ICT- thinking outside the classroom box

Mrfulleredgehill@yahoo.co.uk

www.chrisfuller.typepad.com – where all of today’s presentations will be available to

download

www.edgehillcollege.typepad.com

First, important things to know...

1) I AM NOT AN ICT EXPERT!!!

I am a Spanish teacher, who was taught how to use PowerPoint 4 years ago.

I do not know how the Internet works, I just push buttons, especially the back button when things go wrong.

First, important things to know...

2) The ideas that I pass on in this session are not...

a)Completely comprehensive

b)They will not destroy your life

3) No notes needed- will be on www.chrisfuller.typepad.com

“If school is to be a truly rewarding experience for today’s students, it must be relevant to

them.”

Connected magazine, Learning and teaching Scotland

1. what a blog actually is

2. ways to use a blog to enhance teaching and learning

3. how to use moblogging to complement and enhance use of a blog

4. how to create podcasts and add them to iTunes

5. how podcasts can be used in the classroom

6. how mobiles and ipods can be used to enhance learning beyond the classroom

During this session we will look at…

Is this the future? “Young people’s familiarity with ICT offers a great

opportunity to language teachers. It seems to us that a determined commitment to use this world, which is so familiar to young people, is a key to increasing the engagement of young people of all ages with languages. New technologies can facilitate real contacts with schools and young people in other countries. They can also provide stimulus for creative and interactive work.”

(Lord Dearing - Languages Review March 2007)

What is a blog?!?!?!

• Blog= web log – Traditionally used as an online diary

– A typical blog combines a variety of media forms

– Key element is huge increase in interactivity- INFORMATION COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY.

Blogging

• Who uses blogs?

Teachers for motivation

• www.edgehillcollege.typepad.com

• www.roydslanguagesdepartment.typepad.com

Teachers for reflections / to share ideas

• http://tinyurl.com/ycdamq (Neil Jones, resources)

• www.boxoftricks.net (Jose Picardo, ideas)

Blogging

• What can we actually use a blog for?!?!

– Showing pupils’ work

– Sharing files

– Showing pupils’ videos etc

– Increasing Assessment for Learning

– Increasing self-evaluation

Blogging

Why use blogs?• Motivation- make the world your classroom wall

– Learning no longer confined to exercise books

– Who is the audience for work which goes into an exercise book?

– Truly global perspective

• Can be demonstrated by visitors maps on blogs

Blogging

The last 100 visitors to the Spanish blog

Why use blogs?

• Writing

– Increased motivation- will be viewed by more than just the teacher

Blogging

Why use blogs?

• Reading

– pupils constantly reading and re-reading each other’s work

• Allows for dissemination of good ideas

– Allows free choice of which sections to read

– Aids pupil independence

Blogging

Why use blogs?• Speaking

– Pupil and teacher generated podcasts

– Speaking tests / exercises

=learning opportunity rather than just an assessment opportunity

- can be done in the form of vokis, podcasts etc

– Provides a platform for pupil-made videos

Blogging

Why use blogs?

• Listening

– To podcasts (on the blog or via links)

– To videos (pupil created, music, adverts, football commentaries etc)

– To peers’ work

Blogging

Why use blogs?• Assessment for Learning

– Comment function allows peer assessment using “Two Stars and a Wish formula”

= 2 positive elements

+ 1 element to work at next time

– Self-assessment as pupils comment on their own work and thus self target set.

Blogging

Blogging

Music video

- great cultural input

- an interesting homework to find body parts/ weather types

- Year 8 pupils were mostly humming the song round school for next few days

Ideas for use…

Blogging

Pupil-made videos

- high level of motivation

- Provides for easy review of work which might otherwise be lost

Blogging

•www.voki.com- Pupils write scripts

-Peer assess

-Practise

-Record

-High level of enjoyment

Blogging

•Year 8 wrote Guess Who style self-descriptions

•For next homework, pupils read the descriptions and left a comment saying who they were

Who provides the blog facility?

• TypePad - www.typepad.com

– Easiest for inserting fun stuff (provider that I use)

• Blogger - www.blogger.com

• Edublogs - www.edublogs.org

• Wordpress - www.wordpress.org

• Many, many more…

Blogging

To learn about further tools to complement blogs

• www.slideshare.net - embedding .ppt

• www.blip.tv - uploading pupil videos easily

Blogging

Frequently Asked Questions

• Won’t it all take ages?

• Will anyone actually look at the blog?

• What effect will it have on my department?

• What about Child Protection?

Blogging

Moblogging across the universe

MobloggingWhat is moblogging?

