Teacher Discussion Forums

Hello all,

Has anyone used blogs/ or wants to use blogs in a EFL/ ESL context?

I know sites such as http://www.crimsonblog.com/, and the theory of getting students to create their own online diary sounds great in theory, but....does it work in practice??

Hi drumbrake!

I use forums
what would be the advantage of a blog?

So far I have not really seen the necessity

Siân

Hi Sian,

I agree that forums are great tools as well, but the topic is decided in advance and this can restrict the learner.

Before I have used 'paper' learner diaries, where the student writes what they want, hands it to me one lesson and I return it the next lesson. In the past this has proved a good way of encouraging reflection and fluency amongst learners. I think blogs can be an updated version of this with the additional benefits of being motivational and online.

However, I am sure there are drawbacks, for example sharing passwords, and the fact that the blog is in theory viewable by everyone.

That's why I wanted to know if anyone had experience of using them in a EFL context.

Hi drumbrake!

In my online classroom the students open forums themselves and start topics. Some forums are open to all and some are restricted to usergroups.

http://www.fun2learnmore.de/modules.php?name=Forums

I plan to test with blogs though now in ESL context
Thanks for the pointer

Siân

PS If you want to see a mate's professional usage of blogs ( however not for ESL just for exchanging ideas)

http://www.angryorange.net/

Hi all,

I'm running a blog site for an EFL class at a Japanese college. The students are writing short essays as well as photo haikus. It is a shared blog. You can visit our site to get a general idea how a student blog works. We welcome your comments and haikus!

The URL is: http://www.intl.chubu.ac.jp/ozeki/diary/MTNWU/

Yes, I did.

Nice format, nice entries, I enjoyed it tremendously.

What was the participant talking about, however, who said that they put mortar into their rice-cakes?

Couldn't have been the sand-cement-and-water mix that I associate with the term, could it?

sita wrote:Hi drumbrake!

I use forums
what would be the advantage of a blog?

So far I have not really seen the necessity

Siân :D

One advantage is if learners in an EFL context want to practice with native speakers. I don't know of any predominantly native speaker message boards, but most blogs are run by native speakers. And bloggers have more pride in their entries than a typical poster to a message board. Check out my new site, Blogs for learning English & teaching English for some very high quality blogs that welcome comments from people learning English.