Asociación de Profesores de Inglés de Buenos Aires Asociación Civil sin Fines de Lucro Personería Jurídica c.7111 Res. 8524/79 CUIT 30-66211994-2
Newsletter 18 S e p t e m b e r
2 0 0 3
Table o off content contentss
From the President
As we come to the end of another presidential term, it is fit and proper to look back over what has been achieved. I can honestly say that there has been a steep but enjoyable learning curve. Over these years it has been possible to understand more clearly what is feasible, what is difficult and what is impossible to achieve in our context. On a very personal note, I can say that it has been an enriching experience to have been able to work with many colleagues, drawing on everyone's strengths, to attain the best results. When I joined the APIBA Executive Committee, as a Member, back in 1998, I did it knowing there was a lot to be done. Now, after five years, I am convinced that there is much more to be done. But I am also pleased to look back at what can be achieved with people who wish to see projects through. Many things have changed, within and without the Association. However, I am still certain that the key to success is the active participation of all members. We may or may not have substantial funds in the bank, but the essential ingredient is not that. We simply cannot attain the aims of the Association with monetary resources alone. When I think back over the last two terms, I recall specific events: conferences, particularly the FAAPI 2001 Conference; publications; the APIBA SIGs (Special Interest Groups); the varied offer of events and training opportunities; the constant flow of communication to members; a certain level of administrative organization; the APIBA Web site; and the list goes on … None of these could have been achieved without the commitment of many people, too many to mention individually. There are also many pending issues, from small improvements to large projects. To name but a few: the Jobshop; an active role for the Sub-Committees; the application of a Code of Ethics; a definitive solution to the itinerant office; legal matters; greater and more fluid interaction with other like-minded organizations; greater geographic decentralization of activities; etc., etc., etc. I would like to end this piece on a positive note to encourage all those APIBA members out there who may be considering joining the Executive Committee at the forthcoming elections: you can be sure that, challenging as the job certainly is, it is also extremely rewarding; it is a unique opportunity to work on projects that are truly meaningful and on which you will be able to learn most of all from colleagues.
Cristina Banfi
• • •
From the President APIBA Annual Seminar Article 39: a thing of the past • FAAPI 2003 update • APIBA publications and how to get them • Time to step up • Discounts for members
O f f i c e
H o u r s
Remember our office hours: √ MONDAYS 10.30-12.30 (Lib. Rodríguez; Sarmiento 835) √ WEDNESDAYS 10.30-12.30 (Lib. KEL; M.T. de Alvear 1369)
Di$count$ for Members • British Arts Centre (BAC) offers a 50% discount on their play tickets, and a 25% global discount for groups of students accompanied by an APIBA member. • The National Resources Centre and AACI’s General English Library offer 25% discounts on memberships • Julia Bowland's Escuela de Radio y Comunicación offers a 20% discount on all regular courses. Information available from www.bowland.com.ar To claim these benefits, bring along your membership card and your receipt for the current year.
A P I BA A n n u a l S e m i n a r 2 0 0 3 S PARE
THE
R OD
AND
S POIL
THE
L EARNER
Our Annual Seminar, which will be held on October 18 from 9.00 to 3.30 at ISP "Joaquín V. González" (Rivadavia 3577, Buenos Aires city), aims at the discussion of how adolescents and adults learn English as a FL and how EFL teachers approach the teaching and testing of the phonological, lexical and grammatical systems of the English language as well as the development of language skills. And what a lineup have we gathered for the ocasion! Plenarists: Jorge Ghenadenik (SLT: the state of the art), Silvia Stagnaro & Corine Arguimbau (Evaluation). Workshop leaders: Mónica Gandolfo (How to help our students learn Vocabulary); Fernanda Velázquez & Nibia Yermos (The Grammar Experience: making it an appetizing treat!); Elizabeth White (Integrated Skills:Weaving one Activity into the Next); Gustavo González (Self-Motivation: the Best Way to Become a Resourceful Teacher). We are looking forward to this relevant, challenging and motivating group of workshops, which will be an opportunity to revise some of the timeless and never-quite-worked-out issues of ELT. After all, can you ever know too much about how our students' mind works? Can we ever be too good at our job?
