corners of your room. Tell students to choose one corner to stand in, and talk about why they chose that poster.
37. Have each student make a list of the five most useful phrases for tourists visiting an English speaking country.
38. Have students come to the board one by one, draw a poster for an English language movie (without the title) they think the other students have seen, and let the other students guess which movie it is.
39. Hire a musician (flute? harmonica? banjo?) to play for a few minutes of your class period.
40. In small groups, have your students design a billboard for something other than a product (wisdom, humility, friendship, etc.).
41. Inquire to see if your students have any unusual talents (can wiggle their ears, can bark like a dog), and encourage them to demonstrate.
42. Instead of saying "Very good!" all the time, vary the ways you praise (and correct) students as much as possible.
43. Instruct your students to find something in their wallets/purses/pencil boxes, and tell the story behind it.
44. Invite your students to stand up and explore the classroom from new angles (look in drawers, under desks, behind posters, on top of cabinets). Then have students report their findings.
45. Just a few minutes before the bell rings, call on your students to choose the ten most useful words they came in contact with during this class period, then have them narrow it down to the three most useful words.
46. Pass around some magazines, and have each student choose an ad that he or she likes. Give students an opportunity to explain their choices.
47. Play a listening activity from your book an additional time with the lights turned off.
48. Play a recording of instrumental music and have some students draw on the board what the music makes them think of.
49. Play five very different sounds from a sound effects tape or CD, and assign students in pairs to create a story based on three of the sounds.
50. Play music that enhances certain activities (quiet music for a reading activity, dance music for an energetic TPR activity). Ask your students for their reactions.
51. Prepare colored letters of the alphabet on cardboard squares and put them in a bag. Students must draw a letter from the bag, and work together to create a sentence on the board. Each student must raise his or her hand to make a contribution, but the word the student calls out must begin with the letter he or she chose. Put the expanding sentence on the board, adding words only when they the grammar is correct.
52. Prepare several paper bags, each with a different scent inside (perfume, cinnamon, cheese), pass the bags around the class, and let students describe what they smell.
53. Print phrases such as "in the library" "at an elegant dinner with the Royal Family" "in a noisy bar" "in a dangerous neigborhood" on separate strips of paper, put them in envelopes, and tape them to the underside of a few students' desks/tables before they arrive. Write on the board a useful expression like "Excuse me. Could I borrow a dollar?" When students arrive, tell them to look for an envelope under the desks/tables. The ones who find envelopes must say the sentence on the board as if in the context written on the page. Other students must guess the context from the student's tone of voice and body language.
54. Produce a list of commonly used sentence-modifying adverbs on the board, such as suddenly, actually, unfortunately, and happily. Then launch into a story, which each student must contribute to, with the rule that everyone must begin the first sentence of his or her contribution with a sentence-modifying adverb.
55. Provide each student with a list of the current top ten popular songs. Play excerpts from some or all of the songs, and choose some questions to ask your students, such as: Did you like the song? Have you heard this song before? How did the song make you feel? What instruments did you hear?
56. Purchase a postcard for each member of your class, writing his or her name in the name and address space. Turn them picture side up on a table, have each student choose one (without looking at the name), then he or she will write a message to the person whose name is on the other side. If a student chooses the postcard that has his or her own name on it, the student must choose again.
57. Put students in pairs and ask them to guess three items in their partner's wallet/purse/pencil box.
58. Put students in pairs. Tell them to converse, but to deliberately make one grammatical error over and over, stopping only when one student can spot the other's intentional error.
59. Put students into small groups to create an application form for new students to the school.
60. Put the students in small groups, and ask each group to plan a vacation for you. They must plan where you will go, what you will do, who you will go with, and what you will buy. When they are finished, have each group present their plans.
61. Review a phrase or sentence that you want students to remember, by holding a competition to see "Who can say it the loudest/the quietest/the quickest/the slowest/in the deepest voice/in the highest pitched voice?".
62. Set up a board in your classroom where students can buy and sell used items from each other by writing notes in English.
63. Supply each student with a copy of the entertainment section of the local newspaper, and tell them to choose somewhere to go next weekend.
64. Take a particularly uninteresting page from your coursebook, and put students in groups to redesign it.
65. Teach on a different side of the room than you usually do.
66. Tell each student to report the latest news in their country or city to the class.
67. Tell your students to practice a conversation from their coursebook that they are familiar with, but this time they can only use gestures, no words.
68. When they are practicing a dialogue, have students play around with the volume, intonation, pitch, or speed of their voices.
69. Write "Tell me something I don't know." on the board, then ask students questions about things they know about and you don't, such as their lives, cultural background, interests, and work.
70. Write a common adjacency pair (Thank you./You're welcome OR I'm sorry./That's alright) on the board. Ask students if they know of any expressions that could replace one of the ones you just wrote. Write any acceptable answers on the board.
71. Write a number of adjectives, such as mysterious, happy, peaceful, sad, angry, and frustrated on the board. Call out a color, and ask your students to tell you which adjective they associate with that color.
72. Write a word on a slip of paper and show it to a student. This student must whisper it to the second student. Then the second student must draw a picture of what he or she heard, and show it to the third student. The third student, then, writes the word that represents the picture and shows it to the fourth student. Then the fourth student whispers it to the fifth student.... and so on. This continues until you get to the last student, who must say the word to the class.
73. Write an idiomatic expression (such as "It beats me." or "I'm fed up.") in big letters on the board. Call on a few students to guess what it means before you tell them.
74. Write down the names of about five very different people on the board (a small baby, a rude waiter in a restaurant, a fashion model, a stranger in a crowd, and a grandfather). Give students a common expression, such as "Good morning!" or "Sorry!", and ask students how they might say it differently when talking to a different person.
75. Write your name on the board vertically, and add a suitable adjective that begins with each letter of your name. The next step is to invite students to do the same.

