Reminder - Class starts 5:00 on last day

I forgot to remind everyone in class last week --

We will meet on our last day (May 8th) at 5:00, which is according to the Finals schedule.

See you then. Looking forward to hearing/vieweing your podcasts!

Seeing No Progress, Some Schools Drop Laptops (New York Times)

An interesting development in the "one laptop per student" initiative...

LIVERPOOL, N.Y. — The students at Liverpool High have used their
school-issued laptops to exchange answers on tests, download pornography and
hack into local businesses. When the school tightened its network security, a
10th grader not only found a way around it but also posted step-by-step
instructions on the Web for others to follow (which they did).

Narayan Mahon for The New York Times

Chris Barry, 16, carrying his laptop at Liverpool High School in Liverpool,
N.Y., where they are being phased out.

Scores of the leased laptops break down each month, and every other
morning, when the entire school has study hall, the network inevitably freezes
because of the sheer number of students roaming the Internet instead of getting
help from teachers.

So the Liverpool Central School District, just outside Syracuse, has
decided to phase out laptops starting this fall, joining a handful of other
schools around the country that adopted one-to-one computing programs and are
now abandoning them as educationally empty — and worse.

To read the rest of this article: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/04/education/04laptop.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

ESL 6973 Podcast Blog

I've created a new blog to house our Podcasts:

http://esl6973podcast.blogspot.com

I'll be adding them as I get them from you. Currently I have an introductory podcast made by me giving an overview of our course and what we are doing with the podcast.

Be sure to provide me with the text that can be posted with your link. Specifically:

- A title for your podcast
- An indication of what age level and level of English proficiency the podcast is designed for
- A listener's guide written specifically to the ESL students who will be listening to your podcast.

Skype your way to learning Chinese

Interesting article on using Skype to learn Chinese:
http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/04/30/HNskypelearnchinese_1.html

Skype your way to learning Chinese
VoIP technology brings tutors and
students face to face, even halfway around the world

By Sumner Lemon, IDG News Service
April 30, 2007

Interested in learning Chinese, but don't have the money or time to study
in China? Some teachers are turning to Skype for help.

The high sound
quality offered by Skype's VoIP (voice over IP) software, as well as the
proliferation of high-speed Internet connections in China and elsewhere, make it
possible to dial up a Chinese tutor who can help teach you the basics of Chinese
or polish your language skills ahead of that big business trip.

Stephanie Xu, a tutor in Beijing, has been using Skype to teach Chinese
for a little more than one month. She found her first online student, a U.S.
businessman who already spoke some Chinese, through an
advertisement she placed on the Web site of That's Beijing, a local
English-language magazine.

"For teaching daily conversation, Skype is very, very good," she
said.

Xu charges 80 renminbi ($10.35) per hour-long Skype session. That's
less than the 100 renminbi she charges her offline students for face-to-face
sessions, but she saves time by avoiding the one-hour commute into downtown
Beijing from her home in the city's northern suburbs.

On the other hand, getting paid can be tricky. Xu's first student sent
a letter with 800 renminbi in cash after two lessons, paying for subsequent
lessons in advance. "In the future, I'm thinking about using PayPal or Western
Union," she said, noting that bank transfers to China can be complicated and
difficult to arrange.

Freelance tutors such as Xu aren't the only ones using Skype
to teach Chinese. Language schools are also taking advantage of the
technology.

EChineseLearning, in Beijing, offers daily Chinese classes
for a monthly subscription fee of $100. The 50-minute lessons are taught by
teachers from Beijing Language and Culture University and other schools that
work for eChineseLearning on a part-time basis. The classes are all taught
online, using the voice chat features of Skype, Google Talk, Yahoo Messenger,
AOL Instant Messenger, or Microsoft's Windows Live Messenger.

"We mostly use Skype because the sound quality is better," said Michael
Zhong, an eChineseLearning sales executive.

Founded last year, eChineseLearning currently has about 100 students
ranging in age from children to adults, mostly from the United States, Zhong
said. They pay for their lessons using PayPal or Google Checkout.

Beijing may be half a world away from students in the United States,
but the time difference is well suited to evening lessons for U.S. students,
Zhong said, noting that 8 a.m., Beijing time, is equivalent to 8 p.m. in New
York or 5 p.m. in San Francisco.

Building a business teaching Chinese online can be difficult,
especially for freelancers such as Xu who lack the deeper pockets of a
language school. Seeing promise in Skype as a teaching medium for conversational
Chinese, she posted several ads on Internet forums hoping to attract potential
students, without success. "Nobody tried to contact with me," she said.

Without the money for her own advertising campaign, Xu is looking for
creative ways to promote her business and remains enthusiastic about the
potential of online tutoring.
"I'm going to focus on Skype tutoring in the
future," she said.

