Hi, everyone.

I’ve been a professional ESL guy for about 9 years now. I’ve taught in France, Greece, and now I work in the USA. Currently, I’m on staff at the Allegheny Intermediate Unit Adult ESL program (http://eslpittsburgh.net), which is Greater Pittsburgh’s community-based adult ESL program. I teach upper-intermediate and advanced levels.

My main professional interests lie in ESL Web delivery applications. I am doing my best to learn Flash in the understanding that the current standards of free online English language learning applications will rise with the inevitability of the tide sooner or later, and that I want to be part of that change.

On a small scale, I’ve been doing private lessons on line with students who are unable to attend my face-to-face classes. I use Skype with a webcam, a virtual whiteboard, and a graphics tablet. Gradually, as my knowledge of how to use video call/file transfer software has grown and I’ve come to understand the capabilities and limitations of webcams and virtual whiteboards in language teaching, I’ve become convinced that online language tutoring has a good deal more to offer private students than doing it the old-fashioned way: a good, computer-literate ESL tutor very simply has more to offer in a virtual environment than a good, non-computer-literate ESL tutor has to offer in a face-to-face environment. Since almost all ESL tutors are minimally-computer-literate, there really is a straightforward contrast available for students who want to learn English.

I don’t want to get too theoretical about it here, but as a language teacher with a background in applied linguistics, I’m very interested in the concept of the (socio-) affective filter. What I would like to ask the community is if they feel that the virtual technical environment is superior to a physical non-technical environment for certain kinds of learning, and why?

Thank you. I’m really looking forward to teaching and learning here.

Welcome to eduFire Jim. What a great introduction and you raise some great questions! I am not a teacher but I have to say that as a student I much prefer virtual learning for many reasons. It is amazing to me how many different modalities work and so well, in a virtual environment. I look forward to reading what my ‘edufriends’ have to say on this :)
If you need any help with anything Jim, just let me know :)

Hey Jim, welcome to edufire. It’s great to have you here! To answer your question; I feel that while there may not be that physical presence in the same room with the virtual world you still have the webcam/headset which provides the visual/audio interaction that’s vital to learning. You also have the added benefit of sharing information via the web tool that might not be as easy to do in the physical space. I think what’s most important is that the student is in a comfortable environment which can only aid in their learning ability.
I’d like to hear what others have to say on this topic!

Hey Jim,

I think you’ll really find our platform fantastic for your needs. If you need anything just ask! Welcome to eduFire. :)

Welcome Jim…. to answer your questions, I will say that both environments (online and face-to-face) are pretty similar for me…. In my private business practice, I only teach one-on-one and both ways I get to interact very well with my trainees…. of course, for online courses, I do force them to use a webcam…. especially for language training, body language is as much important as voices…. those are real good indicators of everyone’s mood!

Welcome Jim,

I teach both online and in the physical world. For me, teaching is theater so sometimes it is hard not being able to get into the center of the class and be as theatrical as I want to while online. My background is technology and I began using Skype 3 or 4 years ago to teach ESL.

The cell phone will be a major platform soon for all things Internet. I teach at a community center. Most of my students do not have Internet access via a computer but they all have Internet access via their cell phones.

We are living in exciting times.

Hi Jim, and welcome to eduFire!

I think you’ll find right away that virtual learning can be just as effective as face-to-face learning, and the platform even makes some things easier! :)

I agree with everyone that virtual learning can be effective, it all depends on the combination of what the teacher prefers as well as the student whether it is most effective or not.