Web 2.0 Project Based Learning. Vicky Saumell at LABCI 2011 On July 14, the first day of the LABCI Conference in Asunción-Paraguay, Vicky Saumell gave a workshop on Web 2.0 Project Based Learning.
Vicky has recently changed the English syllabus in a regular school in Buenos Aires, where she is an English teacher and coordinator, and started working with Project Based Learning using web 2.0 tools. She went from traditional teaching & learning to PBL syllabus created by the teachers. It was not an easy task to change the school curriculum and to train (and convince) teachers to do the same, but it was definitely a rewarding change. Vicky explained why the shift to PBL and where the work was done with her students. Why? There’s more motivation among students.21st Century Learning Skills. Where? In the classroom.In the computer lab.Data projector in the library. Vicky shared 7 of her projects and the tools/language she used with each one of them. 1. 2. 3. Copy of Project Based Learning by Vicky Saumell on Prezi. DigitaLang » #IATEFL2012. I saw a few great Talks at IATEFL Glasgow 2012, I met some great people including a few EFL Stars” like Scott Thornbury, however, no-one left a greater impression on me than Karin Tirasin and Çigdem Ugur who gave a talk at the LTSIG event.
Inspired, enthusiastic and perhaps a tiny weeny bit overwhelmed by talking on an international stage, they and their ideas were, quite honestly, brilliant. If it’s possible to summarise a 45 minute talk in a just a few words it’d have to be: “They used mobile phones.” Seeing as that doesn’t really tell you much, perhaps: “They used mobile phones, in class, in great fun, engaging activities, using multimedia, QR codes, digital literacies and.. and and… ..and the main thing to note is the activities were all very well thought out pedagogically and they used “all four” of the language learning skills; listening, speaking, reading, writing as well as grammar and dictionary skills.
Choice in the EFL Classroom (by Vicky Saumell) I have been teaching teens for 20 years and finding effective strategies to motivate them is something that I have always been interested in since it has really helped me with my teen classes.
The best strategy in my bag of tricks is CHOICE. The first time I came across an academic concept of choice was when I read “Choice Theory in the Classroom” by William Glasser. This 1986 book may seem too dated but it was an eye-opener for me and has deeply influenced my teaching. Later, in the late 90s I was presented with a coursebook that had the distinctive feature of allowing for choice of tasks at certain stages of each lesson. The book I’m talking about is Cambridge English for Schools by Andrew Littlejohn and Diana Hicks. Vicky.saumell.efl. ELT + Technology: e-Publishing IATEFL talk by Vicky Saumell. Vicky had the slot after the first IATEFL plenary in Liverpool this year, and she began with a great warmer where those who had been to IATEFL before gave tips to those who hadn't.
As one who hadn't, I got lots of advice from people around me and met a few people that I went on to see again at different talks throughout the week. Onto the e-Publishing, Vicky introduced her talk by saying that when work stays in the classroom, the audience for the students is only the teacher. This seems obvious, but I hadn't previously realised how important a fact that is. Publishing online gives students a purpose, helps them develop ownership, focuses their attention on accuracy and ultimately motivates them to put more effort into the task or project. Vicky suggested a number of different activities that we could do with our learners:1. It's clear that no teacher could do all this at once, so the advice from the session was to take it slow.
Implementing Digital Storytelling with Teens. Educational Technology in ELT: April 2013. Vicky Saumell. Vicky Saumell - Turning homework into an effective learning opportunity. Homework is a complex issue with many factors affecting its success or failure.
To begin with, homework is usually loaded with negative connotations. Ways of Promoting Creativity in the Classroom. ISFA - home. Guest post 18 – Vicky Saumell on life after course books. My latest guest blogger is Vicky Saumell, a blog superstar – her Educational technology in ELT blog came in at number TEN in the Lexiophiles Top Technology blogs of 2010, for which many congratulations, VS!
Like many guest bloggers before her, Vicky is someone I discovered via twitter and blog world, having been linked to her blog and finding it really useful, written so that even a techno-duffer like me could understand it. Vicky was the first twitter-friend I met at IATEFL Harrogate when she walked into Christie’s Bar shortly after I did. Since then, I have been so determined that she should write something for me to post here that I allowed her carte blanche regarding subject matter.
I may live to regret this. Below you will find a very persuasive set of arguments in favour of abandoning the use of course materials. Sadly for me and my ilk, these arguments are out there already. Do your worst, Vicky…