Using Technology in Instruction: A necessity for all teachers
Using technology to communicate: emailing and texting students
I find that communicating with my students by Whatsapp and email is an indispensable part of the instructional routine. It gives them practice for the post-academic world where they will maintain contact with employers and co-workers. It also necessitates the use of a proper register of grammatical English. I teach them that texting me can be done "in emergencies" - and does not function as "Social Media" with me.
Using technology as an instructor in the classroom: A brief, personal philosophy
I view technology as a means for students to learn how to think in ways not presented in a conventional educational setting. They also gain invaluable skills, access necessary information and prepare themselves for their future. I believe it's imperative to teach this alongside the ESL curriculum - to support it.
During Spring Semester 2012, I taught 62 students in all 3 of my Engineering classes how to build blogs. (Click here to see one example of a student's blog.) As a follow-up project, a number of them continued to work on Electronic Portfolios, like this one you're reading right now.
I personally use my laptop about 85% of the time during each instructional period. This enables me to:
I also download and project images and Youtube videos for topical studies in areas like engineering, science, business or agriculture.
Much of this computer-based activity has been turned into presentations that I've made at conferences in Oman, Turkey, Europe and the Sultanate of Brunei.
Below is one example of how the Internet enhances classroom instruction:
Before studying dams and reservoirs, engineering students viewed the following video from Youtube, bringing the topic to life, and demonstrating how the Panama Canal locks work:
During Spring Semester 2012, I taught 62 students in all 3 of my Engineering classes how to build blogs. (Click here to see one example of a student's blog.) As a follow-up project, a number of them continued to work on Electronic Portfolios, like this one you're reading right now.
I personally use my laptop about 85% of the time during each instructional period. This enables me to:
- model correct grammar assignments or make comments - on-the-fly - in MSWord
- use special pdf software (Adobe Acrobat Professional X) to mark-up scanned or converted files, and
- connect live-time to the Internet to access Google Search, Maps, Images, Google Translate and Youtube.
I also download and project images and Youtube videos for topical studies in areas like engineering, science, business or agriculture.
Much of this computer-based activity has been turned into presentations that I've made at conferences in Oman, Turkey, Europe and the Sultanate of Brunei.
Below is one example of how the Internet enhances classroom instruction:
Before studying dams and reservoirs, engineering students viewed the following video from Youtube, bringing the topic to life, and demonstrating how the Panama Canal locks work: