Visibility of eTwinning Projects Group July 2014 Newsletter
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------According to the main outcomes of online
researches I did on several educational and
academic websites, the introduction of cloud
computing in education does not have a long
tradition in Italy. Only “travelling” on the eTwinning
platform I suddenly realized that the use of cloud
computing applications for eTwinning projects or for
other online activities is quite normal for eTwinners.
The Importance of Being an – Earnest –
eTwinner
by Theodora Gkeniou
When Daniela invited me to write a piece about
eTwinning, at first I got stuck. I did not know what
to focus on. What is there to say about eTwinning?
I started contemplating… I could write a
professional article as an eTwinning ambassador,
about benefits, functions, attributes to modern
pedagogy and teaching methodology and so on and
so forth…
“No,” I heard a little voice inside of me. “That is not
the essence of being an eTwinner! These are not
the reasons why you took up eTwinning!”
“Oh, yeah? Which are the reasons then?” I
continued the inner discussion.
Surely this invisible, almost unconscious side of
eTwinning is the most fascinating and charming
because it plays with the will of innovation in
education that harbours in many eTwinners.
From this, eTwinning is not only an online platform
but also a “gateway” to the future, and surely
represents the “anarchic” side of the new
Programme 2014 – 2020, Erasmus Plus.
“Remember you were bored and you needed
something new and challenging, you wanted to
meet teachers from all over Europe and connect,
you wanted your students to actually start using
English and get new experiences, you wanted to
find a way to use new technologies in your
classroom?”
“Yes, I remember,” I muttered, “that was all back
in 2009.”
“And where are you standing now? What has
changed 5 years later?”
Maybe in the future this invisible part of eTwinning
should be better underlined and promoted both
inside and outside the platform. In this way also the
“other” part of the Program – and its importance for
the future of schools - will be more visible in the
European space of education.
Sitography:
SOC website: http://schoolonthecloud.eu/
The State of Art Report:
http://www.slideshare.net/TheSoFGr/soc-stateoftheart?ref=http://schoolonthecloud.eu/
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