Podcasting Enhancing Education (Mod 12)

Podcasting is changing the way teachers conduct business in the classroom. Podcasts are certainly enhancing the learning experiences of English language learners. As we have seen with other technologies such as blogs, wikis, and ePals students are exposed to more than just the text book and the voice of the teacher. Students benefit because they are introduced to various perspectives, can log onto a "mini-lesson" at any time, and in the case of the English language learner, hear "authentic" speaking at any time they desire. Of course, we must always consider those students who are not fortunate enough to have access to computers at home and adjust accordingly. Nevertheless, as educators, the options available to enhance our lessons by using podcasts are enthralling.

Before investigating various podcast sites such as Podcast Pickle, Englishcaster, and iTunes, I envisioned a very generic use of a podcast in the classroom. I thought I may search for a news broadcast or "recordings" of a short story. I was thinking very basic. First, I would have my English language learners listen to the newscast or story. Next, I would have my students summarize in their own words or answer comprehension questions. This excited me because I would have students "hear" another authentic voice to practice listening and I would also have them practice writing. Students would practice two modalities but I admit it is rather boring. After checking out what is available on podcasts I could incorporate one in every lesson plan!

Podcasts help English language learners by providing them with another "voice" to listen to, some students may only hear English at school so if they have a chance to listen at home on their own time this is a tremendous asset. In class or at home students can access PodcastPickle and go to Casts by Genre. Choices can be directed by the teacher or chosen by the student. For instance, there are genres under arts,entertainment, instructional & travel, home & life, and kids & teens. I was particularly fascinated by the Fireside Book Chat (for ex, this links to a review of the book Heartland) where teens discuss and evaluate books. This caught my attention because students can: hear other students review books and learn what is involved with "reviewing" a book. Students benefit because they are encouraged to read, approach book reviews in a different manner, and if they are able, students can practice writing and speaking by creating their own podcast review. I thought this would be useful with intermediate-advanced 7th-12th grade students.

Another option for podcasts and the classroom is with GRAMMAR! English grammar is difficult and with podcasts students can access or download and carry explanations with them for use at any time. For example, through The English Blog:Englishcaster in the language podcast section, I found GrammarGirl. Grammar Girl offers patrons quick and easy explanations of English grammar difficulties. The podcasts are very recent, short, and come with a transcript for those who like to read along (they do include short advertisements but are not annoying). This would be helpful for high school, college, and adult students. The host, Mignon Fogarty has a clear voice, and covers great topics. For instance, topics include: Active vs. Passive, Where vs. Which, and Affect vs. Effect.

These short Grammar podcasts can be used in conjunction with a lesson focused on the topic or provided as a support to your students.

Podcasts definitely offer another dimension to the ESL classroom.

Internet Tools Connecting Classrooms!

Using ePals in my classroom is certainly a way to stimulate thinking and creativity. A simple possibility is for a student to develop a friendship with a student in another classroom, this can be accomplished through emails or blogs. Students can learn about each others likes and dislikes as well as what life is like in , for example, Tokyo, Japan. Students can show each other styles of dress, and pictures of their home, pets, city, and landmarks. Students could also take their "epals" on a virtual tour of their hometown, school, museum, or Niagara Falls, by creating a book in Bookr and sending them the link. I like the idea of investigating how other people live as shown in the culture section of the organization, Taking It Global. What a way to open a door to another place!

Students can also commence on class projects using such tools as Animoto or Yackpack. The idea of Animoto is exciting. For example, my class can visit Niagara Falls, take pictures and write stories about the history and things to do at the Falls. Uploading the images to Animoto allows the class to choose images and sounds to create a video. All that is left is sending your 'epals' the link to invite them on a trip to Niagara Falls.

Another possibility is using Yackpack to open the door for 'face to face' communication. Students who want to hear the human voice of their 'epals' can volunteer to invite them into a Yackpack group. Teachers can find projects that are underway and participate, i.e. Bucket Buddies and The Global Water Sampling Project found in The Center for Innovation in Science and Engineering Education. The two collaborating teachers could also create a project requiring information from each separate place. For instance, for older students, how is the health care debate in the U.S. looked at in Japan? How is the economy affecting the world? or How is your country getting ready for the 2010 Olympics? Each class would be required to search local newspapers and share information over Yackpack.

