Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Second Life
Due to the fact that I have been bogged down with work and studying, I will now post some comments about our activity in class using Second Life, although late. In class two weeks ago we spent some time using Second Life just to experiment with it and then see how we could apply it to teaching foreign language or possibly using it in the classroom. Let me start off by saying that I am not a very big fan of virtual world or simulated reality games. With that said, using Second Life in class strengthened my dislike of these things. Firstly, I had a lot of trouble with the practice area that you have to pass in order to continue on to other features. I found the character to be extremely slow and the graphics just weren't too impressive. I was under the impression that Second Life was supposed to be very realistic. I don't consider the ability to fly and pass mega joints around in the middle of Peru a very realistic game. Second, I cannot say that I found any use for Second Life in the foreign language classroom. The program slows down the PC way too much, and there are too many distractions in the Second Life world to learn anything productive. Lastly, I will say that instead of playing on the computer and spending time trying to find an alternative life, for whatever their reasons may be, adults (particularly the target audience in their mid 40's) should spend more time trying to figure out how to improve their real life instead of escaping reality and spending their valuable time sitting in front of a computer and wasting time and money that they could be using for their own benefit. I did not like Second Life at all, and I don't think I'll use it again. When I mentioned Second Life to someone, they didn't even know what Second Life was. They thought it was a religious cult or something...which isn't too far off. I didn't even know what it was either until this classroom. I thought it was some weird group when I first heard the name, sort of like the Heaven's Gate followers...I hate white tennis shoes.
This is a video-based activity to be used in a beginning Spanish 1 class. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zl7qK6aIPHA.
The goal of this activity is to enhance the students’ listening comprehension skills. The video uses vocabulary describing the holidays, more specifically the month of December and the activities done by an individual. I decided to use my own personal experiences and pictures for this project and narrated my own activities.
First the students will watch the video twice. The first time they watch it they will not have the handout I have made for this activity. This will be handed out before the video is played a second time. This handout, which can be found here
http://docs.google.com/View?docid=dh2c6cg_2r95ww4d4
contains questions based on the video. The questions will be in Spanish and they will also be answered by the students in Spanish. The purpose of this is to have them listen the first time and understand what they can, so that the second time they watch it and have the handouts they will know what to listen for more specifically.
As a follow up activity, the students will be expected to make their own small video, either individually or in groups, describing their favorite holiday or trip and what they do during that time. Once they have all completed their videos, there will be a day in class when each group or individual presents their video and its explanation in a presentation no more than 10 minutes long. The students’ videos, like the activity, will be uploaded to www.youtube.com so that they will all be together and easier to access.
The pedagogical benefits of this activity are that the video is an easy way to present material to the students making the activity more interactive. The visual clues used in the video will help the students identify what the narrator is talking about if they do not understand. Furthermore, the use of a native speaker’s narration helps students listen to naturally spoken Spanish with its particular rhythm and intonation, which prepares them for listening to a real conversation with a native speaker. Finally, the students will learn about a different culture’s activities on a certain holiday and will help them compare and contrast their own personal activities during the same holiday.
The goal of this activity is to enhance the students’ listening comprehension skills. The video uses vocabulary describing the holidays, more specifically the month of December and the activities done by an individual. I decided to use my own personal experiences and pictures for this project and narrated my own activities.
First the students will watch the video twice. The first time they watch it they will not have the handout I have made for this activity. This will be handed out before the video is played a second time. This handout, which can be found here
http://docs.google.com/View?docid=dh2c6cg_2r95ww4d4
contains questions based on the video. The questions will be in Spanish and they will also be answered by the students in Spanish. The purpose of this is to have them listen the first time and understand what they can, so that the second time they watch it and have the handouts they will know what to listen for more specifically.
As a follow up activity, the students will be expected to make their own small video, either individually or in groups, describing their favorite holiday or trip and what they do during that time. Once they have all completed their videos, there will be a day in class when each group or individual presents their video and its explanation in a presentation no more than 10 minutes long. The students’ videos, like the activity, will be uploaded to www.youtube.com so that they will all be together and easier to access.
