Final Technology project: Engaging ELL English proficiency in a technology-rich, investigative language task

   Within the ESL classroom when implemented wisely, technology can truly innovative students' learning experience and enhance their acquisition and practice of the English language. Different technological resources allow ELLs to discover the language to new extents as it exposes them to the aspects, usage, and lexicon of English through diverse approaches.  I constructed my ESL technology-rich lesson plan to involve the elements of online research, virtual environments, and peer collaboration.  I intend for this lesson to promote several fundamental learning criteria.  
   This lesson will grant my students the opportunity to learn how to operate the Google Maps web tool.  They will become familiar with how to customize and navigate a Google map.  The activity that the lesson is tied to requires the ELLs to explore New York City (mainly Manhattan) on Google Maps, in order to select three major sites of interest on which they will have to conduct a brief online research.  Their online research will be limited to the specific information that is needed to satisfactorily answer five listed objective questions.  Prior to the students initiating their virtual endeavor, I will first display the process of opening, managing, and sharing the Google Map on my personal laptop along with a projector and screen.  I will demonstrate the steps to operating the controls (zooming, rotating, moving) and to setting landmarks with commentary by inserting push pins.  Each group will be requested to confirm their three sites of interest, in order to avoid conflict.
   The presentation of this lesson on the Google spreadsheet was organized according to the scale of emphasis I have placed on the skills and knowledge that will be acquired throughout the lesson.  I began by introducing the component of student production.  I consider this to be one of the chief aspects of the lesson since it challenges the  the ELLs to apply their current English competence along with the new content they will learn through research (data of NYC touristic sites), in order to construct valid responses.  They are to develop their responses in a genuine and concise manner, articulating through their own language proficiency (copy and paste shall be rejected), the variety of researched information corresponding to their selected sites.  The research will be guided by the five objective questions that were designed to assure that relevant and sufficient information is obtained about each touristic site for it to be promoted.
   The next component that is displayed is the area of evaluation. The ELLs will be evaluated based on the several facets of participation, effort , and production that the lesson will demand of them.  The collective learning experience includes reflecting on which search engine and webpages to consult, reading various sources of data, and being exposed to new terms/uses of language related to New York City and the chosen sites of interest.  As a responsive teacher, I will be aware of which students are actively participating in the assigned activity and those that are not.  The third area of importance is communication.  The lesson activity establishes the environment for the students to interact, exchange ideas, and work in unison to achieve a common goal.  Each student will be working at his/her own computer (adjacent to each other).  Therefore in the time that the class period provides, they should be able to complete the lesson task. In order to accomplish this however, the students must delegate the research and work so that each individual is concentrating on a different touristic site to complete.  Nonetheless, since all the participation of this task revolves around the internet and the virtual setting of Google Maps, if any of the students do not complete the assignment before the end of class they can continue their work individually on their computer or the media center after school. 
   The following area of analysis concerns the underlying processing and distinguishing of legitimate information that the ELLs will have to do. From the multiple sources of data that the students will browse, they must be able to judge which information is accurate, relevant, and of reliable origin        (Official NYC website versus independent publisher, blog).  As previously mentioned, the students are not allowed to simply copy and paste the online information that addresses the objective question.  Therefore, they must analyze how to restate the information in a effective and concise way, using their own words.
   The last category shown in the spreadsheet is the factor of access to technology.  Despite the fact that this is the last section on the spreadsheet, the presence of the technological resources that are utilized are without question the backbone this lesson.  The element of technology is what practically allows this lesson to be carried out in the first place.  Through access to the technological services and devices offered in the media center, the students are able to discover and apply the potential of technology toward their learning experience.  The ELLs will learn to manage  technology in a multi-fuctional manner that facilites their research process, writing endeavors, and acquisition of new language and academic content. As the instructor, my access to technology is also fundamental for me to demonstrate the lesson instructions and evaluate the students' work. The presence of tools such as  my laptop, internet connection, plagiarism detection software, a Google account/Google maps, and the projector/screen all play a vital role in allowing this lesson to be imparted successfully.
   In conclusion, I am confident that if this lesson plan were to be conducted it would effectively engage the students in a dynamic learning experience in which technology will transform the knowledge and skills that are required by the curriculum. By implementing these technology-based strategies and activities into my instruction, I hope it has the lasting effect of awakening my students' awareness and curiosity for the potential of technology for exploring the English language and achieving everyday endeavors.

