101 Ways to Market Your Language Program (10 Free webinars)

March 14, 2012

What an amazing week! My blog is just over 2 years old and this week, we topped 100,000 all-time views and 200 subscribers.

It’s definitely time to celebrate.

10 Free Webinars on How to Market and Promote Your Language or Literacy Program

Over the next 10 weeks, I’m going to host a free webinar every week. Each one will highlight different ideas from 101 Ways to Market Your Language Program. Every week you’ll get practical, low-cost ideas to help you promote any language or literacy program. Best of all, you’ll get to connect with others on line who are also interested in the same topic, ask questions and interact.

The webinars will be 30 to 60 minutes in length. Bring a pen and paper. I’m going to give you lots of ideas you can implement right away.

We’ll do the webinars for the next ten Wednesdays: March 21 to May 23, 2012

There are some time zone changes coming up around the world, so double-check these times against your local area:

Point of origin – 14:00 (2:00 p.m.) Mountain Time, March 21, 2012 – Calgary / Edmonton

16:00 (4:00 p.m.) – Eastern Time – Toronto / New York

20:00 (8:00 p.m.) – Greenwich Time – London, England

22:00 (10:00 p.m.) – Eastern European Time – Athens / Istanbul

05:00 (5:00 a.m.) – following day – Japan Standard Time – Tokyo

To join the webinar, click here: http://meet11548754.adobeconnect.com/saraheaton/ — There is no need to register. These webinars are free and open to everyone. Seating is limited though, so sign on early.

I’ll record each webinar and post it so you can view it later, too.

This is essentially a 10-week course designed to take you through the entire book from beginning to end. I’ll include some marketing “best practices” and show you how to start thinking about promoting your programs to ensure they are sustainable over the long term. I’ll share some case studies and stories, along with lots of practical “how to” information that you can use right away.

Here’s what we’ll cover

Week #1 – How to develop your marketing strategy and plan

Week #2 – Setting marketing goals, target markets, budgets

Week #3 – Focus on benefits, writing marketing materials

Week #4 – Business cards, newsletters, signs and other communications

Week #5 – What makes people care about you. How to stand out from the crowd.

Week #6 – Specialty tips for programs at large institutions

Week #7 – Relationship marketing. The power of connections.

Week #8 – It’s how you make them feel. Adding personal touches that make all the difference

Week #9 – Effective follow up with your marketing and not giving up too soon.

Week #10 – Social media for marketing

All you have to do is block off the next 10 Wednesdays in your calendar at your corresponding local time and then log in using the link above. It’s that easy. And it’s my way of showing my appreciation to you.

Thank you to everyone who has viewed the blog, left a comment or subscribed. I really love the work I do and being able to share with you, learn from you and engage with you inspires me every single day.

___________________________

Share or Tweet this post: 101 Ways to Market Your Language Program (10 Free webinars) http://wp.me/pNAh3-1j6

Update – January 2018 – This blog has had over 1.8 million views thanks to readers like you. If you enjoyed this post, please “like” it or share it on social media. Thanks!

Sarah Elaine Eaton is a faculty member in the Werklund School of Education, University of Calgary, Canada.


Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week(s) (Feb. 23 to March 4, 2012)

March 5, 2012

I am behind with posting some of my favorite resources. Here are my favorite resources of the past couple of weeks, curated from my Twitter account.

Ed tech resources

Technology tools for Education Majors – Prezi

18 Free Screencasting tools to Create Video Tutorials – Web Design Blog

Seriously good resources for Screencasting – Timo Ilomäki ‘s Library

How to Build Rapport With Online Teachers – by Jennifer Williamson

Fluidsurveys – Online survey tool

7 Resources for Teaching and Learning Anatomy & Physiology – from FreeTech4Teachers

7 Strategies to Make Your Online Teaching Better – Inside Higher Ed

Literacy and languages resources

Teacher resources – Noodle Tools

The Best Apps for Learning a Foreign Language – Mobiles Please Blog

The 100 ‘Greatest Books for Kids’ – USA Today

Spark Enthusiasm – Movie and video resources for teaching Spanish

Livres audio gratuits à écouter et télécharger – Free audio books for teaching French – http://www.litteratureaudio.com/

