Group items tagged

An online translator for several dozen languages. Translators are interesting for students to learn how/why direct translation is not always valuable. Learning to use a translator, and what to be wary of is an important lesson.

"During a recent meeting with some colleagues, I reflected upon the conversations that I have had with potential clients over the past 6 months with regards to the use of mobile technologies. With a very small exception (probably 2-3 out of approx 60 conversations) those conversations have revolved around the creation of 'mobile learning', which actually translated as the "shrinking down of desktop content to allow it to be viewed and interacted with on a mobile device". Very little, if any mention, of creating performance support resources… No consideration of using the devices native functions I.e. camera, keyboard, GPS, voice recorder, to enhance the experience…. A heavy focus on the learner 'learning' something from it, as opposed to the worker 'enhancing' their performance from it (Hell, who needs to learn the London Underground routes if you've got the app in your pocket?) And this is where I think we have got it wrong again!" Great thoughts on where we are and where we might go with mobile technologies for education

"A free online Talking Dictionary of English Pronunciation Just mouse over the pink words to hear them spoken " This tool also links to Google Translate to translate your entry, and you can select from dozens of languages.

An amazing compilation of links to resources in teaching foreign languages and ESOL, including web page translators, dictionaries, and collaborative sites where students and FL teachers can connect.

This is one of those amazing Internet contraptions that make one realize how digitized learning can really differ drastically from paper/pencil learning. This site allows you to translate any word in a website, so you can read any digital text, then practice the words you have selected in flashcards. The free version allows only 10 words/day (about what one could reasonably learn), but the premium version is only $5/month for unlimited words. Neat idea. I imagine teachers could put their texts on a website and have students work away at them.

While these are mostly translation tools, there are a number of interesting apps on culture as well: French and Italian cuisine, world customs and cultures in gestures and pesonal space, flash cards and tutoring, and "addictive gaming."

Appears to be able to translate text to speech in multiple languages. Worth a try.

Imagine the non-fiction you are reading is a movie playing in your mind - an animé. Each cell in a comic strip translates into a different action or idea in the text. Teacher demonstrates how this technique works in pods of 3 young adult students.

This lesson explores imagery in a translation of Beowulf, but could be applied to any poem or literary narrative (including scientific readings). The teacher walks us through two lessons that have middle-school kids (7th grade/ 12 yrs old) use their own words to create mental pictures. This could be very effect for ESL students if vocabulary aids were also provided on the board. Helps with reading and effective writing.

The descriptions of the tool uses are of great interest. This is a thoughtful blog article. Tools mentioned are Visme, Padlet, Recap, Voxer, Picktochart, Nearpod (virtual field trips), Formative (assessment), Quizizz, Buncee (projects), Blendspace to share Websites and create lessons, Storyboard, BloomzApp for messaging and planning as well as translation. Much to explore here.

"During a recent meeting with some colleagues, I reflected upon the conversations that I have had with potential clients over the past 6 months with regards to the use of mobile technologies. With a very small exception (probably 2-3 out of approx 60 conversations) those conversations have revolved around the creation of 'mobile learning', which actually translated as the "shrinking down of desktop content to allow it to be viewed and interacted with on a mobile device". Very little, if any mention, of creating performance support resources… No consideration of using the devices native functions I.e. camera, keyboard, GPS, voice recorder, to enhance the experience…. A heavy focus on the learner 'learning' something from it, as opposed to the worker 'enhancing' their performance from it (Hell, who needs to learn the London Underground routes if you've got the app in your pocket?) And this is where I think we have got it wrong again!"

This blog is directed to the autodidact, but would be useful for teachers to know about also. Tools are mainly traditional flashcard maker, dictionaries, and translators, however. Computers can do so much more

A neat way to easily create and share presentations online. Enables media embedding of all sorts and can be shared with a click to an email address. I'd like to try this with Elluminate or WiZiQ to see if it "translates."

Put in lists of words and Website creates sound files for them. You can also put in a description or translation of your words to practice them. Also creates tests on them. Uses several major languages.

Designing 3-dimensional, hands-on experiences for the classroom. Explains "flipping" in the original sense: students explore first, then hear what it's all about through discussion with other students. Works well with science, but how to translate it into the language classroom?

This tool for the blind would be extremely useful, and the device works with print pages and digital readers, such as Kindle. Very tiny camera translates print into spoken word. Currently needs to be tethered to a laptop/computer, but a version of the software may be available soon to use Android phones for the computing.

"To summarize, then, we might say that (1) the skill of guessing from context may not be as helpful in the real world as previously imagined, (2) it may not be as useful in acquiring vocabulary items as previously imagined. When a teacher is asked by a student for the meaning of a word in a text, the reflex response of 'try to work it out from the context' may also not be as helpful as previously imagined. Translations and / or dictionary advice may well, at times, be more appropriate." An interesting view of an activity that has been considered significant by many reading teachers. More research is needed!

"Programming is magic. It's the ability to create things from pure imagination. We started CodeCombat to give learners the feeling of wizardly power at their fingertips by using typed code. "As it turns out, that enables them to learn faster too. WAY faster. It's like having a conversation instead of reading a manual. We want to bring that conversation to every school and to every student, because everyone should have the chance to learn the magic of programming. "CodeCombat is a community project,with hundreds of players volunteering to create levels, contribute to our code to add features, fix bugs, playtest, and even translate the game into 50 languages so far. Employees, contributors and the site gain by sharing ideas and pooling effort, as does the open source community in general. The site is built on numerous open source projects, and we are open sourced to give back to the community and provide code-curious players a familiar project to explore and experiment with. Anyone can join the CodeCombat community! "

"This addictive game plunks you down somewhere in the world using Google Street view. You literally start on some country road and the whole point of the game is to figure out where in the world you are. You can navigate down the road in the app, and you can turn around and zoom in to look more closely at things, but because the game often chooses the most remote locations, you often find yourself traveling for quite a while before you see any clues. Once you do see something-a road sign, ideally, or something at least with language on it-you can start figuring it out. "I don't even know if this is following the rules, but the times I've played this, I've been amazed at the number of resources I ended up pulling together to figure things out: I do Google image matches, use Google Translate to figure out what a language even is, and even look things up on Wikipedia to figure out if I'm on the right track. I've had four or five different tabs open to try and narrow down a precise location, and all the while, I'm learning stuff. I had no idea, for example, that there was an island called Gotland off the coast of Sweden! Or that there's an animal called a springhare in South Africa that looks an awful lot like a kangaroo" T/h to Jennifer Gonzalez

"Classcraft, the first online educational role-playing game that teachers and students play together for free, recently announced the launch of a fully-updated version of their product for the new academic year. This revised version boasts new features such as free iOS apps for iPhone and iPad, interactive forums, student analytics and customisable characters, all of which will be useful for both teachers and students. Also included are French, Chinese, Dutch, German, and Spanish translations, which has made the game even more accessible to classrooms worldwide. To date, more than 30,000 students in 50 countries around the world are playing the game. "In order to keep students engaged, the Quebec-based team of education professionals are keen to inject the mechanisms of popular social games into learning. Playing in teams, students can become mages, warriors and healers, each with unique powers. The more a student excels, the more they gain points and real powers, like the ability to take notes into an exam. Teams can lose points by disrupting the classroom or submitting homework late; consequences can include detention and and less time to finish assignments."