A Water Drop!

Web Enhanced TPD
Due to constant advancement of Internet technologies, everyday the sun shines with a new "popped-up" opportunity to interact in cyberspace. The new born opportunities are brought on a silver plate for educators, teachers and learners. The interaction can lead to facilitating of language learning, teacher training and communication between both teachers and learners in the Internet.Issues of TPD have been in constant discussions in most educational forums in Sudan, as well as other developing countries. The major focus of this paper is to spot light on how a successful online learning, with the free Web tools, are used for EFL/ESL teachers around the world for ongoing TPD. The major objective is to further our understanding about the use web tools,( the why, how and what), with a suggestion to implement some of them in Khartoum for TPD.
This is my introduction for a short article I am planning to send to a local newspaper soon (time..time..time...)I guess a water drop is not an easy thing to get in summer ,so this is a water drop in a full water spout!

Don't throw what you already have!

On 11th of April, I had a Skype meeting with
Mr. Ahad from INTERLINK langague centers.I was well prepared with answers to questions like "Tell me about yourself", "why do you want to work with us?", etc.
It was aweesome how the conversations was turned over to soemthing like" why do you want to throw ALL what you have" for the sake of " the unknow"?
My eyes were wide opened on different aspects related to the job specifications.It was a truely freshly-minted experience. I was being semi-interviewd.Thank you Ahad!

To Web 2.0, with love!!

What a coincidence! Immediately after the previous post, at 8:00 GMT, I attended an online presentation of Vance at Ankara, Turkey recorded with Audacity to show it later on my presentation on June and I took some screeshots.Viva Web 2.0! A website????

Static Websites.Again?

Upon a suggestion to create a Yahoo Group for ASTEL, association for English language teachers, a professor suggested a website. Again. A static website, tidy, colorful, organized and up-to-date software used. OK .What the fuss? What will the teachers do then? If I were in their place, I will move to the BBC site to get more up-to-date information, lesson plans or whatever. I sent back to tell my own point of view and I think Web 2.0 is an orphan term and not a buzz word here in Sudan.
Enforcing teachers to use the technology is another way around to lead them through the path of online teacher professional development.

Old "Q"s

"we must instill a sense of duty in our children"; "every right implies a responsibility; every opportunity, an obligation; every possession, a duty"- John D.Rockefeller Jr

NEVER CAN THE FUTURE BE PLANNED ON THE BASIS OF THE PAST." EDMUND BURKE

"You deserve all the praise you get and much more".Teresa.

"Technology is not being handled to help learning,
but just to have the technology there, to show it off".Daf

"I am afraid that while Technology is the main concern of institutions and not the integration of technology in education, things will not
change. Techies have the power now and they know nothing about education."Daf

"An online presence to me is in essence a set of WELL organized bookmarks" Vance.

"so virtually re-defined I remain, until the next evolution." Karen

"There is no use giving a sermon in Latin on how totill the soil.
The only way to help the poor lads outside who don't know a seed from
a plow share is to SHOW them."
Lyda Peters

Free Help for Online TPD

I have been helping my students in the YG I created how to use technology to improve their English. I can not describe how I feel when I see a student uses a correct English word, or when one of them succeeds in adding a widget all be himself!I have been taking courses online to learn how to integrate the Internet into the EFL classroom, but everyday, I get more more convinced that training teachers to use online tools is must.They need to be introduced to social networking, CMC and different Web 2.0 tools to help in their professional development.
If they only see the glowing eyes of my students!!!!

The Human Network

This is what I posted today on our class blog.

Why Our Minds Wander (published) (Stephen Krashen's Mailing List)

I love Krashen everyday crazy comments and review.Here is his latest comments on this article.
Wednesday, Mar 28, 2007, Page 8
It seems that most scientists who study why our mind wanders assume that it is a bad thing ("Scientists explore the `wanders' of the human mind," March 23,
page 9). Sometimes it is a bad thing, but often it isn't.Creativity research consistently shows that "incubation," some quiet time in which the thinker is
not concerned with the problem at hand, helps with problem-solving. Piaget, for example, went for walks when faced with hard problems in his work and Einstein played his violin. Both found that solutions came easily after a short
period of relaxation. Research also shows that good thinkers actually schedule in "idle time" after periods of hard work.
When the mind wanders, at least in some cases, it may
be because the mind needs to "incubate" over a
problem. Artificially forcing the thinker to stay
"focused," without allowing incubation, might inhibit
creative thinking.
Remember when you were staring at the ceiling in
elementary school and the teacher asked you whether
the answer was on the ceiling? Maybe it was.
Stephen Krashen

TEACHING ENGLISH Search Engine

TEACHING ENGLISH Search Engine by Claudia Ceraso from http://eltnotes.blogspot.com/
is focused on international examinations: FCE, CAE, CPE and IELTS. Find exercises, news and edublogs. Relevant sites database last updated: February 2007.

