The British Council has invited English language teachers in the Arabic speaking world to apply for its international English language teaching (ELT) awards.

This international British Council ELTons 2011 award recognises excellence in ELT from around the world. Now in its ninth year, the awards ceremony is run by the British Council and sponsored by Cambridge ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages).

ELT professionals in the Arabic speaking world can apply in two of its three categories: The Cambridge ESOL international award for innovation and The Macmillan Education award for innovative writing. There is also a UK award for innovation.

The Macmillan Education Award for innovative writing, now in its second year, is sponsored by Macmillan Education and gives previously unpublished writers the opportunity to win a GBP1,000 ($1,560) prize and have their work published.

Through this award the British Council aims to discover and encourage up and coming ELT authors to take the next step in their writing careers.

The Cambridge ESOL International award for innovation and the UK award for innovation are now well established and thriving and reward published ELT products and services developed around the world or in the UK, a statement said.

This year sees the introduction of the British Council lifetime achievement award, to be awarded to an ELT professional who has made a substantial contribution to the ELT profession throughout their career.

“The ELTons have grown to become an essential fixture in the ELT calendar,” said Michael Carrier, head English language innovation at the British Council.

“They are a wonderful opportunity to showcase innovative ELT products and creative ELT authors from around the world, and we are very proud to be able to bring the ELT community together to celebrate innovation in our profession.”

Any ELT professional can apply for consideration for one of the categories including authors, teachers, trainers and publishers, according to the statement. – TradeArabia News Service