25 May 2007
Educator Discusses Internet Resources for Students To Learn English
USINFO Webchat transcript, May 24
Dr. Silvio Avendano, University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) director of the online TESOL professional development programs participated in a May 24 USINFO Webchat on assessing Internet resources to learn English.
This is a first in a new series on “Internet Tools and Curriculum Design for Young Leaders of English,” hosted by the U.S. State Department's Bureau of International Information Programs and is brought to us by the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City.
Following is the transcript:
(begin transcript)
U.S. Department of State
Bureau of International Information Programs
USINFO Webchat transcript
Internet Tools & Curriculum Design for Young Learners of English: Assessing Internet Resources
Guest: Dr. Silvio Avendano
Date: Thursday, May 24, 2007
Time: 5:00 p.m. EDT (2100 GMT)
Moderator: Welcome to the first of four webchats in our new series "Internet Tools & Curriculum Design for Young Learners of English." This series is hosted by the U.S. State Department's Bureau of International Information Programs and is brought to us by the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City.
You are welcome to send in your questions now or you may wait until the live event begins today at 4:00p.m. Mexico City/5:00p.m. Washington/21:00 GMT.
Because of the very high volume of questions coming in, our guest may begin answering some of the questions earlier than our scheduled start time. We will still begin the webchat officially at 5:00 p.m. EDT / 4:00 p.m. Mexico City.
And just to remind you, your questions will appear on this screen only after they are answered by our guest speaker.
Question [Anara]: Good Day! I can’t understand when chat started? In Kazakhstan right now is 0.35 am.
Moderator: Dear Anara, the webchat will begin at 21:00 GMT /17:00 EDT. We will send your questions to our speaker, thank you for staying up so late!
Q [Cesar Valmaña]: Here in Qba we were invited to attend this webchat at 3:00 pm Havana time. Why have you made changes and kept users dis-/uninformed?
Moderator: Dear Cesar, we are very sorry about the time confusion. We do have your questions here in the webchat system and we will send them to Dr. Avendano. Again, we apologize for this confusion.
Q [Ada]: I just have one tiny problem, this is the first time I get into this program which I personally think seems to be interesting and useful, but I do have a problem, here at my office I don´t have a camera, how does this work? How can I participate in the chat? Thanks!
Moderator: You are already participating! No camera is needed. When Mr. Avendano logs in at 21:00 GMT, he will review all of your questions. When he answers a question, it will appear on this screen.
Moderator: Hello everyone! We will be getting started shortly. We ask that you please be patient as Dr. Avendano reviews your many questions.
If you would like to post a comment telling us who you are and where you are joining from, please do so. Just be sure to select the "comment" option and we will begin posting those after our guest speaker joins us online.
Silvio Avendano: Dear colleagues, I'm so honored to be guest speaking today about one of my favorite topics as a teacher and teacher educator. I'll start answering questions right away. I planned to enter earlier but I'm in my office and have had students coming all day. I will start answering questions today and if I can not finish today I will continue tomorrow. So, please enter again if you don't see an answer to your question. If I don't know the answer to your question, I'll let you know and will find somebody who might have the answer. Thanks so much for all your questions. - Dr. Silvio Avendano
Q [queenross]: Congratulations Silvio. I am Rosa Acuña from Nicaragua. Your ex-collegue at UCA Universidad Centroarmericana. It is a pleasure for me to know you are doing this important work for education. God bless you. I have a lot of questions related to child´s psychology.
Q [IRC Antananarivo]: Hello, I'm Zo [in Madagascar]. I agree that teaching English through the internet is very interesting. But in some developing countries, there are many people who want to learn English and the problem is that most of them cannot use the internet due to the lack of money to afford it or the time. So what do you think of this problem.
Q [Ada]: Thanks, I have had the plesure to meet Mr. Avendaño a couple of times at Nicatesol conferences held at UCA, Managua, and I just want to congratulate him for your deep interest in ESL, EFL, ESP, and everything related to the importance of English teaching, I personally have been working on some electronic pages he had recommend us with my students, which we have found interesting and useful and we have learnt a lot from them, thanks Mr. Avendaño.
And hopefully you can join us at UNAN-León II conference of teachers of English held at León, Nicaragua next year on January 31st and February 1st and 2nd, 2008.
And just taking advantage of this space, I will like to extend this invitation to all of those who may be interested in participating whether as Presenters or Participants, if you want more information please write at eflinglescongress2008@yahoo.com. Thanks!
Q [Eneida]: For many years I have used internet to support my teaching. Young learners love to sit in front of a computer or to play in a computer. We should take advantage of this and use different websites in our classes and even for homework.
Q [Naimat Ullah Khan - LC Karachi]: I would like to ask about the available resources for the English Learners. I represent the Lincoln Corner Karachi, and aimed to provide assistance & guidance to the students.
