Blogs as a teaching tool

As the Internet becomes an increasingly pervasive and persistent influence in people's lives, the phenomenon of the blog stands out as a fine example of the way in which the Web enables individual participation in the marketplace of ideas.

Teachers have picked up on the creative use of this Internet technology and put the blog to work in the classroom. Even though newer and more appealing Web 2.0 technologies are on the move, education blogs can still be a powerful and effective tool for students and teachers alike.

What is a blog?

A blog (sometimes referred to as a weblog) is a Web publishing tool that allows authors to quickly and easily self-publish text, artwork, links to other blogs or Web sites, and a whole array of other content.

Blogs are set-up like conventional Web sites, with navigation links, and other standard Web site features. Blogs have one standard characteristic, however: the posting. Blog postings are text entries, similar to a diary or journal, which include a posting date and may include comments by people other than the author, photos, links, or other digital media.

Postings are often short and frequently updated. They appear in reverse chronological order and can include archived entries.

Blogs work well for students because they can be worked on at virtually any time, in any place with an Internet-enabled computer. Hence, they can be used to create a classroom that extends beyond the boundaries of the school yard.

User-Friendly Technology

Blogs are surprisingly easy to use. They require minimum technical knowledge and are quickly and easily created and maintained. Unlike many traditional Web sites, they are flexible in design and can be changed relatively easily. Best of all, students will find them convenient and accessible via home or library computers.

Educational Benefits of Blogs

In addition to providing teachers with an excellent tool for communicating with students, there are numerous educational benefits of blogs. Blogs are:

• Highly motivating to students, especially those who otherwise might not become participant in the classroom;
• Excellent opportunities for students to read and write;
• Effective forums for collaboration and discussion;
• Powerful tools to enable scaffolded learning or mentoring to occur.

Using the Blog in the Classroom

As an educational tool, blogs may be integrated in a multi-faceted manner to accommodate all learners. Blogs can serve at least four basic functions.

1. Classroom Management (blogs may serve as a portal to foster a community of learners; they can be used to inform students of class requirements, post handouts, notices, and homework assignments, or act as a question and answer board);
   
   
2. Collaboration (blogs provide a space where teachers and students can work to further develop writing or other skills with the advantage of an instant audience. Teachers can offer instructional tips, and students can practice and benefit from peer review. They also make online mentoring possible);
   
   
3. Discussions (a class blog opens the opportunity for students to discuss topics outside of the classroom. With a blog, every person has an equal opportunity to share their thoughts and opinions. Students have time to be reactive to one another and reflective);
   
   
4. Student Portfolios (blogs present, organize, and protect student work as digital portfolios. As older entries are archived, developing skills and progress may be analyzed more conveniently. Additionally, as students realize their efforts will be published, they are typically more motivated to produce better writing).

Safety issues

Take the necessary steps to secure parental permission before using the blog in a participatory manner.

Blogs may be viewed publicly, as any other Web site. Students must be trained on issues regarding access, privacy, security, and free expression. As blogs have no publisher, producer, or editor, students must carefully consider the content of postings to avoid anything defamatory, libelous, or an infringement upon the rights of others.

Source: Teaching Today (abridged and adapted)

Photo credit: Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com via photo pin cc

Online Tutoring - Teaching International Students

One of the wonders of online learning is the access to each other that teachers and students across the globe can now enjoy. For teachers seeking online teaching jobs, there are many benefits to be harvested. Any teacher who enjoys a challenge, or doing something different, may find that online tutoring of international students will suit them well. Especially in many developing countries, there is a hunger for knowledge and qualifications: a need that Online Learning is superbly well designed to meet.

What international students want - Opportunities for teaching students from all around the world are abundant, with particular demand in some educational areas. They include:

Online Education

1. English language teaching. English remains one of the key languages of international commerce, and the demand is perennial. Online tutors who can assist foreign learners with their command of the English language will find many openings. Possibilities include both structured language teaching, including grammar and English literature, and conversational English tutoring online, via video link. China is one country where students are eager to learn English with an online tutor and make the most of the new links between China and western economies.

2. SAT and GRE tutoring and test prep. Many international students, in Africa and China (to name but two) aspire to obtaining places in American and European universities. Online tutoring for aspirant undergraduates (SAT test prep) and postgraduates (GRE or GRE MAT test prep) are both areas that online tutors and educators seeking Online Teaching Jobs can usefully consider.

