Social-networking sites in foreign language classes: Opportunities for re-creation | Ka... - 4 views
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38 SOCiaL-NetwOrKiNg SiteS 2001). This difference in ‘lifestyle’ gives educators reason to believe we shouldincorporate SNS usage into our class-related activities, to capture these students’imaginations and t their thought patterns and socializing habits (Godwin-Jones,2008; Winke & Goertler, 2008).However, although technology is an integral part of neomillennial students’lives, they often do not know how to use technology in ways that would benet them in computer-assisted language learning (CALL) (Dieu & Stevens, 2007;Kolaitis, Mahoney, Pomann, & Hubbard, 2006; Winke & Goertler, 2008). Suc - cessful CALL activities, then, often require a substantial training period at theoutset (Jones & Bissoonauth-Bedford, 2008; Kolaitis et al., 2006), and studentsmay be less enthusiastic about a class’s language and culture projects if the formof computer-mediated communication ( CMC) employed is not the type they areaccustomed to using (McBride & Wildner-Bassett, 2008; Thorne, 2003). A usefulresponse may be to craft CALL activities more to the practices that our studentsare familiar with (Winke & Goertler, 2008). SNSs are an obvious possibility to consider, given their tremendous popularity.If we can get our F
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we can get our FL students to interact socially on SNSs, then they may beengaged in more authentic social and communicative behavior than typically hap-pens in classrooms, because “instead of merely simulating other modes of interac-tion, technology mediated communication is, in and of itself, the real thing
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40 SOCiaL-NetwOrKiNg SiteS and sites like it, knowing, socially and technically, how to re-use media in thisparticular way has become foundational for communication and creative expres- sion over the Web” (Perkel, 2008, p. 218). We can call this activity of writing/remixing the self through the manipulationof text and media ‘ self-authorship.’ Within the framework of CALL, this term refers to students authoring their own materials which can then serve as the basisfor learning and lessons. Using student-created materials as the center of a lesson ts with a student-centered pedagogy (Dieu, Campbell, & Ammann, 2006). Self-authorship activities can increase interest and time on task, and they put students in a more active role in their own learning process (Kramsch, A’Ness, & Lam,2000; Nikolova, 2002).Students must take an active role in their learning. They cannot simply be handed knowledge from an expert because understanding is the result of a cre- ative process one must work through over time with other people (Bereiter, 2002). Learning
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Students must take an active role in their learning. They cannot simply be handed knowledge from an expert because understanding is the result of a cre- ative process one must work through over time with other people (Bereiter, 2002). Learning and language develop through interaction with others, by means of in- ternalizing problem-solving patterns that are rst experienced in dialogue withothers (Vygotsky, 1978). SNSs therefore are a promising tool for FL education intheir capacity to be used by learners as L2 practice in a way similar to how they are used by the majority of young people in our society.
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Such use could instantiate the primary condition that research has shown to encourage L2 acquisition: timespent on meaningfully embedded interaction and negotiation with others
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I did not mean to highlight so much. Can't find the "undo" highlight. I believe the paragraph starting with "If we can get our FL students..." is important because as FL teachers we are always working towards getting out students to speak in the target langauge and with as much authenticity as possible. By working with an SNS then they might be more apt to use their L2 skills in a more authentic way outside of the classroom as mentioned in the paragraph.
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Great comment! SNS are a way to help students connect class with the real world and someone besides peers and instructors. Interaction through SNS is practice in the target language with speakers of that language, helpful for when they study abroad, for when they graduate and find a job where they interact with Spanish speakers in the case of my students population. These kinds of interactions build on confidence and improvement of speaking skills.
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