The Webheads

Webheads in Action

Updated December 20, 2008

Who are the Webheads? What do they do?

Founded by Vance Stevens, “Webheads in Action” is the most active online community involved with computer mediated communication in the field of English as a Second or Foreign Language. Members from nearly every country on the planet are represented. Its 700+ active members represent the most robust online manifestation of the 40-year-old, 14,000 member TESOL organization.

There are so many links and so much information on the internet about and by the Webheads, that it all seems a bit mind-boggling at first. In my opinion, the best way to get started is to subscribe to the main Webheads Yahoo Group and lurk for a few days to get a feel of the daily life of this community. You will find beginners and experts on various topics all mixed up in one exciting thread after another. It’s also a very tight, caring group. Friendships run deep amongst members, so you will find almost as many personal messages as professional ones, which seems a bit strange to those who are familiar with traditional forums.

Don’t sign up if your aim is to promote a certain product or service. You probably won’t be blocked or removed in such a case, but you will be ignored. This is a place for self-help and professional development, with mutual sharing of resources and ideas, the more experienced always helping out the less experienced in any particular specialization, whether it be a question concerning Web 2.0 places of interest or how best to use software in the classroom (a large percentage of members are ESL/EFL teachers, about half of them native speakers of English).

Teresa d’Eça has compiled an historical account of many important moments in the life of the Group, as well as an Index of Webheads’ sites and blogs, which I hope to update myself soon in a new entry on this blog.

So if you’re a teacher interested in discovery, experimentation, and self-improvement in the realm of computer mediated communication, this is definitely a community you will want to explore.