The pedagogical benefits of this activity are that the video is an easy way to present material to the students making the activity more interactive. The visual clues used in the video will help the students identify what the narrator is talking about if they do not understand. Furthermore, the use of a native speaker’s narration helps students listen to naturally spoken Spanish with its particular rhythm and intonation, which prepares them for listening to a real conversation with a native speaker. Finally, the students will learn about a different culture’s activities on a certain holiday and will help them compare and contrast their own personal activities during the same holiday.
Friday, March 28, 2008
My Teaching Statement
The following link takes you to my teaching statement. In it I express how, what, and why I do what I do. I hope you enjoy it, and look forward to your comments.
http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dh2c6cg_1cp2vfqdh
http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dh2c6cg_1cp2vfqdh
This week in class we discussed intercultural communication. I for one am a big fan of teaching culture in the classroom. Many is the time when I have given a presentation on Cuba and have had students pay attention for the the whole thing, and even staying over time. I was observed by some of my peers to give the same presentation in their classrooms, and their students enjoyed it as much as mine did. I think that intercultural communication is a wonderful idea. It would greatly improve the C2/L2 learning because it exposes C1/L1 students to another way of life and language, and encourages them to see things from a different perspective. One of the articles we read stated that an important approach to intercultural communication is to be open to differences in culture and try and distance yourself from your own cultural aspects so that you can fully appreciate another. I find that a lot of my students cannot relate at all to Cuban culture. In fact, some don't even know where Cuba is on the map, which is sad, in my opinion. Basic geography has nothing to do with speaking Spanish...but anyway, I digress. I think that in these recent times of change in Cuba, intercultural communication would definitely be beneficial to both Cuban students in Cuba and American students here. Unfortunately, I feel that this is still a long way from being possible, due to the current governmental relationship between the United States and Cuba. In the future however, seeing as how the Cuban government next week will begin offering cell phone service to the Cuban people, something that has never been done, technology is unavoidable in Cuba's future. As much as Cuba wants to keep their Communist mentality, the new leader must make some concessions now that Fidel Castro is not at the front anymore. While cell phone use may not seem like a big deal to some people unfamiliar with Cuba's political history, it is a giant step in giving Cuban citizens some basic freedom of communication, but only if it is done right, and in reality, Raul Castro's government is really Fidel's, and without true change in leadership, full freedom of communication is impossible. Recently, Cuban students on the island have communicated with some University of Miami students via the internet from an undisclosed location on the island. This is just the beginning of Intercultural communication in Cuba, and when I first read this on the internet, I was very pleased to see that there was finally communication between the younger generations on both sides of the ocean. The following is a link to the article:http://www.local10.com/news/15640587/detail.html
Friday, February 29, 2008
Friday, February 22, 2008
ABOUT ME
So here is a little more about me, since it didn't fit in my profile.
Before I speak, I have something to say. This is in no way a complete outline of my life or who or what I am. This is just a convenient way of satisfying curiosities and informing people who would like to get a better notion of who it is that I am. I am either much more interesting or much more boring than all of this blabber, it depends on what your personal opinion is. I know mine, and I would say that I know myself fairly well, although I don’t know too much about my first days of life, because I was born very young. In fact, I was so surprised when I came into this world that I didn’t speak for a year. But I figured it was better than a dark, watery chamber, so I decided to stay and try out oxygen and solid food. So where do I start? Well, for the sake of brevity I will write only a short summary...I was born in Miami, I am of Cuban descent, and I currently attend and am in the employ of the University of Florida. I wake up, have breakfast, go to work, have lunch, go to