Your advice would enable me to provide some valuable information to the visitors of Lincoln Corner.
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Naimat, thanks for your question. There are so many websites you can visit. Here's a website that contains lots of lesson plans for teaching children and teenagers.
It is one of my favorite sites: http://www.marcopolo-education.org/teacher/shell.aspx?filename=/teacher/lesson_plan_content_index.aspx&site_area=teacher.
silvio
Q [Ibrahim Saleh]: Dear Dr. Avendano, I think that one of the main problems we might face using the Internet to design curricula is that we do not use good search words which help us get what we need from among the myriads of sources on the Web. Few days ago, I was in need of some mortgage finance materials to use in an ESP class. I failed to get enough material, but I am still sure that it is the problem of my deficient search words/phrases. If you agree with me, could you please elaborate on this point taking mortgage finance as a case study? Many thanks in advance.
Q [Frank2]: Franklin Téllez from Nicaragua-BNC. Our students like to use Internet, we know that it´s an important tool, we have 6-week course, how often do our students need to use these websites?
Moderator: Welcome "Walid"! We see your questions and have sent them to Dr. Avendano. If you would like to introduce yourself to the group, please choose "comment" and we will post your comment directly to this page. Thank you!
To all participants, Dr. Avendano is scrolling through all of the questions. When he answers a question, the full question and his answer will appear together.
Q [Mr. Chaviano]: Mr.Bendaña:
1.When you mention the term "young learner", what ages/school level are you referring to?
2. Would it be possible to have some WEB PAGES ADDRESS, before the Web Chat, so that we can see/assess the contents in advanced?
Mr. Chaviano/UAM -NICARAGUA
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Mr. Chaviano, thanks so much for your question. Prof. Joan Shin will address the topic of TEYL specifically, but the following websites will provide some useful information:
http://www.cal.org/resources/digest/0301coltrane.html
http://www.etprofessional.com/articles/challenge.pdf
silvio
Q [Ibrahim Saleh]: I am Ibrahim Saleh, an instructor at the American University in Cairo, Egypt.
Q [Manuel Aguirre]: Is there any recommendation to use the internet sites, or the resources?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Manuel, thanks for your question. Where are you web chatting from? In my graduate class on computer-assisted language learning, I normally ask students (course participants) to assess resources that they can use with children or any other type of students in the class. I have developed a simple Internet Assessment Questionnaire that helps my students develop a webbiography of Internet resources. I think you need to be careful with what you select, especially for teaching children.
The questions my questionnaire include are:
• What is the address for the Web site?
• What’s the domain of the site? Is the site affiliated to a university?
• Who created the Web site?
• Are the Web site’s links working?
• If you find some links that are not working, write the Web addresses here.
• Was the Web site created for teaching ESL/EFL? or was it created for other purposes?
• What kind of activities does the Web site have?
• Listening activities? Reading activities?
• What changes would you make to the activities from this Web site?
• What activities can you envision to do with this Web site?
• What are the implications of using this Web site in your class?
• Are other sites discussed?
• Is there contact information for you to ask questions or to provide feedback?
• If there is contact information, please write it down here.
• Would you recommend this Web site to other colleagues?
• What advice would you give to other teachers who want to use this Web site?
silvio
Q [rochgypsy]: The problem with some teaching not utilizing the many available options are that they feel they will be replaced or not work as many hours, but it is just the opposite for once they start the work is much more and the students response is far greater.
Q [chanta]: Many less developed and developing countries are having difficulties reaching the minorities, having their own respective mother-tongue to make transition to use national language and yet having to accommodate the national curricular requirement for their children to learn English as another language in addition to having to master the national language first.
Are there guidebooks on TEASL www that teachers from less developed countries can make use of the contents posted in the www for teaching? Are they grouped according to the advance levels of learners? Thank you.
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Chanta, where are you connecting from?
If you are asking about resources that are available over the Internet for teachers to use, the answer is yes!! There are plenty and most of them are organized by level of instruction and by discipline. I have already provided one of those websites, I'll type it again here for you: http://www.marcopolo-education.org/teacher/shell.aspx?filename=/teacher/lesson_plan_content_index.aspx&site_area=teacher.
There is also a wonderful online book that is old and it was not developed necessarily for ESL but it has great, great ideas for using the Internet in our classrooms. You can see the whole book online at: http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/fellowship/reports/susanc/inthome.htm.
I hope this will help.
silvio
Moderator: Just a reminder to everyone. There are many participants today and only one Dr. Avendano ... he is working as quickly as he can!
