ESL Podcast 911 – Correcting and Explaining in Conversation

I find a podcast about correcting and explaining in a conversation. It is ESL Podcast 911. This podcast is very good for students who want to learn some communication skills in their daily life. There are scripts, so if students do not understand, they can refer to the scripts to get exact understanding of what is going on. Another best aspect of this podcast is that the host will explain those dialogues in detail. In this way, students can learn better individually.

I can use this podcast in my teaching. For example, I can first ask students to listen to the podcast by themselves after class. Students are not given the scripts. We can discuss the content of this podcast during the class. Students can also learn some expressions and vocabularies from the dialogue. This podcast is great because the speaking speed is proper to students who are not very proficient. Second, students can practice listening skills. They can listen to the podcast by downloading it in their MP3. The podcast of normal speed version can put students in a situation of real conversation. Listening can be improved by listening to it again and again. Third, this is a good material for speaking class which aims to practice conversation skills. This podcast explains the dialogue in details. I can get some ideas of explaining and teaching conversation skills for my speaking class. Last but not least, this podcast episode can be recommended to students to learn by themselves after school.

ePals

In ePals Global Community, you can find a classroom by narrowing results according to region. There are three types of collaboration: email exchange, skype or video chat, and project workspace. Also, you can search by key words. There are a lot of projects which are categorized into types like culture, music, math, science, reading, writing and so on. Those projects can last for weeks, or just one semester.

There are two projects related to endangered species. One Indian project was approved on July 6, 2013. It says that enthusiastic Grade 4 students in India want to connect with an equally enthusiastic class and are waiting to explore their Saving Endangered Species Project with partners. So if my class is also interested in this project, we can match and work together in this project. It is great for my students to work with partners around the world.

Another project that was approved on December 17, 2012 is from an international school in Shanghai, China. They will record a video of students explaining/doing warm up exercises. Then the receiving class will try their workout and record a new exercise/warm up for them to try. This is a great resource for collecting some ideas of warm-up activities. Teacher can learn and share with each other from all around the world.

The best way to learn culture is to learn from a person from that culture. So I can use projects about culture to let students find their partners and get in touch with them through email or skype. In this way, students from this program can exchange and learn from each other. In addition, there are activities, games, videos which can be used to explore cultures around the world.

One most useful feature is the teaching resources. Although a lot of them are not free, I can download some of them which are free if I log in. Those resources are categorized into different grades, prices and languages. For example, there is a packet called “‘Dragon them back to school’” which is designed to help teacher bring all of the individuals together into a unified team. There is a description about the contents of this packet. I can first review the description and then decide whether I will download it or not.  This packet is really interesting. It includes some interview questions, some activities with colorful pictures and students can really be motivated in completing those tasks.

GoAnimate

GoAnimate is an easy way to make a dialogue because all characters, scenes and actions are already there.I would use this tool to ask students to do pair work. That is, they need to work with one partner to create a short dialogue. This can be followed by a class presentation of this dialogue. If it is a speaking class, I will ask students to record their own voice for the dialogue. In this way, students can practice speaking with partners and I can also assess students' pronunciation by watching their short videos.

If we have a paid version, I would encourage my students to create their own characters, their hair styles, eyes and so forth. In this way, students are doing what they like using their imagination.

With such a tool, learning can be switched from boring classroom dialogue practice to dialogue performance in a real scene. Students will be motivated by this.

Animoto

Animoto is a good tool to make short videos. We can make a 30-second video for free. For teacher, this tool can be used for introduction. Photo story is more attractive than just introducing a story orally. By using digital storytelling which includes music and photos, the texts which present the topic are emphasized. Students can be motivated to learn the texts. So I can use this tool when I want to explain an important concept. With such a video clip, the complicated concept can be simplified and be more comprehensible to students. If I want to use a longer video, I can upgrade and pay for that.
For students, this is also a great tool. Students can be asked to make a short video based on what they have learned. Such a short storytelling asks students to conclude details into general ideas and present within 30 seconds. Teacher can check students' understanding by reviewing their videos. Moreover, students can make their own stories by using topics they are interested in. This is helpful for creative thinking.

Digital Storytelling

In the article 7 things you should know about Digital Storytelling, Digital storytelling is defined as ‘the practice of combining narrative with digital content, including images, sound, and video, to create a short movie, typically with a strong emotional component’. According to the Educational Uses of Digital Storytelling, ‘Digital storytelling at its most basic core is the practice of using computer-based tools to tell stories’. Digital storytelling can be used by every one. Users with little technology can practice using it starting from simple application. The storyteller will first create the scripts and then apply media elements such as images, videos, music into the movie. It is an effective tool to connect technology with language learning. It is widely used in teaching nowadays.

By digital storytelling, students can promote language proficiency because they need to organize a complete story to empress their thought. So target language function will be practiced repeatedly. In this way, students can also develop critical thinking. One application of digital storytelling mentioned in the article 7 things you should know about Digital Storytelling is to let students keep an e-potfolio. The teacher can have a good understanding of students’ development through portfolios. I looked over some examples of digital storytelling from the Educational Uses of Digital Storytelling and found that this way of illustrating a concept or topic is more effective than just teacher’s lecturing. With those technology added into the scripts, students can get a better understanding of what is being talked about. If the teacher could combine class contents with digital storytelling, the teaching might be more beneficial to students.