LEWIS LANSFORD
AUTHOR
English Learning
Real People, Real Voices, Real Stories: How Authenticity Engages Learners
OVERVIEW
Classrooms come alive when students are engaged intellectually and emotionally in learning something they want or need to know. How can we create that engagement? By showing students real people telling their own true stories about connecting with the wider world. National Geographic Explorers are known for working on amazing projects around the globe, but they also buy groceries, commute to the office, visit their families, and dream about the future. Using examples from National Geographic Learning’s Voices for young adults and adults, we’ll look at how learners can see themselves reflected in Explorers’ lives and how that connection can drive language learning.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Lewis Lansford got his first taste of teaching English in Barcelona in the late 1980s. The experience inspired him to get a Master’s in TESOL, after which he taught at a university language center in Arizona and then a manufacturing company in Japan. In 1995, he took an editorial job with a major publisher in Hong Kong developing materials for Asia, and in 1997 became a freelance editor, project manager and writer in the UK. He has worked on books, videos, tests, audio materials, worksheets, apps and online materials for English learners of all ages across the world. He is a co author of National Geographic Learning’s Voices, Keynote and Perspectives.