Teaching English with Information Technology. David Gordon Smith and Eric Baber

Modern English Publishing, 2005 ISBN 1 904549012   181 pages

Price in UK 14.95 pounds sterling   USA $29.95

This is a very readable, stimulating, informative book and I am keen to bring it to 
the attention of members.

The authors know that a lot of teachers are suspicious of IT (information technology) and that such teachers argue  it is quite possible to teach without a  computer. David Smith and Eric Baber agree, but point out that the computer and the internet are valuable extra tools in the teacher’s arsenal.

The authors appear to the reviewer to have made the sensible assumption that the average classroom is without a connection to the internet and a central point of theirs is that the web comes into its own as a resource for planning lessons, i.e. for the teacher in his or her study ,  noting  that “… this material is already in electronic form, making it simplicity itself to copy and paste texts into a word processor, ready for being made into exercises.”

They also have an engaging habit of gently enticing the reader further into the field of IT: "Now that you have seen how simple the basics of HTML are, you might be interested in trying to learn another frequently used programming language." "Now that you have your own website, you might be interested in acquiring your own domain."

The authors have a very clear, readable style and an ability to give a basic minimum of technical information – just enough to understand what is being presented. They concentrate on how to use the technology to teach, not on the technology for its own sake.

Their publishers have reinforced the clarity of their writing with clear fonts and clean page design.

The Amazon synopsis reads:

“This new practical guide for teachers provides an introduction to, and rationale for, using information technology when teaching English. The book explains how teachers can use e-learning in English language teaching. The topics covered include using email; the importance of the web in ELT (covers websites; using audio and video clips from the web, web activities, webquests and treasure hunts); using CD-ROMs; professional training on the web for online teacher training and online teaching communities; audio- and video-conferencing and text chat; learning management systems; and finally, using standalone software on desktop computers.”

What that summary does not include is mention of  the dozens of practical suggestions for the use of the products of IT in the classroom (70 in Chapter 2 alone and more, for example,  in the chapters on standalone software and blogs.)

This is a beginners’ book, but those who have already taken their first steps in IT may still  find there are new tips and references of use. and coverage of areas of IT that they have not investigated. The book provides an excellent overview of the whole field.

The book contains appendices of: website addresses for each chapter - language-learning CD-ROMs, recommended books, keyboard shortcuts  and a glossary of IT terms.

Aware of  how quickly things change on the internet , the authors have taken  the wise decision not to have full URLs (website addresses) in the body of the book which may quickly go out-of-date. They are all contained , though, in their full form, in an appendix which will be kept up-to-date online at http://www.modernenglishpublishing.com

Highly recommended for the individual teacher, teachers in training and the shelves of the staff room library.

Dennis Newson October 2005