BOOKONNECT
"Connecting Second-Language Learners Through Books"
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Ariela Kornberg & Angela Vieira
(ariela.kornberg@utoronto.ca, angela.kosmatos@utoronto.ca)
Overview
VISION STATEMENT: What if we could connect language learners from different countries via a community of classrooms?
Two classrooms from different geographical locations that are learning each other's language will use a common interactive website connected to a multi-lingual digital library to enhance their language acquisition experience. The primary functions will be interaction, communication, immersion in another language, exchange of ideas, enhancement creativity. Our design idea will allow students to acquire second language skills while increasing their joy of reading and empathizing with friends from another culture who learn their own language through easy to use, fun and accessible technology.
Design Details
Description of the knowledge community
The design is aimed at elementary school students/classrooms learning a second language. The design will connect two classes, each is proficient in the language that the other class is learning as a second language. You need two classrooms to participate. Ideally, the two classrooms would be from two geographical locations (i.e. Grade 3 French class in Canada is connected to a Grade 3 English class in France).
The knowledge community would directly involve students and teachers. However, indirect involvement from librarians, school administrators and parents/family members of the students would be expected. Teachers and students will participate directly by using the design in the classroom. Parents can participate indirectly from home to see what their children are doing and to assist them with their reading/practising.
Statement of learning goals or: "how are we hoping to enable learning?"
Learning goals envisaged include:
- Students will practice speaking a second language with native/proficient speakers to improve language proficiency.
- Students will participate in focused conversations and activities around certain books/topics.
- Students will increase their second-language vocabulary.
- Students will develop an understanding of another culture.
- Students will have empathy towards the students of the other classroom because they are going through the same thing.
- Students will be able to reflect about their experiences and what they learned and what happened in each session. How can they improve? How did they help the other students? Student reflections will help teachers assess their progress.
- Students will acquire meta-knowledge about learning languages in general.
- Students will interact through a variety of current learning technologies (wikis, podcasting, real-time communication software, digital libraries, knowledge communities) and as a result become accustomed to incorporating technologies in their life-long learning process.
Activities & Interactions
Preparation Activities
Teachers will choose a selection of books available digitally in both languages which are age suitable for the class. A search can be conducted on the ICDL specifying the languages, for example English and French. Teachers in collaboration with the school librarians, will develop activities associated with each book that students in both classes will participate in. Teachers will work together to customize their website for the school year around the books. The website can also contain structured grammar activities/language rules that can be studied/practiced individually. Teachers collaborate on the curriculum, goals, timing, frequency of sessions.
Ongoing Student Activities
For the first lesson, each class will create an introductory wiki describing themselves, their city, their school. The list of titles will be provided to the class, the goal is to read all the books by the end of the school year. Students will be formed into small groups and read one book in a specified period of time. They will interact with the groups of students from the other class who read the same book. Students interact through the wiki page dedicated to each book. The wiki will be used for posting ideas, vocabulary, questions, impressions and all related work (i.e podcast reviews and skits). Each group will complete a set of pre-defined activites for the book and post their results/products on the wiki page to share with the other class. The goal is that all work related to the activities will be done using the learned language. On-line real-time verbal discussions related to the book in alternating languages allowing for practice of both languages.
A detailed curriculum will describe various activities that the class will participate in using this design. Some of the activities may be linked directly to book topics, other activities may be general such as a review and response to of postings from the other class (vocabulary, reflections, questions, book reviews).
A schematic of the design structure is included below. Each branch will be accessible from each page of the website design. Unable to render embedded object: File (bookonnect.jpg) not found.
Implementation Notes
Technology Requirements/wish list:
A dedicated technology/computer room. Perhaps alternating sessions can be organized. One session in classroom using "traditional" language methods followed by one session in the technology/computer classroom taking part in this community. A minimum of one desktop per learning group with sufficient memory, soundcard, video card and other multimedia requirements.
Large (20") monitor for viewing books/illustrations
VOIP for real-time conversations
Webcams, microphones, headphones
ICDL (International Children's Digital Library) for book resources/selection
On-line language dictionaries
Podcasting software
Wiki capability
Secure website access (password protected)
Meta-Data - Search Tags and Categories
Elementary school (teachers and students)
Digital Library Users
Second Language
Parents of Second Language Learners
Second Language Teachers
Multi-cultural learning
Communities of practice
Multi-media use in classroom
Constraints and Growth Areas
Constraints
The challenge will be finding two classrooms willing to incorporate this into their curriculum and to participate in a pilot study. Buy-in from teachers, administrators and school boards is essential.
Contacts within the school board who are excited about the design idea and believe in the benefits of using technology in this manner are essential. These contacts should be willing to make connections with other school boards or to use their existing connections.
Initially piloting the idea as a research project could be one way to secure budget and participants.
There may be privacy issues surrounding students' identities.
Monetary investment will be required to secure required technology such as the equipment and on-going technical support.
Linking this learning program to the existing curriculum will require adjustments and good will from everyone involved.
Connecting two classrooms in different geographical locations may introduce additional hurdles such as time differences (for on-line discussions) and cultural differences (for activities or relating to different books).
Designing suitable workspace for children - design may require iterations.
Possible expected growth patterns
Continuation of matches and relationships between the participating students throughout their school years.
Expansion to different grade levels
Connecting schools, school boards
Connecting two classrooms from different cultures/locations to learn about a common topic/theme.
Examples include:
History classes learning about the second world war
Science classes learning about the effects of acid rain on different topographies
Introduce social tagging for students to be able to better classify their work and book selections.
Related Research and Projects
The idea of "communities of practice" is relevant to our design project. Etienne Wenger has explored this concept and explains it as "Communities of practice are formed by people who engage in a process of collective learning in a shared domain of human endeavor:" Three crucial characteristics according to Wenger are A Domain, A Community and A Practice, and they all exist in our design. Intentional learning is not necessary, however it can occur throughout the interaction. Our design would have a language learning objective, and in this process, the students will learn about each other's culture, about themselves, about books and libraries.
Social Cognition (Lave & Wenger) -thinking about communities and their practices. Smith, M. K. (2003) 'Communities of practice', the encyclopedia of informal education,
http://www.infed.org/biblio/communities_of_practice.htm
Etienne Wegner Home Page: http://www.ewenger.com/"Communities of practice are groups of people who share a concern or a passion for something they do and learn how to do it better as they interact regularly.ยด E. Wagner.
http://www.ewenger.com/theory/index.htm
http://www.infed.org/biblio/communities_of_practice.htm
This article discusses how language learning is intertwined with cultural learning.
http://iteslj.org/Articles/Lessard-Clouston-Culture.html
What are other people doing/other projects?
Children as design partners for multicultural stories http://www.coe.missouri.edu/~ICN/Concept.htm
ICDL Communities Project:http://www.icdlbooks.org/about/research/communities.shtml
The project described on the ICDL website: "In ICDL Communities, children generate personal profiles using drawings and photographs. They read books in their own language, and create and share new stories with children from other countries. They exchange questions and answers about their own stories and other children's stories". This is considered an extension of the ICDL.
