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category archive listing Category Archives: teaching

In case you were wondering where I’ll be…

September 23, 2009 – 2:11 am

As usual, I’ll be schmoozing and spitting the occasional presentation or project pitch at JALT2009 in Shizuoka on November 21-23, 2009.In the meantime, can find me milling about and distracting people here in my stomping ground of Nara at the annual CUE conference, which will be hosted at Tezukayama Gakuen University, which was the site […]

By Steven Nishida | Also posted in community, friendship, career, efl, japan, language, project, education, learning | Comments (0)

In case you were wondering where I’ve been…

August 4, 2009 – 1:19 pm

Here’s a graphic representation of what I’m up to these days-Still soooo much work to do!

By Steven Nishida | Also posted in perspective, relationship, career, happiness, autonomous learning, life-coach, psychology, friendship, image, learning, philosophy, community, personal | Comments (5)

This is fantastic: Margaret Wertheim on the beautiful math of coral | Video on TED.com

April 21, 2009 – 12:19 am

A project everyone should know about.
I have always been into the beauty in simple mathematic representation, and in looking to nature for our answers.
TED Talks Margaret Wertheim leads a project to re-create the creatures of the coral reefs using a crochet technique invented by a mathematician — celebrating the amazements of the reef, and deep-diving […]

By Steven Nishida | Also posted in education, community, human nature, nature, project, art, learning, video, science | Comments (0)

PAC7 at JALT2008: An (huge) international, inter-association collaborative conference

September 27, 2008 – 2:14 am

When I am not working one of my 4 jobs or taking care of my wife and son, I can usually be found hammering away at my computer, preparing for the above conference. We really, really (no, really) want people to join the fun and make all this hard work worth our blood, sweat and […]

By Steven Nishida | Also posted in community, efl, autonomous learning, japan, language, web2.0, education, learning | Comments (0)

A silly conversation…

August 20, 2008 – 4:11 am

with one of my favorite students: (We were both dead serious.)
Him: It’s really hot today.
Me: I know. Isn’t it gross? What do you do to stay cool.
Him: I put wind chimes by the window. That makes Japanese people feel cool.
Me: Only Japanese people, huh?
Him: Yeah. I mean, I don’t know if it makes non-Japanese […]

By Steven Nishida | Also posted in friendship, comedy, japan, humor, health | Comments (2)

Japanese Gairaigo.

July 1, 2008 – 1:04 pm

First things first. Several months ago, I was asked (by one of RoaS’s regular readers and a long time friend) to give my thoughts on the issue of garaigo, or loanwords, in Japanese and whether their rapid influx into the language is indeed undermining communication and causing mass concern.
My answer is: yes and no, but […]

By Steven Nishida | Also posted in perspective, human nature, debate, efl, autonomous learning, community, language, writing, education, philosophy, learning | Comments (0)

David Graddol discusses English in the new world order

June 11, 2008 – 1:19 am

You REALLY should listen to this. I might not be in the wrong line of work after all!
Just click the photo and press the play icon [on the British Council podcast site].

I have to say I am pretty stoked that David Graddol will be one of the PAC7 at JALT2008 plenary speakers this November in […]

By Steven Nishida | Also posted in debate, perspective, career, efl, autonomous learning, economy, community, education, history, language, japan, learning | Comments (2)

Widgets: A great new EFL textbook

February 2, 2008 – 4:24 pm

Starting in April, I’ll be team-teaching a couple of classes at a local women’s college, and my colleagues and I have decided to go with a new textbook for EFL (English as a Foreign Language) that was co-authored by a friend of mine, Marcos Benevides. I was fortunate enough to have been a sounding board […]

By Steven Nishida | Also posted in efl, life-coach, autonomous learning, community, japan, education, language, learning | Comments (2)

On Hope and Anger

January 29, 2008 – 6:41 am

This is something I wrote when I was in college, deeply immersed in what I thought was heavy and profound thought:
Hope and Anger
The great thing about losing hope is that you also lose anger….
To be angry, you have to believe that things could better.
What a gloomy, cynical, self-absorbed twat I used to be!
Don’t worry. […]

By Steven Nishida | Also posted in perspective, happiness, self-help, life-coach, human nature, friendship, writing, community, learning | Comments (3)

Bill Strickland at TED: Rebuilding America, one slideshow at a time.

January 24, 2008 – 3:05 am

You have to watch this. Touching, heartfelt, educational, hopeful.Following Bill’s humbling slideshow–accompanied by long-time friend Herbie Hancock–I have a challenge for you.

The challenge:

Find a new home for your doubt.
Realize that the surest road to happiness is to imagine the world you want to live in and create it around you.
Surround yourself with support and inspiration.
Get […]

By Steven Nishida | Also posted in career, perspective, happiness, life-coach, autonomous learning, human nature, community, learning, education, philosophy, art | Comments (7)