New Routes #64

ISSN 1516-3601 #64, JAN/2018
Nuevas Rutas
Interview with
Elaine Hodgson
by Jack Scholes
Cómo trabajar la
interacción oral en el
aula de ELE
por Óscar Rodríguez García

disal_distribuidora
@disal_distribuidora
A revista dos proossionais
de idioma!
/disalchannel
blogdisal.com.br
Aqui você encontra um
mundo de conhecimento!

Há mais de meio século, servindo a
Cultura e a Educação. Só uma empresa
com essa tradição pode proporcionar
experiências com maestria!
Encontre uma de nossas livrarias mais próxima de você
ou entre em contato conosco!
www.disal.com.br
Televendas: (11) 3226-3111
E-mail: comercial@disal.com.br

Sumário
EXCLUSIVA
PARA CLIENTES DISAL
05. Editorial
06. Blog Disal
07. Opiniões -
Porque eu leio
08. News
12. Interview
16. Cover Topic
20. Slang
22. How do you say...
in English?
24. Escola em Destaque
25. Disal Indica
26. Book Review
28. Variedades
30. Dicas
Publisher
Renato Guazzelli
Editor
Jack Scholes
Conselho Editorial
Francisco Gomes de Matos
Graeme Hodgson
Heloisa Brito de Albuquerque Costa
Karen Fraser
José Olavo de Amorim
Lizika Goldchleger
Lyle French
Nancy Lake
Profª Dra. Gretel Eres Fernández
Profª Antonieta Celani
Sara Walker
Colaboradores desta edição
Alan Couto
Elaine Hodgson
Henrique Moura
Jack Scholes
José Roberto A. Igreja
Karin Heuert Galvão
Nick Robinson
Óscar Rodríguez García
Sara Walker
Tim Gifford
News
Lyrica Seki
Nuevas Rutas
Sara Tcharkhetian
Eventos
Lyrica Seki e Henrique Xavier
MKT & Comunicação Corporativa
Lyrica Seki
Arte: Projeto e Diagramação
Myatã Comunicação
Jornalista Responsável
José Nello Marques / MTP: 14162
10/32/36.
Articles
40. Nuevas Rutas
44. Eu Recomendo
A New Routes® (ISSN 1516-3601) é uma publicação
digital, quadrimestral destinada a profissionais
de idiomas, institutos de idiomas, colégios de
ensino infantil/fundamental/médio, universidades e
faculdades.
Ela é um benefício exclusivo que a Disal oferece
a seus clientes em todo o Brasil e é distribuída
gratuitamente.
Se você ainda não possui cadastro na Disal, faça-o
através do nosso site: www.disal.com.br e aproveite
mais essa vantagem de ser cliente Disal.
Em caso de dúvidas ou mais esclarecimentos, favor entrar
em contato com o departamento de Marketing Disal:
11 3226-3100 ou newroutes@disal.com.br.
Contatos comerciais:
Disal S. A. Depto. Comercial
Av. Marginal Direita do Tietê, 800
CEP 05118 100 - Jaguara - São Paulo
Tel.: 11 3226-3100 - Televendas: 11 3226-3111
e-mail: newroutes@disal.com.br
46. Atividades
Os artigos e textos desta publicação não refletem necessariamente a opinião dos editores ou do conselho editorial, assim
como os anúncios veiculados são de inteira responsabilidade dos respectivos anunciantes.
04 | New Routes® Disal

Editorial
HAPPY NEW YEAR! outdated or regressive way of teaching,
A Very Happy New Year to all New
Routes readers! The interviewee in this
first issue of 2018 is Elaine Hodgson, a
teacher whose professional career has
been built steadily and successfully
through the years and who has moved
into materials writing while remaining
in the classroom as a teacher. She
discusses many issues including the
importance of professional growth,
certificates and courses, teacher
associations and conferences, critical
thinking, taboo and difficult topics in
the classroom, feminism and gender
equality in ELT, and some of the main
new challenges teachers face today.
She is about to move with the whole
family to England and she takes with
her many wonderful and unforgettable
professional memories from Brazil.
We wish her continued success and
great happiness in all her personal and
professional endeavours.
The Cover Topic by Nick Robinson
and Tim Gifford takes A Critical Look
at Digital Pedagogy. They propose
that ‘the essence of digital pedagogy
can be captured by the following
statements: It’s about using digital
tools thoughtfully. It’s about deciding
where not to use those tools. It’s about
evaluating the use of those tools on
learning. A critical appraisal of the
use of technology would primarily be
concerned with evaluating the extent
to which the use of the tool actually
delivers benefit to the teaching and
learning process.’ They quote David
Graddol, who says that ‘in some cases
technology causes us to revert to an
and that’s the reason why it’s proving
difficult to demonstrate improvements
in learning when technology is used.’
They sum up by saying: ‘And this is
where, for us, the concept of digital
pedagogy becomes all the more
important. As educators, trainers,
content developers and publishers
working in a profession that continues
to be assailed by new technological
solutions, being able to ask the right
questions and to proceed thoughtfully
and critically is key.’
Henrique Moura’s aim in the article The
Praxis of Practice ‘is to (1) understand
what practice is and what it is not;
(2) understand what the concept of
practice entails; (3) analyse what the
different kinds of practice and their
denominations are; (4) establish
the difference(s) between practice
and task.’ He concludes by saying,
‘Practice activities lubricate the
language acquisition mechanisms and
facilitate the process of translating the
knowledge about language into the
knowledge of using language in real
life. What teachers need to be aware
of is that different practice activities
have different characteristics, and
that the challenge they pose needs to
be measured and gradually increased
so students depart from a position in
which the teacher tightly controls the
language they use, to a position where
they can freely experiment with it.’
No segundo artigo, Gestão educacional:
como formar um time nota 10? o Alan
Couto compartilha ‘três grandes
segredos para gestão eficaz de pessoas,
e que uma vez colocados em prática,
certamente vão te ajudar a ter um
time nota 10!: Treinamento, Feedback
e Coaching. Em resumo, vivemos
rodeados de estímulos, e chama a
nossa atenção o que sai do padrão,
portanto, se você quer garantir que o
seu time educacional esteja trilhando
um caminho de sucesso, lembre-se
sempre de cuidar das pessoas para que
elas deem o melhor de si, e compreenda
que todas as ideias apresentadas nesse
texto são um processo, demandam
tempo, e não devem ser encaradas como
estratégias emergenciais, afinal, seriam
muito mais difíceis de implementar,
uma vez que você teria que encaixá-las
em sua estratégia original. Pense nisso!
Finally, with a new school year starting,
check out the tip in the Dicas section -
Best case scenario/worst case scenario.
Chaz Pugliese offers an activity for
students to share their expectations
about the course, which works best
when done during the first or second
session of a new course.
Enjoy!
Jack Scholes
Editor
newroutes@disal.com.br
En este artículo, el autor nos habla
de la importancia de la interacción
oral en el aula. De las seis actividades
comunicativas la interacción es la
única que está basada en el principio
de cooperación. Para que los alumnos
tengan éxito a la hora de hablar, las
actividades comunicativas tienen que
ser rentables, variadas y basadas en
usos funcionales que los estudiantes
puedan replicar. Los aprendientes
tienen que enfrentarse a modelos
de lengua reales desde el primer
día de clase, para que se motiven a
comunicarse en L2.
Sara G. Tcharkhetian
apoioped.espanhol@disal.com.br
New Routes® Disal | 05

Blog Disal
Ignite ELT: A road towards
professionalism – Karin Heuert Galvão
A few weeks ago, I caught myself
writing a hateful blog post. I was
upset, confused and blue, and I must
confess that leaving ELT was, for
the first time ever, number one on
my list.
Thank Heavens for my family, friends,
colleagues, reiki and a good dose
of Bach flower remedies. Yes, I was
about to become a quitter, for the
very first time in my life.
I am an avid user of social media,
though I recognize and appreciate
its benefits, such as interaction,
networking and sharing, having used
Facebook has become ludicrous. As
an EFL teacher and teacher trainer, I
operate social media as a way to not
only connect with people, but also
advertise my work, because let’s be
honest, one must earn a living.
For some time now, I have
been observing an avalanche
of advertisements on courses,
workshops, trainers and the like. You
must be thinking: “Isn’t it great? Now
we have access to more courses and
workshops.” Well, indeed. Information
has never been easier and courses
are one way to go.
But I can’t help but wonder: when
should we say “enough”?
I draw a line when colleagues start
calling each other “divas” or “kings”.
Professional development shouldn’t
be about who becomes the “Career
Development Diva Extraordinaire” or
the “YL Queen”, it’s about evolution,
progress and reaching goals,
personal goals.
Even though I have been working as a
teacher for 17 years, I have never felt
that what I knew was enough. Some
friends call me a “CPD addict”, I actually
“get high” on learning, knowing that I
will be challenged makes me realize I
can do more (and I’m not talking about
certificates or diplomas, but skills).
Not long ago I started presenting at
conferences, so it seems to some that
I’m the “New Kid on the Block”, it’s
true, to some extent. My feeling back
then was translated into words last
Sunday, during a Game of Thrones
episode (yes, I’m a fan.): “I’m tired of
reading of the achievements of better
men.” said Samwell Tarly, so I began to
write because I too had a story to tell.
Regardless of social media and the
pressure we all suffer from the market
and, more importantly, from one
another, we should focus on what WE
want to develop, whether you want to
learn more about language, or teaching
skills, become the best version of what
you want for yourself because that is
who you are going to see in the mirror
every day, not your persona. Some
might say that you are “apagadinha”
(unnoticed) on Facebook and that will
certainly affect your income, others
might approach you because they
actually care.
David Master, a former Harvard
Business School Professor, once said:
“Professionalism is not a label you give
yourself – it’s a description you hope
others will apply to you.” Your actions
and nature will resound, and this
cannot be measure by the number of
likes. I have recently read a post by
Elaine Hodgson about “The price we
pay for (not) promoting ourselves.”,
and I have to agree with her. It is unfair.
We end up being forgotten if we don’t
post here and there, everywhere. As
beautifully said by Elaine, “let’s not
get vain”, what matters is the work we
perform, the student we help and the
lives we touch while teaching.
In conclusion, professional
development must be about what
you want for your career, it’s a very
personal plan and odyssey, and there
is no room for “divas”, “queens” and
“kings”, only for growth mindset.
“Dracarys”.
Daenerys Targaryen – Mother of
Dragons.
Karin Heuert Galvão has worked for 17 years as an EFL teacher and 9 years as
Director of i-Study Interactive Learning, a language school based in São Paulo,
Brazil. She holds, among others, the CELTA and IH Certificate in Online Tutoring.
She also works as an ELT consultant for schools, helping them find solutions for
their EFL programs. Karin is also a member of the Advisory board of EFLtalks,
she has been working with the Intercultural Language SIG as their Vice-President
(Braz-TESOL) and with the BESIG as their Treasurer (Braz-TESOL). In order to
help teachers develop their careers and her own, Karin is always looking for
opportunities to teach, learn and share ideas.
www.istudy.com.br
06 | New Routes® Disal

Opiniões
POR QUE EU LEIO A NEW ROUTES?
“Você trabalha ou só dá aula?”
Essa é uma pergunta que ouvimos
com frequência na área de idiomas.
Aparentemente, muitos confundem
nossa profissão com um hobby ou
complemento e quem pensa dessa
maneira, pode acreditar que está
enganado.
Ser professor é uma profissão muito
importante, que exige preparo,
dedicação, seriedade, criatividade e
acima de tudo, muito amor.
O desenvolvimento profissional
e atualização constante se faz
necessário para que nossas aulas
sejam sempre mais eficientes,
cativantes e prazerosas.
A revista New Routes nos abre
milhões de novas possibilidades para
nossas aulas. Desde novos conceitos
em metodologia, idéias de games,
atividades prontas e outros recursos
incríveis. A cada edição, são novas
entrevistas em diferentes idiomas,
sessões de vocabulário, referências
em livros e muito mais.
A New Routes é uma grande fonte
de inspiração para todos nós,
professores de idiomas.
Trabalho na Headword Language
School há mais de 10 anos, e nunca
deixei de aproveitar os artigos
dessa revista. Há sempre algo novo
para aprender. Além de utilizar
constantemente os materiais da
Disal, que são excelentes.
Por isso, professor, aqui vai minha
dica: não deixe de se desenvolver e
aprender mais. E com a New Routes,
você sempre estará atualizado.
Vanessa Laurindo Martinez
Santo André / SP
Tecnóloga em Comércio Exterior.
Coordenadora de ensino e Professora
de inglês na Headword Language
School.
ANUNCIE NA
NEW ROUTES,
A REVISTA DOS
PROFISSIONAIS
DE IDIOMAS.
COM DIVULGAÇÃO ATIVA POR
MAIS DE 3 MESES, VOCÊ SERÁ
VISTO POR MILHARES DE PESSOAS.
Para mais informações, envie um
email para marketing@disal.com.br
ou ligue para 11 3226-3111