The link to the Google spreadsheet is: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AuwMUFKQz3bNdFZNVzJNUlFKdkdraUV5TWhzM0ZELUE

Will e-readers/tablets soon replace physical books?

   When I first became aware of the invention of electronic reader's and tablets I was fascinated at how practical and versatile they were, especially when it came to storing reading content.  However, I assumed that these new devices were not going to pose a significant threat to traditional printed media immediately, since it would take widespread sales and time for people to adopt such a drastic change.  I was proved wrong when I realized that e-readers/tablets quickly became quite affordable and the public had rapidly embraced digital reading content over printed material.  This rapid turn of events has given  rise to the debate over whether printed literacy media (especially novels and textbooks) will soon be supplanted by digital literacy media.  My brother and I have had this debate several times as we continue to recognize the prevalence of e-readers/tablets in society and how digital versions of reading content have practically become second nature in the arena of publications. 
   Now day, readers have access to an ever-increasing variety of literacy media ranging from novels, newspapers, magazines, and recently even textbooks.  Large bookstore companies such as Barnes & Noble have suffered unprecedented losses in sales due to the common reader's  preference to now download new reading content on to their e-readers/tablets. Barnes & Noble in particular has even introduced its own tablet product to compensate for sales losses caused by other tablet brands.  As a college student, if I had the option of downloading all my textbooks onto my mobile reading device, I would absolutely choose this alternative over having to carry heavy loads of books to class.  Regarding the public school classroom, if all textbooks were made available in digital versions it would certainly alleviate the problem of students receiving or returning books in destitute conditions.
   What do you believe will occur to novels, textbooks, and other printed media in the years to come? 

Multiple uses for Google Earth in the classroom

   Recently in my READ-411 course, our instructor revealed how the functions of Google Maps/Earth can be employed into classroom learning.  The satellite transmitted virtual imaging of Google Earth allows one to view an accurate and detailed setting of any location of in our planet!  By adjusting the magnification controls, one can obtain a street view of any neighborhood/city and familiarize one's self with the street names and infrastructure, all from your computer screen.  A web resource like this is ideal for when someone wishes to orient his/herself beforehand with the landscape and surroundings of a future travel destination.
   In relation to classroom instruction, there are several potential uses that can be derived from such a dynamic tool.  In a history or geography course, the instructor can create a shared map for his/her class and set landmarks with embedded commentary (using the insert push-pin option), in order to virtually display the regions/sites of importance that are being discussed in the class lesson.  The same approach can be taken for an English, Music, or Art class in which authors, composers, or artists from distinct parts of the world are being studied and perhaps their place of origin has significantly influenced their work.  For ESL instruction, I would take advantage of the aspect that my students are likely from different nations that can be widely represented on a Google map.
To formulate a genuine learning experience involving language practice and exposure to technology, I would have each student revisit his/her former area of residence in their home country.  The students will have the opportunity to virtually revisit their city/village of origin, to explore sites that bring back lucid memories, and realize if any changes have taken place since they emigrated to this nation.  The assignment tied to this activity would require the ELLs to write a descriptive essay.  The guidelines of this writing task would request each student to provide a brief orientation of the geographical area (nation, province, city/village, natural landscape), to mention sites of historical/community importance, to share particular memories related to places they viewed, and to reflect on the usefulness of Google Maps/Earth in allowing them to virtually revisit their homeland. This is only one of potentially several strategies that can be generated using this versatile Google resource.    

