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Blogs
How to get the best results with the least effort
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
A couple of assumptions
Learning technologies are slowly and irrevocably changing the way students learn
Technologies are often unavailable for profitable use at school, whether for lack of equipment or for teacher reluctance
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
How to bridge the gap?
Grabbing things by the horns Starting soft That is, trying the easiest tools first,
in order to get the best results with the least effort.
BLOGS
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
Why blogs?
Are extremely easy to implement Even the least savvy person can create one
in a few minutes Plenty of free available blog service providers Can be updated at home both by teachers
and students Are powerful tools to share original content or
embed existing Internet resources. Allow teachers and students to interact on a
different and more equal basis
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
Tools
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
My favourite tool
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
Blogs for students
Also known as Tutor blogs, can be used to Provide extra material Quickly link to Internet resources Make the most of multimedia Share references Sum up main ideas about topics Explore themes Offer suggestions Assign tasks and activities
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
A few examples
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
Blogs by students
What for
Collecting students’ production Recording experiences Sharing …. (ideas documents, pictures etc.)
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
Sample blogs
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
Blogs for and by students
Also called class blogs Shared space to which both teacher and
students can contribute Sort of classroom extension Teacher can provide prompts and/or
instructions Students contribute with their own
production
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
A few Samples
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
Blogs for projects
Blogs are ideal spaces for developing
projects, especially projects carried out
between classes in different countries
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
Pros
Advantages are numerous. In fact blogs can be used even in an extremely technologically poor
environment provide a basic approach to technology resources help widen scope enhance variety be used as storage devices for reusable materials provide audience for students’ production offer visibility help improve language skills, particularly reading and
writing (but alslo listening)
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
Cons
There might be a few drawbacks Creating and updating blogs means extra work
for the teacher Correction becomes an issue Comments – or the lack of – might create
problems Privacy IS an issue Interaction might be difficult to get started and
kept going so you might need a different kind of tool
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
A few tips Start soft: choose the type of blog which best suits
your needs and experimente with one or a couple of classes
Find a special reason for starting a blog and try students’ reaction
Do not expect students to be over-enthusiast Remember: it’s you who have to keep things going
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
Conclusions
Though blogs are by no means the “cure it all”
tool they might prove useful to Get familiar with technology Start using technology based resources Try different teaching approaches Provide scope for students’ activities Get access to authentic material ……. (name your own)
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
Milan, 23-25 March 2009 Maria Teresa Ciaffaroni
References
A few useful resources if you wish to know more on the
matter Campbell AP 'Weblogs for use with ESL classes'
http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Campbell-Weblogs.html Downes, S., Educational Blogging,
http://connect.educause.edu/Library/EDUCAUSE+Review/EducationalBlogging/40493
Stanley, G., Blog-EFL, http://blog-efl.blogspot.com/ Stanley, G., blog for ELT,
http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/think/articles/blogging-elt
Ciaffaroni, M.T. Blogs, http://www.slideshare.net/ciaffaroni