Video Podcast

Video Podcast

ESL/EFL Podcast Likes and Dislikes Series

“Sports”

Francisco Rojas Lopez

1. Description of intended students

This podcast series is for my future students from 2th grade of a public High School in Chile. There are 35 students in this class; it is like any other class in Chile. Some of them are really interested in learning English, but most of them are not. They are like any teenager; they like listening to music, watching videos and films, playing soccer and hanging around with their friends. They are between 15 and 16 years old. They are native Spanish speakers and do not speak a second language because they think that it is not necessary. They need to know that learning English can be fun; they can meet new people, and to know about different cultures and societies, but most important they need to know that they can learn English; they can use it to express themselves; to talk about their thoughts and experiences, and to talk about their country and culture.

2. Description of language objectives and content objectives

- Language objectives for series: Expressing Likes and Dislikes; the students will be able to write and talk about what they like and what they do not.

I love

I hate

I like

I don’t like

I enjoy

I can’t stand

I’m crazy about

I’m sick of

I’m tired of

- Content objectives for series: Different topics of daily activities; the students will see how people live in a culture that is different from their own, and how English is used.

Food

Lifestyles

Sports

Clothes

- Language objectives for the individual podcast

I like

I enjoy

I don’t like

- Content objective for the individual podcast

Sports; American Football. Points of view of two different

students living in the United States.

- Explanation of reasoning ; connect with students needs

I chose these objectives for this video podcast because the students need to know about language and culture at the same time; they can understand how American people have fun and the traditions they have; how people of other countries who are living in the United States see and understand these traditions;. We can relate this content with students’ experiences and make some contrasts between them; after this activity the students will be able to talk about what they like and what they do not.

3. Description of the elements that make the podcast comprehensible

First of all I have to say that this video podcast is just one part of the activity. The students will be asked to find some information about American football before watching the video in order to collect some useful insights.

I think that this podcast is comprehensible because the language objectives that I chose for this episode are clearly identifiable. They can hear and read by themselves where people used the certain structure in their speech. They can read keywords that make the content comprehensible. They can watch real images of a football game that illustrate what the people are saying. They can compare the differences between a native and a non-native English speaker. At the end of the video the students can read a summary with the structures that were presented.

After watching the video the students will receive a worksheet with questions about what they heard and with a list of examples that show how to use these structures. The script will be written in the worksheet; if they have any doubt, they can read the text and find what they need.

4. Descriptions of the strategies that we have covered that have informed the choices that you have made with the podcast and how you will use it with students.

This whole activity was created thinking in some of the strategies that we have learned here. First of all I thought in High Expectations and faith in the learner because the first interview was made with a native speaker of English; this can be a bit difficult for the students to understand. I wanted to use real English in order to expose them to a real accent and intonation. I think that if they receive the proper support, they will be able to understand the message.

I thought in Teaching Through Content because the students can relate their traditions and experiences to those of people in different countries and societies. We can go deeper in the topics and understand how people live in other parts of the world. We can discuss about specific issues that caught the attention of the students; for example, what a freshman is or what an exchange student is.

The use of Multimedia technology to teach language and culture. We can bring small pieces of the target culture into the classroom. This video podcast was created in a real context; the images and the interviews were taken from real situations and conversations; the students can see how English is used in a real context and how culture is expressed through traditions and customs.

Do you like American Football?

Reflection 6 - A case of effective language teaching

The students were asked to write a persuasive speech, and present it in front of the class. Through brain storming the students decided what topics had to be presented; some of them were abortion, working age, alcohol, and video games. Each student took a topic, and started to work on that. The teacher gave the students an example worksheet with the appropriate structure for the required speech; they had to start with an anecdote or a quote; to kick out the conversation they had to establish their point of view and make a strong statement about their topic. The students had to look for information on the Internet, and write down their thoughts in the worksheet given. The Chilean teachers made some corrections; after that they were ready to present their work.
From my point of view in this activity the teacher gave the students a really good support; he gave them an appropriate scaffolding. One particular student caught the idea immediately; he was quite motivated, and willing to share his opinion. He asked for help at every moment; even when he was on his free time. I think that this student was pretty engaged with the activity because he found that he could tell something interesting to share with the class. All of this was reflected on his final presentation because he was one of the strongest speakers, and the most eloquent.

