STUDENT PROJECTS

TED Global Citizenship Club (GCC)

TED Global Citizenship Club intends to create an academic environment where students find opportunities to develop global citizenship qualities. The content and the scope of the club is prepared in collaboration with TED University’s Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences. Nine courses offered in the Global Citizenship minor program at TED University have been adapted to be implemented in this club to last for two academic years (comprising mainly grade 9 and grade 10 students). The purpose and scope of the club is for students to develop awareness about world challenges and to search for solutions to world challenges while developing their sense of responsibility.
The club operates to form a bridge to tertiary education with a primary focus on developing skills in speaking and writing. Students will have the opportunity to work towards and receive an internationally recognised qualification(s) – Oxford AQA Independent Project Qualification (IPQ) in 11th grade. The IPQ is equivalent to an A-Level qualification (this is only valid for schools with AQA accreditation) GCC will support the vision and objectives of the European Youth Event (EYE). EYE event is hosted bi-annually and GCC students are encouraged to take part in it.

TEACHER PROJECTS

TED Ambassadors Project
As a network of 41 schools across Turkey with a pool of fully-trained in-house teacher trainers/mentors based in cities throughout the country, we feel that we are in a unique position to add value to the field experience (School Experience) component of the 4th year ELT undergraduate practicum. With regard to this, TED Ambassadors Project, provides TED University students with an opportunity to visit different TED schools and closely work with their mentors. The main purpose of the project is to help supplement and strengthen the existing School Experience course in order to give student teachers the best possible preparation for their future teaching careers.

Objectives

- To contribute to the discussion on the policies and procedures needed to best equip student teachers with the knowledge, attitudes, behaviours and skills they require to perform their tasks effectively in the classroom, school and wider community
- To afford student teachers an opportunity to acquire enhanced knowledge of departmental/school culture
- To provide student teachers with individual, intensive professional support not limited to classroom observation and feedback
- To identify possible links between TED University ELT department and TED Headquarters Directorate of Foreign Languages in order to help scaffold the transition between pre- and in-service teacher training
Professional Development Activities

TED Schools New Teachers’ Induction Program
New Teachers’ Induction Program is held by the Directorate of Foreign Languages at TED Headquarters or at various TED Schools every August or September. The program is carried out by TED Headquarters educational specialists and it lasts for four days.

Objectives

- to provide an opportunity to familiarize teachers with the teaching system and philosophy at TED schools
- to provide an overview of ELT basics, to improve classroom practice through micro-teaching sessions and discussions and thus to help them be prepared for the new academic year
At the very end of the program, all teachers get a certificate of attendance. The content of the program is as follows:
- Welcome to TED
- Teaching Young Learners
- Classroom Management
- Teaching New Language
- Teaching Vocabulary
- Teaching Receptive Skills
- Teaching Productive Skills
- Alternative Approaches
- Use of Technology
- Lesson Planning
- Understanding and Adapting Your Textbook

TED Schools Leadership Course

TED Schools Leadership Course, first launched in the 2019-2020 academic year and intended for department heads, has been carried out by the educational specialists at TED Headquarters Directorate of Foreign Languages.

Objectives
- to raise awareness about the importance of effective leadership in Foreign Language Departments at TED Schools.
- to help the Department Heads get acquainted with the main principles of team building, effective communication and planning.
- to equip the Department Heads with the necessary skills in resolving conflicts, giving and receiving feedback, managing time effectively, supporting the team academically and professionally.


TED Schools Trainer Development Program
This course is offered by TED Headquarters Directorate of Foreign Languages to teacher trainers recruited at TED schools. The programme prioritises teacher development over teacher training. This is to ensure that the TED trainer/mentor is able to effectively support both novice and experienced teachers in his/her school in a way which actively involves the teachers by acknowledging their pre-existing professional knowledge, experience and interests.

Objectives
- To provide a refresher of teacher training approaches and techniques
- To introduce, practice and standardise approaches to effective classroom observation and post-lesson feedback
- To develop participants’ practical skills in supporting novice and experienced teachers
- To enable participants to contribute to the school’s quality improvement plans and procedures


TED Schools Regional In-Service Teacher Training Seminars

TED Regional In-Service Teacher Training Seminars are organized each academic year by TED Headquarters Directorate of Foreign Languages in collaboration with the host TED school and they are intended for English language teachers recruited at TED schools and MEB schools.
The teachers attending the seminars get their certificates and have the opportunity to execute their work with new and practical ideas.

Access Social Responsibility Project Teacher Training

Access Social Responsibility Project, funded by U.S. Embassy Ankara and carried out by TED Headquarters Directorate of Projects, aims to contribute to the language education of promising students who have limited financial means, but plenty of academic potential. (For more information, please visit https://www.ted.org.tr/projeler/access-sosyal-sorumluluk-projesi/)In this sense, TED Headquarters Directorate of Foreign Languages offers special training for teachers in charge of the project to improve the quality of classroom teaching.

ORGANIZATIONS

TED Schools ELT Conference
At the end of each academic year, an ELT conference open to a diversity of topics related to foreign language education is organized by The Turkish Education Association Commercial Enterprise and TED Headquarters Foreign Languages Directorate in collaboration with the host TED school.
This is an end-of-year event that aims to provide language teachers at TED schools with the opportunity to experience organizing a conference, giving presentations to a wider audience, and exchange ideas with participants from other educational institutions (for more information, please visit elt.ted.org.tr) TED Schools Second Foreign Languages Conference
TED Schools give great importance to education in second foreign languages and offers a wide variety of language classes such as German, French, Spanish and Russian alongside English, with particular emphasis on improving learners’ communicative skills. To this end, a biennial conference on second foreign languages is held with the contributions of The Turkish Education Association Commercial Enterprise and TED Headquarters Foreign Languages Directorate. TED SFL Conference aims to contribute to the professional development of second foreign language teachers working at TED schools by informing them about the current issues and best practices in the field of second foreign languages.

TED Coursebook Selection Meeting
TED Coursebook Selection Meeting is an annual meeting held by The Turkish Education Association Commercial Enterprise in collaboration with TED Headquarters Directorate of Foreign Languages so as to standardize language education offered by TED schools. To this end, the committees comprised of various teachers from different TED schools have the opportunity to get feedback from their colleagues and gather information about the coursebooks they are planning to use for the upcoming year.
In addition, depending on teachers’ needs and interests, Department of Foreign Languages hold side meetings and deliver teacher training sessions during the Coursebook Selection Meeting. The aim of these meetings is to create an opportunity for teachers to get together, inform them about the main issues in foreign language education, share ideas and get feedback about certain programmes they carry out in their schools.