Noticias

EL E-LEARNING SE ESCRIBE EN INGLÉS

Acabo de regresar del WEM, la feria mundial de la educación que se celebró del 20 al 23 de mayo de 2003 en Lisboa y que sigue la misma tónica que el pasado año a la espera de encontrar una nueva ciudad que la acoja en su próxima edición. Si comparo las dos ediciones celebradas en la maravillosa capital de Portugal, les puedo decir que en mi opinión hay un claro y sobresaliente dominio de la industria anglosajona, este año apenas han asistido empresas y profesionales no sólo de España sino también de América Latina, muchos menos que en la edición anterior, y no sé si será debido a la crisis que no se va, o al desorbitado precio de las entradas (la feria de educación más cara del mundo: 690 euros la entrada) o al predominio de la venta, de lo comercial sobre la exposición académica, en definitiva el WEM es una feria para hacer o mantener contactos, para ver las últimas tendencias mundiales o para saludar por los pasillos al Ministro de Educación de Turquía o a la Comisaria de Educación de Bruselas o al Secretario de Educación de la República Dominicana. Este año la notable ausencia de los chinos se hizo notar, vinieron menos de Nigeria, muchos de Italia, y de Malasia, con uno de los stands más grandes, junto a los ya clásicos de Canadá, Alemania, Suecia, etc., sigo pensando que vale la pena ir al WEM aunque sea pagando, si se quiere disponer en pocos días de una visión muy amplia de lo que está pasando en el mundo del e-learning, desde un magnífico portal brasileño hasta una imaginativa solución formativa made in Australia o un proyecto europeo liderado por una consultora polaca o un matrimonio de profesores de Arizona que vienen a ver Europa y de paso aprender algo. El WEM puede consolidarse como el zoco internacional de la compra venta, la cita imprescindible para los que deseen vender y hasta comprar lo último en e-learning. Lástima que el español sea algo residual casi inexistente en este panorama global dominado por el inglés. Si no hacemos algo en pocos años todos nos formaremos en inglés, lo malo que la incipiente industria que empieza a desarrollarse aquí en España lo tiene muy duro si pretende dominar su mercado natural de 400 millones de hispanohablantes, máxime si se olvida de competir en este mercado mundial y de ofrecer sus buenos productos, quedarse en casa está bien cuando no quieres que te vean, pero no cuando vender es imperativo para crecer. Sencillamente el e-learning mundial se escribe en inglés y lo español apenas cuenta.

Y al regresar a Barcelona fui expresamente a ver en Madrid, la primera edición de Expomanagement donde AEFOL tuvo un stand y pude ver como los 3.500 directivos que asistieron a este macroevento utilizaban sus auriculares para entender a los grandes gurús invitados por la excelente organización, todos norteamericanos, en una sala de conferencias al más puro estilo USA y entendí porque el e-learning nació en ese país y porque nuestros directivos paran sus motores para escuchar las lecciones magistrales de grandes maestros. Aprender está de moda y como dijo Jack Welch: “hay que salir más de los despachos para saber lo que pasa en tu empresa” y parafraseando les digo yo: “si quieres vender no te quedes en tu despacho, lucha por estar presente en un mercado global, todavía estáis a tiempo: empresas españolas, va quedando menos tiempo”.

© José Lozano Galera

Presidente de AEFOL

“EL INGLÉS ES UNA LLAVE QUE ABRE MUCHAS PUERTAS”

Al inaugurar el Primer Encuentro Nacional de Profesores de Inglés en la Universidad Católica, el Ministro de Educación, Sergio Bitar, se refirió en especial al Plan de Inglés que impulsa ese Ministerio público. Ante más de 300 docentes que ejercen funciones en enseñanza básica y media en establecimientos particulares y municipalizados y en universidades e institutos, el Ministro señaló que el trabajo entre pares es una de las estrategias que ha demostrado más efectividad en el mundo para el desarrollo profesional de los educadores. Por eso, dijo, este evento tiene especial significado para el Ministerio de Educación. “Asumimos que éste es un espacio que permite compartir las experiencias que ustedes tienen en la sala de clases. Valoro también la realización de talleres en que se compartirán metodologías innovadoras, materiales y nuevas ideas”, señaló.

La jornada estuvo centrada en una serie de talleres, exposiciones de materiales didácticos y mólulos de información sobre aquellas instituciones que ofrecen intercambios. También estuvieron presentes las principales editoriales de textos de inglés y librerías bilingües del mercado.

A continuación, el Ministro enumeró las ventajas que presenta el aprendizaje del idioma inglés, como conseguir empleo, obtener una mejor remuneración, acceder a estudios en el extranjero, cursar con éxito estudios universitarios, desarrollar negocios de exportación y comunicarse con personas de otros países y culturas. “El inglés es una llave que abre muchas puertas”, dijo.

En el sudeste asiático se han dado pasos importantes en este sentido. El aprendizaje del inglés allí ha sido entendido como una política nacional y ha operado de la mano con el desarrollo de la industria, de la tecnología, del impulso exportador y el contacto con el mundo. Citó el caso de Malasia, donde se están invirtiendo muchos recursos para elevar la enseñanza del inglés. A partir de este año ese país ha comenzado a enseñar ciencias y matemáticas en inglés, a partir del primer año de enseñanza media.