News
HIGHLIGHTS DA SEXTA EDIÇÃO DO
SIMPÓSIO PROFISSÃO TRADUTOR
Ana Julia Perrotti-Garcia, Organizadora do PROFT
O 6º Simpósio Profissão Tradutor
(PROFT 2017) foi realizado nos dias
3 e 4 de novembro, em São Paulo.
Circularam pelo evento, entre
participantes nas palestras e oficinas,
expositores, palestrantes e equipe
organizadora, aproximadamente 600
pessoas, de diferentes regiões do Brasil
e do mundo. Nesta edição, foi lançada a
nova mascote do evento: uma simpática
corujinha desenhada pelo artista
plástico Alex Barasino especialmente
para o evento. Em camisetas, canecas
e banners, a corujinha foi badalada por
todos os presentes.
Professoras Ana Julia, Maura Xavier e Catia Santana,
com Fabio Santana
As palestras eram traduzidas por
voluntários, e os participantes ainda
podiam dar seu feedback para os
intérpretes iniciantes. A palestra
de Gustavo Spandau, comparando
o sistema legislativo no Brasil e
na Argentina, do ponto de vista
terminológico, foi proferida em
espanhol e a de Liam Gallagher, em
inglês. Também houve uma intérprete
de LIBRAS (Juliana Fernandes), que
traduziu algumas das palestras. Entre
elas, a minha (Ana Julia Perrotti-Garcia),
em que abordei alguns aspectos da
audiodescrição como ferramenta de
acessibilidade e mercado de trabalho
para tradutores e intérpretes.
Fez grande sucesso entre os
participantes a palestra de Maria Luiza
Maia, que falou sobre sua experiência
com tradução técnica na área de saúde
durante as paralimpíadas Rio 2016.
Daniela do Canto, da Universidade
Federal de Santa Maria (RS) trouxe
informações muito interessantes sobre
o Núcleo de Idiomas e Traduções da
SAI/UFSM e Dilma Machado, conhecida
dubladora, cantora e atriz do Rio de
Janeiro, compartilhou com os presentes
um pouco de sua experiência sobre
tradução para dublagem. Como já está
se tornando tradição, mais uma vez a
consagrada tradutora e escritora Isa
Mara Lando ministrou uma palestra e
uma oficina no PROFT, divulgou seus
livros e distribuiu muitos autógrafos
para seus inúmeros fãs.
O PROFT recebeu apoio de instituições
de prestígio internacional, como
ProZ, ABRATES (Associação Brasileira
de Tradutores) e ATA (American
Translators Association). Entre as
diversas faculdades que apoiam e
prestigiam o evento, este ano os
destaques ficaram por conta da FMU
(que disponibilizou um grande número
de monitores para atuarem no grupo
de apoio, além de palestrantes e
membros da coordenação do PROFT).
O Presidente da ABRATES William Cassemiro entrega
prêmio à ganhadora (centro), juntamente com a Prof
Ana Julia (dir.)
A Universidade do Sagrado Coração,
de Bauru, expôs um grande número de
pôsteres acadêmicos, inclusive sendo
a filiação da ganhadora do Prêmio de
Melhor Pôster de 2017. A professora
e tradutora Meritxell Almarza, da
Estacio, abordou os desafios da
tradução jornalística em uma palestra
interessantíssima. A UNINOVE, que foi
patrocinadora Platina, além de enviar
diversos alunos e professores ao
evento, também teve grande destaque.
E por falar em patrocinadores, este
ano o evento recebeu apoio de
diversas instituições nacionais e
internacionais de renome. O stand da
DISAL, patrocinadora Ouro, foi um dos
mais animados e de sucesso do evento.
Detalhe das canecas e corujas Mascotes do PROFT
O PROFT já é conhecido por trazer
sempre temas variados, profissionais
experientes e acadêmicos renomados
dividem o palco com colegas em início
de carreira, mas com temas igualmente
relevantes. Uma das mais experientes
e que foi extremamente aplaudida foi a
Profa. Dra. Maria Cristina Vianna Kuntz,
da Universidade de São Paulo, que falou
sobre alguns problemas de tradução
da obra O Vice-Cônsul de Marguerite
Duras.
Uma grande novidade deste ano foi a
cabine de interpretação consecutiva.
A palestrante Isa Mara Lando. Ao fundo vemos a cabine
de interpretação.
Stand da DISAL no PROFT 2017, um dos mais visitados
e alegres do evento.
PROFT 2018 já tem data (16 e 17 de novembro) e será realizado no mesmo local do
evento anterior. Visite o site do PROFT para obter mais informações, saber sobre
os prazos para envio de resumos, propostas de oficinas e reservas de vagas.
08 | New Routes® Disal

Artigo
O QUE É O
BRAZ-TESOL?
Fundado em 1986, o BRAZ-TESOL é
a maior associação de professores
de inglês do Brasil. Somos uma
organização sem fins lucrativos que
conta com a adesão de mais de 10.000
profissionais do ensino de inglês como
língua estrangeira.
Nosso nome é formado por BRAZ,
de “Brazil”; e TESOL, abreviação de
“Teachers of English to Speakers of
Other Languages”; ou seja, Professores
de Inglês para Falantes de Outras
Línguas.
O BRAZ-TESOL é afiliado ao TESOL
International, maior associação de
professores de inglês do mundo, sediada
nos Estados Unidos; e do IATEFL,
também uma das maiores associações
internacionais de professores de inglês,
sediada no Reino Unido. Além disso,
somos integrantes do Southern Cone
TESOL (juntamente com Argentina,
Chile, Paraguai e Uruguai).
O BRAZ-TESOL representa profissionais
dos setores público e particular no Brasil,
bem como autônomos. Como parte dos
benefícios oferecidos aos associados,
publicamos trimestralmente uma
revista que é enviada a profissionais de
todo o país.
Além disso, organizamos seminários, simpósios, workshops, webinars
e cursos ao longo do ano em diversas regiões do país a fim de estimular o
desenvolvimento profissional e a maior qualidade do Ensino de Língua Inglesa
no Brasil.
A cada dois anos, o BRAZ-TESOL promove uma grande conferência
internacional em uma região diferente no Brasil. O evento reúne professores
de inglês de todo o Brasil e do exterior para quatro dias de aprendizagem,
compartilhamento, networking e desenvolvimento.
É, sem dúvida, o maior e mais importante evento sobre ensino de inglês no
Brasil, atraindo não só profissionais do Brasil e de países vizinhos, como
também os principais palestrantes de renome internacional nessa área.
A conferência já teve edições realizadas em Belo Horizonte, Brasília, Curitiba,
Florianópolis, Fortaleza, Goiânia, João Pessoa, Recife, Ribeirão Preto, Rio de
Janeiro e São Paulo. Em julho de 2018, a 16ª edição acontecerá em Caxias do
Sul, na prestigiada Universidade de Caxias do Sul - UCS.
C
M
Y
CM
MY
CY
CMY
K
Nossa presença é feita em todas as
regiões do Brasil é feito através de
representações regionais (Chapters) e
Grupos de Interesse Especial (SIGs, na
sigla em inglês), que organizam eventos
em suas localidades e encontros
sobre assuntos específicos da área,
respectivamente.
10 | New Routes® Disal

C
M
Y
M
Y
Y
MY
K

Interview with Elaine Hodgson by Jack Scholes
ELAINE HODGSON
JS: Could you please tell us first a little bit about your
background and professional experience?
EH: I started teaching when I was 15. I taught a few classes
in the evenings and weekends. Nowadays I think it is just
unbelievable that someone offered me a job when I was just
a teenager, but I was happy to make some money and to
learn more as, in order to teach, I had to study things in
more detail. However, at the time, I was doing a technical
course in chemistry. I had never intended to teach English
as a career. My plans were to go to university to study
chemistry (which I did) and to find a job in a lab (which I
also did – I worked in chemistry labs for just over 3 years,
first as a trainee and then as a technician). However, there
was a severe crisis and I lost my job at the laboratory. A
teacher my mother knew suggested I tried a position at
Cultura Inglesa Santo André, where I had studied for 6
years. I had no hope of getting a job there, but I went and
talked to the director, Elaine Azevedo, who had been my
last teacher. She suggested I studied at the library and did
the TTC. I went to the library every single day for about a
month, took the TTC but didn’t pass. They advised me to
teach at a smaller school to get some experience and do
the TTC again the following year. I followed their advice,
but kept studying chemistry at university. I was not sure
what path I wanted my professional life to take. Well, in
1990 I did the TTC again, passed, and ended up working for
the Cultura São Paulo for 9 years, after undertaking a postgraduate
teaching qualification at university
JS: Your professional career has been built steadily and
successfully through the years. How would you suggest
that new professionals organize themselves in order to
build professional growth? How important is it to have
certificates and do courses? Is it worth doing an MA or PhD,
as you did?
EH: I strongly believe studying is key to improving your
teaching. A teacher who doesn’t like studying cannot
be a good teacher, in my view. Of course, studying and
learning do not necessarily have to happen in a school
environment, but schools and courses do help you get
more organized, you will meet people who know more
than you do, who are more experienced than you are and
that can only be enriching and add to your career. I know
certificates and exam boards are heavily criticised, but
I’m “old school” and truly believe formal education plays
an important role. At least organizing my career this way
was very beneficial. As far as the MA and PhD, when I am
asked if it’s worth it, I tend to say that it depends on what
‘worth it’ means to you. To me, it was an opportunity to
go beyond ELT and it was worth it. It was hard and there
were several occasions I wanted to give up, but I am glad
I persevered. It opened doors and, because I worked for a
school that took certificates into consideration, it meant I
was better paid. As a writer, I think it has some influence,
but is not the most important asset.
12 | New Routes® Disal

Interview with Elaine Hodgson by Jack Scholes
Most of all, courses in general - particularly the MA and
PhD - showed me very clearly how little we know and how
important it is to keep learning.
JS: Being able to network efficiently is a key strategy for
both personal and professional success. What is the best
way to do this? How important are teacher associations
and conferences, especially the BRAZ-TESOL International
Conference?
EH: The best way, I believe, is to have a genuine interest
in what you are doing and attend conferences with that in
mind. If your work is good and you are able to show it, the
consequences can only be positive. However, people who
are just interested in the networking tend not to survive
for long. Conferences, be they large conventions like
the BT International, or smaller seminars, offer both the
opportunity to pursue professional development and to
network. The secret, I guess, is to combine both.
JS: Do you think that teaching EFL nowadays is more difficult
than when you first started teaching? What are some of the
main new challenges teachers face today?
EH: Some things are easier today, some are more difficult.
For instance, using songs in the classroom is much easier
as you don’t have to spend hours trying to record a song
from the radio and then transcribe it. Also, you don’t need
to browse through one magazine after the other trying to
find THE visual aid you need. Today you have so much more
access to information, aids, seminars, courses and so on.
On the other hand, the market became more competitive
and that’s a real challenge. Teachers complain about work
conditions, poor pay, students who have no motivation…
Honestly, I guess the problematic issues are pretty much the
same today compared to when I started, except for the fact
that students do have very little patience today. In a society
that demands immediate responses and results, raising
awareness that learning a language is a process, that it will
take time and effort, is hard. There will always be somebody
offering a miraculous solution around the corner.
JS: Some people say that teaching is too much of a sacrifice
for very little money. What advice would you give to
teachers who are disillusioned with the profession or feel
overwhelmed by the number of hours they have to teach
just to pay the bills?
EH: Get another job. There will always be better jobs. I have
several friends who, after many years in language schools,
decided they wanted more from teaching. For some it was
more money, for others more freedom and flexibility. These
friends now teach at universities, run their companies,
teach private lessons, work for publishing houses or regular
schools. Some, however, still teach in language schools and
are happy. Teaching does not pay as much as some other
careers. If the amount of money you expect to earn is not
what you’ll make from teaching, then considering another
career should always be an option.
JS: Considering the wider context of our modern global
community, what skills do you believe need to be
incorporated into Language Teaching to better prepare
young people for becoming Global Citizens? How much and
how often should teachers encourage critical thinking in
the EFL classroom?
EH: Critical thinking is a must, but it’s so much easier
said than done. In times of radicalism, like ours, aiming at
developing critical thinking can be hard but not impossible
and it’s totally worth the effort. It is important to mention
that critical thinking is not exclusively about taboo topics,
but about everything that surrounds us. For instance,
why do overweight people appear so infrequently in
coursebooks? Or people with special needs? Which
characteristics make us consider somebody beautiful?
Why is that? After all, schools, including language schools,
have responsibility for helping learners understand things
better and make more informed decisions. In addition
to critical thinking, there are other skills that need to
be developed at schools which are the so called socioemotional
competences, like respect, collaboration, selfconfidence,
responsibility, autonomy, organisation and so
on. These skills have to be developed little by little, but on
a daily basis. Such work has to be consistent, or there is
little or no effect.
JS: Do students know what they need and want? When
might we need to insist that teachers/writers really do
“know best”?
EH: Teaching and learning are entwined and one teaches
and learns best if there is mutual trust. Some students will
have a clearer idea of what they need and want, probably
based on past experiences. Some will just know what they
want, though this may be far too general. For instance, most
adult students I have taught wanted to speak English and
didn’t care much about pronunciation, as if pronunciation
would take care of itself. Others needed to develop their
writing, but were not aware of the importance of planning,
drafting or editing. Children and teens will have an even
vaguer idea of what they need and want. So, I believe it
is the teacher’s role to show pathways and possibilities,
to widen horizons, to use their knowledge and expertise
to help students learn better. At the same time, students
need to trust their teachers and believe that they know
what they are doing. However, teachers (and of course,
writers) need to keep their minds open, to listen and
to constantly evaluate what they do. It is particularly
important to look for alternatives, for different ways of
teaching something. It is not because you’ve done (or have
always done) something in a particular way that it is THE
way to do it. At the same time, students (and parents, in
the case of children and teens) need to trust their teachers
but also to be critical, in the sense of being analytical, of
the learning process. Maybe it is possible to compare the
teacher-student relationship to the doctor-patient one. We
need to trust our doctors, but trust is not blindness.
New Routes® Disal | 13

