telecollaboration for language learning in secondary schools
TRANSCRIPT
TELECOLLABORATION FOR LANGUAGE LEARNING IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS
Shona WHYTE, Université Nice Sophia Antipolis, Nice, FranceLinda GIJSEN, Fontys University of Applied Sciences, Tilburg, Netherlands
promoting interaction in the EFL classroom via a blended teacher education course
New Directions in Telecollaborative Research and Practice:The Second Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education
Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
TELECOLLABORATION FOR LANGUAGE LEARNING IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS
promoting interaction in the EFL classroom via a blended teacher education course
1. overview of project2. EFL classroom outcomes3. teacher reflections
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
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TELECOLLABORATIVE RESEARCH
Telecollaborative research has focused on
learning about the target language culture (Kramsch, 2014)
understanding those from other cultures as a window on one’s own culture (Guth & Helm, 2010)
the mediating role of technology itself (Kern, 2014)
limitations and drawbacks of online communication
• technical constraints and problems
• artificial exchanges limited to personal registers (Hanna & de Nooy, 2009)
• unchallenging task design which fails to engage participants in genuine collaboration (Ware & O’Dowd, 2009)
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
OUR CONTRIBUTION
focus on language learning and use
teacher education for secondary school or vocational EFL contexts
task-based orientation in cognitivist-interactionist framework
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
1 OVERVIEW OF PROJECT
blended course using Google applications for synchronous and asychronous collaboration
a. teacher education courseb. participantsc. project tasks
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
1A THE COURSE
France: University of Nice/School of Education (ESPE)
12h course on technology for (language) teaching
second year Masters in Teaching English
9h/week teaching placement + academic/pedagogical training
Netherlands: Fontys University of Applied Sciences, Tilburg
8h course on technology in language teaching
second year Masters (open only to qualified teachers)
20h/week teaching positions
2014-15 pilot project: student teacher collaboration
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
COURSE ORGANISATION
preliminary group meeting: Adobe Connect/Skype (December)
initial tasks: video selfie presentation, Google community membership, enter teaching details on shared Google document (Christmas break)
creation of FR-NL teams: 3-5 teachers in 9 teams; shared folder on Google Drive; 6-8 week course (March-April)
weekly face-to-face class sessions in each country: group interactions - Google chat/hangout; one online session in France
final session to share teams’ results and reflections: synchronous video connection and separate presentations on each side
1B PARTICIPANTS
characteristics of student teacher groups in each country
pre-course questionnaire
attitudes to teaching/learning languages
view on technology for language teaching
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
PARTICIPANTS
characteristics of student teacher groups in each country
French: more homogeneous, younger, less (specific) training and teaching experience
Dutch: both younger and older participants, more (specific) training and more experienced teachers
pre-course questionnaire
attitudes to teaching/learning languages
view on technology for language teaching
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
PRE-COURSE QUESTIONNAIRE
online form
attitudes to teaching/learning languagesLightbown & Spada
views on technology for language teaching
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
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2
3
4
5
imita
tion
corr
ectio
n
intell
igenc
e
L1 in
terfe
renc
e
gram
mar
pra
ctice
gram
mar
sylla
bus
erro
r cor
rect
ion
grad
ed m
ater
ials
junky
dat
a
OVE
RALL
FRENCH DUTCH
LANGUAGE LEARNING & TEACHING BELIEFS
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
attitudes to teaching/learning languages Lightbown & Spada
1. Languages are learned mainly through imitation
11. Teachers should teach simple language structures before complex ones.
12 items 5-point Likert scale
misguided beliefs 5 = very traditional/outdated1 = very well-informed/up to date
1
2
3
4
5
imita
tion
corr
ectio
n
intell
igenc
e
L1 in
terfe
renc
e
gram
mar
pra
ctice
gram
mar
sylla
bus
erro
r cor
rect
ion
grad
ed m
ater
ials
"junk
y da
ta"
OVE
RALL
FRENCH DUTCH
LANGUAGE LEARNING & TEACHING BELIEFS
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
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2
3
4
5
sear
ch (s
elf)
seac
h (te
achin
g)
e-m
ail
LMS
inter
net
blog
audi
o re
cord
ing
video
reco
rding
slide
show
onlin
e he
lp
help
col
leagu
es
OVE
RALL
FRENCH DUTCH
TECHNOLOGICAL SELF-EFFICACY PERCEPTIONS
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
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6
personal skills technology for teachingorientation
OVERALL
4.334.384.234.38
3.934.053.7
4.05
FRENCH DUTCH
TECHNOLOGICAL SELF-EFFICACY PERCEPTIONS
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
PROJECT TASKS & DATA
Objectives for student-teachers:
share information about their learners
devise learning tasks involving interaction between learners in different countries
document instances of target language communication and learning.
