I have recently joined an amazing group of EFL professionals called The C Group, which advocates for more creative and open teaching practices. Creativity is probably one of my favorite topics and challenges. I have battled against many myths on my way to develop a more creative self. In this short article I share some of the facts that helped me in this process and the practical tips I follow to turn my creativity on.
Now you have more tools for great teaching. Share your ideas and inspiration with us.
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A couple of months ago, Tom March wrote an article reflecting on the 20th anniversary of WebQuests. He later wrote on his blog that “The heart of the reflection was that I think we’ve missed two decades of opportunities for educational technology in K-12 schools to make a difference, to achieve the goals we had for ICTs to empower authentic, personally rewarding and meaningful learning.” Why did he say that? To answer that question we need to understand what WebQuests really are. The concept of WebQuest was developed by Bernie Dodge and Tom March in 1995 and it was defined as “a scaffolded learning structure that uses links to essential resources on the World Wide Web and an authentic task to motivate students’ investigation of an open-ended question" Some educators welcomed the idea and developed their own WebQuests. On the other hand, many teachers complained that WebQuests were too structured while others just tried to complete the different sections without giving a second thought as to the real purpose and underlying essence of the WebQuests. The concept became misused and abused. Nevertheless, I think that its essence should be celebrated and encouraged because it as relevant today as it was twenty years ago. “Constructivist strategies, differentiated learning, situated learning, thematic instruction, and authentic assessment are at the heart of the WebQuest model. Students reflect on their own metacognitive processes and develop as independent, expert learners.” As far as I know, that is what every informed teacher is trying to do in the classroom today. I guess that after all Tom March is right. We have missed the point. If you are new to the concept of WebQuests have a look at this short overview. If you create a WebQuest for your students or you ask them to create a WebQuest by themselves drop me a line and tell me about it through the blog's comments section or our social networks. Now you have more tools for great teaching. Share your ideas and inspiration with us.
Open Educational Resources are more than just “free stuff”. They are a new way of thinking about education. They advocate for the universal right to have access to information and knowledge using the power of the Internet to scale up educational opportunities. They make it possible for people around the world to have access to information and to create knowledge collaboratively. Teachers who think of themselves as owners of knowledge may feel threatened by OER but educators who understand that they are facilitators of learning, pedagogy experts and student’s mentors will welcome and contribute to this movement as it helps to develop a better and more democratic world. GOOD TEACHING is […] not only motivating students to learn, but teaching them how to learn, and doing so in a manner that is relevant, meaningful, and memorable […] Richard Leblanc, Ph.D. Good teaching is about sharing. OER let every educator do that and more and more people worldwide benefit from it as a result. "Good teachers couldn’t imagine doing anything else". For more on this topic see our discussion or join our social networks and tell us what you think! 3 keys to turn your students into FANs of your subject, based on what they love the most: games.Now you have more tools for great teaching. Share your ideas and inspiration with us.
Storytelling is a very exciting world that engages our emotions, our imagination, our human nature. As we have discussed on our social networks this week, it can be a great tool for educators.
Therefore, without further ado let us begin with our story on storytelling...
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Blogging is a form of written communication that benefits from the internet for mass distribution. As such, when writing a blog it is essential to have something to communicate: a message that the recipients will find value in. Creating content that stands out of the too many words people read daily on the World Wide Web demands a unique, highly-interesting and engaging message to transmit.
