Unit 10
Unit 10
Unit 10
training
[10.1] How to study this unit
10
UNIT
ICT Tools Applied to the Learning of English Language
Key ideas
D. John, Peter. “Teaching and Learning with ICT: New technology, New Pedagogy”.
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/1463631042000210971
In this unit, we are going to talk about education in a blended or online learning
environment. Also, we are going to analyse two collaborative projects, one at a
European level and the other one at a national level. Both programs help the
teacher to become more involved in their own learning as a facilitator in the teaching
process which consequently leads to the professional development of the teacher.
Thus, the teacher needs to be trained and be an expert in the tools he/she is
using in order to give confidence to the students. This will give the opportunity to
increase the interaction of teachers across curricula and, even, across
countries due to the collaborative efforts and projects teachers will be involved with.
As a result of this involvement, our students will be also involved.
When different ICT tools and software were introduced in the teaching world
through legislation or through its adoption because they were already present in daily
life, many teachers became obsessed with its use resulting in the intention of using
technology as the only way of teaching, some others have completely rejected its use
because they have been overwhelmed or because they do not have the appropriate
knowledge to use them.
Throughout the course we have been revising and learning how to use different tools to
enhance face-to-face teaching. However, it is now the point to look specifically to online
teaching and learning, that is teaching and learning done mainly at distance mode,
using a personal computer and the Internet.
E-learning refers to the learning taking place using technology like Internet, CD-
ROMs, or any portable devices.
The last two concepts are the ones which we are going
to develop in this point. We need to point out that
learning taking place with a computer is not an
example of online learning. The use of blogs,
chats, wikis, an interactive whiteboard or a computer
lab does not mean online learning.
A VLE is a web-based platform on which course content is stored. The content can
vary from documents to audio and/or video material Learner can have access to it
on the Internet and do the activities, quizzes, questionnaires and tests. It usually
has discussion forums or chats in order to enhance communication between the
learners and teachers.
Newer VLEs may contain blogs and wikis. Really popular nowadays is Moodle an
open source VLE which is free. Moodle is similar to WebCT, Blackboard or First
Class although none of these are free. A great amount of higher education
establishments in the United Kingdom and around the world has adopted Moodle as
the way to deliver education online.
According to Nicky Hockly and Gaving Dudeney in their book How to teach English
with Technology, when designing an online course we need to take into account the
following issues:
The creation of an online course is not a cheap and easy alternative to face-to-face
learning but quite the opposite. An online course to be effective needs to have a clear
organization of tasks and activities; a full-time tutor/teacher (depending on
the size of the group) knowing exactly not only the content but also the functionality of
the online environment.
At the same time the way of education delivered is changing, we expect a change in the
way people learn a language. Little by little, language centers have adopted well-
established systems published by different publishing companies because they have
seen students are no longer attending specific timetables to receive learning but they
prefer to have self-study sessions combined with face-to-face meetings to
discuss any given problematic area or further practice.
Thus, blended learning come into play as it refers to a language course which
combines a face-to-face class with the teacher but in which the course includes a
parallel self-study component such web-based materials or CD-ROM. The use of
the elements can be optional. Learner can be set pre-lesson tasks or homework between
the face-to-face classes.
For many people, blended learning is merely the logical extension of what we do. Some
people have criticized it defining the term as just an amalgamation of different
sources and a bad mixture between the theoretical content and the extra technological
content which may have no relation at all with the theoretical content.
However, done well, blended learning can exploit the best of both worlds, classes and
online material. If the teacher chooses carefully online materials, it can enhance
classroom components of the course and learners may have the opportunity to work
at their own pace and follow their interests. Also, it brings the outside world
into the classroom improving motivation and avoiding learning as an isolated
process in our lives.
Pete Sharma in his book Blended Learning offers four principles by which
blended learning has to be guided:
•Separate the role of the teacher and technology: They are not
interchangeable as they play different roles in the learning process but
they are complementary.
As we have suggested during the whole course, technology can complement and
must be implemented in the teaching process whenever it improves our
teaching and our students’ learning.
