Incorporating Speaking & Listening Activities for the Online ESL Course

Transcription

1 Incorporating Speaking & Listening Activities for the Online ESL Course By Sharon Clampitt, Ed. D. Workshop Objective: By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to use at least one of four resources to incorporate listening and/or speaking activities into online ESL classes in Blackboard. Level: Intermediate Prior Knowledge required: Basic Course Design skills (create page, create discussion, create quiz). Note: If you don t have the prior knowledge required, you can ask technical support personnel for assistance. Four Easy-to-Use Tools for Creating Listening and Speaking Activities Voiceboard is a discussion board, but students record their messages instead of writing them. Voice Board Voice Authoring Voice Films on Demand Voice is a tool where students send voice recordings instead of using written . Voice Authoring allows professors and students to make recordings and save them as.wav files Film-on-Demand is a database of films with clips that can be incorporated into course materials, assignment instructions and even quizzes.

2 Voice Board Quick Reference 2. Go to the page, folder or learning module. where you want the voice board to appear. 3. Choose Add Content Link. 4. Choose Voice board. 5. Create a new Voice board. 6. Set up the Voice board. 7. Select and add the board you created. 2. Go to the page, folder or learning module where you want the voice tool to appear. 3. Choose Add Content Link. 4. Choose Voice Create a new Voice Set up the Voice Select and add the Voice you created Voice Voice Authoring 2. Go to the page, folder or learning module where you want the voice tool to appear. 3. Choose Add Content Link. 4. Choose Voice Authoring. 5. Create a new Voice Authoring. 6. Set up the Voice Authoring. 7. Select and add the Voice Authoring you created. 1. Access a film: Listado de Bases de Datos Film-on Demand 2. Choose a clip from the right-hand side. 3. Choose embed this video. 4. Copy the Embed code. 5. Choose the Build Tab. 6. Create a new page, assignment or quiz. 7. Write the instructions and paste the embed code in the html box. Film on Demand

3 The Voice Board The Voice Board is a tool that can be added to any online course. It is similar to the discussion board, but students record their messages instead of (or in addition to) writing them. Possible Applications of the Voice Board Present your students with a situation, and ask them to respond orally. Read a short passage and ask students to answer comprehension questions orally. Present a situation and ask students to discuss it with each other using the voice board. Adding a Voice Board 2. Go to the page, folder or learning module where you want the voice board to appear. 3. Choose Add Content Link. 4. Choose Voice board. 5. Create a new Voice board. 6. Set up the Voice board. 7. Select and add the board you created. Leave this unchecked if you only want students to respond to your message. Check this if you don t want students to listen to each others messages. Check this if you want to assign points for doing the activity.

4 Voice Voic is a tool included with Blackboard. Instead of using written , students send voice recordings. The voic tool sends messages to personal accounts, not the mail tool in Blackboard. Note: The addresses that Voic uses are the ones students have entered as their preferred address in InterWeb. Not all students have addresses in the system or their addresses are incorrect. Sometimes if students don t have an address, the university assigns one to them. This may be the preferred even if the student doesn t use it. Possible uses for Voic Require that all messages be sent both orally and in writing. Answer your students s orally. Send announcements orally. Adding Voice 2. Go to the page, folder or learning module where you want the Voice tool to appear. 3. Choose Add Content Link. 4. Choose Voice Create a new Voice Set up the Voice Select and add the Voice you created.

5 Voice Authoring Voice authoring is a tool included with Blackboard that allows professors and students to make recordings and save them as.wav files. Possible Uses for Voice Authoring Have students do activities orally and submit the audio file in the assignment area as an attachment. Role-playing Workbook exercises Oral Reading Oral reports Adding Voice Authoring 2. Go to the page, folder or learning module where you want the voice tool to appear. 3. Choose Add Content Link. 4. Choose Voice Authoring. 5. Create a new Voice Authoring. 6. Set up the Voice Authoring. 7. Select and add the Voice Authoring you created.

6 Films-on-Demand Film-on-Demand is a database of films that are available to professors and students free of charge. In addition to full-length films, each film is broken down into small clips. These clips can be incorporated into course materials, assignment instructions and even quizzes. How to Access Film-on-Demand Video clip embedded in a quiz. 1. Go to 2. Choose Listado de Bases de Datos 3. Choose Films-on-Demand 4. When accessing off campus, you and your students will be asked to enter your user ID (P000****). Video clip embedded in a new page. Video clip embedded in assignment instructions. Video clip embedded in discussion instructions.

7 Embedding videos The instructions for embedding a video are basically the same regardless of whether it is a new page with the video in it, assignment instructions, discussion instructions or in a quiz. 1. Access a film. 2. Choose a clip from the right-hand side. 3. Choose embed this video. 4. Copy the Embed code. 5. Paste the code where you want the video to appear in your course activity. Finding the Embed code. Films-on-Demand (2) Once you have found the film clip you want, look below the video and you see the words: Embed this Video. Once you click here, the codes will appear below. Just highlight and copy the code using Control + C or by right clicking on it and choosing Copy from the menu.

8 Films-on-Demand (3) Once you have copied the code, then you ll need to paste it into the instructions for the different activities. The instruction section of almost any activity or tool in Blackboard is basically the same. It consists of a title, a description and an html box where you write the instructions. You will need to write all the instructions for the activity first, and use the HTML Creator to format the text. Then, once you have finished, disable the HTML Creator and paste the embed code below the text. Video embed code Embedding videos into a new page (creating a course content page). 1. Choose the Build Tab. 2. Go to the page, folder or learning module where you want to incorporate a new page. 3. Choose Add File. 4. Choose Create File. 5. Give your page a title, write the instructions and paste the embed code. 6. Check the Use html box. 7. Give the file a name. 8. Save. Embedding videos into discussion and assignment instructions. 1. Choose the Build Tab. 2. Go to the Discussions or assignments page. 3. Create a topic (threaded, blog or journal) or a new assignment. 4. Create the instructions and paste the embed code. 5. Configure the room (graded, not graded, etc.) or the assignment. 6. Save.

9 Films-on-Demand (4) Embedding videos into a quiz 1. Choose the Build Tab. 2. Go to the Assessment page. 3. Choose Create Assessment. 4. Give your quiz a name and description. 5. Configure the settings (dates, time allotted, etc.). 6. Choose Custom Instructions. 7. Write the instructions and embed the video just like we did previously. 8. If you want the questions to be presented one at a time, check Display custom instructions on every question. 9. Save. 10.Add the questions you want the students to answer. 11.Save.

10 Important Considerations 1. All of the tools discussed require that the students and professor s computer have the appropriate applications such as Java, Flash player and audio recording and playing capabilities. It is important that students know what is required preferably before they register in the course, or at the very least, within the first couple weeks where they still have time to make changes. 2. You need to make sure to provide opportunities for students to test their equipment and practice listening and recording before they are required to do so for a grade. 3. Providing the students with all the technical support contact information is very important. 4. This will be new to the majority of the students, so you ll have provide a lot of guidance and hand-holding in the beginning. Your attitude towards the technology and the activities will influence how your students feel about the experience. 5. Be flexible. This is new to you and your students, so mistakes will happen; technical glitches will occur. Make sure your students know that you will do your very best to help them comply with these course requirements. 6. Be firm. Although you and your students may encounter technological difficulties, you need to be firm about completing these activities. Don t give up. It will always be easier to go back to simple text-based activities, but this won t give your students the practice they need listening and speaking. HAVE FUN!!!