Technologies in the classroom at teacher's expense

      During the teacher interview on NETS that I conducted for the last interactivity, a eye-opening issue came to my attention.  As I was being informed of how in the school where the interview took place, there are scarcely sufficiently technological resources and initiatives being implemented, the teacher also mentioned how certain instructors have decided to purchase technology devices for their classroom from their own personal funds.       
     Moreover, he admitted how they surely will not be compensated for providing these resources at their own expense if the administration doesn't recognize the purchased element as crucial for instruction.
This insight I gained from the interview caused me to deeply contemplate this issue of purchasing class materials from one's own budget.  Despite, the fact that I was aware that teachers are occasionally requested to purchase some materials from their own pocket, the matter of possibly proceeding to buy a useful resource for my class and afterward not being compensated for it, is one of real concern for me.  I believe that these flaws in classroom funding and support are what discourage potentially effective teachers from pursuing a career in education.  Teachers who wish to provide their pupils with new materials and technological elements are faced with the situation of compromising their personal financial means in order to do so.  In certain cases, a teacher simply cannot afford to purchase an efficient resource even if he/she is willing to pay from his/her own funds and not be compensated for it.
     After pondering all this and reflecting how many teachers nonetheless, sacrifice part of their personal funds to grant their students access to modern technology, I couldn't help but to feel a tremendous sense of admiration for them.  Educators like them, set an example of selfless commitment to improving their students' learning experience.  Unfortunately, since lack of funding for innovative resources is becoming increasingly prevalent, these noble educators are being taken to the limit in what they can offer their students.  If I were in the position of these teachers, I cannot claim that I would also undertake such an act of generosity.  However, I would actively advocate the important benefits of implementing serviceable technology to enrich course content and instruction.  I also would definitely use the technologies that are at my disposition (Ex- TV, VCR, Media center) in innovative ways to captivate my students' interest and participation.  In doing this I hope to prove that proper application of technologies can indeed make a difference in student learning.   

Interactivity #5

   The school facility that I selected to conduct the necessary teacher interview regarding the NETS-S/T standards was my former high school in the North Bergen district.  There in North Bergen high school, I was able to contact an ESL teacher with whom I had carried out a previous class observation. This teacher has been teaching in the ESL field in North Bergen for a substantial number of years now, therefore has witnessed firsthand if technology has gained presence within the ESL curriculum & high school throughout the years.  A few days prior to our meeting I had provided him with a copy of both the NETS-S/T standards via e-mail.  The professor admitted to have been quite oblivious that national standards regarding the implementation of technology even existed!  He shared how he supports many of the initiatives that these standards request for schools to fulfill, however he honestly described how the high school and school district in general lack the technological resources and practices that the standards address. 
   Referring to questions 3 and 4, he stated that district-wise and within the high school itself he has noticed modest indications that some aspects of the NETS-S/T are progressively being acknowledged.  He conveyed how within the high school there is a media center which grants students' timed access to online & other computer-mediated resources.  Installed on all of these computers is a surveillance software which impedes access to inappropriate/disapproved websites. The media center is a formidable source of technology for the students.  Nonetheless, due to its limited size compared to the tremendous student population of over 2000 and as a result of constant system failure (I recall this first hand), students rarely can take full advantage of this mean.  At the elementary school level, he mentioned how a particular school recently had a determined number of smart boards installed as an experimental initiative. 
    Besides these sporadic examples of technological application, the presence of technology integration has not been consistent and uniform, according to the interviewed teacher.  He shared that most of the classrooms do not have installed projectors for teachers/students to display visual media such as power point presentations. Any projector that is in use in a given class was most likely purchased by the instructor from his/her own budget.  It was surprising to realize how teachers would be willing to resort to this course of action due to the absence of necessary technology.  Technological application such as an online student portal for peer-tutoring and youth counseling or academic software designed to enrich understanding and engagement  in each different subject area, is still not actively practiced at the high school or district level.
   Comparing this high school and district's integration of technology to the concepts presented in the NETS-S/T, there are only certain areas in which the two would be in agreement.  Addressing section 5 of the NETS-S and section 4 of the NETS-T, the high school's educators and administrators definitely do an exceptional job of promoting and reinforcing safe, legal, and ethical use of technology, digital information (copyright) and social interactions related to technology. As previously mentioned, the surveillance software that is installed on every computer accessible to students restricts usage of this technology to serve solely for academic research purposes.  Teachers for some time have employed computer-based tools that detect plagiarism on written assignments. Regarding section III of the NETS-S, the ESL teacher I interviewed as well as many of his colleagues in other subject areas do assign tasks and projects that require online involvement.  Research reports are only assigned in the superior  levels of the ESL program, but tasks that involve investigating specific online content for a class discussion/activity can be implemented in any of the levels.  
   Summarizing my teacher's responses for questions 6, 7, and 8 he believes that there must be a uniform application of technology along with education on the proper usage of it in order for the NETS-S/T to be genuinely implemented.  He views that along with the much needed technological equipment/initiatives, there must be a plan on how to make relevant use of the provided resources for the benefit of each student's learning experience.  He believes that the educators, administrators, and students must all  be trained to understand and operate  the functions and potential of technological resources in relation to their specific academic subject and endeavor.  As a prospective educator, I agree with this teacher's opinion.  I personally would address the issue to my fellow colleagues by first encouraging them to discover original ways in which we can utilize the technology resources that we do have available.  If successful in truly enhancing our student's engagement and performance through the innovation & integration of our current technologies, the results may validate requests for additional resources/ initiatives.  As my teacher stated in his answer for question 8, "There's still a long bridge to cross in order to reach an authentic integration of technology at our school. However, everybody should play their part in making sure that we do get there." 
 Link to modified spread sheet: 
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AuwMUFKQz3bNdHBpd1pHR3RZSXlZdWk1U2I3QWJJNWc#gid=0

