GillianLordUniversityofFloridaglord@ufl.edu

UniversityofArizonaLiLaC

17April2020

TheWorldIsNotFlat…SoWhyAreOurTextbooks?

AmyRossomondoUniversityofKansasarossomo@ku.edu

THESTATEOFTHESITUATION

Theroleofthetraditionallanguagetext

•  Instructorsrelyontextbookstodeterminecurricula–  (Byrnes,1998;Lord,2014;Richards,n.d.;Wiggins&McTighe(1998,2008)

•  Languagetextbooksgenerallyfollowa“coveragemodel”–  (Chaffee,1992)

•  Publishinghousesandinstructorstacitlyendorseagrammar-coverageapproach– oftenendsupexcludingmeaningfulcontexts

•  (Allen&Paesani,2010)

Currentapproachestolanguageteachingasdeterminedbyleadingtextbooks

•  Focusedonskillsdevelopment•  Emphasisonoral/auralmodalities•  Reading/writingtreatedasseparateskills,independentofaudience

•  Contentisself-referential;centerson"practical"languageuse•  Culturetreatedasstatic5thskill,andasseparate(incidental?)

Assuch,ourstudents...

•  arenotengagedbythesematerials•  donotenjoylanguageclasses•  believehomeworkisbusywork•  endupworkingtowardthetestonly•  feelunpreparedtouseSpanishmeaningfully•  cannotkeepupwiththerisingcostoftextbooks

THENEEDFORANEWAPPROACH

Increasingcriticismsofstatusquo

Allen&Paesani,2010;Blythe&Davis,2007;Brager&Rice,2000;Lord&Isabelli,2014;Rossomondo,2012

•  “ideasandconceptsshouldanchorstudents’intellectualandlinguistictrajectoriesinthecollege-levelforeignlanguagecurriculumatalllevelsofinstruction,”despitetheinherentchallengeindeveloping“students’thinkingabilitiesattheirintellectuallevelswhiledevelopingtheirlinguisticskillsinthetargetlanguage,whichareatamuchlowerlevel.”Meyers(2009,p.86)

Weneedanewapproach

tolanguagematerials

that…

u  isinformedbySLAresearchandprofessionalguidance

u  takesadvantageofwhatdigitalcandothatprintcannot

u  providesameaningfulfoundationalexperienceforallstudents

u  empowersteacherstotestthewaytheyteach

u  preparesstudentstousethelanguageu  addressesissuesofaffordabilityand

access

Visiblelearning

Focusonreceptiveandproductivestrategies

Contextualized,purposefulpractice

Sociallearning

Text-driven(literacy)approach

Focusedonallfourskills,notjustoralcommunication

(Cross)-Culturallyinformed

24-unitprogramwithallin-classandout-of-classmaterials

All-digital,immersive,mobilelanguagelearningexperience

Basedonprinciplesofbackwarddesignforaflippedclassmodel

LingroHub:asimplebutnotsimplisticplatform

Newapproachtostudentengagement

Communicativeworkinclass

Workoutsideofclass

ContraseñaPedagogyWhatisContraseña?

KEYFEATURES

1.  Digitalinterface

2.  “Transformedapproach”

3.  Focusonoutcomes,visiblelearning

4.  Makemaximaluseoftime

1)Digitalinterface

•  Native-digital(conceivedasonlineplatformfromgroundup)

•  Multimediaintegraltodesign•  Mobileadaptive

•  Suitableforallclassdeliverymodes– Face-to-face|Hybrid|Online

2)TransformedApproach(MLA2007)•  Abilityto“operatebetweenlanguagesandcultures”•  Contentistext-drivenandlooksoutward;emphasisonidentifyingmultipleperspectives

•  Cultureisfluid,context-bound,mediatedthroughlanguageuse;integratedandintentionalapproach

•  Wrapthetextualwithinthecommunicativeandviceversa•  Focusontextual(writtenandoral)resourcesasthebasisforlanguage

•  Emphasisonskillsandstrategies

èLiteracybasedapproach

•  Eachunitistext-driven– Text=written,audio,video(alternatewritten/oral)– Varietyofgenres– Textsincreaseincomplexity,authenticity

•  Unittextmodelslanguageandcultureinuse

•  Unittextservesasmodelforend-of-unitproject

UNITSTRUCTURE

Example:Graphicnovel

Example:Newspaperarticlewithvideo

Example:Microcuento

EleclipseAugustoMonterroso

Cuando fray Bartolomé Arrazola se sintió perdido aceptó que ya nada podría salvarlo. La selvapoderosadeGuatemala lohabíaapresado, implacableydefinitiva.Antesu ignorancia topográficasesentó con tranquilidad a esperar lamuerte. Quisomorir allí, sin ninguna esperanza, aislado, con elpensamientofijoen laEspañadistante,particularmenteenelconventode losAbrojos,dondeCarlosQuintocondescendieraunavezabajardesueminenciaparadecirlequeconfiabaenelceloreligiosodesulaborredentora.

Aldespertarseencontró rodeadoporungrupode indígenasderostro impasiblequesedisponíanasacrificarloanteunaltar,unaltarqueaBartolomélepareciócomoellechoenquedescansaría,alfin,desustemores,desudestino,desímismo.

