Technology
 and 
Teaching English
Benefits of using technology
repetition
up to date
context
audio visual
community
individual
24 / 7
Questions to ask yourself
 What is my own hands on ability with computers, tools, online learning, web 2.0, technology?
 What kind of technology does my school, my classroom have?
 Who can help me and support me? 
 What kind of access to technology do my students have?
 How do my colleagues, staff, admin, principal, school board feel about educational technology?
 If I build it (use it), will they come? 

3 COMMANDMENTS

1. I will only use technology if it benefits students (you can’t put lipstick on a pig)

2. I will only use a resource when instructing if it is available offline (can be downloaded)

3. I will get to know very well, the person in charge of technology at my school. 

1. Plan the Curriculum
Technology allows teachers to easily share ideas, gather resources and prepare rich, effective materials for their classroom instruction. Course design has never been easier. 

 Social Networking
 PLNs (Personal Learning Networks)
 Social Bookmarking
 Resource Sites
 Online Professional Development
 Learning / Content Management Systems / Websites 
 Curriculum Mapping


Noteable Resources:   EFL Classroom 2.0: http://eflclassroom.com 
                    Teaching Recipes: http://teachingrecipes.com
                    PB Works: http://pbworks.com 
                    Weebly: http://weebly.com 
                    Diigo: http://diigo.com/eflclassroom
                    Twitter: http://twitter.com ( http://tweepml.org/?t=1793 )

2. Enact the Curriculum
Today’s students are “digital natives” (Prensky, 2001). They are visual learners and technologically literate. This demands that teachers use technology to deliver content effectively and address students needs. Further, technology provides substantial benefits over traditional instuction;

 Rich contextualization of content (photos / videos, power point)
 Interactive delivery of content (Interactive Whiteboards / Smartboards)
 Repetition and adaptability of content 
 Authentic audio and video as language input
 Tools to aid direct instruction (spinners, counters, clocks etc..)
 Up to date materials to motivate students
 Modifications of instruction (highlighting/underlining/text to speech…)

Notable Resources:   http://tarheelreader.org  (get Power Points)
                                   http://voicethread.com  (rich audio)
                                   http://eflclassroom.ning.com/page/teachers-toolbox

3. Adapt the Curriculum
The textbook is no longer enough. The textbook can seldom be used without some form of adaptation and supplementation (Richards, 2001). Bringing your textbook alive can be done in several ways….

 Modifying the content (create visual pictures / change the dialogue etc…)
 Supplementing the content (online games / flashcards / songs and videos, web 2.0 sites)
 Simplifying the content (word processing, dictionaries, text to speech)
 Personalizing the content (use web applications like Voki, Glogster etc…)
 Reviewing the content (make games/quizzes / slideshows )

Noteable Resources:   http://quizlet.com/user/eflclassroom  (flashcards)
                                     http://wallwisher.com (class post it page)
                                     http://bit.ly/9evbY1 (all the top web 2.0 sites for teaching)

4. Assess the Curriculum
Did the student’s learn? How will I find out? These questions every teacher must answer and fortunately technology allows us to more effectively assess learning than traditional paper and pen approaches. 

Students record and communicate online allowing:

 Better results > less affective filter and anxiety levels
 More accountability > transparent and online, portfolios
 Better feedback > tracking of students gives specific information
 Easier to master> content can be easily “redone” until mastered
 More options  > rubrics easily designed
 More efficient > teacher can mark at home, students do outside the formal setting

Notable Resources:  http://voicethread.com (speaking/writing)
                                   http://voxopop.com (speaking)
                                   http://englishcentral.com/teachers (pronunciation/speaking)
                                   http://storybird.com (story writing)

5. Extend the Curriculum

It takes thousands of hours to master a language. There is not enough class time, so one of the important roles of a language teacher is to motivate students and help them become autonomous learners. This can be done in several ways:

 Show students Web 2.0 sites that are self supporting. 
 Show students that you also learn language online
 Share with students through an online community / social network or webpage
 Provide students with online extension (get to know what’s available and good)
 Provide students with online access to your teaching materials 


Notable Resources:  Mingoville – http://mingoville.com
                   Click and Learn - http://bit.ly/bGPQ9T
                   Language Lab - http://bit.ly/9CK2aE
                   Real English – http://real-english.com 

http://eflclassroom.com/randomeltblog.html
http://bit.ly/9evbY1
http://eflclassroom.com
Let's look at the problem in today's schools