Podcasts in the Classroom

Podcasts are a great way for people to get their ideas across and basically make their own television or radio shows on their own.  There are many different ways that a teacher can incorporate Podcasts into their lesson plans.  A teacher can use it as a media source or source of educational entertainment in English to help stimulate motivation.  For example a teacher can create an assignment that asks the students to listen to a podcast about a theme or topic that interests them, then the teacher can have them create their own podcast on a subject of interest.  Activities like this can be a fun way for students to practice their listening and speaking skills in English in an authentic manner that holds their interest and keeps them motivated in their learning.


In addition to using Podcasts for media learning sources, there are also many Podcasts available that are ESL specific.  I listened to the Podcast English Cafe 446 on the website ESL Pod.  This Podcast was about the La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles.  It consisted of several vocabulary words about animals and science.  It included the narration of the "teacher" as well as interview clips with members of the scientific community behind La Brea.  The interviewees would talk about the actions of the pit and the teacher would then describe the language and vocabulary which included spelling out words for the listeners. The Podcast also included a question and answer period after the main lecture.  A Podcast like this can be a great asset to the ESL classroom, a teacher can build lesson plans around certain themes such as animal science vocabulary.  Or more likely there are other themes of Podcasts similar to this one that are a little more likely such as famous songs, organizing your house or famous Americans.  

ePals in the Classroom

ePals is a fascinating website that can connect teachers and students across the globe.  What makes ePals so great is that it's limitations for classroom implications seem almost limitless.  Like the world around it, the classroom is becoming more and more a global space for learning and participation.   With internet tools like these it offers students chances to interact with other students from all over the world.  With partners such as McGraw-Hill, the Smithsonian and National Geographic ePals can boast some serious learning potential.

There are a lot of things that you can do as a teacher with ePals.  One thing that I found really interesting as an ESL teacher was the ability to connect with other language classrooms.  On the website they mention "Teachers use the free ePals Global Classroom to create real world, culturally-enriching learning experiences for their students.  With ePals classroom atching, a high school class studying Chinese can connect with a class studying English in China, or the classes can work on a special project together."  Although this is reference to an American foreign language classroom, a similar idea can be used in an American ESL classroom.  You can easily implement something like this in an ESL classroom.  Authentic learning situations and culturally-enriching learning experiences are crucial to second language acquisition.  Both play a significant role in stimulating motivation by the learner.  By allowing ESL learners to interact with native English speakers learning their language as an L2 can be an incredible opportunity for growth as a learner.  Using ePals in the classroom is a great way to take advantage of and properly utilize
technology in the classroom.

Using GoAnimate in the Classroom

Using comic strips in the classroom can be a really effective tool for ESL learners.  Personally I used the comic strip generator GoAnimate to create my ESL 30 second comic strip.  I wasn't aware of this type of internet tool before and I was pretty fascinated by it.  It was actually a lot of fun to create despite having your options limited by the free 30 second version.  It was pretty clear to see the classroom and language implications that can be supported by such a feature.  There are so many ways to use something like this in class.  As a teacher you can get a subscription and make much longer comics that can be used to reinforce difficult lesson concepts or could potentially serve as the medium used to teach an aspect of the language.  There are so many options of characters, backgrounds and motions available through the website that you could create a running theme that could be incorporated into every lesson as an assistant to the teacher during the entire semester or school year.  The text to speech option makes it really very easy to have the characters say all kinds of vocabulary and produce all different types of grammar.

Using comic strips like this in the classroom can be very beneficial to student interest and motivation.  I prefer to use the comic strip generator over the digital storytelling in the classroom because I think it is more involved and that the possibilities  are greater than the story telling tool I reviewed in my earlier post.  Although I think both tools have good implications for L2 classrooms, GoAnimate just allows you as a teacher to do so much more and create so many more scenarios for ESL learners.
 

Using Animoto in the Classroom

I chose to use Animoto to create a video to practice the question "have you been?"  I think it is an interesting internet tool that can serve a purpose in a modern ESL classroom.  I was surprised at how quick and easy it was to make something interesting and aesthetically pleasing.  There are a couple ways that short videos can be used for ESL purposes.  One way is to create a video that reinforces themes or concepts learned during the lesson.  It can be used to reinforce vocabulary, grammar, and contextual awareness. Teachers can either create videos or have the students create their own videos.  The process of learning how to use Animoto and following the English directions, can also serve to reinforce practical language use by L2 learners. 

It would be interesting as a teacher to see what the full version of the program can do.  The thrity second trial video is just a good example of the potential of the program in the ESL classroom.  With the full version teachers and students can make much longer videos.  For example a teacher could make a video discussing a certain grammar structure or set of vocabulary words and have the student respond with their own videos explaining the grammar or unseeing the vocabulary.  Animoto is another great resource for teachers and students and has great pedagogical implications for the L2 classroom.

The Art of Digital Storytelling

Storytelling is an ancient human tradition, it has been around for as long as humans have had speech and language.  As the generations passed storytelling, like all things became modernized. Starting with the introduction of written language then paper and ink and the printing press and now we meet the 21st century's incarnation of the art of storytelling: Digital storytelling.  Digital storytelling is exactly what it sounds like, telling a story through use of digital media.  It gives the author the chance to pass down a story about their  family history, friendships, adventures, whatever they would like and share it with the world. 

