Week 15 Technology, an instant feedback tool

The article “Assessing language using computer technology” by Dan Douglas and Volker Hegelheimer was really interesting because it is about using technology for assessments. What surprised me was the fact of having more advantages using technology than providing a piece of paper and a pencil. For example, technology enhances the learning process not only for students, but also for teachers. In fact, students can take a quiz on line and have a result immediately. What´s more interesting is that technology, nowadays, offers apps, websites, videos, etc that students can use as tools to improve their English skills out site the classroom. Regarding to scoring, feedback, and reporting systems, it is mentioned that programs have been developed to provide instant feedback when students make a paragraph. In addition, speech is another area that is showing progress to provide scoring. As a consequence, this process will take less time, so that, students and teachers will enjoy quiz time. In my opinion, this type of feedback is easier to manage and it is good for busy teachers because the result will be shown in the moment the students finish the quiz, instead of going home and start to check the quiz. Even though the program can be difficult to control it, but once teachers get used to it, they will find out the technology can make the difference in a classroom.  

Week 14 Two ideas to improve speaking skill in class

This week we read two articles. The first one is “10 Benefits of Getting Students to Participate in Classroom Discussions” by Maryellen Weimer. The second one is “Increase Student Interaction with think pair ­shares” and circle chats" by Kristina Robertson.

What is interesting from the first article is that participation in one key or one of the most important thing for student’s success. The more they participate, the more they get interested in the topic. In fact, the role of the teacher needs to change a little bit. Teachers tend to speak the 90% of the class and students get bored since they listen the explanation or the instructions. In my opinion, teachers cannot only allow students to speak more but also encourage them to speak and practicing the language. As an example, if one students is asking for a word meaning, another student can help his/her classmate by giving the definition or giving an example to clarify that doubt. In that way, they are improving their speaking skill, so that, they will not be afraid of talking in front of anybody. On the other hand, think­-pair-­share is very useful in class because students are able to first think about the answer, and then share it with the person that is next to him/her. As a result, they are able to give a better answer because they already practiced it before. Whenever it happens, teachers must be very careful to help students or to give feedback at that moment.  

Week 12 Project work in class

The article “Benefits of project work” by Bülent Alan and Fredricka L. Stoller talks about project work in class. It allows students to maximize their knowledge and being actively processing information that is given to them, so that, they can report it over a period of time established by the teacher. As a result, students can outcome and improve their knowledge and skills. Moreover, students are encouraged to have autonomy, engagement, and a more positive attitude toward English since they find an interactive way to learn their second language.

On the other hand, the article “Seven Essentials for Project-Based Learning” by John Larmer and John R. Mergendoller explains what the project work must contain in order to take advantage of it. Teachers must introduce the topic first, and then clarify any doubt possible in the class. The idea of it is to catch our student’s attention. The project could be in pairs or in groups. Before presenting the project, it must be checked by the teacher and students must have feedback, so that, the project must be presented in the best way.

In conclusion, project work can be a great activity that can be applied not only in the classroom, but also outside, so that, students can get more interested and have a motivation to improve by themselves. 

Week 11 Interactive classes with cellphone usage

The article for this week Twenty Ideas for Using Mobile Phones in the Language Classroom by Hayo Reinders represents a challenge for me. As the title says, the content is about how cellphones o similar devices can be applied to a class and how they have a positive impact on the learning process. Since learners are used to working with technology, the result can be better than expected. So that, the author explain some activities with technology that can be applied in our daily classes.

For example, the idea that was interesting for me was using the text messaging feature for circular writing. You can set up a group or the media where students can send the massages, so that, they will be able to create an essay or to create a really good story as a group with everybody’s help. Also, they can use Skype to practice more the target language. So that, the can have a phone call and start talking about one topic/grammar in specific. As a matter of fact, they will improve not only their speaking but also listening skills.

  

In fact, we can use this ideas in our classes or they can be assignments that will make improve our student’s English skills. In my opinion, this is a great idea to make our classes more interactive and avoid the routine.     

