Blog #7: Mobile App Review

Search for a language learning application designed for mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets.

 

(1) Provide a link to the application's website.

“EnglishPod”

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.tidahouse.englishpod&hl=ko

(2) Write a brief review of this application that includes information about the app's functions, which devices it is compatible with.

"EnglishPod" is an application that can be downloaded on the smartphones. In this application, there are a lot of news channels to choose - BBC(The English We Speak), BBC 6 Minute English, VOA Special English 15 Minute, and VOA Special English 5 Minute Features, etc. Users can download what they want to listen to. After downloading as an MP3 file, users can listen to it several times and they even can change the speed of MP3 file according to the listeners' level. This application also provides the script so that listeners can see it while or after listening.

 

(3) How can it assist or enhance the language learning process?

Language learners can improve their listening and reading skills using "EnglishPod". They can select news channels according to their preference and can listen to the it until they can fully understand. And for their comprehension check, they can see the script. Through this procedure, language learners can enhance their listening ability and additionally upgrade reading ability. If they use this application regularly, then they can acquire the authentic language use and later they will naturally produce these utterances in a real situation.

 

Blog #6: Digital Storytelling

1) Write brief reviews about the two tools you used to create short lessons with this week (Digital Storytelling through Storybooks, Cartoons & Comics).

I) http://zimmertwinsatschool.com

The Zimmer Twins at School website is providing users with a creative space to promote the new technology, digital storytelling. Teachers and students can create their own animated stories and share them with everyone. Using Edgar and Eva Zimmer twins or a black cat as characters, teachers or students can make pretty impressive cartoon movies expressing various actions, emotions and situations. After they set the situation, then they can tell their stories in speech bubbles. Users can make their own endings to one of the story starters the website provides. In this way, anyone that use this website can be a kind of creative writer and producer.

II) http://domo.goanimate.com

Accessing this website, we can meet a very cute and lovely cartoon character, Domo. Of course, there are other characters to use to make a cartoon animation. Users can create own creative cartoons very easily choosing characters, music, background and typing the stories they want. Maybe young children will enjoy using this website because of the attractive cartoon characters and easiness to approach.

2) How could these tools be used by teachers AND students?

Teachers can use these tools to give students opportunities to write their own writing. Depending on the students' levels, teachers use different writing tasks. For example, for the beginners, teachers can give the starter of the story and let the students make the ending of the story creatively. If the students' level is intermediate, then the teacher gives a specific topic and they make their own stories. Students can create, edit and share their animated cartoons and movies by themselves.

3) How could they be incorporated into a class?

These tools can be used to develop students' writing and reading fluency in the classroom. If the teacher first introduces these websites, students will have interests and attention to the class. Students can engage in the writing activity with fun. For instance, the teacher shows the beginning of the short cartoon movies and then make students take over on classroom computers, writing and producing their own stories together. Using these useful tools, teachers can give learners to have a chance to interact with each other and to think creatively. Teachers can save students' own stories and can see the learners' progress in writing skill.

 

Blog #5: Corpora, Concordance, Collocations, Word Frequency

 

Compleat Lexical Tutor: http://www.lextutor.ca/

Corpus of Contemporary American English: http://corpus.byu.edu/coca/

 

Concordancing programs and linguistic corpora are kinds of tools that contain large amounts of information like vocabulary and grammar. Users can sort certain vocabulary and grammar by determining categories. To be more specific, concordance searches for combination of words, parts of words and occurrences of a word within a corpus and shows the immediate context. Using http://www.lextutor.ca/ and http://corpus.byu.edu/coca/ websites, teachers can prepare teaching materials related to vocabulary activities and grammar. Teachers can collect examples of language and usage for making exercises. Teachers can also find the lists of collocations, words that are commonly found together, using these concordancing programs.

[This is the picture showing the lists of collocation "give up" using http://corpus.byu.edu/coca/ site.]

Using concondances, teachers can look at the context where a given word or phrase appears. Students can learn the authentic and meaningful context. Once the teacher chooses the context, he/she can create a "word clouds" using http://www.wordle.net/. The images the teacher created show words that appear in the text more frequently. So this images can be used usefully in the pre-reading activity to promote the students have interests and predict the text.

[Word Clouds]

 

Concordancing programs and corpora can practically be applied to the second language acquisition and teaching. Teachers can provide students with authentic examples and multiple meaning of a word or phrase.

