Responsibilities

I teach on undergraduate, postgraduate and teacher training courses.

Undergraduate courses include:

• Introduction to Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL/TEFL) for first year students (unit leader).
• Testing and Evaluation for final year students (unit leader)

Postgraduate courses include:

• MA TEFL Language Teaching
• MA TEFL Course Design
• MA TEFL Dissertation supervision

Teacher training course duties include designing and delivering tailor-made training programmes for groups of experienced international teachers. Courses typically include sessions on new ways of teaching grammar, vocabulary development techniques, idioms and idiomatic language teaching, Task-based learning, out of class projects, new ways of using dictation in class, learner-centred teaching, using songs/film/literature in the class, how to teach culture, enhancing classroom dynamics, and promoting learner autonomy.

I am also the Employability champion for the Department of Languages, and regularly organise or create workshops and materials on employability themes for our students.

Background

I have been involved in teaching English as a foreign language for over 20 years.

I have worked as a teacher, teacher trainer, examiner, exam item writer, consultant, marketing manager and materials writer for a number of different boards, publishers and schools. I have run teacher training workshops in the UK and Austria, Brazil, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Malta, Peru, Poland, Portugal and Slovenia, among others.

Publications

EFL coursebooks and resource books:

Taylor, J. and J. Wright (2012 forthcoming) IELTS Advantage: Reading Skills. DELTA Publishing

 Wright, J. (2012 forthcoming) Key B2, volume 1. Berlin: Cornelsen.

Wright, J. (2011) Key Starter. Berlin: Cornelsen.

Wright, J. (2011) Workbook for schools. Berlin: Cornelsen.

Wright, J. and A. Cornford. (2011) Key B1. Berlin: Cornelsen.

Wright, J. (2010) Key A1. Berlin: Cornelsen.

Wright, J., Lloyd, A. and Lachman, K. (2009) First Choice B2. Berlin: Cornelsen.

Wright, J. (1999) Idioms Organiser. Thompson ELT.

Wright, J. (1998) Dictionaries. Resource Books for Teachers Series. Oxford:Oxford University Press.

Willis, D. and Wright, J. (1995) Elementary English Grammar. Glasgow: HarperCollins Cobuild.

Articles and reviews:

 Wright, J. (2009) ‘Dictionary Activities Review.’ ELT Journal, 63/1.

Wright, J. (2006) ‘KET and PET Preparation Materials.’ ELT Journal, 60/3.

Wright, J. (1997) ‘Using Dictionaries in Class: Resource or Reference?’ English Teaching Professional, 3/3.

Wright, J. (1996) Review of Collins Cobuild on CD-ROM. Modern English Teacher, 5/3.

Wright, J. (1996) Review of Viney, J. (1988): The Locked Room, Software package 1994 by Jones, C. & Morrow, K. Modern English Teacher, 5/3.

Wright, J. (1996) Review of Bastow, T. & Jones, C. (1995) Talking in Pairs. Modern English Teacher, 5/1.

Wright, J. (1995) ‘Survey Review: Recently published advanced general English coursebooks.’ Modern English Teacher, 4/4.

Conferences and workshop presentations:

2012. 'The role of the Other in self-assessment.' NATESOL conference.

2011 ‘Photocopy free projects that work.’ NATESOL and IATEFL sig, Salford University.

2011 ‘A3: the missing level.’ Teacher development workshops for Volkshochschule teachers in Hamburg, Munich, Stuttgart, Vienna, Berlin.

2010 ‘How to teach grammar.’ Teacher development workshops for VHS teachers in Hamburg, Munich, Berlin.

2010 ‘Read all about it: Extensive reading projects for reluctant readers.’ Leeds

Metropolitan University 8th Materials Development/Postgraduate Research Conference.

2009 ‘New Materials at A1 level.’ Workshop and presentation at the Frankfurt Bookfair.

2005. ‘How to get more from your dictionary in communicative classes.’ Workshop presented at OUP Slovenia annual conference and training for English teachers, Ljubljana, December 2005.

2005. ‘Practical ideas for teaching grammar with vocabulary.’ Workshop presented at IATEFL Cardiff, April 2005.

2005. ‘Why students don’t learn from speaking classes.’ Workshop presented at Devon DOS Association, Exeter, April 2005.

 2004. ‘Developing as a teacher: practical suggestions.’ Plenary speech for English teachers in Peru, held at Prescott School, Arequipa, Peru.

2004. ‘Think about it, talk about it: activities for added fluency fast.’ Workshop presented at Devon DOS Association, Exeter.

2001. ‘Word Grammar.’ Workshop presented at Devon DOS Association, Exeter, August 2001.

2000. ‘Using dictionaries.’ Workshop presented at Devon DOS Association, Exeter.

1999. ‘Fun with dictionaries.’ Workshop presented at IATEFL Edinburgh, March 1999.

1998. ‘Working with new words: vocabulary teaching.’ Workshop presented at IATEFL Manchester.

1997. ‘Language games with dictionaries.’ Workshop presented at IATEFL Brighton.