La Lingua è bella!

Recharging the batteries...

How an MFL teacher feels at the end of term?

 

Reading Clare Seccombe's excellent blogpost on the benefits of Twitter really make me think tonight. Reflecting on what has come out of opening a Twitter account and getting involved (to an extent) with the MFL Twitterati has changed my approach to MFL teaching in so many ways. However, it has not always been easy to pass these changes on to my departmental colleagues. As teachers we have very busy lives; I am sure I am far from the only MFL teacher who also organises/goes on trips, runs a sports team, teaches extra-curricular lessons, organises MFL drama evenings etc etc. Just recently I have been prompted to reflect on these efforts; the half term break has provided a period of rest and reflection.

It seems that the way forward has to be to produce an initiative that has a lasting impact on my Department over a period of time. The challenge is to decide on what this might be. It would have to be:

• Measurable
• Manageable
• Lasting
• Open to all members of the MFL staff, even those with weaker ICT skills

At the moment my thoughts are leaning towards devising a twofold programme:

• One for lower school students which increases takeup of MFL at KS4 through wider use of Moodle and Web 2.0 tools
• An upper school programme which supports examination classes, moves homeworks online, encourages independent learning and supports students in moving beyond the curriculum via social media (twitter feeds for wider reading, blog, etc)

These are just initial thoughts, and I would be interested to hear how fellow MFLers have embedded new technologies into their Schemes of Works and practices. Are you the only teacher in your Department who can "do it"? Or does your Department have a policy on the use of Web 2.0 which everyone follows and uses? What are the challenges of introducing these changes to other staff?

Finally, I hope I don't have to give up on some of the things I love doing to achieve this; one of the reasons I love my job is being able to pass on my passion for the things I love to the students! But in the words of Beverley Knight;

"for every little thing you hold onto

gotta let something else go..."

Gratuitous picture of Beverley Knight :)

Four ideas for using screen capture tools in the classroom

Joe Dale's recent post featuring Russell Stannard's use of screencasting for student feedback , and Matt Lingard's blog were a great source of ideas for a recent show-and-tell ICT coordinators' meeting at my school. I chose to showcase screen capture tools, such as the mighty Jing - of which I am a rather large fan - and some others such as ScreenToaster, ScreenJelly and ScreenR . There is just so much that can be done with them!

The Prezi below features 5 mini-tutorial videos, including a quick overview of what screen capture tools do.

Big thanks to Russell, Matt and Joe for their great ideas!

Using screen capture tools in the classroom! on Prezi

Why I love the web

I gave a CPD session on using Web 2.0 to the staff at my school last night - my first one ever! It was great to be able to pass on information about the many inspirational and useful web apps that are out there for teachers to use, but I was struck by the fact that almost no-one attending the session had ever heard of any of the "funky" tools we looked at.

 

Perhaps inevitably, I was asked, "how do you know all this?" The answer, of course, is that someone told me! The might of Twitter in this regard really cannot be underestimated. Everything I know (and I am WAY behind some people!) I have picked up from my colleagues on Twitter - The MFL Twitterati as they are otherwise known. I am convinced that the positive, open attitude of the teachers I have met online can be a huge force in changing teaching for the better. Who wants to be the pinch-faced teacher who never lets anyone copy his worksheets? Twitter to me is the antithesis of this.

I started my session yesterday by showing them the marvellous Wallwisher that online colleagues created for our CPD session. Requests for this kind of thing come in all the time on Twitter, so I thought it might be old hat and get ignored. Not a bit of it. 20 replies in 2 days including videos, pics and some inspirational words from as far away as New York.

I was feeling tired after two school trips over Easter, but that response has re-energised me and reminded me why I love the web! So thanks to all for your contributions, and keep on fighting the good fight!

CPD session: Using Web 2.0 in the classroom (in a funky way)

using ICT in the classroom (in a funky way) on Prezi

Using ICT in the classroom (in a funky way)

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The Open School For Languages: Thoughts on being a MYLO ambassador

I was lucky enough to be at CILT on the 8th of February to get a first look at MYLO and be part of a productive feedback session. MYLO (MY Languages Online) is a brand new online learning tool designed to get young people engaging with languages in an innovative, creative and imaginative way. Initially aimed at Key Stage 3, it will be available in French, German, Spanish and Mandarin. Isabelle Jones has done an excellent job of summing up the project on her blog - so for a full update go there:

 

Just to note though that it was exciting to get a chance to have some input into MYLO at the development stage, and that I am looking forward to being a MYLO ambassador, and working with local MFL teachers to put it to good use. As Isabelle notes,

"Ambassadors are a point of contact for local MFL teachers, giving advice on the use of MYLO and reflecting on the experiences of others thus disseminating good practice."

MYLO's open-ended "challenges" look like great fun and, importantly, tackle the "why learn languages" question directly with aspirational tasks - designing a menu for a top Montréal chef, for example. I particularly like the integration of social networking functions into MYLO - students will be able to look at work by their classmates and by pupils from across other schools, giving an opportunity for collaborative work and peer assessment. You will also be able to keep your pupils' work private if you so wish. Excitingly, students will not only be able to write on the site, but some challenges  will allow them to record their own voice onto it.

