This my blog. Frank’s blog. It is a place for reflection, sharing, researching, probing, laughing, crying and both meaningful and meaningless wanderings. Snippets of my life, sometimes keenly focused and coherent and at other times fuzzy and senseless. It is what it is, plain and simple. Welcome to me, to Frank’s Blog!

I just want to take a quick moment to thank the extraordinary group of secondary teachers that participated in the first SEP academic workshop this past week at J. Guadalupe Salto, secondary federal school No. 4, in Morelia. I really enjoyed facilitating the workshop on “Taskifying the Task.”

Also, thanks to both Katy Lemurs from SEP and Profa. Ma. Del Carmen Alcántara Carmona, secondary school director at Instituto Latino de Morelia, for inviting me to participate in this important day of teacher training in Morelia.

With the New 2006 Reform program, there is a greater attention on the teaching of English at the secondary level all across Mexico. Growing ourselves as teachers and networking are of more importance now than ever. We simply need each other to get the job done. Teacher-to-teacher collaboration is vital, it is no longer an option.

So along with the workshop goodies, please join in at META as much as possible by sharing your insights, your challenges, and your stories. And, of course, invite as many teachers from all levels and backgrounds to join in with us as we venture into new territory to advance education in Mexico and beyond!

Be sure to also visit the META SEP support focus group for downloadables, links, and discussion.

Thanks again to all of you!

Frank
EFL Workshop Facilitator

Note: Many of you were fascinated by the “Sticky Wall” so I wanted to make sure that I reminded you again about the materials needed to get up and running in no time:

1. The cloth is sort of a parachute fabric material. Most of you touched it, so hopefully you will be able to spot it at the tela shop. Be sure to get a dark color like the red that I was using so that white sheets of paper show with high contrast.

2. The spray is 3M Spray Mount Artist’s Adhesive. The only place that I have located it so far is at Lumens, all locations. A large can is $165 pesos, but lasts a long time if not sharing with a group of teachers.

Participating Schools (in order of attendance roster):

1. Khépani
2. Unidad Académica de México
3. Instituto Latino de Morelia
4. Escuela Secundaria Federal No 4, “J. Guadalupe Salto”
5. Escuela Federal “Tierra y Libertad”
6. Instituto Antonio de Mendoza
7. Centro Escolar Lancaster
8. Escuela Secundaria Fedral “Lázaro Cárdenas”
9. Escuela Secundaria ” Ignacio Chavez”
10. Escuela Secundaria Federal “Revolución Mexicana” F. Carrillo

All the English teachers from Colegio Motolinia take part in a week of fun tasks and learning at Instituto Angloamericano before the start of the school year.

Last week was so rewarding. Working with teachers is a delight. The agenda covered the usual bits and pieces from task-based learning to assessment of the 4 skills, etc. But, the commitment shown by many of the teachers to advance in their chosen careers exhibits the shifting educational quality seen in pockets throughout Mexico these days. There is a quest underway.

Teachers from Instituto Latino de Morelia order and organize, name and classify, sequence, and reflect on teaching using a “sticky wall” and floor map, prepare their annual plans, and reflect on the art and mastery of teaching in online forums at Instituto Angloamericano in Morelia.

Matachine Dancers, Zacatecas, Mexico. 2005
Originally uploaded by META Web 2.0

Just trying out my new Flickr blogging feature. These are traditional Matachine dancers in the state of Zacatecas, Mexico.