Conferences, Institutes, Workshops, Lectures, Get-Togethers and Publications

** Click here to see the list of current TESOL events

Newsletters, Listservs, and the AU TESOL Website
The TESOL Update is a newsletter distributed in class to TESOL students. The Update lists current job openings, along with news about student accomplishments and upcoming events. There is also a TESOL Listserv called AUTSL-L to which all students enrolled in AU TESOL Program classes are automatically subscribed. To post a message on the listserv, address your email to AUTSL-L@american.edu. For more information about other listservs to which our students can subscribe, look on the AU TESOL website at http://www.american.edu/tesol/listserv.htm

The TESOL website, http://www.american.edu/tesol, lists current TESOL Program events, job links, course descriptions, program information and downloadable applications. It also features the AU TESOL Working Papers, which are published each semester and features research and articles by TESOL Program students, faculty and alumni.

Opening Receptions
On-campus receptions are usually held during the first week of the term. New students in the TESOL program are invited to come meet the TESOL faculty and other TESOL students.

Fall Workshop
Held near the end of October or early November (scheduled so as not to coincide with the Fall WATESOL Conference), this event features a nationally known speaker in either TESOL or Applied Linguistics, or a subject of particular relevance to TESOL students.

Hugo Mueller Lecture Series
This lecture series is held in the early spring in honor of the former Chair of the Department of Language and Foreign Studies, Dr. Hugo Mueller.

Other Workshops and Lectures
Other workshops and lectures are held periodically throughout the year. Past topics have included comparing native speaker and non-native speaker uses of email, learning disabilities, distance learning, finding TESOL jobs abroad, finding TESOL jobs state side, pronunciation enhancement, and teaching TOEFL prep courses.

Spring Conference
Each year, the AU TESOL Program hosts a Spring conference to address issues relevant to Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. This conference gives AU TESOL students, faculty and staff, as well as guests from the area the opportunity to present current research in TESOL. The conference is held on a Saturday (usually from the morning to mid-afternoon), and the community is invited.

Summer Institute and Intensive Workshop

The AU Summer TESOL Institute enables students to begin or continue course work during the summer months, and to benefit from special opportunities only offered during the summer terms. Drawing upon local and national experts, The American University Summer TESOL Institute offers students two sessions of traditional course work plus a credit-bearing week-long TESOL Workshop. Each year the workshop focuses on a special theme.

The first institute session runs for 7 weeks, from mid-May through June. The second session also meets for 7 weeks, from July through mid-August. All courses (except the workshop) are offered from 5:30 to 8:00 pm to accommodate the schedules of working participants.

The AU TESOL Summer Intensive Workshop usually takes place early in the second summer session. The instructional component of the Workshop is usually 3 days long and integrates lectures, group learning projects and possibly site visits to area programs. After the instructional component, those taking the workshop on a for-credit basis then have two weeks to complete a project, working in groups, to apply the principles learned in the workshop to classroom experience. Then, in a two-day follow-up session, the students interact with workshop advisors to develop their project presentations, and then present them to the workshop group as a whole. Past topics of intensive workshops have been Theory and Practice of Pronunciation and Writing Assessment, Designing Lessons Based on Authentic Discourse, the Communicative Approach in the New Millennium, and Designing EFL Teacher Training Courses. The 2005 Workshop was entitled "Making Distance Learning Work: Principles and Practice in TESOL." The Summer 2006 Intensive Workshop will be "Leaving no Learners Behnd: Rethinking literacy and language in the ESL/ESOL Classroom."

TESOL-Related Resources in the DC Area

American University's Washington, DC location offers TESOL students unparalleled opportunities to enrich their education with multicultural experiences (see Off-Campus Entertainment). Along with access to museums, art galleries, theaters and cultural centers, students can draw upon the resources of DC's large diplomatic community, its foreign embassies and a constant influx of international representatives from academic, political and business sectors. Many graduate students take the opportunity to intern with one of the numerous national or international organizations or groups based in Washington.

In addition to the ESL programs in many Washington area schools, many organizations devoted to linguistics or TESOL are headquartered in Washington, including the Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL), TESOL (in nearby Alexandria, Virginia), the National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition (NCELA), and the Linguistic Society of America (LSA). There are also two local TESOL associations affiliated with the national TESOL organization: the Washington Area TESOL association (WATESOL) and Maryland TESOL.

Contact Information
Center for Applied Linguistics, 4646 40th St. NW, Washington, DC,
202.362.0700; www.cal.org

TESOL, Inc, 700 S. Washington St. Suite 200, Alexandria, VA, 22314-2751, 703.836.0774; www.tesol.org

Foreign Service Institute (FSI), 4000 Arlington Blvd, Arlington, VA, 703.302.7137; www.state.gov

National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition at GWU, 2121 K Street NW Suite 260, Washington DC 20037, 1.800.321.6223, 202.467.0867, Washington, DC, 20006 (202)-467-0867; www.ncbe.gwu.edu

Linguistic Society of America, 1325 18th St. NW, Suite 11, Washington, DC, 20036, 202.835.1417; LSA@lsadc.org

WATESOL, P.O. Box 25502, Washington, DC, 20007. Contact: Virginia Leshnev (President) at Lezhnev@georgetown.edu.

