TESOLers for Social Responsibility Caucus Statement of Purpose
TESOLers for Social Responsibility comprises TESOL members who are actively engaged in integrating language teaching with social responsibility, world citizenship, and an awareness of global issues such as peace, human rights, and the environment. The caucus aims to promote social responsibility within the TESOL profession and to advance social equity, respect for differences, and multicultural understanding through education.
Thematic Scope
- Global Issues: war, peace, human rights, environment, development, hunger, AIDS...
- Social Issues: prejudice, sexism, heterosexism, racism, violence, poverty, social inequality...
- Ideals: social responsibility, global awareness, international understanding, world citizenship, tolerance, social justice, respect for diversity...
- Skills: critical thinking, creative conflict resolution, cross-cultural communication...
- Educational Fields: global education, peace education, human rights education, environmental education, AIDS education, development education
- Teaching Approaches: content-based language teaching, cooperative learning, critical pedagogy, service learning...
Caucus Activities
- issue a twice-yearly TSR newsletter full of relevant news, articles, ideas, and resources
- prepare conference sessions for the annual convention (PCIs, breakfast seminars, colloquia)
- maintain a TSR e-mail list and a Web page
Goals
TSR goals involve teaching, research, networking, advocacy, and professional development.
Classroom Teaching
- develop instructional strategies that promote tolerance, global awareness, international understanding, and social responsibility among learners
- research language teaching content, methods, and approaches that can help students become active global citizens in their local cultures
- help teachers and learners around the world to better understand the causes and solutions for global issues that affect the human family
- work to overcome national stereotypes and negative images held by ESOL professionals and learners that hinder peace, cooperation, and trust
Professional Development
- disseminate ideas in the form of publications, research, and ready-to-use classroom materials
- arrange teacher training courses and workshops that introduce TESOL professionals to such fields as global education, peace education, environmental education, and AIDS education
- provide teaching resources to help teachers teach about global issues and social responsibility
- work to promote advocacy of social responsibility within the profession and professional standards
- work to further the profession by making language teaching more relevant to world realities
Networking
- provide a forum for TESOL professionals to share experiences so as to more effectively promote global awareness and social responsibility through content-based approaches to English language teaching
- link TESOL members and affiliate groups world-wide working in areas linked to global issues, peace education, and social responsibility
- establish links with similar associations in other professions (e.g., Educators for Social Responsibility...) to explore ways of working together to achieve mutual goals
- establish links with relevant national and international organizations (e.g., United Nations, UNESCO, UNICEF, Amnesty International...)
History
- first peace education colloquium (TESOL 1989)
- TESOL designated United Nations NGO (1990)
- TESOL Day at the United Nations (TESOL 1991)
- Global/Environment/Peace Education Committee (1992)
- TESOL Day at the Carter Center (TESOL 1993)
- TESOL Day in the Rainforest (TESOL 1994)
- Summer Institute on Peace Education (1995)
- TSR Steering Committee established (TESOL 1998)
- TSR approved as TESOL's sixth caucus (1999)
- TSR debut at TESOL Vancouver convention (2000)
Contact the current TSR chair by e-mailing tsr@tesol.org.
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