CALLing for PRactice

  

CALL = Computer Assisted Language Learning

e.g. Moodle, Duolingo... or any other way of studying with the support of ICT

even has its own journal!

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Usual techniques for practice and testing

• yes-no/true-false
• matching
• ordering
• multiple choice
• gap fill/cloze test
• open questions
• creative production

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TASK 1

Study the pros and cons of various test types HERE. Any disagreements?

What is your favourite test technique - from the different point of view:

1. as a  student
2. as a teacher

Add your answer into the comments to this blog entry. Sign your comment.

Read the other comments and try to identify the  reasons why people prefer specific techniques - and what are the T's and Ss' reasons.

More techniques to consider: which can be used to practicing language skills, and which focus mainly on memorised factual knowledge? 

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TASK 2 - see the Moodle Blog entry.

Working with sound

   

Audio material is regularly used when teaching speaking and listening in foreign languages. Therefore the teachers and the students should be able to edit and modify audio as well as texts.
Probably the best freeware available for editing sound is called AUDACITY.


Audacity Basics - you should be able to
- install Audacity and the lame library which enables export to mp3
- open a file in Audacity
- edit the file: cut and paste, fade in/out, change speed, delete, add silence
- create a new file
- combine two files (e.g. speech + background music)
- insert silence (e.g. as a space for an answer)
- change the speed or pitch (carefully!) to make understanding easier (or to have fun)

TASK 1 - WEB SEARCH

Choose an online audio resource - a podcast or TED you consider useful for an English teacher. Listen, and share the link and your opinion in the comments to this blog entry.

Inspiration/hint: What does the word "podcast" mean? Go to Podomatic, create an account and browse the site. How can we use it in teaching English?

Good examples - Teacher Luke, Splendid Speaking for advances learners
Podcast on podcasting in ELT

More online podcasts and streams
Ted Talks on Education - free online lectures!
Paramind
Oxford University Podcasts

Free text to audio:
http://www.fromtexttospeech.com/

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EXTRAS
Sound files extensions:
wav -  Standard audio file container format used mainly in Windows PCs. Commonly used for storing uncompressed (PCM), CD-quality sound files, which means that they can be large in size—around 10 MB per minute. Wave files can also contain data encoded with a variety of (lossy) codecs to reduce the file size (for example the GSM or MP3 formats). Wav files use a RIFF structure

mp3 - compressed, MPEG Layer III Audio. Is the most common sound file format used today

flac - Free Lossless Audio Codec
ape - Monkey's Audio lossless audio compression format
ogg - A free, open source container format supporting a variety of formats, the most popular of which is the audio format Vorbis; compression similar to MP3

webm - Royalty-free format created for HTML5 video
aiff - Standard audio file format used by Apple. It could be considered the Apple equivalent of wav

ref: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audio_file_format



Sluchové pole (nebo oblast slyšitelnosti) je rozsah všech zvuků, které dokáže lidské ucho vnímat. Vnímání zvuku je u člověka omezeno slyšitelnými frekvencemi (přibližně 16–20 000 Hz). U každé frekvence je odlišný rozdíl intenzit, jež slyšíme. Lidský sluchový orgán je nejcitlivější v oblasti frekvencí 1–5 kHz.

http://www.wikiskripta.eu/index.php/Pr%C3%A1h_sluchu_a_sluchov%C3%A9_pole

WebQuest

  

A WebQuest is an effective tool for USING English. In the following weeks, you will find out how it works, and we will discuss the design of your first WebQuest.


REMEMBER: A good WebQuest
- uses Internet resources (written in good authentic English)
- requires independent thinking, not mechanic copying from references
- is based on information processing: the students search for facts, evaluate, and come to their your own conclusions



TASK 1 - Order the main characteristics of a webquest according to their importance.
TASK 2 - Suggest a WebQuest topic (incl. defining the target group and final product).

Put both into the comments to this blog entry. 
You can work individually, in pairs or in groups of three.
Do not forget to sign your entries!

