At first, I want to share what I feel as only a week is left by the end of the course. Now I feel like becoming a tech savvy user from an average tech user who just knew how to surf the net. It is like a new world! I think that I can put myself into an advanced user, compared to my friends around me who do not know anything about social bookmarking, RSS aggregators, podcasting, creating a website, plus wiki. I am proud of myself to teach such things to my husband who is in the technology industry but do not know anything about that. :)
However, it seems that knowing technology is one thing; using technology is another. Although I reviewed the articles about Wiki, it was hard for me to understand how it really works and how it is different from a blog. Technology is just fearful technology until you experience so that you can actually use it at your convenience for your own purpose. I may finally figure out how wiki works next week while I actually participate it.
To make contents I am learning in this course meaningful, I always try to search how they are used in ESL/EFL areas.
Here are some wikis for ESL/EFL.
http://e-poche.net/?p=65
http://wiki.eflgeek.com/
http://www.opensource.idv.tw/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
After learning how to participate wiki next week, I am thinking to contribute to one of wikis, (I was surfing around those wikis but cannot figure out how to participate, and had an impression that wikis for this area do not exist as much as other contents areas. :-O) through which I might be able to not only study more about it but also build up a community with other teachers.
Furthermore, although you know how to use technology, it does not mean that you can use it in your classroom successfully. As one interesting blog entry talked about "failure of wiki in classroom," it would be a common concern for teachers who tried to incorporate technology into classrooms but the technology turned out frustrating. Any experience like this?
I remember one ESL class I took a few years ago. I had the Internet class once a week, when a teacher just instructed students to visit her ikeepbookmarks.com and surf the useful websites to learn English. I felt that I could do that even at my home. The Internet should be used in a useful way, but I worry if I will be able to maximize the Internet potential in the classroom. I may experience trials and errors until I find an appropriate technology tool for the classes.
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3 comments:
I'm not sure if you're looking for the how-to of using a wiki in the classroom or for more strategy level, but here's a site that covers lots of areas: ikiw.org.
Inkyung,
I share your sentiments on wikis. I think I have the general idea about them, but I am not certain I will fully understand them until I actually use them. I admit I have my reservations, but maybe after next week I will be a full-fledged wiki-convert.
Hi Inkyung,
You are right - it is one thing to learn about new technology. Ensuring that it is used in the classroom is much harder. Our software programmers developed a trading simulation tool that utilized a computer and overhead projector to help provide advanced learning tools for our classrooms. It was somewhat difficult to learn and only a few other teachers were comfortable using it. Even then it wouldn't get used unless one of our few senior instructors set it up and volunteered to run it. I think some of the teachers were more comfortable using older, less technology intense methods to teach option pricing and trading theory.
Josh
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