After a year of pause and offering monthly webinars, SOCEM’s Fall training conference — Gathering XVII — is coming back this year! It will be different from the past Gatherings as it will be online, and half-day to suit the online format. There will be a Plenary Panel session, and 2 workshop sessions (with a choice between 4-5 parallel sessions for each). No matter where you are located, you’re welcome to join this training to be equipped for ESL ministry!
Date: October 30, 2021 (Saturday)
Time: 9:45 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. EDT (Click here to convert to your time zone)
Platform: via Zoom
Cost: $25 per person (no refunds)
Online Registration opens Sept 20! Scroll down to the bottom of this page (after the workshop descriptions and the bios of the panelists) to find a link to the Registration Form. Payment will be by e-transfer; details are provided on the Registration Form. There is an alternative if you do not have online banking. Registration closes on October 27, 2021.
Before registering, please read the following Zoom info:
- If you don’t already have a free or paid Zoom account, please sign up for a free Zoom account at https://zoom.us/freesignup/ before you register for the conference. This is necessary for us to pre-assign you into breakout rooms.
- When you register for the conference, please use the same email address you used for the Zoom account.
- On the day of the event, please sign in to your Zoom account to log on to the meeting using the Meeting ID and the Password. Only the Meeting ID and the Password will be sent to participants; you will not be given the Zoom link.
- No group registrations. Each person should register for themselves and have a separate email associated with their registration.
Unfortunately, not following this procedure will result in delays in getting into your workshops and missing part of the workshop.
Program for the Day (based on Toronto time):
9:45-9:55 – Worship and Devotion (Main Room)
9:55-10:00 – Transition into Breakout Rooms
10:00- 11:00 – Workshop Session A
11:00-11:10 – Break
11:10-11:15 – Transition to Main Room for Plenary Panel
11:15-11:55 – Plenary Panel (Main Room)
11-55-12:15 – Transition into Breakout Rooms
12:15-1:15 – Workshop Session B
Plenary Panel Topic: “Sowing and Reaping: Introducing Your Students to Jesus” (scroll down to the bottom to see Panelists’ bios).
Workshop Descriptors and Bios
Select your workshops from the options below. Then scroll to the bottom of the page and click on the link to go to the Registration Form.
Each workshop is limited to 25 participants. First come first served. You will be asked for a first choice and a second choice on the Registration Form. Second choices will be given when you register after a workshop is full. Participants can assume they get their first choices unless they get an email from Mary Hogan telling them otherwise.
Session A: 10:00-11:00 a.m.
(Choose One from Workshops 1-5 as First Choice; Choose Another as Second Choice)
Workshop 1: Boosting Student Participation with Jamboard
Descriptor: Do you miss using your whiteboard? Jamboard is a free collaborative online whiteboard. This tool can be used in the ESL virtual classroom to ‘spice up’ your class, encourage engagement and for you to get a pulse on the students’ progress. In this session, you will be given an introductory walkthrough to all the basic functions Jamboard can offer. You will also see some ways it has been incorporated in the classroom to promote listening, speaking, reading, writing, vocabulary and mental health skills. Basic computer experience and a Google account (gmail) are recommended for the hands-on portion of the workshop. Participants will leave the session with a grasp of Jamboard’s functionalities, and with ideas that can be incorporated into the ESL classroom.
Presenter: Sandy Ho. Sandy has been an Adult ESL instructor with the YCDSB for over 6 years. She has a Masters in Applied Linguistics and Exegesis, a TESL Canada Level 3 Professional Certificate, a TESL Ontario Certificate, and is PBLA (Portfolio-Based Language Assessments) trained. Prior to working with new immigrants, she was Academic Director and Curriculum Developer for a chain of private language schools across North America, overseeing 10 private language schools. Sandy has worked as IELTS Assessor, Spanish and Linguistics instructor, and tutored academic English privately. She uses technology quite extensively in her teaching and develops many resources online.