ICT for ELT

Monday ,November 13,2006
This website is formally a proposal for an Education sub-portal to be developed as part of UNESCO's Knowledge Portal -- specifically that section dealing with teacher education and information and communication technologies or ICT. However, it provides a wealth of resources for those interested in the topic.

Forward:Thoughts:British Council Forum

Today,it was the monthly English Forum at the British Council Sudan.The purpose of this post is; my discovery,for my surprise, is that;when I heard myself talking/expressing/discussing/suggesting ,guess what? I am amazed!!!Am I full of all these ideas???
I suggested,one day, to Jenny in our ELU, that we could meet twice a month, do a presentation about using ICT in ELT,or maybe for TPD,a workshop maybe as a hands-on practice for integrating web tools into our classrooms.How about smashing the nutshell:towards becoming a web.2.o English language teachers".It came up into my mind when I was asked about further suggestions is to create a yahoo group for teachers in the whole of the Sudan:"Crossing State Boarders:ELTSudan.After I defended my idea,I just fell in love with it!Anyway, I was nominated to join ,after December voting,the steering committee in the Forum.I also put a date to my presentation/workshop/session in March,in shaa Allah!

Forward:I Take the Challenge

5/5/2006
Alas!I have time for blogging again.Today,at the English Forum,I know that it will be a challenge to talk,or even whisper,about blogs.I will take the challenge and ,in the mean time,I will creat my first blog for students at Tagana.I will keep my fingers crossed!

Moving Posts from "Forward" into "Hello World"

Tdoay,at last, I managed to have time to move all posts from my other blog" FORWARD" into here, in an attempt to make things organized!From here I go... upward!!

I can’t teach properly

I’m growing increasingly frustrated in the teaching profession. I can’t teach the way that I want to, and I find it extraordinarily difficult to teach in the ‘traditional’ manner which is assumed and seemingly expected by all around me. This means I fall between two stools of conceptions of teaching. Allow me to elaborate and explain…..."Do these wrods applicable to your setting??? They do for me!Read below and tell me!!!
I can’t teach properly

I can’t teach properly

I’m growing increasingly frustrated in the teaching profession. I can’t teach the way that I want to, and I find it extraordinarily difficult to teach in the ‘traditional’ manner which is assumed and seemingly expected by all around me. This means I fall between two stools of conceptions of teaching. Allow me to elaborate and explain…..."Do these wrods applicable to your setting??? They do for me!Read below and tell me!!!
I can’t teach properly

Muslim focus for British Council

I wonder whether this is going to affect us , directly or indirectly, positively or negatively!!How marvelously they put objectives for the far future to guarantee security and peace for people and country!!! A true genuine organized British plan!
A diversed point to consider when we deal with the BC could be clear in Dr.Amna Bedri reply to my FWD message about the topic:
"salam,
Thanks hala very interesting, its also up to us to make use of this
opportunity especially in the field of ELT and to beware as well
two years ago I attended a workshop in Britain and all the focus was on
eastern European countries and south America to the extent that i
complained
to the organizers, we were three Muslims from Qatar and Iraq???? and
me.in Sudan focus is on the south and Darfur, that what they said so we
were disadvantaged 3 times for being Sudanese, teachers not politicians and
working in the north of Sudan.so lets think hard"

First Blended Learnning: CPD

First Blended Learning: CPD

A course I am eager to take

2007 Leadership Development Certificate Program
Leadership Development for Professional Growth is designed for TESOL members who are interested in building leadership and supervisory skills
needed within the EFL/ESL workplace. This new strand was developed to address the increasing need for leadership training geared to supervisory positions within language programs. More on TESOL