Week 10 Wiki, a tool to develop collaborative writing

The article “Online Collaborative Writing Using Wikis” by Paul Sze is about “wiki” which is a website, and great tool for online writing activities. So that, anyone can edit anything anytime they want. In fact, the author wanted to find out how applicable wikis are with ESL learners. So, he decided to make a project with the students. They were asked to write about their secondary school life for a month using Wikis as a tool. But they were trained first in order to start using it. By the time students write, a lesson about how to create a good paragraph, so that, they were able to edit their paragraphs. At the end, they were able not to publish their own articles only, but also to check their classmates´ articles. As a result they had fun with this activity because it was new for them.  The author added more activities that can be great by using this wonderful tool like writing book reports, poetry, school history, short stories, etc. In my opinion, this tool is very useful because students can develop writing skill by having fun. As I always say, this type of activities must be controlled by the teacher in order to achieve the goal. And I agree with the author, wikis are useful for promoting collaborative writing for ESL learners.  

Week 8 Tools to enhance vocabulary

The article “Vocabulary is one of those things where the rich get richer.” by Eli Hinkel talks about dictionary usage in an ESL/EFL class. Internet provides a lot of sources where students can look for a meaning of a word that is not clear for them. However, not all of them can fit the needs of an ESL/EFL because they are focused on native speakers only. As a matter of fact, the article give some characteristic that an online dictionary must have. For example, a corpus-based compilation of words, word frequency data, and collocation guides, authentic examples of how words are used, and topical vocabulary from different disciplines. What is interesting is that students can make a list of new words that they have encountered. Then, they just need to look for the meaning in online dictionaries. On the other hand, the article “Using Technology to Assist in Vocabulary Acquisition and Reading Comprehension” by Andreea I. Constantinescu. The author talks about how reading can be really useful for learning vocabulary and how technology can help students improving this skill. As we know, websites can offer a variety of multimedia tools such as text, audio, video, graphics, animation, and interactivity. As matter of fact, you have a more interactive class and students can get more interested in the topic.

Week 7 CALL, a tool to improve reading and writing skills

The article “Using the Internet in ESL Writing Instruction” by Jarek Krajka, talks about how technology can be useful for writing lessons. For example, email address usage can even save time for teachers that are allowed to create writing activities that students can do outside the classroom. Also, it is mentioned that web sites can be another tool that teachers can use to improve writing skills on students. The advantage of it is that we have a huge technology world that needs to be discovered by ourselves. What I mean is that we as teachers must look for the right material and prepare our classes to have a successful lesson plan which can achieve our goals. In other words, teacher must be extremely prepared for the lesson. Moreover, Krajka provides interesting activities to develop writing skills such as writing a letter to a friend, a formal letter, a biography, a description of a person, an essay, etc.

On the other hand “Using Internet­-Based Children's Literature to Teach EFL” by Larry J. Mikulecky talks about the great impact that reading can have in order to improve vocabulary, grammar, reading comprehension and writing. As a matter of fact, the author says that we can use web pages to make our students read outside the classroom. To be more interactive, teacher can ask questions about the reading or to make activities that can show that student have read the article provided.   

Week 6 Videos and critical thinking in classes

In this week, we have read the article “Using Original Video and Sound Effects to Teach English” by Shahla Yassaei. It is about implementing a video in a daily class which lesson was speculations. What surprised me was the way that video was used to fit in this topic. She started recording herself instead of downloading a video from internet. In the video she was doing activities that we do in our routine. What is more interesting is that, she built a speculation environment form the beginning by covering the T.V. and presenting just the audio of the video, so that, students started to speculate about what was going on in the video. The class was really interactive because students used the target grammar and they had fun at the same time. In fact, this method can be used to teach grammar, vocabulary, writing, etc. Of course, teacher always encouraged students to use and practice the target grammar.

In addition, the video “Critical thinking” is very helpful for teachers that want to do more for students. It explains what critical thinking is. And it is basically that students can think by themselves, so that, they can receive information, analyze it and provide their own thinking or output.

In my opinion, to have worksheets, activities in the classrooms, fill in the blanks, etc., is not enough. We as teachers must do our best to encourage and challenge our students to develop critical thinking to have a better learning results.   

Week 5 Critical thinking, a challenge for teachers

The article for this week is “Critical Thinking and Technology” by Ken Bain. It is a very interesting reading and what I liked from it is that encourages teachers to do something different to develop critical thinking in students.

In fact, the author explains a variety of methods that can be used to achieve that goal. Ken Bain mentions that we (human beings) are curious, so that, we as teacher should challenge ourselves by making the topic interesting for our students to take advantage and encourage students to study by themselves. I think that to give instructions, explain grammar, create worksheets, etc. is not always enough. That is why technology has become an attractive tool not only for teachers, but also for students. As a matter of fact, technology represents a visual tool that catches everybody´s attention by providing websites which includes interactive material for practicing listening, reading and writing skills.

