The role of WeQuests in learning a foreign/second language

 

What is Webquest?

        Bernie Dodge defined the webquest as “An inquiry-oriented activity in which some or all of the information that learners interact with comes from resources on the internet, optionally supplemented with videoconferencing.” a webquest provides a means of supplying to students a topic-oriented hotlist of web sites as a starting point for gathering information. Usually webquest are group activities with an end goal of creating a document that collects, summarizes and synthesizes the information gathered. A webquest is clearly structured into components which include:

1- Introduction (Why do this activity).

2- Tasks (What is supposed into accomplished).

3- Process (How to go about it).

4- Evaluative/concluding section.

     Webquests tend to be student-oriented and collaborative, with students engaged in constructivist activities resulting in shared learning experiences and new knowledge. The teacher can upload the tasks (activities) and the students can access to the webquest and complete the task. The task should promote the use of target language and use the authentic materials.

The webquest foster cooperative and collaborative learning. For example, the use of (MOOs) create (usually) text based virtual reality. MOOs is synchronous environment in which users interact in real time with specific roles and conventions. In moods can add graphical elements, audio capabilities and 3-D recently has been added.

    For the future of ESL students in Saudi Arabia I hope to use webquests with the students but that require some criteria such as available of a good internet (wireless) in the school. And make introduction for the use of webquest for the entire learner to be clear to them.



Web Site Evaluation..

 

        There are a huge numbers of website that related to teaching and learning English as a second and foreign language. One of this website is URL: (http://a4esl.org/). It is a website to help students to learn (EFL) and (ESL). It contents many activities, quizzes and other exercisers with different level. In addition it includes multilingual language such as Arabic, English, Chinese and Dutch to facilitate to the learners around the world to access to the website.   

      The website content clear purpose and theme that is give Quizzes, tests, exercises and puzzles to help learners to learn English as (ESL) and (EFL). All the information provided to the student on the website is accurate and all requirements of the assignment have been met. The website has attractive layout that attractive and usable. The elements organize the make the use of website easy. Also, it contents multilingual languages in a field of quizzes, vocabulary and grammar with different levels for each. The link content is high quality and credible site. In addition, the background of the website consistent across pages and does not readability. It content full of color that can be attract the reader but that can be make difficult to some people who have some problems  in his/her eyes. The font style and size are good and easy to read and appropriately for heading and text. The website didn’t content any graphic, images and sound and that negative thing in the website because picture and sound play the important role in attractive the students to use the website. For examples, in the picture site the students can learn vocabulary when match the word with the correct images, also, the learners can learn throughout the sound by listening to the certain conversation or words. However, in the website there is no error in spelling, punctuation or grammar in the final draft.

       Finally from our point of view, the website is good but need some improve. So we suggest that the website need to add:

1- Advertisement and pictures or animations.

2- Feedback.

3- Sound for (Listening skills).

Wordle

 

Interactive Language Learning on the Web

Reflection:

           The wealth of information available on the Web affords teachers and learners access to language learning resources like never before. Both of teachers and students can found materials for language learning. The Web-based language learning activities is quite attractive to both instructors and learners. Also, the teachers can design own interactive web based languages learning activities.

   

        You can find a lot of online exercise, lessons , games and quizzes. There are many advantages of creating own Web-Based Language Learning Activities.

1- Accessibility: Access to course information, and updates to Web pages and new assignments are immediately available to students.

2- Renewability: Once created, materials can be updated easily and often.

3- Adaptability: Web-based activities can easily be modified to support students at different proficiency levels or with special needs.

 

        For many teachers there are some difficulties in Creating Web-Based Activities:

1-They do not have the technical skill and knowledge to do so.

2- Although creating simple Web-based activities requires no more than basic HTML skills, many teachers lack even this.

3-The fact that most teachers do not have any time to devote to gaining these new skills.

4-The variability of students' access to computers.

 

     In addition, teaching on the Web contains many skills like:

1-Vocabulary practice.

2- Grammar lessons.

3-Comprehension exercises, reading and writing tasks.

4- Even pronunciation exercises can be put on the Web and made interactive in a variety of ways.

 

        Reading and Writing Skills With Discussion Boards and Weblogs. Discussing online boarder is a helpful way to hold class interactive. Dave's ESL Café provides many examples of this kind of activity (teachers can post a question or subject to start the discussion, and every response is displayed on the board.).Online discussion boards like those at Dave's ESL Café can be created easily using :

* Common Gateway Interface (CGI) script and HTML.