Tresañosenelpaíslehabíanconferidounmedianodominiodelaslenguasnativas.Intentóalgo.Dijoalgunaspalabrasquefueroncomprendidas.

Entonces floreció enél una ideaque tuvopor dignade su talento y de su culturauniversal y de suarduo conocimiento deAristóteles. Recordó que para ese día se esperaba un eclipse total de sol. Ydispuso,enlomásíntimo,valersedeaquelconocimientoparaengañarasusopresoresysalvarlavida.

-Simematáis-lesdijo-puedohacerqueelsolseoscurezcaensualtura.

Los indígenas lo miraron fijamente y Bartolomé sorprendió la incredulidad en sus ojos. Vio que seprodujounpequeñoconsejo,yesperóconfiado,nosinciertodesdén.

Dos horas después el corazón de fray Bartolomé Arrazola chorreaba su sangre vehemente sobre lapiedradelossacrificios(brillantebajolaopacaluzdeunsoleclipsado),mientrasunodelosindígenasrecitabasinningunainflexióndevoz,sinprisa,unaporuna,lasinfinitasfechasenqueseproduciríaneclipsessolaresylunares,quelosastrónomosdelacomunidadmayahabíanprevistoyanotadoensuscódicessinlavaliosaayudadeAristóteles.

Example:Shortfilm

Yotbtq

Preparestudentsthroughreceptiveandproductivestrategies•  Receptivestrategiestopreparelearnersto

understandthemainunittext

•  Productivestrategiestopreparestudentstocarryoutunit-finalproject.

HOWdoesContraseñaincorporateauthenticcontent?

UNIT18:Interpretingidentitythroughthespokenword:Readaloudandanalyzeapoemthatexpressesanaspectofthepoet's

culturalidentity.

Examplereceptivestrategy

Unit16:Exploringtheroleoftechnologyinpersonalrelationships:Createadialoguethatcanleadtomisinterpretation.

Anothersampleperceptionstrategy

Unit2:Gettingtoknowothers:InterviewaSpanishspeaker.

Sampleproductionstrategy

Unit2:Gettingtoknowothers:InterviewaSpanishspeaker.

3)Focusonoutcomes

•  Clearlyarticulatedunit-levelgoals•  Adaptiveinterfacetoemphasizemastery-basedlearningandassessment

•  Projectbasedassessmentfocusesonwhatstudentslearn,notwhattheyhaven’t

•  TenetsofBACKWARDDESIGNè

èVisiblelearning•  Carefullysequencedmodulestofacilitatetheacquisitionofabroadrangeoflanguage,communicativeandcontentlearningoutcomes

•  Summativeportfolioactivityforeachunit:applicationofunit’slinguistic,communicative,culturalandcontent-relatedlearningtotherealizationofameaningfultask•  Portfoliosofferformativeandsummativeassessmentopportunitiesthatarecriticalforclosingtheassessmentloop

•  Allowsustotestthewayweteach

4)Makemaximaluseoftime

•  Outofclass:timeisspentinpreparation•  Inclass:timeisspentincommunication•  Noartificialdivisionbetweenpresenting,practicing,usingandassessinglanguage

Practiceismeaningful,notbusy-work!

OUTOFCLASS1:Preparar

OUTOFCLASS2:Aplicar

OUTOFCLASS3:Comprobar

INCLASS:Conversar

NEWAPPROACHINACTION(Pilotstudyoutcomes,Spring2019)

ParticipantsA.UniversityofFloridaBeginningSpanish1•  Controlgroup

–  N=46–  Regulartextbook,onlineplatform–  Standardsyllabus

•  Experimentalgroup–  N=23–  Contraseñalearningmaterials–  Modifiedsyllabus

B.UniversityofKansas•  BeginningSpanish1(SPAN104)

–  N=26–  Contraseñalearningmaterials–  Fullyflippedimplementation

•  BeginningSpanish2(SPAN111)–  N=56firsttimeenrollees,N=24students

whocompleted1stsemesterwithContraseña

–  Contraseñalearningmaterials–  Modifiedsyllabus

Datasources

•  Can-DoStatements–  20“Can-Do”StatementsbasedonACTFL’sproficiencyguidelines–  ParticipantsratedonaLikertscaleof1-7

•  AttitudeSurvey–  18statementsaboutattitudestowardsclass,Spanish,ability/interestinlearningSpanish

–  ParticipantsratedonaLikertscaleof1-7•  General“Proficiency”Assessment

–  100multiple-choiceitems–  Coveringgrammarandvocabularytopicsfromfirst4semesters

•  BackEndAnalysis–  Howmanyminutesstudentsspendinout-of-classwork

•  ClassroomObservations–  Talktime–  UseofSpanish/English

Sameinstrumentsforpre-test(week1)andpost-test(week16)

Can-DoStatements:Totalscore(summingallresponses)

77.76

115.90

83.38

112.26

20.00

40.00

60.00

80.00

100.00

120.00

140.00

EXPPREAVG EXPPOSTAVG CONPREAVG CONPOSTAVG

Can-Do(totalscore)

