Thai-UO Videoconferences

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Welcome

Welcome to the 2010-11 Tsunami Zone Web-based English Language Teaching Materials Project

Project Goals and Materials

The goal of the Tsunami Zone Web-based English Language Teaching Materials Project is to serve secondary level Thai science and English teachers who work in the 4 provinces damaged by the 2004 Sumatra-Andaman Earthquake Tsunami. This website provides them with training and free copyable materials for use in teaching in English, using tsunami and other related disasters as a focus for content.

These Tsunami Zone materials are based on a communicative, integrated skills approach with activities to support the development of reading, writing, speaking and listening skills for low-proficiency English language learners. Critical Thinking Skills (as opposed to strictly lock-step memorization of facts) will be blended throughout, encouraging learners to develop and use problem-solving strategies and creativity in their learning tasks. There will also be opportunities for differentiated learning in order to accommodate learner preferences.

Website Content

This website houses current and archived content from the University of Oregon (UO) training projects listed on this page. The UO is not responsible for content on any mirrored or associated sites.

Thai-UO Program Partners

Faculty and staff from University of Oregon’s American English Institute and Media Services are proud to have worked in partnership since 2004 with the Royal Thai Distance Learning Foundation, the Thai Ministry of Education, colleagues at Chulalongkorn University and ThaiTESOL, TOT Communications, and the Public Affairs Office of the US Embassy in Bangkok on this innovative and exciting set of projects.

2007-08 Sessions for English as Foreign Language (EFL) Educators

The 2007-08 professional development videoconferencing training series for English as a Foreign Language (EFL) educators in Thailand focused on Critical Thinking in the EFL Curriculum. As before, cohorts of teachers came into training centers on a monthly basis to engage in real-time videoconferencing sessions with UO trainers, with content and tasks they then took back to their local schools to adapt and deliver. Teachers nationwide also gathered together to watch the videoconferences live at provincial ERIC centers. Sessions were rebroadcast on television stations at regular times afterwards we well through the Royal Thai Distance Learning Foundation.

2006 Summer, Special Session for Science and Math Education

By way of tribute to his long-standing commitment to high quality education for all Thai people, particularly in the areas of science and mathematics, University of Oregon was pleased to offer this special celebratory session in honor of the auspicious occasion of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s 60th Anniversary, the Diamond Jubilee of His Majesty’s Accession to the Throne. HRH Princess Bajrakitiyabha Mahidol, during her visit to University of Oregon, graciously gave opening remarks at the start of this event.

See Special Science and Math Session for supporting documents and additional information and YouTube-UO for video archives. This session features contributions from a panel of faculty members (in alphabetical order by last name): Jill Baxter, Math Education; Kenneth Doxsee, Green Chemistry; Dean Livelybrooks, Physics; and, Leslie Opp-Beckman, Linguistics, American English Institute.

2005-06 Sessions for English as Foreign Language (EFL) Educators

As a continuation of the 2004-05 series, in 2005-06 we conducted a second set of 10 videoconference sessions with a focus on Project-Based Learning (first 5 sessions) and Creating a Resource-Rich Classroom (second 5 sessions).

2004-05 Sessions for English as Foreign Language (EFL) Educators

In 2004-05, following some initial pilot events, we conducted the first series of 10 videoconferencing sessions on a variety of theoretical and practical topics with cohorts of EFL educators in Hua Hin and Bangkok.