Natacha Pardo Contreras

Biodata

Natacha Pardo Contreras (MSc TESOL, University of Bristol, UK) has been teaching in a technical high school since 2004. She also coordinates an English Teacher Network in Santiago and has been advising eleven schools in the metropolitan region in the area of English Language Teaching/Learning. She was a speaker at the 13th International Conference of IATEFL Chile in 2014.

Curricular innovation in some technical high school 11th grade EFL classes in Chile

In 2013 I conducted an exploratory research study to discover the views of some key stakeholders in technical high schools in Chile regarding the introduction of English for Specific Purposes (ESP) into the EFL curriculum. Reactions were positive – indeed, most teachers consulted had already implemented ESP materials based on their intuitions and considering their students’ post-school needs.
On this basis, in my action research study I designed and implemented ESP materials in two subject areas in technical high schools, analysing the perceptions of EFL teachers and students regarding the relevance and interest of the materials designed.