While I was in highschool I never used my computer to do any of my assignments. My teachers never asked me to search for any information on the Internet. I live in a small city in Peru and back in that time most of us could not afford that "luxury".
I hardly remember using my computer, which my father had bought me when I was 10 years old, to do something different from playing Snake, Tetris or Prince of Persia. I need to point out that I got my first computer in 1993 when the screen was blue and the words were white. Then something must have happened because although the words were still white the screen turned black... anyways it didnt matter to me I was enjoyed my computer games too much too worry about that. Nowadays I personally can't help using my computer for a whole day. I need it for work.
In class, it is like a mandatory thing to do if you want to get your students attention, if you want them to interact and to be awake. My students get bored fast if I only use the textbook (I try to remember one of my highschool classes where I did not have to open my textbook. I can't) and I know that they get things done when I let them use their portable devices in order to find information and complete a task.
So one day I started searching for information about this difference in my and their learning and I came across with this new phrase: "DIGITAL NATIVES" and then it hit me. Of course! Most of them have been born after 1995 this means they have always been in touch with technology thus technology is a part of their lives so we need to teach them embrasing this new tool.
Most of my pupils prefer laptops rather than desktop computers and this is because they cant carry their desktop to their friend's. Some students don't have laptops, instead they have complex state of the art portable devices which are I must admit really useful and flexible when you are not at home and you want to find some information or look for a file or practice your English.
QUESTION:
Have you ever banned your students cellphones in class?
Did yo know that 6 BILLION portable devices are being used in the world today. And by PORTABLE DEVICEs I mean: Cell phones, smartphones, iphones, blackberries, HTC as well as ipads, ipods, tablets, netbooks, laptops, Personal Digital Assistants PDAs, e-book readers, etc…
Did you know that 75% of the world's population own a portable device?
Then... WHY WOULD YOU BAN THIS SO POPULAR TOOL IN CLASS?
WHY DONT YOU TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS? AND EXPLOIT IT!!!
—M-learning is considered to be the ability to use all
of these mobile devices
to support teaching and learning. It is a new era... a Digital one. Mobile
devices are on-the-go, handheld, versatile, motivating, and active learning
tools. USE THEM!
—Marck Prensky once said: “Today’s
"digital natives" are being exposed to more gadgets and
technology than was ever thought possible. Our students have changed radically. Today's students are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach."
Lisa Nielsen from the Innovative Educator blog said:
—"When the world inside schools looks so
different from the world outside of schools, What are we really preparing students for? "
"When we ban, rather than embrace, real-world technologies we leave students ill-equipped to know how to harness the power of technology for learning.”
"When we ban, rather than embrace, real-world technologies we leave students ill-equipped to know how to harness the power of technology for learning.”
—Mobile learning technologies offer
teachers-and students-a more flexible approach to learning. Our students don't just want m-learning. They need it!
Statistics prove it: 69% of children aged 2-5 can use a computer mouse, but only 11% can tie their own shoelaces. More young children know how to play a computer game (58%) than swim (20%) or ride a bike (52%)
Mobile learning is really successful when
L—earners choose the learning content (projects).—
Learners are integrating artifacts, realia, objects, and experiences that surround their daily lives (real world learning).—
Learners are moving around with the device. (portability)
—Learners are now motivated to expand the learning outside the classroom walls.(apps)—
Learners work collaboratively to explore the world around them (exchange info with peers).
Learners are motivated to search for several possible options, solutions, and answers to problems.—
Learners are presented with tasks in which they must find many possible solutions and are able to test out these solutions.
Let tell me how you can use well, make your students use these devices in and outside your classroom: Use e-books and other digital materials as alternatives to lugging around tons of heavy books.
