Dear all,
This has been an interesting week. Somehow we have been wrapping up the contents of all the weeks. While thinking about self evaluating the use of technology in the classroom I had to go back into the contents of the class to remember things I have forgotten. For example, I have studied again the use of webquests, and I have been reviewing the link to create Rubrics.
So far, I have never thougt that there might be a Matrix to evaluate the use of ICT tools.In special I liked the one from University of Florida: http://fcit.usf.edu/matrix/matrix.php. It is very friendly and could be a good guide to know if we are going on the right track.
It has been a pleasure to take this course. And I would like to know if we could go back and review material when we need it, or maybe as soon as the course finishes, are we going to be out of the system?
Good luck on your next courses.
Warm regards,
Laura, Chile
Thursday, March 12, 2015
Friday, March 6, 2015
Week 9:Reflection
Dear all,
Thank God it is the ninth week. As I said before It has been interesting but taft.
I must say I have learned a lot, in all aspects.
The experience of peer work activity has been fruitful. In fact, thanks to my partner I realized that at the beginning I was working on the wrong template. Anyway, I learned a lot from both templates, since I had to redo my project again. I was afraid of creating a project, but now I feel a little bit more confident.
Talking about multiple intelligences, It is something that everybody knows, specially teachers, but all the time we forget. So, it was useful to remember concepts and try to think about possible activities to implement, considering our students´profile.
Best.
Laura, Chile
Thank God it is the ninth week. As I said before It has been interesting but taft.
I must say I have learned a lot, in all aspects.
The experience of peer work activity has been fruitful. In fact, thanks to my partner I realized that at the beginning I was working on the wrong template. Anyway, I learned a lot from both templates, since I had to redo my project again. I was afraid of creating a project, but now I feel a little bit more confident.
Talking about multiple intelligences, It is something that everybody knows, specially teachers, but all the time we forget. So, it was useful to remember concepts and try to think about possible activities to implement, considering our students´profile.
Best.
Laura, Chile
Friday, February 27, 2015
Dear all
One more week of progress, and here we are on week 8th. Unbelievable. It is challenging to think we have been learning so much. Time is always short to be able to fulfil all the tasks, but I am sure, each one of us has given its best.
Concerning the project, I lost one week of progress..snifff, because I was working on the wrong template. I read the information carefully, but I suppose that tiredness made me get confused.
Anyway now thanks to Belinda, I am on the right track. I had to redo my project in one night, practically I didn´t sleep, but I hope it might be worth the effort.
The best of the week has been the set of tools available on week 8. I have used padlet several times, so I decided to choose Nicenet, and I feel quite confident about my decision. I am eager to use it at the end of march, when classes start at the University.
Let´s keep in touch.
Laura,Chile
One more week of progress, and here we are on week 8th. Unbelievable. It is challenging to think we have been learning so much. Time is always short to be able to fulfil all the tasks, but I am sure, each one of us has given its best.
Concerning the project, I lost one week of progress..snifff, because I was working on the wrong template. I read the information carefully, but I suppose that tiredness made me get confused.
Anyway now thanks to Belinda, I am on the right track. I had to redo my project in one night, practically I didn´t sleep, but I hope it might be worth the effort.
The best of the week has been the set of tools available on week 8. I have used padlet several times, so I decided to choose Nicenet, and I feel quite confident about my decision. I am eager to use it at the end of march, when classes start at the University.
Let´s keep in touch.
Laura,Chile
Sunday, February 22, 2015
REFLECTION WEEK 7
Dear all,
Another interesting, but tough week. Certainly, I have learned a lot by reading all the material suggested. I have said tough because even though I am on vacation, my family has become more and demanding, therefore I have had to organize my time by working everynight on this course.
I would like to highlight the topic about the use of mobile phones. It has really called my attention, the variety of activities we can use in our classes. In my particular case, it is feasable to do it, since 90% of my students have smart phones, and at the University we can have access to wifi.
Apart from all the activities assigned for this week, I have read the material related to the project, and I have been trying to understand how formal a project must be. Trying to follow the template, I have been writing my project. In my particular case, there are some aspects that do not fit my project due to the fact we are on summer vacation so I can not have a follow up on this project.