Interview with Elaine Hodgson by Jack Scholes
JS: We know that writers often have to avoid PARSNIPs
(Politics, Alcohol, Religion, Sex, Narcotics, Isms and
Pork) for market-driven reasons, but what is your view of
covering taboo or difficult topics in the classroom, either
through books that touch on these issues, or as a teacherled
activity?
EH: Taboo is part of life and the fact that the so-called
taboo topics are not approached in the classroom is
evidence of how poorly prepared we are to discuss ideas
and break paradigms. It is depressing to know that we
keep repeating that schools do not prepare for real life
but when the opportunity for real life arises, we prefer
not to do it. The discourse changes and we repeat that
some topics should not be discussed at school, that
school should teach subjects, content, not values. It is a
kind of vicious circle; we do not approach taboo topics,
we avoid preparing students for life, students who are
not prepared for life are not prepared to deal with taboo
topics and the circle begins again. And I am not saying
that only students, or parents, are unprepared to deal
with hard topics. Many teachers are also unprepared.
They might feel insecure, afraid, or might impose their
opinions on certain subjects. My fear is that even in
difficult times like ours, when there seems to be little
tolerance for difference, the list of taboo topics might
even increase. As both a writer and a teacher, and also
as a parent, I am well aware that there are limitations to
what we can do at school. However, this should not be an
excuse for not dealing with hard topics. What I believe we
have to do is to be tactful and respectful. Unfortunately,
at least in Brazil, I fear that instead of moving forward
to a more tolerant society, we tend to hide behind the
fallacy that schools should not interfere when topics
are polemic.
JS: What are your views regarding the topic of feminism
and what should be done to foster discussion about
gender equality in ELT? How important are groups which
support women in ELT, like the recently-launched BRAZ-
TESOL SIG called Voices?
EH: Feminism has become far too relevant to be ignored
in the classroom. I believe it is here to stay and its impact
can be noticed if you look at coursebooks, for instance.
Nowadays, it’s much more common to see women as
protagonists and successful professionals and not only as
successful mothers and wives as they were depicted in a
not very distant past. We know, nevertheless, that there is
still a lot to be done. Gender equity may not be a frequent
topic in ELT yet and I think that we, as ELT professionals,
have to keep insisting on having more women as plenary
speakers, authors, editors and in other key roles so as
to have a fairer balance. Groups play an important role.
Just like any professional group, they gather people with
similar interests. These groups also help raise awareness
about issues that might be controversial in the classroom,
such as domestic violence, beauty standards, prejudice
and many others. Prejudice against women, for example,
may go unnoticed on several occasions. Why not
approach that in the classroom and in our conferences?
JS: You have successfully moved into materials writing
while remaining in the classroom as a teacher. How
important is it, do you think, for textbook authors to
continue to engage with students in the classroom on a
daily basis?
EH: It’s definitely important to have solid teaching
experience because it will help you understand what
really works in the classroom, anticipate difficulties and
potential problems. Some activities look brilliant but they
do not usually work. For example, if giving instructions for
a game will take longer than the game itself, then I believe
the game is not worth it. When you don’t have classroom
experience you tend to allocate less time than you should
doing some tasks. One useful piece of advice a teacher
gave me at university was to prepare twice as much
as you think you’ll need for a lesson. According to her,
when we are inexperienced we tend to rush. As a writer,
you have to have a clear idea of how long, on average,
activities take. Now as for engaging with students on a
daily basis, I don’t see it as a must. The key thing, I’d say,
is to keep tuned in, read, study and, most important of all,
listen to teachers and students.
JS: If you had to describe your first publication, what
would you say? And what would you say about your
latest one?
EH: My first publication was an article on teaching and
learning pronunciation in the BRAZ-TESOL newsletter. It
was a one-page article, but I remember it took me days
to do it. Other articles followed, some shorter, some
more complex, then I was invited to write theoretical
introductions of books, scripts, teacher’s notes, video and
writing activities, and so on. My first experience writing
students’ books was with a British publisher. Then I was
invited to write students’ books for Brazilian publishers.
My last publication was a very innovative project aimed
at primary students. It was a wonderful experience. All
students’ books have been co-written. Now I cannot take
days to write a page. It needs to be done much faster.
Writing is a unique experience. You need several skills at
the same time and you need to be good at teamwork.
JS: How do books for teaching EFL published in Brazil
compare with publications from other countries? Looked
at from a wider perspective, how effective do you consider
the Brazilian approach to be?
EH: I’m not completely familiar with a wide variety of
materials from other countries, except for ELT material
that is used in Brazil. Brazilian books are as good as
imported books we use here with, sometimes, the
additional advantage of taking into consideration the
context our students are more familiar with and, most
14 | New Routes® Disal

Interview with Elaine Hodgson by Jack Scholes
of all, difficulties which are common among Brazilian
learners. I believe it is important that coursebooks depict
different realities, but it is also important that students
‘recognise themselves’ in the books they use.
JS: What would you say has been your most important
professional achievement? Why?
EH: Each phase of my professional career presented a
particular challenge. Some were of a more practical nature,
like teaching very young learners. It takes some time
before you develop an extensive repertoire of activities
that will make your classes flow and your students learn.
Some challenges combine both practical and, let’s say,
more philosophical issues. Therefore, I cannot say what
my most important professional achievement has been as
each has had its own importance, but writing PNLD books,
which are the books specifically written for state schools
in Brazil, has been the most challenging achievement.
First, we have to start writing months before the
guidelines are published, which makes the whole process
a bit of a guessing game. We base the writing on previous
editions and documents, on what is being discussed, but
it is always a bet. At least in the past editions of PNLD
books we had to tackle issues that are not commonly
seen in books for the market, like domestic violence,
different kinds of family, diversity in religious beliefs, in
ethnic groups, and so on. And it was done carefully and
beautifully, considering that schools are indeed a space
for life skills, and not only for teaching school subjects,
as some radicals insist.
JS: You’re about to move the whole family to England.
Your husband Graeme and your daughter Sofia are already
there. Your PhD thesis dealt with metaphors. Do you have
an appropriate metaphor for the occasion?
EH: The first metaphor that comes to my mind is ‘Life
is a journey’. That’s a conceptual metaphor studied by
many cognitive linguists and, if I am not mistaken, first
approached by Lakkof and Johnson in 1980 in Metaphors
we live by (Metáforas do Cotidiano, in Portuguese), a book
I strongly recommend.
JS: What unforgettable professional memory will you take
from Brazil?
EH: There are so many wonderful professional memories,
and I am so grateful for that. One that is particularly
memorable is of a students’ end-of-year party just before
I moved from Santo André-SP to Fortaleza-CE. At the end
of the ceremony the assistant manager asked all those
who had been my students to stand up. There were many,
many more than I had expected to see. This memory still
makes my eyes well up. It is amazing to know we touch so
many lives, hopefully positively.
The interviewee
Elaine Hodgson is a textbook writer, teacher and
teacher trainer. She is also a supervisor on the
Distance MA in TEFL at Birmingham University (UK).
She holds an MA from UECE and a PhD from UFC in
Applied Linguistics. She’s written ELT/ESL material
for several publishing houses in Brazil, Mexico and
the UK including Loop (Macmillan), Orbit (Richmond)
and the PNLD approved books Team Up (Macmillan)
and Circles (FTD).
www.elainehodgsonelt.com
elainecchodgson@gmail.com
New Routes® Disal | 15

Cover Topic
by Nick Robinson and Tim Gifford
The English language teaching
profession has undergone a
sea change as a result of the
proliferation of educational
technologies. As the technology
has become more sophisticated
and is embedded in more and
more aspects of the teaching
and learning experience, there
have been efforts to distill these
advancements into a digital
pedagogy. The assumption
being that the world of language
teaching must adapt in some
way to take into account
new digital products and the
solutions they are offering.
There is in fact some
disagreement about whether
the concept of digital pedagogy
even exists. At an ELTjam event
a couple of years ago one of the
guest speakers jokingly heckled
the Director of Digital Pedagogy
at an international educational
publisher, telling her that she
might as well be “the director
of Santa Claus”. The funny
thing was that the director
in question didn’t disagree.
So, is it possible to work towards some kind of working definition of ‘digital pedagogy’? Since we know for a fact the
pedagogy itself exists, perhaps we can take that as a starting point.
A great definition of pedagogy from the Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary is that it’s “the study of the methods
and activities of teaching.” 1 It is a refreshingly simple and elegant description, and divides the concept neatly into two
constituent parts. Within English language teaching we have a long history of methods and those approaches are in turn
facilitated by tried and tested activities. Arguably, we can reduce pedagogy to those two core attributes: methods and
the activities used to facilitate them.
In terms of methods within English language teaching, there are many to choose from: grammar translation, the Direct
Method, the audio-lingual method, The Silent Way, the communicative approach to name only a few. Examples of activities
that facilitate those approaches include role plays, information gaps, dictation activities, comprehension questions after
reading or listening, controlled practice of grammar structure, and so on. All of these contribute towards the palette of
1 - https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/
16 | New Routes® Disal

y Nick Robinson and Tim Gifford
Cover Topic
activities that an English language teacher uses to help his
or her learners.
In comparison to that simple definition of pedagogy, we
have Professor Robin Alexander’s, which adds another
dimension for consideration. Alexander describes
pedagogy as “what one needs to know, and the skills
one needs to command, in order to make and justify the
many different kinds of decisions of which teaching is
constituted.” 2 Alexander’s point here is that it’s not just
about the implementation of methods and activities. It’s
about the conscious decisions that are behind them.
I’m sure most teachers would agree that there are four
universal questions that inform every decision they make
around their practice, starting with the glaringly obvious
but often intimidating What am I going to do in class today?
And then, in order to justify the response to that question,
Why? Once those bases are covered we need to deal with
How will this actually work in practice? That is, what are
the nuts and bolts of the lesson going to be? And finally,
the critical question: How will I know if it’s worked? That
simple sequence is the bedrock of any educator’s practice,
and provides the basis for the chain of decisions of which
teaching is comprised.
So, if that’s how we think about pedagogy, what does it
look like if we introduce the ‘digital’ component? Is it just a
matter of talking about all of the above, but just swapping
in mobile devices and interactive whiteboards? We would
argue not.
The Digital Pedagogy Lab offers a definition of digital
pedagogy that, we feel, sets the tone:
“Digital Pedagogy is precisely not about using digital
technologies for teaching and, rather, about approaching
those tools from a critical pedagogical perspective. So, it
is as much about using digital tools thoughtfully as it is
about deciding when not to use digital tools, and about
paying attention to the impact of digital tools on learning.” 3
To some extent that sentiment echoes the four questions
that underpin pedagogical decision making; reflecting on
the choices being made in preparation for a lesson and
evaluating whether those choices have been effective
or not.
With that in mind, we would propose that the essence of
digital pedagogy can be captured by the following statements:
1) It’s about using digital tools thoughtfully.
2) It’s about deciding where not to use those tools.
3) It’s about evaluating the use of those tools on learning.
But what about questioning the use of digital tools at all?
Is the emergence of a discourse around digital pedagogy
inevitable, or has it simply been unchallenged? How is the
use of technology in education being critiqued, in terms of
both its merits and faults?
A critical appraisal of the use of technology would
primarily be concerned with the third statement in our
description above; evaluating the extent to which the use
of the tool actually delivers benefit to the teaching and
learning process. If it doesn’t, why are we bothering in the
first place? There are two notable devices that we can refer
to in order to take that enquiry even further.
The first is known as Postman’s Six Questions. Neil Postman
was an American educator, author and cultural critic.
He wrote about the role that technology was beginning
to play in American society. Postman saw himself as a
counterpoint to the relentless optimism and enthusiasm
of the ‘technophiles’ and their impact on American society.
We can observe a similar scenario when we look at the
use of technology in education: on one side there is a
cheerleading, evangelical community who are almost blind
to the potential downsides of using technology to enhance
learning, whilst on the other side you have people like
Postman who say it is their duty to highlight the pitfalls of
using technology – not just in education, but in life more
broadly.
Postman’s take on the rhetoric surrounding technology
was unequivocal, as he wrote in his 1985 book Amusing
Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show
Business:
“Through the computer, the heralds say, we will make
education better, religion better, politics better, our minds
better — best of all, ourselves better. This is, of course,
nonsense, and only the young or the ignorant or the foolish
could believe it.” 4
He certainly doesn’t hold back. It’s important to mention,
however, that Postman made it clear that he wasn’t a
Luddite. He was simply demonstrating what he saw as a
healthy scepticism towards technology; he was able to
appreciate the potential benefits, but he wasn’t prepared
to ignore its detrimental effects.
In his 1998 book Building a Bridge to the 18 th Century
Postman proposed a very interesting set of questions that
should be asked whenever a new technology is introduced.
The first question is probably the most direct: What is the
problem to which this technology is the solution? The idea of
requiring a clearly defined problem is a really interesting
2 - ‘Towards a comparative pedagogy’, Robin Alexander, from: Cowen,
R. and Kazamias, A.M. (ed) International Handbook of Comparative
Education, pp 923-942, Springer, 2009
3 - http://www.digitalpedagogylab.com/hybridped/digitalpedagogy/
4 - Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business,
Neil Postman, Penguin USA
New Routes® Disal | 17

