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Showing posts with label technology. Show all posts
Showing posts with label technology. Show all posts

Thursday, September 15, 2016

Growing Up as a Teacher in the 'Web 2.0' Era

Growing Up as a Teacher in the 'Web 2.0' Era:
Teacher Stephanie Pinkin says the evolution of web-based technologies has changed teaching more than educators often realize.
I must say that I am proud of myself for trying out new technology as it becomes available. This pride is yet another encouraging factor that keeps me loving my job and looking forward to how it continues to change under Web 2.0.
Please understand this raving about online tools doesn’t mean I never get overwhelmed by them. When I attend a tech-heavy professional development session, I still leave with my head in a cloud and experience the same amount of panic all of us feel when something new is put on our plates. What I have learned about the benefits of embracing these tools is that I just need to always be on the hunt for technology that will make me a more effective and more efficient teacher. “Doing technology” just for a check-mark on my summative evaluation is not going to achieve anything substantial.

Thursday, April 21, 2016

Inspiring Curiosity Through Intercultural Learning

Inspiring Curiosity Through Intercultural Learning

This year, AFS-USA will be participating in Global Leadership Week, a conference that brings together administrators, teachers, nonprofit leaders, and students to inspire advocacy in global education. This weeklong conference (April 25-29th) is free to the public with the primary objective of connecting leaders in global education to encourage dialogue and promote resources to foster global competency.


AFS-USA will be hosting a virtual event that will demo an eLearning tool to foster global competency through Intercultural Learning. By exploring different topics, Culture Trek: Classroom Connections, will challenge students to think critically about pressing world issues and the important role of youth in promoting peace. Participants will be provided curriculum resources, lesson plans, and links to relevant online platforms in order to successfully embed global learning into classroom studies throughout the school year.

The session, Inspiring Curiosity Through Intercultural Learning, will be hosted onThursday, April 28th at 2:00 PM EST. To register for this webinar, click here.

To learn more about the events that will be taking place during GLW, please visit the GLW Event Directory. We encourage you to join an event and participate in the discussion using the hashtag #globaled16. 

We hope you can join us during Global Leadership Week 2016!

Saturday, April 16, 2016

Meet the IATEFL Online Team

Addressing quality assurance and professional development for online teachers

Addressing quality assurance and professional development for online teachers

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Click on the link to watch a session, please.
A good teacher is a learning teacher
 In order to make meaningful improvements in our work, one must be reflective, learn from others, take risks and measure success in our teaching.
Compare the number of websites, journals, etc. where teachers can find research, new ideas for:
face to face teachers
Through creating a consistent and transparent teachers’ learning and performance management process, we aim to support quality in the classroom by focusing on:
Providing tools for e-moderators’ professional development
Enhancing & maintaining teaching quality online
Managing and recognising performance
Enhancing career support for e-moderators
online teachers / E-moderators.       
Through creating a consistent and transparent teachers’ learning and performance management process, we aim to support quality in the classroom by focusing on:  Providing tools for e-moderators’ professional development  
      •Enhancing & maintaining teaching quality online  Managing and recognising performance  
      •Enhancing career support for e-moderators


5 Professional practices
Managing the course
Understanding how teachers learn
Assessing learning
Understanding the teaching  context
Focussing on  Professional Development

For a copy of the Professional practices for moderators and further information contact Kirsteen.Donaghy@britishcouncil.org


TeachingEnglish CPD framework, publications and resources http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/teacher-development
Borg, S. (2015). Teaching for Success Contemporary perspectives on continuing professional development A report written for the British Council.
Walter, C. & Briggs, J.G. (2012). What professional development makes the most difference to teachers? A report commissioned by Oxford University Press.
International association for K12 online learning blended learning teacher competency framework http://www.inacol.org/resource/inacol-blended-learning-teacher-competency-framework

Friday, April 8, 2016

Localization: Taking eLearning Above And Beyond!

