[etni] Trying something new

Shalom colleagues!
 
Following is the latest discussion I have opened on ELT - Israel 
(http://eltisrael.ning.com/). It has to do with trying something new, and with 
becoming familiat with new technologies and their use.
 
I have also added some links, such as Google Docs in Plain English 
 
Unless I am wrong, I am trying to introduce a venue for communication that most 
of us, English teachers in Israel, are not familiar with: an Educational Social 
Network that is different from the one that we are familiar with, namely ETNI . 
Of course, "different" does not mean "better", but it is not necessarily 
"worse".

As a matter of fact, I prefer to see this Ning as an addition to the network 
that has been of great help to me (ETNI) and to ETAI, whose importance I 
acknowledge by paying my dues and attending at least the summer conference.

Having said all this, do we really need this new headache? What should we do 
with a ning site? (This last question is Laurie templeton's in a Using Ning for 
Educational Social Networks forum

These two, and surely others, are legitimate questions, of course. One possible 
answer to these questions is Steve Hargadon's on the same forum: "Check out 
http://socialnetworksined.wikispaces.com for ways that other educators have 
used Ning" (Italics mine)

That site (another example of a Web 2.0 tool, like Ning) is, I believe, worth 
checking. You will then be able to judge whether you are spending time, or 
simply wasting it here.

I think this Ning could live together with, for example, the ETNI mail list in 
that it might help us share stuff that other colleagues might see and comment 
on right away. It depends on us and, among other things, on our willingness to 
try out new things and be open to share thoughts as well as "material". We tend 
to ask our pupils to do at least the first (try out new things, such as doing 
English work when a few one / some / many / most / all of them couldn't care 
less about it) don't we?

Well, I ( a teacher like you, but I hope not an Eng Ning Bling teacher, mind 
you) am glad I am trying.

Eduardo Lina - 31.08.08 when this Ning baby is one week old. 


      
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