Urban myths in ELT

The great wall of China is visible from space! You lose 40% of your body heat from your head. We hear urban myths, like these and many others, everywhere. Many people accept them to be true because they’re memorable and sound so interesting. Education is not immune and nor is ELT. The same factors that lead so many people to believe that we only use 10% of our brains also lead teachers to believe that every learner has their own unique learning style. In many ways these myths are often harmless, but they can take time away from classroom activities that may actually be effective. In this interactive talk, Russell Mayne will look at some of the most common myths in education and ELT, also covered in An Introduction to Evidence-Based Teaching in the English Language Classroom, and examine some alternatives practices which actually do have evidence to support their use.