- May 2018
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busyteacher.org busyteacher.org
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The following are 10 different ways that ESL teachers can use technology to teach English in a way that will make lessons more engaging and appealing:
Majority of the examples provided involve assessment which feels more significant and students, especially in the beginning levels, shy away from.
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There are many options on the Internet to learn about virtually any topic.
Could be a specifc website like the examples but also, just Google Earth
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Digital Field Trips
This is something new that I hadnt thought of before. It could be used to physically show a place of interest in a cultural or geographic lesson or to describe directions in Spanish by the students.
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www.fluentu.com www.fluentu.com
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It has the tendency to make the learning passive. Everything is available, and everything is accessible in an instant. This results in the brain taking for granted what is served up to it so easily. And you don’t really value what comes too easily. For example, there’s just something about flipping the pages of a thick dual-language dictionary that makes us appreciate the word when we finally locate it on the page.Technology also precludes human interaction. Some people just learn best when interacting with others. Solo flights in front of the computer don’t hold much appeal to them. There’s just something about having a warm body laughing your bungling of a new language.So as it turns out, technology has its own shortcomings. You can’t lean on it too much. If you want a bountiful harvest, you need to put in the effort and the time to really do the hard work. Technology is the same. It’s there to help, but it can’t drag you from bed in the morning and sit you in front of the computer or make you take the tests seriously.
Directed mainly at individual learners, not students in a classroom. There is the conversation and non-isolated aspect of the classroom. There does need to be an integration not substitution.
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Choose a story that has a visual component. That is, a story that has the text and pictures shown. If the storyteller is being shown, take note of his/her gestures. This will help you make out the things happening in the story. (If possible, make sure that you are familiar with the English version of the story.)Because they are geared for kids, the language structure in the stories will be easy enough, and the vocabulary so basic that an adult listening to Cinderella in Spanish can mine it for language acquisition.
I have seen this technique used before but, did not engage me well enough to work very well
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Test Your Knowledge Through Technologically-enhanced Language Games
Again, memorization based
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With YouTube, you also have access to native speakers speaking their dialects in full display. A video or channel may not necessarily be about language
A process that I use now and did in high school by watching tv show episodes and identifying 50 or so words that we knew
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Turn Car Rides into Language Classes
For auditory learners
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Video Chat with a Native Speaker Any Time of the Day
Requires more preparation than my ideal tech integration but, i have seen it be done and successful.
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With one click or tap, you will know what “sleep” is when translated to French, Spanish or Japanese, for example
Led me to the hyperlink below https://www.fluentu.com/blog/spanish/best-spanish-dictionary-apps/
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1. Change the Language Settings on Your Devices and Social Media Accounts
Not entirely plausible for the classroom but, may be able to walk through a webisite like Facebook in Spanish.
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They have memory games that make learning fun. Videos record the lessons and you can replay them at any time of the day and as often as like.
The only two aspects of language learning tech that ive tested.
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Technology has changed the way we exchange information.
Highlights the increased on importance of tech on language learning but also, breaks down what language is which provides a lens with whih to analyze tech
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