Skills for teaching international students

Language skills: Though many international students are well-versed in other languages, online tutors taking on foreign students will have an advantage if they are themselves bilingual or have experience of teaching learners for whom English is a second language. Note also that some learners have a good grasp of spoken English but may use a very different written alphabet. Online Tutoring may entail providing extra help with written assignments.

Cultural sensitivity: Online tutors and educators in search of online teaching jobs don't need a degree in anthropology but cultural sensitivity is essential. The scope for misunderstanding and even giving offense is magnified and before starting online tutoring of students from different cultures, online tutors would do well to familiarize themselves with the backgrounds of potential students.

The rewards of teaching international students - Many online tutors find teaching international students exceptionally rewarding, both because most are hardworking and eager to learn and because students from other cultures demand that teachers stretch themselves to meet the challenges involved. It is a way for online tutors to learn about other countries and cultures and sometimes results in lifelong friendships. Online tutors of international students can, in their own small way, use education to contribute to building bridges between peoples and nations across the globe.

Online Tutoring - Teaching International Students

Online Adjunct Teaching Jobs Equal Serious Money

Online adjunct teaching jobs in today's digital academy can produce a nice income for the dedicated college adjunct. There can be no question about the quality of the technology needed to provide acceptable post-secondary educational material on the Internet, and there can be no question as to the need evidenced by new and returning college students desire for more and more online college courses as they pursue the completion of an AA degree online, an online bachelor degree or an online master's degree. These circumstances combine to create a relatively new economic playing field, so to speak, that can be engaged by college instructors willing to lean the specific dynamics of earning an online adjunct income. The sheer number of existing and emerging online universities demands qualified college instructors to teach the classes, and as a focused adjunct instructor can teach as many online classes as he or she can manage on a daily basis. Granted, in order to teach ten online college courses requires razor-sharp time management skills and the ability to focus on a computer screen for eight or ten hours a day, but the person with a graduate degree in the core areas of higher education who can successfully juggle the multiple responsibilities can certainly bring in serious money every month.

For example, if an adjunct is teaching online for four different community colleges, state colleges, state universities or any of the for-profit post-secondary educational institutions, and the adjunct has two online classes at each school, then there is income from eight different classes. Assuming a general fee of two thousand dollars for each class and assuming that each class runs eleven weeks long, and many community colleges and an even greater number of for-profit schools are now offering eleven-week academic "Quarters" to their students, that teaching schedule would generate approximately sixteen thousand dollars for the teaching adjunct before taxes. Further, if the classes are repeated throughout the year, and it is more often the case now that online college degree programs run a full forty four weeks across a twelve month span since computer technology doesn't need any time off during the summer, then a college instructor teaching core subjects such as English, math, history or psychology would earn as much as sixty four thousand dollar a year. The geographical difficulties alone of trying to make this kind of money as an adjunct at traditional college campuses offer on-ground courses is the stuff of legend since access to multiple physical schools would require dependable personal transportation, large amount of travel time and residence in a city that actually had that many schools. However, it is different with online adjunct employment because all that is needed is a computer and an internet connection to make online adjunct teaching jobs produce a living wage for those who teach college courses.

Online Education

Online Adjunct Teaching Jobs Paradox

Teaching online as an adjunct is much more like working as a small business owner than it is a traditional academic on the tenure track. This is something of paradox because adjuncts are generally considered part time employees by the schools they work for during the year. For example, there are some tax breaks that independent contractors and small business owners would be able to take advantage of but the online adjunct is not afforded because they are part time employees. So, the positions with the schools contain some paradoxes. For example, the online college teacher is required to supply their own computer and Internet connection. In addition, there are some drawbacks in terms of ordinary benefits usually associated with being an employee even on a part time basis and they must be understood and accepted if there is to be any real engagement with the new academic paradigm of distance education. Full time online adjuncts will probably not have access to employer-provided health care benefits, but they probably won't have it offered to them at on-ground schools either because the entire point of hiring a lot of part-time college teachers is to save money on the cost of health care by not offering it to every teacher on campus.

Therefore, the online adjunct who teaches ten classes will have to find and pay for health care on a retail basis. On the other hand, there are several for-profit schools that offer a voluntary retirement package to their online adjunct teachers, and that is a decided improvement because it indicates that adjunct are working online in such large numbers now that they are being seen as a cash cow by those that monitor labor trends. Still, from the perspective that the chances of landing a full-time academic position on the tenure track are dwindling to a trickle the prospect of being able to earn a decent living from the comfort of almost any location has a distinct appeal, and the saving alone from not having to fuel and maintain an automobile could go a long way to paying private insurance premiums. Happily, since online teaching can be engaged and accomplished from almost any place on the planet, it has a lot going for it in terms of personal and professional freedom.

