About

About

Alison Bouhmi

About Blog

To be read sitting up straight, slouching or slumped, reclining and relaxed. From a screen. Not necessarily with undivided attention. This is not a classroom after all. I picture you, thumb or index finger at the ready. 

You begin to scroll.

 

Background

May 2018 Total blogging neophyte dreams up an idea for an EFL online distance learning course, based around an authentic, collaborative, creative writing task. Blogging seems like an obvious choice. Takes a peek at the blogging tool on Moodle (online learning platform) but it feels unwieldly and dull. Never mind.  Thinks about creating a course that would give a chance to students to create their own blog on an online platform of their choice and somehow link all of this into Moodle so that teacher can follow, advise and teach. But like all teachers do very occasionally (sometimes even before they ask their students to do whatever it is they have in mind) she (where did I go?) decides first to try her hand at this lark herself. Needed to spot any potential pitfalls and identify specific skills required. To answer questions:  Was it doable? Would it enhance learning? Would it be fun?

The rest as they say is history.

Utility

Apart from its pedagogical use the site also quickly becomes a nifty tool for sharing my (let’s retake possession) thoughts and work with others. For receiving feedback and comments. Encouragement. Not to mention the fact that blogging is a practical and easy way (for forgetful and sometimes disorganised) me to keep track of online tools and information, my own intellectual meanderings and dabblings in research.

Creativity

A space that I can fashion according to my whims and desires and make my own. A public private space. Or private public space?

A space for publishing my own writing and fiction. Where I am encouraged (forced?) to write regularly, think about what I write and why, what I do in the classroom (virtual or otherwise), research, apply, develop, grow, invest, engage. A stimulating space, providing me with a way of sharing stuff that might be useful, enjoyable or something or other, to someone, some place, somewhere. In summertime.

Pedagogical tool, teaching resource, creative writing platform. Whatever.

About Me

Franco-British female (increasingly Franco since 2016).

1m75. Shrinking. Weight variable.

EFL teacher. Paul Valéry University, UM3, Montpellier.

Member of research centre EMMA (EA741)

Pedagogical interests: exploring how creative and collaborative writing can enable students to engage with and find their own voice within a foreign language. Online tools and language learning.

Writer: author of two thematically and stylistically very different novels:
Shuffled and English Mothers .

Plus the occasional short story.

Even more occasionally e-published.

Scientific publications:

Blogging: Having your cake and eating it.

Diversity in Creative Writing.

Miscellaneous

Mother of four.

Something feels wrong about the order of all this. And not just the order.

Note to myself: change order once a month. Reflect upon the rest.


Photo by Laure Boin