Dr. Sharla Jones' Presentation Materials

Thank you everyone for sticking around on Tuesday despite the all the confusion, and waiting for Dr. Jones. I apologize once again for not being able to be there.

I heard from several of you that the presentation was very informative. Dr. Jones was kind enough to provide copies of her materials from her presentation. These are now available on our WEB-CT course site, in a folder titled "Dr. Sharla Jones Presentation"

Stuck in Austin!

Hi Class,

I'm stuck in Austin. Please enjoy the presentation by our guest speaker, Dr. Sharla Jones. You are free to go home after her presentation.

I was scheduled to arrive in San Antonio from Los Angeles at 2:30 this afternoon. Bad weather in Dallas diverted the plane to Austin. We sat on the plane for three hours before we could get to the terminal. No one has any info on when and if the plane will go back to Dallas so I can connect to San Antonio. So I'm going to rent a car and drive home myself.

The Fun of Travel. Sorry the inconvenience, and see you next week!

-Dr. Wright

Tex TESOL II Spring Workshop -- Exploring ESOL Careers from Texas to Taiwan

There is a great event this Saturday (April 14th) I forgot to announce in class. I'm on the board of TexTESOL II (local affiliate of TESOL) and this should be a very informative event. I encourage you to attend. Hope to see you there!
-------------

TexTESOL II Spring 2007 Workshop

World of Opportunities:
Exploring ESOL Careers from Texas to Taiwan

Saturday, April 14, 2007;
8:30 A.M.—12:30 P.M.

Northwest Vista College
3535 N. Ellison Drive, San Antonio, TX 78251
Huisache Building, Banquet Room(located near Sea World)

Looking for a job? Want a change? Full-time? Part-time? In San Antonio? Abroad?

8:30-9:00 Registration & Poster Session
9:00-11:00 Brief Presentations from ESOL Representatives (public schools, colleges, universities, private institutions, government and international agencies)
11:00-11:15 Break
11:15-12:15 Informal Q&A with ESOL Representatives

Registration:
$5.00 TexTESOL II Members,
$10.00 Non Members.
For additional information call 210-397-8109

Registration Form and other info available at: http://www.textesoltwo.org/events.htm

ESL lesson in Houston

Here is a great example of an ESL teacher posting his ESL lessons on YouTube.

Thailand Monks

thailand monks 01
Originally uploaded by FriskoDude.

I really think this is a cool photo!

The Hard Word high school (Flickr Photo)

The Hard Word high school
Originally uploaded by Glenn Phillips.

I found this great school sign on Flickr. It's from a school in Cambodia. Foreign language learning is all the rage in Cambodia right now, with English in the biggest demand. There are literally dozens of English language schools in any given section of town.

The sign of this one had people, including the photographer, puzzled, and they wondered what the Khmer translation said. Interestingly enough, the top line says, "High School Hard Word Memot." Memot is the name of the village, so, it's "Mermot Hard Word High School." In the Khmer title the words "Hard Word" are written phonetically to approximate the English pronunciation of the words (closer to /haad veud/).

The second Khmer line helps explains things a little. The translation is "Teaching foreign languages, English, Chinese, Thai, and Computer." I guess that means "Computer" is a foreign language too :-). So this is a foreign language school where you can learn all the hard words!

There are lots of signs in Cambodia like this which include English words spelled phonetically in Khmer. I've always been curious about this practice. For example, in this sign, if someone knows the meaning of the phrase "Hard Word" they probably can read English and thus the English translation is sufficient (i.e., they don't need the words written out phonetically in Khmer. So who is the phoenetic spelling of "Hard Word" for? Those who don't know English wouldn't know what the sign means, even if they can sound out the words.

I think this is a form of linguistic marking. Shops and institutions which incorporate English words into the Khmer signage (writen phonetically in Khmer) seem to be attempting some level of sophistication. If it has English in it, it must be high class. Ironically, the phoenic spellings of English words in Khmer turn out to be "hard words" as most Khmer readers won't be able to understand them!

Now, you guys go out and find some Flikr photos you'd like to write something about. It could be one you find funny, inspirational, or one that reminds you of your own experience. Any goes, so just find a photo that strikes you in some way and write something about it.

I'm looking forward to your finds!

Great News - Using Photostory to Create Podcasts

Great news everyone. While listening to the KidCast Podcast, which covers podcasting in K-12 education, I learned how PhotoStory can be used to create Podcasts! The trick is coverting the Photostory file (WMA) into a format recognized by iTunes (MP4). The answer is a simple and free program called the iPod Video Converter from Jodix: http://www.ipod-video-converter.org/. I'll make arrangements to get this installed on all the lab computers. But if you've already downloaded PhotoStory for use at home, I encourage you download this program too.