One of the most used terms used nowadays is that of M-Learning. M-Learning means
mobile learning which includes the use of mobile phones, MP3 players, PDAs,
Tablet PCs and with the wide use of I-phone, different applications specifically
designed for the I-Phone.
It is true that with the age of our students may be difficult to apply it nowadays as it is a
newer process. However, specialists foresee a wide acceptance in teaching languages in
the near future, including younger learners as native users of that technology. Research
is being carried out especially at the University of Birmingham.
http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/index.aspx
eTwinning
eTwinning
http://www.etwinning.net/es/pub/index.htm
However, more and more teachers are starting on the road of European project work
within eTwinning.
At European level, there is the Central Support Service (CSS), run by the
European Schoolnet on behalf of the European Commission and it fulfills a number
of roles.
First of all, it is responsible for the development and maintenance of the European
eTwinning Portal, www.etwinning.net, where all schools in Europe register and work
together with their European partners. The Portal is a highly sophisticated
communication and collaboration platform which offers a wide range of tools to
teachers to facilitate their project work, including a partner-finding function, a
secure working environment for teachers, as well as a range of project kits to
help get the process started. Throughout the years, the portal has been changed,
enhanced and adapted towards teachers’ needs.
Nowadays, the eTwinning platform is currently made up of a few elements that are
strictly interconnected:
Some of them are open to all members
(Desktop, Learning Lab and Groups), while
others are dedicated to project participants
(TwinSpace and Progress- Blog).
However, all tools mentioned also have a public
element (teacher/project/school profiles,
TwinSpaces and ProgressBlogs), which are visible via the eTwinning Portal.
All the eTwinning projects need to have clear aims and goals. If you desire to start a
collaborative project, first of all, you have to find out if there are already
activities in your school concerning project work, e.g., if your colleagues are
already working in collaborative projects. If this is the case, you can ask them to help
you get started.
If not, it is up to you to create a suitable project idea yourself and such an idea you
can develop either within the curriculum or in several other places, such as the
eTwinning Portal, www.etwinning.net.
You can chose either to plan the project yourself and afterwards contact a
partner or find a partner and work out the project together. It is up to you. As
soon as you have this rough idea, you can start working it out and decide upon the aims
of the project.
Setting up aims is very important because it means that you start thinking and clearly
define in your mind what you want your pupils to achieve through such a project.
What is important
A project will only be successful if the aims are
for them to learn
clear to you as well as realistic, relevant and
and how much they
can cope with? understandable to your pupils
In project work, quality is always a very important issue. By settings aims and
goals which are related to your curriculum, and by introducing all the items you
normally use in your day to day teaching, both pupils and colleagues will start to take
project work more seriously and consider it as an integral part of teaching and
learning.
As they start working more and more independently and become self directed, other
competences will develop as well. If projects are in a foreign language, pupils will
learn new vocabulary and ask themselves questions about correct grammar and
writing.
When working with your project partner, you have to be clear about who is
responsible for what, dividing the work equally among the two of you and most
importantly, relying on one another. When you have decided on the timeline, it is
advisable to make this visible to the pupils as well.
Last but not least, don’t forget to involve the parents. You might need them for an
extra contribution during the project, such as helping out during an excursion.
Parents can also be a great source of information; for those who are willing and able
to come to school and talk about their experiences, ideas or jobs, this can be a great
added-value to the project.
Of course in all this evaluation must not be forgotten. Even before you begin and as
soon as you have decided on the aims and goals of your project, you have to make some
decisions on how you want the project to be evaluated.
Ask yourself not only, “what do I want to evaluate?”, but also “when and how do
I evaluate? Am I going to evaluate the project only among my pupils? Do I
involve my project partner?”.
Finally a few small rules to keep in mind while working, called “The Golden Rules”
of cooperation:
In conclusion, eTwinning can be the virtual home not only for the most enthusiastic
ones, but can stimulate the interest of all others who have been victim of a digital divide
due to various factors, from insufficient training opportunities to geographical and
cultural isolation.
