RICHARDSON Ch. 8. Podcasting, Video and Screencasting, Live Streaming: Multimedia Publishing for the Masses
BLACKBOARD - McQuillan, J. (2006). iPods in Education: The Potential for Language Acquisition
BLACKBOARD – Stansbury, M. (2009). iPods help ESL Students Achieve Success. eSchool News (May 11).
Do you have an iPod or another type of .mp3 player? If so, have you used it for anything other than listening to your own music, such as downloading and listening to podcasts? Note some of the points McQuillan made about how podcasting can support second language learning. Which of the ideas from the readings would you be interested in trying out in your own classroom?
I don’t have an iPod or other type of mp3 player nor have I ever used one. I viewed iPods as gadgets, something one can easily do without. Now, I’m not running out to purchase one, but perhaps I view them in a different light. I am a bit intrigued after reading McQuillan’s article and would love to try one out.
McQuillan cites a lot of SLA research to support the use and benefits of iPod technology. I like the opportunity iPods provide for comprehensible input that’s portable. The capability of added linguistic support through text, pictures, and video is helpful, especially for independent study. It is easy to see the benefits for increasing comprehension. It gets a bit technical for me when considering recording features for creating video skits and such. Although I don’t doubt this can be an effective and creative teaching strategy, I need to get more comfortable with the technology to fully appreciate it. Perhaps an easy way to get acquainted with using this in the classroom would be through listening to podcasts and audio books. The examples given on podcasts created for ESL students, which incorporate features such as slowed speech rate and dialogue discussions definitely seem a good place to start. Once I become more familiar with listening to podcasts, I might try out the idea of creating an “audio penpals” program as a language exchange between two distant classrooms. One use I found really ingenious was Stansbury’s description of students using a voice recorder with their iPod during a museum field trip to create a podcast of their visit.
Maastricht aka Mestreech
Maastricht a.k.a Mestreech, "the oldest city in the Netherlands".
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
Displaced in Georgia get access to computer and information technology
It's encouraging to see technology used in this context. Computers are providing access to information & learning and helping refugees to rebuild their lives.
A group of eager young boys try out the computers in Karaleti settlement.
Making a Difference, 1 February 2010
© UNHCR/S.Maisuradze
KARALETI, Georgia, February 1 (UNHCR) – The UN refugee agency has expanded its Community Technology Access (CTA) programme to Georgia, giving thousands of displaced people access to computers for education and livelihood purposes.
"Knowledge is a key, and this programme is giving that key to IDPs [internally displaced people] and refugees here," Peter Nicolaus, UNHCR's representative in Georgia, said on Saturday at the opening of Georgia's first CTA centre in the new settlement of Karaleti, which lies in the Shida Kartli region close to the breakaway region of South Ossetia.
UNHCR and its implementing partner, World Vision International, plan to open similar centres in the coming weeks in eight more settlements in Shida Kartli and two in north-east Georgia's Pankisi Gorge, where some 800 Chechen refugees are rebuilding their lives with support from UNHCR and its partners.
The Shida Kartli region shelters about 30,000 people who fled their homes during the brief conflict in August 2008 between Georgia and the Russian Federation over South Ossetia. Some 4,200 of the IDPs live in the nine settlements.
The launch of the programme in Georgia was welcomed on Saturday by those who will use it. "Having access to the internet means I can stay up-to-date with new information and pass it on to my students," said Sophio Melquoshvili, who fled her home in August 2008 and now teaches in a primary school.
Another IDP, Marika Gochashvili, said: "I used to be a nurse, but I cannot find nursing jobs here so I am interested in learning as much as I can about ICT [information and communications technology] so that I can teach others."
The CTA programme was announced last September at the annual meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative by UNHCR and its corporate partners, Microsoft and PricewaterhouseCoopers. The aim is to help improve the lives of the forcibly displaced by giving them access to computer technology, including the internet, for education as well as business and livelihoods purposes.
Under the first phase of the programme, successful pilot projects were launched in refugee camps in Rwanda and Bangladesh. The CTA centres in Georgia are being opened under the project's second phase, which will see computer technology brought to the displaced in Georgia and up to eight other countries.
The CTA project in Georgia will also maximize the role IDPs and refugees play in the delivery of information and communications technologies, including training them and locals to become managers of ICT facilities, maintenance and repair technicians, and teachers.
The centres will provide classes for children and computer literacy courses and distance learning for youth and adults. Other services will include entrepreneurship training, business centres, employment services and career counselling. Where possible, CTAs will generate income to cover costs.
Shida Kartli's Deputy Governor Giorgi Avaliani applauded the opening of the centre and thanked UNHCR for helping the IDPs. "I am sure that new technologies, and access to those technologies, will change their everyday life," he said, adding that the project "will have a very satisfying result."
