1. MEET BETA BULGARIAN ENGLISH TEACHERS’ АSSOCIATION

2. BETA facts and figures ► established 1991 in Sofia ► 17 years of good practice ► 16 national conferences, the 17th underway ► 2001 IATEFL-EAST Regional Conference ► over 100 active members

3. BETA members are ► English teachers from all educational sectors in Bulgaria ► teacher trainers ► student teachers of English

4. BETA works with ► teacher training institutions ► the Ministry of Education and Science ► British Council, Bulgaria ► major Bulgarian and international publishers ► other interested NGOs and individuals

5. Our mission BETA seeks to build a network of ELT professionals on a national, regional (South- East Europe) and international level and establish the association as a recognized mediator between educators and state bodies, public and other organizations.

6. Objectives ► to meet our members’ needs for professional development ► to provide information about : current ELT-related events in BG and the region current ELT-related events in BG and the region recent development in ELT worldwide recent development in ELT worldwide learning and teaching opportunities learning and teaching opportunities ► to defend Bulgarian English teachers’ professional interests ► to promote Common European language teaching and testing standards

7. BETA activities ► annual conferences ► regional seminars and workshops ► information dissemination ► networking with other teachers’ associations and NGOs in Bulgaria and abroad ► exchange of representatives with teachers’ associations from the region

8. By joining BETA YOU By joining BETA YOU ► become part of the growing English teachers’ community in Bulgaria ► gain access to information about ELT events in Bulgaria, the SEE region and all over the world ► exchange ideas and share experiences ► receive financial and other support for participation in national and international ELT events ► can join IATEFL at a special discount price ► have fun while developing professionally ► make a difference as a teacher of English in Bulgaria

9. Join BETA in five steps! Step 1Visit our website www.beta-iatefl.org. www.beta-iatefl.org Step 2Download the membership application form. Step 3Fill it in. Step 4Send it to beta.iateflbg@gmail.com or p.o. box 1047, Sofia 1000 together with the receipt indicating the bank transfer of 30 BGN to the account of BETA. beta.iateflbg@gmail.com Step 5Get a welcome letter and your membership card.

10. Successful initiatives ► Pre-conference events (3 so far) ► A new web-site (launched Dec 2007) ► Regional TT seminars (4 so far) ► Competitions ► Exchange of representatives with TA from the region ► Best conference presenter Award

11. Some of our problems ► Sponsorship and funding ► Increasing and maintaining numbers ► Fighting inertia ► Finding volunteers (incl. to take over from old committee members) ► Keeping the SIGs alive ► The Newsletter

12. With BETA Life’s Better !