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Saturday, March 17, 2012

Reading Blog #1

Hello There!
     As I was about to begin this new post, I was wondering which article you have selected as your first reading.   So as the articles may be different, it would be hard for me to ask specific questions.  For that reason, I decided to write some prompts that may help you write something about the article that you selected.  Write the title of the chapter/reading you selected, and feel free to use one or more of the prompts to write ideas about what you read.

1. Select a part from your reading that you liked. What made you pick it? How does it make you pause and think?
2. What are the two most important ideas from what you read?
3. What has been the most interesting part of your reading?
4. What is something you’ve learned from your reading?
5. What was going through your mind as you read?
Well, that's all for now.

See you in class

14 comments:

  1. Nowadays we are living in a technological society, a human being who does not have cellular, computers, access to internet o any related devise maybe is not part of the new tendencies who is demanding people involve in technological environment useful for them or just for pleasure.
    The technology as media to get our projects or goals affects us in a general way and our culture, economical situation, lifestyle, and of course education.
    New generation are growing with technology everywhere, at home, in the television, Nintendo stores, even schools, they already know lot of things about how to handle this kind of tools. For example a 1st graders students to 6th graders ones are in the school with cell phones, laptops , etc and is there where we as teachers must take advantages of that to make our classes more dynamics ,and why not different than before.
    I agree, with the point that says that we need focused on understanding of good pedagogy and the relationship among teaching, learning, and technology; is necessary to cover this three aspects because we couldn’t have a good technological resource if we do not know use it, or in the other hand teaching without learning even thought having all the technology available.
    Nowadays, in Panama MEDUCA is training teachers in technology to start with a new way to teach using a useful tool as computer is, and now students can get their ones, so that teachers as well as students can work together without excuses that do not have the necessary resource to respond to the new demands in the learning-teaching process.

    ReplyDelete
  2. My reaction about Computer-Enhanced Language Learning Environments, well, I consider it is a very interesting topic, because now days it is important to know about technology and how technology can help us as teachers and also to our students with the development of the English language in our ESL and EFL classrooms. As we know, we are living in changing world where the technology is growing everyday and this is the biggest reason we have to know about computers and technology and also the technical language to manage them. Talking about myself, I know that there is a necessity to know about computer because I have this necessity and I want it, and the theory of computer-assisted language learning provides us a framework for teaching and learning with technology. The language learning theory and the learning environment, accept that language acquisition is the result of some kind of cognitive mechanism and environmental factors, that I consider they depend of how or where a learner acquires the language with any of both variables and each type of learner, also the environment whether nature or nurture is important in the acquisition of additional languages, the classroom environment is a critical component because it can mediate between the learner and macro environmental variables, to understand better it is the essential business of the language teacher. Other important things are the conditions for optimal language learning environment where there are eight different conditions Well I would like to say that the eight learning conditions presented are very important and interesting to me, even that CALL’s research dos not tell which one is the best method of using computer in the language learning classroom, I consider that all of them are very important because now I have an idea of what to do whenever I’m going to work with an ESL or EFL classroom using technology, because now I know different methods from CALL’s research about the use of technology which is the tool to teach in a learning language classroom now days to improve the second language acquisition and have our students ready, well prepared to face the unknown future.

    ReplyDelete
  3. My initial reaction to this article was to know the importance of the computer-enhanced language learning environment; we live in a world full of technology which people even our little children are using all kinds of technology as internet, blackberries, multimedia, chat room, e-mail, etc. so in our classroom we need to understand the relation among teaching, learning, and technology and how to use it and apply it in our class as technology streamlines teaching and learning process and enencourages the student engages in activities to develop in class. For this reason it is said that the use of computers is one of the most important developments. And with the computer-assisted language learning (CALL) we can evaluate how students learn with different kinds of technology.
    Something I learned from this article and that every teacher should know was understanding and creating optimal language learning environment. There are some conditions which we can use in our technological language classroom: the social process is a good way to interact with other people, and it’s necessary in second language development, the interaction in the target language with authentic audience facilitate language acquisition, but not just interaction, the learners should be involve in authentic task in order to have cognitive challenges as complicated real-world tasks do. So when learners are exposed to real task in target language the encouraged to produce varied and creative language that means that they produce languages skills and we have to determine the time that we are going to give to each learner to they say their opinion.
    I have been this reading interesting because show us the importance of some learning conditions that we have to apply in the language classroom and provide us some strategies to use in class given the opportunities students interact in English using the technology.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Grimelda M. de Alderman. Reading Reaction
    Article # 2 - CALL Environment: An Overview
    The initial reaction to this article was that the Educational system cannot stay behind the new technology but later on I started thinking about the situation of the education here in Panama. Therefore, in my opinion, what is written in this article would be the ideal situation for an ESL learner in the ideal CALL environment, but we have to think about the following condition that must be taken into account in order to determine if this new environment is going to fulfill the expectation for the adequate learning environment in our country:
    • Students’ attitude toward the new technology.
    • New technology requires new skills and abilities.
    • Real life meaningful interaction.
    • Educators’ attitude toward the new technology and
    the CALL environment.
    • The same level of opportunities for most of the students in this environment.
    • The fact that, in the CALL environment the main focus must be in learning a language, not in the use of the new technology. Because this is just used as a tool in the learning process.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Rosa C. de Adames
    March 24th, 2012
    By Joy Egbert, Chin-chi Chao, and Elizabeth Hanson-Smith
    Computer-Enhanced Language Learning Environments: An Overview