Online Adjunct Teaching Jobs Futures

As more online classes are made available to new and returning college students attending accredited online degree programs there will be more and more work for college instructors with earned graduate degrees. Undoubtedly, the vast majority of work will be available to those instructors with degrees in core subjects every college student must enroll in and pass in order to earn a college degree in any academic discipline as there are always more new students than upper level students in any academic program. It will certainly take a serious amount of work and attention to find and teach eight online college classes, but it will certainly be worth it since the alternative is to continue barely scraping by teaching on-ground courses are multiple traditional schools that require the adjunct to maintain an automobile so they can show up to class at the various campuses. The college teaching work is on the Internet now, and there will be more of it as time goes on. As a result of this academic certainty it is a very good idea for anyone who a graduate degree to start seeking out online adjunct teaching jobs now by visiting every community college, college and for-profit school's web site and applying to teach an online class.

Online Adjunct Teaching Jobs Equal Serious Money

ELT and UK's National Gallery

Museums are an excellent source of information for educational purposes. The UK's National Gallery has available a very interesting tool for teachers of Arts and English. You just have to click the Learning tab and choose the option Teachers' notes to have full access to a whole set of preious work/assessment done by other teachers. You can get ideas about how to explore a resource or which resources best fit your needs!

Online Teaching Jobs

For many individuals accepting a contract to teach a college-level course online is just a job. However, it can be more than that. Teaching online can be made into a career, even if the teaching contracts are part-time. After all, enough part-time work equals a full-time salary. I know many people who earn their living as part-time professors. To them, this is more than just a job, it is a life-style as well as a career. Of course, there is no upward mobility, however, a surgeon, a dentist, or a physical therapist has no upward mobility either.

One of the pluses about teaching online as a profession is that you are able to create your work environment. Many professors prefer to do their online teaching at home. However, I know several individuals who rent office space and prefer to go there to do their work. They find it too distracting when they remain at home. In the morning, I enjoy my five-second commute. It saves me time, hassle, and travel expenses. My family cooperates with me. If I leave my office door open, that means that I do not mind being interrupted. However, if the door is closed I am left alone.

Online Education

Another positive aspect obtained by online teaching jobs is that you are in control of your financial destiny. You are the one who will determine the annual salary to be earned. By knowing how much you will be paid per course, you can determine the number of courses you will have to teach in a year to achieve this goal. The rest is up to your initiative.

By setting a specific annual salary you can determine the number of hours you will need to work to fulfill your goal. Knowing the income and hours worked, you can determine your hourly rate. Since online teaching jobs should be considered to be a business, you should set an hourly rate that is reflective of your efforts. Remember that the higher your hourly rate, the fewer hours you will need to work to achieve your income goals. However, the best part of online teaching jobs is being able to make a difference in the lives of your students.

Get started earning a significant income as a part-time professor at:

http://www.adjunctteachingonline.com

Online Teaching Jobs

Online Teaching

For millennia education took place "face-to-face" between mentors and their students. However, it is no longer necessary for professors to be in direct contact with their students. Courses are taught using the internet and are either called online teaching, online education, or distance education.

This enables students who have hectic or erratic schedules to avail themselves of educational opportunities. There are different online delivery methods as well as major differences between traditional and online education.

Online Education

A major strength of online education is that it can be offered in an asynchronous format. That is, the professor and students can access the course online and post comments anytime they wish during the week, as long as attendance requirements are met. Students have the necessary flexibility so that they can meet the course requirements within their particular schedules.

There are different types of online teaching. There are regular courses with much interaction between students and teachers, hybrid courses utilize a combination of asynchronous and synchronous delivery methods in which the class has specified times to meet and discuss topics via a chat-room, or CD courses in which assignments are posted to an email address, graded, and returned. This enables students to choose the type of delivery system that is most complementary to their schedule.

Software companies have developed different educational software programs, or learning platforms, that have become popular. This includes BlackBoard, eCollege, WebCT, Embanet, Angel, and Moodle. There are advantages and disadvantages for all of them. However, they all have one thing in common: Simplicity of use. There is a very short learning curve for both professors and students alike. The academic institution chooses the delivery system and then trains their professors to use it.

In addition to the benefits of online education, there are also certain disadvantages. This learning format is not for everyone. People who habitually procrastinate or need one-on-one help may find that traditional education is more conducive to success. Students must be intrinsically motivated to succeed. Students in online courses are self-taught while having the guidance and help of their professor. Thus, the educational format a student chooses must be done with care.

