Case Study 2.2: Sharing the experience of web tools in Brazil
Ana Maria Menzes is an English teacher, teacher trainer and head of the Edutech
Department at Cultura Inglesa, a language institute in Uberlândia, Brazil. She teaches
mainly classes of teenagers. Ana is convinced of the value of using Web 2.0 with
teenagers in particular, and thinks that one of the benefits is providing extra skills
practice for the learners to do at home. She believes that although many teachers
have integrated technology into their classroom practice, far fewer ask their learners
to use technology for language learning at home. Ana has tried out a lot of web
tools and makes a point of selecting the tools depending on the skills she wants her
students to work with. Her learners have all said they prefer this type of homework.
Internet-based project work group activities which ‘lend themselves to communication
and the sharing of knowledge, two principal goals of language teaching itself. The use
of projects encourages co-operative learning, and therefore stimulates interaction.’
(Dudeney and Hockly, 2007: 44)
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Let’s look at a typical project of hers; one that she has recently started with a class
of upper-intermediate students aged 15–16. Her objective is to provide the learners
with extra writing, reading, listening and speaking practice at home.