Teacher Discussion Forums

Hi everyone,

If you teach English using computers please share your experience with me,, I have a few questions that I need answers for:

1. Do you have computers in your classrooms or in computer labs?
2. How many computers do you have available (wether in classroom or lab)
3. How are they distributed in the class: are they facing you or the wall? are they in rows or around the class or in clusters?
4. What type of activities do you do using those computers?
5. What type of hardware and software (or authoring tools) do you use?
6. Do you prepare your own activities?
7. How do you manage the class; (descipline, time, activities)
8. Do you think having multimedia rooms/labs is better that integrating computers into the classroom? Why/Why not?

If you use computers in teaching languages and have anything that you would like to share with me, I'll be very happy since I really need your experiences, positive as well as negative.

I look forward to your replies.

Sameera

Sameera wrote:Hi everyone,

If you teach English using computers please share your experience with me,, I have a few questions that I need answers for:

1. Do you have computers in your classrooms or in computer labs?

Computer lab used as a classroom

2. How many computers do you have available (wether in classroom or lab)

28

3. How are they distributed in the class: are they facing you or the wall? are they in rows or around the class or in clusters?

Hard to explain. Teachers desk is at the front. (Teacher is often not at the front . Windows are at the back. Computers are arranged in rows facing the side walls, alternating. (First row faces left; tables with computers. Other computers are on same table, facing right. There are two columns of these, and one more row facing the left wall.)

4. What type of activities do you do using those computers?

All Internet activities, some I write and some I link to on the Internet

5. What type of hardware and software (or authoring tools) do you use?

Hardware in class is PC, using Windows XP, just got new optical mice, have earphones, and an overhead projector. To prepare activities, I use my home Mac, html or Flash, and use a website provided by the school.

6. Do you prepare your own activities?

Yes, I prepare many activities myself, and choose and link the ones I don't. (See http://fog.ccsf.edu/~lfried for activities)

7. How do you manage the class; (descipline, time, activities)

One class meets in the computer lab twice a week and in a regular classroom three times a week. The other meets one hour in a regular classroom and one hour in the computer lab. This coming semester I am trying to incorporate the work from one into the other more. For example, there are conversations that will be introduced in the computer room by just listening and answering quiz questions, but will be passed out on paper in the classroom later. There are writing activities that will occur in the classroom, that will be corrected and put on the Internet so that students can read what others have written. I'm trying some "life skills" activities; for example, I have a webpage I wrote about food labels (U.S.) that students will read and a worksheet on paper they will use to answer questions, and then in the regular classroom an activity using actual food labels.

In general, having taught CALL classes for almost four years, I have found that the best plan is to have something everyone should do first at the top of the list for the day, with things in descending order of important of completing them in time for the next day. At the end of the list are "extra activities" that people who are fast can do. I try to let the student proceed somewhat at their own pace, as some students are very computer savvy and others have no experience.

8. Do you think having multimedia rooms/labs is better than integrating computers into the classroom? Why/Why not?

I suppose whatever you are used to that works well would be what you like. I personally am very happy having two rooms. The classroom is set up like a regular classroom, but it is very nice to have all 28 computers waiting for us when it's our turn to use the lab as our classroom.

If you use computers in teaching languages and have anything that you would like to share with me, I'll be very happy since I really need your experiences, positive as well as negative.

I look forward to your replies.

Sameera

Well, I'd be happy to answer any questions you have or share my on-line materials (at the website I already gave) or show the handouts I use for the websites that are sometimes listed with no explanations.

Lorikeet

Edit: Oops, I just noticed that you posted the same thing in secondary education, so I should mention that all of this is used with adults in a non-credit ESL program in a community college (U.S.)

Hiya Lorikeet,

Thank you very much for the wonderful clear explanations and information that you provided me. They will be evidence that I will use in my dissertation. I will quote some of you answers if you dont mind in parts of my research, of course for that I might use at least put your name and the institution you teach in; so if it's ok with you, just let me know.

Since you gave me the green light Lorikeet, I'll ask a few more questions ... to prepare your own exercises and activities, what software do you use? Do you have an electronic white board or a screen to view your computer content for all students to see? If not, how do you hold whole class discussion? Do you have a printer or a scanner in the classroom? and one final very important question, do you think the layout of the classroom helps you conduct group work or pair work

I really appreciate your cooperation and hope to hear from you.

Sameera

Sameera wrote:Hiya Lorikeet,

Thank you very much for the wonderful clear explanations and information that you provided me. They will be evidence that I will use in my dissertation. I will quote some of you answers if you dont mind in parts of my research, of course for that I might use at least put your name and the institution you teach in; so if it's ok with you, just let me know.

I work at City College of San Francisco in San Francisco, California. I don't care if you quote me, but I'm not sure anything I said was that exciting .

Since you gave me the green light Lorikeet, I'll ask a few more questions ... to prepare your own exercises and activities, what software do you use?

It depends on what I'm doing. I write the html myself. I don't like to use a program to do it. For the Perl/CGI script, I use one a friend of mine wrote for me as a template. I can insert different text. I use Flash for the interactive Flash activities.

Do you have an electronic white board or a screen to view your computer content for all students to see? If not, how do you hold whole class discussion? Do you have a printer or a scanner in the classroom? and one final very important question, do you think the layout of the classroom helps you conduct group work or pair work

We have a large screen in front of the room on which we can project what is on the computer screen of one computer. It can be used to demonstrate things. Actually, I haven't used it too often, but I will probably use it more this semester. We have a printer in the classroom, but I don't usually use it for these classes, although students sometimes print what's on the Webpage. We don't have a scanner.

Because my class doesn't only go to the computer lab, I don't do pairwork or groupwork in the lab. I save that for the regular classroom. Of course, sometimes my students work together and that's fine with me. And once in a while we have too many students for the number of computers, and they have to share a computer.

Thanx a lot Lorikeet. That was great and I'll keep watching your website for any new developments. Good luck.

Best wishes
Sameera

Years ago I worked in a language school and I was chosen to run the computer lab. The students could visit whenever they wanted and I would set them up on a computer so that they could do exercises. It was basically self-study although, as a teacher, I could help them with the exercises if necessary.
Now I am freelance. I teach business people at their place of work and there is always access to internet. I have a self-study web site and two language learning forums which I’m always tempted to show to my students but I’ve come to the conclusion that I should resist doing this because the students are paying to have direct contact with me, not with a computer. Any time spent on the computer or doing any other activity that the students could do on their own, should not be done during class time.
Gordon
www.myprofe.com
www.myprofe.com/foro
www.myprofe.com/tandem

Hiya Myprofe,

Thank you very much for sharing your experience with us. I do respect your idea about interacting with students because it is very important. Using the computer could never alternate the role of the teacher. I just wanted to know your opinion in the following: If you were to set up a classroom equipped with computers, how would you do it? How would you place the computers in the room? Do you think it is better to have computers in the classroom to integrate them into the curriculum or would you rather have a lab where they could go once or twice a week?

Eager to hear your opinion.

Sameera

Sameera wrote: If you were to set up a classroom equipped with computers, how would you do it?

That's a very difficult question. The computer and the internet are fantastic tools but you have to know when and how to use them. It's like music and films. They're great for learning a language but using them in class requires a lot of preparation. I would analyse first what it is that I want to teach and then check to see what's out there on the internet that could help me do this or make it more interesting for the students.
Gordon
www.myprofe.com
www.myprofe.com/foro
www.myprofe.com/tandem

Great,,

but what I meant was not to do with how you will go about teaching using the computer and the internet. I was more interested in knowing how you will organize the place and where you will place the computers; and in which pattern???

Sameera