Cover Topic
by Nick Robinson and Tim Gifford
one, especially as it’s not uncommon to see examples
of technology in education that aren’t really solving a
problem.
He then encourages us to ask Whose problem is it? and then
What new problems might be created by solving the original
problem? Might there be an adverse butterfly effect, or
some unforeseen outcome that plays out somewhere down
the line?
Similarly, we are urged to consider Which people and
what institutions will be most seriously harmed by this new
technology? The technology may be solving a problem for
a very specific set of users in a specific context, but that
might be at a cost to others elsewhere in the value chain,
marketplace, or society more widely.
Conversely, the next question asks What sort of people and
institutions gain special economic and political power from
this new technology? What might the new technology mean
for the distribution of opportunities, access or resources
for example?
And then finally, What changes in language are being forced
by these new technologies? Postman prompts us to think
about how technological advances ultimately influence the
way we think and, therefore, how we talk.
These are expansive and thought-provoking questions
when applied to the use of educational technologies. As a
thought experiment, try applying those questions to some
of the technology solutions in your teaching context. For
example, take an interactive whiteboard that can display
a digital version of a coursebook as an example. To what
problem is that the solution? Consider the delivery of a
blended learning solution through a learning management
system. What problem is that solving, and for whom? Is it
actually creating problems for someone not enrolled in that
course? Including grammar practice in a language learning
mobile app arguably solves a few problems for learners
at that moment, but it potentially creates several more as
a result, such as the ability to check understanding and
actual production.
What Postman’s questions provide is an impartial,
objective approach to assessing educational technologies,
and one that forces us to think about the wider implications
of adopting it beyond the more immediate benefits of
convenience or cost saving.
Another example of a more critical view on digital
pedagogy, more specifically for English language teaching,
comes from British linguist David Graddol and is known
as Graddol’s Maxim. David Graddol is famous for, among
other things, his 1997 book The Future of English, which
attempted to chart the development of English as a global
language. He gave a talk on this topic as part of a twentieth
anniversary review of that work at the International House
Barcelona conference in February 2017. Whilst addressing
the use of technology in language learning, Graddol
introduced his maxim. He said:
“In early experience with computer-based emerging
technologies, I noticed what seemed a regressive aspect
to courses designed for online use. This seemed partly
because of the limitations of the technology, but also
because the teacher lost ability to control the pedagogy
which was imposed by the technology.”
Graddol’s assertion that technology is having a deleterious
effect on a teacher’s ability to make those fundamental
decisions is an interesting one. He goes on to say that his
observations led him to draw the conclusion that “the
leading edge of pedagogy is never found at the leading
edge of technology.” He goes even further, taking that
negative correlation between technology and pedagogy
to the extreme, claiming that “new technology brings
regressive pedagogy.”
According to Graddol, in some cases technology causes us
to revert to an outdated or regressive way of teaching, and
that’s the reason why it’s proving difficult to demonstrate
improvements in learning when technology is used. In a
profession where we’ve broadly landed on communicative
language teaching as a best practice, it’s interesting to
notice how few digital learning products attempt to actually
facilitate communicative language learning. Instead, they
rely on less sophisticated methodologies like grammar
translation or the audio-lingual method.
There are several reasons for why that might be the case,
and lots of people have commented on this exact issue.
For example, on his blog in 2014 Philip Kerr reviewed the
digital language learning product Voxy, pulling the platform
up on its methodological approach:
“According to Wikipedia, Voxy is based on the principles
of task-based language teaching. … What I saw was closer
to those pre-1970s textbooks where texts were followed
by glossaries. Voxy is technologically advanced, but
methodologically, it is positively antediluvian.” 5
That’s fairly scathing criticism of what is, for all intents and
purposes, a fairly advanced language teaching product.
Kerr’s reference to Voxy’s antediluvian approach aligns
with Graddol’s idea that technology inevitably results in
regressive pedagogy.
But why is that case? Why do seemingly leading-edge
learning technologies put forward old school pedagogical
approaches? Looking at it from Postman’s perspective,
if the pedagogy that’s facilitated by these products isn’t
bringing around improved learning outcomes, then what’s
the point?
5 - https://adaptivelearninginelt.wordpress.com/2014/04/10/voxy-the-futureof-language-learning/
6 - https://adaptivelearninginelt.wordpress.com/2014/04/06/edtech-andneo-liberalism-fragment-of-a-network/
18 | New Routes® Disal

y Nick Robinson and Tim Gifford
Cover Topic
To answer that question, we come back to Philip Kerr.
In 2014 Kerr wrote about what he saw as being a neoliberal
approach to education. His reference point was
adaptive learning, but we think that it might be applied to
educational technology more broadly:
“The major advocates of adaptive learning form a
complex network of vested neo-liberal interests.
Along with adaptive learning and the digital delivery
of educational content, they promote a freemarket,
for-profit, ‘choice’-oriented … ideology.” 6
We’re not entirely convinced by Kerr’s accusation against
the sinister forces behind educational technologies, but
it’s a viewpoint that is certainly worth considering. For us,
technology’s apparently regressive pedagogical approach
might be more directly attributed to the individuals
involved in its creation. More specifically, digital product
teams that don’t necessarily have the educational
experience or expertise to address the pedagogical
aspect of their products. Their output often exemplifies
the leading edge of design and user experience, but that
slickness belies the lack of pedagogical substance. That
leaves educators and learners in a position where they
need to retrofit the pedagogy to the tech, rather than
feeling like it was a consideration from the outset.
And this is where, for us, the concept of digital pedagogy
becomes all the more important. As educators, trainers,
content developers and publishers working in a profession
that continues to be assailed by new technological
solutions, being able to ask the right questions and to
proceed thoughtfully and critically is key.
The authors
Nick Robinson and Tim Gifford are co-founders of ELTjam. ELTjam is the Learner Experience Design company working
with companies and organisations to create digital learning products that are both effective and a joy to use. You
can explore the topic of digital pedagogy in more detail in their online course, An Introduction to Digital Pedagogy,
available on the ELTJAM ACADEMY at www.eltjam.academy. Use the code NEWROUTES to get a 20% discount.
For more information on what ELTjam is up to, visit them at www.eltjam.com or follow them on Twitter at @eltjam. If
you’d like to get in touch to explore how ELTjam might work with your organisation, contact their Learner Experience
Partner, Daphne Walder, who is based in São Paulo on daphne@eltjam.com.
Shape your future in ELT
Online courses to help you develop the skills you
need to succeed in a changing industry.
20% off any
course with
promo code
NEWROUTES
ENROL NOW
tiny.cc/daphne
New Routes® Disal | 19

Slang
by Jack Scholes
PEJORATIVE
TERMS FOR
PEOPLE
SLEAZEBAG
PESSOA DESONESTA, IMORAL,
INESCRUPULOSA; SAFADO, SACANA
He’s a real sleazebag.
Ele é muito safado.
Sleazebag vem da palavra sleazy,
que significa sujo, desonesto, imoral.
Também se diz sleazeball ou sleaze.
A PAIN IN THE ASS/BUTT (US)
UM PÉ NO SACO
She’s a pain in the ass!
Ela é um pé no saco!
A pain in the ass, ao pé da letra “uma
dor na bunda”, designa qualquer coisa
ou pessoa insuportável, irritante.
Existe também a expressão eufemística
e bem menos ofensiva A pain in the
neck, “uma dor no pescoço”. No
Reino Unido, diz-se a pain in the arse/
backside.
SLOB
PESSOA PREGUIÇOSA, DESLEIXADA,
RELAXADA; PORCALHÃO
He’s a fat slob.
Ele é um gordo porcalhão.
Há também o verbo to slob around/
about, que significa vagabundear,
comportar-se de maneira preguiçosa e
desleixada, fazendo muito pouco.
WINDBAG
PESSOA QUE NÃO PÁRA DE FALAR,
NORMALMENTE SÓ SOBRE COISAS
CHATAS; VITROLA QUEBRADA
He’s just a boring old windbag.
Ele é só um velho chato que não pára
de falar.
Windbag é, literalmente, “saco cheio
de ar”.
OLD FOGEY / FOGY
PESSOA ANTIQUADA, MUITO
CONSERVADORA, EM GERAL DE
IDADE; CARETA
Politicians are a bunch of old fogies.
Os políticos são um bando de caretas.
BAG
MULHER FEIA, ESPECIALMENTE
VELHA; BUCHO, BARANGA, BRUACA
She’s a silly old bag!
É uma baranga velha e idiota!
CHEAPSKATE
AVARENTO; MUQUIRANA,
PÃO-DURO
My brother is a real cheapskate.
Meu irmão é muito muquirana.
SCATTERBRAIN
PESSOA DISTRAÍDA, AVOADA;
DESMIOLADO, MIOLO-MOLE
I’m such a scatterbrain. I can never
remember where I leave my car keys.
Eu sou tão desmiolado. Nunca consigo
lembrar onde deixo as chaves do carro.
Em gíria britânica, usa-se também o
adjetivo scatty.
The author
WIMP
ALGUÉM MEDROSO, FRACO,
COVARDE, INSEGURO; COVARDÃO,
BUNDA-MOLE
He’s such a wimp!
Ele é tão medroso!
A palavra wimp indica uma pessoa
fraca em corpo, mente ou caráter, e tem
sua origem no personagem medroso -
Wimpy - do desenho animado Popeye.
Usa-se também o verbo to wimp out
quando se decide não fazer algo
porque fica com medo ou inseguro.
SLAG (UK)
MULHER DE APARÊNCIA OU
COMPORTAMENTO CONSIDERADO
IMORAL; PIRANHA, BISCATE
Don’t go out with her. She’s a real slag.
Não saia com ela. Ela é bem piranha.
(AS) UGLY AS SIN
EXTREMAMENTE FEIO; FEIO PARA
DIABO
Her new boyfriend is a really
nice guy, but he’s as ugly as sin.
Seu novo namorado é um cara muito
legal, mas é feio para diabo.
MUG
OTÁRIO, BOBO
He’s such a mug. He paid far too
much for that old car.
Ele é tão otário! Pagou demais por
aquele carro velho.
Jack Scholes is the author of many books, including Slang – Gírias Atuais do Inglês,
Modern Slang and Slang Activity Book. He is also co-author with Jane Revell of Sucesso
nos Exames. His most recent publications are Inglês Rápido, Quick Brazilian Portuguese
and Why do we say that? Por que dizemos isso?. All published by Disal Editora.
Email: jack@jackscholes.com
C
M
Y
CM
MY
CY
CMY
K
20 | New Routes® Disal

y Jack Scholes
Slang
C
M
Y
CM
MY
CY
MY
K
No matter what your
English teaching need is...
#ASKOUP
www.oup.com.br
New Routes® Disal | 21

How do you say ... in English?
by José Roberto A. Igreja
SACO DE PANCADA
PUNCHING BAG
Assim como em português, o termo punching bag (saco de
pancada), equipamento usado para o treino de boxeadores,
pode também ser usado no sentido figurado. Confira o
exemplo:
“I just got tired of being a punching bag. That’s why I quit my
job”, explained Mick to his friends.
“Cansei de ser um saco de pancada. Por isso que larguei
meu emprego”, explicou Mick aos amigos.
CRIME DO COLARINHO BRANCO
WHITE-COLLAR CRIME
Fraud, embezzlement and other
nonviolent lawbreaking acts are
examples of white-collar crime.
Fraude, desfalque e outros atos não
violentos que infringem a lei são
exemplos de crime do colarinho
branco.
DETALHISTA; CHATO
PICKY; FUSSY
Grace is very picky about the food she
eats. It’s not easy to please her.
Grace é muito chata com o que come.
Não é fácil agradá-la.
Jim has always been fussy about the
clothes he wears. They have to be
perfectly ironed and clean.
O Jim sempre foi chato com as
roupas que veste. Elas tem que estar
perfeitamente passadas e limpas.
ESPELUNCA
DIVE
The bar we went to last night was a
real dive.
O bar onde fomos ontem à noite era
uma verdadeira espelunca.
CUMPRIR UM PRAZO
MEET A DEADLINE
“I’m afraid we won’t be able to meet the
deadline. We need some more time for
that project”, said Bill at the meeting.
“Temo que não conseguiremos
cumprir o prazo. Precisamos de mais
algum tempo para finalizar o projeto”,
disse Bill na reunião.
“The way things are going we’ll have to
work overtime to meet the deadline”,
said Leo to a coworker.
“Da forma como as coisas estão
caminhando teremos que fazer hora
extra para cumprir o prazo”, disse Leo
a um colega de trabalho.
FACA DE DOIS GUMES
DOUBLE-EDGED SWORD; TWO-EDGED
SWORD
The expression “double-edged sword”
is used to refer to something that can
have both favorable or unfavorable
consequences.
A expressão “faca de dois gumes”
é usada para se referir a algo
que pode ter consequências
favoráveis ou desfavoráveis.
DESAJEITADO; DESASTRADO
CLUMSY
Tim is so clumsy! He keeps dropping
things all over the place.
O Tim é tão desastrado! Ele está
sempre deixando coisas cair por todo
o canto.
Além do adjetivo clumsy, o termo
coloquial klutz é bastante usual para
se referir a uma pessoa desastrada ou
desajeitada. Veja o exemplo abaixo:
“Oops, sorry. I’m such a klutz!”, said
Mike as he bumped into our table.
“Opa, desculpa. Eu sou tão
desastrado!”, disse Mike quando
esbarrou em nossa mesa.
O autor
José Roberto A. Igreja has a BA in English and Literature from PUC/SP. He is the author of Inglês Fluente em 30
Lições; Como se diz em inglês?; What to say when?; Guia Prático para a comunicação em inglês; How do you say ... in
English?; Say it all in Brazilian Portuguese!; Fale Tudo em Inglês and Falsos Cognatos - Looks can be deceiving!. He´s
also the co-author of Inglês de Rua - American Slang; Fluent Business English; English for Job interviews!; Fale Inglês
como um Americano; Phrasal Verbs and American Idioms!, all published by Disal Editora. You can check out his blog at
www.faletudoemingles.com.br
22 | New Routes® Disal