MYLO quite rightly encourages "learning to learn" - the videos we saw on language learning techniques looked great. I love anything that demystifies the language learning process for pupils!

Whilst MYLO is currently a work in progress, the openness of the project (for example, all materials will be downloadable) and its flexibility bode very well. There is a very thorough consultation and feedback process in place, so MYLO should meet teachers' needs very well. Watch this space, and have a look on the MYLO website for a sneak preview!

Quizlet

 

With Spring term in its hectic full effect it has been hard to find the time to blog. But I wanted to quickly share my recent experiences using the rather brilliant Quizlet. For those who have not come across it yet, it is a serious time saver and a great way for your students to revise vocabulary. Very simply, you enter words and their translations, and Quizlet comes up with slideshows, games and tests to help you practise and learn them. It has obviously already been embraced by a good number of MFL professionals, as a lot of content has been added already which might save you a job! The site has a real 2.0 feel to it - students can sign in to it using their Facebook accounts, comment on quizzes and so on. I have steered clear of these options to be on the safe side at school, but pupils definitely feel at home with the format.

Ways I have been using Quizlet:

• learning homeworks via a link on our VLE
• in class vocab tests - automatically generated and marked :)
• card games - quizlet lets you print off flashcards - great for vocab games and revision
• groups - we now have a group for our school on Quizlet where students can find all vocab lists
• students making their own quizlets to revise words they find hard

Quizlet seems to be developing a quickly and has been very popular with my students - they like the competitive element to some of the games too... so get on there and give your pupils a go at it!

It's good to share! Your suggestions please...

 
Being snowed in today gives a opportunity to reflect on an amazing half term. Before October I thought Twitter was a place for Stephen Fry to fall ever deeper into self analysis, or for Britney's agent to send out anodyne press releases.

Now I know different! I would go so far as to say that Twitter has revolutionised the way I think about my job. It has rekindled my enthusiasm, and I have seen the results in the classroom. I have discovered an amazing community of enthusiastic teachers willing to share their excellence. There are so many brilliant teachers out there, some of whom can be found on the blogroll to the right of this page.

When I came into education, I wanted to be the kind of teacher who shared his resources freely. I hope that I am. But the culture of sharing freely among professionals online has rekindled my faith in the profession. This is what it's supposed to be all about! After all, we are all discovering new things daily in the world of Web 2.0, so there is really no point about being precious with acquired knowledge. Establishing a delicious account for my departmental colleagues is an exciting step along this path - old news to some maybe, but if I can just get them contributing and using the links on there...

We all know the truism that in teaching, you get what you give. Rarely has this been more clear to me. The response from students to the new things  have tried with them over the past half term has been amazing, and not just because they have had fun. Technology used effectively takes them to another level. I can't think of a better way to develop the creative writing needed for iGCSE than using Storybird, for example. The FLIP camera brought a new urgency and focus to German Restaurant roleplays (I hope to post on this in the new year). Wordle got my sixth formers thinking about register and vocabulary. Wallwisher captured the imagination of my digital natives in Year 7 - mind you, so did the Bing Bong Song! A thoroughly-planned Google Maps project helped turn things around with my Year 10s.

Personally it has been a revelation too. I have taken part in online meetings. I have contributed to others' blogs. Twitter and the wonderful MFL twitterati have helped me become a more reflective practitioner. I present less. I let the pupils do more. I try to have the courage to run longer projects and let the students get into things in depth. Using language for practical purposes seems to make things stick for them. This process of reflection has been helped by blogging about it regularly. I would never have got my pen out and written a diary of lesson outcomes though...

So, in the spirit of collaboration, where should I go from here? What tools should I look to use next? I have been thinking of trialling Edmodo in the summer, for example. Our school's Moodle site is slowly gathering momentum , so there is much to look at there. I will certainly be looking to consolidate the work done last term and to continue to use web based tools and technology with a clear purpose. I would be delighted to hear your thoughts and suggestions!

Happy New Year!

Simon

Stretching students with Web 2.0

On occasion critics of the use of ICT in MFL teaching can argue that the time taken to explain activities halts pupils' progress. On the contrary, I have found that using Storybird among other tools brings language alive for pupils and pushes them way beyond the limits of the scheme of work. Check out this effort by one of my pupils in Year 7.... she emailed it to me today - the first of the Christmas holidays!

Storybird by LC

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Storybird

 
 I have been using Storybird a bit this week as a nice end of term reward activity. However, the potential for "controversy" around students having to sign up for websites meant that my gut instinct was to steer clear of this. Instead, as the images have been left open to copy, I had students paste them into Powerpoint and play from there. It is amazing what can be done in a 35-minute lesson! Students were clearly enthused and motivated thanks to the quality, and in some cases the cuteness of the artwork! The response from students to work such as this has been overwhelmingly positive. 

Luke O in my Year 10 set 3 produced this story - I asked his set to produce something a Year 7 pupil would understand. Some class members produced very long stories in one lesson, but I like the cartoonish humour of this.

French Ninja by Luke O

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Natale Prezi