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Students projects at https://pcskills-ujep.blogspot.com/2019/12/webquest-presentations.html

WebQuest Home Page

Example: Greece or China?
A tool for making and publishing presentations online


WebQuest characteristic:
• information search
• information processing (THINKING, evaluating, comparing, choosing, combining, analysis, synthesis…)
• creativity
• autonomy
• fun

What is necessary:
• clear instructions
• clear description of the final product
• adequate choice of internet sources, with comments

WebQuest from the T’s point of view:
• choosing topic and task
• TIME – web search, detailing the process, clear and logical instructions
• focus on information processing – prevent plagiarism
• focus on authentic English resources

WebQuest from the Ss point of view:
• TASK
• instructions
• tips + web URLs
• final product
• autonomy + freedom of choice
• creativity


Look at the WebQuest template to learn more about its structure.

Inspiration:
WebQuest - Vaccination
WebQuest - A Trip to Egypt
WebQuest  - A Diary of the Survivor

Interesting Sites

Data visualisation Beta

100 Tools for teachers

CUP Digital Week: A teacher’s experience of… using technology in language teaching

Moodle - detailed tasks

TASK 6     14.4.2022

Student's view on Moodle 

Make pairs. Try out each other's materials and offer feedback.

Following the tutor's presentation, THIS video and this LINK, find out which data about the student's progress you can gain through the tests.

TASK 5     24.3.2022

• Test techniques - Multiple Choice and Gapfill
• the importance of formative feedback in distance studies (see below)
• tags/štítky;
• test settings: shuffle/zamíchat, timing, grade;
• Gapfill techniques: Drag+drop into text; Select missing words.

Focus on feedback in your test. A good feedback should

• present appropriate input - high amount of correct language
• be positive! do not criticise, rather include hints and ideas (not solutions)
• bring new information outside language
• be true
• prompt and motivate

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How do I make a good feedback in multiple choice?
Just follow these simple tips:
- DO NOT use capitals, exclamation marks, "NO!" "Unfortunately..." etc.
- be positive :) - do not start the feedback with "Sorry, no..."
- add extra information, eg.
Where do lions live? Chosen answer: "India"
Feedback: "Tigers live in India, but lions live in Africa."

*Examples of inacceptable feedback:
Sorry, try again
Are you serios?
almost THEREEEEE
you should have studied mnore
No way.
You should think before you click.
This is not the right answer.

Examples of suitable feedback:
Q: What do you use for reading?
A a book
B a toy        FDB: We use toys for playing. (IMAGE)
C a table      FDB: We eat on a table. (IMAGE)
D a dog        FDB: Dog is a friendly animal. (IMAGE)

TASK 4     17.3.2022

1. Find an audio link you want to add to your topic. Consider the length, language quality and info reliability!
2. Add the link into your moodle space. Include questions/tasks, e.g.: "Based on the audio, define... describe... decide..." You can either add an URL only, or a whole page (recommended).
3. Add a quiz to the listening - use the MATCHING technique. 

https://moodledocs.phil.muni.cz/cinnosti/test/nastaveni-testu/

TASK 3         10.3.2022

Make pairs. Visit each other's moodle topics and compare the approaches  - give your friend a valid and useful feedback! e.g.

• What is missing in the planned structure? 
• Would you prefer a different approach?
• Is the text understandable and correct?

 

TASK 2     3.3.2022

Consider the structure of your Moodle task. 

1. Presentation should include the main facts about the problem (focus on learning the knowledge) and  involve as many senses as possible. (e.g. use colours to mark keywords).
2. To support connecting information and critical thinking, add questions to be answered after studying the introductory  material.
3. Practice should give the user a chance to apply the knowledge and train the targetted skill. Add several types of tests, ordered form the simple to most difficult level.

TASK 1

Credit Project 2 (Individual): Study material in Moodle.

• Product: Moodle-based multimedia summary + practice of any KAJ state exam topic.
• Target group: Your classmates.
• Content: structured, correct, understandable, presentation and explanation of any chosen topic, including examples, FAQs and practice (min. 2 tests in 2 different formats)
• Format: multimedia - should include text, images/graphs/illustrations, audio or video.
• Objectives: to understand the topic; to be able to present and explain clearly; to apply student's experience with online covid teaching; to experience the role of the teacher; to prepare for the state exams.

 Please register the topics in the google chart - one topic can have only one coverage. 

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ObfZ4pPl6GBID7oudwi9BGTbMusF8j9X/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=111076814283848817398&rtpof=true&sd=true

Scenario

 Scenarios are decision-making games, stories or simulations, which can be used both for fun or for professional traning - e.g. for doctors, nurses, military personnel, drivers, social workers...

The branching enables the reader to decide - and to live through the consequences of his decisions immediately.

