thoughtsteachingtechnology

=**THOUGHTS ON TEACHING WITH TECHNOLOGY**=

**by Michael Coghlan, April 2010**
I guess I could be considered a pioneer of teaching with the Internet. Thirteen years ago now, in 1997, along with Vance Stevens, I volunteered to take EFL classes online. I learnt very quickly that it was possible to teach effectively online, and more importantly, that there was something about this new medium that enticed some students to remain in contact long after official classes had formally concluded. Several students would just re-enrol for the next course, whatever it was, because they were learning //and// they enjoyed the social connection. Vance wisely suggested that we abandon the notion of formal classes and form an online community. And so one of the Internet's earliest EFL-ESL Communities of Practice was born. (1) We decided to call ourselves the Webheads and our numbers steadily grew. As many of you will know, the Webhead community is still thriving and numbers some several hundred members (or more) from all over the globe. (2) I soon started introducing Internet lessons in my face to face ESL classroom, and remember vividly the absolute amazement students showed when they realised they could communicate with people in other parts of the world in real time, or look at full screen images of the towns and cities they knew so well from their homelands. I still retain that sense of wonder about what is possible on the Internet, but for many that sense of wonder has been replaced by a sense of fear. Mainstream media delight in telling us about all the dreadful things that can happen if you play on the Internet – identity theft, cyber bullying, sexual predators etc. It is true too that the Internet has fundamentally changed the nature of modern life. We now all have access to all the content on the Internet. The gatekeepers of content (editors, publishers, record companies, film studios, etc) have been sidelined by an explosion of content made possible by social media tools. Anyone can use blogs, podcast sites, wikis, Facebook, Twitter, Flickr and YouTube to publish content to the web that has not been subject to any editorial control, and //all of it// can be seen by anyone with an Internet connection. This explosion of content means knowledge (or at least information) is no longer a static entity. (3) Information on any topic you care to name is being published to the web as I write. It is no longer feasible for an 'expert' to know everything about their field of expertise. Accordingly, people on the Internet now create what are sometimes called personal learning networks (PLNs) – a network of friends/colleagues – that they rely on for up to date news on their field of interest. The Webhead community is part of my personal learning network. The webheads share information about language teaching and learning on a daily basis. In a community like the webheads it is a given that we all understand the need to work together to remain current and up to date in the field of language teaching and learning. (4) What are the implications of all this for the students we teach? Whatever their age, most will eventually progress to a world of work or study that will be characterised by a similar context – an exponential increase in the amount of information that will require engaging in similar networks or communities to collectively manage the information flow. The phrase digital literacy is often used to describe the skills that a contemporary citizen needs to realise their potential in today’s world. The notion of digital literacy goes much deeper than being able to type, or log on and surf the Internet. It also embodies notions of networks, making connections with peers, and appreciating their personal and professional value. Digital literacy (5) also encompasses the skills needed to evaluate the flood of unedited, unmediated content that abounds on the Internet. It appreciates the fact that personal privacy is now a concern for all of us, and no longer the province of the individual alone. Der Spiegel ran a cover story earlier this year that declared “Google knows more about you than you do.” (6) As scary as this may sound, we all need to acknowledge that privacy as it was understood just 30 years ago is a thing of the past. Surveillance, Internet, and mobile technologies can track our every move, every page we browse, everything we post on Facebook. That's fact. I can if the mood takes me post uncompromising photographs of friends and colleagues, or in a fit of pique denigrate my ex-wife in a blog post for all the world to see. This ability to effortlessly publish anything anytime is the root of the very real problem of cyber bullying. In my opinion everyone who uses social media sites needs to constantly re-evaluate their online behaviour. This is especially true for school children and young adults. Curricula now need to include regular exposure to a topic we might call Internet Ethics. The individual is now in charge of publishing content to the Internet, and many educational organisations already have guidelines on what is acceptable behaviour in this new context. Now somewhere in amongst all of this the language teacher needs to get on with the job of facilitating the learning of language, just as a Chemistry or History teacher needs to get on with teaching the content particular to their disciplines. Language teachers are in a fortunate position in relation to the Internet. There are numerous excellent websites dedicated to the formal process of language acquisition. Language learners generally have an interest in communicating with people from other cultures, and the Internet is a vast potential source of authentic communication for this purpose. Language teachers should exploit this natural advantage we have over other disciplines when it comes to using the Internet. The ever expanding Internet however is a huge place, and a recent American report on the use of social media of 8-18 year olds shows that this age group are spending more time connecting with each other using the Internet and mobile devices. (7) Even if we don’t know how to teach with these tools we should be aware of the assessment possibilities that these devices afford. Students should be given the opportunity of using the new media for assessment tasks. And whatever we think of this trend of increasing use of web and mobile devices, it is likely that those with the technology skills will secure the better jobs. In conclusion I would like to make mention of an issue that is largely ignored when we examine if and how teachers use the Internet in their teaching, and that is the question of personal values. Mark Pegrum in his excellent recent book, //From Blogs to Bombs//, argues that discussions about the Internet and education “often reflect deep-seated social beliefs”, and that technology is a “battlefield on which contests over different visions of society are still being fought out.” (8) The Internet is challenging traditional teaching methodologies and changing the way we can teach. The following table highlights some of these changes. **THE CHANGING LEARNING AGENDA** **We are seeing a shift from:** || Formal learning spaces || > || Informal learning spaces || Mass learning || > || Personalised learning || Competitive || > || Collaborative learning and assessment || Restricted || > || Creative and extended || Instruction || > || Personal author and innovator || Content || > || Knowledge and understanding || - //adapted from Greg Whitby (9)// || To a significant extent the values you hold about teaching and how knowledge is acquired will dictate where you sit on the continuums above. I am not advocating a wholesale shift to the kind of teaching described in the right hand column, but if you are still teaching largely according to the descriptors in the left hand column, then it may be that you are not providing your students with the opportunity to develop the skills they will need to participate effectively in a 21st century workforce. In my presentations at BrazTESOL I will be outlining the significant advantages for teachers who align themselves with a network of connected peers, and suggesting that students be encouraged to follow similar paths to assist their own language and career development. My second presentation will focus on a particular social networking tool (Flickr) that can be used to enhance student connectedness, and promote the skills of digital literacy. I look forward to meeting you all in July.
 * References:**

1) Community of Practice. //Wikipedia//. Retrieved (2010, April 29) from [] - for more on the origin and nature of Communities of Practice 2) //Webheads portal//. Retrieved from [] 3) Coghlan, M. (2008, March). //Where is the ‘m’ in interactivity, feedback and assessment?//. Retrieved from [] - for more on the notion of ‘the mobility of knowledge.’ 4) Wenger, E. et al, Discussion (2010, Aprl 8). //Making sense of the difference between network and community//. Retrieved from [] 5) Stevens, V. (2006). Revisiting multiliteracies in collaborative learning environments: impact on teacher professional development. //TESL - EJ//, //10//(2), Retrieved from [] - for more on Digital Literacy and the expanded notion of multiliteracies. 6) Wie viel darf google wissen? (2010). //Der Spiegel//, //2//, 58. 7) A Kaiser Family Foundation Study, (2010, January). //Generation m2: media in the lives of 8 – 18 year olds//. Retrieved from [] 8) Pegrum, M. (2009). //From Blogs to bombs//. Perth: UWA. http://e-language.wikispaces.com/mr2 9) Whitby, G. (2008, July). //Evangelisation and ICT//. Retrieved from []