By Suzanne Murray-Jones in Karaleti, Georgia
A group of eager young boys try out the computers in Karaleti settlement.
Making a Difference, 1 February 2010
© UNHCR/S.Maisuradze
KARALETI, Georgia, February 1 (UNHCR) – The UN refugee agency has expanded its Community Technology Access (CTA) programme to Georgia, giving thousands of displaced people access to computers for education and livelihood purposes.
"Knowledge is a key, and this programme is giving that key to IDPs [internally displaced people] and refugees here," Peter Nicolaus, UNHCR's representative in Georgia, said on Saturday at the opening of Georgia's first CTA centre in the new settlement of Karaleti, which lies in the Shida Kartli region close to the breakaway region of South Ossetia.
UNHCR and its implementing partner, World Vision International, plan to open similar centres in the coming weeks in eight more settlements in Shida Kartli and two in north-east Georgia's Pankisi Gorge, where some 800 Chechen refugees are rebuilding their lives with support from UNHCR and its partners.
The Shida Kartli region shelters about 30,000 people who fled their homes during the brief conflict in August 2008 between Georgia and the Russian Federation over South Ossetia. Some 4,200 of the IDPs live in the nine settlements.
The launch of the programme in Georgia was welcomed on Saturday by those who will use it. "Having access to the internet means I can stay up-to-date with new information and pass it on to my students," said Sophio Melquoshvili, who fled her home in August 2008 and now teaches in a primary school.
Another IDP, Marika Gochashvili, said: "I used to be a nurse, but I cannot find nursing jobs here so I am interested in learning as much as I can about ICT [information and communications technology] so that I can teach others."
The CTA programme was announced last September at the annual meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative by UNHCR and its corporate partners, Microsoft and PricewaterhouseCoopers. The aim is to help improve the lives of the forcibly displaced by giving them access to computer technology, including the internet, for education as well as business and livelihoods purposes.
Under the first phase of the programme, successful pilot projects were launched in refugee camps in Rwanda and Bangladesh. The CTA centres in Georgia are being opened under the project's second phase, which will see computer technology brought to the displaced in Georgia and up to eight other countries.
The CTA project in Georgia will also maximize the role IDPs and refugees play in the delivery of information and communications technologies, including training them and locals to become managers of ICT facilities, maintenance and repair technicians, and teachers.
The centres will provide classes for children and computer literacy courses and distance learning for youth and adults. Other services will include entrepreneurship training, business centres, employment services and career counselling. Where possible, CTAs will generate income to cover costs.
Shida Kartli's Deputy Governor Giorgi Avaliani applauded the opening of the centre and thanked UNHCR for helping the IDPs. "I am sure that new technologies, and access to those technologies, will change their everyday life," he said, adding that the project "will have a very satisfying result."
By Suzanne Murray-Jones in Karaleti, Georgia
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Reading Prompt #4
LEVY – Ch. 2. Design
RICHARDSON Ch. 5. RSS: The New Killer App for Educators
Comment on one or two issues raised by Levy and Stockwell CALL educators must think about when it comes to the design of CALL products. Then, comment on what types of RSS feeds you might be interested in using with students or following yourself.
For me, what stands out most about Levy’s chapter on CALL product design, is the concept of integration. He describes this from several perspectives; the integration of CALL activities into the curriculum, the learner’s interaction with CALL technologies, and the incorporation of CALL into learning institutions as a whole.
I think Levy gives a very effective explanation of a healthy relationship between CALL activities and the teaching curriculum. Paraphrasing Levy, he states that there should be enough flexibility in a curriculum for CALL activities to be successfully integrated, but not be so loosely structured that one loses sight of the curricular goals and objectives (p29). That makes sense to me, especially since I’ve experienced a rather unsuccessful attempt at using software with ESL students. Without any structure or goals to frame the use of that technology, it lost much of its ineffectiveness.
That brings me to the perspective of the learner; I agree with Levy that it’s important for CALL designers to have as much information as possible about their target users and that learners' needs will be best met if their input is incorporated into the design process. I relate to this from other contexts in that my professional background is primarily in non-profit and social service environments. When working in the “field”, it was not uncommon to be asked to implement a certain practice or meet a specific goal, which looked very promising on paper, but turned out be absolutely unrealistic in “real life”. Therefore, I think the user’s input should not be underestimated.
Lastly, in order to successfully integrate CALL materials into teaching institutions, it’s important for designers to be mindful of the policies and technological provisions/support in place. Institutions will undoubtedly place limitations on CALL designs, as most organizations are motivated by the same factors: cost saving, centralization, and consolidation of technical expertise (p33). Thus, CALL designs will need to fit within these given parameters. As an educator, one also has to be aware of the institution’s technological provisions to support classroom goals and objectives.
