Comenius update

Manuel Azzopardi, a senior teacher at St Paul’s Missionary College, Rabat, recently went to the UK to follow a two-week training activity at the International Programmes Centre (IPC) in Exeter, England.

The course, which was entitled ‘First Certificate for Teachers of Business English’, was primarily aimed at teachers and trainers of business English, but it also touched on various methodologies in the teaching of general English.

Apart from emphasising such basic business concepts as numbers and course management, language of trends and graphs, marketing, negotiating, finance and corporate structures, the course also tackled more general aspects of teaching such as lesson planning, classroom management, motivating the difficult student, and the importance of incorporating role-plays and presentations in everyday teaching experiences. The course culminated in an exam acknowledged by the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

In all, eight participants from Germany, Poland, Croatia, France and Malta took part in the course. The participants also had time to visit Dartmoor and Tintagel.

This trip was part of the Comenius Lifelong learning programme scheme funded by the National Agency of the European Union Programmes Agency (EUPA).

Comenius St Monica School in Turkey

Representatives from St Monica School, Birkirkara, recently visited Kayseri in Turkey to cele­­brate the end of the EU-funded Comenius project, ‘Walking Together Through Europe’.

Assistant Head Sr Nancy Bezzina, teachers Doreen Borg and Lydia Vella and students Stephanie Bugeja, Lucia Buhagiar and Maria Schembri were joined by friends from the partner schools from Italy, Germany and the host school in Kayseri.

During the week-long visit, students were hosted by families of the Turkish students. The visit started with a concert by the Turkish students who performed traditional dances, including ‘Whirling Dervishes’.

The rest of the week consisted of walking excursions around the historic city centre, trips to the surrounding countryside and a day tour to Cappadocia. The group also visited two mosques where they learnt more about the beliefs and rituals of Muslims.

The teachers also had the opportunity to finalise the project.

Since the Maltese contingent had a long stop-over in Istanbul on their return, they took a day trip to the Sulthanamet area to visit the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sofia and Topkapi Palace.