In the world of fiction, you might have read a series of fighting-fantasy books by Steve Jackson - for example Khare, Cityport of Traps.

Task 1
Play some of the following scenarios. Which of them would you choose for:
A military personel
B the final year of a vocational school
C 2nd grade of "osmilete gymnazium"

Enter your suggestions into the comments to this blog entry. Include the reasoning!

Examples of scenarios:
Escape

Survival

Fantasy (download required)

While writing the scenario, you should always define the following:
1. Target group - age, proficiency
2. Task - what the class should do, identifying the final outcome and product
3. Aims and objectives: what the class will learn in these fields:
factual knowledge
language (vocabulary, reading skills...)
communicative skills
social skills

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TWINE engine bor making scenarios to download:
Twine homepage

Basic instructions in Twine

Video-Course on Twine
HELP for TWINE

More at
http://blog.cathy-moore.com/2011/07/sample-branching-scenario-cool-tool/
http://blog.cathy-moore.com/2010/05/elearning-example-branching-scenario/

http://blog.cathy-moore.com/2018/04/3-ways-to-help-people-learn-from-mistakes-in-branching-scenarios/ 

ICT in ELT after covid - Credit Requirements

 

CREDIT REQUIREMENTS

• active participation, working on weekly tasks
• 80% attendance
• Projects as defined below: (finalised before April 20, 2022, presented in the last two lessons)

 

1. In pairs: Scenario or WebQuest

Choose one of the two formats according to your own preferences (details listed below).

2. Individually: Study material in Moodle.

• Product: Moodle-based multimedia summary + practice of any KAJ state exam topic.
• Target group: Your classmates.
• Content: structured, correct, understandable, presentation and explanation of any chosen topic, including examples, FAQs and practice (min. 2 tests in 2 different formats)
• Format: multimedia - should include text, images/graphs/illustrations, audio or video.
• Objectives: to understand the topic; to be able to present and explain clearly; to apply student's experience with online covid teaching; to experience the role of the teacher; to prepare for the state exams.

 Please register the topics in the google chart - one topic can have only one coverage. 

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ObfZ4pPl6GBID7oudwi9BGTbMusF8j9X/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=111076814283848817398&rtpof=true&sd=true

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TASKS DETAILS

Scenario
See Cathy Moore's blog to find out about the practical use of scenarios. More at
http://blog.cathy-moore.com/2011/07/sample-branching-scenario-cool-tool/
http://blog.cathy-moore.com/2010/05/elearning-example-branching-scenario/

TWINE engine can be installed, or works online at https://twinery.org/
A guide for using Twine
HELP for TWINE


While writing the scenario, define the following:
1. Target group - age, proficiency
2. Task - what the class should do, identifying the final outcome and product
3. Aims and objectives: what the class will learn in these fields:
factual knowledge
language (vocabulary, reading skills...)
communicative skills
social skills

Make a list of keywords to help the class read and understand.

Computers skills and specifics:
create a correct, logical text
write the whole scenario into a single text file first
add illustrations and graphics to support reading with undestanding

For brainstorming, you may want to use this software: http://www.mindmeister.com/

Examples of scenarios:
Africa

Ss' site

Space

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WebQuest
For the final design and publishing, you may:
EITHER use questgarden or zunal.
Read the registration and free use conditions first.

Or use any free Webquest generator you like, e.g.
https://sites.google.com/site/studentwebquesttemplate/
https://www.bookwidgets.com/blog/2016/09/the-ultimate-webquest-creator


The final product shall be uploaded to your personal web; if it is published elsewhere, you will include active link.

WebQuest characteristic:
information search
information processing (THINKING, evaluating, comparing, choosing, combining, analysis, synthesis…)
creativity
autonomy
fun

What is necessary:
clear instructions
clear description of the final product
adequate choice of internet sources, with comments

WebQuest from the T’s point of view:
choosing topic and task
TIME – web search, detailing the process, clear and logical instructions
focus on information processing – prevent plagiarism
focus on authentic English resources

WebQuest from the Ss point of view:
task
instructions
tips + web URLs
final product
autonomy + freedom of choice
creativity

WEBQUEST EXAMPLES:
Asteroid danger http://zunal.com/webquest.php?w=178524 
Pirates http://questgarden.com/197/19/4/171119060403/

A Diary of the Survivor

Building Stonehenge