Web-based lessons and e-portfolios

Web-based lessons and e-portfolios

Class 11

In this class we talked about the role of web-based lessons and e portfolios as wel as their relevance in the FLT. We were introduced to the main features of web-based lessons and e-portfolio as educational tools in the ICTs environment. Let`s start with a definition of Web-based lesson found in:  http://tech.worlded.org/docs/surfing/section5.htm: “A Web-based lesson is simply a lesson that in some way incorporates a Web site or many Web sites. A Web-based lesson can be conducted entirely online or it can be a traditional classroom lesson with an online component”.

Another definition to be considered in this summary was found in http://academic.regis.edu/LAAP/eportfolio/basics_what.htm, there e-portfolio is defined as: “a collection of work developed across varied contexts over time. The portfolio can advance learning by providing students and/or faculty with a way to organize, archive and display pieces of work”.

In the same web page, they mention others features of e-portfolios, they say that this technological tool, “allows faculty and other professionals to evaluate student portfolios using technology, which may include the Internet, CD-ROM, video, animation or audio. Electronic portfolios are becoming a popular alternative to traditional paper-based portfolios because they offer practitioners and peers the opportunity to review, communicate and assess portfolios in an asynchronous manner.

During the first class sessions, we were asked to build an e-portfolio, so for this class we had some previous knowledge about e-portfolios. So we concentrated our attention on Web-Based lessons.

Here I will show you the Web-based lesson plan I designed to my virtual class on WiZiQ.

Héctor’s Web-Based Lesson Plan

·         Date: 18-07-2011

·         Teacher: Héctor Escalona

·         Topic: ICTs on TEFL (My students’ work on ICTs)

·         Objectives; To share with EFL teachers and other people (since it was a public class) some oral presentations developed by students of English III at USB, Sede-Litoral based on the used on the videos as a tool in the ICTs environment.

·         Web sites used: wiziq.com, youtube,com

·         URL: http://www.wiziq.com/online-class/583610-my-student-s-work-on-icts

·         Rationale for selecting this page: Because WiZiQ has been used from the beginning of this course to conduct our on-line classes.

·          Web sites used: youtube,com

·         URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5KHIRHEGgjw

·         The sample of videos take to be exposed in this class came from this web page.

·         Other materials: A Power Point Presentation (PPP)

·         Teacher Preparation: I organized the content to be taught in 30 minutes and also scheduled a public class on WiZiQ more that 24 hour before the class took place.

·         Steps for learners: They should have a WiZiQ account to attend this class, and also, they also should have the required equipment to attend the class: (Computer with Internet access, Broad band connection, Software: Adobe Flash Player (Very important. Without this program the virtual room won't open), Headsets and Webcam (optional).

·         Description of the pre-computer/classroom activities (preparation): Since it was my first formal class in WiZiQ, and I did not know how to conduct it, I asked a classmate to help me, so, I Scheduled a private class and invited him to participate, in that way I learned how to handle the platform as a teacher and not as a student, as I usually do. After that private class, I felt confidence to conduct a public class.

·         Description of the computer/online activities: During this class, I, as a teacher, greeted the students and verify the platform tools in order to be sure they could listen to me and participate in the class. We have some audio difficulties during the class, but the objective was accomplished.

·         Description of the follow-up activities: Students had the opportunity to participate in class by adding comments and asking/answering questions. It was a very nice class. Finally, to close the class, they expressed how they felt about the class and the topic, and the link to watch student’s video was asked one more time to watch it after class.