En Chile, el Ministerio de Educación ha anunciado un Plan de Inglés y se está trabajando para ponerlo en práctica. Tenemos que asegurar, dijo el Ministro, que todo estudiante chileno tenga la oportunidad de disponer de esta llave que abre las puertas. Para ellos hemos definido una serie de acciones, lo primero que propone es que el país cuente con estándares de aprendizaje; que se fortalezca el desarrollo profesional docente; que se apoye la docencia en la escuela y se respalde la creación de empleos en el país, ofreciendo más y mejores cursos de inglés a técnicos de nivel medio y superior, y a micro, pequeños y medianos empresarios. “Es uno de nuestros grandes desafíos como país”, advirtió.

El seminario internacional de profesores de inglés fue organizado por la Facultad de Letras de la Universidad Católica y por la IATEFL (Association of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language), agrupación que reúne a cerca de 600 docentes que enseñan el idioma.

Según anunció el Ministro Bitar durante el encuentro, en el marco de un plan de apoyo a la escuela, para este años se ha licitado un programa piloto para un máximo de 500 profesores a los cuales se les ofrecerá un curso de inglés a distancia.

Para el 2004 está prevista una prueba de diagnóstico a 3.000 alumnos de 8º básico y a 3.000 alumnos de 4º medio, con el objetivo de verificar el nivel de aprendizaje que tienen, de manera de afinar las estrategias futuras. “Esto permitirá que en el año 2005 Chile cuente con estándares nacionales e internacionales alineados que definan con claridad qué deben saber los alumnos”, señaló el Ministro.

Así también, el 2007, mil 500 profesores que enseñan inglés en Enseñanza Básica y Media que cuentan con la debida especialización, deberán tener la certificación de acuerdo con los estándares internacionales correspondientes al nivel Preliminary English Test (PET) , el segundo nivel de competencias establecido por el The Association of Language Testers in Europe (ALTE).

En el 2010, los alumnos de 8º básico y de 4º medio deberán alcanzar los estándares del Key English Test (KET) y del Preliminary English Test (PET), respectivamente, mientras que todos los profesores de inglés deben estar acreditados internacionalemente con un nivel mínimo equivalente al First Certificate in English (FCE).

Ana María Bolumburu


“50 palabras a la semana bastan para aprender INGLÉS”
Casi 10.000 personas en España ya han probado ‘El inglés con 1.000 palabras’, un sencillo método creado por Carlos Maurer. El sistema se basa en el aprendizaje de 50 palabras a la semana. Una tarea sencilla, que en 20 semanas permitiría dominar el inglés escrito al 85 %, pudiendo así leer y mantener una conversación fluida.

Olvídate de los phrasal verbs, de la voz pasiva o los reported speech, la clave para aprender inglés está en el vocabulario. Así lo asegura Carlos Maurer, autor del método ‘El inglés con 1.000 palabras’ que está cosechando un gran éxito en nuestro país con cerca de 10.000 alumnos. CCC, uno de los mejores centros de educación a distancia de Europa y que cuenta con una completa y diversa oferta formativa, ofrece la posibilidad de acceder a este método de aprendizaje, con logros evidentes y demostrables, para aprender inglés.

Su método se fundamenta en un estudio realizado a principios del siglo XX, según el cual en Estados Unidos mil palabras componían el 92% del inglés escrito. Los educadores de las escuelas primarias se sirvieron de este estudio para tratar de solucionar el problema de ortografía de sus alumnos. De esta forma, comenzaron a aplicar un sistema para que sus estudiantes aprendiesen ese vocabulario, y así solucionar el problema ortográfico que padecían los americanos con su propio idioma.

Cuando Carlos Maurer conoció este informe, se planteó la posibilidad de aplicar los resultados a la enseñanza del inglés para extranjeros. Se puso en marcha y realizó las investigaciones pertinentes para averiguar cuáles son las mil palabras más utilizadas actualmente.

Este sistema no se ha diseñado solamente para principiantes. Es cierto que el método inicia el aprendizaje del inglés desde el principio para tener la seguridad de que se aprenden las mil palabras cruciales; sin embargo, quien ya tenga conocimientos del idioma, pasará rápidamente las lecciones que contengan palabras que ya conoce.

El Método es muy sencillo. Sólo consta de 20 cuadernos y 10 CDs. No hay dibujos, ni fotografías, ni diccionarios, ni DVD´s. En cada cuaderno se aprende el uso de únicamente 50 palabras nuevas. Y en los CDs, se aprende a pronunciar esas palabras aprendidas y a emplearlas en las distintas frases o situaciones. Y para facilitar a los alumnos el aprendizaje, el Curso de inglés incluye un reproductor de CDs portátil.

El Instituto Maurer y CCC garantizan por escrito que el alumno que finalice el curso aprenderá el idioma al 85%, lo que permite leer y llevar una conversación sin dificultad, incluso para quienes se inician desde cero.

Carlos Maurer ha tenido la amabilidad de atendernos a fin de explicar su revolucionario método para aprender inglés con 1.000 palabras:

a+ Hola Carlos, ¿en qué se basa este método?

Carlos Maurer.- Este curso parte del castellano para poder aprender inglés. Se basa en el vocabulario y no en la gramática. De hecho, pedimos expresamente a los alumnos que no memoricen la gramática, ya que eso no les va a servir: las oraciones deben formularse porque sabes cómo decir el mensaje, no porque conoces la estructura de cómo se tiene que expresar.

a+ ¿En cuánto tiempo se puede aprender inglés?

