Blog Post #7: Response to this week's readings: feedback & writing

This week's readings discussed the use of computer technology in correcting errors in students writings.

http://blackboard.uic.edu/@@EA92E130A1D063CB88304D6A69DC05DD/courses/1/ling487s10/content/_1660675_1/GaskillCobb.pdf

This article by Gaskell and Cobb discusses inserting into student writings links to online concordances in order to facilitate student error correction. Theories and methods behind correcting student writing errors are much debated concerning their effectiveness. There are a couple of points I'd like to make about using online concordances. First, concordances, by nature, focus primarily on form. Additionally, they focus on form at a word or sentence level. Correcting form definitely has its place, and I think online concordances might be an effective way to focus on form. A teacher should be aware, however, that in a communicative, learner-centered classroom setting, it might be useful to first focus on meaning using other methods of correction, and then use concordances on subsequent drafts to focus on form. That being said, on second thought, concordances might actually to some extent help focus on meaning, because they put words, phrases, collocations, etc. into context.
Second, it would be important to limit insertions to a small number per draft, so as not to overwhelm students. Because students must use the links to essentially figure out how to fix errors for themselves, error correction becomes more time consuming for the student. Also, after looking at an example in the reading of what an insertion looks like, adding lots of them into a paper really marks up a draft, and could therefore discourage a student. The article highlights this point, and in the experiment conducted, limits insertions to five per draft.
This being said, I think using online concordances could be a great way to promote student self-noticing of their errors, and help them become independent learners who have a tool to help them correct their own errors. Scaffolding is involved, as in early assignments, the teacher provides the link to the concordance, while in later assignments, students must look up errors in the concordance themselves. With enough training, students will ideally be able to use an online concordance independently and for uses outside of the writing classroom. While I have no experience with this technique, my gut-feeling is that it could be a engaging and effective tool for error correction.


http://blackboard.uic.edu/@@EA92E130A1D063CB88304D6A69DC05DD/courses/1/ling487s10/content/_1660677_1/SavignonWritingFeedback2007.pdf

This article discusses the effectiveness of form and meaning based feedback for students in a writing context. The study in the article found that students respond positively to teacher feedback that focuses on content. The study also found that students responded well to feedback from the teacher when it came in the form of a question. This type of feedback by the teacher led to a more collaborative relationship between teacher and student. While this technique could be employed using either computer technology or using paper and pen, I feel using word processing software and email could be quite effective in promoting content-focused feedback and correction, as well as student-teacher collaboration. First, using the computer allows teachers to highlight and insert comments easily in different ways than marking up a paper with red ink. This might lower student discouragement and frustration. Second, if students are instructed to fix errors or clarify meaning using the computer, there there could some accountability programmed into the assignment-for example, if the teacher instructs the students to highlight or bold-face, italicize, etc., their corrections for subsequent drafts. Finally, if the teacher is expecting students to use word processors and email to compose and submit their drafts, it will create a spirit of collaboration and unity if the teacher also uses the technology to provide feedback.

Overall, I think using computer technology to provide feedback to student writing would be a positive practice. I think it would help the teacher build a relationship of trust with different types of learners, and more fully engage a learner who might not feel comfortable approaching the teacher face-to-face, or who is not comfortable "speaking-up" during classtime. Online feedback has the potential to help students become more aware of their own errors, and provide them with the means of correcting their own errors.

Blog #6: Podcast for ESL Students

Restaurant Lingo For Beginners

This podcast is designed for mid-level beginning ESL students. It focuses on vocabulary and questions commonly used in restaurants.

How to listen:


Before listening, review the following vocab list:

Words
Appetizer- a small sized meal you eat before your main meal.
Side- small amount of food you eat with the main meal
Dessert- a sweet food you eat after your main meal
Specials- meals on sale
Bill- amount of money you owe for your meal
Server- man or woman who asks what you want and brings your food

Questions:
What do you have to drink?
Do you have any specials today?



Next listen to the podcast:

http://blschmid.podbean.com/


Now it's your turn! After listening, choose a restaurant and try out your new vocabulary. Blog about your experience.