class, come home and eat, and go to sleep, and wake up the next day and do it all over again. It's a generally enjoyable experience, although I encounter some ferret-faced shyster along the way now and then. Although there may be times when I feel that my work goes for naught, I reconsider and think that if I can make an impression on one person a day, myself included, then it is all worth it. As I sit in my office hours waiting, I contemplate various ideas and ponderings. One conclusion I have come to is that if it’s true that our species is alone in the universe, then I’d have to say that the universe aimed rather low and settled for very little. Also, I enjoy watching some sports, but I believe in calling things what they are. Swimming is not a sport. Swimming is a way to keep from drowning. That’s just common sense! Another thought that is gnawing at my mind is that isn’t it a bit unnerving that doctors call what they do “practice”? It’s always embarrassing to ask a doctor what his fee is, but if you are going to go you’d better find out how much you’re going to be rooked. When it comes to real obscurantism, no group has been as successful in concealing its shady activities as the medical profession. The dentist is another individual who gaily drills your wallet in addition to your teeth. He then informs you that you must floss more often and brush four times a day so that you can scrape the enamel off very effectively, thereby making it more convenient for him to charge your 200 dollars for a mini tube of toothpaste and a brush so small that it can only brush a tooth at a time. As you turn to say goodbye, three of his teeth fall out. It is my humble opinion that as much as 60% of doctors deserve to be tossed in the clink for highway robbery. I drive my car and adhere to the general regulations, but I don’t like to think of laws as rules you have to follow, I like to consider them more as suggestions. As I cruise the campus at the surprisingly difficult speed of 20 miles per hour, I see various cars with different messages on them which are just there to divert your attention from traffic activity. Here’s a bumper sticker I’d like to see: “We are the proud parents of a child whose self-esteem is sufficient that he doesn’t need us promoting his minor scholastic achievements on the back of our car.” Another problem we have on campus is that the lesser privileged solicit money from the students. Poverty of course is a shame to see in a country such as the one we live in, but I have noticed that I’ve never seen a homeless guy with a bottle of Gatorade. To my mind, History is a very interesting topic, and it occurred to me the other day as I was walking from one classroom to the next as I saw the American flag that George Washington’s brother, Lawrence, was the Uncle of Our Country. I attend church fairly often, yet I believe that the temple of God is in your heart. Nowhere in the bible does it say that you must go to church in order to be saved. If some religions are monotheistic and others polytheistic, then Atheism is a non-prophet organization. I have considered studying Law, especially after seeing how easily some lawyers make a living in this country. These racketeers find irresponsible fading pop stars and spend years and years living off of their shenanigans. Also, I would just like to say that “No comment” is a comment. I enjoy the outdoors for a limited period of time, I enjoy the beach and consider the sea the only place that man will never completely conquer. I enjoy get-togethers and social reunions; in other words, parties. Whether they involve a plate of hors d’oeuvres and a bevy of martinis, or just chips and beer, I believe that social interaction is a crucially necessary factor in human life, and yet finding a party on campus with decent food I as scarce as hens’ teeth. (I don’t know why people insist on using this silly simile when even the rooster knows that the hen hasn’t any teeth, and very little of anything else. I believe that there is love, and that there is lust. I also believe that all you need is love. I recently heard that somebody found Tony Bennett’s heart in a hotel room in San Francisco…I guess he just left it there…but this is just pure conjecture on my part. I enjoy visiting New York and when I leave for that city, I ask people to spread the news and I feel I want to be a part of it, because I want to wake up in the city that doesn’t sleep. I recently visited the Empire State building, and I realized that I don’t have a fear of heights. I do, however, have a fear of falling from heights. I hope that my tirade hasn’t fallen on closed ears, and look forward to your reactions and comments. Thanks and come again, and remember that everybody loves somebody, and I love all of you, or most you, rather.