Great communication comes from sound questions and honest answers. Becoming a person who does both well is probably the single most daunting challenge bloggers face. There are several principles for efficient written communication and marketing techniques but they come to nothing if the message is plain. So, whether you plan to start a blog or use blogs in your classroom, remember that the real purpose of blogging is not developing writing skills but rather communicating your unique personal voice to the world in a purposeful and meaningful way for you and your audience. (If you have missed Next Step Forward's Blogging Week on social networks you can have a look at the resources here) Now you have more tools for great teaching. Share your ideas and inspiration with us. :) Based on Rogers’ diffusion of innovations model, today´s teachers are urged to become early adopters of educational technology for the benefit of their students. However, instead of worrying about where in the adoption curve each instructor fits in; educators should become familiar with the main factors that influence the adoption of an innovation in the first place. In fact, it is precisely the discussion of these factors that help people cross the chasm and become adopters, as shown in the following picture: According to Rogers, the evaluation of an innovation’s competence takes into account its:
History shows that education has always been aided by tools. Moreover, most teachers agree that technology has the potential to motivate and improve students’ skills if used with a sound purpose in mind. However, many instructors are not using technology in their classrooms as much as they could simply because they lack confidence. Most educators have been tricked into thinking that EdTech is all about complex technology and gadgets, strange acronyms or mission impossible tasks. Nevertheless, taking a closer look at the concept, it is evident that the educational part goes first. And the fact is that there is nobody like a teacher to see the real educational value of something! Believe it or not, this is much simpler than most people think.
If you follow these three simple steps, you will be able to innovate your teaching practice and improve your students’ learning experience, one tool at a time. But most importantly, you will develop a solid judgment of EdTech in practical ways. This is essential as most teachers do not have proper training or much saying as regards the school’s policy on the subject. So, the key is to just start where you are and with what you already have. There are many free useful resources to help you out. That is, after all, Next Step Forward´s purpose… And hopefully, we serve you well. :) References Rogers, E. M. (2010). Diffusion of innovations. Simon and Schuster. For a good summary of this book see http://www.enablingchange.com.au/Summary_Diffusion_Theory.pdf (If you have missed Next Step Forward's EdTech Week on social networks you can have a look at the resources here)
Now you have more tools for great teaching. Share your ideas and inspiration with us. :) Intelligence starts with curiosity and a growth mindset; with humility and a hungry mind. As Socrates stated, “I know that I am intelligent, because I know that I know nothing”. Developing this disposition to learn is one of our most important goals as learners and teachers. Simply put, intelligence is the ability to reflect on one’s experiences (taking into account the many aspects involved) and learning from them. It is a lifelong process with a series of steps as shown in the following picture. What if, as teachers, we model this love for learning in our classrooms instead of obsessing on student’s achievement? What if we encourage students to be passionate about learning? At the end of the day, isn’t it what being a teacher is all about? “I am not a teacher, but an awakener.” ― Robert Frost (If you have missed Next Step Forward's Intelligence Week on social networks you can have a look at the resources here) Now you have more tools for great teaching. Share your ideas and inspiration with us. :) The brain has been the subject of an endless debate; different models have been proposed to explain how it works and the function of each of its parts. Thanks to technology, we have a better understanding of the most complex organ of our bodies and great animations give us the feel of what it looks like. Fortunately, we do not have to be neuroscientists to benefit from what technology and science have discovered. As learners we need to develop brain-friendly learning techniques and spend time discovering how we learn better. Different subjects usually demand different learning strategies. It is a self-discovery process worth our time! Take into consideration the following five simple facts: As teachers we need to remember that students have selective attention. The relevance of the content and the students’ motivation are key to the learning process. Focused attention usually lasts around 10 minutes, after that period, we need to re-engage our students in a personal and emotional way. Following these simple rules you will be able to design better learning experiences for your students and avoid accelerating the forgetting curve. (If you missed the Brain Week on social networks you can have a look at the resources here) Now you have more tools for great teaching. Share your ideas and inspiration with us. :) Innovation is not a passive adaptation to new circumstances, It is an active breakthrough into the future. When I started reading about the new teaching trends discussed on this site, I usually felt that they were too far away from my reality. It was just not possible. Then, I decided to look at it from a different perspective and asked myself: “Which is the next step that I can take today in order to move forward and reach these goals?” That's how Next Step Forward was born. I strongly believe that you can make the same resolution today. I hope this material inspires you and that you find it useful. Feel free to comment and share your experiences. I'm looking forward to hearing from you!
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Author
I am a passionate teacher of English with more than 16 years’ experience working with all kinds of levels and age groups. A few years ago, I became interested in EdTech. Einstein´s quote "We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them" has inspired me to start this blog. Categories
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