Blog Post #4: Podcast Review

Blog Post #4: Podcast Review

-Listen to one or two of the podcasts.

http://www.ted.com/talks/candy_chang_before_i_die_i_want_to.html

-Provide a link to the podcast on your blog. Give general information about the content and quality.

www.ted.com

* General information about the content and quality.

TED is one of the most famous podcasts containing many people's stories. TED can be accessed through the internet and it is also provided as a smart phone application. It is a kind of talk show and many people can appear as a speaker talking about various topics. People can both listen and watch TED and express sympathy for the speaker's opinion. If you access www.ted.com, you can see the categorized items- talks, speakers, playlists, translations, TED conferences, etc. You can choose the topic among technology, entertainment, design, business, science, global issues and you can also resize the contents by newest releases, date filmed, most viewed and so on. Even if you don't know English, it doesn't matter because contents in the TED are translated into diverse languages.

-What do you think about the podcast? Which type of learners could benefit from the podcast?

I think the podcast is very useful tool providing interesting and lively contents with easy technology. In fact, I downloaded TED application in my smart phone and whenever I want to see TED, I just touched the smart phone and accessed TED easily. Watching and listening to this podcast, as a language learner, I can experience the authentic language use, various types of accent and different communication styles. I think it can be very beneficial for the learners who want to improve their listening ability, learn natural conversation skills or patterns of speech.

Blog Post #3: Synchronous and Asynchronous CMC Tools

1) Brief descriptions of the tools and links to their websites

I) Synchronous CMC

I tried to use one of the useful synchronous cmc, scribblar.com.

http://www.scribblar.com/

This web site is an online chatting place where people can chat using various functions such as multi-user whiteboard, live audio, image collaboration, text-chat, etc. While they are chatting together, they can easily write something(e.g. drawing pictures, writing sentences, etc.) on the whiteboard, can insert pictures and basic mathematics formulas, and people can talk each other using a headphone.

In my case, I virtually made an English I conversation chatting room talking about "Korean Food". I inserted "Let's Talk Together" part in the whiteboard.

II) Asynchronous CMC

www.voicethread.com

"Voicethread" is one of the asynchronous CMC web site. Users can create their own videos by recording their voice and using their webcam. Users can adding images or video clips, too. After making their own video, they can upload it and can get comments from others and vice versa. And users can also share their videos with others.

2) Your thoughts about how the Synchronous CMC tool and the Asynchronous CMC tool could support learning and the development of language skills.

I think the Synchronous CMC tool and the Asynchronous CMC tool

can support learning and the development of 4 language skills. If the teacher uses synchronous cmc tool like scribblar, he or she can encourage learners to speak and write and give them appropriate feedback directly and also while chatting with students there will be possible negotiation for meaning. Besides, this tool also promotes learners to listen to the direction what the teacher said through the headphone and read the sentences on the whiteboard. And in the case of the asynchronous tool like voicethread, I think it is good for speaking and listening practice. Unlike the chatting which pushes learners to react simultaneously, voicethread is literally asynchronous tool that does not require the learners respond immediately so that it can lower the affective filters.

Are there any similarities and differences in how they could support language learning?

Similarities between these two tools are there is a friendly and cooperative learning environment and it is based on online learning that teachers and leaners can contact each other anywhere and anytime as long as they have computers or laptops. However, there are also differences. The interaction between teachers and learners using synchronous tool happens immediately and simultaneously. So teachers can give proper feedback at once and students can ask any questions expecting to instant answers. On the other hand, if asynchronous tool is used, then there will take some time for teachers to check students' comprehension and their assignment. But the strong advantage of using asynchronous tool is that it can consider learner's affective factors.

3) Some of your ideas of possible activities and ways that the tools could be used in a language class to supplement in-class content and instruction.

I) Let's Talk Together (intermediate level)

Using synchronous tool scribblar, teacher will have a conversation with students. At first, the teacherI will tell "today's topic : Korean Dishes" to students, then they can talk about their favorite Korean dishes. And if the students want to tell classmates more detailed explanation, then they can use video clips and pictures by simply inserting them on the whiteboard. After this activity, the teacher will give students homework about writing their favorite Korean food. Through this activity, the teacher can check his or her students' current level of speaking and writing and students can improve their speaking and writing skills.

II) Tell me about your favorite Korean food (lower level)

Using asynchronous tool voicethread, teacher uploads his or her video demonstrating how to do this activity. In the video, the teacher uses simple phrases and words with slower speech and tells the students to follow his or her speech patterns. After watching this video, students start and create their own videos copying their teacher's speech patterns. This activity can make learners practice substitution drills and push them to speak a with stress-free environment.