Before I speak, I have something to say. This is in no way a complete outline of my life or who or what I am. This is just a convenient way of satisfying curiosities and informing people who would like to get a better notion of who it is that I am. I am either much more interesting or much more boring than all of this blabber, it depends on what your personal opinion is. I know mine, and I would say that I know myself fairly well, although I don’t know too much about my first days of life, because I was born very young. In fact, I was so surprised when I came into this world that I didn’t speak for a year. But I figured it was better than a dark, watery chamber, so I decided to stay and try out oxygen and solid food. So where do I start? Well, for the sake of brevity I will write only a short summary...I was born in Miami, I am of Cuban descent, and I currently attend and am in the employ of the University of Florida. I wake up, have breakfast, go to work, have lunch, go to class, come home and eat, and go to sleep, and wake up the next day and do it all over again. It's a generally enjoyable experience, although I encounter some ferret-faced shyster along the way now and then. Although there may be times when I feel that my work goes for naught, I reconsider and think that if I can make an impression on one person a day, myself included, then it is all worth it. As I sit in my office hours waiting, I contemplate various ideas and ponderings. One conclusion I have come to is that if it’s true that our species is alone in the universe, then I’d have to say that the universe aimed rather low and settled for very little. Also, I enjoy watching some sports, but I believe in calling things what they are. Swimming is not a sport. Swimming is a way to keep from drowning. That’s just common sense! Another thought that is gnawing at my mind is that isn’t it a bit unnerving that doctors call what they do “practice”? It’s always embarrassing to ask a doctor what his fee is, but if you are going to go you’d better find out how much you’re going to be rooked. When it comes to real obscurantism, no group has been as successful in concealing its shady activities as the medical profession. The dentist is another individual who gaily drills your wallet in addition to your teeth. He then informs you that you must floss more often and brush four times a day so that you can scrape the enamel off very effectively, thereby making it more convenient for him to charge your 200 dollars for a mini tube of toothpaste and a brush so small that it can only brush a tooth at a time. As you turn to say goodbye, three of his teeth fall out. It is my humble opinion that as much as 60% of doctors deserve to be tossed in the clink for highway robbery. I drive my car and adhere to the general regulations, but I don’t like to think of laws as rules you have to follow, I like to consider them more as suggestions. As I cruise the campus at the surprisingly difficult speed of 20 miles per hour, I see various cars with different messages on them which are just there to divert your attention from traffic activity. Here’s a bumper sticker I’d like to see: “We are the proud parents of a child whose self-esteem is sufficient that he doesn’t need us promoting his minor scholastic achievements on the back of our car.” Another problem we have on campus is that the lesser privileged solicit money from the students. Poverty of course is a shame to see in a country such as the one we live in, but I have noticed that I’ve never seen a homeless guy with a bottle of Gatorade. To my mind, History is a very interesting topic, and it occurred to me the other day as I was walking from one classroom to the next as I saw the American flag that George Washington’s brother, Lawrence, was the Uncle of Our Country. I attend church fairly often, yet I believe that the temple of God is in your heart. Nowhere in the bible does it say that you must go to church in order to be saved. If some religions are monotheistic and others polytheistic, then Atheism is a non-prophet organization. I have considered studying Law, especially after seeing how easily some lawyers make a living in this country. These racketeers find irresponsible fading pop stars and spend years and years living off of their shenanigans. Also, I would just like to say that “No comment” is a comment. I enjoy the outdoors for a limited period of time, I enjoy the beach and consider the sea the only place that man will never completely conquer. I enjoy get-togethers and social reunions; in other words, parties. Whether they involve a plate of hors d’oeuvres and a bevy of martinis, or just chips and beer, I believe that social interaction is a crucially necessary factor in human life, and yet finding a party on campus with decent food I as scarce as hens’ teeth. (I don’t know why people insist on using this silly simile when even the rooster knows that the hen hasn’t any teeth, and very little of anything else. I believe that there is love, and that there is lust. I also believe that all you need is love. I recently heard that somebody found Tony Bennett’s heart in a hotel room in San Francisco…I guess he just left it there…but this is just pure conjecture on my part. I enjoy visiting New York and when I leave for that city, I ask people to spread the news and I feel I want to be a part of it, because I want to wake up in the city that doesn’t sleep. I recently visited the Empire State building, and I realized that I don’t have a fear of heights. I do, however, have a fear of falling from heights. I hope that my tirade hasn’t fallen on closed ears, and look forward to your reactions and comments. Thanks and come again, and remember that everybody loves somebody, and I love all of you, or most you, rather.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Research topic
Tonight in class we discussed our ideas a specific topic to research. I wanted to focus on the research of new technology and its effectiveness. I thought that working with 3 main things: the chalkboard, which would be the control group, the Smartboard, and Powerpoint. The point of this study would be to see which of these would be the most effective as a pedagogical tool, and the study would be less focused on SLA. It would also have a specific feature, such as the use of one of these three used to teach the preterite tense, or something to that effect. Before using each of these, I would give a pre-test, and then after a post-test. Then compare and see which showed the most student production. I would be interesting in seeing the students' perception of each of these. These are just some rough ideas I have, which definitely need to be smoothed out, but for now, at least it's a beginning, sort of a skeleton.
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