Get started earning a significant income as a part-time professor at:

http://www.adjunctteachingonline.com

Online Teaching

Online Teaching Jobs: Options For Educators

For educators who want to move beyond traditional teaching methods, online teaching jobs, with instruction delivered via the internet, can be an exciting new direction to explore. Teaching jobs centred on classroom instruction demand a particular set of communication skills. Online teaching jobs allow teachers to explore other means of delivering knowledge to learners. This can be stimulating and exciting for educators in online teaching jobs and online learners alike.

Delivering Knowledge and Instruction Via the Internet

Online Education

The internet offers diverse opportunities for educators to teach online. Online teaching jobs come in many shapes and forms, and use different strategies to engage and instruct learners. Some parallel traditional classroom instruction, but there are also other opportunities for educators to use interactive technologies to deliver knowledge in new and innovative ways.

1. Online teaching in virtual classrooms and webinars. It is perfectly possible to use the internet much like a conventional classroom, with instructor-led teaching delivered by video link in real time. With the right software (WebEx is one example) it is possible to conduct lectures, workshops and other meetings almost as if all participants are gathered in the same room. Attendees can ask questions and discussions can take place. This is an especially good option for adult learners who do not require additional supervision.

2. Blended learning. Studies have shown that learners whose course content is delivered both in conventional classroom contexts and via the web tend to achieve more highly than in courses that depend on one or other of these options. Some educators may be well placed to deliver the web-based component of blended learning courses (or both).

3. Distance learning - one-to-one. Video calling, screen sharing and interactive whiteboards make it possible for teachers to instruct individual learners, almost as if in a private tuition situation.

4. Online tutoring jobs. In the array of online teaching jobs, online tutoring is a popular option. Rather than delivering the primary instruction, tutors provide additional coaching, supplementary to lessons. Varieties include catch-up tutoring, remedial lessons, test prep and homework supervision.

5. Materials development for online learning. For educators seeking online teaching jobs that do not necessarily involve direct instruction, there is often a call for devising teaching materials designed especially for delivery over the web. That material can be delivered with or without active input from a tutor. For teachers interested in the new ways of learning that the internet offers, this can be a rewarding career path.

6. Online learning communities and peer-to-peer learning. Teachers seeking new ways of offering learning support may wish to experiment with web-based learning communities, where learners with common interests and problems can interact (either via message boards and chat rooms or by webcam), preferably in a moderated environment where expert help is available. The collaborative learning environment that the internet facilitates is one area of online education with enormous but as yet under-explored potential.

Online Teaching Jobs: Options For Educators

Lingvarum Arena

For teachers interested in Didactics of Languages. This digital magazine was created by Faculdade de Letras da Universidade do Porto and can be accessed and downloaded at: http://ler.letras.up.pt/site/default.aspx?qry=id04id1339id2317&sum=sim

Online Teaching Employment

People believe that online teaching employment is hard to obtain. This may or may not be true. Several factors affect your ability to obtain online teaching positions. It depends on the need of the institutions, your major and the degree, the amount of teaching experience you have had, the amount of previous online teaching experience, the online teaching platforms you are familiar with, and where you have previously taught.

If a school has a need to have a course covered for the upcoming semester, then the amount of teaching experience you have is secondary, as long as you are certifiable to teach the course. It is frequently a nightmare for administrators to find qualified professors to teach popular courses. The current in-demand fields are nursing, criminal justice, homeland security, business, statistics and math, English, and education. For those of us who are qualified to teach courses that are not in high demand, must dig a bit harder to find schools that need our expertise. However, rest assured that they are out there. Another factor to be aware of is that we will only be able to obtain one or two contracts a semester from each school we have been accepted to teach at. We can still have full teaching schedules by affiliating with additional schools. Thus, teaching in a field that is not in high demand is not necessarily a problem. It may be more of a hassle finding additional positions but we can teach as much as those who are in high-demand fields.

Online Education

Interestingly, many colleges prefer to hire professors to teach in an online curriculum who have had previous onground teaching experience rather than hiring people without onground experience. Professors with onground experience know how to handle a class and resolve conflicts. They have an understanding of the needs of a class and have become classroom leaders. Their training program will prepare the professors to make the transition from onground to online education. However, some schools only seek professors who have had prior online teaching in a particular teaching platform. Then, they do not have to put much emphasis on training new faculty. There are hundreds of colleges and they all have their own unique needs that must be fulfilled. This is fortunate because it makes it easier to gain online teaching employment.