Data:
student-teacher contributions during the course
the teaching and learning materials they designed
their reflection on the implementation of activities from a TBLT perspective.
2 EFL CLASSROOM OUTCOMES
promoting classroom interaction
a. teaching/learning activitiesb. task analysisc. learner productions
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
2A ACTIVITIES
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
TEAM INFORMATIONEXCHANGE COLLABORATION&PRODUCTCREATION
1 Learnersworkingroupstoexchangee-mails
2 Learnersinpairstoexchangee-mailswithself-selectedpartners
3 LearnersworkingroupstoexchangevideopresentaNonstoprepareandtakequizzes
finalquiz
4 Learnersexchangebye-mailtomakeandconfirmhotelreservaNons(tourismvocaNonaleducaNon)
5 Learnersworkingroupstoexchangee-mails(finalquiz/videopresentaNonsseparately)
6 Learnersworkinpairsbye-mailtoplanweekendinpartnercountry
7 Learnersworkingroupstoexchangee-mailstoworkonwriNngskills
8 LearnersworkingroupstocreatecommonproducNon digitalposter
9 LearnerscreateacollaboraNveshortstory,groupwork collaboraNvestories
O’Dowd & Ware 2009
2B TECHNOLOGY
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TEAM COMMUNICATION OTHERTECHNOLOGY
1 gmail Skype2 e-mail videoselfies3 learnervideo
4 e-mail YouTube
5 e-mail learnervideo
6 e-mail
7 e-mail digitalposterso`ware,ppt/Prezi
8 Padlet9 Googledocuments Padlet,website
2B TASK CRITERIA
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
TEAM MEANINGFOCUS
“GAP” LEARNERSRELYONOWNRESOURCES
OUTCOME/PRODUCT
1 No InformaNonexchange Yes,butpre-task finalleaer/e-mail,presentaNons
2 Yes InformaNonexchange Yes,butpre-task e-mailsummary(3mails)
3 Yes Reasoninggap Yes,butpre-task classquiz
4 Yes InformaNonexchange Yes,butpre-task e-mailconfirmaNon
5 Yes InformaNonexchange Yes,butpre-task e-mailfeedbackonpaper,learnerpresentaNons
6 Yes InformaNonexchange Yes wriaenreports
7 Yes InformaNonexchange Yes,butpre-task learnerpresentaNons
8 Yes Reasoninggap Yes,butpre-task A4poster presentaNon
9 Yes Reasoninggap Yes classdiscussion
2B REPORTED OBJECTIVES
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
AIMS CONSEQUENCES
LANGUAGE •pracNcefourskills•acquirevocabulary
•pre-taskacNviNestopreparelearners
•nofocus-on-formacNviNes
CULTURE •learnaboutothercultures
• nofocusoninterculturalcompetence
TECHNOLOGY •collaborateinasafelearningenvironment
• learntoidenNfyandapplynewinformaNon
•failuretoexploitpotenNaloftechnology
•nospecificdigitalliteracygoals
2C LEARNER PRODUCTIONS
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
teachers were
• satisfied with learner involvement in tasks in general
• often pleased with quality of learner productions
• sometimes surprised at learner insights during task activities or in later discussion
teachers had difficulties
• handling and exploiting large quantities of learner productions
• managing different levels of task engagement among learners and scheduling contraints
• selecting examples of learner productions to share as data
3 TEACHER REFLECTION
promoting interaction in the EFL classroom via a blended teacher education course
a. final course session feedback
b. written reflectionc. conclusions
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
LEARNER OUTCOMESFRENCH DUTCH
learnerperspectives
•pupilsenjoyedexchange•parents/schoolsalsosupporNve
•similaropinions
socialrelations
• greaterlearnerfreedominprojectacNviNesallowedmorepersonalisedteacher-learnerrelaNons
•similaropinions
interculturalconcerns
•somereNcenceaboutnontargetculturalexchange
• pupilinsightsaboutowncultureandsimilariNeswithDutch
•nosuchreNcence•greaterexperiencewithEnglishaslinguafrancaexchanges
•somereNcenceaboutnontargetculturalexchange
