Group items tagged

Abstract: This case study is based on an investigation into the use that a group of language learners made of Livemocha.com, a Social Networking Site through which language exchange is enabled via social media applications. The learners created profiles in the website and proceeded to interact with speakers of their target languages, reporting back on their experiences over a 10-week period. As communication between language partners can take place through several different channels, and can be asynchronous or synchronous, written or spoken, it was considered that the preferences of learners with different personality types (as indicated by responses to a Myers-Briggs Type Indicator questionnaire) might be accommodated. Several studies have suggested that the anxiety that some language learners feel when communicating in L2, especially when speaking, is reduced in online environments. Under the premise that a reduction in anxiety may lead to an increased "willingness to communicate" (MacIntyre et al., 1998), the principal objective of this project was to examine the type and frequency of online interactions that the participants engaged in with other speakers of their target languages in the Livemocha language learning community.

This is an interesting collection (from 2009-but still) of articles/ book chapters around social networking. The author reads the various projectors as communities of practice. Not all articles deal with language acquisition, but are still interesting. One of them delves into why and how students use Facebook. One of them looks at virtual learning communities in the US and Australia vs. Europe. Good spring board to look at some of our topics more.

Particularly appropriate for the CARLA Summer Institute on Social Networks!

Hitosugi, C. I. (2011). Using a social networking site in Japanese class. In E. Forsythe, T. Gorham, M. Grogan, D. Jarrell, R. Chartrand, & P. Lewis (Eds.), In CALL: What's your motivation? Collected papers on the cutting edge of language learning practice (pp. 72-83). Tokyo, Japan: JALT CALL SIG. This is my article that I wrote a couple of years ago on NIng use. This is much shorter than the original one, but still conveys what I wanted; SNS has a place in classroom, students concern privacy.

Although this article is about British language education and it's two years old, my interest was piqued when I read it: ""Languages cannot be taught, they can only be learnt. The best way is to tell students right away that they are responsible for their own learning process, and the teacher is just a guide who has to motivate them."" Made me think about relevancy and how Tech is only one part of that.

Really interesting. I wonder if we changed the setting to the U.S. if the same difficulties would apply. I never really thought about grammar being discarded simply because students don't know it well enough. While I've found that most students we teach don't understand their mother tongue, I still think that the shift to task-based work had as much to do with the lack of real communication skills. Just teaching them grammar and relying on them to go abroad to learn to speak wasn't doing it. That being said, I think the mixture of methods is best, and by mixture I mean the integration of many methods into accomplishing a task. And I agree that the meta-learning is key.

I remember getting a comment from a student once, many years ago, that she had learned more about English grammar in my Spanish class than anywhere else... (sigh)

A description of one teacher's exploration of online communities and social networking in class - she visits another teacher's class to see how she uses techonlogy.

"Web 2.0 How-To for Educators explores the very best online collaborative tools available today (including blogs, wikis, and social networking) and Web 2.0 applications (Skype, Google Earth, Wordle, and more) that make a difference in education. Using a simple formula for each concept, the book describes what the tool is, when teachers should use it, why it is useful, who is using it, how you can use the tool, and where you can find additional resources. Practical examples from educators around the world offer an abundance of ideas, and the recommendations for further information and comprehensive lists of Web 2.0 tools and applications will be valuable resources as you integrate Web 2.0 technology in your classroom. "

A new social networking platform called Twirlr - you need to take a look!

Abstract: In recent years, a sharp increase in the number of academic studies around the use of video games and new media for educational purposes has greatly expanded our understanding of their potential for enhancing learning.

Constantinos, this a great resource of information. Thank you for sharing! I haven't sit down to read it all, but skimming through it I found plenty of interesting information. I was always interested in using video games or educational games for language learning, but never took initiative in reading anything on the topic. In the beginning of "From "Authentic Materials" to "Live Materials" section, the author mentions that the culture should not be described to students, but rather facilitate a platform for them to actually participate in that culture. I see how we can do that through games, but is there any of you using other means to do it? Is it possible to do it through social networks or second language learning networks? If yes, how exactly? Any thoughts on this?

Commentary on report that claims Social Networking does not discourage real life social-ness but enhances it!

Thought you might be interested in watching what happens with this for K-12!

The K-12 educators in this study engaged in true dialogue, where evidence of actual conversation occurred in Twitter over 61% of the time. Additionally, over 82% of the time, the educators in this study chose to follow other educators or content experts related to their field of teaching so they were able to create a personal learning network meaningful to their professional needs.

One teacher's account on how he used different social networking tools and Twitter to connect his classroom to other around the world.

A school district in Florida is advising teachers not to "friend" students on social networking sites, claiming that teacher-student communication through this medium is "inappropriate."

Interesting that these regulations are listed in the teachers' handbook. I live within walking distance from the school I work at, and often see neighborhood kids. One in particular is my student, in fact I was standing outside my home last night talking with two friends of mine and he walked by. He's a great kid and we always say hi and chat a little, but it's in the back of my mind that even that could be used against me by someone who is twisted. The weird thing about the inappropriate internet stuff is that there is always a paper trail, so it seems so obvious to not do certain things. I'm surprised FL advises teachers to not even use a "professional" user account with students, but apparently they feel the risks outweigh the advantages.