Blog #5: Voicethread

Chapter 6 in our Tips for Teaching with CALL textbook argues that CALL can be used to help language learners develop their pronunciation abilities, which is crucial to developing speaking abilities. CALL activities should provide opportunities for learners to listen to and practice different dialects, focus on particular sounds and stress patterns, practice these sounds, and get feedback from the program.

After reviewing the article at edutopia.org and exploring how Voicethreads work, it seems that voicethreads do not specifically provide opportunity for students to learn about and practice specific pronunciation issues. Also, voicethreads themselves do not provide feedback for student utterances. This is not to say, however, that voicethreads are not effective ways for students to practice their speaking skills.
Chapter 6 also references Eskenazi (1999), who states that certain pedagogical principles encourage the development of pronunciation and thus speaking skills. Included is the fact that learners need to produce lots of sentences on their own, receive relevant feedback, and feel comfortable while practicing in the classroom. Voicethread seems effective in fulfilling these priniciples. Voicethread gives students ample opportunity to produce sentences/utterances about a specific, relevant, authentic topic. The article at edutpoia.org explains that this tool makes all different types of learners feel comfortable practicing the language, as it is more private than speaking in a large classroom. It gives all students opportunity to provide input at their own pace. I would point out here, though, that students can provide responses by voice or by written text, so as teacher, it would be important to make sure students were responding by voice when the focus of the classroom is on speaking. Finally, while Voicethread does not evaluate the accuracy of student input, it does provide opportunity for student self-evaluation, as well as collaberative evaulation, as both teacher and students listen to the conversations and provide feedback. In fact, perhaps common pronunciation issues could be pointed out and addressed by the teacher in subsequent lessons/activities. As research shows that computer feedback is not always effective and often "shakey," this might be a better means of feedback anyway.
Therefore, while Voicethread does not specifically focus on pronunciation, it provides a place for students to practice authentic utterances at a level and place comfortable to them. An engaging and collaberative atmosphere is created for teacher and peer feedback. I would definitely try using Voicethread to help my students improve their speaking skills. Would you agree that Voicethread could be useful for improving speaking skills?

References:

Chapelle, C. (2008). Tips for Teaching with CALL

http://voicethread4education.wikispaces.com/EFL+&+ESL

http://www.edutopia.org/voicethread-interactive-multimedia-albums

Blog #4: Listening Resources

I found a site for improving listening skills in my L2, Spanish:

http://lomastv.com/

This website features video clips of different facets of culture through the Spanish-speaking world, from music, to food, to traveling, etc. The videos are on average not over five minutes in length. The videos are categorized by levels of the learner- beginning, intermediate, or advanced. They are also categorized by accent- so you might listen to a native speaker from Columbia, Panama, Mexico, Spain, etc. I like that this site gives exposure to different Spanish accents.
The videos can be slowed down by the learner- they can be watched at the natural speed the native speaker uses when speaking, or can be slowed down to meet the pace of the learner. The learner can speed up or slow down the video as needed while the video is playing.
Subtitles are provided in both Spanish and English, and both can be hidden by the learner- a nice scaffolding feature. Additionally, both L1 to L2 and L2 to L1 dictionaries are provided, so that learners can look up a vocab word while they are listening.
Finally, students can access a game after watching a video, to check listening comprehension.
These features lend to an interactive website that meets the varying needs of listeners, in a relevant and "playfull" manner. I am bookmarking this site for my own personal use.

I also looked at the following website for ESL learners:

http://www.podcastsinenglish.com/index.shtml

This is a British website, so it might not be ideal in an American ESL setting, but on the otherhand, could expose students to different English accents. Similar to the above website, this website categorizes podcasts and videos by learner levels- beginner, intermediate, and advanced. Also, videos with sound versus listening only provides different levels of difficulty for different learners. The podcasts are relevant in that they describe the musings or adventures of the bloggers as they travel and go about daily life. Their shorter length keep disinterest and frustration levels low. Vocabulary lists and worksheets are available to assist with listening comprehension, although this site does require registration in order to view and listen to most things.