Escola em Destaque
CONHEÇA MAIS SOBRE O MELHOR
CENTRO DE IDIOMAS DE POUSO
ALEGRE E REGIÃO!
Atuando desde 1988 o Spectrum Line começou
suas atividades e vem aprimorando cada vez mais
sua metodologia e multiplicando seus resultados,
destacando-se como a principal instituição de ensino de
idiomas em Pouso Alegre e região.
Com forte espírito empreendedor e profissionalismo, e
por não ser uma franquia, o Spectrum Line atua de forma
independente, sempre com novos conceitos e de acordo
com as necessidades dos alunos.
Além disso, o Spectrum Line investe maciçamente em sua
equipe, subsidiando, inclusive, cursos no exterior. Com
isso, formou muitos profissionais para o ensino de idiomas
e tem hoje uma equipe coesa e altamente qualificada.
O resultado são trinta anos de atuação consistente, desde
cursos para crianças a partir de 3 anos de idade, até cursos
específicos, como cursos para negócios e área médica.
Tudo através de uma abordagem holística, natural e
fundamentada nas teorias mais recentes de aquisição de um
idioma estrangeiro, com muita socialização e interatividade
entre os alunos, bem como eventos sociais e culturais.
Uma escola livre e sem fronteiras. Uma empresa que não
para de crescer e com foco nos resultados. É o Spectrum
Line fazendo a diferença no ensino de idiomas em Pouso
Alegre e região.
E para comemorar os 30 anos de trabalho, dedicação e
solidez no mercado de idiomas, Spectrum Line inaugura
para 2018 a modalidade Kid`s Bilingue, oferecendo a
opção de um curso mais rápido, eficaz e lúdico para os
pais que tenham interesse em que seus filhos tenham
fluência no idioma inglês em um curto espaço de tempo e
com vantagens adicionais como: melhorar as habilidades
cognitivas, desenvolver a criatividade e adquirir
conhecimento de culturas diferentes.
DISAL BELO HORIZONTE INDICA:
SPECTRUM LINE
Rua João Basílio, 564 - Centro
CEP: 37550-000 - Pouso Alegre - MG
Telefax: 0 xx (35) 3423-4438
Rua Comendador José Garcia Nº 946 - Centro
CEP: 37550-000 - Pouso Alegre - MG
Telefax: 0 xx (35) 3423-0303
www.spectrumline.com.br
24 | New Routes® Disal

Disal Indica
PENNY UR’S100 TEACHING TPS
Editora: Cambridge University Press
Autora: Penny Ur
130 Páginas
ISBN: 9781316507285
TEACHING EFL WRITING
A PRACTICAL APPROACH FOR
SKILLS-INTEGRATED CONTEXTS
Editora: Cengage Learning
Autora: Isabela de Freitas
Villas Boas
125 Páginas
ISBN: 9788522127801
FALE TUDO EM INGLÊS EM
VIAGENS!
Editora: Disal Editora
Autor: José Roberto Igreja
184 Páginas
ISBN: 9788578440046
LEARNING TEACHING -
THE ESSENTIAL LANGUAGE
TEACHING 3RD EDITION
Editora: Macmillan Education
Autor: Jim Scrivener
416 Páginas
ISBN: 9780230729841
LANGUAGE TEACHING
COMPETENCES
Editora: Oxford University Press
Autor: Richard Rossner
192 Páginas
ISBN: 9780194403269
UNDERSTANDING AND USING
ENGLISH GRAMMAR
Editora: Pearson
Autores: Betty S. Azar / Stacy
A. Hagen
492 páginas
ISBN: 9780134275260
New Routes® Disal | 25

Book Review
THINKING
IN THE EFL
CLASS
Tessa Woodward,
Helbling Languages,
252 pages
Has the fun has gone out of teaching? Do
you feel you are giving your classes on
auto-pilot? If so, this is a book for you.
For experienced and inexperienced
teachers alike, Thinking in the EFL Class
(in the beautifully-produced Helbling
The Resourceful Teacher Series) is a
goldmine of ideas and activities. It sets
out to suggest ways of getting both the
teacher and the students involved in
new ways of looking at things.
Starting from an introduction on
thinking in general, with a useful
reminder of ‘lower order’ and ‘higher
order’ taxonomies of thought, the
book contains 7 sections. It progresses
through Chapter 1 (Fundamentals)
to Chapter 7 (Designing tasks and
activities to encourage thinking), each
with its own introduction, teaching tips
and practical activities for use in class.
Particular activities are also flagged
with a symbol indicating there is a free
downloadable worksheet in .pdf or
.doc format on the Helbling Languages
website.
If you work with a syllabus tied to a
particular set of course materials,
you may feel you have too little
time to introduce new ideas. This
book, however, will help you liven
up your thoughts on topics such
as “Building concepts, looking for
patterns and memorising” (Chapter
2) and on “Keeping it practical: ways
of structuring lessons for thinking”
(Chapter 3) among others. Many of
the practical activities suggested can
be used with the textbook or course
materials rather than instead of them.
Varying the focus you give to your
materials, getting your students to
think more, to create more actively
and to cooperate better will all have
practical rewards. And the whole
process begins with things as simple as
allowing more time for student answers
and looking for alternative responses
to the same question. Things we often
do, but reflection on what we do as
teachers and why we do it will always
be time well invested.
Activity 3.4 involves “Inspiring people”
and suggests working with “making a
personal association with someone
who has overcome difficulties or
achieved great things”. One of my
heroes in the teaching profession is
Tessa Woodward. I have admired her
work both in person and on paper
since I first met her in the late 1980s. As
a teacher, as the editor of the journal
The Teacher Trainer, and as a writer of
supplementary materials for teachers,
she has a simplicity, an originality, an
eye for detail and an elegance that
few other trainers can match. All these
qualities are reflected in Thinking in the
EFL Class.
The reviewer
Sara Walker was born and educated in Britain, where she gained a BA in Modern Languages and an MA in Latin
American Studies, but has worked virtually all her professional life in Brazil. She has been coordinator of the English
programme for trainee diplomats at the Brazilian Foreign Ministry’s Instituto Rio Branco for many years and is a
former president of BRAZ-TESOL. She was recently made an Honorary Citizen of Brasilia to celebrate her 50 years of
teaching in Brazil.
26 | New Routes® Disal

TAM
Variedades
BONNIE SCOTLAND
SCOTCH, SCOTS, SCOTTISH
Escocês
Her husband is Scots and drinks Scotch
whisky in a Scottish pub.
O marido dela é escocês e toma uísque
escocês em um bar escocês.
Do inglês arcaico Scottas, as três
palavras Scotch, Scots e Scottish
significam “escocês”, mas o uso de
cada adjetivo varia.
Scotch: refere-se a uísque escocês e a
algumas comidas. Por exemplo: scotch
broth — caldo de carne com legumes
e cevada; scotch egg — ovo cozido
coberto de carne moída de linguiça,
depois passado na farinha de rosca
e frito.
Scots: refere-se à língua inglesa falada
na Escócia e aos seus habitantes, que
podem ser chamados também de
Scotsman e Scotswoman.
Scottish: é o adjetivo mais usado para
se referir ao país Escócia, bem como a
seu povo e sua cultura. Por exemplo:
Scottish football, the Scottish mountains.
KILT
Tipo de saiote escocês
Kilts are traditionally worn by men in
Scotland.
Kilts são usados tradicionalmente por
homens na Escócia.
O termo kilt tem sua origem numa
palavra escandinava, kilte, que
significava “enrolarse”. Antigamente,
os escoceses usavam um tecido
comprido para enrolar na cintura
e jogar por cima de um ombro.
Mais tarde, virou um tipo de saiote
plissado, com desenho em xadrez,
chamado tartan. Kilt é uma peça de
roupa tradicionalmente usada pelos
homens na Escócia, e, diante do
saiote, costumase pendurar uma bolsa
de couro, geralmente coberta de pelo,
chamada sporran.
HAGGIS
Haggis
Haggis is a traditional Scottish dish.
Haggis é um prato escocês tradicional.
Haggis é um prato escocês feito de
coração, pulmão, fígado e miúdos
de carneiro ou bezerro, picados e
misturados com a gordura dos rins
do animal, farinha de aveia, cebola,
condimentos e temperos. Tudo isso é
colocado dentro de um tipo de bolsa
feita com o estômago, parecendo uma
linguiça grande e, depois, é cozido
na água. É muito popular na festa
escocesa tradicional Burns Night,
na noite de 25 de janeiro, quando é
comemorado o aniversário do poeta
escocês Robert Burns (1759-1796).
O nome haggis vem da palavra hack,
que significa “cortar”, “picar”,
referindose aos miúdos picados do
prato.
A propósito, essa mesma palavra,
hack, deu origem à palavra hacker,
de computadores, significando uma
pessoa que tenta “cortar” a conexão
para ganhar acesso a sistemas
privados.
AULD LANG SYNE
O nome de uma canção tradicional;
“há muito tempo”
Auld Lang Syne is always sung at
midnight on New Year’s Eve.
Auld Lang Syne é sempre cantada à
meia-noite na véspera do Ano-Novo.
Do dialeto escocês, auld lang syne ao
pé da letra é old long since, ou seja,
“há muito tempo”. (A pronúncia da
palavra syne seria algo como “záin”.)
É o nome da canção tradicional
e popular executada no final de
danças e festanças, principalmente
no Natal e no Ano-Novo, em todos os
países de língua inglesa e em vários
outros países. Enquanto cantam, os
participantes formam um círculo,
com os braços cruzados e as mãos
segurando a pessoa de cada lado.
Todos unidos. Dizem que foi Robert
Burns (1759-1796), famoso poeta
nacional da Escócia, que inventou a
letra, mas na realidade é uma nova
versão de uma canção bem mais
antiga. O próprio Burns admitiu que
ouviu um velho cantando essa música
e resolveu escrevê-la. Sua adaptação
ficou assim:
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to min’?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And auld lang syne?
AULD LANG SYNE, Robert Burns (1796)
5MM DE SANGRIA P/ CADA LADO DO TAMNHO REAL
28 | New Routes® Disal

144-167_SE46361_4E.indd 164
1/14/14 144-167_SE46361_4E.indd 1:47 PM
165
1/14/14 1:47 PM
TAMANHO REAL DO ANÚNCIO 20,6 X 27,5 CM
5MM DE SANGRIA P/ CADA LADO DO TAMNHO REAL
É BOM TER 5MM P/ DENTRO DO
TAMANHO REAL, P/ EVITAR QUE CORTE
ALGUM TEXTO NO REFILE.
Master the Next Generation Science Standards
Exploring Science helps you teach the Next Generation
your students master 21st century science skills.
Combine instruction in Science and Engineering
Practices, Disciplinary Core Ideas, and Crosscutting
Concepts to meet the rigor of the Performance
Expectations within the NGSS.
• Focus in-depth on 100% of the NGSS
for grades K–5
• Introduce real-world science research
with National Geographic Explorers,
scientists, and photographers
• Connect NGSS content with investigations,
engineering practices, and case studies for
complete NGSS emersion
Living Things
Are Everywhere
Many kinds of living things live all over
planet Earth. They live on land and in water.
Forests, deserts, oceans, and ponds are full
of living things. Di erent kinds of plants and
animals live in di erent places.
62
The sh in this kelp
forest live in water all
of the time.
NEXT GENERATION SCIENCE STANDARD S | DISCIPLINARY CORE IDEA S
LS4. D: Biodiversity and Humans
There are many di erent kinds of living things in any area, and they exist in
di erent places on land and in water. (2-LS4-1)
Think Like a Scientist
Limestone, sandstone, and shale are all sedimentary
rocks. Look at the patterns in the rock formations
for evidence of how the landscape in this region
has changed over time. Then cite evidence from the
diagram to answer the questions.
SANDSTONE This layer formed when
a desert with sand dunes covered the
land. The tracks of spiders and scorpions
were preserved in the sandstone.
The hippopotamus spends time on
the land and in the water.
The chameleon lives on land all of
the time.
Wrap It Up!
1. Where on Earth do plants and animals live?
2. Describe how the animals and habitats
shown ar erent.
LIMESTONE This layer formed when the
region was covered with a warm, shallow
sea. Sponges, snails, corals, sharks, and
sh lived in the clear water. This fossil
shell was found in the limestone.
062_SE46347_2L_L4 62 1/23/14 063_SE46347_2L_L4 8:52 AM 63 1/23/14 8:53 AM
63
Next Generation Science
Combine Exploring Science with National Geographic
Science for the most complete NGSS science solution.
Combine broad science background with focused,
in-depth NGSS coverage
Complete teacher support to successfully implement
the NGSS
National Geographic Explorers and scientists guide
students to meet the NGSS
fossil gastropod
REDWALL LIMESTONE These rocks
formed in a wide, shallow sea. Sea
animals such as corals and crinoids
lived in the calm waters.
SHALE This layer formed when
the land was covered by a warm,
muddy sea. Animals such as trilobites,
brachiopods, and crinoids lived here.
Wrap It Up!
fossil trilobite
SANDSTONE This layer formed in
an ancient sea where trilobites and
brachiopods lived. There are traces of
waves in the sands!
164
SCHIST This layer was once made of
sedimentary rock. Forces inside Earth
squeezed the rock until it changed
into a ne-grained metamorphic rock
called schist.
. Interpreting Diagrams What kind of rocks make up the newest
layer shown in the diagram? Which rocks make up the oldest layer?
. Sequence Use evidence from the diagram and what you know
about sedimentary rocks to place these steps in order from rst to last:
a. Sand dunes cover the land.
b. The Colorado River cuts through the layers of the land, forming a
deep canyon.
c. Sedimentary rocks are squeezed together, forming schist.
d. A warm muddy sea covers the land.
. Infer Use evidence from the diagram to explain how the landscape
has changed over time.
165
Print books and eBooks
available in English.
A PART OF CENGAGE