Maryland TESOL, Contact: Heide Platt at heide.platt@pgcps.org.

Tempo Bookstore, 4905 Wisconsin Ave. NW, Washington, DC, 20016, 202.363.6683

The TESOL Mascots

The TESOL mascots appeared in 1998 and have been hiding around the program ever since. We think no one has objected, since they are really quite harmless. However, this year's weather is supposed to be very inconsistent, and we have noticed that the mascots start to act quite strangely when the weather is like this. The mascots are not very active and tend to lay around a lot, but in extremes of weather, they have been known to move around more, smell and produce odd noises.

The mascots are quite shy, but have become attached to the occupants of McKinley 156, where they like to hide in the nooks and crannies. They have stayed in and around the department since they have been found and there is absolutely no truth in the rumor that they have been seen following Jacquie home. Because of their shyness, we have endeavored to keep word of their existence quiet.

But, with the weather forecasts as they are, we are unable to predict what the mascots will do this year and want to give all those in the program a fair warning in case odd things should happen. If anyone happens to see the mascots indulging in unusual behavior, please contact McKinley 156, ext. 2582 as soon as possible.

UPDATE: On November 27th, 2006, two of the mascots jumped to their deaths from a high shelf in the TESOL kitchen where they had been mistakenly placed. Authorities suspect that they took their lives from fears of neglect. The remaining four mascots were unharmed and were returned to their rightful place of honor on the TESOL Conference Room table.

Career Opportunities and Services

The nation's capital is a multilingual and multicultural area, rich with opportunities to observe, teach, volunteer and otherwise participate in the field of TESOL. Such opportunities include internships, cooperative education field experiences and part-time teaching jobs.

Internships & Cooperative Education Experiences
Master's students may elect to earn three to six credits through an Internship or Cooperative Education Field Experience, either in the United States or abroad. These opportunities provide students with valuable practical experience in planning, assessing, teaching, evaluating and collaborating with others in ESL/EFL environments. These experiences are often paid positions and can be full or part time. Faculty from the TESOL program serve as advisors for these programs, guiding and evaluating the students' experiential learning process. Coops are supervised by the Department and the Career Center, while Internships are supervised by the Department only. For more information on Coops, contact the Career Center at (202) 885-8011.

Employment
Employment opportunities abound for students who desire to teach part-time while completing their course work. The Washington, DC area is also home to a large number of language schools which provide instruction to English students of all levels and ages. Area institutions that have hired AU TESOL graduate students on a part-time basis include:

Berlitz Language Centers,
* Washington, DC 202.331.1162
* Tysons Corner, VA 703.883.0626
English Now!, Bethesda, MD 301.718.3575
Eurocentres, Alexandria, VA 703.684.1494
Diplomatic Language Services, VA 703.243.4855
Department of State 202.647.4000
International Center for Language Studies, 202.639.8800
Inlingua Schools of Languages
* Virginia 703.527.8666
* Maryland 410. 674.1302
Kaplan Test Preparation, Washington, DC 800.527.8378
Lado International College:
* DC 202.223.0023
* Arlington, VA 703.524.1100
* Silver Spring, MD 301.565.LADO
Northern Virginia Community College, several branches 703.845.6200
The Sanz School, Washington, DC 202.628.5800

Volunteer Opportunities
In addition, many of our students volunteer at local public school districts, colleges and universities, most of which maintain extensive ESL adult education programs. Some places where students have volunteered are:

Reading and Writing Center, N.V.C.C.: 703.323.3341
DC Refugee Center - English for refugees: 202.667.9000
Sacred Heart - adult education: 202.462.6499
SED Center - volunteer and paid positions: 202.462.8848
City Gate, Wisconsin Ave (next to Tenleytown Metro) - Marilyn Norris, 202-288-3013

TESOL Program Employment Resources
The TESOL Program Office (McKinley 156) also offers many employment related services. These include a regularly up-dated bulletin board (outside the office), a job links page at the TESOL website (www.american.edu/tesol/Tjobs.html ), and counseling from the TESOL Coordinator on job opportunities both locally and abroad.

Other Career Services
AU’s Career Center provides a number of services for graduate students. These services include workshops, counseling sessions, on-campus recruiting, resume referral service, job listing service, credentials service, and networking events. The Center also has a Career Resource Library, which offers a large variety of directories, periodicals, and books. The Career Center is located on the fifth floor of the Butler Pavilion. For more information, stop by or call 202.885.1800.