I’m Carla Arena, an EFL educator, explorer of the potential of technology integration into language learning. I started to dig into the possibilities of tech-applications some years ago and have been going on new cyber-journeys with my students ever since. I’ve been a teacher at Casa Thomas Jefferson for nine years. I’m passionate about education. If I cannot change the world, at least, I hope to make a difference in my students’ lives by taking them into the fantastic journey of learning another language with the help of web tools to enhance their English skills. This online experience is certainly a thrilling one for me as I have the chance to share with you the possibilities the Internet offers to collaborate, learn, teach, share, network, and develop professionally.
I was born in Brasilia, but currently I’m living in Key West, Florida, for two years with my family. When I’m not in the professional spectrum, I’m having fun with my two little boys, Dudu (8) and Caio (5), and my husband. I love to travel, cook, read, take photos, meet people, have fun with friends, listen to music, sing for fun, and invent different kinds of activities against boredom.How about you? What are the driving forces of your life?
My video message to you about this online experience we are about to start.
Hope to hear lots from you.
Carla
carlaarena@thomas.org.br
Skype ID: carlaarena
17 comments:
Hey, Carla! It's really tough not to be a little afraid or uncomfortable with the whole technology issue. I'm really looking forward to starting and I'll do my best here.
I'm also very excited about this course! I guess that I'll finnaly overcome several fears related to web tools!!
Hello Carla,
I´ve just read the info on you and watched the video. Congrats on your boys! They are cute and seem happy! :) About the video, I also believe in the social construction of knowledge, that is, learning from each other. I think the biggest challenge will be to find the time to access so many sites and all. But we´ll do it! And it´s good to know that you are around, to answer questions. I have one, already... Why is it that downloadable videos always pause when we´re watching them?!
By the way, the time is wrong on this page... how can I fix it?! I have remembered another challenge! Keeping track of all these usernames and passwords! Ufa! :)
@Marina and @Vini Scary in the beginning? Certainly! Soon you'll overcome it and be more confident. You'll make mistakes, things will not works sometimes, but, at the end, all is worth it! You'll see. There's just so much out there that could serve our pedagogical and personal purposes...Now, you'll experience all that by yourselves, but with a whole group to share.
@Daniela Thanks for the words about my boys. They are my little treasures! Great that you believe in the social construction of knowledge. You're in the right place to experience it. We'll never, ever have enough time to explore all the resources out there. Just focus on what is essential right now! Time? Don't even mention it to me...There are many reasons why videos can be choppy. It might be your connection, bandwidth, the server where the video is hosted...In my case, I have a pretty fast connection, but this is something we need to have in mind, accessibility! You can't fix the time here, and we're in different time zones. I'll check it here. As for passwords and usernames, my trick is to keep one for everything I have online.Also, I keep a google docs with the ones that are different. What Google Docs?! Not today!
Carla,
it has been so nice to feel that you are around to help and see what we have done so far. Up until now, I haven't met a so receptive online teacher. I am impressed. It has been great.
You said your kids are your little treasure. I think you might be theirs as well.
kiss
Hi Carla, I confess that I am afraid, yes! I always had blockages with the English, but like him anyway rsrsrsr, well I teaching English has 4 years and always try to learn, because I like so much, then I am counting on your help
Hi Carla, although I am a little afraid of this "new world" I'm also totally excited about it! Sometimes I get the feeling that I'll never get to know it all, but whatever I get to know will already be great for me!!
Boy, your boys have grown! they are so cute!
I'm sure that this will be an incredible journey and that by the end of this course I'll feel much more confident about using webtools!
kss
Marina Couri
Hi everyone! I'm as excited and confused as most of you, this is my first online course and although I'm afraid, I'm also very happy because I've accepted the challenge and Carla is really motivating me, thank you very much Carla!
Kisses :)
Hi Carla!
Those are really great pictures there! Dudu and Caio look sooo happy, who wouldn't in the palace where they live and the mom they have, right? The fact that through IT, we really make social construction of knowledge concrete and not only a page in our methodology books is unquestionable. I am really excited about everything that is going to happen in these 8 weeks!
@Kelly Yes! I'm always around to give you a helping hand.
@Cristiane So you teach little kids? That's exciting! Whenever possible I'll try to direct you to tools and resources for the little ones.
@Marina Couri I bet your girls are as big as the boys! We'll certainly have a wonderful time together, connecting and learning as never before. When will we know it all? Never! We're in a never ending learning journey here.
@Daniele I'm happy to hear that I've been giving you the motivation to take up the challenge. This group is just a fantastic one, and together we'll overcome all the hurdles to find a brave new world out there.
@Pat This is a concrete example of connections that will lead us to something much bigger than any textbook could hold. I'm glad you're here!
Hi Carla,
I'm really excited about this course, but a little confused. I've been working as a tutor (UAB - Aracaju/SE) for six months but I have to admit that I have just realized how inexperient I am.
I hope I can follow you guys!!!
@Elaine You're in the right place. Here, everybody is learning! There's no one who holds the truth or all knowledge. We're going to put pieces together and explore these bright educators' minds with wonderful ideas. Technology is just the means, not an end in itself. We'll learn as we go along.
Hi, Carla,
Here I am, finally, after solving some problems related to my home internet connection. Anyway, I hope to catch up with you guys pretty soon. I'm really excited about this course. After taking my first on-line course last semester, I've become fond of those "virtual" connections because of the chance of "meeting" people I would probably never meet and because of all the sharing and learning that goes on in an on-line course. I.ve learned that in a course like this, we have to be active all the time, so it's not just sitting on a classroom desk and listening to your colleagues and teacher and participating once in a while. Here we have to perform tasks all the time, or we're not in the course!
Thank you for being with us.
Kisses, Denise
Hi Carla,
I think I'll be able to participate more actively this week. I'm very excited about it, but I'm that type of person that never knows which button to press or if I can press it.However, I think that technology can help teachers to meet the needs of a more diverse student group. I also think we are going to learn from each other and in a comfortable pace, even if we do not have previous knowledge. Am I right? Send Caio and Dudu big kisses.
Lucia
@Denise and @Lúcia Welcome and great to see you around! Denise, you're right, the best thing here is not to take a seat and watch. It's to be a producer, a collaborator, and engage in conversations that will foster learning for all. Lúcia, in your case and Denise's it's not only about seeing from the students' perspective. For example, in the administrative area you hold, how can you disseminate knowledge and foster sharing among the teachers that work at your branch? How can you develop projects without keeping track all the time who's doing what? Take a closer look at how we're using wikis. They can be powerful for the classroom, as well as for any collaborative endeavor.
As for the buttons, don't be afraid! Click and learn!
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