Burcu Tezcan Unal

BIO

Burcu Tezcan Unal  has over 20 years of experience in the field of ELT as a teacher, trainer, teacher educator, material producer and academic coordinator, holding a TESOL MSc from Aston University. She held most of these roles and responsibilities during the longest period of her career at Istanbul Bilgi University from 2003 to 2013. Burcu has been an active member of IATEFL TTEd SIG committee since 2011. Currently, Burcu has been an EFL teacher and level coordinator at Zayed University, the UAE, and a (EdD) doctorate student at the University of Liverpool studying Leadership in Higher Education. Tezcan-Unal is very interested in the ever-changing learning dynamics, professional development of teachers, organisational learning andeducation in the new century.

ABSTRACT

The demands of the new era and ELT

The competitive working environments our learners are preparing for demand many skills that are significantly beyond accurate use of English and ICT skills. This workshop will focus on the transferable skills, which a new work environment will demand of our learners. By cultivating these skills our learners can gain an advantage in the next generation job market. The session will open a platform to discuss and reflect on to what extent English classes, teaching materials, activities and assignments serve our learners and the other stakeholders. It also promises to give some food for thought to practising teachers, curriculum developers, digital or print material producers, assessment specialists and heads of departments.

Session Summary:

THE DEMANDS OF THE NEW ERA AND ELT
In her session, Burcu Tezcan Ünal focused on the transferable skills which our students need in order to be employable in the job market. Firstly, she reminded the participants about the workforce demands and required skills 40 years ago, and then she discussed how the demand for skills has recently changed. After she shared some notes from different sectors, she introduced the 4Cs that our students need to learn and apply when they are employed. The four C’s are as follows: 1) Communication 2) Creativity 3) Critical thinking and 4) Collaboration.
Also, Burcu Tezcan Ünal compared the traditional and non-traditional education environments and asked the participants how an English teacher could create an environment that fosters these skills. Finally, she suggested some group work assignments that teachers could use in class to foster the aforementioned four skills.