Adding to Prompt 6

FYI: We have been reading this book in our grammar class: Focus on Form in Classroom Second Language Acquisition by Catherine Doughty (Editor), Jessica Williams (Editor), 1998, Cambridge University Press, New York. We have just read an article by Merrill Swain, who has examined and championed the concept of output and of the importance of language learners "noticing" features in their language and in their interlanguage. So, the response to Prompt 6 regarding output was fresh on my brain, due to our recent class discussion.

Software Evaluations 1 and 2: Merit Software

Title of Software: Merit Software, Basic English Fitness and Process Writing: Paragraph Punch units

Producer:Merit Software

Target students: It varies, but Basic English Fitness is really geared towards specific levels of proficiency (high beginner to intermediate), Process Writing: Paragraph Punch and is targeted for students of 5 to 10 years old.

Proficiency levels: Basic English Fitness (BEF) is for intermediate language learners, but I think it would be appropriate for anyone from a high beginner's level on up. Process Writing: Paragraph Punch (PW:PP) is not exclusively for ELLs. ELLs using this software would likely have to be at high intermediate level to follow along, simply because there are many steps with a lot of language in this module.

Description:
Provide a brief description of:
What the program is: BEF is a grammar review and practice tool. PW:PP is a guide for writing paragraphs through Process Writing. It shows studenst, step-by-step, how to write a paragraph, and gives them the opportunity to do so.

What it does: In 4 steps from Tryout to Evaluation, BEF gives students different opportunities to select the correct response for grammar (articles, subject-verb agreement, etc.), spelling, and other usage items. The Workout section, the meat of the software, is basically multiple choice questions with one of two tasks: either to choose the incorrect part of the sentence or to choose the correct sentence. So, it could get boring pretty quickly to many students. But, the best part is the feedback it gives for a correct or incorrect answer on the first part of the Workout: it explains WHY that is/isn't the right answer--very helpful for ELLs.

PW:PP takes students through five elaborate steps to build a paragraph. It provides topics, and offers over 1500 prompts loosely based on 15 different topics. Each student can choose one topic to write on from 3 different topics given, so that can be good at lowering students' affective filters to some degree. It gives examples and sentence starters for students to practice with, leads them through a detailed brainstorming session (to jot down just words and ideas), and takes them through the whole experience. There is a button for a "Tip" that gives examples and one for "help" that offers tech advice. It offers several reminders and writing tips along the way, a chance to order, then reorder the sentences in the paragraph, and it gives chances to add or delete or edit content along the way. It offers advice on what to look for in proofreading, for style and structure, and it helps by suggesting specific connectors that will help the flow of the writing.

How it looks: Egads, look out, Merit--you need an editor. This is the trial software I was using, and on the COVER screen of BEF Unit 5, it says Eavaluation. Be careful when you are selling and publishing this stuff--especially before we buy it!! Everyone makes mistakes, but your clients are paying a lot of money for this software.

Otherwise, BEF looks fine. The user earns happy sounds for a right answer, and there are some happy graphics (like confetti and colored spinning wheels) throughout. However, there is not a great use of the "real estate"---oooh lala, a new online publishing word I just learned--on the screen. There is one item presented at the time, just typed at the top of the screen. There are a few colors, but it could be more dazzling for sure.

PW:PP populates the top half of the screen and a little more, with very clear cursors and navigational aids. It is well-designed.


How the user interacts with it: Now this I like, for both programs. They are easy to use and have very clear instructions, examples, help screens, and easy navigational tools. This software really is user-friendly, and the language is genrally clear. It also loads super fast; I did not encounter any long waits or technological glitches.

Language skills targeted: BEF targets grammar skills such as article use, subject-verb agreement, spelling, etc. PW:PP is a writing tool.

Evaluation:
What are the program’s strengths or weaknesses? Do you feel it would be effective for helping ELLs learn English? Why or why not? Would you use it in your classroom? Why or why not? What method or approach to language teaching does this program appear to represent? I have gone into a good deal of detail above, but generally I am not too impressed with BEF. I do like the feedback on why the answers are right or wrong, though. The PW:PP is a well thought out program, and a true desire to help the students practice and learn step by step is obvious. In PW:PP, there is a lot more language and may be rather complicated for some ELLs, even though at this age group in school, it is very appropriate to the real life content they will be seeing. It also scaffolds the writing experience through a lot of examples and tips, so it is useful and helpful overall. This isn't the time to discuss how useful the standard five-sentence paragraph is, but it is something we all learn to do in school. This program can help ELLs through that process. In a nutshell, I like Process Writing: Paragraph Punch and think it can help ELLs improve their writing, and I think the Basic English Fitness falls way short of the mark.