So, if you'd rather do a video podcast than an audio-only podcast, but don't want to hassle with a digital video camera and Windows Movie Maker, just gather or take some photos digital photos to go along with your audio, and you're good to go. Just put your photos in the order you want them, and record your audio directly into PhotoStory. You can create title slides by creating each one separately in PowerPoint, and then save them as .jpg files. I have digital cameras available for checkout if you need one.

Of course, audio-only or regular video podcasts are still an option.

Reading Prompt #10

EGBERT Ch. 10. Teacher Development
RICHARDSON Ch. 7. Fun with Flickr: Creating, Publishing, and Using Images Online

We've talked a lot in class about how technology can be used to help ELLs learn English. The internet is also an excellent resource for teacher professional development. Describe ways you have used internet resources for your own professional development as a language teacher. If you haven't already done this, describe some of the resources in the Egbert chapter you would be interested in trying.

Next, briefly describe how images such as those from Flickr and other free photo sharing sites can be used in ESL classrooms.

China Photos

I've uploaded my photos from China to my Yahoo Photo page. If you're bored, take a look:

http://photos.yahoo.com/wayneewright@sbcglobal.net (note: I took a lot of photos!)

Reading Prompt #9

Sorry everyone for the delay in posting this week's reading prompt. I'll keep it simple:

EGBERT Ch. 9. Limitations, Caveats, and Challenge

Which of the limitations, caveats, and challenges with regards to computer assisted language learning apply to your current (or future) classrooms? How could these be overcome?

Reading Prompt #8

CUMMINS Ch. 3. Assessment
EGBERT Ch. 8. Assessment

What is the difference between traditional standardized testing and authentic assessment? Describe how computers can be used for both. Which do you feel is a better use of computers? Describe examples from the readings or from your own experiences how comptures can be used effectively for assessment, and/or how to effectively assess the work students do via the computer.

Reminders and Clarifications

First off, thank you everyone for getting small gifts for your ePenPals in China. And a big thank you to Marysol for bringing the postcards! I'll try to add a few postings to this blog from my trip to China, including some photos of your ePenPals.

Here are some reminders and clarifications:

1. Class Wiki: There are still 3 students who have not yet posted their "embarassing language learning moment story." There is also a new section where we can post and share links to cool sites. Please add to it. Also, feel free to go in and edit your classmates' postings if you see any errors or ways to make their stories better.

2. Kidspiration Story Map: There has been some confusion about this assignment. The purpose of this assignment is to make a story map for your group's podcast. If you have a grade that says "redo" then it looked to like your Kidspiration project posted to your web was not a storymap for your podcast. Please also note, this assignment is not due until April 17. This will give you time to meet with your group and plan out your podcast.

3. Reading Reflections - It looks like many students were late in posting responses to classmates for Reading Reflection #6. I did not go back and look for those, so if you only have 1 point for Reading Reflection #6, e-mail me and let me know who you responded to.

4. Quickshares: Some of you have done quickshares, but have not yet posted them on your blog. You need to do so to get full credit. Also, your quickshare should be a posting labeled "Quickshare," rather than as a link on the sidebar.

That's it. Have fun playing with Audacity. And have a great Spring Break!!!

ESL 6973 Podcast - Episode 1 Welcome and Overview

Here's my first attempt at a podcast. This will be episode #1 and you guys will create the other episodes. Once we have some episodes together, we'll work on getting them on iTunes and other podcast directories!

http://streamer.utsa.edu/ramgen/2007/Spring/FS/ESL6973.901.Wright/Episode1.overview.mp3

Where is Egbert Ch. 7?

I've gotten a few e-mails from students asking where Egbert Ch. 7 is. It is in the same file as Egbert Ch. 1 on Web-CT. TESOL provided these two free chapters on their website in the same file, which is why they are together.

Sorry for the confusion!

Audacity Download

We'll be working with Audacity this week in class. It is a free program for recording and editing digital audio, and one of the main programs people use to create podcasts.

I recommend you download and install this program on your own computer or laptop. You can download it from:

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/download/ (download the Stable 1.2.6 version on the left)

After you download and install Audacity, you will need to download and install program called LAME MP3 Encoder. This program works with Audacity, and allows you to export your recordings into .mp3 format (the format required for podcasting). Instructions and links to the free dowloads are here:

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/help/faq?s=install&i=lame-mp3

Note, once you install the LAME MP3 Encoder, you'll need to hook it up to Audacity. Just follow the instructions, it's fairly easy and only needs to be done once.

If you have a Mac, see if you have Garage Band installed. If so, great! This is the most widely used program on the Mac to record podcasts and is fairly easy to learn to use (so I'm told).

Remember Gifts for Chinese ePen-Pals

Hi everyone,

Just a reminder, please remember to bring you gift to class this Tuesday for your ePenPal in China. Please, just small (literally small) gifts of no more than $5.

Here's a photo of some of the students at Xi'an International Studies University, though I don't know if any of these will actually be our ePen-Pals.