FAAPI (Argentine Federation of English Teachers’ Association), APIBA (Buenos Aires English Teachers’ Association) organised the 38th FAAPI Annual Conference, which was held at Universidad Católica Argentina, Puerto Madero, Buenos Aires, Argentina, on 26-28 September 2013.
FAAPI and its 21 Teacher Associations are non-profit organisations founded in most cases in the early 1970s. Each is run by an elected Executive Committee, composed of graduate Teachers of English with a wish to voluntarily devote time to improving the profession.
The FAAPI Annual Conference has been held yearly in Argentina since the early 1970s and it takes place in a different Argentine city every September, organised by one of the 21 FAAPI Teacher Associations. The FAAPI Annual Conference has a solid reputation for the prestigious academic figures who participate year after year and for the quality and variety of the topics discussed, which are of great interest to those involved in the teaching profession in Argentina and the rest of Latin America.
The 2013 FAAPI Conference main themes were bi/multi/plurilingualism, interculturality and language identities in the 21st century as well as the methodologies needed in the new educational scenario. Among the many participants that attended the FAAPI 2013 Conference there were 1200 teachers, teacher trainers, trainees, publishers and school managers from Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Brazil, Paraguay, Peru, Colombia and Mexico.
Background, Rationale & Activities
FAAPI 2013 has been the third edition of the FAAPI Annual Conference held in the City of Buenos Aires and organised by APIBA. FAAPI 1994 was held at the Escuela Normal Superior en Lenguas Vivas “J. F. Kennedy” (now “S. B. Spangenberg”) and FAAPI 2001 was held at U.C.A. APIBA hopes that FAAPI 2013 at U.C.A.’s new Convention Centre has lived up to the high standards set by its two Buenos Aires predecessors as well as by the many successful past FAAPI Conferences organised by APIBA’s sister Associations.
In planning FAAPI 2013, APIBA aimed to strike a balance between tradition and innovation. The online Conference Book displays the extensive programme of activities that took place between 24 - 28 September 2013:
· 24 & 25 September Pre-conference events, co-organised by APIBA and the Foreign Language Units of the Ministries of Education of the Province and City of Buenos Aires, which consisted of 7 in-service training sessions offered free of charge to 1600 teachers of English of state-run Primary and/or Secondary schools in APIBA’s jurisdiction.
· 10 Keynote Speakers: Helen Ashton (UK, with the support of the British Council), Cristina Banfi (Argentina), Gabriel Díaz Maggioli (Uruguay, with the support of Macmillan), Claudia Ferradas (Argentina, with the support of Trinity), Clare Furneaux (UK, with the support of The University of Reading), Fred Genesee (Canada, with the support of FAAPI/APIBA), Rainer Enrique Hamel (Mexico), Fernanda Liberali (Brazil), Myriam Met (USA, with the support of the US Embassy), Luci Nussbaum (Spain).
· Over 150 concurrent sessions: papers, workshops, as well as new presentation types such as discussion groups, good practice stories and digital posters.
· 4 academic presentations, with the support of the British Council, Macmillan, OUP and Pearson.
· 4 thematic panels, on the Conference themes – bi/multi/plurilingualism and interculturality – related to language policies, new technologies, diversity and the Latin American context.
· a Professional Development track, co-organised by the British Council and APIBA, about PD options at the various stages in a teacher’s career and about MOOCs, technology and teaching.
· a Training for Teacher Associations track, do’s & don’ts on issues concerning a TA’s treasury (Estudio Feldman, Montenegro & Asoc), volunteers (AFS), institutional policies and the management of small groups (APIBA).
· 6 Meet & Greet sessions, which consisted of gatherings of small, casual groups of colleagues to discuss current topics of interest with a Keynote Speaker.
· commercial presentations on resources and services for teachers.
· an exhibition of the latest in teaching materials
· a social programme with plenty of opportunities for entertainment and networking, including the Conference Welcome Cocktail (FAAPI-APIBA-British Embassy-British Council), which featured a Beatles flashmob (a treat by the British Embassy), and the awards ceremony of the “English Week” Contest (British Embassy, DOLE GCBA, APIBA); the Conference Dinner, a Puerto Madero walking tour (CESYT), and a “Body Break” session (Fundación Río Abierto).
· an “unconference” space, where everyone had the chance to meet informally and engage in fruitful conversation and knowledge socialisation.
· the traditional meeting of FAAPI Associations.
· a SIGs Meeting, for APIBA SIGs Members, and anyone wishing to find out more about SIGs.
· a Virtual Platform, which brought the Conference to teachers who were unable to attend in person. Throughout the Conference, 4 Keynote Presentations were broadcast live and there were online forums and social networks for everyone to exchange ideas. Both on-site and virtual Conference delegates can read/watch/download the virtual sessions - papers, slide and video presentations, digital posters – as well as materials from the on-site sessions (slides and handouts), and watch high definition videos of 17 Keynote Presentations and Thematic Panels.
· FAAPI 2013 Conference E-Book: Roots & routes in language education: Bi-multi-plurilingualism, interculturality and identity. Selected papers from the 38th FAAPI Conference. ISBN 978-987-20307-0-4
· the Closing Ceremony featuring Orquesta de Cámara de la Escuela de Música N°12 D.E. 19 GCBA, which treated those present to a remarkable performance of The Pink Panther (Henri Mancini), La humilde (Cahilo Diaz), La cumparsita (G. M. Rodríguez), Libertango (Astor Piazzolla), Yellow Submarine (McCartney/Lennon) - Conductor: Adrián Placenti.