Inquiry, Problem Solving, and Podcasting: Prompt 6

EGBERT Ch. 6. Inquiry and Problem Solving
RICHARDSON Ch. 8. Podcasting and Screencasting: Multimedia Publishing for the Masses

Hmmm, I have been thinking about this one. Having taught mostly adults, the content learning is either business-based or involves some kind of awareness of current events such as news, social awareness (the environment,etc.), art exhibits, or even entertainment. I believe some of the role plays (with an information gap or two opposing goals for each "actor") or research for the purpose of creating and giving a business presentation or for an in-class debate would count as an inquiry. As far as critical thinking skills go, these activities would include: distiguishing fact from opinion, assessing the accuracy of a statement, detecting bias, and/or distinguishing relevant from irrelevant information. Also, through some Web Quests or some map-based activities my students have been able to plan various routes, solve specific problems like budget or what to do when a specific problem arises. I'll post a link to my favorite Web Quest on this blog. Another problem-solving activity was when I took my students to the grocery store, and asked each small group of a different level within the classroom to solve a problem or find some information. For example, beginners had to find fruit that was like the fruit they had in their home countries and compare the names and prices of fruit, and the most advanced group had to shop for a week for a family of five within a given budget, and give reason for any unusual choices they made (so they had to persuade their group to concede to buying more expensive brands and so on).

I have also given students some in-depth lessons involving field trips to an art exhibit, an outdoor public park, or a concert, where they are given several things to notice or observe (in the exhibit/show or in the crowd and environment), then are asked focused questions to get them to recall information. Then the students share the information to come up with a complete list or story to answer all the questions (summarizing and synthesizing) or they compare and contrast their observations with each other's and with a third set of facts/opinions (for example, with their home culture or with the classroom).

Because podcasting is available on a wide array of topics, podcasts can very easily fit into an inquiry and/or problem-solving activity as a source of information. The end goal of a lesson could also be to have the students create and edit a podcast to broadcast over the web. I know from my own publishing experience that simply creating and editing something for mass consumption can be a detailed problem-solving activity. Plus, they would have to collaborate and decide what content goes into the podcast and what doesn't. The WillowWeb defined in the Richardson book (pp.116-117) is a good example of this. Plus, podcasting seems really fun; I think students will love it. There is an added motivation for students studying here with families overseas--it is a cheap, interesting, and easy way to let others at home know what you are doing! I wish it had existed in its current easy, breezy incarnation when I was overseas for so long. That would have been sooooooo cool.

Output and Wikis and Creativity, oh my! Prompt 5

EGBERT Ch. 5. Creativity and Productivity
RICHARDSON Ch. 4. Wikis: Easy Collaboration for All

Output is a key stage to language learning and development. While I agree that comprehensible input is important in language acquisition, I believe that actual language use requires output and plenty of it. By expressing ourselves in the new language, we not only have the chance to negotiate meaning, but we also increase our chances of finding out what is and is not correct and/or missing in our own output, which creates the need and desire for us to learn it. If someone doesn't understand what we are saying, we will notice that we are not using all of our language correctly, or that we are lacking in vocabulary. Egbert discusses various ways to use technology to inspire increased output. What I found interesting was that these activities have all been around forever in language (and other) classrooms, but here these are moved onto the digital platform. Of course, creating an interactive Web page is new, but even a suggestion such as the digital montage of life in the U.S. that the author suggests could be done with magazine/brochure/tour book cutouts, photos or postcards, and maps. It is just faster, and the student has access to more resources online than in the classroom (classroom resources being limited to what the teacher or students can find on their own, at home).

It was also interesting that Egbert suggested making a Wanted poster. I did that in about 6th or 7th grade for Social Studies and it was fun! I remember, though, soaking it in tea overnight and drying it, so it got that antiqued look, then burning a hole or two in it (Of course with adult supervision) so it looked really authentic. I guess once the students create the poster on a computer, they could print it and do this to it--it really was the coolest part of the whole assignment!

Wikis can be a great collaborative tool; there is always of sense of accomplishment with putting something out there in the world for all to see and share. It is such a fascinating concept. It does seem that, with the input of people (experts, fans, laymen, opinionated folks, and loonies alike), things do tend to be presented in a more balanced way over time, even though it all changes in a moment with an exaggerated, extreme, or simply false entry. It's not perfect, but I have yet to se a media source that is perfect or truly unbiased. The story of the tsunami really stuck with me--it is such a powerful and amazing tool. I think students will enjoy collaborating and taking turns giving input on what they know best and what they feel is important or interesting. Like Phil said on his blog, http://bukurblog.blogspot.com/ , students get excited and spend more time on their assignments when they are part of the decision-making process.

Reading Prompt 4

EGBERT Ch. 4. Communication & Collaboration
RICHARDSON Ch. 5. RSS: The New Killer App for Educators

Communication and collaboration are primary, immediate goals in the language classroom! Even with Egbert's broad definition of communication as a sharing of knowledge and collaboration as more of a negotiation of meaning--reaching a shared understanding, one can see the importance of both of these goals in the language class. All language learning has some form of communication as its goal, at least in my experience. Even if we want to learn a language solely to read, there is a sharing of knowledge, from writer to reader, that is taking place, and likewise the reader must use his or her own knowledge to simply understand or give importance to what he or she is reading.

