Teens and technology

Hello, everyone!

I am really please to read your comments and to find out that the topics I  have raised are of your interest as well.

Now, I’d like to hear from you as regards teens and technology in education.

In 2007 I had the chance to join  the Webheads’ group and discover a whole new world in terms of teaching and learning opportunities which the use of Web 2.0 technology can open up for us.

Needless to say, I tried to include in my lessons the use of  technology as a means to foster interaction among my students and other classes, both locally and internationally, by making use of  class blogs. I also asked my students to produce PowerPoint presentations to upload to our page, to produce movies using dvolver, to produce podcasts and etc. All related to the things they had been leaning along the year.

However, I was not completely satisfied with the results I got as I realized that I was much more excited about all that than my students! I mean, when I learned English, even tapes were difficult (and very expensive!) to buy here in Brazil. There was neither cable tv nor easily accessible DVDs with close captions for us to practice our English. The only real  English I had access to was in the letters I received once a month from an American pen friend.  So what puzzles me in my teaching context is that my middle-class students from the so-called digital generation certainly have the world at their feet. Yet, they do not seem to be motivated to enhance their own leaning experience by making the most out of what is available for them. It is true they use the Internet to watch videos, to socialize, to listen to music, to play games and so on. But, they just want to have fun and NOT to learn / practice English.

I am not sure whether this lack of interest to go beyond what is required has to do with  typical teenage behaviour (i.e. my  students faced these activities simply as school work, so they showed little interest to work on them from home, for example)  or if this little motivation to learn by oneself is something culturally biased. What do you think? Have you ever tried to involve your  EFL teens with the use of technology? How did they react?Let’s share!Doris Soares

This blog banner and us

The banner shows Praia de São Conrado, a rich neighbourhood in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in the early 1920′s and in the late 90′s. Although it contrasts past and present,  we can still recognize the mountains and the sea as being the same in both shots.  Similarly, if we search the net, we are likely to recognize traditional approaches to teaching & learning as the backgound to the use of  high tech state-of-the art tools in education. 

But is the Web 2.0 only  about applying new tools to old beliefs about teachers’ and  students’s roles in the knowledge building process?  

I guess our challenge lies on the fact that we must  bridge the gap between what we have learned (and practiced) about teaching and learning vis-a-vis the needs of a generation of learners  born into  a world dominated by technology.

Therefore, I guess we are  in a sense explorers of a brave new world, trying to make the most out of Web 2.o to foster collaboration and co-construction of knowledge.

My aim with this blog is to face this challenge and  to meet as many “explorers” as possible in order to achieve what the blog title says: care and share!

Can I count on you?

Doris Soares 

Welcome to my blog!

Hello, everyone.

I have been reading the materials and following the discussions in the forum but I must confess there is so much going on! I mean, lots of sites to visit and tool to learn more about ( feeds, for example).

I have had some experiences with class blogs as I have already created some  for my students ( I have just imported some posts from there. Check them below) and I started a wiki last year.

When I decided to try out blogs, my intention was to have my f2f students INTERACT more by reading & WRITING comments on their fellows’ posts. As this was a free activity (I mean, not compulsory) I realized they wanted just to read the posts and they didn’t feel like commenting on/ replying to what they read.

Does this sound familiar to you? My point is, if we are talking about socializing, I believe this is a two-way thing. Somebody says something and an interlocutor responds to that.

Do you think this can be a “silent response”? For example, if people keep coming to your blog, it means there are readers checking out the posts but for some reason they just don’t leave  comments there. I have notice this in many blogs I visit. 

What do you think of this issue? 

I’m looking forward to your comments!

Doris Soares- RJ, Brazil   

MY TRAVEL LOG

Hello, Igor.

Fernando de Noronha is a beautiful place. I’ve been here for 1 year.I’ve gone surfing and played football with my new friends. I know here there are a lot of different things from us. They don’t have computer and never go to a mall!!.Here in the morning we go surfing and we eat fish. After this we play football. Yesterday I went to a party, it was very interesting because their clothes here have a lot of colors. I’ve bought a surfboard and one skateboard. Look at this photo. It is wonderful!!

Cheers,

Thiago

Pay it Forward

Have you hear about the Pay if Forward Movement?

We have discussed it and this is what we would do to change the world.

Can you tell us what YOU would do?

We’d love to read about it!

Basic 6 gang

For teachers: http://www.payitforwardfoundation.org/educators/index.html

This is us!

Making Movies

Hi, there!
Would you like to make a movie? Go to dvolver and create your plot! How about checking the movies we made? You can vote for the best movie!
Have fun!
Basic 6