I enjoyed reading Richardson’s chapter on RSS as I find it an intriguing and seemingly useful tool. In my excitement, I promptly subscribed to a wealth of RSS feeds, but I have yet to figure out a system for sifting though the mass amounts of data that has now amassed in my Reader. I’m following feeds on CALL, ESL and refugee resettlement programs, newspapers (including a few Dutch ones), linguistics, bilingualism, and SLA. Although it involves some growing pains, I’m grateful to learn about these technological tools at the onset of my graduate studies. I think RSS, in particular, will help me with research and staying abreast of new developments in the field of linguistics and ESL. As I get more comfortable with these tools, it will be easier to integrate them into an ESL classroom and share them with students.
RICHARDSON Ch. 5. RSS: The New Killer App for Educators
Comment on one or two issues raised by Levy and Stockwell CALL educators must think about when it comes to the design of CALL products. Then, comment on what types of RSS feeds you might be interested in using with students or following yourself.
For me, what stands out most about Levy’s chapter on CALL product design, is the concept of integration. He describes this from several perspectives; the integration of CALL activities into the curriculum, the learner’s interaction with CALL technologies, and the incorporation of CALL into learning institutions as a whole.
I think Levy gives a very effective explanation of a healthy relationship between CALL activities and the teaching curriculum. Paraphrasing Levy, he states that there should be enough flexibility in a curriculum for CALL activities to be successfully integrated, but not be so loosely structured that one loses sight of the curricular goals and objectives (p29). That makes sense to me, especially since I’ve experienced a rather unsuccessful attempt at using software with ESL students. Without any structure or goals to frame the use of that technology, it lost much of its ineffectiveness.
That brings me to the perspective of the learner; I agree with Levy that it’s important for CALL designers to have as much information as possible about their target users and that learners' needs will be best met if their input is incorporated into the design process. I relate to this from other contexts in that my professional background is primarily in non-profit and social service environments. When working in the “field”, it was not uncommon to be asked to implement a certain practice or meet a specific goal, which looked very promising on paper, but turned out be absolutely unrealistic in “real life”. Therefore, I think the user’s input should not be underestimated.
Lastly, in order to successfully integrate CALL materials into teaching institutions, it’s important for designers to be mindful of the policies and technological provisions/support in place. Institutions will undoubtedly place limitations on CALL designs, as most organizations are motivated by the same factors: cost saving, centralization, and consolidation of technical expertise (p33). Thus, CALL designs will need to fit within these given parameters. As an educator, one also has to be aware of the institution’s technological provisions to support classroom goals and objectives.
I enjoyed reading Richardson’s chapter on RSS as I find it an intriguing and seemingly useful tool. In my excitement, I promptly subscribed to a wealth of RSS feeds, but I have yet to figure out a system for sifting though the mass amounts of data that has now amassed in my Reader. I’m following feeds on CALL, ESL and refugee resettlement programs, newspapers (including a few Dutch ones), linguistics, bilingualism, and SLA. Although it involves some growing pains, I’m grateful to learn about these technological tools at the onset of my graduate studies. I think RSS, in particular, will help me with research and staying abreast of new developments in the field of linguistics and ESL. As I get more comfortable with these tools, it will be easier to integrate them into an ESL classroom and share them with students.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Reading Prompt 3
*LEVY – Ch. 8. Technology
*BLACKBOARD - Soares, D. d.A. (2008). Understanding class blogs as a tool for language development. Language Teaching Research, 12(4), 517–533.
What challenges did Soares face when using blogs with her ESL students, and what lessons did she learn? How does she feel about using blogs with students in the future? Levy describes several types of technologies Choose one of them and describe how you might want to use it (or have used it), and discuss some of considerations that need to be taken when using this technology with ESL students
Soares' article on using a class blog with her pre-intermediate EFL students in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil describes some of the challenges she faced. Soares observed that her students were excited to get the blog started and showed interest in class, but demonstrated lower than expected participation in posting information and comments from home. She set out to gain some insight to her students' motivations and attitudes by engaging her students in some learning activities and distributing a survey to other professionals in the field (in varied countries) involved in blogging activities.
Due to unfamiliarity with blog platforms, Soares encountered some technical problems. Additionally, she learned that technical difficulties had a negative impact on some of her students, which may be minimized in the future through some tutorial training. The survey helped Soares realize that some of the trends she saw with her students, such as being more interested in reading blogs than commenting on them, occurred in other contexts as well.
I think one of Soares' great insights came as a result of her second learning activity. She observed great collaborative efforts from her students when she gave them directed blog activities during class time. Not only were her students involved in "learning" through the blog assignment, but they were relying on each other for feedback and correction in their writing. Soares also discerned that her student seemed more comfortable using their English skills through the class blog with an identifiable audience rather than with "strangers". I think this is an important point to consider with ESL classrooms, especially with beginning-level language learners.
