Nik Peachey's Learning Technology Blog Review: 17 Years of ELT EdTech
Nik Peachey's Learning Technology Blog is one of the oldest independent ELT edtech blogs on the web — 17 years of practitioner-tested ideas for the language classroom. Here's what you actually get, what still holds up, and where to look instead.Ready to try Nik Peachey's Learning Technology Blog?
"Written by a teacher who actually builds the tools — not a marketer. 17 years of archived activity ideas you can lift straight into a lesson."
Best for
ESL/EFL teachers who want honest, practitioner-tested ideas for using technology in the language classroom.
Pricing
Free
Pro tip — heads up before you bookmark it
A note on activity and commercial ties
Posts have slowed significantly since 2020 — the most recent entry is from 2022. The blog still functions as a deep archive and as a hub for PeacheyPublications' paid catalogue and the Teachers' Classroom App. Treat it as a reference, not a feed.
What is Nik Peachey's blog?
Nik Peachey's Learning Technology Blog is one of the longest-running independent ELT edtech blogs on the web. It's been published on Blogspot since 2007, written by Nik Peachey — an ELT technologist, teacher trainer and pedagogical director of PeacheyPublications.
The blog is a working notebook of practical ideas for using technology in the language classroom. The archive is unusually deep: it covers the pre-smartphone era (interactive whiteboards, IWBs, webquests, Second Life) all the way through to modern tools (Moodle, video conferencing, interactive presentations, AI). That's actually its biggest asset — you can trace how edtech in ELT has evolved, idea by idea.
Posts typically include:
- A practical activity — webcam tasks, video tasks, word clouds, interactive presentations, podcast projects.
- A tool walkthrough — written from a teacher's perspective, not a feature list.
- Lesson framing — how to use the activity at A2, B1, B2 or with specific groups (business English, young learners, exam prep).
- Links to source materials — templates, slides, worksheets, often on PeacheyPublications.
The blog also functions as a hub for PeacheyPublications' commercial products: the Teachers' Classroom App, digital lesson catalogues and remote classroom materials.
How teachers use it
The blog is best used as a slow-browsing reference, not a daily feed:
- Searching by tool: if you're about to try YouTube, Padlet, Mentimeter, Kahoot or an interactive whiteboard in class, search the archive first. There's almost certainly a post with a tested activity.
- Searching by skill: want to teach speaking with video? Pronunciation with a tool? Writing with social media? The topic archive is exhaustive.
- Teacher training input: the activity posts are gold for CPD sessions. Pick three, demo one, hand out the links.
- Lesson rescue: if a lesson plan falls apart mid-class, having 17 years of archived activity ideas is a real safety net.
- Inspiration for course design: the Teachers' Classroom App (mentioned in the latest posts) bundles 200+ digital lessons, which is downstream of the blog's archive.
Is it worth your time?
Yes — for the right teacher. Nik Peachey's blog is not flashy, not updated daily, and not aimed at students. But it is one of the most honest, practitioner-grade ELT edtech resources on the open web, and the archive depth means almost any edtech question you have has an answer buried in there.
The trade-off: it's a Blogspot blog, so the design is dated, the search is Blogspot's, and you'll spend time digging. If you want a polished UX, this isn't it. If you want tested ideas written by a teacher who uses the tools every day, it absolutely is.
Honest recommendation: bookmark the blog and the topic archive. Use it when you adopt a new tool or hit a stale lesson plan. For day-to-day lesson-ready material, pair it with ESL Brains, Teach-This or Crystal Clear ESL.
The honest pros and cons
What works
- Practitioner-grade writing By a teacher who builds and tests the tools — not a marketing review.
- Deep archive (17+ years) Posts from 2007 onwards. Most edtech questions are already answered.
- Free, no signup Open Blogspot archive, no account needed.
- Activity ideas, not theory Posts are designed to be lifted straight into a lesson.
- Topic tags are exhaustive Search by tool, skill, level or context.
- Hub for related resources Links to PeacheyPublications lesson catalogue and the Teachers' Classroom App.
What doesn't
- Dated Blogspot design UX is 2008. Search is Blogspot's own.
- Slowed significantly Posts have slowed since 2020. Latest is 2022.
- Teacher-facing only Students won't read this. It's a reference for educators.
- Some tools are obsolete Older posts cover Second Life, IWBs, There.com — historical, not current.
- Commercial ties Some posts funnel toward PeacheyPublications paid products.
- No downloadable lessons in posts Most lesson materials are gated behind the paid catalogue or app.
Best alternatives
If Nik Peachey's Learning Technology Blog isn't a fit, these are the resources teachers actually switch to:
Larry Ferlazzo's Blog
Long-running ESL teacher blog — practical advice on classroom management, motivation and resources.
British Council TeachingEnglish
Free lesson plans, articles and CPD material from the British Council.
Crystal Clear ESL
Ready-made ESL lesson plans with audio and video — updated weekly.
ESL Brains
Lesson plans built around TED talks and authentic videos.
Teach-This.com
3,000+ printable ESL worksheets, CEFR-aligned, updated monthly.
Frequently asked questions
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What are the best alternatives?
Ready to dig into 17 years of tested ELT edtech ideas?
Free, no signup, archive runs back to 2007. Bookmark it as your reference whenever you adopt a new tool or need to rescue a stale lesson.
Visit Nik Peachey's Blog