Pedagogy

  Ms. Sharmin Siddiqui presented her research paper titled From Normal to New Normal: Rethinking Methodologies, at a webinar organized by the Language Research Center on January 27, 2021. She highlighted the dramatic shift from one teaching move to another due to the current pandemic.   Siddiqui first defined the new normal with a reference from Wikipedia on how the term 'New Normal' was first used in 2007 and 2008 during the financial crisis and used until COVID-19. She mentioned how the traditional classroom pedagogies during the lockdown abruptly took a backseat, and virtual learning became the only way of teaching in mainstream education. She also stated how the sudden disruption required many professionals to change their conventional mindsets and acquire a new set of skills compatible with the latest online pedagogies.   Siddiqui focused on the dramatic success of online teaching at King Khalid University during the outbreak. She mentioned that faculty members and students could communicate effectively and successfully in this virtual teaching mode during the pandemic, although many educational institutions of different countries halted their activities sine die.   Siddiqui also talked about the two most popular learning management systems: Moodle and Blackboard. She brought out some limitations of using virtual platforms exclusively and put forward some issues to reconsider the teachers' methodologies. Referring to a case study, she mentioned that if learners are provided with the same learning material, quality of teachers, and resources as in the traditional mode of learning, the same academic outcomes will be achieved.   The primary issue associated with virtual classrooms, Siddiqui said, is the difficulty in addressing individual interests and needs according to the learners' different learning styles. Also, lecturing is the commonly used method in the online mode, she added. The intended communicative gestures that are considered important vehicles for building rapport with learners are not possible in a virtual platform. Besides, reassessing absenteeism criteria is one of the needs for ensuring the learning outcomes, she mentioned. She also highlighted some drawbacks of applying a particular test type in a virtual platform and questioned its validity.   The presenter concluded her presentation with some recommendations. To differentiate instruction in virtual platforms, teachers need to switch between the modes. Using different kinds of synchronous and asynchronous communication ensures successful collaboration between teachers and students, she emphasized. To ensure the learners' attention and attendance, teachers should announce that at the end of the session, there will be an incentive-based assessment.   The webinar was very interactive and a great success with both male and female faculty members' active participation. Date: 1-29-2021 Source: Mohammad Adil Siddique

  Ms. Sharmin Siddiqui presented her research paper titled From Normal to New Normal: Rethinking Methodologies, at a webinar organized by the Language Research Center on January 27, 2021. She highlighted the dramatic shift from one teaching move to another due to the current pandemic.   Siddiqui first defined the new normal with a reference from Wikipedia on how the term 'New Normal' was first used in 2007 and 2008 during the financial crisis and used until COVID-19. She mentioned how the traditional classroom pedagogies during the lockdown abruptly took a backseat, and virtual learning became the only way of teaching in mainstream education. She also stated how the sudden disruption required many professionals to change their conventional mindsets and acquire a new set of skills compatible with the latest online pedagogies.   Siddiqui focused on the dramatic success of online teaching at King Khalid University during the outbreak. She mentioned that faculty members and students could communicate effectively and successfully in this virtual teaching mode during the pandemic, although many educational institutions of different countries halted their activities sine die.   Siddiqui also talked about the two most popular learning management systems: Moodle and Blackboard. She brought out some limitations of using virtual platforms exclusively and put forward some issues to reconsider the teachers' methodologies. Referring to a case study, she mentioned that if learners are provided with the same learning material, quality of teachers, and resources as in the traditional mode of learning, the same academic outcomes will be achieved.   The primary issue associated with virtual classrooms, Siddiqui said, is the difficulty in addressing individual interests and needs according to the learners' different learning styles. Also, lecturing is the commonly used method in the online mode, she added. The intended communicative gestures that are considered important vehicles for building rapport with learners are not possible in a virtual platform. Besides, reassessing absenteeism criteria is one of the needs for ensuring the learning outcomes, she mentioned. She also highlighted some drawbacks of applying a particular test type in a virtual platform and questioned its validity.   The presenter concluded her presentation with some recommendations. To differentiate instruction in virtual platforms, teachers need to switch between the modes. Using different kinds of synchronous and asynchronous communication ensures successful collaboration between teachers and students, she emphasized. To ensure the learners' attention and attendance, teachers should announce that at the end of the session, there will be an incentive-based assessment.   The webinar was very interactive and a great success with both male and female faculty members' active participation. Date: 1-29-2021 Source: Mohammad Adil Siddique