Workshop 2: Non-formal Learning in an International Coffee House: the ITCH
Descriptor: The International Coffee House takes place in a non-formal setting where newcomers learn English and learn about Canadian culture. For 15 years, volunteers have seen self-confidence blossom, new language skills develop, and connections with members of the community become established. In this workshop, I will introduce the ITCH and present research that argues the need for non-formal English language learning for international newcomers to Canada. I will introduce a 3-way dynamic interaction that takes place among the dimensions of (a) Friendship and Association with Community (b) English-as-a-second-language Learning, and (c) Growth in Confidence. I believe that non-formal learning is at least as successful as formal learning and I take the position that colleges and other places of learning should seriously consider non-formal methods for English-language learning as valued and effective alternatives to help newcomers find their way in to Canada.
Presenter: Cynthia Hucks. Cynthia graduated from Ryerson University in 2004 having obtained a Bachelor of Science in Nursing with a Diversity focus. In 2012, she completed graduate studies while enrolled at Saint Francis Xavier University, in Adult Education. She researched culture, ESL, and non-formal methods of learning. For ten years she worked with other volunteers at International Christmas Camp, under the umbrella of Intervarsity Christian Fellowship ISM. She received her TESL Canada certificate in 2006. Most recently, Cynthia launched the Language Learning Centre in Peterborough, Ontario, to work with newcomers to Canada. Since its opening, she has presented a Health Series designed by Ottawa Public Health, entitled “Chronic Disease and Injury Prevention for ESL Learners”, focusing on both learning vocabulary as well as the skills related to maintaining a safe and healthy lifestyle.
Workshop 3: Core Components of Ministries to Newcomers (video presentation to be followed by live Q&A)
Descriptor: In this presentation, the presenter will share findings derived from a national research project across Canada focusing on best practices from churches to help integrate and settle newcomers into Canadian society. Come learn about the 3 main components necessary for effective ministry to newcomers: vision, structure, and processes. The presenter will also share how these components are being implemented practically at The People’s Church, Toronto.
Presenter: Nelson Chang. Nelson is the Pastor of Newcomers Ministry at The Peoples Church. Born in the USA to Hmong refugee parents from Laos, Nelson has been a student of migration all his life and enjoys walking alongside people in their journey of faith and life. His lived experience as an immigrant in North America continued as he immigrated to Canada in 2013 to study and complete his post-secondary degree at Tyndale Seminary. Nelson is married to Andrea and enjoys movies, camping, fishing, and music.
Moderator: Solange Belluz. Solange is the Congregational Life Pastor at The Peoples Church in Toronto, overseeing all ministries and programs to the congregation. She is a good listener and is committed to empowering people to find meaning and purpose. She is Nelson Chang’s team leader.
Workshop 4: Ministering Effectively to Muslims
Descriptor: Do some of your ESL students come from Arabic cultures or any other Muslim background? Are many of them Muslims? This workshop aims to show the worldviews and beliefs of Muslims, how to understand and communicate with them, and how to reach them effectively for Christ. Proven principles, techniques and testimonies will be shared.
Presenters: Melad Markos. Melad was born in Egypt. Melad graduated in 1994 with an M.Div degree in Theology. He served as a Senior Pastor in Egypt for 20 years. Currently, he is Pastor of Love Unending Ministries with the Alliance after God called him and his wife Azza to start Love Unending Ministries in 2013. He is also in the process of obtaining an M.Div. in Clinical Counselling at Tyndale Seminary. Melad has travelled to many countries preaching, teaching and equipping. He has also translated many books into Arabic. Melad loves the Word of God. He is passionate about reaching out to the unreached to invite and integrate them into the local church. Melad and Azza have two teenaged boys who are also serving the Lord.
Azza Markos. Azza grew up in a family of believers and has been serving God since she was 14 years old. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Archaeology. She worked as a manager at a special needs centre. It was a great blessing from God to serve the people with special needs. She is the Co-founder and Administrator of Love Unending Ministries.
Workshop 5: Informality: The Social and Relational Aspects of Language Learning
Descriptor: Informal English classes, often called conversational classes or conversation circles, make up a significant portion of church-based ESL programs. Have you considered the rationale or principles behind such programs? What would be the benefits and challenges of being ‘informal’? We will consider some case studies, connect them to language learning principles, and see how these approaches impact students and teachers relationally and emotionally.
