I teach English to informatics, mechatronics and countryside management freshmen at vocational college of Tehniški šolski center in Nova Gorica, Slovenia. Feeling the urge to be able to bring the benefits of the internet more efficiently in my classes, I plunged into the cyber ocean and started to swim with the class of TESOL EVO’s BaW 06. Since then I am a Webhead and have been continuously learning to teach and learning to learn with and from other members. I am also a member of the Slovene Association of ESP Teachers.
I opened this blog in January to record my reflections on Social Media in English TEaching, a 08 EVO course I took. Unfortunately it remained pretty empty so I thought I might as well continue to develop it now as part of the Connectivism and Connective Knowledge course. So why am I taking this course?
A whole new world has opened up for me when I got ‘connected’ for the first time, both in terms of professional development but also in the more personal sense. I always liked being a teacher but used to feel quite lonely and unsure, always on the lookout for recipes that work, that bring some of that so often missed magic in the classroom… I did not find many educators around me to really turn to, so I started to search for examples of good practice online. These brought me to Webheads in Action and later to The Slovene Association of LSP Teachers and things started to change.
I first found it kind of frustrating to see how many possibilities are out there, how quickly things change, how little I know… Being a Webhead I learned to see this as a challenge, an opportunity which is out there for you to benefit, if you miss it you miss it, no need to worry too much, there is always a next time, most likely a slightly different one but a next time alright. Learning is F.U.N. - frivolous unanticipated nonsense.
I learned to relax and view my role as a teacher differently - there are things I know and many others I don’t and that’s ok. There are many things my students know and I don’t and that’s just great. Together we can make our course a meaningful experience. It’s everybody’s personal responsibility what they bring in and what they get in the end. I hope to gain a deeper insight into the world of connected learning by participating in this fascinating course. Thank you for making this possible.