Looking forward to your comments.
Best,
Laura, Chile
Another interesting, but tough week. Certainly, I have learned a lot by reading all the material suggested. I have said tough because even though I am on vacation, my family has become more and demanding, therefore I have had to organize my time by working everynight on this course.
I would like to highlight the topic about the use of mobile phones. It has really called my attention, the variety of activities we can use in our classes. In my particular case, it is feasable to do it, since 90% of my students have smart phones, and at the University we can have access to wifi.
Apart from all the activities assigned for this week, I have read the material related to the project, and I have been trying to understand how formal a project must be. Trying to follow the template, I have been writing my project. In my particular case, there are some aspects that do not fit my project due to the fact we are on summer vacation so I can not have a follow up on this project.
Looking forward to your comments.
Best,
Laura, Chile
Friday, February 13, 2015
Week 6 Reflection
Dear all,
It has been a taft week, trying to find the balance between this online course and my family. As I told you before, we are on summer vacations, and I have been sorting out a lot of difficulties, such as; the internet connection, finding a quiet moment to concentrate, taking my daughter to the lake to swim, cooking, etc.
In spite of all the above, I am fulfilling all the tasks for this week. I must say that this week the readings took me longer but were really interesting.
I have read Russel' s advice about my new project. And he is right about narrowing the focus of my project to really fit the main objective, which is to enhance the oral skills of my students.
Since I am not teaching these days I have read all the material posted on the wiki concerning the implementation of the project and the rubric.
And What about you?
Cheers.
Laura, Chile.
It has been a taft week, trying to find the balance between this online course and my family. As I told you before, we are on summer vacations, and I have been sorting out a lot of difficulties, such as; the internet connection, finding a quiet moment to concentrate, taking my daughter to the lake to swim, cooking, etc.
In spite of all the above, I am fulfilling all the tasks for this week. I must say that this week the readings took me longer but were really interesting.
I have read Russel' s advice about my new project. And he is right about narrowing the focus of my project to really fit the main objective, which is to enhance the oral skills of my students.
Since I am not teaching these days I have read all the material posted on the wiki concerning the implementation of the project and the rubric.
And What about you?
Cheers.
Laura, Chile.
Thursday, February 5, 2015
WEEK 5: Reflection
Dear all,
Indeed, every week the tasks turn more challenging and time consuming. It has been taking me a lot to create my own rubric, but finally I made it. There are so many descriptors that you do not know which ones to choose.
Anyway, the use of rubrics is highly relevant, since the new trend is to work in projects at schools and universities. Pbl is useful because the process becomes an important part of learning, more than the result. Therefore, projects such as portfolios, diaries, etc, become more authentic activities.
Webquests are much more interesting, because somehow you are developing a scientific acivity.
You need to follow the steps, one by one.
Do you agree?
Regards,
Laura
Indeed, every week the tasks turn more challenging and time consuming. It has been taking me a lot to create my own rubric, but finally I made it. There are so many descriptors that you do not know which ones to choose.
Anyway, the use of rubrics is highly relevant, since the new trend is to work in projects at schools and universities. Pbl is useful because the process becomes an important part of learning, more than the result. Therefore, projects such as portfolios, diaries, etc, become more authentic activities.
Webquests are much more interesting, because somehow you are developing a scientific acivity.
You need to follow the steps, one by one.
Do you agree?
Regards,
Laura
Saturday, January 31, 2015
Week 4:Lessonplan
Dear all,
It has been a taft but interesting week. Personally, I traveled home last night to a place in Chile near the mountains, buy anyway I am doing my best to be connected.And so far so good I have been able to connect today. Fingers crossed.
First of all, I read all the material suggested for this week, and it has been very helpful for my professional development.
In my University we are very devoted to writing, so the article"Process writing and the Internet" has given me interesting tips about how to enhance the writing process.
Taking into account the article,there are three things to consider at the moment of plannig a lesson:Pre-writing,peer revision and teacher feedback(Ferris and Hedcock, 2005).