C.M.- Tras varios estudios, llegamos a la conclusión de que una persona puede aprender, sin dificultades, unas 50 palabras a la semana. Es decir, que en 20 semanas, llega a las mil palabras que necesita para conocer el inglés escrito al 85%, lo que permite leer y llevar una conversación sin problemas. En definitiva, en unos cinco meses, un alumno que comienza de cero puede llegar a desenvolverse en este idioma. En el caso de que nos refiramos a estudiantes que ya conocen palabras inglesas, el tiempo se reduce.

a+. ¿Cuál es la principal dificultad con la que se topan las personas?

C.M.- El mayor obstáculo que hemos detectado reside en el propio alumno, más que en el idioma. Muchos se sienten mal cuando empiezan a hablar en inglés, ya que les acompleja pronunciarlo con acento. Este hecho les restringe y les frena en su progresión. Sin embargo, a todos ellos hay que recordarles que los ingleses que vienen a España, se comunican en castellano con acento y eso nunca les cohíbe. Hablar con acento no significa que desconoces el idioma, solamente indica que uno se desenvuelve en inglés, pero con su deje de origen, nada más.

a+ ¿En qué países se está ofreciendo?

C.M.- En España, Latinoamé­rica y en Estados Unidos. Está teniendo éxito en todos los lugares donde se está impartiendo: por ejemplo, aquí se presenta mi método entre la oferta de cursos que ofrece CCC.

a+ ¿Se puede considerar un programa elemental?

C.M.- No se puede calificar de básico, ya que a través de él, el alumno llega a aprender el 85% del idioma. No se trata de un inglés primitivo, enseña el inglés que todo el mundo habla. Seguramente, que si ahora mismo alguien hace un estudio de cuántas palabras se usan en castellano habitualmente, salen unas mil, y por ello, no decimos que las personas se comunican con un español básico. A menos de que el inglés se convierta en la profesión de uno, con esas mil palabras, la gente se puede desenvolver sin dificultades.

a+ ¿Qué perfil de alumno se apunta?

C.M.- Es muy amplio, ya que el tipo de alumno que participa en este curso abarca a todas las personas que no saben inglés: estudiantes, profesionales que necesitan tratar con empresas extranjeras y así un largo etcétera.

a+ ¿Este método para aprender inglés se puede trasladar a otros idiomas?

C.M.- Hay que darse cuenta que existen idiomas más sencillos que otros. La construcción de oraciones en inglés es más fácil que en las lenguas romances. Por ejemplo, en el castellano y en el francés nos topamos con la dificultad del género: cuando una persona dice casa, debe saber que es femenino, algo que se reconoce por medio del artículo; al igual, que si pronuncia una palabra masculina, como coche. El artículo se modifica, algo que no sucede en inglés. Aunque esto no significa, que en estas lenguas no se pueda hablar correctamente con mil palabras: ya que se puede hacer de igual manera.

John D. Willis propone la reflexión como mejor método para aprender idiomas
Este prestigioso docente ha expuesto esta semana en San Sebastián su particular forma de entender el aprendizaje de idiomas, abogando por una metodología que incite al alumno a conocer la lengua a través de la “investigación” y la reflexión.

El curso que sobre Léxico y Aprendizaje de Lenguas: Fundamentos y aplicaciones Pedagógicas se ha desarrollado esta semana los Cursos de Verano de la UPV/EHU en colaboración con HABE ha contado en la jornada del jueves con la presencia del profesor de la Birmingham University, John David Willis.

A través de la ponencia “Orientaciones metodológicas para el desarrollo de la competencia léxica” Willis ha expuesto las tesis recogidas en su libro “El programa de estudios léxicos” (1990).

Según explicó el director del curso y miembro de HABE Joanba Bergara “este libro resulta fundamental a la hora de planificar un modelo de enseñanza léxica”. Una metodología de aprendizaje “atomista”, en la que “se parte del elemento, la palabra, para desembarcar en un único puerto, el acto comunicativo”. “Antes se estudiaba el léxico para buscar la traducción correcta, pero el léxico es combinatorio”.

En este sentido, la propuesta de Willis se centra en el aprendizaje gramatical y lexical del lenguaje, “basado en la noción del lenguaje como sistema de significación” y al que los alumnos accederán siempre y cuando se realice a través de tareas. “Los alumnos también tienen que investigar sobre la lengua que están aprendiendo”.

Esta metodología tiene, según Willis, un valor añadido: “Ayuda al alumno a organizar sus pensamientos y conocimientos sobre la lengua que estudian”. Anima a los alumnos a reconocer patrones y estructuras de forma sistemática y utiliza los diccionarios de forma creativa. Lo que otro de los ponentes de este curso, el irlandés David Singleton, ha definido como concienciación de la lengua.

Y es que para el profesor británico tenemos una lengua, el inglés, en la que se emplean muy pocas palabras. “Con tan solo 2.500 palabras uno cubre el 86% de todo el lenguaje que emplea”. Además, “la mayoría de estas palabras no significan nada (generalmente suelen ser preposiciones)”

Por eso, Willis afirma que la enseñanza léxica se basa en el estudio de las frecuencias de las palabras más comunes. “Preguntarse por qué se utilizan tanto, ver su utilización y comprobar cómo se portan”. Con un claro objetivo: “encontrar y realizar bucles semánticos que ayuden al alumno a familiarizarse con la lengua que estudian”. “No hay que perder el tiempo trabajando con palabras poco comunes”, concluye.

Contenidos

THE DANGER OF WORDS
DEFINITIONS of concepts most used in anti-racist work

"I am not a racist, because I have nothing against black people, if they assimilate and follow our rules. In fact, some of my friends are black..."