    The section of the reading that I like the most was the formula to gain knowledge and skill for the future because, even if I thought about it before, I never gathered those variables in such a way. And it is very important since the strength or lack of any of those variables can strongly affect the acquisition of the target language.
    Teachers, therefore, must use computer assisted language learning (CALL) to improve interaction of students, to increase opportunities to encounter variety and creative language; to undergo a mindful process of language acquisition, and to interact with authentic audience.
    I share the author belief: teachers must understand the relationship among teaching, learning and technology for a good pedagogy education. Teachers are in charged to understand and create good language learning environment.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Rosa C. de Adames
    March 31st, 2012
    By Joy Egbert
    Classroom Practice: Creating Interactive CALL Activities

    After reading this chapter, I confirmed the fact that there are a lot of different ways to create interactive activities using Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL)
    What I belief is needed, is to face the challenge and take the opportunity to learn more about this subject, and actually put “hands on” activity to develop the skills necessary to handle such situations and programs.
    What goes through my mind as I read this chapter is that most of the professional education community in our country is not conscious about the wide range of activities/programs that there are just to be carried out by them.
    Interactions within students of the same classes or the same or different schools, interactions among local or international community members provide the learners with an authentic audience for more productive process of language acquisition and enhance the develop of the target language of the learner.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Computer-Enhanced Language Learning Environments: An Overview

    After reading this article, I consider that there are many reasons for using CALL in teaching, because we live in technological environment. It provides many resources and tools to educators in order to improve the use of technology effectively in their classrooms.
    The most important ideas about it topic are that CALL provides motivation, independence and authentic material for the students. Besides, the interaction with other people it is necessary in learning a second language because the students learn new words and pronunciation.
    The most interesting part of the reading is the conditions of learning environment because we as future teacher have an overview about how to support optimal classroom learning.
    I learned about this topic that educators have to use the technology in their teaching learning- process in order to prepare students for technological future.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Reading blog #2
    Classroom Practice: Creating Interactice CALL Activities.

    The most relevant point of this article is the importance of social interaction of the language learning environment. It is very important that teachers can design task so that students can use their current proficiency level to function in authentic material. In that way learners grow into activity that has meaning for them.
    The most relevant part of this article is that the quality of interaction is important and often takes careful planning on the part of the teacher. They need a guideline in order to help them to ensure learners engage in high-quality social interaction.
    Teachers have considered that technology it is a good tool for teaching and learning process. It facilitates the communication and sharing. It also, gives new opportunities to students to be more productive and to have educational excellence.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Reading blog #1
    Computer-Enhanced Language Learning Environments: An Overview