Localization: Taking eLearning Above And Beyond!:
Want to know if Localization can revolutionize eLearning? Check why Localization is the next big eLearning revolution and take eLearning above and beyond.
Education is coming out of the walled classrooms and crossing all physical barriers to empower hard to reach learners in the form of eLearning. But for the exponents of eLearning, it is important to understand that in order for this model to succeed, we cannot have a “one-size-fits-all” concept. The internet has melted the geographic barrier, but has it melted the language barrier too? English is still the most preferred medium of instruction for eLearning course developers, but in order to improve its efficacy, an eLearning course must be localized to suit the needs of the remote learner. While translating to native languages is one aspect, the power of localization can also be broadened to include the concept of on-demand learning. This article attempts to explore how localization can be the next big revolution in eLearning.
In its traditional definition, localization means to adapt a particular product to suit the linguistic and cultural sensibilities of a particular audience. When it comes to creating eLearning courses, developers are still using English to reach to a global audience. This is evident in the result of a Google search of “Top eLearning courses” (the results point to all English learning courses). But English is only the third spoken language in the world. Localizing a course to Mandarin, Spanish, or Hindi will give any eLearning course a mind-boggling number of audiences. 
http://elearningindustry.com/localization-taking-elearning-beyond 

Monday, April 4, 2016

Future Ready Leaders Trailer



Personalized Professional Learning for Future Ready Leaders 

Blended Teaching vs Flipped Teaching


Blended Learning vs Flipped Learning

By Halina Ostańkowicz- Bazan
According to Horn and Staker, blended learning is:
Any time a student learns, at least in part, at a supervised brick-and-mortar location away from home and, at least in part, through online delivery with some element of student control over time, place, path, and/or pace. The modalities along each student’s learning path within a course or subject are connected to provide an integrated learning experience.
The most significant piece of the definition is the “element of student control” highlighting the flowing instructional models to enable improved student-centered learning, giving students greater than before control over the time, place, path, and/or the step of their learning tracks.
Blended learning offers a balanced approach, focused on redesigning instructional models first, then applying technology, not as the driver, but as the supporter, for high-quality learning experiences that allow a teacher to personalize and make the most of the learning.
The technology helps to supply instructors with data, expand student choices for educational resources and learning materials, and deliver opportunities for students to practice and to exhibit the high-character performance.
Broadly speaking, I am for blended learning, which means taking advantage of both traditional f2f techniques and possibilities presented by new technologies.
Flipped Classrooms generally provides pre-recorded material (video or audio) followed by classroom activities. Learners watch the video before or after the class, this happens outside F2F meetings. Thank’s to that classroom time can be used for interaction, such as Q@A sessions, discussions, exercises other learning activities.
This is the perfect way to “invert” doings in the class with activities outside the teaching space.
Flipping is not just about video and technology.
Moreover, technology does not replace good teaching. It enhances good teaching.
Flipping helps us to get the best use of class time. It is a methodology that permits the instructor to involve students intensely in the collaborative community and produce a shared problem-solving workshop.

Sometimes, instead of giving lectures, I call for scholars to watch chosen PPT, videos or podcasts at home, so when we gather in the course of work, we are able to concentrate on the debate, as well as interpretation of the problem.
In my point of view, there are some significant ways to involve students during a lecture such as short demonstrations, surveyed by group debate as well as PPT lecture, followed by expounding, discussing and particularizing the material.
I am convinced that dialogue is necessary for my Polish History and Culture lectures. I take advantage of novel methods to build up active learning skills and to encourage students toward further learning, or else to mature students' thinking skills. For most of my learners, the techniques I use are fresh. They come to study in Poland from all the Globe and the majority of them are not used to blended learning as well as flipped classes.
Flipping provides students opportunities such as; interactive questioning, mind exploration, answer “why this is important for me to recognize this?” and student-created content.
Wolff, Lutz-Christian, and Jenny Chan. "Defining Flipped Classrooms. “Flipped Classrooms for Legal Education. Springer Singapore, 2016. 9-13.
http://www.christenseninstitute.org/blended-learning/




Monday, March 28, 2016

Technology in Education

http://www.edweek.org/ew/issues/technology-in-education/index.html

Technology is everywhere in education: Public schools in the United States now provide at least one computer for every five students. They spend more than $3 billion per year on digital content. Led by the federal government, the country is in the midst of a massive effort to make affordable high-speed Internet and free online teaching resources available to even the most rural and remote schools. And in 2015-16, for the first time, more state standardized tests for the elementary and middle grades will be administered via technology than by paper and pencil.

Sunday, March 13, 2016

Video 4



I have been teaching languages for over 40 years.
I taught Polish as a foreign language in traditional settings at the Wroclaw University of Technology for about 41 years. I have been teaching English to speakers of other languages for over 25 years.
In 2000, I became an American Citizen.
In 2010, I started my online adventure mainly on WizIQ. Since that time I have been using technology in my classes.
I have been training in both face-to-face and blended learning arrangements.
Overview
Are you unsatisfied with your level of Spoken  English?
Do you want to become a forward-thinking speaker and reach to a great extent fluency?
Is joining English meetings very challenging? Is it difficult to participate and communicate efficiently?
If so, my course is for you!