Q [frank21]: It´s a great topic and I hope to get good sites of learning English. Could you give us good sites to teach English?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Frank21, what level of instruction do you teach? I have provided some online resources where you can find all kinds of materials for your class. Please see previous questions and answers. - Silvio
Q [inasym]: Hello everybody, this is Inas Youssef; an assistant lecturer at the faculty of Al-Alsun Ain shams University; Egypt.
Q [Zamarripa]: How can I improve my students' listening and speaking skills via the internet?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Zamarripa, where are you communicating from?
That's a great question. It depends of what you want to do in class. There are several websites that can help, but it also depends on the level of English proficiency your students have. I like the following website, but it might be too advanced for beginners: http://www.storylineonline.net/
Students can listen to the stories at the same time that they read the text. I also like the following website: http://www.rif.org/assets/Documents/readingplanet/ReadAloud_Stories/safari_song.html
Keep in mind that when you use the Internet for listening and speaking, you need to make sure that your computer has all the plug-ins and tools that are needed for using the listening or speaking sites. You might need a good microphone, a very good Internet connection, an updated version of Java, and good speakers.
silvio
Q [ajc]: Mr. Avedano, my name is Alex Cabrera and I am a teacher at the Instituto Cultural Dominico Americano in the Dominican Republic. What are the basic requirements that a site must have to qualify as useful?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Alex, how are you? Thanks so much for your question.
Great question. As I said in a previous answer/question, you need to assess the validity and usefulness of a site for your specific class. I have provided a questionnaire that I have students in my graduate class use to critique websites.
In sum, a website is only useful if it meets the needs of your students and if it will help you achieve your class objectives more effectively. Just like anything in teaching, a website that might be very useful for me, might not work for you. You really don't want to use a website just for the sake of using technology. As a teacher, you want to ask: How will this website enhance my lesson? What will the students get out of this Internet-enhanced activity?
silvio
Moderator: Welcome Managua! If you would like to introduce yourselves to the group, please select the "comment" option.
Q [Fresia]: Hi, I'm Fresia Pampas from Huancayo, Peru. It's 4:00 p.m. I'm glad of being part of this discussion.
Moderator: Welcome Peru!
Q [IRC Antananarivo]: I am Mrs. Voahangy Ratsimba-Razafimahefa, a national coordinator of English in primary schools. English is decided to be considered as one official language in Madagascar and it is to be introduced in grade 4.
What kinds of activities can we present, as the focus skills are on listening and speaking?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Mrs. Voahangy Ratsimba-Razafimahefa, thanks so much for your question.
You certainly can do all kinds of activities in your class. What activities you choose to do really depends on the level of proficiently your students have, the local context of your teaching, and your students' profile in general. For example, I can recommend that you use online songs, but does your context allow you to do that in your classes?
I suggest that you visit the online book I recommended in a previous answer and decide what from there you can use or adapt. The link for that book is: http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/fellowship/reports/susanc/inthome.htm.
silvio
Q [IRCManagua]: Hello everyone! We are glad that [you] have the opportunity to participate in such initiative. We certainly are very geared towards English Language Teaching. Thanks so much for this valuable chance.
Moderator: Welcome Sonora, Mexico!
Q [Enthot]: Hello right there Mr. Avendaño ... how is everything?
I`m Allan Garcia from Matagalpa, Nicaragua and I am pretty happy to be online ha! I want some suggestions on how to use internet with my students. Actually, I just ask my students to send me some messages to my e-mail address, comments, or suggestions for my classes at school ... what else cal I do?
Thanks,
Q [aimee Cabrera]: I want to know how I can teach English as a second language to students that are learning the 3rd grade at elementary school, there isn't any program for them (they begin to study English at 6th grade) but they are very interested in learning some English and they have the chance to use Internet, how can I do for them?
Q [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Aimee, thanks so much for your question.
I would first introduce the students to the computer and use the computer as a context for providing language input. Gordon Lewis in the wonderful book The Internet and Young Learners provides the following activities:
1. Show computer objects
2. Introduce them to typing practice
3. Introduce them to cut and paste
4. Show them how to find their way on the web
5. Introduce them to what a website is
You might think that this is so obvious and easy, but you will really be providing a lot of language input if you plan your lesson carefully. You can subscribe to the Oxford University Press (OUP) Teachers' Club for more resources on this textbook.
The web address for subscribing to OUP is: http://www.oup.com/elt/catalogue/teachersites/rbt/?cc=global.
When you sign in and enter the website you want to scroll down and choose the book by Gordon Lewis.
silvio
Q [Edison]: How can a teacher avoid students using internet to do something which is not class related?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Edison, great question! This is a problem that we all share. It really depends on how your computer lab is set up. Some schools enjoy the privilege of having special and inexpensive software (I think one of them is NepSchool) that gives full control of all the computer screens to the instructor.
