Modern English Teacher June 1992 [antikvár]

EDITORIALLet me begin by saying 'thank you' for all yourwonderfully encouraging letters. Puttingtogether the first issue of the new-look ModernEnglish Teacher was rather a nerve-wrackingbusiness - would it live up to its aim of being asgood as old MET but more appropriate for the1990s? Well, clearly a lot of you liked the first issueand were kind enough to take the trouble to writeand tell us so; we are very grateful and, as I say,encouraged.However, as is said by the acting profession, 'youare only as good as your last performance'. So, canwe keep it up? We hope so Starting from this issue, we have a new sectioneditor for Kaleidoscope, Hilary Maxwell-Hyslop.Kaleidoscope deals with topics related to cultureand society in Britain and the English-speakingworld. The articles, as you will see from this issue,are written by people who are involved in the fieldthey are writing about and who have strongly-heldviews about their subject. One article in each issuedeals with an aspect of the arts or of cultural life;the other article, supported by backgroundinformation in a Factfile, deals with a topic ofcurrent political or social interest. We hope thatKaleidoscope will keep you in touch with topicalissues that are 'in the air' and it may provide youwith teaching material for advanced students. Ifthere are any particular subjects you would like toread about, do write and let Hilary know.There are two articles in this issue aboutstorytelling (see Network page 30 and ClassroomIdeas page 55), and on pages 34 & 35 there is acomplete story you could use in a storytellingsession. Storytelling is becoming more and morepopular amongst teachers, and Renata Tkachenkomakes the following suggestion:'Storytelling as a teaching activity is tooimportant and valuable to leave it only to anumber of enthusiasts (though the number isconstantly growing). My suggestion is that aspecial course should be set up in teachertraining colleges which would place storytellingin a wider context not only of teachingmethodology, but general andpsycholinguistics, history of literature withspecial emphasis on literature for children,theory of narrative, etc. Some practical trainingin drama techniques and graphic skills are sureto prove very useful for a beginning storyteller/Do you agree with Renata? Should somebodyorganise a storytelling course? Write to MET andtell us what you think, then maybe someoneinvolved in teacher training will sit up and takenote.In Publishing Matters in the last issue of MET,Susan Holden wrote about the peripatetic seminarsput on in Germany by publishers and the BritishCouncil. Unfortunately the feedback from theparticipants did not reach me in time for this issue,so Publishing Matters this time describes twoschemes funded by the British Government formaking books available at reduced prices in certaincountries. If you live in a relevant country (they arelisted on page 49) and you don't know theschemes, then read the article and find out aboutthem.I hope you enjoy this issue of MET and I lookforward to receiving ideas for improvements fromyou - and articles, of course.The address to write to is:Modern English TeacherMacmillan ELTHoundmillsBasingstokeHantsRG21 2XS