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Company websites for digital language lab and computer classroom management software/systems

ANVILL (A National Virtual Language Lab) is a speech-based toolbox for language teachers. Like the language lab console of old, it's focused on the practice of oral/aural language, but at its core are very modern web-based audio and video tools from duber dot com: Voiceboards (an asynchronous speech tool), LiveChat (a 4-way conversation tool), and Voicerecorder (a widget for instant recordings). Each really opens up the scope and sequence of spoken language tasks. Creating media-rich lessons in ANVILL is simple and straightforward. There are templates for audio, video, and image tasks; there are also tools for text-based discussions like blogs and forums. ANVILL's assessment tool,Quizzes and Surveys, gives teachers an easy way to assign and respond to spoken language tasks. In addition, ANVILL is a course management system. Teachers who are doing distance or hybrid courses have a simple means of managing their students as well as their curriculum. We think you'll find that ANVILL is quite flexible, and permits the kind of extra listening and speaking practice that language students need so much. ANVILL is a project of the Yamada Language Center at the University of Oregon. These tools are currently in use at UO and at a select number of K-12 sites around the Northwest. Thanks to our National Foreign Language Resource Center partners at CASLS, we are able to offer ANVILL to educators at no cost. Here is an overview of its features. If you think it would be helpful to you and your students, contact us to set up an account. Our two-year pilot study has just gotten underway and we're looking for language teachers at all levels to use it and tell us what they think.

Praat Language Lab was developed to help students and language teachers learn to use the Praat software to improve spoken English. Many colleges and universities use Praat to provide visual feedback to spoken sound. However, support to use the tool outside the language lab has been limited. We hope that this site supports your use of Praat on your own to improve your spoken English.

What does it do? Develops the four skills of language learning Can be used with any language Utilises existing resources; audio, text books, worksheets and graphics Enables live monitoring of an individual student or a group of students Provides private communication between the teacher and student or a group of students Motivates learners of every ability using familiar technology Easy Assessment - All student work is saved as mp3 files or web pages The addition of a headset with a microphone turns any pc network into a language lab How does it do it? Using two small software programmes, a student module and a teacher module, that will run on virtually any pc and network. Items containing text, graphics and audio recordings are viewed by students who can record themselves and can also enter text or make selections. The teacher can communicate to students individually, or by group, and can monitor progress live.

Same site content is mirrored at several locations.

From company in India. Windows-only system. Has most expected language-lab functions but may not be as fully-featured.

ASC offers both hardware- and software-based lab solutions. ReLANPro is the name of their software-based model. A recent press release says it is now Mac-compatible, but the tech specs page details: MAC lab * Boot Camp is required * Boot Camp requires a Mac with an Intel processor and Windows XP Service Pack 2. I have previous experience at two schools with ASC Direct, and we have not been impressed with their customer service.

Can access through index of languages, index of sounds or map index. Includes sounds to accompany Ladefoged's textbooks, A Course in Phonetics 5th Ed, Vowels and Consonants, 2nd. Ed. This page (Phonetics Lab Data) is the phonetics teaching materials compiled by Peter and Jenny Ladefoged (originally Sounds of the World's Languages).

Welcome to the UCLA Phonetics Lab Archive. For over half a century, the UCLA Phonetics Laboratory has collected recordings of hundreds of languages from around the world, providing source materials for phonetic and phonological research, of value to scholars, speakers of the languages, and language learners alike. The materials on this site comprise audio recordings illustrating phonetic structures from over 200 languages with phonetic transcriptions, plus scans of original field notes where relevant. The archive in its current form is a self-standing website. Eventually all the data here will be incorporated into the comprehensive UCLA Digital Library where it will be maintained as a permanent resource for future generations.

