How to Stay Inspired

Most teachers deal with lots of job stress. We have to be well prepared every day, and take a lot more of our work home with us. There are always lessons to plan, essays to mark and records to keep. 

The following infographic shares some tips on how to stay inspired every day. Enjoy! Click here to see a larger version.

How to Use Pinterest

Pinterest provides a new way to collect and organise information in form of images, videos and more. The social network allows users to create virtual pin boards about their favourite topics to remember ideas that they find while browsing the Internet. 

The following infographic details how teachers can use Pinterest to organise lesson plans, distribute curricula, collaborate with others, and even encourage student participation. (Click to enlarge.)

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.

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