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 "All
the techniques demonstrated in the course are things I can use
immediately in my classroom. It is rare to find a teacher training
course so full of wonderful ideas."
"This experience has been phenomenal! It will
completely transform my teaching, my attitudes toward the students,
and the learning process."
The Rassias Method training attempts
to channel your energy, enthusiasm, and activities so that they
will be more productive to you and your students in the classroom
and for communication skills in general. Through the techniques
we present, you should be better able to create the “illusion
of spontaneity” for every class with which you interact. We believe
that the most effective and dramatic kind of spontaneity in the
classroom is rehearsed.
Learning to communicate more effectively in face-to-face encounters,
an important part of which is language learning, should not be
tedious. It should be stimulating, entertaining, and to put it
quite simply, fun. There must be mutual respect and cooperation
between teachers and students in the learning encounter. We believe
that the more we can offer through effective materials and teaching
methodologies, the more the students will be stimulated to acquire
other languages. The Rassias Method’s holistic approach views
language and culture as one, whole, and indissoluble.
 Since
1975, we have held workshops for teachers and administrators from
all over the United States and throughout the world. Participants
use the various techniques over the course of three days in “hands-on”
small group sessions. The workshops also provide a forum to discuss
how to integrate these techniques into various curricula.
We do not presume to tell any individual how to do their job.
We truly believe that by your dedication, shared commitment, and
long experience in the classroom, that you are indeed a Master
Teacher. Our aim, rather, is to outline an effective approach
that will stimulate and energize your classes.
There is no typical workshop participant.
We welcome people interested in education from all over the country
and the world. The Method that we present is applicable in public,
private, and charter schools as well as in universities. Teachers
can apply the Method with any level of students from introductory
to advanced. Age group is equally inclusive. The method has been
applied to pre-kindergarten classrooms and community classes for
senior citizens alike. We discuss how to adjust the method for
various class sizes as well. A diverse mixture of teaching backgrounds
allows for interesting workshop discussions.
You should expect an intense,
power-packed weekend, full of techniques, discussions, practice
sections, and group participation. Participants will have the
opportunity to present, animate, and dramatize sample dialogue
and drill material. There will be ample opportunity for individual
practice, self-critiques, and peer critiques of individual performances.
It is fair to say that the protocol for the Rassias Method training
has been well established through the collective experiences of
thousands of teachers over the past twenty-five years. However,
there is always opportunity for individual variation in both content
and style among workshop leaders.
The basic schedule is as follows:
Friday 9:30am – 9:00pm
Saturday 9:30am - 6:00pm Group Dinner
Sunday 9:30am - 12:30pm
Daily schedule subject to change and include a lunch break.
John A. Rassias, department chair
and William R. Kenan Professor of French and Italian, developed
a dynamic method for teaching language while training Peace Corps
volunteers in the early sixties and adapted it to Dartmouth undergraduate
instruction in 1967.
Professor Rassias served in 1978-79 on President Carter’s Commission
on Foreign Language Study to develop national policy guidelines
for reviving foreign language study. He is President of the Rassias
Foundation at Dartmouth College, where he supports efforts in
Hanover and beyond to revitalize foreign language teaching while
using the resources of the vast network that he has developed.
The aim of the method is to provide a non-competitive atmosphere
where the second or third language student is highly motivated
and feels comfortable with the language in as short a time as
possible. This goal is achieved through a series of specific teaching
procedures, techniques, and tools that:
- Create and maintain a dynamic classroom
pace and atmosphere, thus capturing and holding student attention.
- Foster spontaneity and creative
expression, eliciting an extremely high rate of student response
from the earliest to the advanced stages of language training.
- Eliminate the learner's natural
self-consciousness and fear of mistakes.
- Emphasize the relevance of the language
to the student's own life experience.
- Engage the student on an emotional
level.
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