Blog Session 10 :::: Instructions

Dear Class,

This is THE LAST post this semester!

And last but not least, please think about the English language and write about the following:

What comments can you make about your experience learning English at university?

What aspects of your English need to be improved and how do you plan to do this?

Outside the English class, how much are you using English these days? what for?

Write this post in 260 words minimum plus the classic 3 comments on your classmates' posts.

Best,


Belén

Blog Session 9 :::: Instructions

Dear Class,

Think about the cons and pros about your Study Program, so you can write about some of the things you will change.
Please include, among others:

a) The curriculum (the subjects you have to study)

b) Workload and length of studies

c) Faculty facilities

d) Use of technology

e) Teaching methods


Remember to make comments, 4, and write this post in 250 words.

Best,


Belén

Sample Post 8 :::: Summer Holidays

Summer Holidays 2018

We have so many ideas about what to do this summer… but we work in Tourism so when everybody is on holidays, we’re working –which is not that bad because we like it and we get to travel to very nice and interesting places.

One plan is to travel to Cochamó, near Puerto Montt. This is a beautiful area of Patagonia norte with amazing sceneries full with nature. If we go there, we’ll spend most of our time with friends in Raíces del Viento, an NGO that has interesting programs to live and learn there. We’ll visit Río Puelo and of course, as well as the valley of Cochamó because that’s the place where we can go rock climbing!

The other plan is to stay in Santiago and travel to Pomaire and San Antonio a lot because we work with tourists coming on the cruises. So, as cruises are not arriving to Valparaíso anymore, from San Antonio, we take them either to Pomaire or Santiago. If this is the case, we’ll stay in Las Cruces where my Mum lives, so she could babysit for us. We have two babies and we go with them everywhere except for work but sometimes, if we have no other option, we take them with us.

We love travelling so are used to move a lot and packing and unpacking backpacks and suitcases, so this summer we hope we come back home full with nice memories, experiences and pictures.

Blog Session 8 :::: Instructions

Dear Class.

Let's think about the future to write about ideas and plans for next summer.

Please include the following and anything else you think is related:

a) Places you're going to /would like to visit
b) People you're going to/ would like to be with
c) Activities you're thinking of being part of

This post is 240 words minimum and don't forget to make 3 comments on your classmates' posts as well as on my sample post.

Best,

Belén

Blog Session 7 :::: Sample Post

Learning and teaching languages

After reading about different methodologies not only to learn languages but to learn in general, I feel more motivated to continue teaching Spanish and English. There is nothing new in saying that we all learn in different ways but this is especially true when we learn languages. One more thing that is not new about humans is the fact that events in life, can define who we are and what we like or don’t like.

I can say that the idea of learning languages was first triggered by a Russian family living in Santiago. I was 6 or 7 years-old the first time I heard a language different from Spanish. At home, I had heard French and English before but it wasn’t fluent because my father and mother studied those languages at school. They couldn’t speak French or English; however they knew how to pronounce words, phrases and questions.

Speaking fluently in a language that is not your mother tongue is to be able to expand the limits sometimes we create for ourselves. Some people learn languages easily than others and some other people never learn a foreign language but; considering how many and how different we are, learning a foreign language could be a very good idea if we want to travel,  and if we want to meet people. Apart from meeting people, when we speak one or more foreign languages we can understand more cultures. So, the way people think, act, what they believe in and the language they speak can help us learn more about us and our limits.

Going back to Russian, I can’t say I feel frustrated because I don’t speak it fluently because I haven’t been studying it they way I need to. Even though I have nobody to practice Russian with, I really want to learn something else that’s not numbers 1 to 10, days of the week and personal pronouns; so one day I can talk with Russians or with people who speak it as a foreign language, like me.

Blog Session 7 ::: Instructions

Dear Class,

This is second time you can choose the topic of your post and there will be one more post where you can choose what to blog about...

Maybe you can write something about the end of the semester, a piece of news, a tv series, a film...

As long as you write 230 words minimum, choose anything of your interest and don't forget to make the comments. You need 3 comments on your classmates' posts and one on my post.

Best,


Belén

Blog Session 6 :::: Sample Post

Postgraduate Studies

As I have two jobs, it's difficult to choose a topic to continue studying. But I'll try so if it's something about the English language and teaching, I'd love to study Neurolinguistics. I really enjoy anything about the brain and the way it works.
In terms of Tourism, I'd love to study more languages! So we could offer our tours in other languages different from Spanish, English, Portuguese and Chilean sign language. I need to learn more about the Chilean sign language but I haven't been able to meet my deaf friend so I can practice. In the meantime I watch tutorials and keep practicing what I know so far.

More than postgraduate studies, I believe in Continuing Education. I prefer a diploma more than a Postgraduate programme because they're shorter and more specific. You can find some diplomas or training programmes with really good teachers who don't teach in universities, where you usually study a postgraduate programme.

I dream about the country having educational programs for everybody. For example, people could go to the Municipalidad corresponding to the place where they live and register in a 3 or 6 months long training program. People having access to education is the best policy ever and in that way you could encourage people learning even if they're retired.

When I think about Tourism, apart from languages, I'd love to study abroad to learn more about accesible and inclusive tourism. There are countries in the region, like Ecuador, where you can find really nice and interesting tours and they're designed for everybody. So, it doesn't matter if you're blind, can' walk fast, use a wheelchair or if you're old or have 3 kids.