Article 39: a thing of the past After years of petitioning, writing letters to the authorities, demonstrating, meeting Congress members, ranting, raving and all forms of complaining, we are pleased to report that justice has been done! The infamous Article 39 of the Higher Education Law, which denied teachers with Teacher Training College degrees access to postgraduate courses in universities, has been replaced by the text we are printing below. Needless to say, this is excellent news for all teachers (not just teachers of English), and a step forward in the status andrecognition of teaching degrees. We hope to see, in the near future, APIBA members entering postgraduate courses on the basis of their profesorado degrees! Here's the reformed text:
LEY 25754 - EDUCACION SUPERIOR. Formación de posgrado. Modificación de la Ley Nº 24521 Sancionada: Julio 16 de 2003 Promulgada: Agosto 7 de 2003 Publicación en el B.O.: 11/08/2003
El Senado y Cámara de Diputados de la Nación Argentina reunidos en Congreso, etc. sancionan con fuerza de Ley: ARTICULO 1º - Sustitúyase el artículo 39 de la Ley Nº 24.521 por el siguiente: Artículo 39: La formación de posgrado se desarrollará exclusivamente en instituciones universitarias, y con las limitaciones previstas en el artículo 40 podrá también desarrollarse en centros de investigación e instituciones de formación profesional superior de reconocido nivel y jerarquía, que hayan suscrito convenios con las universidades a esos efectos. Las carreras de posgrado -sean especialización, maestría o doctoradodeberán ser acreditadas por la Comisión Nacional de Evaluación y Acreditación Universitaria, o por entidades privadas que se constituyan con ese fin y que estén debidamente reconocidas por
el Ministerio de Educación, Ciencia y Tecnología.ARTICULO 2º - Agrégase el artículo 39 bis a la Ley Nº 24.521, que quedará redactado de la siguiente manera: Artículo 39 bis: Para acceder a la formación de posgrado, el postulante deberá contar con título universitario de grado o de nivel superior no universitario de cuatro (4) anos de duración como mínimo y reunir los prerequisitos que determine el Comité Académico o la autoridad equivalente, a fin de comprobar que su formación resulte compatible con las exigencias del posgrado al que aspira. En casos excepcionales de postulantes que se encuentren fuera de los términos precedentes, podrán ser admitidos siempre que demuestren, a través de las evaluaciones y los requisitos que la respectiva universidad establezca, poseer preparación y experiencia laboral acorde con los estudios de posgrado que se proponen iniciar así como aptitudes y conocimientos suficientes para cursarlos satisfactoriamente. En todos los casos la admisión y la obtención del título de posgrado no acredita de manera alguna el título de grado anterior correspondiente al mismo.ARTICULO 3º - Comuníquese al Poder Ejecutivo.Fdo.: EDUARDO O. CAMAÑO. - JOSE L. GIOJA. - Eduardo D. Rollano. - Juan Estrada
OUP and APIBA donate books to Profesorados APIBA would like to thank Oxford University Press for their donation of nearly 1,000 texts for teachers. The material included titles such as Communication in the Language Classroom, Context and Culture in Language Teaching, Creating Stories with Children, Cultural Awareness, Currents of Change in ELT, Discourse and Literature, Discourse in Language Teaching, Language Testing in Practice, Linguistic Imperialism, Literature and Language Teaching, Presenting New Language, Pronunciation, Second Language Acquisition, SLA Research & Language, Teaching, Storytelling with Children, Syllabus Design, Teaching & Learning in the Language, Teaching Business English, Teaching Language as Communication, Techniques in Teaching Vocabulary, Techniques in Teaching Writing, Techniques in Testing, by authors such as Ellis, Spolsky, Wallace, Widdowson, Yule, Maley, Wright, Phillipson, etc. Since APIBA does not have the material resources to run a lending library, let alone the physical space to hold this