This week has been an emotional roller coaster ride for me. So coping up with the course tasks was difficult.
I tried to come up with a detailed project plan with all the questions to be raised when I execute it and became really happy with Hector's review of it. I reviewed Hector's and Alina's project reports and gained knowledge about two very different situations with various groups of learners in foreign context. Like Hector, I also feel that inherently a lot of situations are similar in our teaching-learning situations.
The week offered various sites and online tools to explore and use as teachers. I personally used a few and felt assured that the use of these tools will enhance learning a great deal and make the life of teachers easier. In Bangladeshi language teaching situation, the more common practice is to download ready made materials and use in the class. But there are wonderful tools to prepare specific task-based materials out there. I liked Web Poster Wizard very much.
And there is ANVILL developed by Jeff Magoto. It's so out of the way! I need to explore it more later. I'm already planning to publish a speech based lesson with my teacher account there. Thanks to Jeff!
Looking forward to finalizing my project to be submitted within 5days.
Dear Thahsina
ReplyDeleteWe have similar situation in Nepal. Only few the teacher at have web access. They use ready made material found on web. I have seen few course sites. Some private institutes have developed course sites for their students.
Let's see how we go now.
Respectfully
Krishna
Dear Krishna,
DeleteTeachers also need motivation for working on their materials too (just like students). :)
Tahsina
Dear Tahsina,
ReplyDeleteI loved your two images that you posted here. They are so colourful and suggestive of the way we should approach these tools: with patience and all hard-working. I really enjoy working with you and Hector: I've read your reports and I found them very interesting and well-structured,I could see I was reading the work of two professionals and that filled my heart with joy and honoured me to be working and having you as partners. I'm afraid I didn't have the time to fill in the feedback chart for your report after I read it, but I will do it today, that I can promise you! It is a pleasure to "assess" such great work!
I wish you a lovely week!!
Alina
Dear Alina,
DeleteThanks for commenting on my post.
How are you getting on with the assessment of my project plan? I need to finalize it quickly. I still haven't got any review form in the class wiki from you.
Hope things are fine with you.
Tahsina
Dear Tahsina,
ReplyDeleteI also like the images you have pasted on your blog this week. I know that sometimes we have difficult times and have little time or scope to concentrate on a highly interactive and demanding course like this. And working for 8 consecutive weeks requires full of commitments. I am happy to see that all my colleagues are doing excellent despite all those adverse realities that we all might have.
I do believe that the tools offered to us this week are going to be so useful in our teaching contexts too. In fact, we don't have to try out all of them together. As you have talked about the logistic constraints we have here in Bangladesh, we need to be selective about the use of technology in our classes. I want to keep things simple and to supplement our traditional classes carefully and gradually with whatever digital device we may afford. For example, I don't think that creating an online learning system with ANVILL is going to work right now in our country as most of our students have no internet access at home. But I thought of using ANVILL to create my own resources such as audio/video clips and then use them within the class with the help of one computer and one projector only. I have also used some tools such as Hotpotatoes and web poster wizard to create resources for my class.
I hope Bangladesh is advancing toward using digital technology in the classroom slowly but steadily. There are a number of projects working under the ministry of education to promote e-learning at our secondary schools. The government have ensured the distribution of one computer and one projector to some 40,000 schools already. So, one day we will have one computer and one projector in each and every school of Bangladesh. But my concern is, one that is done, are we, the teachers prepared to take advantage of that technology? That is why we need to think about the pedagogic aspects that are relevant to the successful implementation of technology enhanced lessons. In this regard, the concepts of learner autonomy, collaborative learning, one computer classroom etc. will certainly help us to march ahead.
Haider
Dear Haider,
DeleteThanks a lot for your words of encouragement! I really needed them. :)
I fully agree with you in terms of keeping things simple. I believe focusing on precisely helps achieve better.
Practically speaking ANVILL can be used in private universities like ours if there's a set of computers with headphones and microphones left in a room or lab for the students to use. Many students do not have these accessories too. I think your one-computer idea is great and sometimes the students can work on the one computer and browse through ANVILL in the class.
I didn't know so much was going on regarding equipping the schools of Bangladesh. Thanks for providing that piece of information.
Tahsina
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHi Tahsina
ReplyDelete"Tools to be told" has told the story of the week. You've put it so wonderfully - and your visuals also have got it right on the head. And Zulfeqar's point that 8 weeks' concentration and dedication require commitment and we've shown it in considerable amount, indeed. Now let's see how we round up the course.
By the way, I've had a glimpse of your project report; it's been quite wonderful, especially the poll part. Best of luck with your final project.
Moni
(N.B. I love your poem that you've left in my blog, thanks.)
Dear Moni,
DeleteThanks for skimming through my project plan. I have had compliments from Hector about the evaluation questionnaire too. But I haven't done it alone. I had a little help from Courtney (as usual) there.
Best of luck with your project!
Tahsina