Teaching English with Technology – does it work? Part 1

Teaching English with Technology – does it work? Part 1

If you’ve had any contact with youngsters over the last few years, you’ll have noticed that they seem to spend a significant amount of their time glued to a range of digital devices. Partly because of this, English language teachers are often told that they should be using digital technologies to enhance their teaching and to increase their students’ motivation.
But the essential question – Do digital technologies actually help students learn English? – is not always asked. Let’s ask that question.

The 1-minute guide to the digital divide

After a 9-month break – the gestation period for my latest book (Focus on Learning Technologies, Oxford University Press, forthcoming 2016) – I’m blogging again. And in deference to our ever shortening attention spans, my ‘1-minute guide’ series is back. Here’s a 1-minute guide to the digital divide (mainly for English language teachers).

Future present

  ‘The past is always tense, the future perfect’ (Zadie Smith) I’ve been thinking about the future a lot recently. Specifically about the future of education, and how it will be affected (or not) by technology. These musings were prompted by...

Two free online conferences 11-13 October

  Interested in learning how educators are using technology with their learners in a range of different contexts around the world? Read on. There are a couple of free online conferences about using technology with English language learners next week (11-13...

QR codes: A treasure hunt

Here’s another classroom idea for using mobile devices and QR codes. It’s a simple idea, based around the concept of a treasure or scavenger hunt, where students need to find specific information in various locations. In this case, my international...