There are volumes of ways in which to introduce collaboration in the classroom. Students can work as individuals, teams, or groups. Communication can be as simple as email or blog or as elaborate as using videos, picture books, or voice messaging systems. It is obvious that with technology students can tap into many talents and move beyond the textbook and blackboard.

ePals: Global Collaboration - Safe & Easy (mod 11)

ePals is an excellent resource for teachers working to promote global collaboration in their classroom. It can be as simple as signing into ePals, creating an account, and finding a classroom across the globe with which to cooperate. Teachers can start small and just have their students match up with one student with whom to exchange emails - a web 2.0 version of the 'pen-pal'. Students benefit from the experience in several ways, for instance, they practice reading and writing, exchange ideas with those students living in another part of the world, and learn about the similarities and differences of those 'pals' from another culture. The concept that the world is a small place and we are all sharing it is amplified in this setting.

The other way ePals can be utilized in the classroom truly demonstrates how the Internet and Connectivism can help our students grow intellectually. Epals makes it simple and easy for teachers to "connect" with a global community of learners. Teachers can choose a "Focus Area" such as Water or The Way We Are, and develop a project for their students. Teachers can click on to "How to Connect" or the "Forums" to find another class across the globe embarking on the same topic. This is a great way to create a dialogue with another class and enhance critical thinking.

For instance, I would find a class in another country studying Water and create a project. Using Niagara Falls or Lake Erie as our natural water resources we could collaborate with a class that has a similar natural resource. This could serve as a springboard for similarities/differences with regards to current environmental issues and other issues that have evolved with these natural resources. As students pose questions to one another they have to think about how an issue that has influenced their "pals" water resource would harm/help theirs if it happened to them. Students would be pushed to think at a higher level and also come to the realization that the environment is really a 'global' matter.

Another possibility would be for students to engage in cross-cultural learning by collaborating with a class to explore various daily functions, customs and holidays. For example,What are supermarkets like where you live? We do not go to "supermarkets" we shop in outside markets or separate stores, i.e. the bakery and the fish store. Students can learn culture through these interactions at an early age. This can help to create a harmonious 'global' feeling and encourage all students to learn foreign languages, which is really a problem in U.S. schools.

I think the ePals program is essential to creating a true connectivist future filled with global dialogue. The exciting aspect of ePals is that it incorporates many of the ideas discussed in this course. In addition, it is a safe and secure program making it easier for teachers to collaborate. The ePals overview mentions, the emails and blogs are "monitored and filtered according to any standard." It goes on to say, "ePals blocks SPAM, pornography, and cursewords." Since ePals is self-policed teachers do not have to worry as much about the safety as they may with their own blogs. Teachers can focus on enhancing the collaborative, cross-cultural, critical-thinking, and technological skills of the future Web 2.0 generation of students.

Just Ask the Internet! (Mod 10)

As a child, whenever I had a question that my Mom did not have an answer for, she would reply, "ask your father" and vice versa, if my Dad had no answer, he would say, "ask your Mother". Well, today, I have certainly grown out of needing to ask my Mom and Dad everything, but there are times when I really struggle with how to do something, how to teach something, or perhaps, I would just like to see another perspective. This is where searching the Internet comes in; it certainly contains a vast repertoire of advice and options. The truth is, I have always gone on-line to search, for instance, a random recipe or "what to do if your dog was bit by several bees"; however, before this module I never realized how much assistance is really out there! This connectivism is cool.

Briefly, I will discuss the choices I have made in placements on my video roll. There are several "self-help" videos included because I have a major micro-teaching demonstration this week and lack confidence in any "presentation atmosphere". I believe this would be in the category of professional development. I want to work on this because as a future teacher, confidence and self-esteem are essential. I want to be confident so that my students get the best I can give and learn better. Also, I recognize the fact that students notice when the teacher is not confident. This can influence the way they learn as well as classroom management. With this in mind, I checked out a few videos on Videojug: How to Look More Confident, How to Talk to People- Better Communication, and Tips for Building Self-Esteem. These offered great tips and many transfer to the classroom as well. I found them to be very helpful and I hope that soon I will find the classroom a "natural" place to be rather than a place where I put on a show!

I chose two video clips from Teacher Tube as well. I find that Teacher Tube is a great place to find visual support for lessons I will present. I also think it is a place to check when you are stuck and need an idea, "How will I approach that topic?" For instance, I think Idioms, Metaphors, Similes will be difficult to teach ESL students, but with short clips that appeal to young students or visual/spatial, music/rhythmic students the task will seem less daunting. Students will appreciate seeing other "kids" teach them rather than looking at the teacher all day. I could use this short video of fifth graders teaching idioms or have my students create a similar video. In addition, I saw a short video clip of an ESL teacher taking her class Out of the Classroom to practice vocabulary. This is a great example to me because I have never taught and need all the ideas I can get.

