Teaching EFL Using Twitter

Twitter, according to Wikipedia is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables users to send and read short 140-character text message, called “tweet”. It is kind of online social media that connect us with people around the world easier than Facebook. 

How can it be? If in Facebook we have to add and wait for the confirmation from person that we add, but in Twitter we just have to follow people that we want, and without waiting for confirmation we automatically can see what happens with the people from their tweets. Usually, most of us use it for following such actors and actreess. 

I am sure that teenagers nowadays have twitter account for entertaining.

For teacher, you can use it to teach English. Yeah, you can use that popular social networking among your students for teaching English.

Here what you can do with twitter for teaching:

• You can do online discussion through twitter, just decide the day and the time, for example you do it once a week on Monday at 8 p.m. In your online discussion, ask students some questions related to the materials and ask them to respond it. Or maybe they have questions about the materials that they have not understood yet. Use certain hash tag to make your students easier recognize the online discussion.
• You can use twitter for giving information or announcement about your class, such as assignments, due date for submitting assignments, or maybe when the class off.
• Using twitter, you can ask your students to make summarize or main point about the lesson of the day, or articles, or others.

These are some ideas about teaching EFL using twitter. My suggestion for teachers, let’s use our creativity to make our teaching learning process more interesting for our students. Because there still many ideas that we can do with technology to teach English. ^^

Podcast for EFL Teaching and Learning

Using Podcast in teaching is effective way. It is a facility that is provided by internet and will help teacher in teaching language. It is free to get podcast in the internet.

Generally, we know that podcast is for teaching listening skill, but, if we think again, it is not only help students to improve their listening ability, but also help them to learn pronunciation for example, writing, and reading. so, we can integrate listening using podcast with other skills. 

How to use podcast for teaching writing?

Yeah, for teacher, you can ask your students to summarize or note-taking from the podcast they heard.

How to use podcast for teaching reading?

It is simple. Just give students the transcript of the podcast, then ask them to listen to the audio, after listening for once or twice, ask them to read again and comprehend it.

So, actually, teaching using podcast is not only for improving listening skill, but also integrating skill that will improve pronunciation, writing, and reading of students. it depends on the teacher would combine podcast with what skills. 

What is the benefit of podcast?

Everything that is related with technology always become interesting for students, using podcast, they can choose the podcast they like and based on their level, because podcast that is provided in internet has various topic.

How to use podcast for ESL learning?

·         1. Ask students to look for podcast in the internet, like BBC Podcast or Effortless English Podcast. 

·         2. Ask them to choose the podcast they like.

·         3. Ask them to summarize what they heard from the podcast.*

·         4. Sometimes, ask them to present it in front of class about it.

*it can be other options, based on teacher's goal.

That is the example of teaching idea using podcast, as teacher, you can use your creativity to make your teaching always interesting for your students, so maybe you can find other ideas for teaching ESL using podcast. 

Facebook for EFL Teaching and Learning

Together with the growing sophistication of technology, teachers can use it as the way to teach EFL, one of them is using facebook. Nowadays, who doesn’t know facebook or doesn’t have facebook account, especially teenagers? I swear almost most of them have it. Yeah, as teacher, we can use facebook as teaching learning resource.

How to use facebook for EFL teaching?

Although facebook is popular among teenagers, it’s no mistakes if you (as teacher) also have facebook account. For teacher, using facebook, you can join some pages in facebook about the ideas in teaching English, you can contribute there (comment or post something), so you can interact and share ideas with other people around the world. This way will help you increase your creativities in teaching.

Here the example of pages in facebook for teaching English:

• Teaching English-British Council
• Teaching Ideas
• Grammarly
• Songs for Teaching

And then, how about your students? How they can use facebook as EFL learning?

First, you have to make sure your students have had facebook account. If they don’t have yet, you must ask them to register here. It is free.

Second, make a close group in facebook for your class, where you can post materials, assignments, or create discussion with your students there.

Third, give weekly task for your students. For example, they must update status using English at least twice a week, and ask other students to comment it using English. (you can also determine the time or day for they updating status using English)

Fourth, ask them to like some pages that will support them to learn English. You can give recommended pages for them, or maybe they have other pages address. 

The example of facebook's pages for learning English are:

• Learn Real English
• LearnEnglish-British Council MENA
• BBC Learning English
• VOA Learning English

Next, ask them to make friends with students from different country, so they can practice their English. Sometimes, ask them to tell about their friends from different country in the class to make sure they have done your command.

Well, that’s all some ideas about how to use facebook as EFL teaching and learning. Here, the role of facebook is as supplement for teaching, not replacement.