Developing your teaching online @
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By Nik Peachey
I’ve been involved in teacher training for almost 15 teachers to grow in ways that would just not have been years now and those 15 years have seen an enormous possible a decade or even five years ago. shift in our profession as in most others. The catalyst for this shift has of course been digital technology and more For decades now the prime and preferred method of specifically the communication possibilities offered by the professional development has been the conference. For Internet. At its best, the application of new technologies many teachers this is a chance to regenerate, renew old has enabled teachers from around the globe to connect acquaintances and make new friends. The continuing communicate and exchange ideas and materials at a rate growth and popularity of conferences like IATEFL and that has never been possible before and in my role as TESOL can bare witness to this. As part of the team that teacher trainer and course developer I’m becoming works on delivering the IATEFL online experience I know increasingly convinced that the considered application of that there were some initial misgivings that the online new technologies has made the delivery of online training offer could potentially undermine the physical event, but courses not only, cheaper and more accessible for on the contrary it seems to have had the opposite effect teachers, but I genuinely believe we and making so much of the conference “…there were some initial have reached a point where online available online has only fueled misgivings that the online teachers’ desire to attend the event in teacher development has become a offer could potentially more effective means of developing person. Recent research I carried out undermine the physical teachers than face to face. i n t o t h e p re f e r re d m e t h o d s o f event, but on the contrary it professional development of over 125 In our ‘traditional’ context as teachers teachers supported this assumption, seems to have had the we lead a very isolated existence, with conferences still coming out at the opposite effect…” despite that fact that we spend most of top of the list. our working lives surrounded by students. Many teachers are rarely if ever observed, and often the purpose of this Not surprisingly though the next three places were all observation is most often quality control rather than taken by web supported methods of development, these development. Many teachers work in staff rooms where being webinars, Twitter and online courses. there is little support or exchange of ideas and where Web based seminars, or webinars as they have become colleagues either teach other subjects or prefer to spend known have become increasingly popular over the last as little time as possible actually in the building. For new few years. The improvements in connection speeds or aspiring teachers this malaise can soon become coupled with better PC sound quality and the availability infectious with teachers choosing to take the easy ground of a number of free or low cost platforms have made and repeat the same tried and tested lessons over again. these a genuinely viable alternative to attending a face to The arrival of the internet and especially ‘web 2.0’ type face conference, in fact some cash strapped teachers’ applications which support user created content and associations have organized complete 2 and 3 day events social networking, have enabled enthusiastic teachers to using virtual platforms rather than go to the huge bridge that isolation and reach out to a myriad of expense of hiring a physical venue and organising hotels individuals with diverse experiences and opinions and and flying in speakers. draw on the creativity and generosity of their peers to nourish their teaching experience and enable so many