2024-present
Newsletter Archives

Welcome to the fall 2025 issue of our GILE Newsletter! This features (1) an innovative article by Jamison Taube-Shibata on teaching global issues through K-Pop, (2) ideas from Anthony Lavigne on how to engage students with Sustainable Development Goals and (3) a description by Betty Lau of an EFL unit she designed on natural disasters. This fall marks the 80th anniversary of the founding of the UN in 1945. To commemorate this, we include a special section on Teaching about the United  Nations which includes a UN quiz for students as well as teaching ideas, activities and resources. We finish off this edition with a report on JACET’s summer conference in Tokyo, a profile of the NGO Peace Boat, a tribute to peace educator Francisco Gomes de Matos, updates for teaching about Gaza and Ukraine, global issue dates to teach about this fall plus a round-up of all the latest global education news. 
̈ We offer electronic subscriptions by e-mail. Let us know if you’d like to try this option!

• Summaries of articles on global themes from ELT journals and the media

• Conference Report: JACET 2025 at Waseda University in Tokyo

• Organization Profile: Japanese NGO Peace Boat

• Why Teach Global Issues with K-Pop? by Jamison Taube-Shibata

• The Power of Choice: Engaging Students with the SDGs by Anthony Lavigne

• Teaching about Natural Disasters Using News Broadcasts by Betty E. Lau

• Special Feature: Teaching about the United Nations (80th Anniversary)

• Teaching current events: Russia-Ukraine, Israel-Gaza, Trump, Jane Goodall...

• Key topics: World Food Day, Nobel Peace Prize, Francisco Gomes de Matos

• Language teaching textbooks on global education themes

• Book Corner: Resource books for teaching about the United Nations

Welcome to the April 2025 edition of our newsletter! I hope everyone had a good spring
break. This issue features (1) an article by Suprateek Chatterjee on how teachers can deal with student comments related to Japanese exceptionalism, (2) a report by Gaby Benthien on an EFL teacher training course she designed around global issue picture books and (3) an article by Betty Lau that addresses the challenges of promoting global citizenship among Generation Z students. Our two special features provide ideas for teaching about (1) the
theme “If the world were a village of 100 people” and (2) the impact of Trump 2.0 policies on language teaching. This issue also has conference reports on TESOL 2025 (Long Beach) and LESD 2025 (Germany), resources for teaching Expo 2025, Red Cross Day and World Press Freedom Day plus all the latest global education news. Have a great spring semester! ̈ We offer electronic subscriptions by e-mail. Let us know if you’d like to try this option!

• Summaries of articles on global themes from ELT journals and the media

• Conference Report I: TESOL 2025 in Long Beach, California

• Conference Report II: LESD 2025 in Münster, Germany

• Dealing with Japanese Exceptionalism in ELT by Suprateek Chatterjee

• Fostering Global Awareness through Picture Books by Gaby Benthien

• Generation Z, Social Dynamics and Global Citizenship by Betty Lau

• Special Feature I: State of the World “If the world were a village of 100”

• Special Feature II: Teaching about Trump 2.0

• Summer events: Osaka Expo, Red Cross Day, World Free Press Day and more

• Language teaching textbooks on global education themes

• Book Corner: Resource books for teaching about the state of the world​

   Welcome to our fall 2024 newsletter! I hope everyone survived the summer heat. This issue features (1) an English literature unit by James Taylor that engages students with protest songs, (2) a report by John Guy Perrem on teaching about women’s rights in Afghanistan and (3) suggestions from Heather Cummins on ways to promote global citizenship. Our special features provide ideas, activities and resources for teaching about (1) the Paris Olympics, (2) the upcoming US presidential election as well as (3) Gaza and Ukraine. This issue also reports on recent EFL conferences (Shin-Eiken, JACET, GILE-ICLE), describes recent global ELT initiatives, commemorates language teachers who have been killed in violent conflicts and includes a round-up of all the latest global education news. Have a great fall semester!
 

