Can We Be Political in the Classroom?

Last Saturday I gave a talk at the APAC ELT Convention 2019 in Barcelona Thank you everybody for coming! :=)



I made a point that we are all political either by action or by inaction, and I promised I would share some resources to deal with current issues in the class and encourage students to participate. 


In the link (attention! it is case-sensitive and it is cc underline )




you will find three folders: 

General 

Name pairs - to be cut - Give a name or surname to each student at random so that they work with different partner each time - customize as you wish. [Idea taken from Mario Rinvolucri]
Pres. Card- sample of a card to fill in on the first day - swap with a partner and ask questions


International Days 


Worksheets - resources to be used  
November - Buy Nothing Day - [date changes every year] Relate to Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Blue Monday
December 10 -  International Human Rights Day - Declaration in plain language 
January - Martin Luther King Day 
March 8 - International Women's Day - 15-page file

  • 1 Class plan
  • 7 texts for reading comprehension / oral summary
  • 1 Videos online - Do Madonna's 10 minute speech if you can only do one
  • 5 page- MATCHING ACTIVITY to cut out - match headings and 13 microaggressions against women 
  • 1 other resources


Also, every five years there are European Parliamentary elections and, notwithstanding the importance of the decisions taken there, participation hit an all time low in 2014 with 43.8% in SPAIN.  I would like to share with you a series of activities I have used to teach the basics of the European Parliament and other institutions to raise awareness about the importance of participation in those elections.
Therefore, there is another folder to plan ahead for next May

European Union Election (2019-2024)

  • Resources - links to access materials
  • Europe & Me booklet - may be ordered from previous links in any language - useful to copy and enlarge summaries of EU countries map and of EU institutions. 
  • Quizzes and matching games about EU countries, institutions, history, how it is run, what MEPs do connected to online videos (see Resources)




Specially at intermediate and advanced levels, developing critical thinking skills makes classes more interesting, for you and your students. By critical thinking skills we understand: questioning, summarizing, discussing, researching and critical reflection.

There is no way to escape politics. Help your students decide whether they want to be political by action or by inaction. Enjoy the exchange! 


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