This has been an exciting trip into the Internet. I can definitely see that I am no longer alone as I enter the world of education.

Trying Out Bookr (mod 9)

After examining Bookr, Bubblr, and Big Huge Labs I was excited by all of the possibilities open to me and my future classroom. For instance, after visiting Big Huge Labs I had some ideas regarding the Magazine/Movie Title or Captioner. I think students would find this to be a fun activity for learning how to come up with main ideas or topics. I thought the Motivator would also be an engaging way to get students to comprehend the difficult topic of concepts.

Bubblr lends itself to using adjectives for description of photos or short dialogue. The idea of creating short comic strips would certainly arouse the interest of students to learn.

Bookr was really interesting. I believe students would be motivated to learn, for example, vocabulary, adjectives, adverbs, verbs (all forms, i.e. past tense, present progressive...etc), superlatives, and vocabulary for social interaction; if they knew they were publishing a book in the end! This could be done individually, in pairs, or groups. It would also be a great assessment tool. I thought about using Bookr with comparing and contrasting but I ended up creating a book that could be used many more ways than I was able to demonstrate. What is happening in the picutre? by Jennifer's Class can be used for practice with short sentences, the correct use of pronouns, or just simply stating the verb or noun in the picutre. As a teacher I will know the ability of my students and adjust accordingly. What is most important is now I am able to create fun activities using Flickr applications!

Using Flickr in the Classroom! (mod 9)

Flickr is essentially a website where people can store their photos. Why, then, is Flickr so fascinating for educators? The answer to this question is left to interpretation; my chief reasons will not be the same as a colleague's or even you, who is reading this right now, nevertheless, I will now share some of my ways/reasons for using Flickr in the classroom.

• Give students CHOICE: Flickr allows students to be creative utilizing "real" material. The photos on Flickr represent the world as seen through the eyes of the photographer. With Flickr, I, as the teacher am not just giving students any photo; but I am allowing them to choose a photo that brings meaning to them, on their own through an easy to use "tagging" system. The "tagging" system will also help my ESL students with aspects such as vocabulary and spelling. Simultaneously, we are learning proper sharing etiquette (copyright values) as we discuss which photos we can use, which we cannot, and what it means to give proper credit to the photographer.



• Short Writing Tasks for Beginning ESL: Through Flickr there are applications such as Bookr, Bubblr, and Big Huge Labs. These applications allow students to choose some photos, create a story by adding text, and publish it on the web. These short sentences allow lower level ESL students to use what they are learning in a fun way and the idea of publishing can be motivating for them to learn English.



• Practice Made FUN: As a teacher I can also choose photos for students to work with and create activities such as: What verb is happening in this photo?, Compare/Contrast 2 photos, Adjectives - describe the photo, and Inferences/Point of View - Look at the photo and tell me What is the cat thinking? OR What events happened leading to this photo?



• Collaboration: It is possible to meet and interact with other classrooms. This can involve students leaving notes and comments on photos. This fosters the sharing of ideas and learning to respect opinions.

There are so many options for using Flickr in the classroom it is amazing. One final thought about using Flickr is that it offers options for the multiple intelligences of learning. Depending how you include it in the lesson you can easily involve the visual/spatial, body/kinesthetic, interpersonal or intrapersonal, and verbal/linguistic learners. Can't wait to try it!

[Thank you to woo is not a china girl for the photo entitled Who's blue?]

Blast-Off! Ready to Use Technology (Mod 9)

In this blog I want to convey two very important messages. One is that prior to taking this course I saw the Internet as a place where I could, for instance, do research for school, check out the movie times for a local theater, email friends, find out the latest news, or preview the menu for a new restaurant. For the most part, these uses were purely personal/social or for entertainment. However, my views have changed, and this brings me to my second message, I truly see the benefits of using the Internet in the classroom. After creating the group Wiki I had this image in my head, that I was ready to "blast-off" with the many Internet features we have investigated in this course. This week with my introduction to Flickr and the applications available I have seen many of "my ideas" already a reality in the Flickr world.

I am admitting to my slow evolution and my growing comfort with the world wide web, thus, I am ready to "blast-off" with the use of technology in the classroom.

{I chose not to insert a creative commons Flickr photo into one of my old posts but have created this new post. I would like to thank Kenny Miller for this photo, Take Off of Space Shuttle Atlantis (STS-117) uploaded on June 8, 2007}