Mobile blogging

- the ability to update a blog from a distance

e.g. on a visit / exchange

Seize the moment

Moblogging

www.shozu.com

- Send media straight to blog from phones

Moblogging

Uses:

Record reports after incidents

Allow pupils to create video diaries without your supervision

Document REAL conversations

Moblogging

Allows you and pupils to leave voice messages on the blog

Uses:

- more detailed update messages

- maintain interest amongst those left behind

- genuine motivation for oral activities

Moblogging

Flip Ultra video cameras

Video-documentaries

Plug into any USB and upload to blog / www.blip.tv

- no converters needed

Effective use of Podcasts and iTunes

Podcasting

What is a podcast?

- effectively an audio file which is then put onto the Internet

Podcasting

How have I used them?

- Grammar series

- role-play raps

- pupil recordings

- pupil grammar explanations

Podcasting

Grammar seriescreated to help reinforce grammar learning OUTSIDE of the classroom

- responding to a request by a pupil- FANTASTIC for audio learners

Podcasting

Role-play rapsCreated to strenghten knowledge of key role-play scenarios

- each set to a different musical style to aid recognition

Podcasting

Pupil grammar explanations

- benefit of explaining to others

- need for script

- peer assessment on podcasts

- minimal teacher input, maximum output

- pupils then have an immediate revision tool

Podcasting

Sounds hard, but isn’t!

1)Record podcast...

Podcasting

How to record a podcast...

1) Recording material

Podcasting

How to record a podcast...

1) Recording material

Podcasting

How to record a podcast...

1) Recording material

Podcasting

How to record a podcast...

1) Recording material

Podcasting

How to record a podcast...

1) Recording material

2) Audacity for PCs- www.download.com

+ LAME FE

(allows you to export as MP3)

OR Garageband for Macs

Easy way to change volume levels

Highlight sections then delete

Podcasting

To finish the podcast, export as MP3…

Podcasting

Podcasting

So we have our finished podcast, now what?

a)Insert it into a blog post as an .mp3 file

b)Add it to iTunes- very easy to do thanks to www.podomatic.com and www.jellycast.com

Podcasting

Adding the podcast to iTunes

-Motivation

-Can put onto MP3 players / computers and listen to work again, rather than just forgetting it

Podcasts as listening materials...1) Coffee Break Spanish

-excellent topic explanations

2) Notes In Spain - come with supporting materials- based around topics effecting life in Spain

Podcasting

Podcasts as listening materials...3) Elliot school podcasts

- KS5 topics, with exercises

Podcasting

Using mobiles in the classroom…

Using mobile phones

Issues:

1)Banned in many schools

2)Risks of inappropriate behaviour

3)Fear of pupil intercompetition

4)Concern of pupils not having a phone

Using mobile phones

However, there are huge benefits...

1)Enjoyment and motivation- MFL becomes cool again

2)Speaking the pupils’ language whilst teaching them ours

3)Increasing range of services available via WAP

- e.g. YouTube

- Extension of learning beyond classroom

Lasting motivation is about students feeling a genuine emotional investment in the activities they undertake. This will come about through a learning process that centres around rich, real experience with relevance in the wider

world.

Connected magazine, Learning and teaching Scotland

Using mobile phones

Using mobile phones

Useful tools available on most mobile phones...

1)Voice recorder

2)Camera

3)Video camera

4)Stop-watch

5)Bluetooth

6)Ability to play-back videos and music

How much would it cost a department to have enough of these to share between 2?

Using mobile phones

Ideas for video projects using mobiles...

1)Describing school as go round it

2)Describing local area

3)Guide to saving the environment

4)Following and giving directions

5)Describing friends

6)Recording grammar explanations during the lesson

Issue: how to get the recordings back to the teacher

Options- 1) bluetooth them to a computer

2) bluetooth them to teacher’s phone3) other options?

Using mobile phones

Using mobile phonesFor example, directions:

- in pairs, pupils decide which room they will give directions to

-write script

- walk around the building and record the directions

- swap phones / bluetooth to each other and follow the instructions

- find out whether they followed instructions appropriately

FOR EXAMPLE

House and home

- pupils build up to estate-agent style description of their house

- free choice of recording manners

- mobile phone

- voice recording

- video on camera

Using mobile phones

Other ideas...

- record an interview / dialogue at home

- leaving answer phone messages through Gabcast

- record grammar explanations during your lessons.

They can then make the worksheet as homework, based on your advice.

Using mobile phones

Key = extending learning beyond the classroom

- more and more we will also need to think about how to capitalise on the power of ipods

- quizzes produced using www.iquizmaker.com

- videos converted using www.zamzar.com

- podcasts

- mobile slideshows / role-play raps

Using mobile phones

For more info…

www.chrisfuller.typepad.com

(where this presentation will be available to download)

Mrfulleredgehill@yahoo.co.uk