Dicas
BEST CASE SCENARIO / WORST CASE SCENARIO
Focus
Level
Time
Preparation
To share expectations about the course.
Any
10 - 20 minutes
None
In class
1) Tell the students to draw two columns on a piece of paper.
2) The left column will be called: Best Case Scenario, the right column will be the Worst Case Scenario.
3) Now ask them to think what would be the best possible outcome for the course that’s just started
and to write it down in the best case scenario column (e.g. students may write about being very fluent
users of the language by the end of the course.).
4) Similarly, encourage them to think of a negative outcome and write it down in the worst case
scenario column.
5) Allow some time for this.
6) When the students have finished, ask them to work in pairs and exchange their lists.
7) Next ask them to reflect on their role towards making the best case scenario happen. What would
they have to do? What would the teacher have to do? What would the group have to do?
8) Now ask them to reflect on ways to prevent the catastrophic scenario from happening, and make
a list.
9) Again, invite the students to discuss in pairs.
10) Round off the activity.
Comment
I’ve found it useful to go around and eavesdrop discreetly on
what the students say. This activity works best when done during
the first or second session of a new course.
30 | New Routes® Disal

Article
by Henrique Moura
THE PRAXIS OF PRACTICE
Routinely speaking, practice refers to “specific activities
in the second language, used systematically, (…) with the
goal of developing knowledge of and skills in the second
language” (DeKeyser, 2013:1). Practice is assumed to be
an essential part of language learning by many, and it is
given prominence in an array of methods, approaches and
teaching frameworks. However, the concept of practice
remains extensively unexplored in the ELT literature, and
it is an aspect of the teaching praxis that often leaves
teachers at sixes and sevens.
The aim of this article is to (1) understand what practice
is and what it is not; (2) understand what the concept of
practice entails; (3) analyse what the different kinds of
practice and their denominations are; (4) establish the
difference(s) between practice and task.
What is practice and what is not?
Ellis (1993:109) explains that “practice… involves an
attempt to supply the learner with plentiful opportunities
for producing targeted structures”, which means to
say that practice equals using the language in a given
context. Using the language is inherently contrary to
recognizing the language being used. One example of the
difference between recognition and practice is an activity
that requires students to read the definitions of words
and match the corresponding words to their definitions.
What students are doing in this case is recognizing the
meaning of the words, or perhaps checking understanding
of those, but there is no practice of this language
whatsoever. In other words, they are not manipulating or
creating (using) language.
32 | New Routes® Disal

y Henrique Moura
Article
Another criterion that helps define what practice is
and what it is not is how well students can perform it.
For Newell and Rosenbloom (1981:229) “practice is the
sub-class of learning that deals only with improving
performance on a task that can already be successfully
performed”. This contrasts with activities in which,
for instance, the teacher tests or diagnoses how much
students know, in which students discover features of
language, notice patterns, etc. Practice is only practice
once the students are already familiar with the target
language because it has been clarified, and if can be dealt
with successfully.
There is a third criterion which is important to take
into account when establishing the concept of practice,
which is proceduralization. Proceduralization refers
to the amount of times students apply a certain rule
in a (practice) activity. Carlson (1997:56) explains that
practice implies “repeated performance of the same (or
closely similar) routines”, and DeKeyser (1997) says
that various studies show that in order for learners to
assimilate a structure and use it autonomously, a dozen
or so relevant items in an activity are necessary. It means
that for practice to be considered real and effective, the
activity needs to contain a minimum number of items
so students have enough opportunities to be in contact
with a certain structure.
In a nutshell, the conditions for a practice
activity to be considered bona fine practice are:
1) providing students with opportunities to use
(manipulate and create) the language, and not just to
recognize it;
knowledge of the language into procedural knowledge,
i.e. knowing about language versus using the language
successfully. It investigates how practice helps the
automatization of the language, which refers to going
“from initial presentation of rule in declarative format to
the final stage of fully spontaneous, effortless, fast and
errorless use of that rule, often without being aware of it
anymore.” (DeKeyser, 2013:3).
Education psychology seeks to understand how practice
helps reduce or promote transfer. Transfer is “the
interaction of previously acquired linguistic and/or
conceptual knowledge with the present learning event
to facilitate a new language learning task” (Brown,
1993:117). This means that practice can act as a language
facilitator for students, as long as they have an adequate
declarative knowledge before they start practicing the
target language.
Applied linguistics, conversely, focusses on how practice
interferes with the interlanguage of the learner, and does
not see it as a way to transform declarative knowledge
into productive knowledge, but as a means to acquire
and develop both kinds of knowledge at the same time.
As Diane Larsen-Freeman (2003:114) explains, “doing and
learning are synchronous”.
To sum up, the different approaches to practice aim to
investigate if/how:
1) practice activities help students to transform
declarative knowledge into procedural knowledge,
through automatization;
2) focusing on an aspect students have already been
presented with;
3) containing enough items for students to apply what is
being practiced (around 12 items).
What does the study of practice involve?
The notion of practice in ELT can be situated in three
different realms: cognitive psychology, educational
psychology, and applied linguistics.
Cognitive psychology studies how our brain processes
practice activities and how they impact on our language
learning process. In other words, it tries to explain
how practice can help us transform our declarative
2) practice facilitates the process of language learning;
3) practice allows students to learn and use the language
at the same time.
Different kinds of practice and their denominations
Traditionally, practice activities can be more or less
controlled, and denominations to refer to these abound.
Some authors refer to controlled, less controlled and
freer practice, whereas others prefer the terms restricted,
semi-restricted and communicative practice. However,
the great challenge lies in pinpointing what exactly is
more or less controlled in practice activities, and many
teachers sometimes use the terms interchangeably.
Therefore, the question that remains unanswered is what
controlled, less controlled and freer practice are.
New Routes® Disal | 33

Article
by Henrique Moura
The first item to consider when trying to answer the
question is the number of instructions or commands
that students need to follow at once when performing
a practice activity. Mitchell, Myles and Marsden (2013)
explain that students can only transform declarative
knowledge into procedural knowledge if the effort
employed is controlled, and if the task can be monitored.
The more actions students perform at the same time, the
less controlled by the teacher they are, and fewer are
the details which can be monitored. This means that if
students need to follow different commands at the same
time, the teacher will not be able to control the activity
as if they would if students were following a single
command.
The second aspect to consider is the amount of possible
answers to a single practice activity. The more possible
answers there are, the less the teacher can control what
students will generate. To that effect, we can consider
how much of an information gap the practice activity
provides, the level of personalization and spontaneity
that the answers can contain, and where in the pendulum
manipulating language versus creating language the
activity is placed, and we will know if the activity is more
or less controlled. Hubbard et al. (1983:194) say that
controlled practice means that “there is only one choice:
the ‘correct’ response. Freer work offers the student
more than one choice, or a variety of responses”, which
are often personalized.
The last aspect I consider important when determining
what kind of practice a certain activity provides is how
much language students have to deal with at once. The
longer the stretch of language they have to handle in a
practice activity, the less control there is. When moving
from controlled to freer practice, students move from
simple, artificial, and oftentimes memorized sentences
to longer personalized and genuine stretches of language
that resemble real-life communication.
In other words, what will determine the level of control in
a practice activity is:
1) the number of instructions / commands students have
to follow at once;
2) the predictability and level of personalization of
answers;
4) the amount of language students handle at once;
5) if the language in the activity is just manipulated or
created by students.
How many
instructions
or
commands
do students
follow at
once?
How many
possible
answers are
there for
each item?
How
predictable
are the
answers for
each item?
How much
language
do students
handle at
once?
Do students
manipulate
or create
language?
Controlled
or Restricted
Practice
One
One
Totally
predictable
Words / Phrases
/ Sentences
Less controlled or
Semi Restricted
Practice
≥ One
(few)
A limited number
Predictable within
a context
Words / Phrases /
Sentences
Freer Practice
≥ One
An unlimited
number
Unpredictable
≥ Sentences
Manipulate Manipulate Create
What is the difference between a practice activity and a
task?
According to the definition of practice proposed by Newell
and Rosenbloom (1981), practice activities is what helps
students perform tasks better. However, one of the most
disputed definitions in ELT is that of task. Lee (2000:32)
defines a task as “a classroom activity or exercise that
has (a) an objective attainable only by the interaction
among participants, (b) a mechanism for structuring
and sequencing interaction, and (c) a focus on meaning
exchange; (2) a language learning endeavor that requires
learners to comprehend, manipulate, and/or produce
the target language as they perform…” Considering this
definition, one possible distinction to draw between
practice activity and task is that in the latter, there needs
to be interaction, and the focus is on primarily on meaning.
This means that whereas the emphasis in practice
activities is predominantly laid on form/structure, in tasks
it is focused on meaning. All things considered, practice
activities are the building blocks which lead up to the
transformation of descriptive knowledge into procedural
knowledge, and the procedural knowledge can be verified
and assessed through and in tasks.
34 | New Routes® Disal

y Henrique Moura
Article
Conclusion
Practice is omnipresent in ELT. Nonetheless, it does get an
unfair treatment in the dedicated literature. This leads to
many teachers confusing recognition activities with practice
ones, which sometimes does not help students to become
better speakers of the language. Practice activities lubricate
the language acquisition mechanisms and facilitate the
process of translating the knowledge about language into
the knowledge of using language in real life. What teachers
need to be aware of is that different practice activities have
different characteristics, and that the challenge they pose
needs to be measured and gradually increased so students
depart from a position in which the teacher tightly controls
the language they use, to a position where they can freely
experiment with it.
References
• Brown, H. D. (1993). Principles of Language Learning and
Teaching. Prentice Hall Regents.
• Carlson, R. A. (1997). Experienced cognition. Mahwah, NJ:
Lawrence Erlbaum.
• DeKeyser, R. (1997). Beyond explicit rule learning:
Automatizing second language morphosynthax. Studies in
Second Language Acquisition, 19(2), 195-221.
• DeKeyser, R. (2013). Practice in a second language. New
York: Cambridge University Press.
• Ellis, R. (1993). The structural syllabus and second
language acquisition. TESOL Quarterly, 27 (1), 91-113.
• Hubbard, P., Jones, H., Thornton, B., & Wheeler, R. (1983).
A training course for TEFL. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Mitchell, R., Myles, F., & Marsden, E. (2013). Second
language learning theories. Oxon: Routledge.
• Newell, A., & Rosenbloom, P.S. (1981). Mechanisms of skill
acquisition and the law of practice. In J. R. Anderson (Ed.),
Cognitive Skills and their acquisition (pp. 1-55). Hillsdale, NJ:
Lawrence Erlbaum.
• Larsen-Freeman, D. (2003). Teaching language: From
grammar to grammaring. Boston, MA: Heinle.
• Lee. J. (2000). Tasks and Communicating in Language
Classrooms. Boston, USA: McGraw-Hill.
The author
Henrique Moura is a CELTA, ICELT and Delta tutor, and a CELTA and Delta external assessor. He has worked with ELT
since 2002, teaching English to all levels of proficiency, and special courses of phonetics and phonology, translation
and subtitling, and post-proficiency maintenance for teachers. Henrique has also worked as a course designer, and is
currently the coordinator for the teacher development courses at SEVEN Idiomas. He is currently pursuing an M.A. in
Teacher Development at the University of Chichester.
New Routes® Disal | 35

