Studentsoftheworld.info

The resource that I want to share with you all is a website called studentoftheworld.info, you can access it by following this link http://www.studentsoftheworld.info/. The creators’ purpose with this site is, as they express it themselves, to open the doors of world’s cultures and to further communication between young people all over the world.

So, what is this resource?
Studentsoftheworld.info is a site that has been up and running since 2001 and it does not cost anything to use. It is designed for teachers and students of all ages and nationalities. You do not have to become a member of this site all you need is a computer, e-mail and access to internet, then you are ready to go. There are a lot of things to do and explore on this website but there are three functions that I find especially useful.

The first is the opportunity to find pen pals from all over the world. Students can go in and choose from which country they want their pen pal to come from, how old he or she should be and what language they want to use. When they have done that they will be able to see possible pen pals and their profiles. These profiles contain some information about the user and make it easy for the students to choose a pen pal they want to get to know. This is a great way for teachers to engage their student in a writing task where the purpose of English knowledge is clear for the students. They can see the benefits of being able to communicate in a foreign language and practice that ability in a realistic situation. This activity demands that students have quite a lot of English knowledge since they have to be able to express themselves in writing which can be difficult. One idea if you as a teacher wants to use this site with younger students, who has not come as far in their development, can be to let them work in pair so that they can take advantage of each others knowledge. Another idea can be to have one pen pal for the whole class so that all students work together with the teachers support when they are writing letters. In addition to extend students vocabulary this can be a great opportunity to make students pay attention to grammatical features such as past tense, present tense and irregular verbs. Having a pen pal in another country might also motivate students to learn more about the people, living situation and culture of that specific country. So it can be useful for the teacher to use when the class is working with geography.

The second function I think is useful for teachers is the possibility for students to publish blog posts on the site’s blog. Here students can publish texts they have written on various subjects so that other people can read and comment on them. Teachers can use this function when students have different writing assignment, both individual or in groups. Students can post something on the blog when they feel they have written something they want to share or they can be asked to post something on a more regularly basis. The fact that students’ texts will be published and accessible to others can work as a motivation for language accuracy.

The last function that I would really consider using in my classroom is the different forums on the site. There are several different chat rooms with subject such as hobbies, debates and homework help where the students can ask questions or just publish their thoughts and have people comment on them. Students can for example go in and ask for help with their homework and get response from students all over the world. Teachers can use the forum for debate when they are talking about current events or news. Students will then practice to formulate opinions and argue for what they believe in. They will see that people have different opinions and that it is important to respect people even if you do not share their beliefs.

Things to consider when using this page
I believe that using this site is a great way to motivate your students to learn more English and I think that they will perceive these exercises as fun. However, I think it is important to talk to your students about cautiousness when they are using this site. They should for example never give out their address or phone number since they really do not know the person receiving it. It can also be a good opportunity to talk about how personal you should be on internet, not only when using this site. How much private information and pictures should they publish about themselves? It can also be important to keep in mind that students might need some extra time and help when they are writing texts and e-mail that someone will read. They should not be forced to publish something that they do not feel proud about.

There are a lot of useful resources on the Internet and this site is just one of them. I think it is important that all teachers take advantage of these resources that are available in order to create a fun and motivating English education for all students.

// Tove Åslund