Podcasting in Teaching ESL

As more and more technological tools being introduced into classrooms, podcasting, a widely used tool podcasting has taken education by storm, and the technology cannot be ignored.has taken education by storm, and the technology cannot be ignored. According to Wikipedia, a podcast is “a web feed of audio files that is placed on the Internet for anyone to download.

Why do teachers use podcasts? First of all, podcasting is cheap. A microphone is the only piece of required hardware. Second of all, podcasting could pull teachers or anyone who uses computer from all over the world together, so people may exchange perspectives and share experiences. Also podcasting can be interactive. Take one podcast episode I watched and would love to use in my teaching in the future as an example --- “Can I take a message?” This episode is very interactive since students could answer questions in relation to the information provided from the episode, and at the same time they can have the flexibility to choose when to respond the questions. Just like mentioned above, I would love to use the example episode in my ESL teaching, so I could ask students to practice listening, speaking, writing etc. with the podcast. I wonder if the episode could be a video which has images in it, which would enhance student’s learning greatly.

Say "Hi" to Epals!

     I think all the programs on Epals website are fairly useful to both students and teachers. As a future teacher I especially prefer Projects, Collaborate, and Teachers.

     Projects: Each project is used to classroom's needs and the topics are of global interest. New teachers benefit greatly by various perspectives and topics.

     Collaborate: Through Collaborate people can find classrooms simply by searching the country or project. It's a great way to collaborate and connect with classrooms at the other end of the world.

      Teachers: In Teachers section, Teacher Forums is my favourite. This a perfect stage provide for teachers from all over the world to share their resources and various perspectives.

      As far as my discipline is concerned, I could use all the functions from Epals to better my teaching skills especially from learning at Teachers Forum. For example, I could talk with other experienced TESOL teachers and learn how to engage my students well learning in classrooms. Understanding the importance of manipulating technology in classrooms, I will try to learn as much as possible so I could let my students benefit from my class.

Mod 9: Post #2

     I used Bookr and created a "book". Here is the link to it: http://www.pimpampum.net/bookr/?id=19179 What I created is not a story, but  a very brief introduction of the western holiday---Christmas. I do feel Bookr is very useful in a language classroom. I could use it to teach my younger students  through this very vivid and visualized means. I'm sure it facilitates their language learning.

Mod 9: Post #1

      Creative Commons is a nonprofit organization that offers free full copy right. Every creator from individual  to large companies is provided with a simple, standardized way to grant copyright permissions to their creative work.

     There are six main licenses offered when you choose to publish your work with a Creative Commons license. The Creative Commons licenses enable people to easily change their copyright terms from the default of “all rights reserved” to “some rights reserved” through the six. They are Attribution, Attribution Share Alike, Attribution No Derivatives, Attribution Non-Commercial, Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike, Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives. 

The object I created using Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/55609725@N03/

Wait, I can use Twitter to teach?!

     Social networking has become a fundamental part of the global online experience. Microblogging is one of it.

     Microblogging is a broadcast medium in the form of blogging, which differs from a traditional blog, for microblogging is much smaller. One of the microblogging softwares that we are familiar with is Twitter. Twitter is continuously being popular which has already 190 million users. Most people consider Twitter as a tool to relax and socialize with others. However, teachers can also use Twitter to teach! 

     From the two articles that I read, I conclude some ways to integrate the use of Twitter into English language teaching to help facilitate students' learning. ("Can we use Twitter for educational activities?" & "Nine great reasons why teachers should use Twitter")

     Firstly, since Twitter is a great medium for sharing ideas and getting instant feedback, teachers can create a group for their students on Twitter and encourage students to post their ideas in regard to learning English. Students can also raise questions on Twitter, and through this means, peer teaching is promoted as well. Teachers can also post interesting and thought provoking discussion questions every now and then to get students involved outside classroom. By using Twitter as a study means, students improve their skills in reading and writing and the ability to do academic research, and at the same time their knowledge is broadened.

     Besides, students get a lot of information using Twitter which they are usually not exposed to a lot in class. For example, teachers can share various English language learning links and edubloggers on Twitter, so that students get more opportunities to better their studies.

     All in all, yes, as a teacher,  you should try start teaching with Twitter ASAP!

It's time to have a picture for your blog with the perfect resolution!



     Have you ever got frustrated with the picture you put on your blog for your students with terrible resolution and being embarrassed, you have no idea how to adjust it? Now you can say bye-bye to those situations!
    In one of the posts of Langwitches' blog--- Image Resolution and Resizing for Your Blog which helps you solve the problems you have with picture resolution, and you can also introduce it to your students who are also struggling with picture resolution.
    In this post, the author uses simple language to guide you one step after another in how to re-size an image. What I like a lot about this post is that the author gives information on digital image for computer learners with beginning level. For example, the post mentions how images like digital files are measured in bytes and then gives a chart of how many bytes equal to certain kilobytes, megabytes and so on. It is also included in the post that there is no need to upload an image with a pixel size larger than 600 pixels in width, which is a quite useful suggestion for learners to know as well.  Last but not least, the demonstration of using the software is very detailed and clearly done.
    In sum, as technology enriches our life, facilitates teaching and learning, and brings us more conveniences, it demands and challenges if our level of knowledge is up to date. Hence, never stop moving forward; never stop learning new technologies.