Online Teaching Employment

Online Teaching Positions

There are many online teaching positions available on a part-time basis. There are two factors that have caused a significant increase in the number of teaching positions: Trends in online education and the economy. Online education is becoming increasingly main-stream. Sufficient studies have demonstrated that teaching online is as effective as regular classroom teaching. Increasing numbers of schools have started online programs. Most online programs are rapidly increasing. Although full-time professors are starting to teach online more than they did in the past, it does not take up the slack when it comes to the shortage of online professors.

Due to the downturn in the economy many college-level programs have tried to cut corners to meet lower budgets. One of these ways is to eliminate full-time professor lines. Thus, there are fewer full-time professors available to teach the existing courses for these colleges than before the downturn. This is indeed a conundrum because student enrollments are increasing. Large numbers of adults are going back to school. Many of them have lost their jobs and they must retool themselves to remain competitive in the marketplace. Since many of these adult learners have families to take care of, they are frequently opting to take courses online. This critical shortage of college-level professors is being alleviated somewhat with the use of adjunct professors. Colleges must rely on more aggressive marketing to find an adequate pool of online professors. In good times, I would find a suitable online opportunity every two-to-three weeks. Currently I can usually find a new available position almost every day.

Online Education

Once you are hired by a college and prove your value to them as an outstanding online professor, they will keep you and will offer you courses every semester. Imagine the income you could earn if you could establish a good relationship with several colleges. This is the advantage of being a part-time professor over being a full-time one. The number of colleges you teach at and the number of courses you teach is your decision. There is no conflict-of-interest because of your part-time status. There are no bosses and by teaching online you can teach wherever you have an internet connection. You can consider yourself to be gainfully unemployed.

If you wish to earn a substantial income as an adjunct professor, go to:

http://www.adjunctteachingonline.com

Online Teaching Positions

Never forget that...

found pic @ Stratford Library

Online Teaching Jobs - Continuing Education

Learning isn't something that stops the day we graduate from high school. Today it's widely recognized that learning is a lifelong experience. Continuing education aimed at adult learners is an area that educators seeking online teaching jobs might want to consider.

Why do adults enroll in continuing education? First of all, it's because they want to learn. This makes online teaching jobs in this field attractive to teachers who prefer to deal with mature, motivated learners.

Online Education

What do they want to learn? Adult learners may be seeking further qualifications to help them in their career. If you are seeking to specialize within your online teaching jobs, then this may be a niche to consider. Skills that adult learners seek include math skills, language skills and business training. If you can offer help in these areas, there will be people out there seeking assistance.

Alternatively, some adult learners may be aiming to become more well-rounded individuals. It's not uncommon for adults sitting back at some point in their career and having a rethink about their life direction. They may say to themselves that though their career choice was a sensible one, they really wish they'd followed their passionate interest in astronomy, or creative writing, or film studies. If you can tutor or offer courses, then again, there will be people out there who you can help.

The great thing about teaching adults who are seeking to broaden their horizons is that they may not be seeking qualifications. They want to learn about something, but their prospects don't depend on getting certification. That means that your online teaching jobs can focus on the subject in hand, without having to build your online teaching jobs around passing tests and teaching to a curriculum.

Don't forget the silver surfers. It's true that some older people aren't computer literate, but these days they are rapidly becoming the exception. Retired people have the time, and often the money, to enroll in courses that will keep their minds stimulated and occupied.

The scope isn't limited to academic subjects only. Online teaching jobs aren't just about academic subjects. They can be about feeding people's passions in all sorts of leisure pursuits and hobbies. If you have the skills and the knowledge then you can pass them on to others. If you're a chess grandmaster or an expert gardener, these are all skills you can impart online.

There are teachers who can teach anything to anyone, but many teachers have a preference of some kind. For some that is engaging with primary school children. For others it might be college students. Learners in different sectors have very different needs and aims. If you think that adult education might be a field that you would like to specialize in, it's certainly possible to do that. As jobs get tighter, mature students are more abundant. The importance of keeping your brain busy after retirement is more apparent than ever before. Online teaching jobs that cater for adults, or for older people, could be a rewarding career choice.

Online Teaching Jobs - Continuing Education

19 Pencils - Discover, Manage and Share Content for Learning

http://19pencils.com/ is a free site that lets you discover and share educational websites, quizzes and other resources, as well as put all of that content on a website that students can access.

It is extremely easy to use, has some great features, and an excellent tool for teachers. You can also search the site to find content that is already there from other teachers. Check it out!