I remember this classification of skills from my course in the Linguistic University: there are active skills (speaking and writing) and passive (listening and reading).
However today this idea is so much outdated.
Receptive skills are not passive skills, because our brain works hard while listening or reading it is a complicated process of interaction with the text.
Teachers do not point out the mistakes, they show the points of growth. One part of me likes these ideas whereas the other feels a trap to fall into. Aren't we brining up a generation of weak millenials,who are not able to work under pressure?
How would you feel if you heard these words from your teacher:
Dear _____ (name), I can see your hard work and I like the way you can do this, and this... I've noticed some progress you are making here and here... You are good at learning particular things... And if you want to know youi points of growth I can help you to work on this... I believe you can do better here, let's practice more here...
Wow, these words can be so inspiring and encouraging for any learner! Have you just noticed that the teacher actually was talking about the mistakes? Have you noticed any critics? No. It sounds absolutely positive. Great job!
We want to bring up confident and successful generation, put this idea in all minds: 'you can succeed'. But how about the opposite thing, teaching to face difficulties? Facing some critics? Dealing with mistakes and self-correction? Isn't all these sweet-talking doing a bad favour? The learners who can't go on if they don't get praised and admired. The teachers who do not dare to point out the mist... misakes. The learners who can not stand the pressure of a hard task.
Am I exaggerating? Yes, a bit. I am just practicing writing a piece of text. Isn't it too emotional? Would be glad to share with anyone and get some feedback. No. The truth is: I want to be praised for my job :) kidding.
Watch this nice video about the job interview
https://youtu.be/BIpREvWtl70
*****
CONNECTIVIST LEARNING
Connectivist learning is concerned with the connections we make with each other and how we learn from each other in informal and formal, online, connected spaces. It has been described by one researcher (Siemens) as ‘a learning theory for the digital age’.
One of the key ideas in a connected theory of learning is that we learn through the diverse, personal connections that we make via the internet. It is the maintenance and development of our personal network which enables us to learn in the 21st century environment.
Connectivism stresses that TWO IMPORTANT SKILLS that contribute to learning are the ability to seek out current information, and the ability to filter secondary and extraneous information. Simply put, “The capacity to know is more critical than what is actually known” (Siemens, 2008, para. 6).
Teacher's Tools
edmodo.com
schoology.com
My favourite free tool for screencasting is called Loom.
Teacher's blog http://www.kathleenamorris.com/
Global Inglishes
Today, English is used as a world common language. And this status of the English is primarily the result of two main factors. The first is the expulsion of British empire, between the 17th and 19th century. The second is the emergence of the United States of America as the world economic power in the 20th century.
English is also a common language of science. It is estimated that about 80% of scientific journals are now published in the English.
Given this dominant role of English, it is understandable unpredictable that English is now taught as a second or foreign language in most countries across the world. And this fact might make you wonder, how many people in the world speak English today? This is actually, a very difficult question to answer. Because it is hard to define who should be counted as English speakers when there are so many people with different English proficiency levels. However, David Crystal roughly estimates that there are about 2 billion English speakers in the world. Of which, 400 million are native English speakers.And 1.6 billion are non-native English speakers. This means that now, non-native English speakers outnumber native English speakers by a ratio of four to one. This figure is only predicted to grow in the future, due to the enthusiastic adoption of English in educational policies in large population centres, such as China.
Whereas English is seen positivity as a tool that enhances intercultural communication and mutual understanding, it is also seen as a killer language that grows at the expense of other languages and cultures.
Moreover, while English can be seen as an opportunity provider that gives us a chance to be active in the international arena, it can also be seen as a gatekeeper that gives disadvantages to some people who do not speak English. Or whose mother tongue is not English.
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