Also, you can ask you IT staff to help you create special settings on the computer to block sites that you don't want students to see. A pedagogical suggestion is to always have students work in pairs or in groups of 3 and make sure that students always know that there is someone (you) watching.
I know it is easy to say it but difficult to work with that situation. I've presented at conferences, where I would expect everyone to be interested, but I also have had my hard time with teachers emailing friends when I have not even started talking. So, you're not alone.
silvio
Moderator: Dear Manuel. Your question has been forwarded to Dr. Avendano.
Q [Musiker]: I am concerned about copyright issues when using material taken or adapted from the web. Any pointers?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Musiker, where are you webchatting from?
Thanks for your wonderful question. This is such an important question, especially when we talk about using Internet resources.
I suggest that you always make sure that you give credits to the source or author of the materials. Many times, I have observed classes or attended conferences where I recognize materials taken from ESL Internet sites that do not contain the URL or the name of the authors. I understand sometimes we unintentionally omit the URL or the name of authors in these types of materials, but making these mistakes should not become a habit. It is not fair for our colleagues everywhere in the world who have devoted so much time creating and posting materials that we do not give them credits. And you know, it's a matter of ethics, we really don't want to present materials from others as ours. If we unintentionally fail to give credits to sources, we should write an errata or tell students or colleagues that we have not created such materials.
In sum, do NOT omit the URL from Internet materials. If the URL is not included when you print the materials, take a pen or pencil and write it yourself before reproducing the material.
Also, as a courtesy to the authors, it is a good idea to let them know that you are or will be using their materials. In U.S. universities, failing to provide credits to sources or presenting somebody else's materials as our own is a very serious issue. Students who don't follow academic integrity can suffer serious consequences.
silvio
Q [Javier]: How can I keep the attention of the students on these www specifics sites, when there are too many other sites (not to learn English) that attract young people?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Javier, thanks for your great question. You need to integrate Internet technology as part of your lesson. You don't take your students to a lab and do free-for-all activities. Your Internet-enhanced lessons need to be structured just as any other lessons. In previous messages, I have provided guidelines on how to critique/choose websites for our classes.
The website that you choose should nicely fit into the topic and objectives of the lesson. I am thinking of teachers who use beautiful songs that are unrelated to their lessons' topics and objectives. Of course students will ask to listen to more songs and the class might become unstructured. In the same way, you want to choose an internet sites that will help you achieve an instructional objective.
silvio
Moderator: To all participants. Dr. Avendano is going to continue to review and answer questions. We will extend this webchat for at least one-half hour.
If Dr. Avendano has time, he will return to answer more of your questions on Friday, May 25.
Q [IRC Antananarivo]: What are the most successful teaching methods for developing countries where internet access is not available for young learners of English language? Is it possible to achieve English proficiency without having recourse to immersion education?
For countries where there is already a second language how to teach another foreign language successfully?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Antananarivo, thanks for your question. Let me see if I understand your question. Are you asking how you could teach or immerse students into English if you don't have Internet access? I don't think you should feel at a disadvantage if you don't have Internet access. There are so many things that you can do with traditional technology. There is not good or bad method for teaching ... the success of a method really depends on where and who you are teaching. - silvio
Q [Mirna]: Hi Silvio, it is great to hear from you again, I am Mirna Beltran, from Centro Cultural Salvadoreño filial San Miguel.
Q [IRC Antananarivo]: Hi! My name is GERMAIN, I am an English teacher, I have two questions: would you give us a specific or a special address on how to find a course in grammar, text comprehension, and writing.
Could you give us techniques on how to set a class curriculum for a finishing year (high school). THANK YOU
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello GERMAIN, check the following websites:
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/grammar/
http://a4esl.org/q/h/grammar.html
http://www.tc.umn.edu/~jewel001/grammar/
http://online.ohlone.cc.ca.us/~mlieu/adjclause/what_h.html
silvio
Moderator: Hello Margara, welcome! We have sent your question on to Dr. Avendano.
Q [IRC Antananarivo – Rajaoanrison]: What do you think about using mother tongue in teaching English to young students? The point is we don't have that mother tongue in the Internet. Thanks.
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Rajaoanrison, I'm not sure I understand your question. Using the mother tongue should not be a problem. I think it has to do with how often you use it and the rationale for using it. - silvio
Q [IRC Antananarivo – Rasoarivelo]: Is it possible to watch a real English class situation where young learners between 10-14 are taught?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Rasoarivelo, I don't know if I should tell you now, but there is a great project sponsored by the U.S. Department of State. The online project provides teachers with examples from actual classrooms. Ask at the U.S. embassy in your country about the “Shaping the Way we Teach” project. - silvio
Q [Ada]: Hello, as I said before I´ve been working on some pages this semester, most of them about listening, and they are easy to access, you may not need high speed system, I just would like to help, ´cuz I´ve been reading some of your questions, and I found this pages very useful, especially because my students have improved in their learning.
