1. The June issue of HLT (Humanising Language Teaching) has just come out and is as good as ever https://www.hltmag.co.uk/jun25/ but I’m ashamed to say that I missed the April issue, which was a wonderful tribute to one of the best trainers I ever worked with, Mario Rinvolucri https://www.hltmag.co.uk/apr25/ We started our relationship with an argument – Mario was demonstrating the Silent Way and refused to tell me how to say ‘thank you’ in modern Greek, the language he was teaching us, and when we next met, over breakfast in my kitchen in Zagreb, he was unrepentant (and so was I). We met many times and he was always challenging, in good ways!

The June issue has two eloquent tributes to Luke Prodromou, who also died recently, from Alam Maley and Ken Wilson.

2. Richard Smith, who pointed us in the direction of David Wilson’s splendid book, The Experience of Expatriate English Language Teaching, on Tuesday, has also kindly recently made his own ELTJ article on The History of ELTJ available without a subscription https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article/75/1/4/6070219?guestAccessKey=423250c6-6c86-4fbb-8c81-07d39fdf559c&login=false You can download the PDF from that page, too.

Here’s the abstract: This article traces the 75-year history of ELT Journal, using this as a means to cast light on trends in ELT over the same period and to acknowledge various sources of thought and practice. In the first part (1946–1971), the focus is on how the journal contributed to the establishment of a methodological orthodoxy which was relatively unaffected by academic applied linguistics but which drew sustenance, rather, from a tradition of theorized experience and practical linguistics dating back to pre-war times. In the second part (1971–1996), the focus is on tensions between this orthodoxy and newer ‘communicative’ ideas—still, though, with an emphasis on practical experience as well as academic insight, while the final phase (1996–2021) is viewed as being characterized, above all, by attempts to ‘decentre’ away from mainly UK-based expertise and towards an opening-up of professional discourse to previously neglected voices. Viewing the history of the journal in this manner reveals continuities as well as shifts in perception of how English should be defined, whose voices ‘count’ in the field, and of the value or otherwise of research and theory in relation to practical concerns.

And if you’re a regular reader of ELTJ, you might like to complete their eightieth (!) anniversary reader survey here https://tinyurl.com/5fhms23r

3. LanguageCert is offering four sixty-minute webinars in June, each looking at one skill. More details and a registration link here https://www.languagecert.org/en/preparation/webinars/webinars-for-teachers The first in the series is Focus on Listening Skills at 10:00 UK (summer) time on Thursday, June 19th with Paul Bouniol:

An interactive 60-minute webinar clarifying what ‘Listening’ involves and the sub-skills that teachers can target in their lessons to address the areas where candidates sometimes underperform. The session will focus on what teachers can do throughout the year to develop their learners’ Listening skills and suggest support material they can use to prepare them in the best possible way.

4. Here’s Gavin Newsom, Governor of California, and now effectively the leader of the opposition to Trump, talking in dignified, resolute manner about recent events in his state https://youtu.be/pXQQNUeb4Sw

And here’s a piece by Natasha Lindstaedt for The Conversation reflecting on current events in the USA, Trump’s clash with California governor over LA protests has potential to influence next presidential race https://theconversation.com/trumps-clash-with-california-governor-over-la-protests-has-potential-to-influence-next-presidential-race-258713

Earlier this week, Trump gave an address at the newly re-renamed Fort Bragg at which he was cheered by the soldiers standing behind him (which is fine, as he’s commander-in-chief) and Biden was booed (not fine, as purely political and someone must have ordered the soldiers to boo), and the Fulbright Commission board resigned en masse in protest against the politicisation of the award of scholarships and grants; this Sunday, there’s a military parade in Washington to celebrate The Great Leader’s birthday …

5. And, finally, an old joke that’s worth repeating (I hope):

A sheep farmer is tending his flock when a city slicker rolls up in his BMW, hops out and asks, “Hey, if I tell you exactly how many sheep you have, can I take one?” The farmer nods, so the city slicker opens his laptop, calls up some satellite photos, runs some algorithms, and announces, “You have 1,432 sheep.” Impressed, the farmer says, “You’re right. Go ahead and take one.” So the city slicker loads one of the animals into the backseat of the car. “Now,” says the farmer, “I’ll bet all my sheep against your car that I can tell you what you do for a living.” A gaming sort, the city slicker says, “Sure.” “You’re a consultant,” says the farmer. “Wow!” says the consultant. “How’d you know?” “Well,” says the farmer, “you come from nowhere even though I never asked you to. You drive a flash car, and wear a smart suit. You told me something I already knew. And you don’t know anything about my business. Now give me back my dog.”