CP News

Hi,

Just to re-introduce the concept for the ESL teachers who are not familiar with this document; Reach-out is put together as often as possible – 3-4 times a year - as a source of information for the ESL teachers of the school board.Our board covers a very large territory and this initiative hopes to reach-out and make sure you, the ESL teachers, are aware of pedagogical activities and opportunities available to you.It strives to become a tool that will allow us to communicate ideas, tips, experiences and information pertinent to ESL teaching. Back issues are available on the Internet at http://station05.qc.ca/css/cybersite/reach-out/ but you will notice a gap from September 2001 until now while I was on loan to the MEQ. This year, I am 50% CP responsible for ESL, as well as mandates for the Target School and general mandates related to the PFÉQ. I also teach 4 secondary 5 classes at the Tournesol.

This is a "short and sweet" issue as I re-integrate teaching after a 5 year absence and try to get my "things" together in a reformed way. Please bear with me.

You are welcome to contact me at 819 845-7111 or leave a message at my Board office 1-888-847-1610 ext.278 however under the circumstances (classes, etc) email is really the most efficient way to communicate and to avoid playing telephone tag.

Wishing you all a good school year.

ron@csdessommets.qc.ca

Training sessions

Some of the training sessions and pedagogical opportunities for the year include:

q For the ESL Elementary teachers we plan on 2 sessions of 2 days. One day in each session is a release day from classes and one is a pedagogical day. The first session is being planned for December 5 and 8. The topic in each session will center on developing learning scenarios to share (developing all the great ideas from last year’s session into finished products). In each session, different elements such as strategies, differentiation, the development of CCC, etc are focused on. The elements such as evaluation which we looked at last year are also integrated.

q The SPEAQ convention (The ESL teachers’ association) is

November 20,21,22 2003
31st Annual Convention
Hôtel Delta Centre-Ville
777 University Street
Montreal QC H3C 3Z7

Theme : To SPEAQ and Beyond

http://speaq.qc.ca/

General Information

REGISTRATION

Thursday		2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Friday		7:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Saturday		7:45 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

OPENING PLENARY

Thursday

7:30 p.m.

OPENING RECEPTION

Thursday

9:00 p.m. – 10:30 p.m.

WORKSHOPS AND PRESENTATIONS

Thursday		3:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Friday		8:30 a.m. – 5:15 p.m.
Saturday		8:30 a.m. – 3:45 p.m.

EXHIBITS

Friday

8:30 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.

If you are interested, speak to your principal or local Comité de perfectionnement

q SPEAQ Campus is a local activity held by SPEAQ for BEALS students at the Univeristy of Sherbrooke. Probably it will be held January 30^th^,a planning day. Some of our teachers participated during the last few years with the support of their school(s)and it is always an interesting and enriching day of workshops. I will send you futher information as I receive it.

q For Secondary teachers, a cycle 1 session will be offered. The session will probably be held in collaboration with the CSRS though dates have not been set. The session will include one release day and one pedagogical day.
For cycle 2, (sec 3-4-5) a one day session with representatives of the MEQ – ESL evaluation team is possible but not definite. The goals include clarification of the new orientations in examinations at the sec. 4 and 5 level. ( updated grids, use of dictionaries, reading and oral production components, etc)

q Other pedagogical sessions (from 4 o'clock to …, and ped day meetings) are also possible.

__________________________________________

q An English committee is being established in the board in order to make recommendations to schools on the scheduling and organization for ESL at the elementary next year.

q The evaluation policy of the board concerning elementary schools is being reviewed in order to update it.

q Finding supply teachers seems to be a definite problem and one that could jepordize training sessions in some places. - (Hopefully not here)

MEQ news

At the September meeting of RREALS we learned that:

q the same team that wrote the cycle 2 & 3 elementary program will write the cycle 1 program - a 60 minutes-a-week program

q The extra 45 minutes in 2004 and then another 45 minutes in 2005 are for specialists hopefully adding to the 60 minutes in cycle 2 and 3 for ESL.

q The 2005 provincial exams at the elementary level will not include ESL but another year it may be the focus of a province-wide exam.

q The Evaluation division at the MEQ is working on exemplars - examples of expected work from students - to help teachers guage expectations and the outcomes of their students in relation to the competencies

q The Programs and evaluation divisions at the MEQ are collaborating on developing model learning and evaluation situations.

q The cycle 1 secondary "approved" program will be experimental in 2004 but its application will be compulsory. It is available on the Internet - ask your principal or call / email me for the coordinates. (It still needs a final edit) There will probably be a chapter 4 added to explain the relationship of the subject areas in the PFÉQ.

q There is a possibility of an official MEQ intensive program. A study concluded that intensive provides a 2.5 increase as opposed to a .5 and less increase for regular ESL in a scale-based comparison. This suggests a 5 year jump for intensive students in as many months.

The Sanction des Etudes should have their latest document on the June 2004 exams in the schools by late November

q EVALUATION in relation to the PFÉQ makes the difference between "en cours", bilan, and sanction.

· En cours is in support of learning throughout the cycle and related to an application of the evaluation criteria.

· Bilan is at the end of the cycle - taking stock of the level of competency based on the outcomes.

· "Sanction" is at the end of secondary.

Secondary 4 exams as of June will follow a pattern similar to secondary 5 exams but as in WP - with fewer words obligated and less time alloted. The point spread will be 25-25-25-25, the dictionary and other specific resources will be permitted for all 4 skills, There will be "familiar and un-familiar " oral activities, The OP and WP grids have been updated/simplified.

The OP component in August and January exams is now obligatory and can lead to an incomplete file if not done. These 2 exams have been "frozen" by the MEQ in order to provide the school boards with unspoiled exams for special occasions and they are no longer available for circulation or practice exams for 1 year.

Board Exams

The exam policy is still in transition as the PFÉQ is implemented in the lower levels, as a result, no school board exams are scheduled for June.

Resources and internet sites

A number of elementary and some cycle 1 secondary PFÉQ resources are available on the ESL Cybersite site. The site is under re-construction as I try to make up for 2 years of neglect with a limited amount of time to consecarate to the project.

http://station05.qc.ca/css/cybersite/

· Also - Récit - Domaine des langues

http://www.recitlangues.org/ress.htm

Elementary - Activities and Learning Situations http://www.recitlangues.org/ress/scenari_esl.htm

· QESN - Quebec English Schools Network resources

http://www.qesnrecit.qc.ca/index.php

· ESL Reference

http://ESL.about.com/

· Homework and Study references

http://homeworktips.about.com/

· BrainPOP

http://www.brainpop.com/

· Teen magazines

http://www.weeklyreader.com/teens/know_your_world/update_archive.asp

· Kids Freeware software programs

http://kidsfreeware.com/

· The Two Minute Mystery Writing Club

http://www.qesnrecit.qc.ca/schools/olp/2mmsolve/previous.htm

Des Sommets ESL email group

If you are interested in participating in an email group that would receive the most recent updates and information as well as have the opportunity to correspond directly with other teachers in the board, simply send me a note by email and I will add you to a list of the ESL teachers in the board. ron@csdessommets.qc.ca

ESL-LA Consortium

http://station05.qc.ca/css/cybersite/ESL-LA/

Updated modules were sent to the schools last year! Thanks to Bob Williams for participating in the Consortium for the last two years on the board`s behalf

Reading and writing opportunities

For secondary and …:

IPL Teenspace
... where teenagers can publish their poems and short stories. ... www2.nypl.org/home/branch/teen/MoreBooks.cfm
The New York Public Library's Young Adult librarians ...
www.ipl.org/div/teen/browse/bw2000/ - 14k - Cached - Similar pages