Just to give some help, www.Esl-lab.com (here you can find listening exercises with pre, while and post activities, and it has a wide list on different topics of real life from beginners to advanced)
http://cla.univ-fcomte.fr/english/sites/dictations.htm (it has listening exercises on video from real life, with interviews on different topics)
http://pbskids.org (it is for children, it has most of the tv programs for kids, it has a wide range of activities. It´s also good for listening and it will help your students improve their listening and speaking while working on their favorite tv shows,)
www.ondemand-english.com (it ´s good for listening too, but it teaches your students to learn real life and everyday expressions)
Finally, I found this page www.ask.com (here you just ask for a topic and it will provide you some pages related to the question/topic you ask)
Hope these pages may be useful for you!! Thanks.
Q [NOVOA]: Dear Dr. Avendaño, this is Horacio Novoa, from Universidad Centroamericana in Managua, Nicaragua. My concern about educational technology is that most of the practice available is somehow attached to a behaviourist approach. As some of my colleagues may have seen, there is a lot of repeating, identifying, recognizing and manipulating patterns, which keeps learning at a basic level. I would like you to provide us with activities that somehow make use of technology engaging, interactive and meaningful. I guess that teachers are very interested in keeping students involved in activities that really help them use the English language spontaneously and in an unrehearsed manner.
Q [Mónica]: What are the technical features designed to aid navigation?
What are the main features we have to find at the Web site to evaluate an English language course before using it with our students?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Monica, Thanks for your question. Are you talking about online courses? Or about Internet sites only?
The following websites will also help: http://iteslj.org/links/TESL/Internet/Using_the_Internet/
http://edvista.com/claire/internet-esl.html
silvio
Moderator: Hello everyone. Just a quick update. Dr. Avendano will continue to answer questions, however he has been typing for 90 minutes now. We hope you will be understanding if he does not answer your question today.
Q [Silvia Laborde]: Hello, my name's Silvia Laborde and I'm joining the chat from Montevideo Uruguay. It was a real challenge to find out what time the chat was going to take place in Uruguayan time. I'm really sorry I'm so late; I'm trying to catch up!
Q [Maria Eugenia2]: What are some of the most important criteria to consider when evaluating Internet Resources?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Maria Eugenia, thanks for your question.
Just as when choosing any other instructional material or tool, you need to examine what you really want to do with the Internet in your class. Sample questions to ask are:
1. Do I want to use the Internet to work on projects? If the answer is yes, then you want to develop a suitable activity, be a webquest or a scavenger hunt.
2. How does the Internet activity fit into my lesson?
3. Will my students learn the content of the lesson better if I use Internet-enhanced activities?
Some sites to visit are:
http://webquest.sdsu.edu/overview.htm
http://webquest.sdsu.edu/
http://www.spa3.k12.sc.us/WebQuest%20Development.htm
http://www.spa3.k12.sc.us/WebQuests.html
http://www.ozline.com/
http://www.web-and-flow.com/help/formats.asp
http://www.geocities.com/techlabloms/Quest.htm
http://www.ozline.com/webquests/intro.html#choosing
http://edweb.sdsu.edu/people/bdodge/active/ActiveLearningk-12.html
http://www.ci.swt.edu/faculty/peterson/webquestworld2/webquestworldhome.html
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Bridge/9672/
http://jwilson.coe.uga.edu/EMT668/EMAT6680.F99/Glazer/softeval/
http://www.kn.pacbell.com/wired/BHM/tuskegee_quest.html
http://www.spa3.k12.sc.us/webquesttemplate/webquesttemp.htm
http://www.spa3.k12.sc.us/survival.htm
http://www.spa3.k12.sc.us/webquestrubric.htm
http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/go/readquest/strat/tps.html
Moderator: Welcome Silvia!
Q [Walid]: Hi, however, I did not get an answer to my question, I am learning a lot out of the answers to others. It is so informative.
When can we continue this webchat. I mean the next session, if any. Walid
Moderator: Dear Walid and everyone, our next webchat in this series will take place one week from today on May 31. Our chat will be The Internet--A Treasure Trove for Teachers of Young Learners with Dr. Caroline Linse.
Dr. Avendano continues to review your many questions.
Q [Tom Baker]: What is a webquest and how can it be used to benefit learners? How do you prepare a webquest.
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Tom, thanks for your question.
A webquest in simple teachers' language is an Internet-based inquiry or research project. A webquest can be done in one class, in one week, in one month or in one semester.