Artigo
por Alan Couto
GESTÃO
EDUCACIONAL:
COMO FORMAR UM
TIME NOTA 10?
“Escola!”. Quando se fala em escola
o pensamento mais provável de
grande parte das pessoas é: giz,
lousa, cadernos, professores, alunos,
etc. Todavia, existe um extenso e
árduo trabalho nos seus bastidores
para garantir que: as aulas sejam
de qualidade, os alunos estejam
satisfeitos, que a secretaria esteja
pronta e consiga ajudar na solução de
problemas, entre outros. Para que, desse modo, o propósito de mudança na vida
das pessoas, principalmente dos seus alunos, aconteça de forma significativa.
Sendo assim, cada vez mais, as instituições de ensino tem se tornado e
comportado como empresas, que deixam de receber alunos e passam a receber
consumidores, ou seja, nesse cenário passou a ser fundamental investigar
problemas de captação e evasão de alunos, e a insatisfação acerca dos serviços
oferecidos, levando em conta o comportamento e as tendências desses
consumidores, de modo que, sua experiência seja melhorada dia após dia, e
garantindo que um amplo impacto positivo seja predominante.
36 | New Routes® Disal

por Alan Couto
Artigo
Por isso, dadas as mudanças apresentadas, os avanços
tecnológicos e os desafios diários, as instituições de
ensino passam a se adequar a esses movimentos para
que haja sustentabilidade e garantia de sobrevivência dos
seus serviços. Então, os professores que no passado eram
vistos como fonte de conhecimento, passam a assumir
o papel de facilitadores, por exemplo, e habilidades de
relacionamento com pessoas, como: estabelecimento
de confiança, interesse genuíno, empatia, e agilidade na
solução de problemas e/ou satisfação de necessidades,
também apresentam-se como uma nova postura a ser
assumida por nossos profissionais de ensino, frente às
demandas do nosso novo perfil de aluno, ou como tem
sido chamado, o novo consumidor educacional.
Então compartilho abaixo três grandes segredos para
gestão eficaz de pessoas, e que uma vez colocados em
prática, certamente vão te ajudar a ter um time nota 10!
1) TREINAMENTO
Certa vez, ouvi que treinamento é igual água, ou seja,
precisamos todos os dias. E essa é a mais pura verdade,
afinal, pense na seguinte situação: um jogador de tênis, vai
ficando cada vez melhor a medida que pratica, dominando
cada vez mais recursos, modelos, etc. Com os nossos
professores não é diferente, e se você quer realmente
garantir que as aulas oferecidas aumentem cada vez
mais a satisfação dos seus alunos, é fundamental que a
capacitação dos professores aconteça periodicamente.
2) FEEDBACK
O feedback do dia a dia contribui para elevação na linha,
ou seja, ajuda o gestor a acompanhar a evolução do seu
time e provocar mudança, por isso tem sido considerado
como algo básico e que deve ser feito inclusive como
forma de respeito a cada funcionário, seja membro do staff
administrativo ou corpo docente, afinal, você, gestor, se
não recebesse nenhum feedback do seu trabalho durante
uma semana ou até mesmo mais tempo, qual seria o
seu nível de satisfação e vontade ao desempenhar suas
funções? Você se sentiria motivado? Tomaria iniciativa no
seu trabalho?
Então, momentos de feedback tem um único objetivo que é de
reflexão e aprendizado, e para ajudar nessa compreensão,
apresento abaixo uma figura que ilustra quatro tipos de
feedback: positivo, que reforça um comportamento que
desejamos que se repita; corretivo, com o objetivo de
modificar um comportamento; insignificante, trata-se
de um feedback tão vago ou genérico que a pessoa que
recebe não tem certeza de seu propósito; e ofensivo,
que apenas gera desprezo e afasta pessoas. Bem como,
um passo a passo de como promover feedback que gere
mudança de comportamento, sempre que preciso for.
Entretanto, muitos gestores ainda decidem não investir
nessa área por considerar que o custo seja alto, ou até
mesmo desnecessário, porém iniciativas como: cursos
produzidos in-house, grupos de discussão, workshops sobre
como lidar com questões locais, compartilhamento de
artigos relacionados à área de ensino/ assunto específico,
observação de aula de algum colega mais experiente e
até mesmo conversas para trocas de boas práticas, são
apenas algumas das ferramentas com baixo, ou em alguns
casos nenhum, custo, e que podem funcionar como ponto
inicial para extrair o que há de melhor nas pessoas, além
de garantir um ambiente de constante aprendizado.
Ainda, quando os profissionais da sua instituição de
ensino sentir que estão devidamente capacitados, alguns
dos riscos, como: medo/ insegurança e expectativa de
“único tiro de sucesso”, sairão de cena, e então você
começa a alcançar resultados extraordinários, pois
você conseguirá compreender que o desenvolvimento
de qualquer organização é um processo educacional de
acumulação de conhecimento.
Figura 1 - Balde de feedback
Fonte: Google images
New Routes® Disal | 37

Artigo
PASSOS PARA UM MOMENTO DE FEEDBACK EFICAZ
• Descreva um comportamento específico
(exemplo: professor constantemente atrasado para aulas)
• Descreva as consequências do comportamento
(exemplo: alunos se sentem desrespeitados; conteúdo
não é apresentado no tempo correto)
• Descreva como você se sente em relação ao
comportamento
(exemplo: preocupação de que o aprendizado e a relação
do professor com os alunos seja impactada negativamente)
• Encoraje mudança
(exemplo: O que posso fazer para te ajudar a melhorar
essa situação?)
Enfim, basicamente o tipo de feedback que escolhemos e a
forma que é conduzido, determinam a resposta que teremos.
3) COACHING
Todo dia encontramos muitas pessoas que se apresentam
como coach e oferecem soluções surpreendentes, seja
por moda ou por ser um mercado atraente, entretanto,
precisa ficar claro que coach é uma técnica para ajudar
a resolver uma questão, ou seja, o papel do coach é o de
ajudar um profissional a aprofundar-se em uma questão
ou até mesmo resolver problemas, para isso pega-se um
tema, explora possibilidades e desdobramentos, e depois
de algumas sessões é possível traçar um plano de ação.
Dessa forma, trabalha-se o futuro e o desenvolvimento
de habilidades, aumentando assim o nível de resultados
positivos.
Então, por mais que você não tenha formação especifica
para ser coach, os profissionais a serem desenvolvidos,
dentro do seu contexto educacional, certamente estão
muito mais ao seu alcance - na responsabilidade de gestão
de pessoas, de garantir eficácia (fazer as coisas certas, de
por Alan Couto
maneira certa), principalmente usando sua experiência
do segmento de ensino e conhecimento de cada um, para
gerar tais mudanças e aumento de resultados.
Para isso, inicie o processo escolhendo um ou dois
profissionais que deseja fazer esse investimento, consulteo(s)
sobre a ideia, determine uma área a ser trabalhada
(exemplo: reclamações de alunos; evasão de alunos), e
estabeleça um número de encontros para trabalhar na
área proposta e desenvolver e implementar plano de ação,
seguido de medição de resultados atingidos. Por fim,
certifique-se de que durante todo o processo haja: foco,
disciplina, e organização, onde:
• foco: sabe-se o que deve ser feito/ ordem que deve ser
feito;
• disciplina: fazer o que se comprometeu a fazer;
• organização: ação organizada, ou seja, fazer na ordem
certa, garantindo eficácia pessoal.
Em resumo, vivemos rodeados de estímulos, e chama
a nossa atenção o que sai do padrão, portanto, se você
quer garantir que o seu time educacional esteja trilhando
um caminho de sucesso, lembre-se sempre de cuidar das
pessoas para que elas deem o melhor de si, e compreenda
que todas as ideias apresentadas nesse texto são um
processo, demandam tempo, e não devem ser encaradas
como estratégias emergenciais, afinal, seriam muito mais
difíceis de implementar, uma vez que você teria que
encaixá-las em sua estratégia original. Pense nisso!
Referências
WILLIAMS, Richard (2005) Preciso saber se estou indo
bem. Sextante
PINE, Joseph B. & GILMORE, James H. (1998) Welcome to
the Experience Economy. Harvard Business Review
FALCONI, Vicente (2009) O verdadeiro poder. Editora
Falconi
W
E
w
A
O Autor
Alan Couto é administrador de empresas com MBA Executivo pelo Insper. Trabalha com serviços educacionais, no
segmento de idiomas, há mais de dez anos e atualmente é gerente na Cultura Inglesa – SP.
H
S
a
p
38 | New Routes® Disal

WEBINAR DISAL
English for Teachers
with Higor Cavalcante
Teachers need to study English – that’s a fact!
In this webinar, we will discuss some common diffculties Brazilian
teachers of English have with the language they teach, as well as
some tips on how to keep on improving your knowledge of English.
Access our YouTube channel and watch it right now!
/disalchannel
Higor Cavalcante is a teacher and teacher educator based in
São Paulo. He’s the vice president of BRAZ-TESOL and
author of ”Inglês para professor“(2015) and ”Inglês para
professor 2“ (coming soon), both published by Disal Editora.
INGLÊS PARA
PROFESSOR
ISBN: 9788578441869
Disal Editora
208 páginas

Nuevas Rutas
por Óscar Rodríguez García
CÓMO TRABAJAR LA INTERACCIÓN
ORAL EN EL AULA DE ELE
El Consejo de Europa (2001) define en su MCER (Marco
común europeo de referencia para las lenguas) la interacción
como:
“una participación de al menos dos
individuos en un intercambio oral
o escrito en el que la expresión y la
comprensión se alternan y pueden, de
hecho, solaparse en la comunicación.
No solo pueden estar hablando y
escuchándose entre sí dos interlocutores
simultáneamente; incluso cuando
se respeta estrictamente el turno de
palabra, el oyente por lo general está
pronosticando el resto del mensaje del
hablante y preparando una respuesta.
Aprender a interactuar, por lo tanto,
supone más que aprender a comprender
y a producir expresiones habladas.
Generalmente se atribuye una gran
importancia a la interacción en el
uso y el aprendizaje de la lengua,
dado su papel preponderante en la
comunicación”.
Incluyó también la consideración de la interacción como
una actividad comunicativa de la lengua con entidad propia.
Hasta entonces, las destrezas que se tenían en cuenta a la
hora de preparar programas académicos para la enseñanza
de lenguas eran las dos comprensiones (lectora y auditiva)
y las dos expresiones (escrita y oral). A partir de entonces,
se empieza a hablar de la interacción y de la mediación,
de su peso específico en la enseñanza de idiomas y de las
estrategias para introducirlas en el aula.
De las seis actividades comunicativas, la interacción es
la única que está basada en el principio de cooperación
(Grice, 1975). Es un principio pragmático por el cual los
dos interlocutores de una interacción se comprometen
de manera tácita a participar en la misma atendiendo a
conocimientos previamente adquiridos, y es el conocimiento
de esos contenidos extralingüísticos o pragmática, lo que
marca el nivel de dominio de la L2.
Descifrar los turnos de palabra, la gestión de los silencios
o la entonación en una conversación supone cubrir una
necesidad básica para el buen entendimiento del mensaje
que se quiere transmitir. La pragmática es, por tanto,
una disciplina que toma en consideración los factores
extralingüísticos que determinan el uso del lenguaje,
40 | Nuevas Rutas® Disal

por Óscar Rodríguez García
Nuevas Rutas
precisamente todos aquellos factores a los que no puede
hacer referencia un estudio puramente gramatical: nociones
como las de emisor, destinatario, intención comunicativa,
contexto verbal, situación o conocimiento del mundo van a
resultar de capital importancia. (Escandell, 1993).
oportunidades para que produzca y demuestre que
realmente está adquiriendo la lengua.
Se desprende de la definición del MCER que la interacción
oral depende directamente del uso simultáneo de
dos actividades comunicativas de la lengua (una de
comprensión y otra de expresión), por lo que se pondrían
en juego estrategias de codificación y de decodificación de
manera constante. Más aún si tenemos en cuenta que el
público al que nos estamos dirigiendo son estudiantes de
lenguas extranjeras.
Otra característica que cabe destacar de la interacción
oral es que es una comunicación inmediata e improvisada,
frente a la comunicación diferida y con más andamiaje de la
interacción escrita. El hecho de que nosotros, los profesores
de L2, dirijamos más o menos claramente las interacciones
de nuestros estudiantes hacia los objetivos que queremos
conseguir no hace que sea menos improvisada, puesto que
los conocimientos inherentes a cada individuo afectan de
manera clave a la producción.
La imbricación de actividades de interacción oral en el
aula es uno de los pilares de la enseñanza de lenguas en
la actualidad. Los docentes de ELE intentan motivar a sus
estudiantes a que utilicen la lengua en contextos alejados
del aula, y la mejor preparación para esa “vida real”
es, sin duda, desarrollar un uso funcional de la lengua
“intramuros”, mediante la exposición de los estudiantes a
contextos de comunicación real. Las actividades basadas
en trabajo específico de la interacción oral están orientadas
a un uso práctico de la lengua, son la base para la puesta en
juego de los contenidos funcionales de cada nivel.
Este trabajo de la interacción oral en los diferentes contextos
educativos existentes puede provocar la aparición de
ciertas dificultas originadas en la propia idiosincrasia del
contexto o del grupo al que están dirigidas, o provenientes
de la pragmática de la L1 o de la lengua de comunicación
del grupo, del componente afectivo en el aula, de las
condiciones físicas de la clase, etc.
Figura 1. Vente 1. Unidad 1. Página 9. Fomento de la interacción oral desde los
primeros pasos en el español.
Dificultad:
- Las explotaciones didácticas que proponen los docentes
o los materiales que usamos en clase no permiten explotar
todos los contenidos que realmente se pretenden explotar.
Las estrategias de los estudiantes les permiten eludir
la utilización de los recursos que realmente se quieren
trabajar.
Acciones que hay que desarrollar:
Es importante introducir en nuestra clase actividades
rentables y variadas para que el estudiante disponga de
un mayor repertorio lingüístico y funcional y sea capaz de
responder a las tareas que les proponemos en las clases.
Rentables en cuanto a que puedan, realmente, poner en
práctica las actividades realizadas en la clase; variadas
en cuanto a que preparemos a nuestros estudiantes para
los diversos contextos a los que se puede enfrentar en su
producción de L2.
El MCER destaca en este sentido diferentes tipos de
actividades que recomienda trabajar para fomentar
la adaptación del estudiante a diferentes ámbitos:
transacciones, conversaciones casuales, discusión informal
– formal, debates, entrevistas, negociación, planificación
conjunta, cooperación para alcanzar un objetivo, etc.
A continuación mencionaremos algunas de las dificultadas
más problemáticas con las que se enfrenta el profesor
cuando intenta integrar las actividades de interacción
oral en el aula, y posibles acciones que podrían ayudar a
solucionarlas.
Dificultad:
- En los grupos en los que la trayectoria educativa del
país no fomenta la interacción oral, los profesores se
encuentran con la dificultad de la “no necesidad” de hablar.
Los alumnos no necesitan comunicarse para aprender la
lengua porque así lo han hecho con las otras lenguas de su
perfil lingüístico.
Acciones que hay que desarrollar:
Para eliminar ese miedo a hablar, se tienen que fomentar
las actividades de interacción desde niveles iniciales, desde
el primer día de clase. Hay que proporcionar al estudiante
Figura 2. Vente 1. Unidad 1. Página 11. Variedad de tipología de actividades.
Nuevas Rutas® Disal | 41