Statistics prove it: 69% of children aged 2-5 can use a computer mouse, but only 11% can tie their own shoelaces. More young children know how to play a computer game (58%) than swim (20%) or ride a bike (52%)
Mobile learning is really successful when
L—earners choose the learning content (projects).—
Learners are integrating artifacts, realia, objects, and experiences that surround their daily lives (real world learning).—
Learners are moving around with the device. (portability)
—Learners are now motivated to expand the learning outside the classroom walls.(apps)—
Learners work collaboratively to explore the world around them (exchange info with peers).
Learners are motivated to search for several possible options, solutions, and answers to problems.—
Learners are presented with tasks in which they must find many possible solutions and are able to test out these solutions.
Let tell me how you can use well, make your students use these devices in and outside your classroom: Use e-books and other digital materials as alternatives to lugging around tons of heavy books.
*Use them for Blogging! I hate carrying students "Writings" in my briefcase so I usually ask them to create a Blog and post every writing they are asked there and then send me their link to my email. You can send comments or correct their writings using a screenshot and the simple PAINT Program! Try it, I promiss it won't hurt! —Blogs
are important because students are
more
prolific (they dont want to be judged) in their blog posts and to be honest writing in class seems a lot less
important than writing a cool Blog because
according to most students their posts will be “out there”. —Students do care how they sound in public spaces. This is
something I know from my
practice. The key is
that the Blog space has to be public.
I'd like to share one of my university students with you.
This is HENRY
CASTRO RAMOS an Intermediate 1 (2014) UPAO Univeristy student's Blog
This is AMBAR
ALVAREZ Intermediate 4 (2014) UPAO Univeristy student's Blog
BELIEVE ME IT WORKS!
—*Use these devices for them to share
photos or videos or projects
via bluetooth, whassap, Fb,
blogs or apps.
—*Practice
by playing, ask them to download fun apps which should be given by you the very first week of your cycle, semester, bimester, etc. Hey! Nobody said it was going to be easy! Remember this pays off! You will be more appreciated because they will know you are on top.
It is mandatory that you are aware of the following:
1. CLASSROOM INSTRUCTIONS, SETTING RULES:
Simply have the students put down their phones/tablets, and focus on what you are
teaching.
2. PLAYING MUSIC IN CLASS IS NOT THE END OF
THE WORLD:
The noise level in the classroom goes down,
and the work amount goes
up when
you let
them listen to their music.
* LEARNING DISABILITIES:
—Being a more individual trend, students with
learning differences benefit greatly from
mobile learning. It allows them
to feel more like their peers, and foster a sense of
normalcy.
Proloquo2go, is an
assistive
technology app available on iTunes for children with
special
needs.
—Autism
apps is
simply a comprehensive list of apps that are being used with and by
people
diagnosed with autism, Down syndrome and other special needs.
REMEMBER: Not every classroom can get a laptop
every day, so devices like
for us as teachers.
I'm going to mention some cool APPS so that you can use technology in your classroom and also for your students to learn and practice their English on their own.
1. HEADS UP: Charades for vocabulary. I love it and even though sometimes it can get harder (even for me) there are some apps where you have basic, intermediate and advanced level of words so you do your homework and start having fun!
2. WORDLENS: Ask your students to download this app. It is supercool and believe me once they have it they will never stop using it.
3. MARTHA SPEAKS: If you have primary sudents or perhaps under 12 years old this app is really captivating and entertaining for children. It tests their English without they notice it.
4. FLUENT ENGLISH: This is a great APP for Reading, listening, and pronunciation
This application is great for your students to improve their pronunciation, and to
increase their vocabulary. Not only does it reproduce a native speaker voice but also
gives you a translator with synonyms to understand the meaning of a specific word.
* E-BOOKS: You find these everywhere: Google play / Play store / Apple store
— Students are understimated sometimes I thin that students are in constant reading
nowadays, one interesting fact however is that most of this reading is
performed through portable devices.
Reading an e-book is by far most appealing for
them than reading a plain,
old-fashioned “real book”. We must take this advantage!
—E-books are portable,
easy to update, cost-effective, and
can be read on
almost all
mobile devices.