Maybe you have been confronted with this opinion, or a similar one.
Maybe you have tried to explain that what you mean by tolerance does not mean that everything is permitted. Maybe you have experienced confusion when speaking with someone from another part of Europe about 'left' and 'right'.

In this information leaflet we want to start a discussion about certain terms we use often in our daily work. The 'definitions' in this leaflet are ideas. They are not the unique and only expression of an unchangeable truth. Language is constantly changing and so are terms and concepts. In time they may change and come to mean something else. In international cooperation, but in fact even in cooperation with our next door neighbours, we must be aware that what we say may mean something else to another person. We should be aware of the 'danger of words'.

HUMAN RIGHTS	EQUALITY	TOLERANCE	INTOLERANCE	PREJUDICE
DISCRIMINATION	XENOPHOBIA	RACISM	ANTISEMITISM	FASCISM
NAZISM	HOMOPHOBIA	SEXISM	NATION	NATIONALISM
PATRIOTISM	INTERNATIONALISM	INTERCULTURALISM	MULTICULTURALISM	INTEGRATION
ASSIMILATION	SOCIAL EXCLUSION	MINORITY	MIGRANT	REFUGEE
ASYLUM-SEEKER	ILLEGAL	SOLIDARITY	DEMOCRACY	LEFT - RIGHT

HUMAN RIGHTS
Human Rights are rights that every human being, with no exception, should enjoy. These rights are based on the ideas of philosophers of the "Enlightenment" of the 18th century. Human Rights include social rights (which are rights that need positive interference by the government, such as work, housing, food, etc.) and political rights (which essentially guarantee non-interference of the government, such as the freedom of thought and expression, protection against detention and torture, etc.). All countries in Europe, except a few very small or new ones, have signed the European Declaration of Human Rights or the UN Declaration of Human Rights. There is discussion on the inclusion of rights such as the right to live without environmental polution.

EQUALITY
Equality is the state of being equal. It means that no person counts more than another, whatever his or her parents are, whatever his or her social position is. Of course, people are not identical to one another in their interests, abilities, and lifestyles. So equality for people is about having the same rights and the same chances. People must have equal opportunities to succeed in education or work, depending on their own efforts. Equality will only be a reality when people have the same access to housing, social security, civil rights and citizenship.

TOLERANCE
Tolerance is respect, acceptance and appreciation of the rich diversity of our world's cultures, forms of expression and ways of being human. Tolerance is harmony in difference. It is fostered by knowledge, openness, communication and freedom of thought, conscience and belief. Tolerance is being yourself without imposing your views on others. Tolerance is not giving in or giving up. Tolerance is, above all, an active attitude prompted by recognition of the universal human rights and fundamental freedoms of others. The practice of tolerance doesn't mean toleration of social injustice or the abandonment or weakening of one's conviction. Tolerance is not always a positive concept. More traditional meanings of the word tolerance do not include respect or acceptance.

INTOLERANCE
Intolerance is a lack of respect for practices or beliefs of others. This is shown when someone is not willing to let other people act in a different way or hold different opinions. Intolerance can mean that people are not treated fairly because of their religious beliefs, their sexuality, or even their clothes and hairstyle. Intolerance does not accept difference. It lies at the basis of racism, antisemitism, xenophobia and discrimination in general. It can often lead to violence.

PREJUDICE
When you form an opinion about a person, without knowing him, on the basis of assumed characteristics of the group you think he belongs to, then you are prejudiced. Prejudices are complex ideas that are preformed and presumed without being proven right. The mind of human beings cannot work completely without prejudice. By becoming aware of the prejudices we have, we can overcome them. When someone is prejudiced, he will be inclined to see only those things that confirm his ideas and thus strengthen his prejudice, and the stereotypes he believes in. A stereotype is generalised judgement about categories of people.

DISCRIMINATION
Discrimination is judging someone, and acting towards that person in a negative way, on the basis of certain irrelevant characteristics such as skin colour, sex, sexuality, nationality, social class, ethnic origin, etc.

XENOPHOBIA
Taken literally, "xenophobia" means a fear of strangers. The word is used to describe hostility towards people who come from other countries or other ethnic groups, as well as a lack of respect for their traditions and culture.

RACISM
Racism is the belief that some people are superior because they belong to a particular race. Racists define a race as a group of people with common ancestry. They distinguish different races from one another by physical characteristics, such as skin colour and hair texture. In fact, there are no clear differences, and especially no significant differences that matter. Recent research shows that race is an imagined entity. "Race" has no biological basis. The word "racism" is also used to describe abusive or aggressive behaviour towards members of a so-called "inferior race". Racism takes different forms in different countries, according to history, culture and other social factors. A relatively new form of racism sometimes called "ethnic or cultural differentiation" says that all races or cultures are equal but they should not mix together to keep their originality. There is no scientific proof of the existence of different races. Biology has only determined one race: the human race.

ANTISEMITISM
Antisemitism is prejudice against Jewish people. Antisemites wrongly believe that Jews are fundamentally different from other people. They often believe that Jews want to rule the world and are trying to reach this goal through a worldwide conspiracy. This form of xenophobic intolerance leads to discrimination against individuals as well as the persecution of Jews as a group. The most horrific manifestation of antisemitism came with Hitler's rise to power and the Nazi ideology of racial purity. Millions of Jewish people, deported from all countries controlled by Germany, died in concentration camps during the Holocaust. However, antisemitism did not start nor end with the Holocaust. It is deeply rooted in European culture and still manifests itself today.

