Netiquettes

I’ve always thought that when communicating on the internet we have to be very specific and clear, because it has happened to me that because we don’t have a way to see the facial expressions or to listen to the tone of voice, some misunderstandings arise. So every time I communicate on the internet I try to be very careful with the words I use and if it possible try to make them sound softer in case they might be interpreted as something else. Of course, now that I have read more on netiquettes I am much clearer, I have learned a lot of things that we can use or that we shouldn’t use when writing on the internet, and it has been very helpful, but of course everything improves with the practice.  :D

In the society there are always rules to follow for everything, to make a registration, to drive, to behave in a public place, and even to communicate, therefore we have the speaker and listener rules which helps move along a conversation in a good way. Just as we have rules when talking face to face with a person, we have some sort of rules or guidelines that we should follow to keep a good and nice communication on the internet. Some are not aware of this, but yes, even on the internet we need to follow certain rules so we can keep a good communication without offending, attacking, or causing any misunderstanding. 

So when writing on internet be aware of:

Capital letters are used for shouting
Try to make messages short, you can use abbreviations to do that.
Make use of the emoticons to add personality to the messages.
Be conscious on what you are posting.
Don't respond to flames.
Do not send spam (it is very disturbing to be receiving unwanted emails)
Forgive bad spelling
Do not use images or content without permission
Remember that what you post can be seen by any public.





 

Technology in the Classroom

Currently it is very strange not to find someone who is not engage (at least in a way) to technology therefore it has now become part of people’s life, either it is daily or sporadically, people are on a web page, on a blog, on a social network,  messenger, etc handling these new tools.

Nowadays that technology has progressed at a really quick pace it is important for us teachers to be updated in these advances and of course be able to manage it. On the web we can find a lot of resources that can help us improve our classes, at this time it is very rare to find someone, I mean a teacher, who has not used the web to look for some material, listening or just ideas to plan a class. And we can also integrate or encourage our students to make use of this resource not only for social purposes but for learning too.  A more advance and modern teaching model may be more attractive for students and might help motivate them. 

I think we can use technology in classroom in two ways:

-By having a lab in the school and controlling directly the assignments

-By sending assignments to be done on line (just like we are right now)

Of course in our country it is not very likely to find institutions with these accommodations, therefore for us it results more beneficial the second one, to work online, which by the way might bring more benefits to the students. They would be able to work on the assignment wherever and whenever it is possible for them to (of course with a due date), they are able to learn not only the subject that is being studied but the use of the computer too, they feel more motivated with a new and interactive teaching model, they learn to administrate their time (depending on the group you are working with), all these among others.

However to be honest I think the use of technology in the classroom can make things easier or more difficult depending on how well one manages it.