References

http://tech.worlded.org/docs/surfing/section5.htm

http://academic.regis.edu/LAAP/eportfolio/basics_what.htm

3D Virtual Worlds - Second Life

3D Virtual Worlds - Second Life

Class: 10

In this class we discussed about the use of 3D Virtual Worlds - Second Life in TEFL.  To talk about this topic, let’s introduce a definition provided by Wikipedia: “Second Life is an online virtual world developed by Linden Lab which was launched on June 23, 2003. A number of free client programs called Viewers enable Second Life users, called Residents, to interact with each other through avatars. Residents can explore the world (known as the grid), meet other residents, socialize, participate in individual and group activities, and create and trade virtual property and services with one another. Second Life is intended for people aged 13 and over,^[3] and as of 2011 has more than 20 million registered user accounts

Before our session class, we were asked to download software to access virtual learning environment in order to have tour to experience this amazing virtual tool. To do that, it was mandatory to have a very good Internet connection and an update computer since this technological tool has a variety of demanding requirements to access. Some of my classmates could face this experience, and they say it was great. In my case, I could not do it. I tried many times, but it was unsuccessful.

What I learned from this experience was that if you want to be part of this technological world, you need to be updated to be productive.

Here you have some interesting links where you can find more information about this topic. I hope you enjoy it.

REFERENCES

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Life

http://secondlife.com/land/lindenhomes/comingsoon.php?lang=es-ES

http://secondlife.com/

Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs):

Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs):

Class: 9

In this class we discussed about Virtual Learning Environment and its advantages as technological tool in the teaching area. The first aspect discussed in this class was a definition of VLEs. Here it is a definition of this topic taken from Wikipedia. “A virtual learning environment (VLE) is a system designed to support teaching and learning in an educational setting, as distinct from a Managed Learning Environment (MLE), where the focus is on management.”

We compared some VLEs and discussed about some previous experiences we had in this area, since our virtual classes are conducted in VLEs. Also we were asked to conduct a 30-minutes EFL virtual class in WiZiQ.

WiZiQ, according to some information found in Wikipedia, “WiZiQ is an online learning platform. The site is designed to help students and teachers find each other, and to provide an online virtual classroom learning environment”.

I taught a public 30-minutes EFL virtual class in WiZiQ. It was a very good experience for me. My teacher and some of my classmates attended this class, and also, there were two international members in the class. It was the first time I managed a WiZiQ class, so I had some technical difficulties, but it did not affect my experience in this amazing learning environment.

REFERENCES

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WiZiQ

Social Networks, Communities of Practice, and Personal Learning Networks

Social Networks, Communities of Practice, and Personal Learning Networks

Class 8

In this class we talked about the role of social networks and communities of practice, and personal learning networks. We talked about the different uses that these technological tools have in the process of teaching and learning a foreign language. We also visited some sites related to these tools and created a personal learning network.

We create an account in some social networks like, twitter, facebook, (where we create some groups related to the TEFL environment). As homework we were asked to keep working on all the content we discussed in class and also to interact with other people by using all the technological tools us studies that day.

Videos and other useful Web 2.0 tools

Videos and other useful Web 2.0 tools

Class 7

In this class we talked about the uses of videos and other technological tools we can incorporate in our teaching. The main topic in this class was Windows Movie Maker. We learned how to make a video by using this software.  To do that, the teacher guided us to make a short video with three pictures, special effects, credits and music. When we finished the video, we learned how to save it as a project and then as a movie.

As homework, we had to make our own video and upload it to You Tube. To do that, we had to download a video converter, since Windows Movie Maker format does not fix You Tube features. So, in my case, I used a software called A Tube Catcher 2.0.

To do my video, I interviewed some of my students and I included some of these interviews, special effect, pictures, music, credits to the video as it was requested by the teacher. I really liked this experience, so I decided to incorporate it to my teaching immediately. I asked my students to create their own videos; here you have a link to watch two of them. I hope you like them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7_RE_ssUmo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5KHIRHEGgjw

Podcasts, voice tools and audio recorders

Class 6

In this class we discussed about some tools to record in mp3 format. Before the class, we were asked to download some software like Audacity, Skype mp3 and Podcasts. During the class, we were taught about the uses of Audacity, Skype mp3 and Podcasts and also we were asked to do some activities making use of the previously mentioned tools:

Activity Nº Create an MP3 file with Audacity.

