Popular Posts

Popular Posts: January 2014 Edition

Hello from Argentina! It is hard to believe that the first month of the year ended. It has been a great month for me because I decided to start my blog.

30 posts were published on Tools 4 EFLTeachers this month. Here are the five most popular posts:

• How to Use Technology

• How to Teach in the 21st Century

• How to Prepare Students for the Future

• Teach for Tomorrow

• My School Notebook

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Digital Citizenship

What is Digital Citizenship?

Digital Citizenship is all about using media in a responsible, ethical, safe, and effective way.

Why teaching Digital Citizenship?

Because it helps students...

• explore the impact of digital media on their lives and communities. (Participation)

• learn about the impact of their digital footprints. (Privacy)

• learn skills to deal with negative behaviours, such as cyberbullying.  (Credibility)

• think critically about their online identities. (Identity)

• respect creative work. (Authorship/Ownership)

With the growing influence of social media on employee recruitment, it is a teachers' responsability to ensure their students are aware of their digital footprint. So, how to prepare students for the future?

What Teachers Make

Teaching is a tough job: long hours, low pay, and constant criticism when test scores don't measure up. Teachers work hard, and sometimes do not get the recogniton and pay they deserve. But...

Watch this inspirational video and love what you make...

A Gift

Here is a beautiful song for all teachers 

who love teaching English. Enjoy!

A Good Teacher...

Everybody has got an opinion of good teachers. In most of the current literature, there are descriptions of the qualities and characteristics that make a good teacher.

When I think about what makes a good teacher, the following comes to mind:

In this video secondary students talk about what characteristics of a teacher have the most positive effect on their learning. It is good to know about what their opinions are. 

The Starfish

You are in the classroom with a group of students every weekday, and you see what happens... They have lots of problems. However, they learn, develop, and have a life changing experience in the classroom, so...

This is a short video based on the Starfish story, with an inspirational message for all teachers to "Never give up''. Enjoy!

The Teacher

Teachers can change lives with...

technology tools and challenges.

No Wi-Fi

This boy is like our students. They are Digital Natives because they have grown up in the digital world. They speak the language of technology.

Funny Facts

Does this funny fact look common to you? It is a fact that probably every teacher does or has done. 

Have you ever wondered whether you are a REAL teacher or not? Check out this list of funny facts about Real Teachers and see for yourself. Have fun!

This year, I will...

It is time to think about what resolutions 

you want to try and make in 2014.

Check out  My 2014 New Year's Resolutions.

The way they learn

Being a teacher is being there as a role model to guide the students in their lives. It is not only being there to teach academically, it is...

• To allow students to figure things out

• To allow students to construct the answers

• To instill curiosity

• To extend possibilities

Teachers need to be...

The following video is about what future teachers need to consider when preparing students for the 21st Century.

I am a Teacher

My students will create the world of tomorrow. 

I am a Teacher. I shape the future...

How to Use Technology

Technology is not the solution to 21st century education, it is simply a tool to aid teaching and learning. In addition, technology should not be told as a separate school subject, but as a tool, it should be used in all classrooms. Any learning concerning technology should  based around the theme and objectives of the class.

Teachers should use technology to teach...

• Ethics in Online Behaviour

• Student Collaboration

• Self-Esteem Online

• More Sophisticated Possibilities

Negative & positive ways of using technology in 21st Century Education

How to Teach in the 21st Century

Teachers are no longer the main source of information because students can find information on anything, anytime, anywhere:

• Blogs

• Facebook

• Cell Phones

• Twitter

• Wikipedia

• YouTube

• MP3 Players

• Bing

With all this information available, should our curriculum be focus on facts and contents or skills? 

Today's students need more than just instruction in the core topic areas. They also need to develop key 21st Century skills that will serve them well in critical thinking, problem solving, communication, collaboration, leadership and management.

So... How do we teach students to handle these resources?

Watch this great video to learn more about Teaching in the 21st Century.

What did they say?

Have you ever heard of flip teaching? 

In a flipped classroom, students watch videos, listen to podcasts, and do background reading outside of class so that the actual time with the teacher can be spent in meaningful discussion, doing collaborative work, and trying hands-on projects instead of listening to lectures. 

Do you know how to flip a classroom?

Teach for Tomorrow

A nice inspirational poster on the true meaning of teaching. The quote by John Dewey is a reminder of the great responsabilities of teaching. 

When designing lessons, teachers will ask themselves, how will this "impact student learning'' and how will this get students ''ready for their future?''

So, how to prepare students for the future?

More than a Teacher

Through my experiences, I have become aware that teaching is so much more than merely informing students about subject areas in school. 

The previous poster describes that many roles in which a teacher undergoes daily as well as emphasises what it truly means to be a teacher. There is nothing more to say about this...

New Challenges

It is clear that technology is everywhere. It influences the way we perform daily tasks, such as shopping, selling, banking, communicating, among many others. In this context, we cannot ignore the fact that teaching and learning are also affected by technology. 

We must bear in mind that our students are in permanent contact with technology at home and it seems that our classrooms are still behind their time. So, we need to overcome this home-school dichotomy by opening the classroom doors to the electronic era.

For those teachers who lack the experience with technology, this approach presents some challenges. As they feel intimidated by thousands of sites, links, web pages, new terminology, the natural answer is resistance to change. It is important to point out that we do not need to be experts, but competent users of the tools we are trying to apply in the classroom.

Yes. It is hard work, but if we do it properly, the advantages overweigh the drawbacks. Enjoy!

2014 New Year's Resolutions

A New Year is a great opportunity to reflect on how far we have come and where we hope to go next. It is good to reflect on our teching.

Do you make New Year's Resolutions?

Each year I make New Year's Resolutions. Today I created new ones for 2014 that I would like to share with you. 