TECHNOLOGICAL CONCERNSFRENCH DUTCH
technicalissues
•minordifficulNes•choiceoffamiliartools•anNcipaNonofproblems
•avoidanceofinteracNvetasksduetolackofinternetaccessandprivacyissues
transitionsfromdigitaltoface-to-faceenvironments
• teachersspentNmereformaeng/prinNngonlineworkforclassroomexploitaNon
• somefoundPadletcollaboraNons“messy”
•disagree•noreformaeng•unNdinessviewedaspartoflearningprocess
•unNdinessviewedaspartoflearningprocess
PRACTICAL DIMENSIONSFRENCH DUTCH
teachercollaboration
•difficultyofschedulingandupdaNngplannedacNviNes
•somemisunderstandingsonlybecameapparentonceacNviNeswereunderway
•successaaributedtosimilariNesingoalsandaetudes(e.g.,creaNngfunacNviNes)
• lesssuccessfulteamswereimbalanced,withonesidemorecommiaed
classroommanagement
anddiscipline
•someconcernsaboutlackofmoNvaNonand/orinappropriatebehaviour
• difficulNesconcerninggradingasusualincenNveforeffortandachievement
•noviceteachersagreed•othersunderlineddifficultyofimplemenNngTBLTwithoutgoodclassmanagement
•difficultyofimplemenNngTBLTwithoutgoodclassmangement
OVERALL AIMS
FRENCH DUTCH
usingversuslearningEnglish
•somedifficulNesdecidingwhentocorrectlearners
•limitedexploitaNonoflearnerproducNons
•saNsfiedwithprocessratherthanproduct
• focusonmeaningratherthanaccuracy
•desireforoutcome(jointproducNon)
innovationandproject-
basedlearning
•notalwayseasytofittelecollaboraNvetasksintoongoingteachingunits
•notimmediateprofessionalpriority
•greaterinterest/experience/incenNveforinnovaNonandPBL
•wouldhavepreferredmoreflexibilityregardingNming
•notimmediateprofessionalpriority
OVERALL AIMS
FRENCH DUTCH
usingversuslearningEnglish
•somedifficulNesdecidingwhentocorrectlearners
•limitedexploitaNonoflearnerproducNons
•saNsfiedwithprocessratherthanproduct
• focusonmeaningratherthanaccuracy
•desireforoutcome(jointproducNon)
innovationandproject-
basedlearning
•notalwayseasytofittelecollaboraNvetasksintoongoingteachingunits
•notimmediateprofessionalpriority
•greaterinterest/experience/incenNveforinnovaNonandPBL
•wouldhavepreferredmoreflexibilityregardingNming
•notimmediateprofessionalpriority
• limited exploitation of learner productions
CONCLUSIONSwide variation across and within groups, consistent with different training, experience, beliefs about language learning/teaching
value of (inter)cultural exchange is different for English studies versus EFL graduates
views of feasible learning tasks differ for novice versus experienced teachers
differences in institutional contexts in France and the Netherlands
NL: university delivery of in-service teacher education combined with pre-service teacher education; incentives for project-based learning and innovation
FR: more recent integration of university and school-based components of teacher education; less concrete support for task-based approaches or innovation
most productive teams in terms of task design and collaborative outcome were most or least motivated participants at the start of the project
AND SO …
teachers did focus on language use, although tasks offered limited opportunities for interaction
for teachers: rich, nuanced reflection on opportunities and challenges of telecollaboration
for teacher educators: questions about role of telecollaboration in formal teacher education programme
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
TELECOLLABORATION FOR LANGUAGE LEARNING IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS
promoting interaction in the EFL classroom via a blended teacher education course
Shona Whyte (Nice)Linda Gijsen (Fontys)
Conference on Telecollaboration in University Education, Dublin, 21/04/16 http://wp.me/p28EmH-8T
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