There are many ways that digital storytelling can used for education, according to the article 7 Things You Should know About Digital Storytelling "Digital stories let students express themselves not only with their own words but also in their own voices, fostering a sense of individuality and of “owning” their creations" In an ESL classroom few things are more important than a student's voice and confidence in expressing his or her self in English.  Digital Storytelling gives students the chance to express themselves in English in a low stress environment in a way that is interesting and fun as well.   Digital Storytelling has some good implications for teachers as well.  On the website Educational Uses of Digital Storytelling it says "Teacher-created digital stories may also be used to enhance current lessons within a larger unit, as a way to facilitate discussion about the topics presented a story and as a way of making abstract or conceptual content more understandable."  Digital Storytelling is very versatile for use by both students and teachers .

As a teacher I can see the uses of Digital Storytelling in the classrooms.  In my future classroom I think I would use Digital Storytelling as an out of class assignment where students could create a short story fact or fictional and telling using this medium and share it with the class.  This is just one potential way I could see myself using this internet tool in a future ESL classroom.  There are of course several more ways that we as modern educators can use this technology in our classrooms.  The possibilities are only limited only by our own creativity and work. 

Learners and Chocolate and Motivation in Society

To modify an oft quoted piece of American cinema history: "A learner is like a box of chocolates......you never know what yer gonna get."  I'm not sure second language learners were what Mr. Gump had in mind as he dropped that little morsel of wisdom on the average mid-nineties American, however, the analogy fits rather nicely.  

When assessing second language learners there are a multitude of factors that go into considering what type of learner, and whether or not they will be successful by some measurable standard.  Factors such as biology, motivation, age, self-identity, instruction methods, and sociocultural connectivisim.  In his presentation of What is connectivisim? George Siemens of the University of Manitoba states "...much of what we know is shaped and influenced in our exchange and dialogue with others."  Although he is speaking on knowledge and learning in a more general sense, this idea is at the forefront of language learning.  So much of our learned language comes from societal interactions with those around us.  Language is born out of the need to interact and understand one and other and second language learners need to adapt to their new society to be successful.  How a learner interacts with the people around them plays a significant role in whether they will be successful or not.  Often language is learned through socialization and the need to connect with the members of the society and culture being experienced by the learner.  

Another factor of language learning that fits the analogy is motivation.  There are many factors that contribute to a learner's motivation.  One of the most important factors in learner motivation is the concept of practical worthiness.  Before the process of learning something new can take place the learner must decide if the subject is worth the process of acquisition and  how will the learner directly benefit from this knowledge.  The subject of worthiness is discussed aptly by George Siemens in his written post titled: Connectivisim a Learning Theory for the Digital Age, he states that: " The need to evaluate the worthiness of learning something is a meta-skill that is applied before learning itself begins." This subtle skill is a base for all learning that may or may not take place.  It is something all learners do and is a necessity for learning something new. 

 With so many different aspects of learning to be considered, it is no surprise that every learner is different.  As teachers we must take this into consideration, especially with second language learners.  We should have a good idea as to how their motivation and social interaction as learners will play a part in their language learning going forward.  no two learners are ever really the same and as teachers we'll never really know what we're gonna get.

Effects of 21st Communications in the Classrooms

Technology continues to change the way we approach education as a society.  The world is changing more rapidly now than ever, there is more information readily available than ever before.  But does that mean people are smarter? Or that education is better? Not necessarily.

After observing the video Educational Change Challenge it is apparent that not all aspects of society are keeping up with the modern technological social changes that are taking place.  It appears that while there have been many technological advancements in the age of computers, the overall approach to education has remained relatively stagnate.  As advances in medicine, energy, and information sharing have stormed through the 21st century education remains locked in its "one size fits all" mentality.  iPods and pads, computer rooms and tech savvy teenagers are a plenty in this modern age, however, the way we teach our students remains the same.  After viewing this video it is apparent what is needed is a technological advancement in the overall approach to education in America.  Educators need to have more freedom and creativity when creating lessons that are appropriate to all types of learners, rather than forcing old world mentality into new world minds.  Until educational approaches are attempted with the same gusto and innovation as the technologies used in classrooms, America's education system will remain stuck in the 20th century.

                                                                                         The future is now!

The other videos which caught my eye were Social Media Revolution and Did You Know?.  The videos were filled with interesting statistics about the state of the world and education.  It is quite remarkable how quickly technology has taken over our lives, particularly social media.  Social media-twitter, Facebook, google+ etc- is one of the most fascinating technological advancements to come out of the early 21st century.  The role that it can hold in the classroom is still being determined.  For the first time in the history of the world anyone can share any type of information instantaneously with anyone around the world.  This type of information sharing is world changing and can have an important impact in the modern classroom.  However social media is also a vice in the sense that it can provide a major distraction for young people in the classrooms.  So although it makes it simple to share information it also makes it easy to distract from learning.  What role social media will play in the future classrooms is yet to be determined.

Overall technology is changing the world rapidly in nearly every aspect.  And until we as a society can incorporate these advantages and changes into the approach to education it will remain in the shadows of the technology it's unable to incorporate.