The Online Language Environments (OLE) Board is a web based threaded discussion instructional tool that utilizes voice, video and text to replicate the functions of a language lab. OLE is used for, but not restricted to, oral practice, listening comprehension, speaking practice and reading and writing practice. The OLE Board can be used to supplement instruction in face-to-face classes as homework assignments, and can be used in entirely distance classes. CERCLL support provides assistance to improve the technological capabilities and establish the pedagogical strategies of the OLE Board, which has been successfully piloted in French, Arabic, various Indigenous languages and ESL. Specific deliverables for the OLE Board project include templates and pedagogical strategies with examples for Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Japanese, Chinese and Portuguese; online and print user and instructor documentation; lesson plans and use case scenarios; usability studies for further desired improvement; piloting of multi-institutional usage. We also provide for the protocols necessary to integrate the OLE Board for use with course management systems. The OLE Board is being developed as an open-source product that will be available to the wider language instruction community.

"Digital and Media Literacy: A Plan of Action, a new policy paper by Renee Hobbs, Professor at the School of Communications and the College of Education at Temple University and founder of its Media Education Lab, proposes a detailed plan that positions digital and media literacy as an essential life skill and outlines steps that policymakers, educators, and community advocates can take to help Americans thrive in the digital age."

The Dartmouth Recorder emulates the language lab environment allowing students to listen and respond to language study 'tapes' anywhere anytime.

Web CT based exam, administered in Language Lab to Johns Hopkins.

For Windows only, but otherwise seems to have all features expected of a language lab. Two versions, Genesis and Genesis Select, which seems to be a "lite" version. Company also sells foreign language software.

The Student Assessment of their Learning Gains (SALG) website allows instructors to gather learning-focused feedback from students. The SALG survey asks students to rate how each component of a course (e.g., textbook, collaborative work, labs) helped them to learn, and to rate their gains toward achieving the course goals. The SALG survey can be customized to fit any college-level course, and can be administered multiple times per course. A baseline instrument allows faculty to compare gains relative to incoming student characteristics. Once registered on the SALG site, you can: * customize the SALG survey to fit your course goals and methods; * search for an existing SALG survey in your discipline; * have students complete the survey on-line; and, * download and review analyses of the students' responses.

Windows only. Classroom management rather than language lab software, but offers some of same capabilities, such as transmitting video, setting up chats between students, and quizzes. Does offer free trial to test the software.

SynchronEyes software gives you control over your classroom, enabling you to guide your students' attention, discoveries and learning while creating a truly collaborative atmosphere at the same time.

Company also offers interactive whiteboards. Based in China.

Windows only. Has 2 versions with increasing options for language lab features.

XCLASS is a Multimedia Classroom Management Software tailor-made for a networked environment. With the latest Teacher Show feature, XCLASS provides teachers and students the perfect learning environment that disciplines, interacts and involves everyone.

Offers the language lab-type functions (for either Mac or PC) but NO classroom management functions. Recommends partnering with GenevaLogic for classroom management on Windows, and says will work with Mac classroom management systems also. Students can access the client both in the lab and over the Internet, so gives unique options for homework.

New MIT Center Will Explore New Forms of Storytelling (Including Holographic Ones). The Media Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology announced yesterday that it had signed a contract with a budding film-and-television studio to create the Center for Future Storytelling.

Database of freely available interactive online exercises for studying English grammar. Can search for grammar activities by grammar point, difficulty level or activity type. Useful for ESL/EFL study as well as for native speaking writing students. Can sign up for free log in to track your use, or just use the VGL without signing in.

Space, whether physical or virtual, can have a significant impact on learning. Learning Spaces focuses on how learner expectations influence such spaces, the principles and activities that facilitate learning, and the role of technology from the perspective of those who create learning environments: faculty, learning technologists, librarians, and administrators. Information technology has brought unique capabilities to learning spaces, whether stimulating greater interaction through the use of collaborative tools, videoconferencing with international experts, or opening virtual worlds for exploration. This e-book represents an ongoing exploration as we bring together space, technology, and pedagogy to ensure learner success. Please note: In addition to the e-book's core chapters on learning space design principles (chapters 1?13) , this site also offers case studies illustrating those principles (chapters 15?43), including links to examples of innovative learning spaces. The entire collection is complete and available for printing as individual chapters or the entire book.