Asking the right question in an #ESL class - Learning Begins with Curiosity - ESL teacher training

Asking the right question in an #ESL class - Learning Begins with Curiosity - ESL teacher training.

The English Language Institute (#ELI) at the College of Staten Island/The City University of New York (#CUNY) presents a short lecture about asking the right question in an #English class, by CUNY teacher, Ms. Erika Heppner. ESL teachers can suggest their students to register in our ESL program in New York City: https://www.csi.cuny.edu/campus-life/student-services/center-global-engagement/english-language-institute / elistudy@csi.cuny.edu.

CLASS DESCRIPTION — LEARNING BEGINS WITH CURIOSITY The objective of this class presentation is to introduce ESL teachers to the Right Question Institute at #Harvard University and to provide a brief explanation of the Question Forming Technique (#QFT). Using the QFT encourages students to ask their own questions. In this way, students figure out what they want to know. Instead of always being asked the question, they learn that they can also ask and they learn how to ask. The QFT is a group experience that helps students to better comprehend and understand what they are learning. It encourages curiosity, which in turn makes students active learners.

The webinar will be organized like this:

Part 1: Introduce the importance of encouraging students to ask questions—Open-Ended and Close-Ended Questions.

Part 2: Review what viewers will learn during webinar:

a) QFT: Rules for Producing Questions

b) Steps in Using QFT in an ESL Classroom

c) Links to QFT resources on the Right Question Institute’s Website

CUNY presenter: Erika Heppner

Erika Heppner is a full-time lecturer in the Humanities Department at LaGuardia Community College/CUNY where she teaches courses in public speaking, speech communication for non-native speakers of English and intercultural communication. Prior to her tenure at LaGuardia, she taught ESL in the Loyola Intensive English Program at Loyola University in New Orleans and from 2010-2011 served as its director. Ms. Heppner has over 25 years of classroom teaching experience and has also taught English and video production in Spain, the Czech Republic, Mexico and England. Ms. Heppner earned a Master of Arts in English Teaching and a Master of Fines Arts in Drama and Communication, both from the University of New Orleans.

She is an avid cyclist who enjoys traveling and adventure. She has recently planted a vegetable garden in her backyard where she struggles with hornworms and other unwelcomed insects.