Presenter: Jennifer Tong. Jennifer has been the coordinator and a teacher of a small ESL program at Parkway Forest Community Church since 2004. She is a TESL Ontario certified teacher and has taught LINC, at a private language school and a factory in the past. Her interests include Non-Western learning styles, reflective practice in ESL and mental health and immigrants. Jennifer is also an active editor and musician.
Session B: 12:15-1:15 p.m.
(Choose One from Workshops 6-9 as First Choice; Choose Another as Second Choice)
Workshop 6: Modality: Using Modal Verbs like ‘can’, ‘should’, ‘would’, etc.
Descriptor:
A: I might bring a mask…
B: Yeah, I think you should. I had to wear one when I went there.
A: OK I will, just in case.
How many times have you heard a conversation like this one in the past year and a half? This conversation is possible thanks to modal verbs. Often taken for granted, modality is essential for precise communication. In this workshop, we will explore modality, its meaning, form and varieties and problems that English learners have with it. This session is useful for teachers of all levels and those who want to develop their own language awareness.
Presenter: Lydia Mountney. Lydia has been an ESL teacher for 25 years and a teacher trainer for 20. She has trained teachers at Tyndale University College and Seminary and is a freelance teacher trainer for the University of Cambridge CELTA program. Lydia is the Director of the Don Valley ESL Career Centre, a language school that operates out of Don Valley Bible Chapel. Her overseas teaching and training experience includes teaching in Senegal, Niger, Madagascar and the UK. Lydia is also actively involved in music ministry and lives in Toronto with her husband and 2 daughters.
Workshop 7: Connecting the Classroom with the Community: Virtual Visits and More
Descriptor: There are many ways to bring the community into the classroom and to help students connect what they are learning in class with the community, but where do you start? This presentation will share proven free resources the facilitator has used. How do you get experts in different fields to share in your class? Can you imagine inviting mental health professionals, pharmacists, physiotherapists, police officers and citizenship judges to your class? How about inviting community agencies to come to do hands-on workshops on how to set up tents or doing exercises to combat osteoporosis? Could you take students on-site or live online to check out a heritage home in a provincial park, a community garden, a local farm, or a curator at a museum?
Presenter: Sandy Ho. Sandy has been an Adult ESL instructor with the YCDSB for over 6 years. She has a Masters in Applied Linguistics and Exegesis, a TESL Canada Level 3 Professional Certificate, a TESL Ontario Certificate, and is PBLA (Portfolio-Based Language Assessments) trained. Prior to working with new immigrants, she was Academic Director and Curriculum Developer for a chain of private language schools across North America, overseeing 10 private language schools. Sandy has worked as IELTS Assessor, Spanish and Linguistics instructor, and tutored academic English privately. She uses technology quite extensively in her teaching and develops many resources online.
Workshop 8: Add to Your Teaching Toolkit and Make ESL Fun!
Descriptor: There are long lists of possible teaching strategies but having a small toolkit of a few methods can change your classroom style so that you can meet the needs of the different learning styles of your learners. We will try out a few simple and easy strategies that can help adult learners to retain more and talk more for practice. We will explore examples of brainstorming, word sort, cloze and jigsaw, and Think-Pair-Share.
Presenter: Sandi Howell. Sandi has been an active missionary member with her husband, Don, for 30 years, with OMF International. She is Connections East Asia (CEA)’s Coordinator for ESOL, using ESL as an outreach to East Asians. CEA, a part of OMF, has resources and training for individuals and Canadian churches to reach newcomers in their midst. Sandi has 20 years of ESL ministry overseas in Singapore, in Edmonton, Alberta and in the Greater Toronto Area. She is a professional member of TESL Ontario. As a lead tutor for the Conversational English classes at Trinity Streetsville for the past 13 years, and the Lead for the Newcomers ESL Hub at The Peoples Church for the past 3 ½ years, she has learned to be creative and flexible in supporting her teaching teams and newcomers’ needs.
