AMIO Zhucheng Teacher Training Program

AMIO's Challenges

Products used:
Advanced Listening Dynamic Classics Dynamic Business English English by the Numbers First English Functioning In Business The Lost Secret New Dynamic English Test Mountain

'Dumb English' - referring to being strong in reading and writing, but weak in listening and speaking - was one of the main challenges AMIO faced at the beginning of its teacher training project in 2005. In addition:

• Non-English-speaking teachers were teaching English because of a shortage of English teachers overall.
• Many teachers spoke Chinese during class, even using different dialects. This resulted in an environment that was not conducive to speaking English.
• The teaching methodology for English was still test-focused. This meant explaining grammar points, translating paragraphs into English and reading sentences and passages out loud. Because they were left to mimic and recite mechanically, the students could not practice their oral skills effectively.

In response, the Education Bureau announced a plan to improve oral and listening skills for teachers in Zhucheng and the nearby city of Weifang. This consisted of the following:

• In primary schools, all English teachers who had not majored in English were to complete an advanced training program related to their teaching tasks for a period of at least 6 months.
• In secondary schools, selected teachers were to participate in a teacher training program designed to raise their teaching level and overall professional capabilities.
• In addition, the city of Zhucheng initiated training for all primary and middle school English teachers and required all English teachers to meet qualifications in order to be certified to teach English.

In order to measure the effectiveness of this training program, student test scores were to be one of the indices used to evaluate the achievements of each institution, beginning in 2006. Furthermore, the Education Bureau launched a teacher exchange program with Great Britain, Australia, and other English-speaking countries. This will become an excellent opportunity for native-speaker teachers to teach in schools in Zhucheng.

DynEd's Language Learning Solutions and the Results:

The Education Bureau in Zhucheng organized the first one-year AMIO teacher training program for 100 middle school English teachers in 2005. At the start of the program, AMIO trainers asked the teachers to take the DynEd Placement Test as a primary assessment tool. Seeing their low scores, many of the teachers were afraid to speak English because they worried about their poor pronunciation. However, as the program proceeded they began to gain more confidence in their oral skills and could communicate freely with native English-speaking teachers. DynEd training staff worked closely with the AMIO trainers in monitoring the study paths of each teacher in DynEd's Records Manager. Placement Test (PT) scores for some teachers increased significantly -from 0.5 to 2.5, with some reaching as high as 3.0 - over the one-year program. Additional proof of progress came in March 2006 during a presentation competition, where teachers participated actively and with confidence.

What teachers and administrators are saying:

We spoke to several teachers in the first training group:

"I really treasure this opportunity for high-level training. Only when you are with people whose English level is higher than yours can you make great progress. The AMIO teachers' training methods for the classroom and their professional attitude were very enlightening to me."

"Before I participated in the AMIO training program, I thought I would have no problem teaching middle school English with my years of English teaching experience. I also felt it was absolutely unnecessary to participate in the AMIO training. However, I didn't realize it until six months later that the mastery of English does not simply mean the ability to teach English. My understanding of English teaching has fundamentally changed through this training. Now, as long as I have free time, I will study hard and both my listening and oral skills have improved dramatically."

"The Qingdao AMIO English Training School has provided great support to the teacher training program of our city. Mr. Liu Yujun, the chairman of the board, is determined to contribute his own efforts to improve the English-language education in his hometown."

For more information on DynEd Solutions, please contact us at info@dyned.com.