FASCISM
Fascism is a violent reactionary right-wing political movement, which manifests itself ultimately in an openly terrorist dictatorship. Fascism gains support among all social groups especially in times of political and economical crises, it destroys democratic liberties and discriminates members of specific (ethnic) minorities and people with different views. Fascists believe in the just leadership of a strong man, instead of parliamentary democracy. Fascism builds on a strong nationalism that often turns racist. The most brutal form of fascism was the national-socialist dictatorship in Germany 1933-1945, but this is by far not the only fascist dictatorship in history. The word 'fascism' was coined by the Italian dictatorship of Mussolini. We often speak of Fascism with a capital 'f' when we speak of this specific ideology in this specific historical context and about 'fascism' when we speak about the generic 'family of ideologies'. Those who believe in this ideology nowadays are called 'neo-fascists'.

NAZISM
Nazism is the ideology and policy of the German fascism that manifested itself most prominently from 1933-1945, and which was characterised by racism, antisemitism, totalitarianism, social demagogy, aggression, violence and superiority claims over other nations. The word Nazism is short for national-socialism, which was a political movement in Germany led by NSDAP (The German national-socialistic workers party). The NSDAP was founded in 1919 and in 1933 took absolute power in Germany. It was pronounced a criminal organisation at the Nuremberg trial after World War II. The nazi regime was responsible for the deaths of millions of civilians, part of whom were gassed in concentration camps, because of their (presumed) difference. Especially persecuted groups were Jews, Roma, homosexuals and communists/socialists. Some groups identify themselves with the ideals of nazism even today. They are called neo-nazis. Neo-nazis sometimes manifest themselves as skinheads, but not all of them do and not all skinheads are neo-nazis.

HOMOPHOBIA
The fear and hatred of homosexuals is called homophobia. Homosexuals are sometimes seen as 'mad, bad and sad': as psychologically ill, as perverts or as pitiful cases. A lot of homophobia comes from religious beliefs. In general, homophobic people see another person's (homo)sexuality first and his/her humanity only later. Homosexuals have been persecuted for centuries and are still persecuted in many countries. As the word 'homosexual' is often seen as defining a 'disease', many prefer to use the word gay, or lesbian or GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered).

SEXISM
Sexism is making an unfounded difference between men and women. Physiologically speaking men and women are built differently, which is the only reason why it is sometimes appropriate to treat them differently. To unfairly differentiate between men and women is discrimination. Sexism is a form of discrimination. Instead of speaking of sexes, activists often refer to 'gender'. Sex is a biological term, gender a sociological or political term. Gender is the way society defines masculinity and femininity.

NATION
A nation is a group of people who have the desire to see themselves as one coherent group. They recognise a common ancestry, a common history and often a common territory. Nations are not organic, biological or natural entities. They exist because of the will of people. They are 'imagined'. This does not make them less real in the world, as we have to deal with what people believe exists. The idea of the existence of nations as the essential building blocks of our world is relatively new, it has come up during the 19th century. States that wanted to unify the people in their country propagated the idea of one nation, with one history, one language and one territory.

NATIONALISM
Nationalism is a political ideology that puts interests of one "nation" or national group above the interests of others and above all other relationships, be they to family, friends, gender or humanity. It is often linked with a territorial claim. Nationalism makes a difference between people as a result of a border, which often had nothing to do with the people living in the region but with the king or other authority putting a line on a map. This political idea proclaims citizens of one nation to be superior to others and usually leads to suspicion of other nations. An extreme form of this is chauvinism. Originally the notion of nationalism was not so negative, as it also dealt with the development of citizen's rights and the emancipation of sometimes oppressed minorities. However, when the concept becomes linked to heritage, identity and 'blood' it becomes a dangerous idea.

PATRIOTISM
Patriotism means being proud to be a member of one's own nation, or loving one's nation. Patriotism stems from emotional attitude to nationality and its culture and society. Friendship with other countries and nationalities is still possible in this way of thinking, and it can respect their rights and interests. Although it is different from (political) nationalism, patriotism can easily become the motor for an intolerant nationalism.

INTERNATIONALISM
This is a vision of the world in which human life, human rights and human dignity are viewed as more important and more essential than nationality. Internationalism is the refusal of recognising any real basic differences between members of the human race of all nationalities. People who believe in internationalism, will as a consequence struggle against nationalism, racism, fascism, sexism, antisemitism, homophobia and other forms of intolerance.

INTERCULTURALISM
This is the belief that we become richer people by knowing and experiencing other cultures. Different people should be able to live together, although they have different cultural backgrounds. Interculturalism is about accepting and respecting differences. People who believe in interculturalism believe they can learn and profit from meeting other cultures.

MULTICULTURALISM
Multiculturalism means the existence or the promotion of the existence of different cultures alongside each other, usually in one country. Many people use this concept when they speak of an anti-racist future. But multiculturalism can also mean the mutual isolation of cultures. Some racists believe in a kind of multiculturalism that is close to the 'apartheid'-system that existed in South Africa, where different cultures were separated in a cruel and unjust way.

INTEGRATION
Integration is a process of unifying individuals and activities into a new system. It means that minority groups and the majority group develop a new way of living, which includes elements of the values and ideas of both groups. Integration also means that everyone finds a place in society. There are no fundamental divisions between groups.

ASSIMILATION
Assimilation is the suppression of differences. Sometimes individuals choose to assimilate of their own free will, but this process is mostly forced upon groups against their wishes. Assimilation forces one group to give up its culture in favour of another. Usually the minority takes over the culture of the majority.

