BELTA Day 2026 Plenary speakers
Jeremy Harmer: Old dogs, new tricks? New dogs, old tricks?
Biography
Jeremy P. H. Harmer was born in 1947. He is a popular ELT author, practitioner and trainer.
Harmer was educated in the United Kingdom and graduated from the University of East Anglia with a BA Hons in English and American Studies. He then pursued his MA in Applied Linguistics at the University of Reading. He completed his studies with a Teacher Training certification from International House.
Harmer has taught in Mexico and the UK, where he is currently an occasional lecturer at Anglia Ruskin University. He has trained teachers and offered seminars all over the world. A writer of both course material and methodology, he is the author of methodology titles including How to Teach English, The Practice of English Language Teaching and How To Teach Writing. He also writes Graded Readers.
Abstract
The main purposes of teacher development, either self-medicated or suggested by others, should be, presumably, to understand more, expand minds, go further, be better, feel better. Yet frequently TD boils down to looking at ‘new stuff’, coming to grips with the latest technology, or adopting mind-blowing radical theories and practice which are all the rage. At times of education shift this kind of TD becomes more and more common. Computers are the answer to successful learning! Using phones in class is THE thing (or maybe the spawn of the devil – ask the Australians!) Online teaching is completely different! Adaptive leaning is killing us (or is it translation technology? I can’t remember). And now AI. AI. AI. The aim of this talk is to propose an approach to TD which will work with most topics and in most situations so that we can do all the things we mentioned above whatever ‘tricks’ are being introduced and, crucially, whether we are older or younger canines.
James Taylor: The ABCs of TD: Community
Biography
James Taylor is a materials writer, teacher trainer & Community Manager for Active Education. He’s been nominated for an ELTON Award three times, winning for Our Languages in 2021. He is the leader of BRAZ-TESOL MAWSIG & joint-coordinator of IATEFL TDSIG.
Abstract
It's all well and good promising to deliver teacher development (TD) but how do we make sure it actually works? There are many different conditions that are required in order for TD to be long lasting and in this talk I'm going to concentrate on one: community. How do we create a learning environment in which teachers can develop and flourish? I'll be drawing on research on teacher development and how to make it effective, how to build effective communities, and the nature of those communities. I'll make practical suggestions for teachers and trainers wanting to find an environment in which they can have a genuine impact on TD.