Kate Sato
Hokkaido University of Science/ TYL Sig
Kate Sato started teaching EFL in 1989. From 2002-2017 she founded, ran and taught in her own English school for children aged 0-12 in Hokkaido. She has been an active teacher trainer since 2007. Currently, she conducts workshops, presentations and research in TEYL, as well as publish articles and research papers. As well being a full-time faculty at Hokkaido University of Science, she is also an active member of the JALT TYL Sig. When she’s not focused on work she enjoys being active outside, which includes gardening.
Sessions
Teaching Younger Learners Forum
Collaboration between students and teachers in the classroom is an important part of allowing younger learners to take control of their learning. The autonomy that we allow as teachers helps our students personalize their educational experience and frees up time for more one-on-one attention. This type of classroom also helps students with motivation and thereby eliminating much of the classroom control problems we face. With a student-centered classroom, teachers have more time to work individually with students in a more meaningful way. Good collaboration in the classroom also creates an environment that is surrounded by mutual achievements. In this presentation, the focus will be on teachers working together with students in a collaborative fashion to achieve a student-centered classroom. The presenters will provide useful ideas to help free the bonds of a teacher-centered classroom and provide a guide to a more student autonomous pedagogy. This will be done by giving examples and referencing research into student autonomy, intrinsic motivation, classroom control, and personalized student assessment.