What a Decade of Education Research Tells Us About Technology in the Hands of Underserved Students

Although this post is about students in the west, certain aspects can be applied to situations in Thailand. Click on the link to read the full story. 
 

https://www.edsurge.com/news/2016-05-19-what-a-decade-of-education-research-tells-us-about-technology-in-the-hands-of-underserved-students?utm_content=buffer7e8cf&utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkedin.com&utm_campaign=buffer 

Try MindMup for your mindmaping needs in the classroom.

from free technology for teachers by Richard Byrne

MindMup is a nice mind mapping tool that can be integrated into your Google Drive account. MindMup works like most mind mapping tools in that you can create a central idea and add child and sibling nodes all over a blank canvas. MindMup nodes can contain text and links. When you're ready to save your MindMup mind map you can save it to Google Drive, save it to your desktop, or publish it online. If you publish it online, you can grab an embed code for it to post it in a blog post or webpage.

I have used this app for the writing section of the learning journal. If you have a Google account, it integrates well with other Google applications. 

https://www.mindmup.com/#m:new-a-1466347047357  

Teaching English In Thailand: Is The ‘No Fail’ Policy Failing Students?

The short answer...yes. For Thailand to be a competitor in the ASEAN market English must improve. The tourism industry in the next 10 years alone will increase from 5 million to 8 million workers. Unless something in the Thai education system changes, the next generation of Thai youths may have these opportunities slip between the rungs and go to their Asian neighbors instead.
Click on the link to read the full post from "what's on Sukumvit"

http://whatsonsukhumvit.com/teaching-english-in-thailand-is-the-no-fail-policy-failing-students/?utm_content=bufferd7af0&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer 



 

Ten innovations that have changed English language teaching

Here is a post from the British Council about interesting innovations in education. Click on the link below to read more.

 https://www.britishcouncil.org/voices-magazine/ten-innovations-have-changed-english-language-teaching

Adapting Folktales for ELL Learning Activities

For a number of years we have been trying to improve the reading abilities of students at my school. Folk tales are stories deeply ingrained in the cultures of the world. They add mystery and substance to our lives. This poster on the TESOL forum was able to achieve some success with his Spanish students. Click on the link to read more. 

http://blog.tesol.org/adapting-folktales-for-ell-learning-activities/#more-8207

Being an English teacher in Thailand just got more difficult

Council set to test all English teachers. According to a recent Bangkok Post article, the TCT will institute more tests to ensure the quality of English teaching in Thailand. That in itself is a good thing, but there was quite a heated debate on social media on how this would be done. Like usual, the article just seemed to raise more and more questions than answers. Click on the link for the full article. 

    


http://m.bangkokpost.com/most-recent/998229

Read, Write, Think

I found this website featured on the technology for teachers website. It is called Read Write Think. It is a great place to find story starters and interactive writing templates. A good example of that is found on Read Write Thinks compare and contrast map. Also check out the other classroom resources and the professional development section. 

http://www.readwritethink.org/

Seminars and Conferences

Seminars, conferences, training meetings, and even just two teachers sharing ideas is the best way for educators lift up our industry. Networking with professionals within our industry is essential. Here are two upcoming local events in Thailand. Click on the links for more information.  

 http://www.fllt2016.com/

 http://conferences.in.th/litu-culi/2016/index.php

Professional Development Webinars

CPD or Continuing Professional Development is and will continue to be part of the education industry. Let's face it, we want to be better teachers for our students right? and our bosses will continue to make it mandatory for us to engage in some form of CPD. But many times seminars or classes are expensive, too far away, or in many cases not appropriate to our type of teaching. So I am a strong believer in starting your own personal CPD. There are many ways to do this. Form groups of like minded teachers at your school or near by schools. Get your self on some email subscription lists. These are just a few of the many ways you can start. Even if you cant get others interested in CPD's you can still do it on your own. I have found a website that hosts educational webinars on a wide range of topics and I wanted to share it with you. Click on the link below. 










https://www.graphite.org/webinars

2 Great posts on the TESOL Blog

Game-Based Learning and Pre-K–5 English Learners

Game Based Learning (GBL) and K-Grade 5 English Learners.
Although GBL is usually associated with middle or high school students, there are many ways it can be used with pre-K–5 students. Click on the link below for more information.

http://blog.tesol.org/game-based-learning-and-pre-k-5-english-learners/

Although GBL is usually associated with middle or high school students, there are many ways it can be used with pre-K–5 students. - See more at: http://blog.tesol.org/game-based-learning-and-pre-k-5-english-learners/#sthash.DYa5n9WA.dpuf

At the 36th annual TESOL Convention that had the theme of "Empowerment Through Glocalization"  9 strategies came up to deal with the changing landscape of ELT. These strategies are happening in the west, but do not exist or are slow to catch on in Thailand. Please click on the link below. 

http://blog.tesol.org/9-strategies-for-21st-century-elt-professionals/  

                                                       

Empowerment Through Glocalization

Game-Based Learning and Pre-K–5 English Learners

Game-Based Learning and Pre-K–5 English Learners

Game-Based Learning and Pre-K–5 English Learners