Malted
http://recursostic.educacion.es/malted/web/MaltedWeb2.0/indexWindows.html
A browser,
Developer Tool
Runtime System
(DVE)
(RTS)
The Developer Tool is a visual layout design tool for exercises and units
which generates in an automatic and transparent way the XML code they are based
on. It works on two levels:
o On the one hand, it includes several templates to generate in an easy way
most of the exercise types frequently used in language teaching. It
also manages the addition of renewable and modifiable contents, as well as
text, images, graphs, audio, video and an application for voice
recording through an external microphone.
o On the other hand, it allows to organize activities based on logical
sequencing, following a didactic development plan. This way, we can create
work units featuring flexible navigation systems. Designers will also find an
opportunity to use their creativity freely, as well as the possibility to adopt
and apply various didactic approaches.
The Runtime System can be used to view and complete the exercises. Once
the answers have been checked, the corresponding score will be given. Aside from
its own viewer, this program can also interact with the Net by using a
supplementary system (a Java applet, where Java is the general visual
environment used by the system) thanks to which contents can be presented on
screen through an ordinary web browser.
In addition to this, the system can be linked to another support tool, known as the
Asset Base (AB), an external data base where designers can search amongst a range
of multimedia resources, which provides a collaborative approach to this environment
and gives way to making a profitable use of common efforts. The tool works with the
Windows and Linux operating systems, and can be downloaded from:
http://recursostic.educacion.es/malted/web/MaltedWeb2.0/indexWindows.html
As well as the whole system, a DVD is also available. It both includes Malted system
and the units developed so far for the teaching of foreign languages at different
educational levels, which can be either copied to one’s own computer or be viewed
online.
http://recursostic.educacion.es/malted/web/descargas/index_php.php#manuales
Manages the design and edition of selected didactic units, which currently cover a
wide range of the official syllabus for English as a Second Language at
Secondary and Primary school level as well as French as a Second Language
at Secondary school level; they are readily available to all teachers:
http://recursostic.educacion.es/malted/web/
Lastly, it also provides training to acquire expertise in the use of the system. Thanks to
the Malted training courses, which are divided into three levels:
Teachers in the first stage will learn how to use interactive didactic units in their
lessons, make minor modifications to existing materials, and assess both the
materials and their overall teaching experience.
In the advanced stage, they will also learn how to design interactive didactic units
and edit others to make them suit their own learners.
The third training course offers teachers the opportunity to try out Malted
units with their own groups of students at their educational centres.
Just go to the site and choose the level you teach, for example, let’s imagine you are a
Primary teacher, so you click on and choose the level you need.
You can surf around it to know it well, and then use it with your students. One of the
advantages of these lessons is that they include tasks for all the skills: reading,
writing, listening and speaking, since students can even record their own voice,
save it and then you can collect the recordings later and assess them.
Apart from viewing the lessons online, you can also download them to your
computer and work on them locally so that you don’t depend on your Internet
connection, it’s easy. Let’s go back to the lessons for First Year, Primary Education
and click on Download.
So far we have been discussing tools and devices to engage our students in learning
using ICT tools. However, it is time to look at teachers’ needs and check online
courses and professional development groups for teachers. As well as the
students, teachers can have access to different opportunities for professional
development without travelling to another city or country. If you search on Google
words like “teaching English” or “online training for English teachers”, the
Net will bring lots of links for online courses, diplomas, or certificate for teachers.
Online training may offer:
The quality and the credit for the course will depend on the reputation and
accredited institution which offers the course. Some institutions may offer a
mixture of both online and face-to face observation to fully deliver the program and
credit the candidate with a diploma, which will be a great source for credibility and
validity of the course.
Mailing list
A mailing list can be compared to a newsletter which members of any group receive
regularly with updated news on different events. An example of this could be British
Council’s ELTECS list which keeps teachers informed about events all around the
world.
http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/eltecs
Discussion list
On the other hand, a discussion list encourages discussion of topics and issues.
Usually, they use mailing list software like Listserv and are based in universities. The
messages are sent to the members by email. They are quite participative as all the
members are entitled to post, comment or ask any doubt related to teaching.