 

The ambivalent role of electronic tanslators on language instruction

     In the field of foreign language & ESL instruction there are varied opinions about the usage of direct translation resources & their actual impact on student learning. The most commonly sought translation resource is the bilingual dictionary, which technology has enhanced in the form of electronic translators.  These devices are increasingly replacing printed bilingual dictionaries to a large extent due to their convenient sizes, instant translation searches, & often even multilingual databases. In the language learning classroom however, there is much debate about how high dependence on these facilitating instruments actually hinders language processing & comprehension skills. This is the dilemma presented in an online article I read which was published by an ESL instructor.
     When a language learner encounters unknown vocabulary in written or oral discourse in the language being acquired, he/she has the option of merely resorting to direct translation to obtain the word's immediate meaning  or otherwise of resourcefully applying decoding strategies to decipher the contained meaning.  Language learners can attempt to infer the meaning of an unfamiliar word by examining the context in which it appears & relating it to words he/she does know.  In addition, word construction, which includes affixes and root forms, is also conducive to revealing word meaning. When a student learns a new word, he/she must not dismiss the importance of concurrently learning how the word is used in real discourse.  Only through associating new words with their particular function & significance in communication the student will authentically internalize a word's fundamental meaning.
   Unfortunately as stated in the article, having electronic translators at their disposition frequently causes students to heavily rely on instant translation for understanding unfamiliar words, therefore leading them away from developing essential decoding skills . Furthermore, during classroom interaction & when practice activities are being done, students' dependency on referring to translation can turn quite disruptive both for the students' focus on the lesson theme & for the instructor's goal to proceed with the lesson. A viable approach to the issue would involve the instructor teaching essential vocabulary decoding strategies & afterwards reasonably limiting the use of the electronic translators.
   On my behalf I believe that translation devices, when operated in the ideal circumstances & setting, can be fairly beneficial to learning certain aspects of a word's meaning.  I feel that mainly when a student is just beginning to learn a language, occasionally translation can assist in acquiring the meaning of abstract concepts. However, once the learner starts to establish an operable language register, reference to translation should become less & less frequent.  The students by then should be capable of managing his/her gained language competence to infer word meaning through context & usage. 
    

Audio-recording devices: A college student's ally

     Throughout my entire college coursework, I have known students who diligently record their class lectures on audio-recording devices.  I have always considered this to be a wise act of active dedication to mastering academic material.  In spite of this, I personally have yet to take the initiative of bringing an audio-recorder to class. However, since I am currently taking a class, in which after having taken the mid-term exam I realized that the most essential notes were actually delivered orally, I am compelled to start using a recording device. Audio-recording devices are truly a rather basic technology that has existed for several decades. Unlike earlier versions which were bulky apparatuses that required a cassette to store content, modern audio-recorders come in slim sizes and have a built-in storage space.  One does not have to necessarily sit right in front of the teacher for the recording to come out at a decent volume.
     The advantages these devices extend to students include being able to store the oral development of their class meetings, in order to then replay it at their own pace and availability. This resource is ideal for lectures in which large quantities of important content are covered at a unreasonably accelerated pace.  It grants you the privilege of being able to revisit the main points of a class discussion & take elaborate notes at your leisure. This unquestionably rids you of the stress of having to frantically copy down sloppy notes that may even need to be rewritten. I have heard accounts involving audio-recorders in which the instructor forbids his/her pupils to record his/her class lectures.  As a future educator I disagree with this type of policy, yet I do understand why these teachers would be unwilling to have their voice recorded. My belief is that if my students will significantly attend to the class material and learn more efficiently by recording the class's oral content, then it is an approach worth trying.  I am aware however, that there is a risk involved since trouble-making individuals can proceed to use someone's voice for pranks using voice editing/altering software.