Activity Nº 2Export the mp3 file.

Activity Nº Host the podcast on Podbean.

Activity Nº Embed your podcast into your course blog.

Here you have the link to access my activities performed after this class and also you have a litter definition about the software mentioned:

Follow my activities in : http://ipecista.podbean.com/

Audacity is a free, easy-to-use and multilingual audio editor and recorder for Windows, Mac OS X, GNU/Linux and other operating systems. You can use Audacity to:

• Record live audio.
• Convert tapes and records into digital recordings or CDs.
• Edit Ogg Vorbis, MP3, WAV or AIFF sound files.
• Cut, copy, splice or mix sounds together.
• Change the speed or pitch of a recording.
• And more! See the complete

MP3 Skype Recorder is a free program which automatically records all your Skype conversations (including conferences). It stores your conversations locally in files using compact and very popular MP3 format. The tool can record P2P Skype calls and SkypeOut calls as well as calls to Skype Online number. The program sits in the system tray and monitors skype calls.It starts recording automatically when you begin conversation. It can record several calls simultaneously (one active with others on hold). When doing so the recorder stores every call in separate file for later use. Simple and intuitive interface requires almost no tuning. All you have to do is install the program and provide it with access to the Skype client.

A podcast (or non-streamed webcast) is a series of digital media files (either audio or video) that are released episodically and often it's downloaded through web syndication. The word replaced webcast in common use with the success of the iPod and its role in the rising popularity and innovation of web feeds.

REFERENCES

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/about/

http://voipcallrecording.com/MP3_Skype_Recorder

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podcast

http://ipecista.podbean.com/

Wikis

Wikis

            Class 5

In this class we discussed about wikis and here we have a definition provided by Parker, K and Chao, J (2007) in his work, Wiki as a teaching tool, they define wikis as a “way of communication and collaboration tool that can be used to engage students in learning with other within a collaborative environment. In this research, they state some theoretical and practical elements that make wikis an alternative to be used in the teaching and learning process. They based the use of wikis in the paradigm of constructivism, since by using wikis; students construct their knowledge by interacting with the elements involved in the learning process.

                Additionally, these authors based their work on the Cooperative and collaborative approach. They declared that the main tenet of this approach is make the learners work together and support themselves during the process, but at the same time, creating and self dependence behavior. In other words, students are able to support their classmates and ask for help when it is needed, and also, they recognize their own strength to face their responsibility in the learning process.

                Parker, and Chao affirm that wiki has many uses in the educational context, they say wikis has been mainly applied to develop and reinforce the reading and writing skills, and to develop collaborative work in class and also to develop research projects. Another use of wikis, according to the same authors, is its application as a tool in the distance education or better known as online education.

                According to some information found in Educause Learning Interactive, wikis emerged at the middle of the 90s, at first they were used by engineers and scientists to develop dynamic knowledge bases. In the same page, it reads that wikis are described as a web page which can be modified by different people who access them. Also, it reeds that wiki is a tool to promote the cooperative work. Here we have a technical definition of wikis provide by Educase Learning Interactive:

Wiki is a combination of a CGI script and a collection of plain text files that allows users to create Web pages “on the fly.” All it takes is a connection to the Internet and a Web browser. When you click a wiki page’s “Edit” link, the script sends the raw text file to your browser in an editable form, allowing you to modify the content of the page. Pressing the “Save” button sends the modified text back to the wiki server, which replaces the existing text file with your changed version for all to see. When you request a wiki page, the script gathers the corresponding text file, changes its marked-up text into HTML, turns user-selected words into hyperlinks, inserts this information into a page template, and sends the result to your browser.

REFERENCES

Parker, K. and Chao, J. (2007), Wiki as a Teaching Tool. Interdisciplinary Journal of Knowledge and Learning Objects Volume 3. Idaho State University. Pocatello, Idaho, USA.