When I looked upon the specification of the workshop, I said to myself”Wasn’t this what we have been talking about today concerning what teachers need?”
Qualities of Effective Leadership
The key to effective leadership resides in learning to master a set of skills that range from managing processes to inspiring others to achieve excellence in their work and in how to assess one’s own abilities related to these skills. This workshop will focus on developing key leadership skills related to communication, coaching, delegating, and developing teams. These skills are used when hiring people, letting people go, running meetings, resolving conflict, and delegating authority. Self assessment exercises will be offered to help participants both assess and improve their leadership ability.
Financial Planning: Budgets and Course Costing
To ensure an ELT organization meets its goals and provides quality programs and services to its clients, it must be financially viable. Financial management and planning are crucial skills for leaders of language programs. In this workshop, we will present basic principles for developing and monitoring budgets. Tools for developing a business case and evaluating financial performance will also be shared.
Leadership for Teacher Change: Supervision
Leaders in language education must spend considerable time and energy on teacher growth and development. This workshop will focus on a model of supervision that derives from research, uses a paradigm for learning and teaching that is grounded in a constructivist approach to education, and focuses on improving teacher effectiveness and professional growth.
Strategic Planning
ELT organizations need to respond to changing demands. Strategic planning is a process an organization uses to examine itself and its environment to determine where it wants to be in time and how to get there.We will present a framework for strategic planning and provide tools to work though the process with interactive, problem-solving participation.

Should's /should not's

I dedicate this to Dr.Amna Bedri,whom today seemed, unlike her always shinning optimistic character, pessimistic today about integrating technology into classrooms.
"In fact, one of the saddest but most common conditions in elementary school computer labs (when they exist in the developing world), is the children are being trained to use Word, Excel and PowerPoint," Mr Negroponte said.

"I consider that criminal, because children should be making things, communicating, exploring, sharing, not running office automation tools."
Read the rest of the article on BBC NEWS website about the The scheme is hoping to put low-cost computers into the hands of people in developing countries.

Workshop at Ahfad

I am just going to post this with a very fast typo ,untill Dr.Amna sends us "the attachment" by email,or was it a joke? I am dead brain now!!
Today, I attended a workshop at Ahfad University for Women on the pre-session course for all programmes. Teachers form many university participated in the workshop, providing, information ,talking about their own experiences. ALL have agreed upon the problems that face teachers ,students and faculties to attain the level required. The problems were summarized on the following:
•Untrained teachers. Some teacher assistants are graduated from faculty of Arts, received no in-service or pro service training.
•Large classes of students(100-400).
•Lack of motivation from students side
•Low level upon entrance.
•Not enough contact hours(2 hours per week)
•Lack of syllabi
•English is not given a credit, thus students are de-motivated to spare time and effort to study hard to pass.
•Administration is not willing to provide any further help. Deans and coordinators even sell it out leave science to the scientists
•Not enough staff
•No rooms available is what teachers hear when ask about increasing contact hours
•Teachers are frustrated enough as not to be in a status for looking for more innovative ways in ELT field or any other way to motivate students .
•Teachers have a misconception of TPD, teacher training and teacher education, though these terms have been used interchangeably lately .
Suggestions
All participants thanked Ahfad University for their constant initiatives taken in order to grab EFL teachers “out of the nutshell”(my expression). Moreover, they also believe English language is the gate towards success in study, research and fining a job.Dr. Amna Bedri promised to send us the dissemination of he workshop. These are summarized points ,as far as I can recall:
1.division to three groups :teacher training, content of syllabus and policies and administration.
2.Processional course is vital.Fees 150-250 Credit hours 120 per month.
3.A general unified course for ESP is required for all universities.
4.ASTEL ,association for EL teachers in Sudan, is about to be registered. This should be taken as a step towards unifying efforts of teachers in all parts of the country.
5.Activations of TRC teacher resource center, in Ahfad, in cooperation with other teacher training centers, like Al Azhari University, to start providing workshops, seminars and lectures for teacher training and teacher professional development.
6.Needs analysis for syllabus design/how material is selected/realistic objectives
A POINT TO REMEMBER:
When online TPD is suggested by me, Dr Amna attacked it from different angle; students vary in their levels, from beginning-post intermediate, thus special attention is needed to EACH student .Definitely agree, but even in a group of 4,I can divide the task into four to assure each is engaged into separate part ,which he has to accomplish by himself or with the help of the leader of the group.
Very Disappointing?????Tea,I know,but challenging too!