SOCIAL EXCLUSION
Social exclusion is the opposite of social integration. It is usually seen as a result of discrimination on the basis of cultural background, ethnic background, disability, sexual orientation, etc. It usually results in poverty, animosity between groups and exclusion from essential social provisions such as education, health care and community activities. This exclusion is not always based on laws (although it often is) but also often on attitude: making standards too high to reach for certain groups, reinforcing a dress code a group can't comply with, etc. One example of a socially excluded group is homeless people.

MINORITY
A minority group is a group of persons resident within a area in which it constitutes at least less than the biggest grouping within the population and whose members share common characteristics of either an ethnic, religious, linguistic or other nature that distinguish them from the rest of the population. Sometimes we consider a group a minority, not because of the percentage of people it contains in an area, but because of the position they are in. A minority has a lower social and/or economic position than the majority. It does not have as much power as the majority group. Sometimes a minority sees itself as a separate nation.

MIGRANT
A migrant is a person who moves from his home country to another country. Migrants are different from refugees. They have not fled from danger of persecution. Most migrants move to another country to build a better life for themselves and their families. In modern terminology, all refugees who are not awarded refugee status are migrants. The differences are often administrative and not based on a fundamental difference. A lot of migrants have faced life-threatening situations in their homelands.

REFUGEE
A refugee is a person who flees in the face of danger or a life-threatening situation. Refugees are sometimes defined as those asylum-seekers that are awarded a refugee status and sometimes as anyone who needs refuge from danger. The choice between those definitions is a political one, not a linguistic one. Sometimes economic refugees are also recognised. They are people who flee from economic uncertainty, exploitation, hunger and misery. The Geneva Convention definition is detailed and somewhat restrictive. It includes those persons that are persecuted on the basis of their supposed race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion. The African definition of refugee includes those seeking refuge from natural disasters and famine too. The recent Dublin agreements limit the Geneva Convention definition to refer only to political persecution of individuals by the state.

ASYLUM-SEEKER
An asylum-seeker is a person who seeks protection in a country, and wants to receive the status of refugee. In many countries asylum-seekers are kept in detention. Some are turned back at the border. Only a small percentage of asylum-seekers are granted the permission to stay.

ILLEGAL
Most people in our working fields don't use the term illegal any more, but refer to a person without the right papers as 'sans-papiers' (which literally means "without papers"). Someone can be illegal because he comes into the country without permission, or does not have a residence permit while living in the country, or because the government decides to change its rules and suddenly the right to stay is withdrawn.

SOLIDARITY
We define solidarity as a sense of togetherness, commonness of a certain degree (sympathy, moral support, material help, co-operation), which is displayed towards each other by countries, groups of people or individuals. Solidarity can be both passive (as in sympathy) and active (as in material help and co-operation).

DEMOCRACY
Democracy is a word from ancient Greek, which means "government by the people". In Europe the philosophers of the "Enlightenment" have developed it further. Nowadays the term democracy usually refers to the concept of a state, which includes more than just voting for representatives in an election. Democracy, in this case, also means being able to participate in society with the same rights as other people. Participation is taking part in an activity together with other people, such as in a youth organisation, and being involved in making decisions. This view of democracy includes listening to opinions of the minority even if the majority has a different opinion. This ideal includes being able to deal with diversity and eventually to come to a compromise for the good of everybody.

LEFT - RIGHT
The political terms of 'left and 'right' originally refer to the seating positions in the General Assembly of the first French republic. They have come to mean different things over time and probably will change meaning again as years go by. In general 'left' usually means: progressive, believing in the possibility of change, in favour of equality and the protection of the weaker. 'Right' usually means conservative, believing in stability and continuity, in favour of the victory of the best and the leadership of an elite. It is important to understand that this term has become especially complicated in Central and Eastern Europe, where 'socialism' has begun to refer to conservative groups and 'centre' often refers to groups that would in the West be called 'right'.

Sara's upset stomach

Sara needed to see the doctor. She had an upset stomach. She felt bloated, and needed to pass gas every minute or so. This was terrible. She couldn’t go anywhere in public.

Her friends told her it was because she had moved to America. The air, water, and food in America weren’t agreeing with her. They said she would have to return to her home country.

"No way," Sara said. She didn’t want to go home. She liked America. This was a minor problem, she was sure. Any good doctor would solve it in no time. Two days later, she saw her doctor. He asked her if she drank milk. She said yes, three glasses a day.

“Don’t drink any more regular milk. Start drinking lactose-free milk, because lactose can upset your stomach."

Then he asked her if there were any big problems in her life. She said that her boyfriend was a big problem. He wanted to get married, but she didn’t. The doctor said that she should find another boyfriend.

"Why?" Sara asked.

"Because your boyfriend is giving you too much stress. He is probably the main cause of your upset stomach."

"I don’t think my boyfriend is going to like that."

"Just tell him if he really loves you, he should leave you."

Cameras in Police Cars

The Rockford police chief and some city officials want to install video cameras in all 100 police cars. They think this will reduce the number of lawsuits filed against the city. In the last five years, Rockford has paid out more than five million dollars to settle about 40 lawsuits.

The chief said, “If cameras had been in those cars, we wouldn’t have had to pay one dime. We’re always pulling over drunks or drug users who try to fight the cops or shoot them. Then they always claim that the police started beating them first or started shooting at them first. What hogwash!”

The cost of installing cameras will be about $500 per vehicle. The city council will vote on the proposal next Monday. Ten of the 13 council members, when asked about the proposal, said that they liked the idea. One member said that it makes good fiscal sense and common sense. If the cameras are approved, they can be installed in all the cars within six weeks.