material, the Executive Committee decided that these books would best be used at those institutions that train teachers of English. Therefore, APIBA arranged for the material to be distributed to the following institutions: I.S.P. "J.V. González"; I.N.S.P.T. - U.T.N.; I.E.S. en L.V. "J.R. Fernández"; Inst. del Profesorado del CONSUDEC; Profesorado Liceo Cultural Británico; Colegio Santa Catalina; Inst. Sup. Nueva Escuela Argentina 2000; E.N.S. en L.V. "J.F. Kennedy"; Asoc. Argentina de Cultura Inglesa; Inst. Cultural Argentina Norteamericano (ICANA); Inst. de Cultura Inglesa de Buenos Aires; Inst. Colegio Granaderos; Inst. Sup. San José de Calasanz; Inst. Modelo Lomas; Inst. Sup. Cultural Británico; Colegio San José; Inst. Sup. Santa Trinidad; Inst. Privado de Estudios Superiores Almafuerte; Pontificia Univ. Católica Argentina - Fac. de Filosofía y Letras; Univ. de Morón - Fac. de Filosofía, Ciencias de la Educación y Humanidades; Univ. de la Fraternidad y Agrupaciones Santo Tomás de Aquino - Fac. de Humanidades; The Family Collage; SER Inst. Educativo; Inst. Sup. del Profesorado San Agustín; I.S.F.D. N° 42; I.S.F.D. N° 129; I.S.F.D. N° 147 "Ministro R.S. Naón"; I.S.F.D. N° 135 "Juan Emilio Cassani"; I.S.F.D. N° 016; I.S.F.D. N° 005; Inst. Domingo Faustino Sarmiento; I.S.P. "Pío XII"; I.S.P. "25 de Mayo"; I.S.P. "Presbítero Dr. A.M. Sáenz"; Liceo Sup. de Cultura Inglesa; I.S.F.D. N° 024; I.S.F.D. Nº 004, Inst. del Prof. Ciudad de Mercedes; I.S.F.D. Nº 33 "Prof. Emilio de la Calle"; I.S.F.D. Nº 154; I.S.F.D. Nº 48; I.S.F.D. y Técnica Nº32; Fundación de Altos Estudios Esteban Adrogué; Univ. Nac. de La Plata - Fac. de Humanidades; Univ. Nac. de Mar del Plata - Fac. de Humanidades. We hope many teachers and students will profit from this material.
How
to
Available
o b ta i n
A PI BA
publications
Actas Congreso APIBA "The Future of Teacher Education" Mayo 1999 Ingles@info Cassettes David Crystal (Presentaciones Agosto 5 de 2000) Cassette 1: "English Accents: Past, Present and Future" Cassette 2: "The Future of Englishes" Cuadros Comparativos de Licenciaturas y Maestrías compilado en Seminario Anual APIBA 1999 Cuadro informativo sobre Exámenes Internacionales compilado en Seminario APIBA Junio 2000 Kandel, Analía (2002) APIBA SIGs Handbook 2002. Buenos Aires: Ediciones APIBA. Day, Raymond (2002) APIBA History: A History of the Asociación de Profesores de Inglés de Buenos Aires, 1971-2001. Buenos Aires: Ediciones APIBA.
p u b l i c a t i o n s How to obtain them From APIBA office. You can also request them by fax or e-mail (info@apiba.org.ar) and pay for them via a bank deposit (cost of publication + postage) From APIBA website http://www.apiba.org.ar/ activities/9900/activities9900.htm Free of charge for APIBA Members from our office. You can also request them by fax or e-mail (info@apiba.org.ar) and pay for them via a bank deposit (cost of publication + postage)
FAAPI 2003 update Full information on the FAAPI 2003 Annual Conference HUMANIZING OUR TEACHING PRACTICE: Minding the whole person (Salta, September 18-20) is available at www.aspisalta.8k.com . The website now features details on the programme and speakers. It also has information on accomodation. There are discounts for groups of five teachers or more going to the Conference together. For information on this benefit, email organizacionfaapi2003@hotmail.com Plenary speakers are Adrian Underhill (UK), Peter Stockwell (UK), Clarice Lamb (Brazil) and Claudia Ferradas Moi (Argentina). Judith Lloyd Yero has had to cancel her visit for health reasons, but has taped a video with her plenary followed by a panel discussion. Clarice Lamb will now do Lloyd Yero's pre-conference event (September 17). The subject of the new PCE is Affective Issues in the Language Classroom. There will be a British Council Words on Words PCE on the same day. For more information, check the website. We remind members that the deadline to apply for APIBA subsidies for the conference is September 8, so there's still time!