This year I will...

• challenge myself and continue to learn through reading, researching, blogging, connecting with language teachers and most importantly listening to my students.

• think sistematically about my practice and learn from experience to make it more effective.

• experiment with new technology in the classroom.

• help teachers with best practices and use of technology in teaching foreign languages.

Think about how you can accomplish your goal. If you want it, you will achieve it. Make 2014 the best year of your teaching carreer - and I will try to do the same!

How to Reflect on your Teaching

Reflective practice occurs when teachers step back and evaluate the learning environment. We think about what we do in the classroom, why we do it and if it works. This may lead to changes and improvements in our teaching.

Reflection allows us to take an in-depth look at our teaching practices and gives us the opportunity to consider how student development affects learning. 

Reflections can inform us about many things, but the most important piece of any reflection will be how it might guide positive changes in the classroom.

If you are looking for some new ways to reflect on your teaching, here are a few suggestions:

How to Reach Students

Motivate your students to learn English

Motivating students to study English is perhaps the most difficult challenge you will face as an EFL Teacher. Either they find English difficult, they think it is boring, or they are shy and hate to speak Engish in front of other students. 

The secret is...

Make language come alive for your students.

Use technology to reach your students

Getting students engaged is not an easy task particularly in an age that is full of all kinds of distractions. Some argue that some of the habits that students have developed as a result of their heavy use of emerging technologies and social media have negatively impacted their capacities to concentrate and focus for longer stretches of time. However, when students are motivated to learn, focus and attention come along easily.

The following infographic features 10 ways to get students motivated:

• Encourage communication

• Establish relationships and high expectations

• Set objectives

• Make it applicable to real life

• Use cooperative learning

• Utilize peer instruction

• Change your teaching style for different learning style

• Ditch the bubble tests

• Try deliberative practice

• Try Flipped Classroom

No matter what you try, remember that...

Your goal is to help students succeed!

How to Flip a Classroom

What is The Flipped Classroom?

Instead of lecturing during class and leaving students to figure out assignments on their own at home, teachers can flip their classes and give students the opportunity for hands-on activities and meaningful learning in class. 

Here you have some tips on how to flip your classrooms.

How to Prepare Students

What lies ahead for our students in the future? Today's students will graduate in a world totally immerse in technology. Did teachers of twenty years ago know that so much of our world would be based on computers and technology now?

Here you have some tips on how to prepare students for future ahead:

• Video

• Video Games

• Social Media

• Mobile Learning

• Flipped Classroom

The Virtual Classroom

What is a Virtual Classroom?

A Virtual Classroom is an online classroom that allows participants to communicate with one another, view presentations or videos, interact with other participants, and engage with resources in work groups.

Click on the image to enlarge.

What is the real aim of the Virtual Classroom?

The real aim of the Virtual Classroom is not to replace the traditional classroom because the technology is advancing, but to offer a more interactive and collaborative learning environment. 

What are the typical elements of the Virtual Classroom?

The Virtual Classroom typically include some or all of the following elements:

Text Chat - People can type what they would like others to see in real time.

Shared Whiteboard - A blank screen where people can share information, write comments, and draw pictures in real time.

Presentation Capability - Teachers have multiple options for presentation content from audio/video/multimedia lectures, to self guided power points.

Audio - People can share information with a microphone and speakers.

Polling or Survey Tools - The ablility to take a survey and publish the results possibly on the white board.

Break-Out Rooms - A way of breaking the session into or more sub rooms where listeners can listen to a guest speaker, ask questions, or just interact in a smaller setting.

Web Tours - Using tools included in many virtual classroom programs people can be taken on a virtual tour of a webpage or project through sharing of a program.

The 21st Century Classroom

What is the 21st Century Classroom?

21st Century Classroom has given a new dimension to education envolving students to use various applications, Web 2.0 and other technological tools. It has changed the old traditional concepts of learning to keep balance with modern technological world.

Technology is undeniably changing the face of education, and it is easy to see the impact already. 

What are the components of the 21st Century Classroom?

Imagine what classrooms will be like in 20 years with the speed of tecnological innovation. Learn more about some of the key advancements in the 21st century:

• Real World Education

• Online Courses

• Games and Gamification

• Learning Analytics

• Open Source Textbooks

• Integration of Social Networks 

Click on the image to enlarge.

The Digital Classroom

What is the Digital Classroom? 

A teacher standing at the front of at the front of the room at the chalkboard is one of the iconic images of education. Smartboards and other digital technologies, however, are changing how classrooms are structured, how teachers teach, and how students learn. Today's classrooms are entirely different from the classrooms we studied in. 

Technology is a great tool to engage students in learning as it makes learning simple, effective and efficient. So, the more engaged students are, the better results teachers are going to get.

What are the elements of the Digital Classroom?

The following infographic shows how classrooms are changing and explains the way the digital classroom tools are replacing traditional ones, including:

• eBooks
• Book Rental via Kindle
• iPads
• Open Source Software
• iTunesU
• Digital Cameras, Projectors, and Headphones

The Flipped Classroom

What is the Flipped Classroom?

The digital era has brought many tools that now allow for a more collaborative kind of classroom. Many teachers are using a new method of teaching in order to turn the traditional classroom on its head. This inversion of the traditional teaching model generates more interaction between teacher, student and course material. 

What are the aims of the Flipped Classroom?

• Create an engaging, interactive environment that is student-centered.

• Make the best use of your face-to-face time with your students. 

• Practice, application, and working with content is done inside of class.

• Focus on deeper meaning and connections, not just basic rote memorization and practice. 

What are the components of the Flipped Classroom?

Educational technology and activity learning are two key components of the flipped classroom model. They both influence student learning environments in fundamental ways.

How to flip a classroom?