Do and understand

I think I’ve already said I’m slow. I hardly ever fall in love at first sight. I need to explore different angles.

When I started to explore delicious I thought the value was the obvious one: I could access to my bookmarks from any computer. The thing was… I mostly use just one computer.
First I discovered the value of network, really at first I suspected the value of a network. Some time later, when I was sure it was worthwhile, I added my network’s (not a big one, that slow streak, you know) bookmarks to my feed reader. Before that I had discovered the value of tagging. I can assure you I wouldn’t be here, writing this post if tagging didn’t exist. Tags are the pebbles we drop along the web maze to find our way.

I should teach my students to tag (Can tagging be taught?) I didn’t insist on that last year, I felt I was giving them too much information and not waiting for time to digest. They were blogging. I should have at least tried to have them play with tags.

So next year, first class I’ll teach the value of tagging. HOW? I won’t have a computer (well, some promises have been made; however, I wouldn’t count on that now). I won’t theorize about this, I know it’s useless. Maybe I’ll use my experience with drama. I’ll figure out something, I know. Drama games can be used for anything you can imagine. Drama looks just the opposite to virtual world, doesn’t it? Well, it’s not the opposite, it’s similar. It has to do with doing and discovering and learning and changing positions and looking at things from different angles and watching the other, and letting the other influence you and getting into conversations and finding your way through a maze and (again) doing. I’ll work it out. Before March or in March. And I’ll let you know.

(I’ll indulge myself. Somebody I read eagerly and admire and respect writes his thoughts in green italics at the end of his posts. I‘m not copying him. FIRST and LAST time I’ll be doing this. I promise. Let’s call this a homage.)
Shhhh. Tagging is so powerful that I could be using it to drive traffic to this blog. I could use certain tags to get people to read this post. Don’t worry. I won’t do this. I’m honest. I’ll just use the appropriate tags. I fell tempted. Just to prove I’m right. No. No. No.

Photo by Wysz

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Who teaches what

Needless to say, it’s not my specific task as an EFL teacher to introduce web applications to my students. I wish they already knew how to use them; I don’t teach them how to handle a pen, or on which side of the paper they should write; they already know how to write on a Word Doc. or how to edit a Powerpoint presentation. They are supposed to have acquired lots of skills before I meet them for the first time, so I sometimes wonder why I have to teach them things like how to download an image or how to register or how to edit a post. I tell myself they are using English in a meaningful context; therefore I feel I’m not wasting time. But what if I was a History teacher…
I wish I worked in a school where my students had ICT as a subject and not Computer Science, I wish I could use web applications just as I use the blackboard (yes, not the SmartBoard, not even the Whiteboard; I use a BLACKboard, with chalk -you know, those white sticks of compressed powder).

My question: if your students have ICT as a subject, do you set them to blogging, for instance, just as you give them any other assignment?

Note: please, do follow the link to flickr. You’ll find a student using flickr creatively. I tried to upload the photo with notes, I simply couldn’t. I’m not sure whether I have to blame WordPress or myself.

Photo by elliottcable

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