Week 6: Creating your own Materials for the Classroom.

After Reading the articles “Employment of CALL in Teaching Second/Foreign Language Speaking Skills” and “Using Original Video and Sound Effects to Teach English” I have acquired new knowledge on the way that CALL can be used to teach specific skills in a second or foreign language. Moreover,  using an original video recording and sound effect to teach English is an excellent idea when we want to integrate videos into lessons, but we don't find them for a specific topic or the material we find is not the most appropriate for our class.    

  

The article show us the idea of recording yourself or make a video about something by yourself, it sounds very challenging, but at the same time it is the opportunity to try something new and that I would like implement in my classes. Something interesting about this is that it is possible to use the same video to teach different topics and practice different skills like vocabulary, grammar, and listening. It is important to say that creating material for the different skills is kind of difficult, but using this methodology we can do and get what we need for our classes.

Furthermore, in the article I read about the advantages and disadvantages of the integration of CALL for speaking skills. CALL provides motivation to students and it has a variety of resouerces to use. In addition, language teachers and learners are provided with an authentic and stimulating conversational environment. For example, broadcasting, video or audio conferencing over the network, discussion forums, etc. However, computer programs for speaking or pronunciation do not always imitate a human voice very well and they are unable to produce or understand natural language or have a real verbal interaction. Using a recording voice is very important because you are helping your students, but at the same time teacher are learning new things to integrate new materials in the classroom.

Week 5: Activating the Critical Thinking in our Students.

                                                    Critical Thinking and Technology.

What can we do to help and encourage our students to become the best ones, and how they can accomplish the goal by using technology, but we have to study how people learn.  

For this reason, some investigatores that studied the intrinsic motivations present two fairly simple theories. First, human beings are naturally curious animals. Second, human beings are both rational and emotional creatures. People learn naturally while tryig to solve prolems that are affecting them.

Teachers have to recognize that students are most likely to become intellectually exited to work if teachers appeal to their emotions. Moreover, when we talk about Learning Specific Abstract Reasoning Abilities. We as teachers have to pay attention and have to know that not every student have that same process when learning something. Someones learn faster and others not. Everybody have a different process and for this reason is important that we as a teachers have to ask them more then telling or dictating information in their clases. But sometimes we just say the things, but we do not do it in the correct way. Some people learn in different kinds of input, not in the same all the time.

I think that technology has help a lot in the society. And nowadays students have more possibilities and also teachers. If students have the opportunity to use a computer they have the chance to accomplish the objectives goals we have for them. When teacher have the possibility to use technology and computers they can prepare their class with material that will help students in their learning. Taking into account that not everybody learn in the same way.

Week 4: The Integration of Internet in ELT.

CALL Me … Maybe: A Framework for Integrating the Internet into ELT

Basically, the article talks about an alternative framework for internet integration in ELT. The article present some ideas to integrate the internet in all schools even at the ones that do not have access to internet.

Nowadays, the use of the internet is very common, but sometimes we as a teachers have to know if all the students have the opportunity to access; so in this way they can learn different things, for example; numerous sites offer lessons on English language usage, such as grammar, vocabulary, and idioms. As well as current events and blogs, information about almost any subject is available in depth and up to date. This is incredibly valuable for every subject you can imagine. Almost every school and government research organization is "on the web", along with libraries, educational institutions, associations, and many commercial directories and sites.

Furthermore, the article say that internet can be use as a tutor, the Internet can be used to offer advice, facilitate analysis, or conduct activities. Also, as a tool, the Internet can be used for a deeper level of student engagement and interactivity by helping stimulate creativity; it can also foster communication and  collaboration. If a student have the probability to access to internet is proven that well help them a lot. For example: to increase learner motivation and reduce learner anxiety (LeLoup and Ponterio 2003). As the authors said, if students use internet they can be motivated because they can find so many things to learn something new on internet. They can access to many website that will help them in different áreas. That means that students are focusing in activities in orden to learn; in this way they cannot have the opportunity to wast their time.

Moreover, mobile phones are the tools more available is this days. Most of the people Access to internet through this tool and not from a computer. Using this tool, people can download applications for different aims. Now we can communicated with people from different places.

In conclusion, the internet is very important to learn in different areas, but talking about a language. It does not matter if we have lack of internet access, teachers can find a way to integrate this tool in their instruction or classes.

 

Week 3: Using podcast to learn a second language.

Blending Technologies in ESL Courses: A Reflexive Enquiry.

The first impression of the article was that the use of podcasts are very important when students would like to improve their listening skill. And not only the listening skill. As in the article mention using this tool instructors can help students with speaking, listening and digital literacy skills.

Moreover, something that I noticed from this article and the investigación-action they made with students using the podcast made at home, is that some of the students have barriers when using podcast. Some of them are the followings: Not owning, or little access to players, Lack of awareness of podcasts as learning tools, Incompatibility (mp4a vs mp3), and Technology reverting from ‘awe’ to ‘bore’. As we know some students do not have the opportunity to use this type of tools, some of them do not even know how to use it or they just think that is something bore. For this reason, we as a teachers have to help students and encourange them to use this tools to have a better learning.

Furthermore, something that I like when I was reading is a quote by Vandergrift, (2004) that says: The teaching of listening in the second language classroom is a multi-purpose activity; that is, learners must use the resources both for ‘learning to listen’ and for ‘listening to learn’. This is really true because somtimes students do not use the resources in a good way. Students have to learn by listening, but at the same time they have to listen to learn something different, everybody have to practice this to imrpove their knowledge.

For me the use of podcast in the classroom is a good way to help students to develop some of the skills they have to use. We as a teachers have to encourage them to to give an appropiate use of podcast.

Do you think that using podcasts in classroom will help students to learn a second language?