WORLD LIT
Podcast
Have you ever found yourself doubting your ability to teach stories that belong to unfamiliar cultures? What if the students ask questions you can’t answer? Worried you don’t know enough? (we’ve all been there.) Want to grow your literary knowledge and improve your student’s outcomes? Look no further!
The World Lit podcast is an essential part of We Teach Well’s commitment to providing teachers everywhere with the knowledge and tools they need to reduce educational inequality.
We know that teachers work better when they are confident in their subject knowledge. Our mission is to use new technologies to provide teachers with sound professional development and support no matter where they live in the world. We know that there are still students being left behind due to the digital divide and we will do all we can to close the gap.
Season 1 – Decolonising literature.
It has long been understood that English language teaching acted as an hegemonic tool. When teaching internationally, Carolyn became aware of just how ingrained this still is in many places. Courses in English literature are on the curricula of schools and universities globally, yet much of the literature included is not English. It is the literature of societies and cultures with conventions that are dramatically different from English ones.
Carolyn Newall
Host
Judy Hefferan
Host
The World Lit podcast is an essential part of We Teach Well’s commitment to break the cycle of colonisation and cultural imperialism. It invites writers and educators from around the world to share how to effectively and inclusively teach their stories. Our hope is that this will remove the barriers that prevent many educators from teaching content they are unfamiliar with. In the current global context it is more important than ever that our students learn that for all the ways that we are different, there are more in which we are the same. That they are shown there are universal truths that we share, which will highlight the dangers of neo-nationalism and fear of the other.
More Episodes
Season 1, Episode 1 | 38 min
We Teach Well co-founders Carolyn and Judy introduce the World Lit podcast and their reasons for creating it.
Season 1, Episode 2 Gwee Sui Li - Singapore 45 mins
Gwee Sui Li, a poet and educator from Singapore joins us to talk about Singapore literature.
Season 1, Episode 3 Angela Tutty - New Zealand Part 1 | 43 mins
Angela Tutty, a New Zealand teacher joins us to talk about New Zealand literature.
Season 1, Episode 3 Angela Tutty - New Zealand Part 2 | 41 mins
We are with Angela Tutty again, learning more about New Zealand literature.
Season 1, Episode 4 John Ryan - Ireland | 42 mins
Irish teacher, John Ryan joins us to explore the history that has informed Irish culture, while introducing some new names to add to our lists.
Season 1, Episode 5 Milton Villarroel - Bolivia | 47 mins
A fascinating look at Latin American and Bolivian culture and history with Bolivian Educator Milton Villarroel. This one has given me a few more books to read and a couple of people to chase down. Milton has already done work on cultural signifiers, what Edward T Hall calls The Secret Language.
Season 1, Episode 6 Jeffrey Weingarten - Canada | 49 mins
We are joined by Professor Jeffrey Weingarten from Canada who takes us for an entertaining walk through Canada's literary history. We also hear about Canada's colonial past. And their is an interesting side discussion about how we manage 'difficult' in the 21st C