Introduction
What is a WebQuest? How does it work?
This webquest is intended to familiarize you with how a simple webquest can work! In this webquest you will learn more about using different technology tools for teaching languages.
Have fun!
Task
The class will be split in three groups.
With your group, research the corresponding topic below.
You will find links to the topics on the process site. You may also use other websites to find more information.
When you are done researching present your results in the group Wiki to show the other students what you have learned about the topic.
1) Blogs in the Language Classroom
1The development and free online availability of blogging software has helped transform the Web from a place principally used to access information to one where vast numbers of people publish their own work, with hundreds of millions of blogs launched in the past decade. The potential role of blogs in education, and in second language learning in particular, is revealed through an analysis of the medium’s affordances. The value of online communication in second language learning has been attributed to how it combines the interactivity of speech with the permanence of writing (Warschauer, 1997). Yet different types of online communication achieve this combination in different ways. An analysis by Herring and colleagues demonstrates how blogs serve as a bridging genre between more highly interactive forms of asynchronous computer-mediated communication (CMC) and standard published HTML documents (see Figure 1). Blogs are more frequently updated (in terms of adding new content or comments), include more exchange among people, and have a higher percentage of text (as opposed to multimedia) than standard Webpages. But the exchanges on them tend to be more asymmetric (i.e., dominated by main authors) and less frequently updated than CMC sites such as newsgroups. If online communication
2) Discussion Forums in the Language Classroom
Asynchronous discussion boards have a number of educational advantages, most notably the sophisticated level of discussion which typically takes place there. Over many years of research, it has been established that this is due to the combination of interaction and reflection facilitated by such boards: essentially, participants are engaged in conversation, and can thus bounce ideas off each other as they collaboratively build understanding, but because the conversation takes place in writing they also have time to reflect on others' messages and to compose their own replies carefully. In addition, the conversation is typically very democratic (because everyone has a chance to say as much as he or she wishes) and multidirectional (with participants able to follow the discussion threads which are of most relevance or interest to them personally). All in all, discussion boards are a great way of promoting collaborative learning and, if structured carefully, can lead to the development of effective learning communities. When they involve a multilingual and/or multicultural cohort of students, they are also a great way of developing intercultural competence. The asynchronous aspect is particularly useful in international courses, where participants may be located in different time zones
3) Audio and Video Tools in the Language Classroom
YOUTUBE FOR FOREIGN LANGUAGES Building on the brief history of YouTube, the needs of the digital natives, and the benefits of using video clips, the focus of this article will now shift towards presenting YouTube as an instructional tool for foreign languages. The following is an explanation of several general methods in which YouTube videos can be utilized.
Process
1) Blogs in the Language Classroom
- what are blogs?
What is it?
A blog—a shorthand term that means “Web log”—is an online, chronological collection of personal commentary and links. Easy to create and use from anywhere with an Internet connection, blogs are a form of Internet publishing that has become an established communications tool. Blogging has evolved from its origins as a medium for the online publication of personal diaries to a respected vehicle for editorials on specific topics. In their latest incarnation, blogs represent an alternative to mainstream media publications. The personal perspectives presented on blogs often lead to discourse between bloggers, and many blog circles generate a strong sense of community
How does it work?
A blog can be thought of as an online journal, and maintaining a blog is as simple as using an online e-mail program. Bloggers enter posts into a blogging application, add formatting or hyperlinks, and save the post. The application adds the entry to the blog, making the content available online and alerting users who have subscribed to that blog’s content. Entries can include text, hyperlinks, images, or multimedia. Visitors can read postings, submit com
2) Discussion Forums in the Language Classroom
what are discussion forums?
Discussion boards, or threaded discussions, are one of the most commonly used tools in online teaching. Discussion forums provide the ability for asynchronous discussion to occur over a period of time. The ability to learn asynchronously is one of the primary benefits of online learning. Students are able to reflect upon their ideas before sharing them with the class, leading to more reflective responses and in-depth learning. This guide has been designed to provide some practical suggestions to assist you in making the most of this versatile tool. A number of topics have been addressed, including: facilitation tips, content area suggestions, time management strategies and much more.
how can discussion forums be used in the classroom?
Discussion boards allow students to discuss a topic without meeting in person or at a particular time online. Thus, this is a conversation that takes place over a period of time and possibly from a variety of locations. Students’ comments are listed on the discussion board with an online identifier, most recent first, awaiting responses from other students. The prompt with its collection of responses is called a thread. Effectiveness of discussion boards in courses depends on setting realistic expectations, integrating the activity into course design, and selecting practical prompts.
3) Audio and Video Tools in the Language Classroom
how could audio tools enhance language teaching?
Discussion boards, or threaded discussions, are one of the most commonly used tools in online teaching. Discussion forums provide the ability for asynchronous discussion to occur over a period of time. The ability to learn asynchronously is one of the primary benefits of online learning. Students are able to reflect upon their ideas before sharing them with the class, leading to more reflective responses and in-depth learning. This guide has been designed to provide some practical suggestions to assist you in making the most of this versatile tool. A number of topics have been addressed, including: facilitation tips, content area suggestions, time management strategies and much more.
in the following module, we present our favorite online resources and examples of how to use Audacity for digital audio recording in the classroom. We also reflect on the value that this tool adds to classroom activities, and possible challenges that teachers should be prepared for when employing this tool in their work. Ultimately it is the potential to use Audacity as tool in larger student-centered, creative, collaborative projects that is most exciting in terms of implementation in the classroom. Beyond just improving their own individual speaking abilities and comparing their pronunciation with that of their teacher and other fluent speakers, digital audio recording tasks can be about student-created work. Students can write, record, edit, and produce their own audio files and share as widely as they would like. Ideally and if time allows, Audacity can be a tool that allows students to take learning outside of the classroom. Larger interpersonal webs can be created with classmates, families, and native speakers in the community. Since foreign language learning is about not only perfecting, but applying spoken language in interactive and presentational formats, digital audio recording offers a host of options for the language teacher and learner alike.
how could video tools enhance language teaching?