• Summaries of articles on global themes from ELT journals and the mass media

• Conference Reports: Shin-Eiken 2024 / JACET 2024 / GILE-ICLE 2024

• Protest Songs in the English Literature Classroom by James Taylor

• Teaching about RAWA & Women’s Rights in Afghanistan by John Guy Perrem

• Ten Ways to Foster Global Citizenship in our Pupils by Heather Cummins

• Special Feature I: Looking back at the Paris Summer Olympics

• Special Feature II: Teaching about the 2024 US Presidential Election

• Topics: JET Program Statistics / Social Justice in ELT / EFL Charity Initiatives

• Special Feature III: Gaza, Ukraine and Language Teachers Killed in Conflicts

• Events: World Food Day, UN Day, Human Rights Day, the Nobel Peace Prize

• Language teaching textbooks on global education themes

• Book Corner: Resources for teaching about protest songs and world issues

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    Welcome to our first issue of the new academic year! The spring break is over, cherry blossoms are gone and classes are back in session. Our theme this issue is non-governmental organizations. This includes (1) a report by Kristen Sullivan on an “International Volun-teering” course she designed where students support Japanese NGOs, (2) a profile of Seibo Japan which engages students in raising funds for Malawi, and (3) a section on “Teaching about NGOs” that includes class activities, resources, NGO lists and profiles. April 7th marked six months since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, a brutal conflict that has led to a humanitarian crisis in Gaza. To address this, we feature an article by Shelley Wong (USA) and Fatima Hamad (Palestine) who share their thoughts on the crisis, describe its impact on Palestinian teachers and students, and outline actions we can take. Also included are teaching ideas for the 2024 Olympics in Paris, a conference report on TESOL 2024 in Florida and a round-up of all the latest global education news. Good luck with your spring semester!
*Summaries of articles on global themes from ELT journals and the mass media
* Conference Report: TESOL 2024 (March 21 - 24 in Tampa, Florida)
* NGO Profile: Seibo Japan – Feeding the Future by Makoto Yamada
* Gaza: What Can TESOL Educators Do? by Shelley Wong & Fatima Hamad
* Teaching an International Volunteering Course by Kristen Sullivan
* Special Feature I: Teaching about Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs)
* Special Feature II: Teaching about the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris
* Language teaching textbooks on global education themes
* Book Corner: Educational resources for teaching about NGOs

Welcome to the July edition of our GILE newsletter! We hope you and your students are all prepared for another hot summer! This issue features (1) an inspiring article by Matthew Hayes on ways to promote global citizenship education through language teaching, (2) a description by Brent Jones of how to design and carry out Oral History class projects and (3) a report by John-Guy Perrem on a “peace awareness survey” he conducted for his university Global Issues class. As a tribute to the late Marc Helgesen, our special feature provides ideas,
activities and resources on “teaching for and  teaching about happiness.” This issue also includes conference reports on IATEFL 2025 (Edinburgh) and Pan-SIG 2025 (Chiba), ideas for teaching about the 100th anniversary of the 1925 Scopes Monkey Trial and the 80th anniversary of World War II plus a round-up of all the latest global education news. Enjoy!  ̈ We offer electronic subscriptions by e-mail. Let us know if you’d like to try this option!

• Summaries of articles on global themes from ELT journals and the media

• Conference Report I: IATEFL 2025 in Edinburgh, Scotland

• Conference Report II: Pan-SIG 2025 at KUIS in Chiba

• Global Citizenship Education in the ELT Classroom by Matthew Hayes

• Fostering Social Engagement with Oral Histories by Brent Jones

• Insights from a Survey about Student Views of Peace by John-Guy Perrem

• Special Feature I: Teaching about the 80th Anniversary of World War II

• Special Feature II: Teaching about – and Teaching for – Happiness

• Summer events: Indigenous People, Suicide Prevention, Scopes Monkey Trial...

• Language teaching textbooks on global education themes

• Book Corner: Resource books for teaching about happiness and about WWII

Welcome to our first newsletter of 2025! I hope you all had a good winter break. This issue features (1) a report by Chia Suan Chong about 10 key trends in ELT based on the 2024 BBC Elton Awards and (2) a description by Margalit Faden of her university’s global issues EFL curriculum. This year’s big event is Expo 2025 in Osaka. To prepare for this, we include (3) an article by Madeline Boulanger about an ELT history course she designed on international expos plus (4) a special feature with ideas, activities and resources for teaching about world’s fairs. This issue also includes conference reports on JALT 2024 (Shizuoka) and Linguapax Asia (Hiroshima), a preview of upcoming events for 2025 plus teaching re-sources for Valentine’s Day, Women’s Day, Landmine Awareness Day and Earth Day!
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• Summaries of articles on global themes from ELT journals and the media