Educause Learning Interactive (2005) 7 things you should know about Wikis

Blogs

Blogs

Class N° 4

               

In this class we discussed about Blogs and its different uses and features. A definition of blog found in Wikipedia establishes that “Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse-chronological order. Blog can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog”.

In this class, we learned that blog is an example of a Web 2.0 since users can interact there, share information and send messages among them.

Most blogs are interactive, allowing visitors to leave comments and even message each other via widgets on the blogs and it is this interactivity that distinguishes them from other static websites. Blog can be used for different purposes; here you will find some links to learn more about Blogs and also a guide to create your own blog.

http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blog

https://www.google.com/accounts/ServiceLogin?service=blogger&passive=1209600&continue=http://www.blogger.com/home&followup=http://www.blogger.com/home&ltmpl=start#s01

http://www.google.com/support/blogger/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=41345

Web 1.0, Web 2.0, Web 3.0; definitions and uses today. e-Portfolios

Web 1.0, Web 2.0, Web 3.0; definitions and uses today. e-Portfolios

               

In this class we discussed about Web 1.0, Web 2.0 and  Web 3.0. In this respect, we talked about their origins and differences, and also we talked about how these technological tools have changed our world. To summarize this class, it is advisable to provide a definition these three technological tools.

According to some information found in Wikipedia, Web 1.0 is the most basic form of internet. It emerged in 1993 for public access, but with some limitations. That is to say, with Web 1.0. Users were only able to reed information from web pages. There were not allowed to interact with the information in the pages, with the owner of the page or other users. One example of Web 1.0 could be the “Real Academia Española” web page. There you can find information, but you are not able to modify it.

According to Dean Clark`s In 2005, Internet faced a new change, at that time; Dale Dougherty came out with a revolutionary technological tool, it was Web 2.0. With this new innovate alternative, users were, by the first time, allowed to participate, freely, on the development of information. In other words, now, users not only could read, but also, they could add and share their ideas and information with others about a common or individual topic. One example of Web 2.0 could be Wikipedia, wikis, facebook and blogs where users are allowed to interact with information and other people.

About.com provides us with a comparison among Web 1.0 and Web 2.0: “Web 2.0 is an interactive and social web facilitating collaboration between people. This is distinct from the early web (Web 1.0) which was a static information dump where people read websites but rarely interacted with them.”

Dale Dougherty in his blog, gives us a definition of Web 3.0, the latest one. He says: “Basically, Web 3.0 is a location where web pages are read by machines just like humans read them. This is also a place where search engines abound. Looking at it on a layman’s perspective, it simply means a single database for the whole world (well, this is not quite simple when you begin to fathom the work it’s going to take to make this happen)”.

Dale Dougherty also provides us with an example of Web 3.0. He states: “The technology of Web 3.0 is evident in Google Gears which allows users to create web applications even when offline. The Adobe Flash player lets application developers have some access to the microphone and webcam. Pretty soon, it would be possible to drag then drop files from the desktop all the way to a web browser”.

For further information, I recommend to you to follows these links where I found the information previously discussed. I hope you enjoy.

http://formacionbiblioteca.udea.edu.co/moodle/mod/resource/view.php?id=15651

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_1.0

http://webtrends.about.com/od/web20/a/what-is-web-30.htm

http://deanclarke.wordpress.com/2008/03/23/web-30-and-the-features-that-wow-many-users/

Class N° 2

Basic concepts of ICT used in education. Current situation of ICT in TEFL

Information and Communication Technology
(ICTs)

In this class, we had a general discussion about ICT, its meaning, origin and different stages through history. We also talked about its relevance in teaching, and our perception of incorporating ICTs in our classrooms, and the way to do it.

                Some questions, related to ICT and education, e-learning, distance education, online classes, were asked to the audience. To answer them, we conformed four teams of three people to work on it. Then, we all, the teams and the teacher, discussed in class our responses. Finally, the teacher, after listening to us, added more information to complement our answers.

