I haven't posted to Blendededu.com in quite a while, but with good reason. I was busy tackling #4 on my professional development list previously posted on "Expectations" and receiving my TESOL Certification from Trinity College London. It was a great accomplishment.
For 5 weeks I attended the OxfordTEFL-Prague course. The course was intense, to say the least. I gained a wealth of knowledge that will be useful to me as an international educator, as a well as a TESOL certificate that is recognized worldwide. The course instructors were highly qualified and extremely knowledgeable in the field, Prague was enchanting, and the friends I made during the course will be colleagues for life continually sharing what works in our classrooms through email, Twitter and Facebook. It was quite an experience!
There was so much to learn during the course that my mind is just beginning to absorb and make sense of it all. I did teach many lessons 'technically-unplugged' which was quite a challenge, but a good experience for me. I have always supported the idea that technology should only be used to enhance teaching, and in English language teaching there are many ways to use technology to support the learning outcomes.
In addition, I have been reflecting on how technology can be used in remote areas with just one teacher laptop or a 1-computer classroom without an internet connection. Students should not be deprived of technology in today's world just because schools don't have technology or access, it's the teacher's responsibility to bring this 'new' world to their classrooms to prepare 21st century learners. It really is easy, teachers just have to think how to do things differently.
Begin exploring new ideas to infuse technology in your lessons by using Twitter to build a PLN, to follow #esl, #efl, #tefl, and #tesol to see how other teachers are using technology with their students and pick up a few ideas to tweak for your own classroom, or participate in a live Educators PLN Ed Chat on Twitter. Also, plan on attending an ESOL Technology conference next year for your own professional development.
Taking the TEFL course at this point in my career opened my eyes to a whole new world of teaching methods and strategies that will be useful not only to me, but to my students wherever I work in the world, whether it will be content specific or English language teaching.
I will be posting more frequently and sharing ideas now that I have some free time....
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