  Ms. Amatul Hafeez Alvi conducted a workshop on Virtual Teaching of English Courses: Ways to Make it Effective, at a webinar organized by the Language Research Center on September 16, 2020.   Alvi started the session by stating the objectives of the webinar – creating interactivity, reliability in building online learning experiences, forging online connections to build the teacher-learner relation, the application of key principles to create teaching presence and avoidance of "turning off" students to the online paradigm.   First, she emphasized the proper knowledge a teacher should have about instructional technology. She specifically focused on being familiar with devices, the Internet, e-content, related problems associated with the course website and connectivity. She also added the importance of having proper knowledge of how to handle problems with students and troubleshoot them efficiently.   Secondly, Alvi emphasized the teacher's presence. She focused on how a teacher should introduce himself or herself by, for instance, uploading an introductory video or emailing. Doing this, at least, can create an impression that the teacher is around. A teacher should use both synchronous and asynchronous communication methods to connect with the learners, she added. Furthermore, she stressed on being a reflective teacher who is able to evaluate himself or herself after what he or she has done.   Alvi also talked about fostering communication by being a role model, allowing students to know each other, creating a safe learning atmosphere and social opportunities, and emphasizing teamwork. Clarity and simplicity are also essential in designing a course, said Alvi. A teacher must be able to consider different learning styles, she added. For example, there are visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners who acquire things differently.   Alvi concludes that a teacher must keep on searching for new ideas, for example, from the Internet and colleagues.   The webinar was very interactive and a great success with the active participation of both male and female faculty members from the Bachelor of Arts in English program. Date: 9-16-2020 Source: Mohammad Adil Siddique

  Ms. Amatul Hafeez Alvi conducted a workshop on Virtual Teaching of English Courses: Ways to Make it Effective, at a webinar organized by the Language Research Center on September 16, 2020.   Alvi started the session by stating the objectives of the webinar – creating interactivity, reliability in building online learning experiences, forging online connections to build the teacher-learner relation, the application of key principles to create teaching presence and avoidance of "turning off" students to the online paradigm.   First, she emphasized the proper knowledge a teacher should have about instructional technology. She specifically focused on being familiar with devices, the Internet, e-content, related problems associated with the course website and connectivity. She also added the importance of having proper knowledge of how to handle problems with students and troubleshoot them efficiently.   Secondly, Alvi emphasized the teacher's presence. She focused on how a teacher should introduce himself or herself by, for instance, uploading an introductory video or emailing. Doing this, at least, can create an impression that the teacher is around. A teacher should use both synchronous and asynchronous communication methods to connect with the learners, she added. Furthermore, she stressed on being a reflective teacher who is able to evaluate himself or herself after what he or she has done.   Alvi also talked about fostering communication by being a role model, allowing students to know each other, creating a safe learning atmosphere and social opportunities, and emphasizing teamwork. Clarity and simplicity are also essential in designing a course, said Alvi. A teacher must be able to consider different learning styles, she added. For example, there are visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners who acquire things differently.   Alvi concluded that a teacher must keep on searching for new ideas, for example, from the Internet and colleagues.   The webinar was very interactive and a great success with the active participation of both male and female faculty members from the Bachelor of Arts in English program.  Date: 9-16-2020 Source: Mohammad Adil Siddique

The Third Annual Forum on ELT titled Modern Teaching English Strategies was held on 14 April 2018 at the Mercure Hotel in Khamis Mushait, Saudi Arabia. The event was organized by the Faculty of Languages and Translation at King Khalid University in cooperation with Al Khaleej Company. The primary aim of the forum was to share ideas about modern pedagogy. The program consisted of two sessions and ten presentations. The first session commenced with Ian Albert’s presentation titled Use of Visuals for Use with Touchstone. He showed how to effectively use the coursebook in terms of the use of pictures in teaching grammar. Ian’s presentation was followed by Myles Michael who, in his presentation titled Motivation in the Classroom, focused on how classroom activities could cater to proper motivation and how extrinsic motivation could be shifted to intrinsic motivation. In the next presentation titled Games Related to Touchstone, Anhar Redmond showed how to make practical use of games and activities in class with the help of the coursebook titled Touchstone 1. Abubakar Elasha, on the other hand, spoke about Multiple Intelligence and what teaching strategies language teachers should apply according to their type of intelligence. He focused on logical, verbal, interpersonal, naturalistic and many other types of intelligence. The final presentation in the session was delivered by Murshid Haider Choudhury who spoke on the subject of Teaching Target Culture to Saudi EFL Students in the 21st Century. He emphasized the judicious integration of local and L2 cultures in textbooks, and the need for EFL teacher training on how to teach culture in a pedagogical manner. The second session began with a workshop titled Cooperative Learning Groups: More Than Just One Group Work by Sheila Simpkins, who showed how to engage learners in group work in reading lessons. She primarily emphasized cooperative group work in which each learner would be actively involved in the learning process. The next presentation was delivered by Mohammad Adil who emphasized the Use of Discovery learning in Teaching Content Courses, which could make content lectures easier and more fruitful for students. Discovery learning, he concluded, could promote learner autonomy and facilitate lecture comprehension. Sara Huseynova, on the other hand, spoke on the subject On Cultural Differences in Learning and Teaching & Why and How to Promote Group Work Education. She emphasized that collective culture should become better at adapting to group work and therefore learning from others should be encouraged within this culture. Harry Ernest gave the last presentation titled Teaching EFL from Psychological and Cognitive Perspectives. It was primarily based on neurolinguistics. He showed how positive emotion and a relaxed teaching environment could facilitate learning. The forum undoubtedly was a great success. Date: 4/16/2018 Source: Mohammad Adil Siddique Multimedia Source: Ahmed M. Karamalla