Reflection 5 - A topic in language education that I want to know more about

I would like to know more about how integrate the first language and culture into the ESL classroom. I have seen how students get stuck when they try to explain something but they do not know how to say it in English, and it is worst when the teacher just speaks one language. Sometimes the students can be misunderstood , and the teacher will not get what the student is trying to say. It would be great to know some effective strategies for giving the students the opportunity to express some ideas in their native language; they can tell to the rest of the class something interesting about their culture and language. It would be great to have printed and online dictionaries in different languages, or to have some keyboards with different characters in order to make easy for the students to find some information and the correct word for what they are writing.
I found a good article that gave me another point of view of how we can understand or integrate the first language into the classroom; from the point of view of the author giving some space to the first language is teaching tolerance in the ESL class; students who feel discriminated or with lack of confidence can feel more motivated and willing to learn if the teacher gives them an opportunity to use their first language and culture.

http://www.ccsf.edu/Resources/Tolerance/lessons/lang01.html

Reflection 4 - If only he knew…

If he only knew that it is really important to have high expectations for the students; he could help them to master the new language and culture. In my teacher shadowing I have seen how important is to set clear goals for the students. It is critical that teachers trust in their students; they have to believe that the students can improve if they have good opportunities to show what they can do.
I think that the role of the teacher is to prepare the students far beyond the standard tests or the next assignment. For immigrant kids life has not been easy; they came here running away from war or poverty; some of them have lost their parents or siblings in dramatic situations; they came here with just a few pieces of clothing, and no money on their hands, but they deserve a good opportunity to improve their way of living. It is not fair to think that these kids just can apply for jobs that Americans do not want to do; it is important that teachers really believe in the students' potential; they have to trust in them and give them all their support.
One thing that has caught my attention is that some of the activities seem to be motivating and with a real purpose, but the students do not find any reason to do them. From my point of view these activities do not have any language or content objectives; the students do not see how the work done in class can help them to improve their writing or reading; they prefer hanging around with their friends and keep improving their speaking.
I found a good article that talks about high expectations; not only for ESL students, but also for students and schools in general.

http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/students/atrisk/at6lk11.htm

Reflection 3 - Response to a question about English teaching

http://www.everythingesl.net/askjudie/?i=11117&n=0

How a teacher should be eclectic in their approach to language teaching?

Re: Teaching

by Francisco Rojas Lopez on Nov 19 2008 8:04 PM

From my point of view teachers should be eclectic most of the time specially in language teaching. We all know that students have different backgrounds; they learn in many ways; they are interested in different things. Teachers have to be aware of these differences; they have to appreciate them in order to make their instruction more effective.
It is necessary to understand that teaching demands a long-life learning; we can not teach in the same way year by year; we always have to be in contact with new research or new experiences that can help us to improve our teaching; we have to take the best of these different approaches and put them into practice and see what works and what does not. Also, it is important to have a strong teaching philosophy leading our decisions; it is important to have in mind some criteria at the moment of deciding what you are going to do; but also it is a good sign for your students because they know what expect from the teacher.
To learn a new language can be a really difficult task, but we are responsible for making this process successful and motivating for our students.

I decided to answer this question because in this week, working with the ESL class at Lewis and Clark High School, I have seen the importance that diferentiated instruction has in teaching; how important it is to have high expectations for our students; how teaching through content can motivate them when they are doing a task; the importance of giving some space to the first culture and language in the class. An ESL/EFL teacher needs to have all of this knowledge in mind when he or she is planning or teaching a class. In this class where there are students from all over the world; with different ages and with a different previous instruction; the teacher needs to be aware of this in order to give the students the opportunity that they need to master the new language and to understand the new culture.

Reflection 2 - Websites that might help

In my teacher shadowing I have seen a lot of students with different backgrounds; with different needs and attitudes towards English and American society in general. One particular student has caught my attention because he does not like to be here; for him living in the U.S. does not make sense, and that makes learning English much more difficult. He is from Nepal; he has lived here just for three months which it has been really hard for him; he sees American culture quite different from his own culture and language; however, he pays attention to what the teacher says, and sometimes he tries to participate in the activities; he tries to speak as much as he can, and his listening comprehension is really accurate. I think that he needs more time to assimilate the new culture and language in order to understand and master American culture and English.
From my point of view a good way to help this student is giving him the opportunity to know more about the U.S. by himself; I think that Internet can provide this help because he can learn apart from what he is been taught at the school; he can find some interesting topics from American culture and relate them with his own experience; he can find similarities and differences that can make learning more meaningful for him.
A good website to know about American culture is http://www.americanfolklore.net/index.html; here he can find American legends; heroes and villains stories; spooky stories. It is a huge source of American traditions and culture.
Other website that might help is http://www.teachertube.com/ because apart from learning something about culture, he can know about American history; science and English in general.
National Geographic is an excellent website; here students can learn about many cultures in a matter of seconds, and of course everything is in English. http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/
Using these kinds of websites this student can help himself; he can understand better his new country and culture. He can guide his own learning and his own experience.