Egbert gives us several ideas, perhaps most interestingly the ways to manage and plan for the various types of computer set-ups in the classroom, particularly in the one-computer classroom. I like the idea he proposes here of using the single computer as a sort of catalyst for more in-depth face-to-face interaction. I also like the idea of having the students research their own neighborhood and map out local businesses to plan their own field trip! That sounds really great.

Grrrrrrr...

Okay, this is irritating. I have just spent some time adding three new links, but they are not showing up. What's a girl to do???

(Hooray-Dr. Wright helped me figure it out !) I'm leaving this comment here, though, because the comments are amusing, and to remind new bloggers not to give up too easily.

Reading Prompt 3

Some of the strategies discussed by Cummins et al. in this chapter highlight Wood's (as cited here, 2001) five criteria for effective technology use. I agree with these criteria, especially those such as connecting the new to the known, promoting in-depth interaction with new vocabulary, and teaching students to become strategic readers. I also like the design criteria given by the authors, such as promoting active, self-regulated collaborative inquiry and promoting extensive engaged reading and writing across the curriculum (p. 109). If we could find the computer programs that do exactly that, what a gift we could give to our ELLs! It is crucial to find a way to provide access for our lower-income students as well, so that they can engage in this new kind of learning and get the added support they need.

I have been thinking about how technology is currently used in many schools (dare I say most schools?) at the moment, and I've wondered why it isn't very effective in a lot of cases. I believe the initial wave of software and computer applications were so mired down in the old ways of thinking and teaching that the exercises and activities were essentially the same worksheets, fill-in-the-blank exercises, and vocabulary drilling, with limited scope that were being used in some of the less dynamic classrooms. That is, it is as if the textbooks were simply placed online, with minimal interactivity (is that a word?). It is so edifying to see the newer applications and programs that have been placed online now, and to feel that education is on the brink of expanding (exploding) into something so innovative that the intrinsic motivation for our students and the real results from
the effective use of powerful technology will surely follow.

Websites like www.brainpop.com and http://www.nasa.gov/audience/forkids/kidsclub/flash/index.html are really fabulous, fun, and easy to use. I think they can have a true positive impact on our students and may be of particular utility for our ELLs. Egbert suggested some interesting websites such as Brainpop, which is awesome, but some of the voice technology sites they suggested have already been taken down. On the whole, I think that these interactive listening and speaking programs are useful, especially as a review for class work, or in lieu of access to a classroom environment. I am eager to see what comes out next on the Web and what we are going to learn in this class. Woohoo!

Reading Post 2: Multiliteracies and blogs

Readings: Egbert Ch. 2, Cummins Ch. 2, Richardson Ch. 3:
The concept of multiliteracies, as described here, refers to a broader definition and interpretation of literacy than simply reading and writing, book-based, linear forms of literacy. These multiliteracies include all literacy practices students may participate in, both in and out of school, such as storytelling, using new technology (computer-based), communicating in different languages, or engaging in other culturally enriching and/or mentally stimulating activities. This ties right in with Egbert's idea of authentic materials being something the student believes is authentic and something the students choose as useful to their own learning and to their lives outside of class. I agree to some extent, because students who choose what they work on would have to be motivated, but I also agree with Michael's point in class that that is not enough. I believe there is a balance between what the students want to know and need to know that we (teachers/facilitators) can provide so they stay challenged and continue to progress. I am motivated when I study what I like, but, even so, I can get easily bored because sometimes what I like is something I already know well. However, I am a big fan of student input, student surveys, etc., and I have seen the value of giving students some leeway in choosing a topic for discussion or for writing--they often produce more language, interact with each other more, and participate more enthusiastically, so there is definitely a good reason to use their input.

Blogs can add to this motivation level for the students--even in a classroom environment, the amount or type of unique input a blogger can add to his or her website is pretty much limitless. So, students may begin with a blog (like we are) by simply responding to an assignment, but may be inspired to read other blogs that may in turn inspire them to add to their blogs and create something truly individualized. The opportunity for blogs to draw out the individual personalities of the bloggers and also to join people together in their common ideas or interests is vast. It is hard to get onto the blogosphere without perusing at least a few other blogs. The more reading we do, the more we can expand our literacy, and that is absolutely true for our ELLs, too.

Creating this blog was easy; logging back in has been difficult every time. This has caused a little anxiety, because I think of the time I am wasting when I have too many other things to do. I hope this is a temporary kink in the system and not a recurring one. I am excited to begin blogging about ESL and am already trying to think of more applications for these great tools we are practicing with in class.