    After reading this article, I consider that there are many reasons for using CALL in teaching, because we live in technological environment. It provides many resources and tools to educators in order to improve the use of technology effectively in their classrooms.
    The most important ideas about it topic are that CALL provides motivation, independence and authentic material for the students. Besides, the interaction with other people it is necessary in learning a second language because the students learn new words and pronunciation.
    The most interesting part of the reading is the conditions of learning environment because we as future teacher have an overview about how to support optimal classroom learning.
    I learned about this topic that educators have to use the technology in their teaching learning- process in order to prepare students for technological future.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Reading Reaction 2: Classroom Practice: Creating Interactive CALL Activities.
    In my opinion, creating interactive CALL activities for an EFL classroom is something that should be implemented in the schools from elementary to college, of course, with the adequate adaptation for each level. Something that called my attention about this article is the fact that there exist a lot of activities through which students can learn not only the target language but also they can develop others attitudes and abilities. Attitudes and abilities such as being proactive, cooperative, creative, critical, generate new ideas, sharing opinions, negotiation, as well as cooperative work, taking decisions and solving problems. But, unfortunately, non- of these can happen if there is not an adequate planning and equipment to fulfill the necessary requirements to develop CALL activities; but the most important of all is that the educator or facilitator also has to fulfill a series of requirements or skills in the new tech, to be able to implement such kind of class activities in order to be successful and reach the traced objectives.
    Therefore, educators must be well trained to integrate the CALL activities in the process of learning a foreign language in a foreign environment and at the same time deal with the students’ attitude toward the new technology. The teacher has to know when he or she can use the CALL activities because there are going to be some lessons that can be more successful using this kind of activities and some others that not much, besides; the educator must know how to organize and apply the CALL activities to achieve the objectives. Also, the educator has to be aware of some of the students’ attitudes toward the new tech and change it to a more intelligent way to use technology, it means, teach the students how to use the new tech to help them build up their own knowledge. Due to, many students think that internet and the new tech is just for social network, entertainment, cheating information like cutting and pasting, and using a translator to do their school assignments.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Reading Reaction 2: Classroom Practice: Creating Interactive CALL Activities.
    In my opinion, creating interactive CALL activities for an EFL classroom is something that should be implemented in the schools from elementary to college, of course, with the adequate adaptation for each level. Something that called my attention about this article is the fact that there exist a lot of activities through which students can learn not only the target language but also they can develop others attitudes and abilities. Attitudes and abilities such as being proactive, cooperative, creative, critical, generate new ideas, sharing opinions, negotiation, as well as cooperative work, taking decisions and solving problems. But, unfortunately, non- of these can happen if there is not an adequate planning and equipment to fulfill the necessary requirements to develop CALL activities; but the most important of all is that the educator or facilitator also has to fulfill a series of requirements or skills in the new tech, to be able to implement such kind of class activities in order to be successful and reach the traced objectives.
    Therefore, educators must be well trained to integrate the CALL activities in the process of learning a foreign language in a foreign environment and at the same time deal with the students’ attitude toward the new technology. The teacher has to know when he or she can use the CALL activities because there are going to be some lessons that can be more successful using this kind of activities and some others that not much, besides; the educator must know how to organize and apply the CALL activities to achieve the objectives. Also, the educator has to be aware of some of the students’ attitudes toward the new tech and change it to a more intelligent way to use technology, it means, teach the students how to use the new tech to help them build up their own knowledge. Due to, many students think that internet and the new tech is just for social network, entertainment, cheating information like cutting and pasting, and using a translator to do their school assignments.

    ReplyDelete
  12. After reading this article, I consider that there are many reasons for using CALL in teaching, because we live in technological environment. It provides many resources and tools to educators in order to improve the use of technology effectively in their classrooms.
    The most important ideas about it topic are that CALL provides motivation, independence and authentic material for the students. Besides, the interaction with other people it is necessary in learning a second language because the students learn new words and pronunciation.
    The most interesting part of the reading is the conditions of learning environment because we as future teacher have an overview about how to support optimal classroom learning.
    I learned about this topic that educators have to use the technology in their teaching learning- process in order to prepare students for technological future.

    ReplyDelete
  13. After reading this article, I consider that there are many reasons for using CALL in teaching, because we live in technological environment. It provides many resources and tools to educators in order to improve the use of technology effectively in their classrooms.
    The most important ideas about it topic are that CALL provides motivation, independence and authentic material for the students. Besides, the interaction with other people it is necessary in learning a second language because the students learn new words and pronunciation.
    The most interesting part of the reading is the conditions of learning environment because we as future teacher have an overview about how to support optimal classroom learning.
    I learned about this topic that educators have to use the technology in their teaching learning- process in order to prepare students for technological future.

    ReplyDelete
  14. My reaction on Computer-Enhanced language learning environment. We are living in a world of constantly changes.One of them is the use of technological innovations. We live and use technology everyday. It is a reality, that in our days children handle technology better than adult people, because they are not afraid to use a computer, a nintendo a cell, etc.
    For many reason, it is important than educators be well-trained on how to use this tool and introduce the technology in their classes in order to teach their students and get them more involved in the learning process.
    Also, the environment, plays an important role because it must be appropriate for teaching and learning. A good environment permits interaction, ask questions, analyze and perform, be creative and use the technology. It will permit them be more independent, because each student has his/her own interest.
    The use of tecnology in education is a very interesting topic. I think, the use of technology, gives teachers and students more opportunities to learn and be creative in the classroom, develops skills, knowledges and gives more experiences to them.

    ReplyDelete