Disqus - Latest Comments for Educo11

Re: Christmas Presents from WiZiQ

Marina Petrovic — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 18:48:23 -0000

Thanks for covering these important novelties introduced at WiZiQ. It's amazing to see new improvements there almost every week. I have been teaching at WiZiQ for more than a year now, and I simply adore this platform because each new feature empowers teachers and allows students to experience real professional service.

Re: My personal Review of the E-Teachers Conference

Marina Petrovic — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 16:31:45 -0000

Thanks for the link to this excellent article and its comments. I will just quote one of them (by wbrought - July 22, 2009 at 11:57 pm) "...Successful teaching is fact, entertainment and the expression of the teacher's passion. PPt can be an incredible tool when used correctly and ruinous if not. Meaningful teacher-student dialogue ALWAYS follows an excellent lecture - whether PPt or bare-bones educated improv. How does it go?: It's a poor workman that blames his tools."

Re: My personal Review of the E-Teachers Conference

Marina Petrovic — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 17:45:27 -0000

Hi Kristen,
Thank you for organizing this event and inviting such prominent guests. I was present until the virtual classroom 'froze', and I was really interested what happened afterwards. So, many thanks again for sending all the links, chats, presentations and follow-up. As for your main question 'Do we need slides?', my answer (in 2009) is: yes. When I have my lessons in a park (rarely though ;o), I take the opportunity to point at trees, grass, flowers, birds, passers-by, or simply make most of the outdoor space. When I am in a classroom, I have a cupboard full of useful materials and 'goodies', as well as textbooks and a whiteboard. When I am teaching online, I use slides with links to great sites, Youtube, online games, latest news etc. Simply put, slides provide structure and focus. As I mentioned in the chat during the conference, I can make do without them, just by using Skype and Teamviewer. A student shares my desktop and I can avoid slides. Then I have to use my site, where I upload/link materials I need, prior to the lesson, which is more or less very similar to slides. Kochi mentioned Prezi presentations, which are very attractive, but basically, the concept is the same. To my view, the current problem is that whichever tool we choose to use, it takes a lot of time, as Panos mentioned. I guess there is a great opportunity for developers + TEACHERS to work on 'CEF based Lesson Templates' (Myngle was the first to offer such slides and I am sorry I couldn't follow Elisa's presentation about them). I am afraid I don't agree with Mike's opinion about slides - great teachers will always make their lessons circular (as opposed to linear LOL) and learner-centered, whichever tool they use. Heike's question "why not use Skype" still makes me think... and at this point of time, Skype helps me feel more secure as an online teacher - whatever may happen to the virtual classroom, I know I can rely on it... but that's just my two cents.

Re: Myngle introduces New Lesson Packages

Marina Petrovic — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 20:29:31 -0000

Hi Kristen,

Thank you for your thorough explanation.

Although I haven't been active on Myngle forum or blog, I've read the posts regularly. I also remember the 'old times', when students paid us directly, but I don't mind being paid once a month, and Myngle keeping the money in the meantime - this is what happens in the real life, right? (That's why we are still teachers, not CEOs :o)))

I guess most of the professional educators had been well acquainted with free online classrooms before they joined Myngle. Still, these 'platforms' are places where we gather to meet potential online students. Each of them(platforms) has a different set of rules and we all comply with them when we join. What I want to say is that I see no point in running someone else's business, especially if they've been very fair and brought in some money and positive teaching experience. Personally, I find WIZIQ classroom more convenient, but there are no 'paying students'...

As for 'converting offline to online' topic, I completely agree with you. I look forward to reading your post on freelancers and why they fall behind in the internet. Excellent blog, very relevant, pointing to good directions and links. Thanks :o)

Re: Myngle introduces New Lesson Packages

Marina Petrovic — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 14:09:04 -0000

Hello to Mynglers,

First, I want to say that I have been teaching offline for 15 years, being both a teacher and a school owner. Two years ago I started teaching online and I've been with Myngle for 6 months now. That's why I've read this discussion with interest. There is always a funny thing going on between teachers and school managers :o)Kristen's sentence from the previous post echoes a teacher's train of thoughts 'Myngle did not sell ONE SINGLE LESSON, the teachers did', having forgotten the investment which the school, in this case Myngle, made in advertising, promoting, etc. I also don't find complaints about Myngle taking&keeping the money paid in advance justified (they are just being responsible). In some other posts, Kristen wrote about her doubts whether to 'turn' her offline students into online, but it is just a matter of time when they start doing it themselves. And then, inevitably, they will find reliable online schools, such as Myngle, which will have had professional and loyal teachers by then. As Marina said, they will offer their service to offline schools worldwide - especially in the countries, such as mine, where there are hardly any native speaker teachers. Some offline models - enrolling a course (3/6/9 months) will apply as well. On the other hand, some practices will die out - freelance teachers can enjoy the freedom and their students paying lesson by lesson, simply because they are there - they are members of their community, but not in the world of online teaching. We, as teachers, often take some things for granted, while school owners have tendency to overlook the educational side of the story. The secret of success is mutual cooperation.