Something else I learned is that we have to consider;needs, worldview and social background of the students. I believe we have to consider the previous factors to propose topics for writing. And we should not forget they are part of the social network(Dudeney and Hockly, 2007).
Well, blogs are very useful tools to promote writing, the same as Ning. But I have never used Ning I hope in the near future to have more time to explore it.
keeping in mind all the above,technology enhances the lesson plan, but we have to focus on the objective and then choose the best technological tool.
Looking forward to your comments,
Cheers,
Laura from Chile
It has been a taft but interesting week. Personally, I traveled home last night to a place in Chile near the mountains, buy anyway I am doing my best to be connected.And so far so good I have been able to connect today. Fingers crossed.
First of all, I read all the material suggested for this week, and it has been very helpful for my professional development.
In my University we are very devoted to writing, so the article"Process writing and the Internet" has given me interesting tips about how to enhance the writing process.
Taking into account the article,there are three things to consider at the moment of plannig a lesson:Pre-writing,peer revision and teacher feedback(Ferris and Hedcock, 2005).
Something else I learned is that we have to consider;needs, worldview and social background of the students. I believe we have to consider the previous factors to propose topics for writing. And we should not forget they are part of the social network(Dudeney and Hockly, 2007).
Well, blogs are very useful tools to promote writing, the same as Ning. But I have never used Ning I hope in the near future to have more time to explore it.
keeping in mind all the above,technology enhances the lesson plan, but we have to focus on the objective and then choose the best technological tool.
Looking forward to your comments,
Cheers,
Laura from Chile
Thursday, January 22, 2015
WEEK 3: Audio Oral/Aural Skills
This week has been a real challenge for me. First of all, I was struggling with "delicious" because it was not easy to create my page, I tried several passwords, and finally I could access. Then, to understand how it works took me some time, but finally I could do it.
Then, I read the arcticles suggested in this Unit. In particular, I liked the article" Teaching pronunciation to adult english language teachers because learning and teaching pronunciation in Chile is one of the most difficult skills to develop. Indeed, one of the most difficult skills to improve in my own case has been pronunciation, since when I was studying at the University we didn´t have the chance to meet many foreigners to practice our Oral skills. Basically we tried to acquire phonetics through drilling exercises and listening to cassettes, just imagine!! how hard it was. And the article mentions something that is exactly what happens in Chile, the difference between Sh and Ch is very difficult to acquire.
And in many of the courses we are teaching nowadays, we tell our students what Harmer, 1991, mentioned, that they can acquire good pronunciation but not necessarily perfect accent.
Keeping in mind the ideas from that book, cultivating positive attitudes in the classroom is the key to succeed in our teaching, because motivation is highly relevant to encourage our students to learn a foreing language.
The techniques suggested in the second article about video activities were also helpful. Using videos is worth the effort, because it become more meaningful specially for kids and teenagers.(Rucynski, 2011)
In lesson plans you could also find resourful material to include in your classes, drama activities,gameboards, etc. In fact, I saved the link and I uploaded them to Delicious, to try to include them in my future lessons.
Now, I am getting ready for the Project activity.
Cheers,
Laura from Chile
Then, I read the arcticles suggested in this Unit. In particular, I liked the article" Teaching pronunciation to adult english language teachers because learning and teaching pronunciation in Chile is one of the most difficult skills to develop. Indeed, one of the most difficult skills to improve in my own case has been pronunciation, since when I was studying at the University we didn´t have the chance to meet many foreigners to practice our Oral skills. Basically we tried to acquire phonetics through drilling exercises and listening to cassettes, just imagine!! how hard it was. And the article mentions something that is exactly what happens in Chile, the difference between Sh and Ch is very difficult to acquire.
And in many of the courses we are teaching nowadays, we tell our students what Harmer, 1991, mentioned, that they can acquire good pronunciation but not necessarily perfect accent.
Keeping in mind the ideas from that book, cultivating positive attitudes in the classroom is the key to succeed in our teaching, because motivation is highly relevant to encourage our students to learn a foreing language.
