To Web 2.0 and Beyond

This week, I explored Trello for the first time and I am excited!  It reminds me of Notion , an app that I intended to use, but lost interest because of how complicated I found it. In contrast, I grasped the basics of Trello in a few minutes and created my own board this morning, which I  am excited  to share with everyone.  I created a board, chose a template, changed the background to match the aesthetic I was aiming for and began changing and renaming the lists and cards. I added cover photos to both my lists and each card (which is like a post) and placed any links in the description along with a brief annotation. I added a description of the board, so first time visitors would know what they stumbled on. I then made the board "public." You can also change your board to a "workspace," which means that everyone in your workspace can edit and add (like a collaborate project). If you haven't checked out our EME6414 Summer 2021 board, it's awesome, check it...

As I struggle to focus and do my coursework in the heat, in front of a fan, between misting myself, I thought... what a perfect time to reflect on a historical time for BC and how it relates to social media.  On Monday, British Columbia set multiple temperature records and reached record high temperatures for June. In some areas in BC, the temperatures were 90 ° F- 114.8° F. In my area, the temperature high on Monday was 90 ° F.   For those that may not know, it is uncommon to have air conditioning in homes, townhouses and apartments in BC. Few homes have built in AC because, it never gets hot enough to need it (until this June).  Fans and air conditioners are sold out or out of stock across BC. Any place that has AC like community centres, malls, larger restaurants, have been packed with people and hotels are sold out. People have been bringing towels and blankets and 'setting up camp' on mall floors across BC. Designated cooling centres have been advertis...

Completing ESL courses or an English Language Learners certificate does not always mean you are fully prepared to jump right in and be the best ESL teacher you can be (although that is the wish). Growing your pedagogical practices and learning how to meet the literacy needs of ELLs takes time, resources and collaboration. This blog is a response to someone reaching out to their fellow educators and online ESL teachers community and asking for help.  I have spent 3 years collecting resources and asking for help, because I have been there too: feeling unprepared, confused about the discrepancy between my training and the reality of my classroom and ELLs and discouraged. Don't worry, your feelings are valid and common. It will get better and that starts with reaching out and asking for help. Beginning ELLs (with little language acquisition) participate mainly in listening and viewing activities as they build comfort to explore oral and writ...

Reading "Tweet me, message me, like me: using social media to facilitate pedagogical change within an emerging community of practice" by Goodyear et al. made me reflect on my experiences of professional development and pedagogical change and how much has been in person and virtual in my experience (and also what I prefer). Professional Development Days I love professional development. In my district in BC, we have designated professional development days that are either self-directed, run by our district or school-wide. The professional development days, 'Pro-D days' for short, that are held by the district typically recruit presenters and other professionals and have been in person before the pandemic. I enjoyed being able to have a designated day and invest in myself as an educator. Since the pandemic, these Pro-D days have been hosted online.  Do I prefer online or in person? I believe because our Pro-D days were virtual, I attended more because I had the time to a...

After my first year of teaching, I realized I was unprepared to effectively support the large number of ELLs in my classroom and scaffold their language acquisition. The same year, I decided I needed to learn more about working with English Language Learners (ELLs) and a year later,  completed my post-bachelor certificate in English Language Learners. ELLs are individuals learning English in addition to their first or home language. ELLs enter our classrooms with unique cultural, linguistic and academic backgrounds. Some ELLs may be born inside or outside of the country, Canada in my context, and some ELLs may be refugees or immigrants that have had no prior schooling or interrupted schooling due to their past experiences. ELLs may be experiencing trauma, culture shock or going through an adjustment to a new country, school and learning environment.  ELLs require a culturally responsive educator who will help provide a safe and student-centered learning environment, meet their...

Put your phone down... log off... shut down... and remember your roots.   Today, I did a digital detox, not checking my phone, no social media and no logging onto Canvas. I stayed away from my computer and my phone, and this is how it went... Something's missing...  At first, it was like I was missing a part of my body! I kept going to pick up my phone and had to stop myself. Throughout the day (which was a busy one as I was teaching 22 little 8 year olds all day), it was easy not to be near my phone. Most days, I barely get a chance to check my phone, let alone, log onto Facebook or Instagram to see what I am missing. At work, I barely have time to remember to drink water. However, when I got home, it was a bit more challenging because after work is typically when I get caught up on social media and dig into my coursework!  FOMO or Freedom?  I didn't expect that I would feel FOMO, but I did. No one has ever suggested or invited me to do a digital deto...

This was my first exposure to Open Educational Resources (OERs), while I wished I had learned about OERs earlier, I am excited to dive into this new concept. So, let's talk OERs Open Educational Resources and Reaching Universal Education OERs include any kind or type  of educational materials that are in the public domain and free to learn from, use, share and remix. Educational resources are typically  published under open licenses (like Creative Commons) that determine how the materials can be used and modified for the user's needs.  The goal of OERs is to provide open access to high quality and digital educational materials.  The OER movement comes from the effort to achieve the universal right to education and to share educational resources  on a global level.  OERs have a broad range of participants that include universities, private organizations and many others.  The above video offers a brief overview of OERs and how OERs can be used to overcom...