* Another way by using Weblog or blog. Students can set up their own free Web sites using these tools. They can create Weblogs quickly and easily using a basic Weblog host like Blogger or Pitas.

 

         Vocabulary and Grammar Exercises with JavaScript. Games and exercises designed to help students learn new vocabulary are easily put on the Web.

* French course, words or phrases are matched with definitions.

*David Kenosian, created a vocabulary matching exercise that provides correction and feedback.

       Both Fucaloro's and Kenosian's exercises were created with JavaScript. JavaScript was also used to create Tex's French Grammar, from the University of Texas at Austin, which provides extensive grammar explications, a verb tutor and conjugator, and grammar practice exercises. Any online form used for interactive activities such as quizzes and vocabulary and grammar exercises will require either a CGI script or JavaScript. JavaScript is an information collection and feedback tool that is used to make Web pages interactive. JavaScript Forum :

1-  provides many such tutorials and an assortment of free scripts to copy.

2-A free JavaScript package that enables users to create a variety of online, interactive activities is available at HotPotatoes Half Baked Software.

3- Also provides tutorials on how to use the software

 

       Listening Comprehension and Pronunciation Practice with RealAudio such as fill-in-the-gap exercises done while listening to audio, transfer nicely to the Web. John's ESL/EFL Resources has several listening comprehension exercises created with RealAudio and JavaScript.

 *Students first predict answers to questions about a subject by completing a multiple-choice JavaScript form.

*Then listen to an audio piece and check their work.

1-Audio clips: can be put into Web pages to provide exercises for listening comprehension, pronunciation practice, and vocabulary development.

2-Audio files: must be put into an appropriate format, such as MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface), and then put on a Web page.

    

      Online Assessment with HTML Forms and CGI Script. Online exercises that use JavaScript are limited in their interactivity in that they can only provide a way for students to check their own answers. John's ESL/EFL Resources provides a good example of this type of assessment tool on the Web. Students take an ESL word-form quiz and submit their answers to the Web site. The answers go via email to the instructor, who can correct the work and send feedback directly to the student.

 

 

 

Digital Natives and Digital Immigrants

 

a.       Who are Digital Immigrant teachers and Digital Native students as categorized by the author?

           Digital Native students:  By Marc Prensky digital native refer to the students today all "Native Speakers" of the digital language of computers, video games and the internet.

           Digital Immigrant teacher: The people who doesn't born in digital world become smitten by the digital and adopted many of the new technology.  

b.       List down 3 differences between Digital Immigrant teachers and Digital Native students?

* Digital Immigrant teachers:

1-  Prefer slow and controlled release of information from limited sources.

2- Prefer singular processing and single or limited tasking.

3- Prefer to provide text before pictures, sounds and video.

* Digital Native students:

1- Prefer to interact/network simultaneously with many others.

2- Prefer receiving information quickly from multiple multimedia sources.

3-  Prefer learning that is relevant, instantly useful and fun.

c.       What is meant by Digital immigrant accent? List down three examples of “digital immigrant accents.”?

      The digital immigrant accent includes going slowly, going step-by-step, using outlines for organization, reading manuals, going to the internet second rather than first. Digital natives find this accent and approach very hard to deal with.

Examples:

1- Printing out your E-mail.

2- Print out a document written on the computer in order to edit it.
3- Bring people physically into your office to see an interesting website.

d.       According to the author, hat is the biggest serious problem facing education today?

       According to the Marc Prensky the biggest problem facing education today is " our Digital Immigrant instructors, who speak an outdated language ( That of the pre-digital age), are struggling to teach a population that speaks an entirely new language.

e.       “Should the Digital Natives learn the old way, or should their Digital Immigrants learn the new?”

          Of course some people still learn in the old ways, teach brilliantly in the old paradigms, are not TV watchers, are totally bilingual, and the like. However, the student and educator cultures that I call Digital Natives and Digital Immigrants are not only different in their languages and approaches, but diverge farther every day. From point of view it seem impossible. Few instructors today are comfortable with the languages and implications of blogs, multimedia, massive multiplayer, online games, instant messaging, "moddling" smart and alternative realities.

f.       What should the Digital Immigrant educators really want to reach Digital Natives?