English as a second / additional language (EAL) and related resources

Canadian Newcomer Magazine – Lots of resources and info for New Canadians

Understanding Different English Accents – Daily English Activities Blog

General education resources

40 Alternative Assessments for Learning – by Charity Preston

Differentiated Instruction – Teachers Offer Help and Resources – Teachers.net

30 Online Multimedia Resources for PBL and Flipped Classrooms – 21 Century Ed Tech

Social media resources

TweetChat – An easy way to follow Twitter chats

Related posts:

Dr. Sarah’s favorite news of the week (Feb. 6-12 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Jan. 30 – Feb. 5, 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Jan. 23-29, 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Jan. 16-22, 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Jan. 9-15, 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Jan. 2-8, 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Dec. 25, 2011 to January 1, 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Dec. 18-24, 2011)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Dec. 11-17, 2011)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Dec. 4-10, 2011)

____________________________

Share this post: Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Feb. 27 to March 4, 2012) http://wp.me/pNAh3-1hD

Update – January 2018 – This blog has had over 1.8 million views thanks to readers like you. If you enjoyed this post, please “like” it or share it on social media. Thanks!

Sarah Elaine Eaton is a faculty member in the Werklund School of Education, University of Calgary, Canada.


Skype for Literacy and Language Learning: “How To” Tips and Best Practices for Teachers

February 21, 2012

Sarah Eaton, literacy, languages, language, ESL, EAL, keynote, speaker, presenter, Canada, Alberta, English, educationAfter doing a number of workshops and research on how to use Skype for literacy and international languages, I’ve put together a free, downloadable guide for teachers and tutors.

Here’s what is in the guide:

  • Introduction
    • Technical requirements
    • Thinking about a computer-to-computer call
    • Skype versus other technologies
    • Skype-enabled handsets
  • Set up your Skype account
  • Add Contacts
  • Make a Skype call
  • Advanced features
    • Conference calls
    • Instant messaging or chat
    • File sharing
    • Screen Sharing
  • Ideas on how you can use Skype
    • Personal use
    • Organizational use
    • Marketing your programs
    • Teaching
    • Tutoring
  • Conclusions
  • Bibliography (includes 22 citations)

Check out the guide and download it from Scribd:

View this document on Scribd

_____________

Share or Tweet this post: Skype for Literacy and Language Learning: “How To” Tips and Best Practices for Teachers http://wp.me/pNAh3-1gl

Update – January 2018 – This blog has had over 1.8 million views thanks to readers like you. If you enjoyed this post, please “like” it or share it on social media. Thanks!

Sarah Elaine Eaton is a faculty member in the Werklund School of Education, University of Calgary, Canada.


Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Feb. 6-12, 2012)

February 13, 2012

This past week, I was inundated with so many great articles and resources that to help you avoid getting overwhelmed, I’m dividing up my favorites of the past week into two posts: news and resources.

Here are my favorite resources of the week, curated from my Twitter account.

Ed tech resources

6 Sites to get kids excited about Google Maps – Fractus Learning

An app to create lesson plans – Tech & Learning

Web 2.0 Tools: Tools and Teacher Resources – 2Learn.ca

The Best Education Apps at FETC – by Stephen Noonoo, the Journal

Project-Based Learning for Digital Citizens – by Andrew Marcinek

Top 10 Free Online Tutoring Tools for 2012 – Edudemic

Literacy and languages resources

5 Keys to Snagging Reluctant Readers – Shelf Consumed

Open Source Language Education Resources – Yazik

ESL Literacy – Learning from Research: A Review of the Literature – Bow Valley College

General education resources

20 Must-Have Educational Resources For All Teachers – Edudemic

Social media resources

10 Tips for Creating a Social Media Policy for Your Business – by Jennifer Amanda Jones, Social Media Examiner

General resources that I thought were cool and useful

Starting and Managing a Small Business – Business Victoria (Note: Lots of great resources here for non-profits, too).

