The Teacher "The Teacher new issue"
Through Struggle to the Stars!

The Latin motto of the RAF (Royal Air Force), “Per Ardua ad Astra”, is usually translated as “Through Work to the Stars” but the RAF’s offi cial translation is “Through Adversity to the Stars”. The choice of motto is attributed to a junior offi cer named J S Yule an...d the RAF inherited the motto from the RFC (Royal Flying Corps). These beautiful, wise and uplifting words can inspire everyone to anything. We hope to inspire you with refreshing ideas presented in this issue of the Teacher Magazine.

We all know, how kindergarten children, primary school pupils or university students learn English, but have you ever wondered how soldiers acquire their language skills? Do they learn using the same certifi cate systems as in civilian schools or do they follow any special military curriculum? We are lucky enough, we have Paweł Madej who will explain everything in detail and let us in on the secret of military English language testing. The author states, that due to the fact that not all soldiers and workers of NATO are native speakers of English, there is a need to normalize and codify the language levels and to specify the language criteria for specifi c military arrangements. All information on the military exam defi ned by STANAG 6001 (Standardization Agreement) will be presented in few installments of the article “Testing in the military as validity and reliability” accompanied by test examples to put you in the picture and give you some resources you may wish to try out.

Every day, while planning classes, we look for attractive resources to grab the students’ attention which will encourage them to learn. However, we need not look too far since Alina Cîrlănescu is suggesting that “teachers themselves can also be regarded as a meaningful resource in the process of learning. Any teacher can act, as a unique relay for communication, thinking, values, and attitudes within the learning group he or she takes under his or her guidance.” This topic is presented in the second part of the “Additional learning sources” this time concentrating on a teacher’s figure and personality, with some help coming from another foreign English teacher, John Marshall. If you have never felt like “a resource” before maybe it is high time you changed your perception.

Help in changing perception can also come from reading what actually using the English language means to diff erent people, in diff erent contexts or places around the world. Nicolas Hurst starts his article “Leaving the NEST: language teachers going glocal” with the powerful quotation from David Crystal: “Without a strong power-base, whether political, military or economic, no language can make progress as an international medium of communication”. Nicolas advises us that as teachers or promoters of the English language it is especially important that we examine where we stand in relation to the phenomenon of English being the world language. Grasping all that knowledge and implementing it into the classroom in order to be a successful language teacher is no mean feat and requires managerial skills. Do you want to know how to be a manager in the classroom? Follow these hints in “Teaching English–a project management” by Luiza Wójtowicz-Waga.

In trying to master all these abilities we should remember the RAF motto which should encourage us all, so THROUGH WORK TO THE STARS!

Elżbieta Kwiatkowska
Editor-in-chief

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