TESL-L: http://linguistics.byu.edu/classes/ling678lh/TESL-L.html
NETEACH-L
https://hunter.listserv.cuny.edu/scriptshc/wa-hc.exe?A0=NETEACH-L
One of the advantages of joining a ListServ is that we as teachers have limited access
to other teachers, teacher trainers, material and ideas. Joining these groups, we become
part of the biggest “teachers’ room” as Gavin Dudeney suggests in his book The
Internet and the Language Classroom. However, it also has some disadvantages. The
main one is that maybe a lot of discussions may have no relevance to your teaching
practice so you will receive loads of emails with no useful information at all to you.
Similarly, a discussion group also uses email but it also offers a location online
where documents or files can be stored. It usually contains a calendar, a chat and
access to a member database. One of the main discussion groups container is
Yahoo groups. For instance, IATEFL (The International Association of
Teachers of English as a Foreign Language) has several discussion groups which
use Yahoo Groups, based on Special Interest Groups (SIGs) on different topics. As
you can imagine, there is discussion group about learning with Technologies.
http://www.iatefl.org/
Whichever group you may want to join, the advantages are several as you are
communicating with other teachers from all around the world with the same
concerns and questions like yours. It can also provide a great source of
involvement and collaborative projects to develop in different parts of the world.
Communities of practice
Other type of group are the so-called communities of practice (CoPs). Online CoPs
start as small websites with members using different means of communication and
knowledge sharing (through chats, instant messaging, video-conferencing or
bulletin boards and/or discussion lists). These groups represent another type of
group in which members share different responsibilities, tasks or activities.
Webheads
WEBHEADS
http://webheadsinaction.org/node
Webheads was set up by Vance Stevens and its members are ESL teachers and
trainers from all the world who discuss how to use technology in class. Members try
out different tools and then later discuss how those tools have had an impact in their
teaching practice. Sometimes it offers free online training and workshops.
The most interesting one is EVO (Electronic Village Online) which provides free
online training for teachers. This is sponsored also by TESOL.
http://evosessions.pbworks.com/w/page/48510148/Call_for_Participation2012
Dogme
Dogme
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dogme/
Belonging to any specific group is a voluntary and personal act but those teachers
interested in a continuous professional development and/or recycling should
belong to some of these groups we mentioned as the best way of keeping up with recent
and latest technologies. Also, it will provide contact with other teachers from
around the world with similar concerns and interests and will provide the
opportunity to become active in the teaching community.
In Depth
Etwinning
Etwinning España
Spanish Support Portal from Etwinning.In this portal, teachers can find information
about new projects, ideas and training events.
http://www.etwinning.es/
EducaMadrid
http://www.educa2.madrid.org/educamadrid/
UNIT 10 – In Depth
ICT Tools Applied to the Learning of English Language
Social networking and training courses for educators willing to integrate ICT into their
daily teaching.
http://pd-network.com/
Website dedicated to find and review high-quality free educational software and
websites - mostly for kids, but also for grown-ups. They have a large selection of web-
based software as well as Windows educational software to download
http://www.educational-freeware.com/
UNIT 10 – In Depth
ICT Tools Applied to the Learning of English Language
Test
3. A VLE:
A. Is a web-based platform on which course content is stored.
B. A platform similar to Moodle or WebCT.
C. All the above are true.
5. eTwinning:
A. Is an initiative of the EuropeanCommission to encourage all schools in Europe
to form a collaborative partnership using many forms of communication
technology.
B. Is also about teaching, experimenting with new methods of teaching, new
technologies and new ways of performing traditional tasks.
C. All the above are true.
UNIT 10 – Test
ICT Tools Applied to the Learning of English Language
6. Malted:
A. Is a free authoring computer tool designed to create multimedia and interactive
didactic units to be used by learners as a means to practise their learning skills in
technological environments.
B. Has been specifically developed for language teaching, although it may also be
used for other subjects included in the school curricula.
C. All the above are true.
9. A Discussion group:
A. Is similar to a discussion list but it has a location online to store documents or
files.
B. Contains a chat, calendar and access to a member database.
C. All the above are true.
UNIT 10 – Test