Coming soon: We will be looking at Innovations in Teaching in a forthcoming radio series that you can access via this site. Topics will include the use of Interactive White Boards (IWBs), schools that teach subjects like Science through English, the explosion in reference materials available to learners, new approaches to grammar and lots more.
Do recent innovations have any effect on your teaching?
This topic is now closed, thank you for all your contributions.
Yes, a lot
66% (65 votes)
A little
28% (28 votes)
Not much / not at all
6% (6 votes)
Total votes: 99





Comments
admin
Although a lot is available on the Net, few teachers are able to use it. At times it is felt what is discussed in seminars & workshops is not applicable in classes with 30 or more students.
Judit Ballonga, Spain
There is no doubt that the internet is a most useful tool and it has been very hepful to my teaching, for example I often tell my students to practise their listening skills by using the net, and they can do that at home as part of their homework, I also take them regularly to the school computing room to write mails to their pals in other countries. They also like doing Webquests. However, I must say that it is sometimes difficult to do all that because of technical problems of the school computers or because the computing room is not always availabe as there are too many students who want to use it.
Teaching English team
Hello Elisabetta. We were intrigued by your mention of the hypertext strategy and would like to know more about it. Please contact us at teachingenglish@britishcouncil.org
Elisabetta Nucifora, Italy
The thing that has most influenced my teaching of English has been the hypertext strategy, taken from software organization. I have found that planning microunits on the basis of hypertext models can be quite helpful both with gifted and difficult students. The hypetext layout (which doesn't need the computer itself to be got through, helps getting vocabulary and structures across and facilitates the communicative approach. And if I want to concentrate on the lexical side, I can do it quite easily.
AbderRahim CHALFAOUAT-Morocco
One of the most recent innovations in educational enterprises is the introduction of the Internet. ELT classrooms, and schools in general, have tried to cope with and guide the notable use of the Net in cybercafés. Another innovation is the communicative aspect that has overwhelmed the textbooks, with less grammar and more learner-centredness and training. I have changed my sage on the stage mode to a mere-guide-on-the-side one.
Ron MacEwen, France
The main difference to me has been through access to an enormous range of materials - too much in all honesty. In France they're not as comfortable with/dependant on the Net so the student take up isn't what you'd expect. Having said that it's only a matter of time before this changes The issue with the Net, as always, is how best to harness and exploit it If you're anything like me you'll spend too long looking for interesting ideas and inspiration and not enough working on basic teaching skills - there is after all a plethora of materials available without even switching on the PC Regards
Beth, USA
Although education is changing constantly, the school system I am in does not have the money to keep up. We still seem to do the job the same way we always have, with limited use of computers and available technologies. I am afraid we cannot keep up with the way the world is changing. Th public doesn't want to put the money into education right now; our hands are tied and will continue to be until public perception changes.
George Steed Poland
My teaching/tutoring changes because of pragmatic concerns. Currently I note that students do very well with reading and writing but poorly listening or speaking. Pedagogy spends too much effort on the former skills and not enough on the latter. I also think that classroom teachers talk too much. Students have very limited attention spans! I am trying to use exercises that require students to speak. Example: Have student pose questions to teacher. Teacher can reply correctly or incorrectly. Comments?
Jill, UK
Many colleges in UK are teaching English through other subjects (they call it 'embedding'). One question seems to be can the English teacher teach the subject and/or can the subject specialist teach English?