Target Students
·       Are you nervous about communicating in English with foreign colleagues?
·       Do you have a good command of English, but feel like your flexibility may be lacking?
·       Would you like to learn how to sound more natural when making small talk and discussing problems?

·       Do you feel the need to improve your conversational skills?

Friday, March 11, 2016

Halina's Coversational English Online Course



Welcome to Halina’s Conversational English online course
A bit about me.
I have been teaching languages for over 40 years.
I taught Polish as a foreign language in traditional settings at the Wroclaw University of Technology for about 41 years. I have been teaching English to speakers of other languages for over 25 years.
In 2000, I became an American Citizen.
In 2010, I started my online adventure mainly on WizIQ. Since that time I have been using technology in my classes.

I have been training in both face-to-face and blended learning arrangements. 

Monday, March 7, 2016

Technology and the teacher’s personality



Teacher extraordinaire Mr Keating appears as the epitome of the charismatic teacher – one that his students are sure to remember long after their school years are over. Way over the top as this might be (though I am sure that, whatever we may say, many of us would love to feel we are a little bit like Mr Keating) it is only natural to ask ourselves: does the personality of the teacher matter in this Brave New World of technology and on-line courses?
As teachers we are in the business of influencing people. How can we do that? It helps if we imagine each individual as a big elephant with a rider sitting on top of it (a metaphor first used by J. Haidt 2006). The elephant is our emotional side; it is big, strong, somewhat impulsive and not as predictable as we would like it to be. The rider is our rational side; it can guide the elephant and the latter usually allows itself to be directed by the former (but if there is a disagreement, we all know who we should bet on! J )
So how can we influence people? There are 3 ways: a) We can motivate the elephant; this is what charismatic teachers do – they inspire their students, and this clearly works best in a f2f context. b) We can direct the rider – appealing to the logical part of our students and telling them what to do. This can work equally well in a f2f and an online context. c) We can shape the path down which the elephant and the rider will walk (an idea first proposed by Heath & Heath 2011 – click here to watch a 2-min clip). By careful use of choice architecture (see Thaler & Sunstein 2008), we can ‘nudge’ the duo in the direction we would like them to go. * An on-line environment is ideal for such an approach. However….
References:
  • Bloom, P. (2008) Introduction to Psychology. Yale Courses, You Tube
  • Haidt, J. (2006) The Happiness Hypothesis. London: Arrow Books
  • Heath, C. & Heath, D. (2011) Switch. London: Random House
  • Lieberman, M. (2013) Social. Oxford: Oxford University Press
  • Thaler, R. & Sunstein, C. (2008) Nudge. Michigan: Yale University Press

Monday, January 18, 2016

What challenges are involved in learning online?



What challenges are involved in learning online?

Perhaps one of the greatest challenges for teachers is to deliver a consistent experience to a large and varied general populations.
Teachers and students should not carry through device management. Their priorities should be placed on learning.
Technology is not the creator. Substantial belief in innovation is less important than the requirements of students and teachers.
Teachers have a well-defined responsibility with implementing, and identifying, the best combination of digital learning tools for each student.
Different approaches to learning, such as project-based learning,  active education, game-based learning, and more, is a part of personalized blended learning models. Consequently, such innovations will call for demonstration how their package improves learning outcomes.
Most challenges have to do with the procedures, but they have nothing to do with the teaching itself. To make it simple, if you know how to teach, all you need to do is learn about the elementary online tools available for online teaching, and begin using them.
As mentioned earlier, teaching an online class can be time-consuming. Also, developing an online course can be overwhelming. Learning and becoming proficient using an LMS takes time, and uploading materials to the online environment is also demanding and takes much time. Once you learn how to use the LMS, you need to get to teach students through it.
The time required to generate a new class can be a problem with developing online classes.
The instructor should be able to take care of the subject matter rather than spend countless
time is managing difficulties connected with the technology.
One of the most recommended ways to cope with the additional time required for teaching online classes is to decrease the class size.
Students also regularly run into technological problems and they need support with technology issues.
Navigating the Unique Challenges of Online Teaching. (n.d.). Retrieved from