The police officers enthusiastically support camera use. One officer said that too many people think the police are liars; cameras would show citizens that police tell the truth. “The money that we’ve been spending on lawsuits will be better spent on more cameras,” said one officer.

Citizen reaction to the idea of police car cameras is mixed. One person said that the police should have started doing this years ago when video cameras were invented. But an elderly man said that cameras were an invasion of privacy. “These police are trying to stick their nose into everything,” he said. He was going to attend the council meeting to condemn the proposal. He hoped that other citizens would join him.

Questions

1. Who want to install video cameras?

   
   
   

2. According to the chief, what do drunks and drug users try to do?

   
   
   

3. What will the cost of installing cameras be?

   
   
   

4. When will the city council vote on the proposal?

   
   
   

5. How many city council members are there?

   
   
   

6. What did ten council members think of the proposal?

   
   
   

7. How long will it take to install all the cameras?

   
   
   

8. According to one officer, what do too many people think?

   
   
   

9. What is citizen reaction to the idea of cameras?

   
   
   

10. According to an elderly man, what are the police trying to do?

    
    

FRASES Y VOCABULARIO ÚTIL INGLÉS-ESPAÑOL
PARA VIAJAR AL EXTRANJERO

Asking for information Could you tell me the way to the station? ¿Podría decirme el camino para ir a la estación Which way is the Eiffel tower from here? ¿Cómo se va a la torre Eiffel desde aquí? Could you tell me where is the Museum? ¿Podría decirme dónde está el museo? Where is the nearest bus-stop? ¿Dónde está la parada de bus más cercana? Excuse me, could you tell me how to get to Round Street, please? Disculpe, ¿podría decirme cómo llegar a Round Street, por favor?

Directions turn right / go right: girar a la derecha turn left : girar a la izquierda take the first left / take the first on your left: girar la primera a la izquierda take the second left: girar la segunda a la izquierda go straight on / carry on / walk along there: seguir recto, caminar recto Which way do we go? ¿Por dónde tenemos que ir? Turn right out of the hotel and carry straight on for about 150 metres. Salga del hotel y gire a la derecha y siga recto unos 150 metros. Then you come to a roundabout. Take the first exit. Entonces entrará en una rotonda. Tome la primera salida. Then you walk along there for about another 200 metres and then you'll find the station. Entonces siga recto alrededor de otros 200 metros y encontrará la estación.

At the airport airhostess (uk) / air stewardess (us): azafata boarding card /pass: tarjeta de embarque check-in: facturación (del equipaje) departure lounge: sala de embarque to land: aterrizar to take off: despegar Could I have your ticket, please? ¿Podría darme su billete, por favor? Do you have any baggage? ¿Tiene equipaje? Yes, this suitcase and this briefcase. Si, esta maleta y este maletin Here's your boarding pass. Have a nice flight. Aquí tiene su tarjeta de embarque. Que tenga un buen vuelo. Good morning. Can I see your passport? Buenos días. ¿Puedo ver su pasaporte? Are you a tourist or on business? ¿Viaja como turista o va de negocios? Which boarding gate must we go to? ¿A qué puerta de embarque tenemos que ir? At what time does our plane take off? ¿A qué hora despega nuestro avión? The plane is delayed. El avión está demorado

At the hotel to check in: registrarse to check out: pagar e irse del hotel full board: pensión completa half board: media pensión single /double bed: cama individual / doble single / double room: habitación individual / doble to book a room: reservar una habitación no vacancies: completo vacancies: habitaciones libres I'd like a room for the night. Quisiera una habitación para la noche Would you like a single room, or a double room? ¿Quiere una habitación individual o doble? How much is the room? ¿Cuánto cuesta la habitación? Here's your key. Your room number is 101. Aquí está su llave. Su habitación es la 101. If you need anything, dial 0 for the reception area. Si necesita cualquier cosa, marque el 0 para contactar con recepción

At the shop discount: descuento cut-price: de oferta bargain: ocasión, ganga cash desk / checkout: caja reduction: descuento shop assistant (uk) / salesperson (us): dependiente/a to wrap up: envolver receipt: recibo How would you like to pay? ¿Cómo quiere pagar? Do you take credit cards? ¿Aceptan tarjetas de crédito? What's its price? ¿Qué precio tiene? I'll try it on. Me lo probaré. How much is altogether? ¿Cuánto es todo?

At the restaurant Dish of the day: plato del día House wine: vino de la casa Set meat: menú del día Dessert: postre Lunch: almuerzo, comida Starter: primer plato, entrante Main course / dish: segundo plato, plato principal Meal: comida Side dish: acompañamiento Rare / Medium / well-done: poco hecho / al punto / muy hecho Can I see a menu, please? ¿Puedo ver el menú, por favor? What's today's special? ¿Cuál es el plato especial de hoy? Would you like something to drink? ¿Quiere algo de beber? Yes, I'd like a coke. Si, quisiera una coca cola I'd like the check (bill ), please. Quisiera la cuenta, por favor Waiter, the bill, please. Camarero, traiga la cuenta por favor.

Means of transportation Cab, taxi: taxi Taxi rank, Cab rank (us): parada de taxis Bus: autobús Bus-station: estación de autobuses Bus-stop: parada de autobús Tube, Underground (uk), Subway (us): metro Railway station (uk), railroad station (us): estación de ferrocarril Luggage rack: portaequipajes Are you free? ¿Está libre? Take me to the station. Lléveme a la estación What is the fare? ¿Cuánto es el trayecto? How much is one card? ¿Cuánto cuesta una tarjeta? Could you tell me when we get there? ¿Me podría avisar cuando lleguemos? Where does this bus go to? ¿A dónde va este autobús?