In regards to Soares' attitude about using blogs with future students, I'd say she is optimistic. I think she will use the knowledge she's gained so far to develop and improve her blog practices. Additionally, she uses her own blog to continue collaboration with other practitioners regarding this technology in education contexts.
Of the technologies described by Levy, I am most familiar with authoring software and learning management systems (LMS), such as BlackBoard. While teaching at a local language school, I used some language learning software called English Beat, which is geared towards children. As I received no proper instruction in how to use this program though, I can attest to Debski and Gruba's argument (1999) that this sort of "unfamiliarity with advanced technologies can lead to uncertainty towards using them" (p220). This experience did indeed make me a bit hesitant about using new technology in the classroom. However, I can certainly see the value of using authoring tools in language teaching and, in the future, will not likely introduce a new technology into the classroom until I am certain of how to use it to achieve specific curricular goals.
An authoring software, such as Hot Potatoes, offers flexibility to the instructor in terms of using it teach specific concepts and gives immediate feedback to the learner, which seems helpful. It takes longer, though, to get these details to the teacher and with corrective feedback as an important component to L2 learning, this is an area of concern. However, with continued developments and improvements in technology, such as the ability to link information across platforms through hybridization, this appears to be less problematic in the future. A second drawback is that that while the simple scripting in Hot Potatoes allows for fairly easy compatibility with a database, it may also pose security concerns for testing purposes. Levy suggests that computer savvy students may cheat by locating source codes for tests with the correct answers. These concerns may be overcome though by strict supervision during testing periods. In sum, I think the benefits of using authoring software with ESL students outweigh the negative aspects. I can see myself using this technology with my ESL students, preferably in combination with an LMS or database.
*BLACKBOARD - Soares, D. d.A. (2008). Understanding class blogs as a tool for language development. Language Teaching Research, 12(4), 517–533.
What challenges did Soares face when using blogs with her ESL students, and what lessons did she learn? How does she feel about using blogs with students in the future? Levy describes several types of technologies Choose one of them and describe how you might want to use it (or have used it), and discuss some of considerations that need to be taken when using this technology with ESL students
Soares' article on using a class blog with her pre-intermediate EFL students in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil describes some of the challenges she faced. Soares observed that her students were excited to get the blog started and showed interest in class, but demonstrated lower than expected participation in posting information and comments from home. She set out to gain some insight to her students' motivations and attitudes by engaging her students in some learning activities and distributing a survey to other professionals in the field (in varied countries) involved in blogging activities.
Due to unfamiliarity with blog platforms, Soares encountered some technical problems. Additionally, she learned that technical difficulties had a negative impact on some of her students, which may be minimized in the future through some tutorial training. The survey helped Soares realize that some of the trends she saw with her students, such as being more interested in reading blogs than commenting on them, occurred in other contexts as well.
I think one of Soares' great insights came as a result of her second learning activity. She observed great collaborative efforts from her students when she gave them directed blog activities during class time. Not only were her students involved in "learning" through the blog assignment, but they were relying on each other for feedback and correction in their writing. Soares also discerned that her student seemed more comfortable using their English skills through the class blog with an identifiable audience rather than with "strangers". I think this is an important point to consider with ESL classrooms, especially with beginning-level language learners.
In regards to Soares' attitude about using blogs with future students, I'd say she is optimistic. I think she will use the knowledge she's gained so far to develop and improve her blog practices. Additionally, she uses her own blog to continue collaboration with other practitioners regarding this technology in education contexts.
Of the technologies described by Levy, I am most familiar with authoring software and learning management systems (LMS), such as BlackBoard. While teaching at a local language school, I used some language learning software called English Beat, which is geared towards children. As I received no proper instruction in how to use this program though, I can attest to Debski and Gruba's argument (1999) that this sort of "unfamiliarity with advanced technologies can lead to uncertainty towards using them" (p220). This experience did indeed make me a bit hesitant about using new technology in the classroom. However, I can certainly see the value of using authoring tools in language teaching and, in the future, will not likely introduce a new technology into the classroom until I am certain of how to use it to achieve specific curricular goals.
An authoring software, such as Hot Potatoes, offers flexibility to the instructor in terms of using it teach specific concepts and gives immediate feedback to the learner, which seems helpful. It takes longer, though, to get these details to the teacher and with corrective feedback as an important component to L2 learning, this is an area of concern. However, with continued developments and improvements in technology, such as the ability to link information across platforms through hybridization, this appears to be less problematic in the future. A second drawback is that that while the simple scripting in Hot Potatoes allows for fairly easy compatibility with a database, it may also pose security concerns for testing purposes. Levy suggests that computer savvy students may cheat by locating source codes for tests with the correct answers. These concerns may be overcome though by strict supervision during testing periods. In sum, I think the benefits of using authoring software with ESL students outweigh the negative aspects. I can see myself using this technology with my ESL students, preferably in combination with an LMS or database.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)