• Conference Report I: the 20th Annual Linguapax Asia Symposium in Hiroshima

• Organization Profiles: Linguapax International and Linguapax Asia

• Conference Report II: JALT 2024 international convention in Shizuoka

• Ten Trends in English Language Teaching by Chia Suan Chong

• Teaching History and Culture via International Expos by Madeline Boulanger

• Special Feature: Teaching about World’s Fairs and Expos

• Incorporating Global Issues into University Curricula by Margalit Faden

• Spring events: Valentine’s Day, Women’s Day, Landmine Day, Earth Day

• Teachable Moments – Upcoming Events for the Year 2025

• Language teaching textbooks on global education themes

• Book Corner: Resource books for teaching about world’s fairs and expos

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Welcome to our July 2024 issue! Our feature article is an inspiring description by a team of English teachers in Montenegro of an EFL service-learning project they designed  that had students carry out health surveys,  lean parks, plant trees, help orphanages, visit senior centers and work in a soup kitchen.
Two global events this summer are the Olympics and Paralympics in Paris. To  commemorate these, our main theme this  issue is sports and global issues. We kick off with (1) an EFL unit by Tim Grose on the topic of “sportswashing” with case studies from around the world. Next (2) is a report on a  GILE SIG forum on “sports and English” that featured a famous Japanese Olympic  volleyball coach. Following this is (3) a 2-page spread of class ideas, activities and resources  for teaching about the Olympics. This issue also includes a round-up of all the latest global education news. Have a great summer!
 

• Summaries of articles on global themes from ELT journals and the mass media

• Conference Report I: PanSIG 2024 (May 24 - 25 in Fukui, Japan)

• GILE PanSIG Forum: Japanese Athletes, Global Sports and English

• Conference Report II: IATEFL 2024 (April 16 - 19 in Brighton, England)

• Teaching about Sportswashing in EFL by Tim Grose

• Service-Learning Projects for EFL in Montenegro by Dragana Radoma, Milka Cerovic and Marija Bojic (ELTAM)

• Upcoming Events: Hiroshima/Nagasaki, European Day of Languages & more!

• Special Feature: Teaching about the 2024 Olympics

• Language teaching textbooks on global education themes

• Book Corner: Books on sportswashing, the Olympics and promoting tolerance.

    Welcome to our first GILE Newsletter of 2024! It was a shock to start the year in Japan with a major earthquake in Ishikawa and a plane collision at Haneda airport. Let’s hope the rest of the year will be more peaceful with fewer natural (and man-made) disasters! This winter issue contains: (1) a description by Jennie Roloff-Rothman of a global issues course she designed on the topic of baseball, (2) an article by Kirk Johnson on a 4-year Peace Wall project he carried out with his students, (3) a report by Timothy Ang about a college LGBT unit he devised for his EFL social issues course and (4) a response by John Spiri to last issue’s theme of banned books. Our special features this edition include a preview of upcoming events for the year 2024 plus ideas on how to teach about the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. This issue also includes a tribute to the late peace educator Betty Reardon, information on Japan’s new 2024 banknotes, a conference report on JALT 2023 (Tsukuba) plus teaching resources for Valentine’s Day, Women’s Day, Landmine Awareness Day and Earth Day.

* Summaries of articles on global themes from ELT journals and the mass media
* Conference Report: JALT 2023 (November 24 - 27 in Tsukuba, Japan)
* Using Baseball to Teach about Globalization by Jennie Roloff-Rothman

* Engaging Peace Through a Peace Wall Project by Kirk Johnson
* In Memoriam: Betty Reardon (peace educator) / New 2024 Japanese banknotes
* Inclusive Education: Teaching an LGBT Unit via EFL by Timothy Ang
* Banned Books Controversy: Seeking Balance and Clarity by John Spiri
* Key spring dates: Valentine’s Day, Women’s Day, Landmine Day, Earth Day
* Special Feature I: Teaching about Israel, Palestine and the War in Gaza
* Special Feature II: Teachable Moments – Upcoming Events in 2024
* Language teaching textbooks on global education themes
* Book Corner: Resources for teaching Israel-Palestine / New global issues series