A webquest is usually confused with a scavenger hunt. A webquest is different from a scavenger hunt in that it follows a more organized structure and objective. It is not just a list of questions. The main components of a webquest are:
1. Introduction
2. Task
3. List of sources (URLs) that you want students to use
4. Steps that students need to follow to complete the task
5. Instructions or specific guiding questions
6. Conclusion
Webquests are wonderful activities that are done in small groups or as a class. See previous message for a list of related websites.
- silvio
Q [Izaura]: Do you think young learners of English language can be introduced to PBS kids for instance without the help of their native language?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Izaura, thanks for your question. It depends on how much English they already know. What I would do is to introduce them to some characters of http://www.pbskids.org/ first or to some of the words of activities they might find at the PBS site. One easy activity you can start with is coloring. See link below: http://www.pbskids.org/coloring/index.html
- silvio
Q [ANARA]: It is a pity, but I think, during realization this webchat I shall sleep already...
Therefore my question such: What addresses of active language Internets - communities you know, which the pupils of the senior schools (14-18 years) with second English language could use?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Anara, sorry that you might be sleeping already.
The following website can give you ideas on how to set up projects for your students: http://iteslj.org/links/ESL/Student_Projects/
- silvio
Q [Roy2]: Hi, I am Roy. I am interesting in knowing useful websites to download posters or pictures to teach young learners.
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Roy, thanks for your questions. One of my favorite sites for pictures for ESL/EFL is http://www.manythings.org.
- silvio
Q [Frank2]: Hi, from Nicaragua. We have a six-week course. How often do the teachers have to take the students to use ESL/EFL websites?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Frank, thanks for your questions and hello Nicaragua!
Pedagogically, it is not how often you use a website, but why and how you use it. Skillful teachers who take their students one or two times during a course might have a more productive class than those teachers who take the students to a computer lab everyday for unstructured activities. Your Internet-enhanced activities should closely relate to your class or course outcomes. - silvio
Moderator: Dr. Avendano continues to review your questions.
Q [Ibrahim Saleh]: Dear Dr. Avendano, thanks for being with us today. I teach at the American University in Cairo and usually have a problem with knowing whether a Website is peer reviewed or not. I hope that the standards we should observe to evaluate whether Websites are so-reviewed or not be considered today.
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Ibrahim, thanks for your question and for welcoming me!!
There are many wonderful websites that were not created for teaching or for ESL/EFL and it is our job to review them for our own instructional purposes. You might want to join an online community. One option is to visit www.eslcafe.com and join one of the suggested online communities for ESL teachers. You will be able to interact with other teachers who have probably reviewed sites that you might be interested in.
In previous messages, I have shared ideas on how to critique websites for our classes.
- silvio
Q [Walid]: Hi dears, its my first time to participate in this web chat. I am sure that I will learn many useful things. Do we have any standards to assess internet resources?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Walid, thanks for your question. In previous messages, I have posted suggestions for evaluation websites. - silvio
Q [Ada]: Hi Mr Avendaño, my name is Ada from Nicaragua, thanks for taking some of your valuable time to share with us part of your experience in teaching English, my first question is related to pages about listening, I´ve working hard this semester trying to find pages that offer listening exercises for free and of good quality, and it´s been hard for me, so which is the best page to get into and work on it? This because I want my students to improve this skill?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Ada, thanks for your greetings and your question.
There are many websites that provide listening exercises. I can think of two that I completely trust, are easy to use and where activities are organized by level:
One website is: http://www.esl-lab.com/
another website is: http://www.lclark.edu/~krauss/toppicks/listening.html
- silvio
Q [goyito]: Can using internet chat programs such as Skype and MSN Messenger improve my spoken English proficiency?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Goyito, thanks for your question.
Yes, they can but it depends how you are using them. Are you using them to chat informally with friends? Are you using them with native speakers of the language? Are you using them as part of a class project (meaning is someone supervising that you are getting something out of the chat activity)? Yes, they help.
I always recommend my students to use those tools.
- silvio
Q [Ibrahim Saleh]: Many thanks professor. I do appreciate your reply and being with us during this really informative Webchat. In Egyptian Arabic we say, Shukran Keteer (many thanks).
Q [inasym]: Do you really accept the fact that teachers should depend mainly on the .edu sites?
2. Would you kindly suggest some useful electronic sources for teaching grammar through a communicative technique?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Inasym, thanks for your questions. Are you asking me if I suggest that teachers only use websites with the .edu domain?
My answer is no. As I have said earlier, there other webites that can be used in our ESL/EFL classes and they are not necessarily from educational organizations (i.e. university or school). One example is http://www.pbs.org.