Time to step up The Annual General Meeting will take place after the Annual Seminar (information on page 1). Many crucial matters for the future of the association will be voted on, not least of all the appointment of new committee members. We would like to urge members to consider taking up a position: it is time for new members to step up and fill the positions of those who have been in service!
U p c o m i ng
ev e n t s
I CA N A A n n u a l S e m i n a r fo r teachers of English SEPTEMBER 25 - 27 AT ICANA, MAIPÚ 672, CAPITAL Plenary Speaker: Spencer Salas (Presidential Graduate Fellow, University of Georgia, College of Education) Three workshops exploring models of participatory classrooms and curricula—ones that offer students a critical education of high quality, an experience of democratic learning, and positive feelings towards intellectual life. Registration: icanaseminar2003@icana.org.ar Deadline for email registration: September 20 Registration fee: $ 15 -fifteen pesos. Fee payable on site. On site registration opens Thursday, September 25 at 1.00 pm. Program sponsored by Embassy of the United States of America, Cultural Section
MEMBERSHIP FORM 2003 (Please feel free to make copies) From APIBA Statutes: Artículo 5º.- De los Asociados.- Se establece una sola categoría de socios. Estos deberán poseer título docente en la especialidad, expedido por: a) las Universidades nacionales, provinciales o privadas; b) los Institutos Superiores del Profesorado nacionales, provinciales o privados.- En todos los casos los títulos deberán ser los reconocidos por el Ministerio de Educación de la Nación para la impartición de la asignatura en las escuelas nacionales.- Son requisitos para ser socio de esta Asociación: 1º.- Que la solicitud haya sido aceptada por la Comisión Directiva de la Asociación. 2º.- Que el socio abone regularmente la cuota mensual1 que determina la asamblea. 1 La cuota de APIBA se abona anualmente. Ver monto al pie.
I would like to (re-)apply for membership of the Association of Teachers of English of Buenos Aires
Name:__________________________________________________________________________________ I.D. Number (DNI/LE/LC): _________________________________________________________________ Address:
Street / No: _____________________________________________________________________ Town: _________________________________________________ Post Code: _______________
Telephone Number: ______________________________ Fax Number: ______________________________ E-mail Address: ___________________________________________________________________________ Degree: _______________________ Awarded by: ________________________________ Year: __________ Work at: ______________________________________________ Position: ___________________________ [ ] 1) I am already a Member of APIBA Members need only pay outstanding dues from 2001 to the present as APIBA declared a Moratorium on dues not paid before 2000. 2) I am applying for Membership of APIBA for the first time
[
]
New members have to pay dues for the current year, submit a photocopy of their degree and two passport-sized photographs. These can be submitted by hand to any Executive Committee member or posted to the APIBA office. Remember that this is an initial step and that the application procedure is concluded when all the material is submitted and once the APIBA Committee have accepted the application. 2001 Dues ($50) $______ 2002 Dues ($50) $______ 2003 Dues before April 30 ($30) / after April 30 ($50) $______ Voluntary Contribution $______ TOTAL AMOUNT $______ Send/Bring cash or a cheque to the APIBA Office: M.T. de Alvear 1369 (Kel Ediciones), C1058AAU Buenos Aires. Or deposit total amount at any branch of Banco Francés, Cuenta Corriente Especial en $017-041719/2. By signing below you affirm that you have read APIBA Statutes and agree to be bound by them. Date: ______________________________ Signature: ______________________________________ IMPORTANT: Please write your full name on your deposit slip and fax it to (011) 4326-3927 with this form. For information about APIBA: E-mail: info@apiba.org.ar Web: www.apiba.org.ar Tel/fax (011) 4326-3927 (Librería Rodríguez)