Nuevas Rutas
por Óscar Rodríguez García
Dificultad:
- Los estudiantes tienen claros los contenidos gramaticales,
pero a la hora de ponerlos en práctica cometen muchos
errores.
Acciones que hay que desarrollar:
Cuando centramos la atención en los contenidos
gramaticales y descuidamos los demás contenidos,
podemos provocar en el estudiante un rechazo a producir
por miedo a cometer errores. Es importante que los
profesores trabajemos de manera secuenciada todos los
componentes de la competencia comunicativa para no
generar estudiantes que tengan muy buenos resultados en
una competencia, y que sin embargo sean incompetentes
en las demás.
el profesor proponga en clase y a las situaciones que se
den en contextos más allá de las aulas. Un buen ejemplo de
este tipo de muestras son los vídeos, donde los estudiantes
pueden observar el contenido gramatical, funcional y
pragmático.
Figura 4. Manual de uso Vente A1 – Libro digital del profesor con vídeos.
Figura 3. Vente 1. Unidad 1. Página 17. Trabajo integrado de todas las competencias.
Dificultad:
- Otra de las dificultades principales a las que se enfrentan
los docentes cuando proponen actividades de interacción
en el aula es el uso de la L1 por parte de los estudiantes.
En muchas ocasiones los estudiantes de L2 que comparten
una lengua de comunicación hacen un uso desequilibrado
entre la L1 y la L2.
Acciones que hay que desarrollar:
Si dotamos a los estudiantes de modelos reales de lengua
que ellos puedan replicar en la lengua meta que están
aprendiendo, les facilitaremos la puesta en juego de los
conocimientos adquiridos en clase. Estas muestras reales les
servirán de objetivo comunicativo, y de muestra de cultura
y pragmática que ellos podrán aplicar a las situaciones que
En resumen, las actividades comunicativas dirigidas a
fomentar la interacción oral en el aula de L2 deben ser
rentables, variadas y basadas en usos funcionales que los
estudiantes puedan replicar. Los aprendientes tienen que
enfrentarse a modelos de lengua reales desde el primer día
y las actividades de interacción oral deben permitir que
el estudiante produzca y se motive en L2. Es importante
trabajar todos los componentes de la competencia
comunicativa para que haya un desarrollo equilibrado de
destrezas, y los estudiantes sean competentes en todos los
aspectos de la L2 que están estudiando.
Bibliografía:
• Consejo de Europa, (2001): Marco común europeo
de referencia para las lenguas: aprendizaje, enseñanza,
evaluación. Madrid, Instituto Cervantes-Ministerio de
Educación, Cultura y Deporte - Editorial Anaya. 2003.
https://cvc.cervantes.es/ensenanza/biblioteca_ele/
marco/cvc_mer.pdf
• Grice, H. P. (1975). «Logic and conversation». En P. Cole
y J. L. Morgan (eds.). Syntax and Semantic. Speech Acts.
Nueva York: Academic Press, pp. 41-58.
• Escandell Vidal, M.ª V. Introducción a la pragmática.
Madrid: Anthropos, 1993, Capítulo I, págs. 15-29.
El autor del artículo:
Óscar Rodríguez García
Nacido en Salamanca es licenciado en Filología Árabe y máster oficial en Lingüística Aplicada a la Enseñanza de ELE
en la Universidad Antonio de Nebrija.
Ha sido profesor en los Institutos Cervantes de Rabat, de Bruselas y de Orán durante más de siete años. También ha
sido director académico de un centro de enseñanza de ELE en San Petersburgo donde ejerció como responsable del
centro de formación de profesores y coordinador del centro de exámenes DELE.
Cuenta con amplia experiencia en la formación de profesores en varios campos, sobre todo en los relacionados con las
nuevas tecnologías en la enseñanza de L2 y es autor y coautor de diversos manuales y materiales para la enseñanza
de ELE, entre ellos ¿Español? ¡Por supuesto! Niveles A2+ y B1, de la editorial EDELSA.
Actualmente es Asesor Didáctico de la Editorial EDELSA (Departamento de Investigación Didáctica y comunicación.
42 | Nuevas Rutas® Disal

Libro del alumno y Libro de ejercicios
PUNTOS FUERTES
• Calidad de la secuencia didáctica para conseguir
un aprendizaje real siguiendo “las tres P”:
Presentación, Práctica, Producción.
• Facilidad de utilización y claridad en la
organización de los contenidos.
• Trabajo equilibrado de las competencias
comunicativas.
• Muestras de lengua reales, variadas y asequibles.
• Progresión realista, contrastada en el aula.
• Equilibrio entre contenido y práctica.
• Consignas claras y sencillas.
• Trabajo sistemático de la gramática.
• Práctica del vocabulario.
• Tratamiento específico de la interacción oral y
escrita.
• Incorporación de materiales audiovisuales en la
secuencia didáctica.
VENTE pretende ser una herramienta cómoda y eficaz
para enseñar, aprender y disfrutar del español en el
aula y on-line.
Para más información entre en contacto con:
Sara Ganimian Tcharkhetian | Apoio Pedagógico Espanhol
apoioped.espanhol@disal.com.br | Fone: 11 3226-3102

Eu Recomendo
TEACHING
EFL WRITING
A PRACTICAL APPROACH FOR
SKILLS-INTEGRATED CONTEXTS
ISABELA DE FREITAS VILLAS BOAS
Teaching EFL Writing - A Practical Approach
for Skills-Integrated Contexts, published by
Cengage, is an excellent reference book
for English teachers working in the EFL
segment. Although the book is directed
mainly at teachers-in-training and teachers
who have had little training in teaching
writing as a skill, I recommend the book to
EFL teachers in general as well, including
those who are experienced, for I find
the book brings a number of useful and
practical ideas to learn from or revisit.
The teaching of writing is one of Isabela de
Freitas Villas Boas’ main interest areas. A
very knowledgeable teacher and teacher
trainer, Isabela has drawn on her own
experience as a learner and teacher of
writing, as well as on her research in the
field to write this book.
Aiming at offering teachers useful and
practical resources to help them feel better
prepared to teach writing in the skills
integrated context, the book is organized in
eight short chapters bringing both a brief
overview of how the teaching of writing as
a skill has been seen and approached over
the past few decades, an introduction to the
process-genre framework advocated in the
book, as well as very objective information
and practical ideas and suggestions
teachers can use when planning their
writing lessons and teaching them.
One of the highlights are the ‘before
you read’ and ‘after you read’ boxes in
chapters 1 through 7, which bring two
or three questions about the topic the
chapter focuses on. The questions at the
beginning of each chapter are meant to
raise awareness about the topic, and thus
help the reader prepare for the content he/
she is about to read, while the questions at
the end invite the reader to focus on his/
her own teaching practice, helping him/her
think about how to transfer information to
his/her own teaching setting.
Another feature worth pointing out are
the varied sample activities the author
shares with readers which can be used in
their teaching to introduce genres, help
students plan before writing, and work with
peer and teacher feedback. Besides this, a
variety of very useful sample charts, sets of
scoring rubrics and checklists for different
proficiency levels are also available in
chapter 7 for easy reference. The author
also offers helpful step by step suggestions
for teachers or course developers to refer to
when adapting existing materials to fit the
process-genre framework in their teaching
context. Finally, the book brings two
Appendixes with a complete set of writing
activities including sample assessment
scoring rubrics, designed for intermediate
and advanced level students.
An insightful and very useful reference
book for teachers interested in learning
more about teaching writing, this title is a
must read and I highly recommend it, as
I’m positive that after reading it, teachers
will feel more secure and motivated to help
their students develop into more proficient
writers of English.
Silvia Corrêa, formada em Letras pela UFPa e Mestre em Linguística pela University of Colorado at Boulder. Silvia é
Diretora Acadêmica da Associação Alumni, São Paulo.
44 | New Routes® Disal

MAIS UM ANO
REPLETO DE
CONHECIMENTO
PARA VOCÊ!
Acompanhe a
programação no site:
disal.com.br/eventos
Para mais informações:
eventos@disal.com.br

Activité
Activities
VOCABULARY BOOSTER
1. WITTY (adj.)
2. OUST/ED/ED (v.)
3. DEBRIS (n.)
4. LURE/D/D (v.)
5. UPSCALE (adj.)
6. RELISH/ED/ED (v.)
7. GREGARIOUS (adj.)
8. PLIGHT (n.)
9. MAYHEM (n.)
10. LAVISH (adj.)
VOCABULARY BOOSTER 3: EXERCISES
I. Fill in the gaps in the sentences below with a word presented in VOCABULARY BOOSTER.
1. “I wish I could afford to go to__________________
restaurants. I hear the food there is awesome.”, said Jerry
to a friend.
2. “I hate movies filled with cold-blooded murderers and
__________________.I just can’t stand them.”, said Jill to a
friend.
3. “It’s no wonder Jake has a__________________ lifestyle.
He comes from a well-off family.”, said Mick to a friend.
4. Everyone looked forward to attending professor Hoover’s
__________________and informative speech.
5. Anyone who violates the rules will be __________________
from the group.
6. Rescuers worked twenty-four seven digging through the
__________________in search of survivors.
7. “We need to figure out a way to__________________ more
customers into our store.”. said Dan to his partner.
8. “You know I__________________ our time together. I’m
sure I will miss you when you leave.”, Gary told Rita.
9. Ray is an outgoing and__________________ guy. He’s
always surrounded by friends.
10. Benjamin does volunteer work for an NGO that tries to
relieve the __________________of the homeless.
II. Choose the synonym.
1. Gregarious
a. rowdy c. touchy
b. violent d. sociable
2. Mayhem
a. harbor c. stallion
b. chaos d. bliss
3. Upscale
a. ravishing c. high-class
b. altered d. applicable
4. Debris
a. leftover c. commotion
b. insole d. wreckage
5. Lavish
a. forsaken c. luxurious
b. polished d. untamed
Answers
I.
1. upscale 6. debris
2. mayhem 7. lure
3. lavish 8. relish
4. witty 9. gregarious
5. ousted 10. plight
II.
1. d 2. b 3. c 4. d 5. c
46 | New Routes® Disal

Progresser en FRANÇAIS c’est
S’exercer et réviser l’essentiel
S’entraîner et préparer l’examen
Plonger dans la littérature francophone
et lire avec plaisir
www.editionsdidier.com

COM GRAMÁTICA
SE APRENDE DO JEITO CERTO
elisabeth
prescher
ISBN 978-85-7844-167-8
224 págs. | 16 x 23 cm
ana haraguchi
ISBN 978-85-7844-077-0
400 págs. | 17 x 24 cm
christine house
e john stevens
ISBN 978-85-7844-096-1
128 págs. | 19,5 x 26 cm
stella tagnin
ISBN 978-85-7844-127-2
224 págs. | 13,5 x 20,5 cm
elisabeth
prescher
elisabeth
prescher
elisabeth
prescher
elisabeth
prescher
ISBN 978-85-7844-069-5
120 págs. | 16 x 23 cm
ISBN 978-85-7844-128-9
240 págs. | 16 x 23 cm
ISBN 978-85-7844-099-2
192 págs. | 16 x 23 cm
ISBN 978-85-7844-152-4
144 págs. | 16 x 23 cm
anuncio_vocabulaŕio_nov2017_final.indd 1 17/11/17 16:06