Social Networking---EFL Classroom 2.0

    As a future TESOL teacher, I found  EFL Classroom 2.0 quite useful as it not only has a lot of information on teaching and learning English, but provides a platform for learners to socialize and interact with others who are also interested in learning English.  One can find many valuable resources on this site: video, forum, Blog posts etc.. 
    What draws my attention the most is the different sections which provide a diversity of means for learners to learn English depending on personal reference. For example, in the Classrooms section, learners or teachers from different regions can form their own country's classroom. Through this means, learners and teachers can exchange information and ideas privately, and also it helps learners of different English levels communicate in their native language to better English studies and learning strategies from English as a foreign language perspective.

BUSY 'BEEING' A WORKER BEE

  

  To me, a learner is like a worker bee. A worker bee is always busy cleaning cells, nursing baby bees, feeding the queen, and making honey. It works and works till the end of its life. Learners nowadays are like worker bees, who must keep learning knowledge since it updates frequently. The knowledge people used to learn was measured in decades, but now even in months and years. In the article Connectivism: A Learning Theory for the Digital Age, George Siemens points out that

“Learners as little as forty years ago would complete the required schooling and enter a career that would often last a lifetime. Information development was slow. The life of knowledge was measured in decades. Today, these foundational principles have been altered. Knowledge is growing exponentially. In many fields the life of knowledge is now measured in months and years.”.

    In the article, George Siemens also quoted from Gonzalez (2004) who describes the challenges of rapidly diminishing knowledge life:
“One of the most persuasive factors is the shrinking half-life of knowledge. The “half-life of knowledge” is the time span from when knowledge is gained to when it becomes obsolete. Half of what is known today was not known 10 years ago. The amount of knowledge in the world has doubled in the past 10 years and is doubling every 18 months according to the American Society of Training and Documentation (ASTD). To combat the shrinking half-life of knowledge, organizations have been forced to develop new methods of deploying instruction.”

    In the video, the Changing Nature of Knowledge, George Siemens also stressed how dramatically different the knowledge he used to learn when he was in school comparing to the knowledge students encounter today.

     After all, living in such a fast-paced society, learners have to learn consecutively just like how continuous worker bees do their jobs.

"Pay Attention"

After watching the video "Pay Attention", I realized the students we have nowadays are digital learners who have spent 10,000 hours playing video games, over 10,000 hours talking on cellphones, and roughly 20,000 hours watching TV. Today's children and teens spend 2.75 hours a week using home computers. 70% of American 4-6 year olds have used a computer. After reading these surprising facts about children today, I have to say I definitely feel the challenge of teaching in the future. Will I be able to give what they need? How can I engage them and get them involved in class? In what way are they interested in learning? etc.

As I continued watching the video, I found the answer to my questions--- using technology that our students love to reach and teach more effectively. It was pointed out in the video that teachers could also use cellphones to teach, such as literature, storytelling, spelling bees, class presentations etc.

After all, try to engage them, rather than enrage them.

Safe blogging! I’m watching you! :3

1. “Don’t give out personal information about yourself, your family situation, your school, your telephone number, or your address.”

    Also it helps if you don't put your real full name and birthday on blog just in case someone would like to pretend to be you and do harms to people.



2. “A friend you meet online may not be the best person to talk to if you are having problems at home, with your friends, or at school.”

    Internet is not a real world. People you are talking to may not be who they are in real life unless you really know them. Don’t share personal information with people you meet online. You never know what terrible things could happen.


3. “Know that there are rules many Internet Service Providers (ISP) have about online behavior. If you disobey an ISP's rules, your ISP may penalize you by disabling your account, and sometimes every account in a household, either temporarily or permanently.”

    Probably after reading the above two bullets you are thinking “hmm, so I could do whatever I want on internet and nobody would know who I am”. Nah-uh, WRONG! If you do anything against the rules mentioned above, you would get in BIG trouble. So, don’t even think about doing harms on internet.




Reference :
http://www.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/PageServlet?LanguageCountry=en_US&PageId=207

To Blog or not to Blog, THAT IS THE QUESTION

    As a future teacher, I do see the challenge and requirement for teachers of using up-to-date technologies. Blogging, compared to other technologies like Ipad, Macintosh, and Mobi etc., is fairly easy to learn how to use. Therefore, I would love to start my technology journey with blogging. I would use blogging in various ways to help with my teaching.

    First, in order to build a more student-centric class, I would love to share my blog with students, providing a platform to communicate after class. In this way, I may build a more intimate friendship with my students, and through the comments and messages they leave, I would know what encourages them study better and then adjust my teaching instructions.

    Second, we know most learning occurs outside classrooms, so I may post interesting readings regarding to my class or useful tips for learning language on my blog to share with students. So they could do self-learning or peer-to-peer teaching even at home. At the same time I also save resources for later teaching.

    Third, blogging is not only a communicative way between me and my students but also a door to the outside world. People could exchange ideas on my blog sharing new ideas and different perspectives. I believe it’s an effective and educating means to learn from people and discuss about language and teaching methods.

    In conclusion, blogging improves communication, collaboration, and efficiency.