                After that, another topic was introduced by the teacher: next generation of internet: native and immigrant. In this respect, we identified ourselves as immigrant in this area and then, we talked about our current scenery and other three sceneries: a) World context, b) Latin America context, and c) Venezuela context.

                Later, we talked about our real knowledge in ICT, the way we use it to teach, and the ICT tools we incorporate in our teaching. Finally, we were asked if we use ICT with our students and the frequency we do it.

                As homework, we were asked to summarize this class and describe the local context in our work place, focus on the ICT current situation.

Porf. Héctor Escalona

Here you have three interesting links related to ICTs. I hope you like them:

 http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0013/001390/139028e.pdf

http://www.dest.gov.au/NR/rdonlyres/C251724A-1E09-4954-BFBE-FDA5836375E3/4508/technology.pdf

http://ec.europa.eu/education/policies/lang/doc/ict.pdf

Exploring the local context at Universidad Simón Bolívar-Sede Litoral

on the ICT current situation

I work as an English teacher at Universidad Simón Bolívar-Sede Litoral, this university is located in an isolated mountain in Camurí Grande, Estado Vargas, Venezuela. It is far away from the city, the closer town is a small one called Naiugatá, it is a 10 minutes from the university.

            One decade ago, this university had an amazing infrastructure, but in 1999 rained a lot on Vargas State, and a watercourse destroyed the university completely, in an event well known as “La Tragedia de Vargas”. Since then, the university has been rebuilt, but the process has been too long and it has not finished yet. So this university has many weaknesses, one of them is the Internet access.

            In theory, the English Department at the Universidad Simón Bolívar-Sede Litoral has 5 English laboratories; all of them with the required equipment and system to teach English as a foreign language, at least, it is hypothesized at the university. But this true does not match reality. These laboratories are just like common classrooms, but with more limitations. All of them have static big desks and computers, but teachers and students are not allowed to use or move them. There is not a specific reason for this situation; people in charge state different versions when they are asked.

            This condition makes difficult to incorporate internet into the English classes. There is a room with Internet access, it is known as “Sala OPSU”. In this room, all the students can check their e-mails and consult some web pages, but they are no able to listen to any audio or watch any video there. That is a rule in that room.

            So, it is difficult for the students to get Internet access out of the “Sala OPSU”, since many of them are from different areas of the country, so the live in a hall of residence in the small towns nearby the university, where internet access is not efficient, either. Therefore, to surf the net they have to go to the closer city, La Guaira, which is about one hour from the university.

Digital Literacy

Digital Literacy

Class N° 1

This was our first class. So we met the teacher and talk about the way the class was going to be. Even though, we had an overview of the content we will handle during this trimester, we made emphasis on a specific topic. This topic was: Digital Literacy.

In this term, we will have to handle different elements and tools related to digital literacy, so it is advisable to list some definitions of this topic from different sources.

According to Gilster, (1997) digital literacy is the “ability to understand and use information multiple formats from a wide range of sources when it is presented via computers” p1.

Dalziel , (2007), defines digital literacy as “the ability to use digital technology, communication tools or networks to locate, evaluate, use and create information”.

“Digital literacies' are the constantly changing practices through which people make traceable meanings using digital technologies” Gillen & Barton, (2009) p,1

REFERENCES

Gillen, J. & Barton, D. (2009). Digital Literacies. A discussion document for TLRP-TEL (Teaching and Learning Research Programme - Technology Enhanced Learning) workshop on digital literacies. Lancaster University 12-13 March 2009. Retrieved 29 December 2009, from http://www.tlrp.org/tel/files/2009/02/digital-literacies-gillen-barton-2009.pdf

Dalziel, K. (2007) Information, Media, and Digital Literacy. Taken from: http://nirak.net/2007/09/information-media-and-digital-literacy/ on April 28^th 2011.

Gilster P. (1997) Digital Literacy. New York. Wiley Computer Publishing. http://www.slideshare.net/verzosaf/information-literacy-and-digital-literacy-l-life-long-learning-initiatives/