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.

Gamification: The Impact of Games on Learner's Motivation in the L2 Classroom

There are many innovative ways to impact student motivation in the L2 classroom.  One interesting way to stimulate motivation in learning is through games.  Gamification "is the application of game elements in non-gaming situations, often to motivate or influence behavior" (Educase, 2011).  Through the increase in classroom technology it is becoming easier and more relevant to include games in school curriculum, particularly in L2 classrooms.

Gamification may seem abstract or even distracting for some classroom teachers, however, much can be said to rationalize the usage of games for second language learning.  For starters "Gamification offers instructors numerous creative opportunities to enliven their instruction with contests, leader boards, or badges that give students opportunities for recognition and a positive attitude toward their work" (Educase, 2011).   In language learning it is often quite common for shy students to fall behind, not because of some type of cognitive dysfunction but due to their shy and introverted personalities.  This is an area in which games can be very useful in second language classrooms: "Gamification  has the potential to help build connections among members of the academic community, drawing in shy students, supporting collaboration, and engendering interest in course content that students might not have otherwise explored" (Educase, 2011).

The game Phantasy Quest is a game that has a lot of potential in an ESL classroom.  I personally played the game once and found it to contain a wealth of new vocabulary for early intermediate speakers. The objective of the game is to click around the environment to rescue the girl and sail away.  By clicking on different items throughout the environment and through the use of logical thinking the player is able to achieve small tasks and victories that build up on each other and lead to the eventual achievement of winning the game. As we learned from Tom Chatfield's TEDTalk: 7 Ways Games Reward the Brain there is great importance of multiple long and short term aims as a way to keep the learner or game player continually interested.  The idea behind Phantasy Quest is to find missing puzzles pieces to unlock small achievements little by little until the final goal is reached.

There are many learning objectives that can be met through incorporation of this game.  One significant learning objective is vocabulary, a teacher can easily set up a lesson plan that teaches nautical vocabulary, the game has many vocabulary words associated with water, beaches, and even piracy.  The teacher can introduce worksheets and other traditional teaching methods to prepare the students for the vocabulary needed for the game.

Listening and speaking skills could also be strengthened through use of this game.  For example the teacher could separate the class into small groups depending on the number of computers available.  Each group member could have a role and different pieces to the walk-through.   The goal of the game is for the students to use their listening and speaking skills to work together to complete the game, groups could also compete against each other and time.  The teacher can serve as moderator, time keeper, and helper to the students.


To meet specific learning objects through games with out an abundance of computers is more challenging, however, it does not mean that it will not be useful.  For example most modern classrooms have one computer with projection capabilities.  The teacher could show the game on the projector and work through the process with the class.  Through this platform the teacher could instill question and answer format learning objectives.  Students could be separated into small groups, each group has the walk-through with various vocabulary words missing, they can offer their ideas for what to do next by "ringing-in" with their best idea for what to do next by utilizing the proper grammar and sentence structure.  The teacher will move the character in accordance with the students explanation and see if it works.  This is a good way to test if the learning objectives have been met; if the students complete the walk-through with the correct vocabulary and missing L2 information then the shipwrecked mate should be able to complete the necessary tasks.

The Phantasy Quest game uses a lot of logical and creative thinking in order to be successful.  This is an excellent platform for students to get comfortable thinking logical and creatively in their L2.  Whether this game is played in the classroom or outside of the classroom it is a very useful platform for a second language user to practice and learn English while staying motivated through a fun game.   

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.