The techniques suggested in the second article about video activities were also helpful. Using videos is worth the effort, because it become more meaningful specially for kids and teenagers.(Rucynski, 2011)
In lesson plans you could also find resourful material to include in your classes, drama activities,gameboards, etc. In fact, I saved the link and I uploaded them to Delicious, to try to include them in my future lessons.
Now, I am getting ready for the Project activity.
Cheers,
Laura from Chile
Sunday, January 18, 2015
Week 2:ABCD OBJECTIVES (Second post)
Dear classmates,
It has been really useful to read and learn about The ABCD method. Setting objectives is one of the most difficult tasks and following this method has helped me a lot to clarify muy own doubts about how to write objectives. Concerning Bloom, I used to study the verbs a long time ago, bu now I have remembered them again.
Excellent activity.
It has been really useful to read and learn about The ABCD method. Setting objectives is one of the most difficult tasks and following this method has helped me a lot to clarify muy own doubts about how to write objectives. Concerning Bloom, I used to study the verbs a long time ago, bu now I have remembered them again.
Excellent activity.
Wednesday, January 14, 2015
Week 2: Web searching comments
Dear all,
I want to share my viewpoints about the Web searching activity and the readings.
Web searching: It was a very useful activity, because I have always used "Google" like the only one search engine, and now through that activity I have become acquained with new search engines, which certainly seem to be very useful for the kind of job I do. I selected one subject from one of the Units from the Level 1 Starter, it is "Alternative diet for cancer", and I used this topic to use the different search tools.
In fact, from one of the groups, "iseek" had images, detailed information about the kinds of articles we need at the Faculty of Medicine, and the best is they can fit different levels.
"Surfwax" had video related topics, that could also be of great help to complement our material in classes.
From another group the most outstanding is "Libguides.com", due to the fact you can find more academic information related to the subject I have been searching about.
Readings:
I read the article on Objectives, Technology tip of the month-better web searching by Deborah Healey and Making the net easier.
Indeed the reading on Objectives was something new, I had no idea about the ABCD.
Then, concerning the Tips, it has been interesting to see three new concepts: query, hit and entry , the same as pieces of advice to use Google.
Finally, the reading on websites, seem to be useful, howewer It is not for medicine.
This is my reflection about this Unit.
I want to share my viewpoints about the Web searching activity and the readings.
Web searching: It was a very useful activity, because I have always used "Google" like the only one search engine, and now through that activity I have become acquained with new search engines, which certainly seem to be very useful for the kind of job I do. I selected one subject from one of the Units from the Level 1 Starter, it is "Alternative diet for cancer", and I used this topic to use the different search tools.
In fact, from one of the groups, "iseek" had images, detailed information about the kinds of articles we need at the Faculty of Medicine, and the best is they can fit different levels.
"Surfwax" had video related topics, that could also be of great help to complement our material in classes.
From another group the most outstanding is "Libguides.com", due to the fact you can find more academic information related to the subject I have been searching about.
Readings:
I read the article on Objectives, Technology tip of the month-better web searching by Deborah Healey and Making the net easier.
Indeed the reading on Objectives was something new, I had no idea about the ABCD.
Then, concerning the Tips, it has been interesting to see three new concepts: query, hit and entry , the same as pieces of advice to use Google.
Finally, the reading on websites, seem to be useful, howewer It is not for medicine.
This is my reflection about this Unit.
Wednesday, January 7, 2015
Week 1:Reflection
Hi everybody!! It is fun to be working with blogs again, after 3 years.
Actually I started to work with blogs in 2006 and I was using them a lot, but suddenly without any reason I stopped using them in my clasess. And now, It has been nice to be back on track again, trying to remember things that I have forgotten.
So, I am eager to start posting again!!
Hi everybody!! It is fun to be working with blogs again, after 3 years.
Actually I started to work with blogs in 2006 and I was using them a lot, but suddenly without any reason I stopped using them in my clasess. And now, It has been nice to be back on track again, trying to remember things that I have forgotten.
So, I am eager to start posting again!!
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