          Digital Immigrant educators they should confront this issue. All their students – they will have to change. It's high time for them to stop their grousing, and as the Nike motto of the Digital Native generation says, “Just do it!” They will succeed in the long run – and their successes will come that much sooner if their administrators support them.

Blog, wiki and delicious used in Saudi context

      Social bookmarking is a way for people to accumulate, categorize, find and control information from web pages on the Internet. Users save links to their favorite and most useful web pages , in order to remember information. I think creating account in the websites as  blogger, Wiki and delicious it will be as a resource for teachers who are interested in having a classroom in websites. There is no a doubt using websites for EFL learning can help learners to improve English language skills. This new methods in learning are effective and can make the EFL learner more interesting in learning.

Blogger:

    What is a blogger?

     Blogs are increasingly touted for their potential to foster online interaction and resource sharing in the field of education. They support a wide range of applications as a simple online publishing system, as personal and collaborative knowledge management tools, and to support instruction.



     In EFL learning in Saudi context, the teacher can ask students to make task and publishing in blogger. In this way the teacher can notice the weakness students  in the grammar and writing skills. In addition, Blogger can facilitate the teachers to communicate with their students.

Wiki:

What is wiki?

      Wiki is a piece of server software that allows users to freely create and edit Web page content using any Web browser. Wikis serve many different purposes, such as knowledge management and note taking .

      Wiki can use in education EFL classroom. The wiki has proved to be a useful avenue for sharing information and learning from one  another. The famous questions that  people ask is how wikis can be used in classrooms? The simple answer is that we having many ways for examples:

1- Teachers and students can share the information , power points and presentation with each others.

 2- Create in online text for the classroom.

3- Create digital portfolios for students and teachers.

4- Have your students use a wiki to publish information about a topic that they are investigating.
Actually, There are many ways to use wiki in EFL classroom. And the most important that teachers should encourage the student and learn them to use it.

Delicious:

What is delicious?

      Is an internet site designed to allow you access to any website that you bookmark, no matter what computer you are using. Delicious allows you to access you information  and find your websites .Delicious is one of the most popular tools available, taking you through the basics of setting up and organizing your account and the various ways of using it within learning and teaching.

1-The EFL Saudi learners can use delicious in many ways:

2-The ability to add classmate in delicious and share many information with each others

3-The ability to add favorite links related to specific courses.

4-The choice to tag specific words to make your research within an article easier.

5-Teachers can add to the delicious account specific websites that they want the students to access as part of a homework of work-based assignment. The students can be encouraged to build a delicious-based group of links as part of their assignment submission.

            Finally, there is no a doubt bookmarking can help the learner to learn. It a new ways and facilitates the learning. Using websites can introduce teachers and EFL learners to develop competence in using social bookmarking tools. 

 

Reflecting in reading 3

The possibility of Reaching Bax's Normalization on our saudi context: Why is it possible? When

is it possible/reached/achieved?How will it be reached?

      Bax's offer tha history of CALL( computer-assisted language learning). He is suggested that we are currently using open call but "Our aim should be to attain a state of normalisation in which the technology is invisible and truly interated"

 

Normalization is indeed possible to use computer for genuine communication rele for CALL.We can use technology in our language learning. Bax's mention that CALL has been devided into three phasis.CALL will be normalization when the computer become part and parcel of our daily life. By using  the computer every day by the teacher in our school life . The teacher should be explain the lesson by using computer e.x project. Also, should encourage the learner to learn by using computer ( Technology in general). There is no prblems if the teacher learn them how to use computer?All we know it is not eassy process,and the both teachers and students maybe will face many obstacless but they should be overcome.

.

   In Saudi Arabia we don't use technology a lot for teaching in school teachers use traditional way in teaching but in college and university the teachers use technology more.

I hope that in the future Saudi arabic it will be the one of the most countries that using technology in teaching especially in language.They can achieve that by encourage the learners to use the common website in learning more rather than entertainment (social network) For examples, twitter and facebook.Also, computer should be available in classroom. The important parts teacher should know how to use competer and tell the learner why we using the technology  in learning and the benifit of it.

Finally,There is no a doubt these days, using technology is play the important role in teaching and learning. it is a new style. The learners can enjoy while learning and the teachers represent the lesson by new and advanced ways. It makes the learning interesting and motivate them to learn more.   .