Date: 27 May 2025 (Tue)
Time: 2:30 pm - 4:30 pm
Session One (2:30pm - 3:30pm): Landing Your First Teaching Job: Applications and Interviews
Session Two (3:30pm - 4:30pm): Teaching English Idioms in ESL/EFL Contexts through a Cognitive-Linguistic Lens
Format: Online via Zoom
Session One: Landing Your First Teaching Job: Applications and Interviews
Speaker: Mr Tony K.H. Lai
Senior Lecturer, Department of Education and Psychology, Hong Kong Baptist University
Bio
Mr. Tony K.H. Lai is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Education and Psychology at Hong Kong Baptist University. With over thirteen years of experience teaching English in local primary and secondary schools, he joined the University in 2002. Currently, he teaches undergraduate and postgraduate courses in English Language Teaching, phonetics & phonology, and morphology & semantics. In addition to his teaching responsibilities, Mr. Lai actively contributes to the education community through his involvement in various Education Bureau (EDB) projects and Continuing Professional Development (CPD) activities for local teachers.
Abstract:This talk is designed to help pre-service teachers create strong application materials and perform well in job interviews. The session will cover three key areas: writing a standout resume, crafting a convincing cover letter, and expressing a clear teaching aspiration. Participants will learn how to effectively showcase their skills, experiences, and achievements to make their applications stand out to employers. The talk will also offer practical tips for organizing a professional resume, customizing cover letters for specific jobs, and showing a passion for teaching in their personal statements.
In addition, the session will focus on interview skills specifically for teaching roles. Attendees will gain useful advice on answering common interview questions, presenting themselves with confidence, and demonstrating they are ready to meet the expectations of new teachers. By the end of the talk, participants will better understand what school principals or English panel chairpersons are looking for and how to tailor their applications and interview answers to match those expectations. This talk aims to give prospective teachers the confidence and skills they need to land their desired teaching positions.
Session Two: Teaching English Idioms in ESL/EFL Contexts through a Cognitive-Linguistic Lens
Speaker: Dr Danny Leung
Associate Professor and Head of Applied Language Studies, Hong Kong Metropolitan University
Bio
Danny Leung is Associate Professor and Head of Applied Language Studies at Hong Kong Metropolitan University. He obtained his PhD in Applied English Linguistics from the Chinese University of Hong Kong and since then his research interests lie in applied cognitive linguistics, metaphor and metonymy theories, second language acquisition and cross-linguistic analysis of idioms. Apart from teaching a wide range of courses in English language studies and applied English linguistics, Dr Leung has been active in the English language teaching circle in Hong Kong. He was the English language consultant of English Made Easy 2017 produced by RTHK. He has been invited by the CSTDI and OLD of the Hong Kong Government, MTR and local secondary schools to deliver English learning seminars and workshops. Dr Leung’s English pronunciation teaching segments on TVB Pearl's 'Knowledge for All' programme have garnered popularity and acclaim. The view rates of these episodes on YouTube have exceeded 300k.
Abstract:
This seminar will focus on the pedagogical aspect of English idioms using a cognitive-linguistic, cross-linguistic approach within ESL/EFL contexts. Idioms are ubiquitous in language. Serving as pivotal elements of language proficiency, idioms encapsulate cultural nuances and demand a deeper understanding beyond literal interpretations. This complexity may explain why the teaching and learning of English idioms often face challenges in ESL/EFL environments.
Through the cognitive-linguistic lens, idioms are not merely linguistic entities but reflections of our conceptual systems. This seminar will first delve into English idioms by exploring their syntactic and semantic characteristics with a specific emphasis on institutionalization, lexico-grammatical fixedness, and non-compositionality. The core of the seminar will illustrate conceptual similarities and differences between English (L2) and Chinese (L1) idioms by unraveling the underlying conceptual mechanisms that motivate the figurative meanings of idioms—conceptual metaphor, conceptual metonymy, and conventional knowledge.
The primary goal of the seminar is to equip participants with innovative strategies for teaching idiomatic expressions effectively. Participants will have the opportunity to navigate the intricate world of idioms through a cognitive-linguistic perspective, where language, culture, and cognition converge to enhance ESL/EFL teaching practices.
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