The Third Annual Forum on ELT titled Modern Teaching English Strategies was held on 14 April 2018 at the Mercure Hotel in Khamis Mushait, Saudi Arabia. The event was organized by the Faculty of Languages and Translation at King Khalid University in cooperation with Al Khaleej Company. The primary aim of the forum was to share ideas about modern pedagogy. The program consisted of two sessions and ten presentations. The first session commenced with Ian Albert’s presentation titled Use of Visuals for Use with Touchstone. He showed how to effectively use the coursebook in terms of the use of pictures in teaching grammar. Ian’s presentation was followed by Myles Michael who, in his presentation titled Motivation in the Classroom, focused on how classroom activities could cater to proper motivation and how extrinsic motivation could be shifted to intrinsic motivation. In the next presentation titled Games Related to Touchstone, Anhar Redmond showed how to make practical use of games and activities in class with the help of the coursebook titled Touchstone 1. Abubakar Elasha, on the other hand, spoke about Multiple Intelligence and what teaching strategies language teachers should apply according to their type of intelligence. He focused on logical, verbal, interpersonal, naturalistic and many other types of intelligence. The final presentation in the session was delivered by Murshid Haider Choudhury who spoke on the subject of Teaching Target Culture to Saudi EFL Students in the 21st Century. He emphasized the judicious integration of local and L2 cultures in textbooks, and the need for EFL teacher training on how to teach culture in a pedagogical manner. The second session began with a workshop titled Cooperative Learning Groups: More Than Just One Group Work by Sheila Simpkins, who showed how to engage learners in group work in reading lessons. She primarily emphasized cooperative group work in which each learner would be actively involved in the learning process. The next presentation was delivered by Mohammad Adil who emphasized the Use of Discovery learning in Teaching Content Courses, which could make content lectures easier and more fruitful for students. Discovery learning, he concluded, could promote learner autonomy and facilitate lecture comprehension. Sara Huseynova, on the other hand, spoke on the subject On Cultural Differences in Learning and Teaching & Why and How to Promote Group Work Education. She emphasized that collective culture should become better at adapting to group work and therefore learning from others should be encouraged within this culture. Harry Ernest gave the last presentation titled Teaching EFL from Psychological and Cognitive Perspectives. It was primarily based on neurolinguistics. He showed how positive emotion and a relaxed teaching environment could facilitate learning. The forum undoubtedly was a great success. Date: 4/16/2018 Source: Mohammad Adil Siddique Multimedia Source: Ahmed M. Karamalla

On Monday, March 27, 2017, the Language Research Centre, under the supervision of Dr. Ismail Al Refaai, held a seminar. Dr. Haseeb Ahmed talked about the importance of literature in English Language Teaching and Learning. His presentation was titled, What is Literature? Why Should we Study it? Dr. Ahmed emphasized the importance of studying literature. During his presentation, he quoted preeminent poets such as Shakespeare, Wordsworth, Sidney, and philosophers like Aristotle and Jean Paul to identify the purpose of literature. Some of them termed literature as a source of delight and pleasure, and some termed literature as a tool serving a political purpose.     Dr. Ahmed concluded that literature helps to express oneself, have access to culture, develop sophisticated sensibility, appreciate beauty, and develop a wider perspective of events. It is worth noting that Al Samer Campus also participated in the seminar through video conferencing. The presentation was worthwhile and engaged the participants on both sides with an interactive discussion.  Date: 03-27-2017 Source: MD Adil Multimedia Contribution: MD Sirajul Islam

On Monday, March 27, 2017, the Language Research Centre, under the supervision of Dr. Ismail Al Refaai, held a seminar. Dr. Haseeb Ahmed talked about the importance of literature in English Language Teaching and Learning. His presentation was titled, What is Literature? Why Should we Study it? Dr. Ahmed emphasized the importance of studying literature. During his presentation, he quoted preeminent poets such as Shakespeare, Wordsworth, Sidney, and philosophers like Aristotle and Jean Paul to identify the purpose of literature. Some of them termed literature as a source of delight and pleasure, and some termed literature as a tool serving a political purpose.     Dr. Ahmed concluded that literature helps to express oneself, have access to culture, develop sophisticated sensibility, appreciate beauty, and develop a wider perspective of events. It is worth noting that Al Samer Campus also participated in the seminar through video conferencing. The presentation was worthwhile and engaged the participants on both sides with an interactive discussion.  Date: 03-27-2017 Source: MD Adil Multimedia Contribution: MD Sirajul Islam