APIBA strove to offer a fair representation of international, regional and national speakers, with colleagues from BA, GBA and various Argentine provinces. Throughout the Programme and in the Index of Presenters APIBA continued what we consider a good institutional habit of highlighting which speakers are members of FAAPI Associations as a way of fostering a sense of belonging to a Professional Association of graduate teachers.
Have a look at FAAPI 2013 Conference…
APIBA Professional Issues SIG encourages FAAPI 2013 attendees to share a tip in tweet format about something new learnt at the Conference by completing the following e-form
Endnote
As every year, the FAAPI Annual Conference has given the regional English teaching community the chance to meet and exchange professional experiences and ideas. APIBA hopes FAAPI 2013 Conference attendees were able to explore the roots and routes of bi/multi/plurilingualism and interculturality and that the newly-acquired knowledge will open up new perspectives in their daily teaching practice.
The FAAPI 2013 Conference was the result of the painstaking work of a team of highly-committed individuals and organisations that support APIBA & FAAPI’s mission to provide quality professional development. A big thank you to all of them, and especially to the 1200 Conference delegates that devoted three full days to their professional growth.
FAAPI 2013 Organising Committee & APIBA Executive Committee
President: Analía Kandel
Vice-President: Corine Arguimbau
Secretary: Belén Tur
Treasurer: Cecilia Cicolini
Deputy Treasurer: Laura Karina López (Web & Social networks)
Members:
Laura Renart (Academic Team)
Mariángeles Portilla (Virtual Platform)
Valeria Kharsansky (Volunteers & Social Programme)
Laureana Moreno (Administration)
Collaborators: Mariela Enrici, Silvia Rettaroli, Luciana De Bartolis (Treasury); Darío Banegas, Luciana De Bartolis (Academic Team); Liliana Simón & Jennifer Verschoor (Virtual Platform e-moderators), Silvia Rettaroli (Good Practice Stories Coordinator)
Selected Papers E-book Co-editors: Darío Banegas & Laura Renart
FAAPI Executive Committee
President: Cristina Mayol (APIM Misiones)
Vice-President: Gabriela Tavella (APIZALS Zona Andina y Línea Sur)
Secretary: Emma del Valle Figueroa (APISE Santiago del Estero)
Treasurer: Marisel Girardi (ACPI Córdoba)
Members:
Perla Angélica Pereyra (AsCaPi Catamarca)
Ricardo Javier Palma (APIT Tucumán)
María del Rosario Baigorria (APISN San Nicolás)
Ana Isabel Agüero de Renner (APISE Santiago del Estero)
Accounts Committee:
Claudia Naom (APIBA Buenos Aires)
Silvia Pérez (APIT Tucumán)
Academic Committee
Mariel Amez (APrIR Rosario)
Alicia Artusi (APIBA Buenos Aires)
Darío Banegas (APIZALS Zona Andina y Línea Sur)
Cristina Banfi (APIBA Buenos Aires)
Claudia Ferradas (APIBA Buenos Aires)
Emma Figueroa (APISE Santiago del Estero)
Silvia Iummato (APIBA Buenos Aires)
Mario López Barrios (ACPI Córdoba)
Claudia Naom (APIBA Buenos Aires)
Cristina Mayol (APIM Misiones)
Ricardo Javier Palma (APIT Tucumán)
Silvia Rettaroli (APIBA Buenos Aires)
Sandra Revale (APIBA Buenos Aires)
Gabriela Tavella (APIZALS Zona Andina y Línea Sur)
María Teresa Viñas Urquiza (APIBA Buenos Aires)
Elizabeth White (APIBA Buenos Aires)
Conference Coordination: Paula De Gennaro
Conference Organisation: Ana Finochietto
Conference website: http://apiba.org.ar/faapi-apiba/faapi13
Conference social networks: /apiba #FAAPI13
Federación Argentina de Asociaciones de Profesores de Inglés (FAAPI)
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Asociación de Profesores de Inglés de Buenos Aires (APIBA)
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APIBA would like to thank:
FAAPI Executive Committee; sister FAAPI Teacher Associations; Dirección Operativa de Lenguas Extranjeras, Ministerio de Educación GCBA; Programa de Educación Plurilingüe e Intercultural, Dirección General de Cultura y Educación, GPBA; British Embassy; US Embassy; British Council; University of Reading; Orquesta de Cámara de la Escuela de Música N°12 D.E. 19 GCABA; ARTESOL; AEXALEVI; SEA; AFS Programas Interculturales; Estudio Montenegro - Feldman y Asociados; Fundación Río Abierto; CESYT; Macmillan and Trinity for sponsoring Keynote Speakers; Macmillan, OUP & University of Reading for participating in the PCEs; Boletín “Política Lingüística” GCABA; Fundación Lúminis; ELTeCS; English & Fun; SBS bookshop.
Cristina Banfi, Fernanda Coelho Liberali, Rainer Enrique Hamel, Virginia Unamuno for waiving their fees as Keynote Speakers; Members of the Academic Committee; Organising Committee collaborators; Meet & Greet speakers; Thematic Panel speakers and moderators; Training for TAs Track & APIBA Professional Development Track speakers; Members of the Jury of the “English Week” Competition; concurrent sessions speakers; Darío Banegas & Gabriela Tavella (FAAPI 2012); Viviana Myslicki & Romina Arena (APIBA SIGs LOs); APIBA SIGs’ Coordinators & SIG Members; Angel Kandel; Paula De Gennaro; Ana Finochietto; Verónica Casela; Constanza Martínez Benegas; Sebastián Kladniew (graphic design); supporting ad contributors; Delegates; Sponsors & Exhibitors; Volunteers.
