Dear HLT Readers,

Welcome to the October issue of HLT.

First I would like to apologize for the fact that HLT and our sister journal the TTTJ disappeared from the web for a couple of days in mid September. It was due to some technical problems, beyond the control of the editors.

Due to some technical changes the ‘join our free mailing list’ function has been not working for some time. We also feel we need to need to reorganise our data base of HLT subscribers and friends. So if you would like to join or remain on our mailing list please send an e-mail to the following address: hlt@pilgrims.co.uk giving your full name, current e-mail address and name of the country you come from. This will help us to keep in touch much more efficiently and we will be able to inform you about events and developments relevant to the place where you live. Thank you for your cooperation. (NB there will be just a mechanical reply to your mail. For regular correspondence use my usual e-mail address: hania.kryszewska@pilgrims.co.uk ).

As for this issue of HLT you can find out about the creative and great time we had at Pilgrims this summer; read Pilgrims at work… by Iwona Grajner, Geert Groot Koerkamp, Ruud Giesbers, Agata Murzyńska, Caterina Sbrana and Alex Schonewille. For future plans, Pilgrims developments and new courses take a look at the Course Outline. These new Pilgrims courses will be announced soon. This is your exclusive preview. You may decide you want to join one of them. The grant application deadline is mid December.

In this issue we say good-bye to Alan Duff, our dear colleague and author of books which have inspired us all. His friends and colleagues pay tribute to Alan in Remembering Alan McConnell Duff. Two articles in this issue also remember Alan’s books and work: The Heart of the Matter - An Activity That Has Always Worked by Lou Spaventa, and Learning Grammar Through Doggerel Verse by Simon Mumford.

Talking of books there has been a lot going on in the publishing world. The Short Book Reviews article introduces many interesting new publications. More reviews can be read in: Wonders of the world, reviewed by Neil Mc Beath, and English Through Art, reviewed by Alan Maley. Don’t miss the book preview of a new DELTA pronunciation resource book: The Book of Pronunciation by Jonathan Marks and Tim Bowen. The last two months were the time when many awards have been given out. For more information read Winners of the Extensive Reading Foundation 2012 Language Learner Literature Awards, submitted by Philip Prowse, and the Letters section. Finally, HLT has become part of LINGLE, an ELTONs award winning initiative and network You will find the details in Letter 1 in the Letters section.

Talking of letters, don’t miss letter 2 in the Letters section. It comes from Disabled Access Friendly campaign whose articles and work has been promoted in HLT. Perhaps you too could help the people involved in the campaign to network and promote their cause. The letter gives also an update on the milestones in the project.

This issue hosts seven articles which are the outcome of a very inspiring event Teaching English as a Performing Art which took place in Malaysia (more on the event in From Stale Custom to Infinite Variety by Andrew Wright and Alan Maley).

These seven articles are: The Inspiring Teacher by Nguyen thi Hoai An, People Who Don’t Believe in the Power of Stories Should Think Again by Jayakaran Mukundan, Creating a Story from Everyday Life as an Effective Tool in Language Learning by Motikala Subba Dewan, Multiple Intelligences and Post-reading Activities in the ESL Literature Class by Mallika V Govindarajoo, What Happens When Students Do Creative Writing? , by Vishnu S Rai, Classroom as an Inspiration by Phuong thi Anh Le and Integrating Visualization Techniques into English Language Teaching and Learning by Wei Lee.The wealth and quality of articles show what an inspiring event it must have been.

Those interested in practical ideas which can be used in class will enjoy: Walking Tall With Word Forks by N. Pratheeba, Using Poetry in ELT: Happiness and A Song in time of Depression by Michael Berman, How to Make Use of MS Word and PowerPoint in EFL Classes by Merve Elbirlik Tülek, Souls are Hungry for Songs – Feed Them! Make Feel Good Songs for Your Students by Sezgi Yalin, Integrating the Skills Using Tales of the Unexpected, Stephen Hargreaves, and Learning Grammar Through Doggerel Verse by Simon Mumford.

There are ten more articles to choose from on using authentic aural materials, humanistic llanguage education in Ecuador, using L1 Chinese high schools, the role of the syllabus, problems with a foreign accent of non-native teachers of English, techniques and strategies for low-achieving learners, using sitcoms, the role of feedback, visualisation techniques in language teaching and learning, and language learning strategies. Take your pick!

I hope you will enjoy the issue

Hania Kryszewska
HLT Editor
hania.kryszewska@pilgrims.co.uk