Step Outside Your Comfort Zone and Study Yourself Failing – by Joshua Foer

Pretty Good – poem by Charles Osgood

Related posts:

Dr. Sarah’s favorite news of the week (Feb. 6-12 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Jan. 30 – Feb. 5, 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Jan. 23-29, 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Jan. 16-22, 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Jan. 9-15, 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Jan. 2-8, 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Dec. 25, 2011 to January 1, 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Dec. 18-24, 2011)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Dec. 11-17, 2011)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Dec. 4-10, 2011)

____________________________

Update – January 2018 – This blog has had over 1.8 million views thanks to readers like you. If you enjoyed this post, please “like” it or share it on social media. Thanks!

Sarah Elaine Eaton is a faculty member in the Werklund School of Education, University of Calgary, Canada.


Dr. Sarah’s favorite news of the week (Feb. 6-12, 2012)

February 13, 2012

Sarah Eaton speaker education literacy keynote social media This past week, there were so many great articles and resources that came past my desk that I was almost overwhelmed. To help you avoid getting overwhelmed, I’m dividing up my favorites of the past week into two posts: news and resources.

Here are my favorite news stories of the week, curated from my Twitter account.

Social media news

German police use Facebook pictures to nab crooks – by Alice Baghdjian, Reuters

Employers, workers navigate pitfalls of social media – My Joy Online

Study: Why Do People Use Facebook? – ReadWriteWeb

Texting, social media prove problematic for teachers across the country – Laura Graff

What Schools are Really Blocking When They Block Social Media – by S. Craig Watkins

Literacy news

Caution: Not Embracing ‘Continuous Learning’ has become an Occupational Hazard – QELA

Newfoundland group wants literacy plan from the province – The Telegram

Wilsonville launches early childhood literacy program, putting free books in the hands of preschoolers– by Rachel Stark, The Oregonian

Language learning news

Hearing Bilingual: How Babies Sort Out Language – by Perri Klass, New York Times

Bilingual children gain better focus, literacy skills: York U study – Exchange magazine

Schools join forces to rescue languages – by Amanda Dunn, The Age

Finer points lost in Google translation – by Mark Abley, Montreal Gazette

Education news

The Future of Work for High School Grads – by Jordan Weissmann, The Atlantic

Why Pay for Intro Textbooks? Rice University Announces Open Source Textbooks – by Mitch Smith, Inside Higher Ed

Teacher retention a growing Alberta problem – by Jeremy Nolais, Metro

Technology news

How Computer Games Help Children Learn – MindShift

Study: U.S. gaming population has nearly tripled in three years – by Stephanie Fogel, GamesBeat

General interest

Speaking Up Is Hard to Do: Researchers Explain Why – by Elizabeth Bernstein, Wall Street Journal

Labour shortage becoming ‘desperate’ – by Barrie McKenna, Globe and Mail

Want People to Return Your Emails? Avoid These Words  – Mashable

The Business Savvy Behind Nonprofit Success – by David LePage, Canadian Centre for Nonprofit Renewal

Related posts:

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Jan. 30 – Feb. 5, 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Jan. 23-29, 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Jan. 16-22, 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Jan. 9-15, 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Jan. 2-8, 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Dec. 25, 2011 to January 1, 2012)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Dec. 18-24, 2011)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Dec. 11-17, 2011)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Dec. 4-10, 2011)

____________________________

Share this post: Dr. Sarah’s favorite news of the week (Feb. 6-12, 2012) http://wp.me/pNAh3-1ev

Update – January 2018 – This blog has had over 1.8 million views thanks to readers like you. If you enjoyed this post, please “like” it or share it on social media. Thanks!

Sarah Elaine Eaton is a faculty member in the Werklund School of Education, University of Calgary, Canada.