Week’s
5 assignment 1 has to do with games, simulations and virtual environment. We had to choose 2 and explain how I would
incorporate them into my professional practice.
As
we have seen throughout this weeks’ research there are many games, simulations
and virtual applications on the market and that can be used to enhance adult
education. The most important thing I have learned this week is that we as
educators need to find out what will and will not work with our students. We know that all students have their own
needs and wants and we have to be able to try to accomplish meeting their needs
and wants. I believe that no matter what
we use whether it be games, simulations or virtual environment, adult can learn
from them all with proper guidance, ongoing feedback, and rules.
The
2 technologies I would like to incorporate when teaching my adults the English
language are: (1) Virtual Environment - Second
Life - http://secondlife.com/
Virtual worlds is a learning environment in which teachers
and students can interact with each other, while playing different roles and
develop their own online identity (Lynch, 2002).
Second Life is leading in the 3D virtual world. In this imaginary world one builds an avatar
to your liking, you can travel anywhere you like, you can have beaches, buildings,
people, cafes, mountains, stores, streets, etc. eat at the best restaurants, we
can shop at the most expensive stores across the world, etc. One will have fun
with people from all parts of the world, we can listen to live performances
(music), we can play games, and we can even create a space for a virtual
classrooms that are very similar to ‘real-life’ classrooms. One can act out real life situations. The use
of Second Life with my adult learners will help with their communications,
listening, speaking skills.
3-D virtual
world provides students with immersive and interactive real-life communications
with people around the world. SL has opened
many doors to learning a second language. Two ways of communicating within SL
(1) text-based chat or (2) live chat.
Besides communication via, text messages and conversation via audio,
avatars can also interact with each by using simple gestures, waving, thumbs-up
or down. Other things that students will
benefits from (1) creating a strong environment, (2) opportunities for strong
interaction and building communities (3) cooperation skills will be taught, (4)
they will learn how to share (5) motivation, and involvement will increase and
anxiety will decrease. One downfall is that they can be very costly (Hismanoglu,
2012).
SL allows us to
set up different scenarios to act out real life situations allow one to learn
new words rather than just memorizing them.
A way to incorporate this is role-playing. Example - I am waitress and
student is customer ordering food. They will practice vocabulary words as well
as learn new ones.
The second application would be games. http://www.eslgamesworld.com/.
There are many games on this site that can be
used for both adults and children. Games liven up and motivate students to want
to learn. Bonk (2009, p, 289) suggest that “as gaming experiences
grow, today’s learners are seeking richer and more engaging educational
experiences.” Games are used to test vocabulary, practice conversing,
learn tenses, etc. Games
can be used before a lessons, during a lesson or even to take a quick break
from lecture. This site offers the
following ESL games: Snakes and Ladders, Hangman, Spelling games,
Wheel of Fortune, TV Games (Betting Game), Mazes, Memory Games, Matching
exercises, Sequencing exercises, Picture Quizzes and more.
Thanks, hope everyone is having a great week thus far.
Gracesinda
References
Bonk,
C. J. (2009). The world is open: How web technology is revolutionizing
education. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Retrieved from the Walden
Library databases.
ESL Game World
(2015). Welcome to ESL Games World- Fun
Games for ESL/EFL Lessons. Retrieved
from http://www.eslgamesworld.com/.
Hismanoglu, M. (2012). Integrating Second Life into an EFL
classroom: A New Dimension in Foreign Language Learning and Teaching. Retrieved from http://www.ijonte.org/FileUpload/ks63207/File/09.hismanoglu.pdf
Lynch, S.
(2002). Preparing language teachers to
teach in virtual worlds. Retrieved from lib.dr.iastate.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3470&context=etd
GraceSinda,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the informative post. I too took a look at Second Life as a possible learning vehicle to use in my Organizational Leadership class. My initial impression was that it might actually be too involved and require too many resources, especially time, to be cost effective for my particular learning situation.
I agree that the scenario you described where you were a customer and your student is the waiter or waitress would be an excellent way to practice ESL. In your estimation, would something like that be pragmatic? Do you think you could get your students to that scenario fairly easily?
I admit that asking you this is also admitting that I did not check it our well enough myself, but what the heck. Besides, I do very much value your opinion.
Thanks!
Ron N.
Ron,
ReplyDeleteThanks again for reading and comment on my blog. Once again honestly I have not tried Second Life, it is something I am looking into for using at my English School in the near future. As for the above scenario, I have used it with my students, as a role playing method, and I have found that about after 3/4 weeks into the course, students are able to use some of the basics they have been taught to in this scenario. I believe that when students want to learn and are motivated they can reach their goals. As for cost, I am not sure at this point, I would have to further research and evaluate it. No matter what we use with our teaching, we have to have a plan or process in place for it to be a success.
Thanks
Gracesinda
Hi Gracesinda,
ReplyDeleteIn one of my earlier classes at Walden, I also explored Second Life as a potential educational option for my current role. And like you, I found that solution to be interesting, but very expensive to implement. The reason that I found it a fascinating option is because I have so many individuals that I support who are not located where I am, or what we call remote associates. I thought that this could be a potential option for engaging them in an environment that provided a way to make them feel a little more connected to others, as many of them are work from home. But the cost was just too great to make this a viable solution in my environment.
Although the eslgamesworld.com option looked quite valuable for K-12 education, I didn’t see much that I could leverage for my own audience. But having said that, my wife is a pre-K instructor so I am planning to share this with her to see what need she may have in her environment for ESL education.
Thanks for sharing the information for both sites, as well as your thoughts on each.
Jim
Hey Jim.
DeleteThanks for reading and commenting on my blog. Thanks for the feedback on the cost for implementing Second Life into our teaching. Honestly I did not research that part of the program as of yet. I will have to continue doing my research and see if there is alter program I could use with my adult learners. I as well looked into eslgamesworld.com, there are some things I could use from there as well.
Once again thanks for sharing and commenting. Gracesinda
I choose the same one Second Life as well. I learned a great benefit to gaming is “The sense of personal empowerment one learner feels can conceivably be duplicated for millions of others. This opener simultaneously takes human learning to a deeper and richer place that engages and retains learners, rather than allowing them to walk in the front door and out the back door as my Grandpa George did”. (Bonk 2009) I think this environment would be great for ESL learners. They could use this tool to talk in English to get comfortable with the language.
ReplyDeleteSamantha,
DeleteThanks for reading my blog and commenting. It seems many chose Second Life, but I am hearing a lot about how costly it is. I will honestly have to research it further and look for alternatives if it that costly. I will have to see my budget once I open my school. I agree with you that simulations takes things to a new level, it gives a little hands on I believe. Thanks again for sharing your thoughts.
Gracesinda