In one of the threaded discussions of the curernt IATEFL conference, Cardiff online 2009, a teacher about about websites that could be used to automatically grade students’ essays. Although it might look like a dream for busy teachers, I found quite few helpful responses on that thread. One of which mentioned using Moodle for peer […]
Read MoreLast week I presented this topic for TESOL-Arabia. The participants were interested in the nature of task design and implementation. The presentation also gave participants an opportunity to explore and discuss ways for developing new language tasks to be implemented in synchronous mode using modern technology. See the abstract and other details below..
Read MoreI received this list of resources for researchers for teaching writing from ELTECS. I thought it is worth to be shared here.. Resources for researchers ERIC http://www.eric.ed.gov This database is for teachers and researchers who would like to download and / or read full-text articles. If you want to get full-text documents, choose Advanced Search […]
Read MoreI came across this presentation which I find really interesting and referring to the type of skills needed for our students nowadays. The internet, as a learning ocean, provides many opportunities to fulfill most of the goals and requirements mentioned in these slides. However, it needs to be used with some control or observation in […]
Read MoreIs it possible for today’s principles and other decision makers to agree with Perlman and Maynard who are discussing the role web 2.0 plays in shaping the future in their article, “Working in Wiki”? I think the answer could be true in some regions, but unfortunately it is not the same in many others. The […]
Read MoreI should confess that I sometimes forget or ignore students’ input on certain aspects assuming that there is no time or that they are not ‘mature’ enough. Today, I felt that this should not be the case. After reading the few comments I received on a studnets’ questionnaire I conducted, I felt that I was […]
Read MoreA colleague from Brazil asks of the ways to develop help teaching to have more interesting classes. She wants to improve her teaching experience and students’ impression about her teaching. I found this question intriguing as it challenges most teachers including myself. Therefore, I wrote her this response which you can read below.. I can […]
Read MoreSometimes, I feel sorry for my students who are experiencing VLE environments in a very primitive manner. They feel confused when they first touch the keyboard, try to register or create emails or even deal with the VLE activities. This has taught me to keep realistic goals and plan when considering these issues. There are […]
Read MoreI can understand that some countries have their own proxy systems for main reasons related to identity, culture, or the appropriacy of content. However, what I can’t understand is having internal school proxies. This could be appropriate in some business companies like banks, etc.. where employees need to stick to certain processes or help ‘customers’. […]
Read MoreI came across this funny recording about how this Irish little girl thinks about her school. Is that how other learners feel,? I hope not.. 🙂 Click Here to listen More funny stuff from Bekky..
Read MoreIn an earlier definition for Lave and Wenger, (1991: 53 & 98) they consider a CoP as a part of systems of relations that support learning; “
Read MoreFirst, I have no experience using blackboard. That makes it a disadvantage in itself for a web technologies practitioner like me who is always keen to experiment education technology solutions for learning. Affordance is an issue in that respect. If I am to compare between webct and moodle, I would go for moodle. I personally […]
Read MoreI find interaction as a key element and a priority in education and e-learning. The affordance of technology has added lots of strength and visibility to e-learning in the last few years. The use and development of different forms of educational media like, (audio/ video -conferencing, radio, TV, correspondence, etc..) has led to more interaction […]
Read MoreIn my context, discussion forums seem to be one successful tool. For some reason, most of my students find ‘accepted’ it as a technology and were encouraged to contribute with their own stories or ideas in the different theme-based forums created in our moodle. I have many students who run their “paid” and popular forums […]
Read MoreIt seems that there are lots of teachers who are willing and getting prepared for teaching in this new environment. Some of the articles I found recently are here: here, and a research from the BBC which is done on children using BBC adventure island is SL. How amazing things are moving into that direction!!
Read MoreMany people now question the social nature of many web 2.0 technologies. Some of them find it an interesting new way for learning, interacting with others and sharing knowledge and resources. Other may show concerns about its nature and any other related implications. Porter discussed the question of web 2.0 as a promise or a […]
Read MoreI came across some online articles and reports on virtual worlds for learning. The first two articles, “How To Spark Remote Learning” – 2006 and “ESL campus promotes team language learning” – 2008, report Boahn’s or ‘Kip Yellowjacket’ as called in SL where he managed to implement and initiate a virtual English Language space for […]
Read MoreFor the purpose of research and development of my related to CoP, I have initiated a new wiki space CoP08 http://cop08.pbwiki.com/ where I invited other CoP members to join and share their experience on the same field. So far, we I have received a good number of ideas, published materials, and personal reflections for teachers […]
Read MoreAfter class, I just realized that my students are interested in playing games. Using a LAN network, they were able to interact together using audio and graphics in a shooting simulation game. They were all connected together either as police or criminals as part of this game. The collaborative aspect was totally new to me […]
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