In a world where anyone with an internet connection can access, create and share information, opinions and beliefs, it has become increasingly important that students are not only able to assess the credibility of sources but also to look more deeply at the underlying motivations, beliefs and bias of the creator. Thinking Critically through Digital Media enables teachers to use authentic materials and digital tools combined with motivating communicative tasks to develop students’ abilities to function as critical and well informed digital citizens. The book contains a wide range of tasks, activities and 10 complete lesson/project plans that teachers can use to help students understand visually presented information, how and why the information was collected, research and check the validity of the sources on which the information was based and think about and share how the materials relate to their own lives.

This ebook is 53 pages long and was originally published in 2009 so some of thetools are a bit out of date, but the ideas can still be used. This document is intended as simple introduction to some free Web 2.0 type tools that can be used by teachers who are interested in using technology in language teaching. The tools presented here are just the tip of the iceberg and this should not be considered in anyway conclusive or even the ʻbest ofʼ Web 2.0 tools. New tools are emerging all the time, many not originally intended for education, but which can be put to good use by students and teachers alike to extent opportunities, enhance learning potential and develop the level of digital literacy that students will need for the 21st century.

TED Ed is a great tool for creating online lessons around videos. It enables you to structure a sequence of interactive activities around the video clip that guides the viewer towards a deeper understanding of the content. It’s an ideal tool for building blended learning. In this document you can find: -: a step by step guide showing how to use it -: a video tutorial that shows you how to make the activities -: some suggestions and ideas for using it in the classroom or as part of an online course.