I would like to share the same post I wrote in the Forum a week ago. I hope you like it and comment on it.
This post is divided into three parts:
(1) Using Learning Technologies(LTs) as a recently graduated EFL teacher,
(2) Using LTs when some years passed, and
(3) My current use of learning technologies as an EFL teacher at the IPC.
1. When I started working as a n EFL teacher, about 2 decades ago, (don't start doing any math, hehe) some of the technological resources we used to help our students learn were mostly cassettes, slides shown with an overhead projector, and beta tapes with videos and movies. Those were definitely hard times for us, as teachers, to find good authentic materials to expand the ones some textbooks included.
2. As time passed, those of us who dared to explore other options in class besides the textbook, started using other technologies such as Lotus (similar to excel but more primitive), WordPerfect (like word, but less complete), VHS, CD's, DVDs and what became a boom in the late 90s: Internet. I still remember the first time I created my username and password to have access to some kind of electronic mail on a black screen with green letters…
3. Currently, I’m the same curious teacher who graduated in the 90s whose major interests were - and still are- having fun while teaching and making our students learn by encouraging the same curiosity and joy while learning.
In my opinion, this is not so difficult. As EFL teachers there are plenty of things we can do to do to keep our students motivated to learn the L2, but I’m certain LTs help a lot.
These are some of the LTs I use in my classes nowadays:
- CDs, 
- MP3 files,
- Power point presentations,
- Groups (Yahoo, FB, etc.)
- YouTube, etc.
- Osmosis (similar to Moodle)
This is the shortest way I can put these years of practice and experience using learning technologies. There might be other tools I’m missing, but in general this is what I’ve used along my career as EFL teacher.
I hope this reflection can serve:
- those of you who are starting working as language teachers, to continue working hard in the search of your own inspiration (and resources) to teach, and
- the ones who have been juggling for years with new curricula, paradigms approaches and the like -just like me- to keep enthusiastically learning to feel renewed every time a new course begins.