Workshop 9: Addressing the Mental Health Needs of Refugees and Newcomers in Canada
Descriptor: This presentation aims to educate all teaching professionals about the different factors that affect the mental health and well-being of individuals, and specifically refugees or newcomers to Canada. Through this presentation, we also aim to equip you with the basic training and awareness that one should have to recognize mental health issues faced by students and provide them with relevant resources. At the end of the presentation, we also discuss different approaches that educators can use if they come across potential scenarios where they interact with students who express mental health concerns.
Presenters: Rashi Thakur. Rashi is currently a medical student and also a recent graduate from the University of Toronto. Additionally, she is a mental health advocate who has served as a crisis responder at the Canadian Suicide Prevention Helpline and leads a student-run mental health awareness club on campus. Being an immigrant herself, she understands the value of receiving help from professionals in a new country. Providing compassionate and affectionate service to newcomers and refugees can ease the settling process for them. Rashi believes that as educators, we have a direct opportunity to make a difference in the lives of newcomers. Through her service and mental health advocacy efforts in the community, Rashi aims to positively impact the lives of newcomers and refugees coming to Canada.
Michelle Sum. Michelle is currently a nursing student at the University of Toronto with a passion for advocacy work and assisting people in all walks of life. Growing up as a child of immigrants, Michelle recognized the importance of other peoples’ kindness in helping her parents and grandparents settle into Canadian society. Hoping to do the same for others, Michelle began to volunteer for different organizations and various causes that aided newcomers to Canada, some of which include the Toronto Public Library and Frontier College. Most recently, Michelle worked with the Iskaashiga Somali/Canadian Group of Ontario to provide English, Math, and Science lessons to newcomer families in Canada. Michelle is looking forward to continuing her advocacy work for refugees and newcomers to Canada with the student-led, non-profit organization, RefuHope, with whom she is launching her personal project, Pieces of Us: A Collection of Refugee Stories.
TESL Ontario Members: Workshops 1, 5, 6, 8, 9 qualify as professional development (PD) activity for TESL Ontario membership renewal. Participants of each of those workshops will get 1 PD hour while presenters will get 5 PD hours. If you would like a PD credit, you can indicate on the Registration Form and we will provide certificates.
Plenary Panel Topic: “Sowing and Reaping: Introducing Your Students to Jesus” (11:15-11:55 a.m.)
Moderator: Tom More. Tom is a pastor with The Living Room Church in Midtown where he has been serving for 9 years. His ministry, the English Conversation Cafe, engages newcomers and those passing through Toronto with the opportunity to meet new people and practice their conversational English skills. In addition, Tom runs an ESL-based House Church bi-monthly for those who have an interest in exploring God. Both ministries were started and are run by Tom and his wife Karmen. They have two sons, Thomas who is three and Caspian who is one.
Panelists: Jeff McCarrell. Jeff was trained in missions with Canadian Baptist Ministry among Somali in N.E. Kenya. For 25 years Jeff has served with Etobicoke congregations seeking to present Christ to predominantly Muslim neighbours. Jeff teaches at Dixon Women’s ESL Classes.
Linda Reed. Linda has an M.A. in linguistics with Wycliffe Bible Translators in conjunction with the University of Texas at Arlington. She has completed a Doctor of Education program at Southern Seminary, and holds TESL certification for Canada and Ontario. Linda presently teaches courses for women serving in ministry at Heritage College and Seminary, and oversees students in four weekly ESL conversation classes. Her heart is to use the Bible as a basis for Reading and Grammatical Analysis. She is married to Dr. Rick Reed, President of Heritage and former pastor of the Metropolitan Bible Church. They have three grown children, all of whom love languages.
Mary Ellen Tierney. Mary Ellen is currently Pastor, Barnabas Victoria Hills at WMB Church, Waterloo. She has over 30 years of experience as a missionary in Japan, working with International Student Ministries of Canada and running Learn English Make Friends and other programs. She has a Bachelor of Public Administration and a Master of Theological Studies. But, first and foremost she is a child of God.