It’s only a matter of time for peruvian
educational institutions to start using e-books
into their own curriculums.- Lectura en ingles (Audiobook) -Easy english reading (Audiobook)-Reading Friendzy -Romantic love stories - 100 + Horror stories
* LEARNING THROUGH VIDEOS: This is actually a website which I totally adore because it keeps me entertained and it also allows me to practice my listening while Im commuting to work or if I have a break sometimes I check it out before I go to bed. It helps a little when you are a movie fan so maybe you want to mention that to your students. Here you have only 2 levels "easy" and "difficult". http://cinema.clubefl.gr/
* Dictionaries and/or translators: There are great APPS for dictionaries and translators. Wordreference and Linguee are my favorites.
So what if your student tells you he or she doesnt have a smartphone but a very basic cellphone. Fair enough they can use NOTES as a mobile diary or us them to organize their schedules or use them TO CALL THEIR CLASSMATES AND SPEAK TO THEM IN ENGLISH FOR 5 MINUTES and RECORD THAT CONVERSATION!
Let me give you some ideas on how to use portable devices IN & OUTSIDE your classroom:
•Snap
a
photo: Of notes on the board in class, of assignments, etc
•Call
a
friend: Connect with guest speakers or other classrooms via skype.
•Use
pictures from devices as resources to encourage speaking.
•Share
photos
or videos or projects via bluetooth, whatssap, Fb, blogs or apps.
•Use
as a
research tool (for web-enabled devices)
•Make
voice
recordings and check your pronunciation.
***SELFIES? PHOTOS?
Recycle
the
vocabulary
you
practiced
in class
and exploit
your
speaking
skills
after
taking
pictures
of certain
things.
You
can extend
this
to higher
levels.
Ask them
to make
a small
project
during
a weekend
in order
to tell
a story
on
your
Monday
lesson.
*TASK 1: Take a photo of everything on a checklist. (e.g. 10 forms of transportation / food + make an audio note describing them)Take a photo of everything on a checklist. (e.g. 10 forms of transportation / food + make an audio note describing them)*TASK 2: Take a photo of 5 things that make you happy or sad and tell us why. -
5 places you
have
been
/ sports you have practised *TASK 3: Poster
project: Take 10 to 20 photos on the weekend (Then tell a story of your weekend / your family / your free time activities in class, etc )
***CREATE A MOVIE—For a more higher level. You can use a smartphone and you only need 1 per group.
Task
would
be: Interview a native speaker and ask
questions about their hometown (task can vary).
—Play a conversation and record it then upload the video to a blog, facebook group, or youtube, so that all the students can watch it.
—Get students to collect a bunch of photos and then use movie maker, using their voice for describing the picsture. You can check the videos at home or project the best ones in class.
—Play a conversation and record it then upload the video to a blog, facebook group, or youtube, so that all the students can watch it.
—Get students to collect a bunch of photos and then use movie maker, using their voice for describing the picsture. You can check the videos at home or project the best ones in class.
I'll share one of my students links again now:
This is Estefania's assignment. I really liked it because she added subtitles to it —https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mf2IaVT_orY
*** CAMERAROLL (Personalize their learning) Just to start the class and get them entertained ask them to take out their smartphones and show s3 to 5 pics to their friends.
1. Find a
photo
and tell
the
story.
2. Introduce someone from a photo.
3.
Select a photo and get your students to ask at least 5 questions about it.
4.
Give
3-5 words
(nouns) and ask students to try to find
them
in their
pictures, then
talk about it.
-----> This is a 5 - 10min
activity (countdowntimer), after that cellphones go back
to their
pockets.
This is Diana Hora, a senior executive from a big company and it is a 2 student class. I used the CAMERAROLL to activate their speaking skills
In conclusion, M-learning is the new "trend", the new style to adopt in our teaching practice. it might take a while to incorporate this into our teaching but eventually we will feel more connected with our students and what is better they will definitely improve their level of English.
Miss Siore.
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