After considering the basic premise behind YouTube and the specific needs of the digital native students, the next logical question is: can the use of YouTube videos in the foreign language classroom satisfy students and teachers? The answer is yes. YouTube offers fast and fun access to language and culture-based videos and instruction from all over the globe. It provides an outlet for student and teacher-created videos, and most importantly, YouTube videos provide students with an opportunity to engage meaningfully in the target language. From a research perspective, there are several advantages to using video clips educationally. Berk (2009) describes a review of theoretical and research-based studies related to the use of videos and the brain. He discusses how the use of videos has been found to benefit students by connecting to multiple intelligences, both hemispheres of the brain, and to the emotional sense of the students. He also refers to the “picture superiority effect”, which explains that concepts or ideas are more likely to be remembered if they are presented as pictures rather than words.
Evaluation
After completing the WIKI we will discuss the different ways to incorporate blogs, discussion forums, audio and video tools, or digital storytelling in the foreign language classroom. We will focus on discussing how these tools can enhance our teaching and our students' learning of the target language and culture.
By the end of the workshop we should have a good overview of ways to incorporate these tools in the classroom and a list of advantages and challenges of the tools in our WIKI.
Conclusion
For further information about the suitability of blogs, discussion forums, audio/video tools, and digital storytelling in the foreign language classroom, please refer to the following sources which present just a small selection of available research on these topics.
BLOGS
Alm, A. (2009). Blogging for self-determination with L2 learner journals. In M. Thomas (Ed.), Handbook of research on web 2.0 and second language learning (pp. 202-223). Hershey: Information Science Reference.
Armstrong, K., & Retterer, O. (2008). Blogging as L2 writing: A case study. AACE Journal, 16(3), 233-251.
Carney, N. (2009). Blogging in foreign language education. In M. Thomas (Ed.), Handbook of research on web 2.0 and second language learning (pp. 292-313). Hershey: Information Science Reference.
Compernolle, R. A. v., & Abraham, L. B. (2009). Interactional and discursive features of English-language weblogs for language learning and teaching. In L. B. Abraham & L. Williams (Eds.), Electronic discourse in language learning and language teaching (pp. 193-213). Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Ducate, L. C., & Lomicka, L. L. (2008). Adventures in the blogosphere: from blog readers to blog writers. CALICO, 21(1), 9-28.
Elola, I., & Oskoz, A. (2008). Blogging: Fostering intercultural competence development in foreign language and study abroad contexts. Foreign Language Annals, 41(3), 454-477.
Fellner, T., & Apple, M. (2006). Developing writing fluency and lexical complexity with blogs. The JALT CALL Journal, 2(1), 15-26.
FORUMS
Cziko, G. A. (2004). Electronic tandem language learning (eTandem): A third approach to second language learning for the 21st century. CALICO, 22(1), 25-39.
Goertler, S. (2009). Using computer-mediated communication (CMC) in language teaching. Die Unterrichtspraxis / Teaching German, 42(1), 74-83.
Hanna, B. E., & De Nooy, J. (2003). A funny thing happened on the way to the forum: Electronic discusion and foreign language learning. Language Learning & Technology, 7(1), 71-85.
Hanna, B. E., & De Nooy, J. (2009). Learning language and culture via public internet discussion forums. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
Liaw, M.-L. (2006). E-learning and the development of intercultural competence. Language Learning & Technology, 10(3), 49-64.
Schuetze, U. (2008). Exchanging second language messages online: Developing an intercultural communicative competence? Foreign Language Annals, 41(4), 660-673.
VIDEO/AUDIO
Godwin-Jones, R. (2012). Emerging technologies: Digital video revisited: Storytelling, conferencing, remixing. CALICO, 16(1), 1-9.
Hampel, R., & Baber, E. (2003). Using internet-based audio-graphic and video conferencing for language teaching and learning. In U. Felix (Ed.), Language learning online: Towards best practice (pp. 171-193). Lisse: Swets & Zeitlinger.
Kinginger, C. (1998). Videoconferencing as access to spoken French. The Modern Language Journal, 82(4), 502-513.
Lee, L. (2007). Fostering second language oral communication through constructivist interaction in desktop videoconferencing. Foreign Language Annals, 40(4), 635-648.
DIGITAL STORYTELLING
Castaneda, M. E. (2013). "I am proud that I did it and it's a piece of me": Digital storytelling in the foreign language classroom. CALICO, 30(1), 44-62.
Godwin-Jones, R. (2012). Emerging technologies: Digital video revisited: Storytelling, conferencing, remixing. CALICO, 16(1), 1-9.
Hull, G. A., & Katz, M.-L. (2006). Crafting an Agentive Self: Case Studies of Digital Storytelling. Research in the Teaching of English, 41(1), 43-81. doi: 10.2307/40171717