Page 12 - ELG2205 May Issue 480

TEACHER TRAINING NEWS .

In memoriam of a great teacher

Teacher training colleague and close family friend Katy Salisbury remembers
Alun Rees in 1980 for his article ‘The original sketches, songs, puppets,

PHOTO TAKEN 2020 teacher observed, but how?’ This magic tricks and prizes.
explained a simple but generative
On completing his doctorate,
he went on to teach at WSIHE
idea for giving feedback, using
only a strip of tracing paper
in Bognor Regis and then at
and a shared handbook. It gave
working on Masters’ programmes.
teachers access to a constructive, the University of Exeter, mainly
personalised response in a setting Colleagues there speak of how
where resources of time and much students looked forward
material were in short supply. This to his sessions and how he was
approach is emblematic of Alun’s always available for discussion
ingenuity and also his painstaking and ready to help them in
attention to detail: finding any way.
practical solutions to apparently He ended his career at the
intractable problems. University of Gloucestershire
In 1983, he returned to the as a highly successful Head of
UK to work on his PhD with the International Office, which took
Institute of Education, London. him frequently to China, where
His zany humour and constant he made many close friends.
self-deprecation belied his deep Alun enjoyed 20 years of
scholarship: his doctoral thesis happy retirement in Cheltenham
is widely respected and still with his wife, Ekuko, practissing
frequently cited. organic gardening and
Alun was always ready to applying his Heath-Robinson
interrogate himself as well as inventiveness to the non-
others, and it is notable that chemical deterrence of pests, from
squirrels to slugs. He maintained
a generous correspondence with
He transformed scores of former colleagues and
good courses students, sending long, witty
letters remembering in amazing
into brilliantly detail their lives and families, and
Alun Rees (1938-2021) sharing his wisdom about EFL,
memorable fishing, horticulture and the world
in general.
lun Rees, the inspirational days of TEFL and the fact there ones, delivering Alun loved learning and
EL teacher and teacher were only a handful of specialist teaching and he had a profound
educator, died aged 83 textbooks and teaching materials serious content commitment to the EFL profession.
A on 12 December 2021, available, which meant that with humour, He was very knowledgeable about
unexpectedly but peacefully at teachers were very much thrown the technical and scientific
home. An online homage to Alun back on their own resources. imagination norms of applied linguistics, but
was held in February, attended by Alun began developing a huge he recognised that in teacher
ex-colleagues and students from portfolio of tasks and over the and flair education, without proven
all over the world, who spoke of following 20 or so years shared pathways, it is most important to
the enormous impact his work these in the many articles he having spent much of his career help practitioners use analysis and
had on their lives and careers. His had published. Trawling through researching and promoting creativity to tap the potential in
subversive and hilariously original issues of ELTJ from that time, classroom observation, in later any situation, bringing out the best
training sessions are remembered you can see numerous pieces by years he questioned the value of in themselves and their students.
with great fondness and respect. ALW Rees on an intriguing range this and focused more on ways He’ll long be remembered.
Born in Pembrokeshire in 1938, of subjects. They still merit re- teachers can develop themselves
Alun was a proud Welshman, but reading: elegantly written, full professionally independent of
being brought up ‘south of the of wry insights and original but ‘expert guidance’. Katy Salisbury
landsker’ , he never learnt to speak workable ideas. During the 70s and 80s Alun worked as
Welsh. He attended University After four years at the was also in much demand to an English
College Cardiff, graduating in the University of Trujillo in Peru and teach on short residential training langage teacher
early 60s with a degree in English three at the National University programmes, particularly in Spain. and trainer in
and Philosophy, and then headed of Laos, in 1977 Alun moved to He transformed good courses 15 countries
for Spain, the first of 16 countries Senegal, where he was employed into brilliantly memorable ones, over 38
he taught in. He worked for three as ELT adviser to the Ministry of delivering serious content with years, specialising in language
years in Burgos, soon taking over Education, supporting in-service humour, imagination and flair. He assessment. She now works as a
as Head of the Berlitz School. He teachers. He won the prestigious loved organising and compèring freelance test-item writer.
would often talk of these early English Speaking Union prize evening events: shows full of
12 May 2022