In conclusion, to develop critical thinking in our students, it is necessary to go beyond and try to use technology as a tool. In addition, as the Ken Bain says, “we should begin with questions about what we want our students to learn and whether certain technologies can help them achieve that.”

Week 4 Internet, a good tutor.

The reading “CALL Me … Maybe: A Framework for Integrating the Internet into ELT” expresses that depend on the internet access we have, certain technology tools or options can be included in our classes. As a consequence, students can get in touch with the real English world. The fallowing websites are used as examples: www.facebook.com www.youtube.com www.prezi.com and www.pinterest.com.  

For example, Internet provides numerous of sites which offer lessons on English language usage, such as grammar, vocabulary, listening, idioms, etc. Also, a website can provide another tool which is podcast, which provides listening lessons and another kind of activities useful not only for teachers, but also for students. That is why Internet is said that can have a role as a tutor, because it can be used to offer help to students. In addition, the content needs to fit the needs of the program, so that, teachers must be aware of it and do their best to find the best material. Once they are done, the next step is to make it as usable as possible and take advantage of it.

To conclude, internet is like a huge world, which is needed to be discovered, so that, teachers should develop researcher skills in order to find as much accurate material as we can to enhance the learning process of students. 

Week 3 Podcast: The new listening tool.

The article “Integrating CALL into the classroom: the role of podcasting in an ESL listening strategies course” was really interesting to me because it talks about a very uncommon tool to have in the listening classes. This is called “Podcast” which allows students with access to an MP3 player or a computer to subscribe to audio or visual content that is automatically delivered over a network, so that, users can download the audio or the material that they want to listen to.

Educational podcast are becoming more popular because it allows audio and video streaming to lots of students. The good thing about it, is that students can review the material once and again until the content is clear while they learn and improve their English skills. In fact, teachers need to be trained and prepared to give the right material that can be applied in the curriculum. Moreover, whenever we use a book or a pre-edited audio, students are limited to learn a specific vocabulary. Nevertheless, podcast can increase information on specific aspects of the language such as idiomatic expressions or grammatical constructions allowing students to face the real English world.

As a conclusion, podcasting usage in listening courses can make the difference. In addition, teachers must choose the right tools and materials and take advantage of them. 

Week 2: Developing autonomy learning

The reading for “Effectiveness of the Integration of ICT Tools and Activities to Foster Awareness as the First Stage to Reach Learning Autonomy” was about students being able to study or have a learning process by themselves. Which is basically that students take responsibility to find the ways to improve their learning process. As a matter of fact, the use of CALL is being recommended to promote autonomy in students. So that, they have access to more tools to practice the language and find a web site that fit their needs. For example, students use computers to watch a video instead of using a book.

Something that I want to mention from the article is the fact that usage of ICT tools can enhance language proficiency on students who take the time to practice in a more interactive way. As a result, they will be able to see their own progress and create a routine. Furthermore, I think that we as a teachers have the responsibility to first, encourage our students and let them know the importance of autonomous learning, second, teachers need to be prepared by looking for good web sites, videos, software, etc. that can help them to make it easier.

As a conclusion, implementing CALL can develop interest in self-studying on students that are helped by teachers to find the right tools.

Week 1 Getting to know CALL

The reading for the first week demonstrates really interesting facts about CALL which means computer-assisted language learning. It talks about technology history in the education area and how it has become a good tool for educators.

What I learned from the article “CALL: an overview” who authors are Mark Warschauer and Deborah Healey, is that at the beginning, not most of the people were worried about how technology can be used in the classroom. However, it has become a tool and a very interesting option to develop student’s skills such as listening, grammar, speaking and writing. As an example, the use of email, which is a real time communication between student and teacher, can have a positive impact in the learning process of the students. Teacher should monitor and provide feedback to enhance students´ proficiency. As a consequence, learning process is more interactive and students seem to enjoy this method.

In my opinion, students can have many advantages of using technology, such as an instant feedback, play while learning, lots of resources to study, the fun factor and more. That is why the teaching methods has changed with the acquisition of software and internet, which help students to have a more realistic and also native-speaker models of the language in a variety of media that do not include extra payment for students.