OrdinalmixedeffectsmodelfoundsignificantinteractionofGroup*Time,suggestinglargerchangesinratinglikelihood(towardhigherratings)forExperimentalthanControl(p<.001)

Can-DoStatements:Byitem

Experimentalgrouppost-semesterhigherthancontrol:#9:Icanexpressmyownpreferencesorfeelingsandreacttothoseofothers.#15:Icanexpressmypreferencesoneverydaytopicsofinterest.#16:IcancompareculturalproductsandpracticesfrommycultureandthoseofSpanishspeakingcultures.#17:IcanconversewithSpanish-speakersinfamiliarsituationsatschool,work,orplay.#18:IcanshowinterestinbasicculturalsimilaritiesanddifferenceswhenconversingwithSpanishspeakers.#19:Icanrecognizethatsignificantdifferencesinbehaviorsexistamongcultures.#20:Icanuseculturallyappropriatebehaviorsandavoidmajorsocialblunders.

AttitudeSurvey:Totalscore(summingallresponses)

87.83 91.9086.55 88.11

18.00

38.00

58.00

78.00

98.00

118.00

EXPPREAVG EXPPOSTAVG CONPREAVG CONPOSTAVG

Attitudes(totalscore)

OrdinalmixedeffectsmodelfoundsignificantinteractionofGroup*Time,suggestinglargerchangesinratinglikelihood(towardhigherratings)forExperimentalthanControl(p<.001)

AttitudeSurvey:Byitem

Experimentalgrouppost-semesterhigherthancontrol:#4:IlookforwardtotakingSPN1131inthefuture.#8:IliketheatmosphereofmySpanishclasses.#15:IalwayslookforwardtoSpanishclasses.#16:StudyingSpanishcanbeimportantformebecauseIthinkI'llneeditforfurtherstudieswithinmymajor/fieldofinterest.#18:IreallyenjoylearningSpanish.Experimentalgrouppost-semesterlowerthancontrol:#11:getnervousandconfusedwhenIamspeakinginmySpanishclass.

Results:General“Proficiency”Test

9.89%

4.97%

0.00% 2.00% 4.00% 6.00% 8.00% 10.00% 12.00%

Experimental

Control

Pre-toPost-IMPROVEMENT

PRE POST CHANGE

Experimental 48.00% 57.89% +9.89%Control 59.41% 64.38% +4.97%

Results:TimeSpentonClassPreparation

Aplicar=InputàOutputInstructionalSequenceComprobar=Discourse-levelsummative“quiz”oversamematerial

Results:Classroominteractions[analysisunderway]

•  Preliminaryanalysis:–  Increasedstudenttalktime– Decreasedteachertalktime–  IncreaseduseofSpanish

CONCLUSION

Thesedigitally-

basedmaterials…

u wereinformedbySLAresearchandprofessionalguidance

•  MLA2007report•  SLAresearch•  EducationalTechnologyresearch•  ExperienceaseducatorsandLPDs

Thesedigitally-

basedmaterials…

u wereinformedbySLAresearchandprofessionalguidance

u  takeadvantageofwhatdigitalcandothatprintcannot

•  Multimodalinstruction,practice,projects•  Authentictextsindifferentgenres•  Culturalcollaborators•  Developmentof21stcenturyskills

Thesedigitally-

basedmaterials…

u wereinformedbySLAresearchandprofessionalguidance

u  takeadvantageofwhatdigitalcandothatprintcannot

u  provideameaningfulandengagingfoundationalexperience

•  Focusoncontent,contextualizationandlanguageuse

•  Classtimeforrealcommunication•  Evidenceofstudentengagement

Thesedigitally-

basedmaterials…

u wereinformedbySLAresearchandprofessionalguidance

u  takeadvantageofwhatdigitalcandothatprintcannot

u  provideameaningfulandengagingfoundationalexperience

u  empowerteacherstotestthewaytheyteach

•  Portfolioofproject-basedassessments•  Studentsshowcasewhattheyknow•  Canbeexportedforevidenceoflearning

Thesedigitally-

basedmaterials…

u wereinformedbySLAresearchandprofessionalguidance

u  takeadvantageofwhatdigitalcandothatprintcannot

u  provideameaningfulandengagingfoundationalexperience

u  empowerteacherstotestthewaytheyteach

u  preparestudentstousethelanguage

•  Unitstructuredtoprepareforproject•  Providereallanguagepractice

Thesedigitally-

basedmaterials…

u wereinformedbySLAresearchandprofessionalguidance

u  takeadvantageofwhatdigitalcandothatprintcannot

u  provideameaningfulandengagingfoundationalexperience

u  empowerteacherstotestthewaytheyteach

u  preparestudentstousethelanguageu  addressissuesofaffordabilityand

access •  Digitaldeliverylowerscost•  Adaptiveplatform•  Easy,frequentupdatesandfixes

Proyecto2:¿Quiénerestú?UsingConversacionesenlauniversidadasamodel,youwillwritequestionsandtheninterviewaSpanishspeaker.-Phil,Retiree,ContinuingEducationOnline

glord@ufl.edu