Two good sites for grammar are:
http://a4esl.org/q/h/grammar.html
http://www.englishclub.com/grammar/index.htm
- silvio
Q [Mr. Chaviano]: Mr. Abendano: What’s your experience in using online exams as placement, achievement or assessment tests? - Mr. Chaviano
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Mr. Chaviano, thanks for your questions. In our program, we use online quizzes but we don't use them to determine student placement. Most of the online quizzes include the answers, so you might want to be careful that the students are not looking at the answers. - silvio
Q [Mr. Chaviano: Mr. Abendano: In your experience, is there a methodological framework to follow when Ss are in the lab practice online? - Mr. Chaviano
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Mr. Chaviano, yes, there is and it's really the same framework that you would use for any other class.
De Szendefy (2005) recommends that the teacher in the CALL classroom
• Circulate
• Talk to each student
• Look at what students are doing on-screen
• Have a student first help another student asking a question
• Keep abreast of what´s happening and who might need help
• Let students know that they´re not on their own
(Szendefy, 2005, p. 18)
Dear colleagues, wow! What an honor to be here!
I am enjoying so much being here. I want to let you know that I need to take a little break and talk to some students that are waiting for me. I will continue responding to questions in one hour. You can also come back tomorrow and look at the questions and answers.
Thanks. Silvio
Moderator: Participants, please check back later today and tomorrow. Dr. Avendano, thank you so much for taking the time to webchat with our group around the world.
The webchat is on hold for the moment but we will continue to accept your questions.
Q [IRC Antananarivo – Rasoarivelo]: Is there any website that could help us improve our English level in order to better teach English to young learners ? Thanks.
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello there! You might want to visit some of the recommended websites (see previous messages) and try out some of the activities yourself. That will help you determine what area of the English language you need to improve. There are other websites that can help you improve specific areas. One website that I use with my TOEFL students to help them improve their reading skills is: http://www.turboread.com/read_checks.htm
Also, if you visit the toefl.org website and register, you will be able to take real tests that can help you assess your level of proficiency.
- silvio
Q [IRC Antananarivo – Rasoanirina]: What do you think is the best way to teach beginners when using the Internet?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Rasoanirina, in an earlier message, I recommended some ideas from Lewis, the author of Internet for Young learners. I also recommended that teachers subscribe to the Oxford University's Teacher Club to get sample articles and lesson ideas. - silvio
Q [IRC Antananarivo – Rasoanirina]: How long should we teach English in a week? Thanks.
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Rasoanirina, well … it depends on what your students' purpose for learning English is or what your purpose for teaching them English is. It also depends on the materials that you are using. I would suggest at least one hour a day, but I know this sounds unrealistic in places that do not have enough teachers or resources and can only afford to teach English for one or two hours a week.
If you plan your lessons carefully you should be able to do a lot with your limited time. By a lot I mean not to make the students become bilingual, but at least to be able to use some language in a coherent way.
- silvio
Q [IRC Antananarivo – Elysette]: I would appreciate your replies on the following:
1) a list of internet websites featuring some tips for ESL/EFL Curriculum Design for young learners
2) some internet websites with learning activities for young EFL learners
3) some instructions related to the evaluation of curriculum design websites Thanks a lot.
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Elysette, from your questions I take you are developing curriculum for young learners. You might want to look at the models used in the United States. There is a wonderful online handbook that we use in a TEYL course that we teach at UMBC. The web address for that handbook is: http://eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2/content_storage_01/0000000b/80/10/b1/d8.pdf
- silvio
Q [IRC Antananarivo – Zo]: In Madagascar, teaching through Internet is still impossible especially in state schools due to the great number of students and poverty. Most teachers (not living in the capital) do not even know how to use Internet. What solution can you suggest? Thanks.
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Zo, your situation is true in many countries. Mona Soliman, from Egypt has developed strategies to overcome those challenges. In her classes, she asks students to get in groups of 3-5 and find a cybercafé or a computer hooked to the Internet anywhere else. Students have specific tasks to complete and report back to class.
Ms. Soliman's approach has been very successful. You might want to try it out. Develop specific activities that students can do in groups. Start with something simple and have student report their activities to the class.
- silvio
Q [IRC Antananarivo – Lova]: Can the Internet replace the teachers?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Lova, what a great question and a question that worries so many teachers around the world.
The answer to your question is NO! The Internet is just a tool. Students will always need a human being to provide some sense of direction in the class. Meloni (1998) argues that teachers who do not catch up with technology will be replaced by those who are up to date with how teaching and technology relate to each other. so, teachers might be replaced by other teachers, but not by the Internet or other type of technology.
- silvio
Q [IRC Antananarivo – Lova]: The use of the Internet is limited to privileged learners. How to extend it to the whole public?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Lova, I have provided some ideas in a previous message. If your students cannot access the Internet at all, you might want to find ways to access it yourself. You could use the Internet to find activities that you could adapt for the regular classroom. For example, the website www.manythings.org contains a lot of materials that you can print, put on cardboard paper and use them in your regular class.
- silvio
Q [IRC Antananarivo – Lova]: Is the use of the Internet really beneficial for the students or does it make them lazy?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Lova, The Internet, just as any other tool that is used with an instructional objective in mind, can be very beneficial to students. You might also argue that a book make the students lazy because they don't have to take notes or handwrite information from the blackboard. The Internet is beneficial only is integrated wisely within a lesson. There should be a pedagogical rationale for using it in the classroom.
-silvio
Q [IRC Antananarivo – raked]: The use of the Internet is meant to facilitate learning. Does it really? Can it cater cultural differences, educational procedures and learners' expectations?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Raked, it sounds like you're making a strong statement. I can say that the Internet is very useful for the ESL/EFL class, but whether it facilitates learning really depends on how it is used or integrated into the curriculum, the syllabus, the course book or the lesson. The Internet by itself will not facilitate learning. You, as an expert of your local teaching context as an experienced educator will have to make sure that the Internet or any other instructional materials such as books and tapes are culturally and pedagogically suitable for your class.
- silvio
Q [IRC Antananarivo – Rabodonavalona]: Are folks songs helpful for young beginners to get new vocabularies?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Rabonavalona, Wow! what level of English proficiency do your students have? I think it depends on how you use them. I would use something much more simple, like children songs first.
- silvio
Q [IRC Antananarivo]: Razanajaona: What is the best way to make Internet available for public school?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Razanajaona, it depends. It really depends on your government policies. It doesn't depend on my answer to your question. Some countries are implementing projects in which they create public spaces, like cybercafes or local technology sites that are accessible to students under agreement between local ministries of education and public schools. I understand the money comes from foreign funding.
One successful example is Chile with their project "English by 2010" or something like that. Another country that has implemented similar projects is Egypt. You might want to read the following wonderful article by Mark Warschauer: http://epaa.asu.edu/epaa/v11n38/
- silvio
Q [IRC Antananarivo – Mano]: Learning English by Internet is a good idea but does everybody know how to use Internet? In addition to that English we need to learn [written and spoken] English. Thanks.
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Mano, no, not everybody knows how to use the Internet. You might want to read the following nice article by Dr. Christine Meloni:
http://www.eslmag.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=10
- silvio
Q [IRC Antananarivo – Noro]: This my questions: How many minutes is the first lesson and how many sentences? When I begin the lesson after the introduction what should I teach grammar or vocabulary?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Noro, what you teach and how much will be based on the guidelines established by your English program. It will also depend on what teaching philosophy your program subscribe to.
- silvio
Q [Cesar Valmaña]: How can I introduce the written English to 4th, 5th, 6th graders in Qban public schools? I have already started to teach such graders listening skills, mainly songs, sayings, tongue twisters, etc. from USIA teaching materials.
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Cesar, great question! It sounds like you're talking about literacy development. Here's a wonderful website recommended by Prof. Joan Shin. http://www.etprofessional.com/articles/createclas.pdf
- silvio
Q [Frank2]: In ESP which do you think it would be the best exercises to work in communicative approach to elaborate a workbook?
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello again Frank, What do you mean by "a workbook"? Do you mean a handbook or a collection of materials?
- silvio
Q [Ibrahim Saleh]: Dear D. Avendano, I sent this question before, but I did not see it on the View Discussion screen. Anyway, thanks a lot for being with us today. I just want to ask about how to know whether a Website is peer reviewed or not. In other words, what are the standards I should consider to know whether a Website is trustable or not? This is of great help for me both as a researcher and EFL instructor.
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello Ibrahim, I did answer your question. Please check carefully.
- silvio
Q [IRCManagua]: Hi, we are from Unan-leon. we are just wondering about what suggestions of pre, while and post activities you can tell us about to teach young learners who are just entering the university, so that we can motivate them.
A [Silvio Avendano]: Hello UNAN-Leon! Nice to "see" you here. [Long live Leon!] I think you're asking me about activities for young college students, right? What level of English proficiency do they have?
- silvio
Moderator: The following sites were inadvertently left off the transcript:
http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/go/readquest/strat/tps.html
http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/go/readquest/strat/clock_buddies.html
http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/go/readquest/strat/3mp.html
http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/go/readquest/strat/qta.html
http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/go/readquest/strat/raft.html
http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/go/readquest/strat/summarize.html
http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/go/readquest/strat/thesis.html
We wish to thank Dr. Silvio Avendano for joining us and for spending so much time answering the many questions that have come in. The webchat is now closed. Please visit our USINFO Webchat Station homepage for more information on upcoming events and a transcript of today’s discussion (posted within one business day).
(Guests are chosen for their expertise. The views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Department of State.)
(end transcript)
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