1.
What does the application attempt to
“teach”?
http://www.manythings.org/
is one of the ESL website that caters
the need of many learners. What is nice about it is the handy links provided
that relates to most of the important features of English language. This
website comprises not only the lessons on the three of the four language
skills, reading, listening and speaking; but it also caters the visitors’
preferences in their own learning. For instance, there are vocabulary games
along with pictures, audio recordings, flashcards and numbers more of
user-friendly applications. Students from various ages and level of proficiency
are given the opportunities to challenge themselves with selectable kinds of
exercises. It provides immediate feedbacks,
so that the students or even teachers can assess themselves. The feedback also
includes corrections and suggestions, which made it superbly effective tool for
teaching even students from a novice level.
2)
What sorts of things is the application user
expected to do with regards to learning the content?
Student users are expected
to be able to revise what they have learned in school with the exercises
provided in the site. Not only this would widen their exposure on their
vocabulary and forms of language, it could also lengthen their memory on
certain topics. For instance, there are words in the textbooks that do not have
pictures about them; the students could find them with appropriate visual aids
on the site. Aside from that, students could also boost their confidence in
trying out exercises that they could not had at schools like all the puzzles
and some listening exercises. This is undeniably true especially when it comes
to schools that do not have enthusiastic English teachers hardworking enough to
prepare the students with the fun exercises.
3) What sorts of computer skills is the application
users expected to have in order to operate/ access/ use the application?
Due to the fact that the website’s intention which
allow users from various ages be able to learn in ease, this website requires
basics knowledge of typing with the keyboards, using pointers to click at the
correct answers and these are basically enough. It is so easy that even kids
from the age of 4 till the elderly can understand the lessons and do the
exercises. Even if the site is accessed via tablets or smartphones, the
interfaces are pretty simple and straightforward. For some contents, the users
need Adobe Flash Player and Adobe Reader to use or access the content involving
multimedia and Portable Document Format files (PDF). However this is not a tall
order to be looked at, as the softwares can be simply downloaded these days
with no charges at all.
4) While you are “playing”/ “accessing”/ “assessing”
the application, does it remind you of anything you do in a classroom, or with
a teacher, or with a fellow classmate, or in self-study?
When using this site, i found it rather related to
what i had during my tuition class with a neighbour during my primary schooling
years. We had our own privilege to choose on which topic were we interested to
learn. This somehow gives the junior learners not only the freedom to choose
their topic of interest to learn and do exercises, but also the motivations to
try and pick the others which indulge their curiosity and give them some
challenges in improving their language. The same goes for the language skills
choices. It can be resembled as a TESL students courses we had to take in the
methodology classes, which allows the students as well as the teachers to
access the available lesson on the allocated language skills comprising
listening, speaking and reading. The enjoyable audio podcast also reminds me of how my teacher used to bring me and my classmates to a room with a radio and she played a cassette of some nursery rhymes just to make us practice on listening. Using this site however, things have become much simpler where the teacher can just turn on his/her laptop and play the audio provided in this site. Best of all, students can also read the provided lyrics, which can be daunting without any.
5) Can you pinpoint some theories of language
learning and/or teaching underlying the application?
When exploring the site, i found it convincing
enough to state that one of Krashen’s Monitor model, the affective filter is
somehow applicable to the lessons and exercises. It emphasizes that students would
be able to learn at an optimum progress when they have low anxiety, and a good
motivation and self esteem would acquire the target language easier. These are
interrelated with the pronunciation and vocabulary lessons whereby the users
have apt time to listen and type, or sometimes answer the exercise. They are
not restricted by any durations or countdowns that would make them anxious. To
add, the site also promotes audio-lingual method, a kind of learning styles
that involves repetitions of dialogue, as well as drilling real usage of
conversation that will enhance their target language proficiency, especially in
listening and speaking. This is based on how the site utilizes the flash player
plug-ins and having audio recording for the users to listen to, which is
superbly interesting and efficient.
6) How well is the constructivist theory of learning applied to the chosen website(s)?
The constructivist theory of learning was proposed
by Vygotsky, which enlighten that
individuals will make sense and constructs the knowledge for themselves as he or she
learns. This theory suggest that learning should be meaningful enough for the
learners to be able to grasp and able to apply what they have learned in a real
life situation. The site consider this theory as one of the eminent factors to
assist the users to learn, by giving a real life examples in the reading and
listening lessons and exercises; for examples the conversations in a
restaurant, in a library and even some phone conversation. The vocabulary list
is also a laudable aspect of the site, which includes suitable words from what
a typical laity would use in a real life use. For instance the verbs listed in
the vocabulary section are mostly common words used by people and not the
sophisticated or flowery ones.
7.
In 1980s and early 1990s, there was a major
debate on ‘whether the computer was “master” of or “slave” to the learning
process (Higgins and Johns, 1984). In relation to your evaluation - was the
computer a replacement for teachers, or merely an obedient servant to students?
The site
may be a replacement for teachers when the classroom sessions are over. So in a
way aside from providing the students with lessons and exercises they can try
out themselves at home, with the supervision of their elder siblings or parents
of course. The question of either computer can be a master or a slave to the
students actually depends on how they view the computers for certain answers to
their problems in English. For instance, when students are relying too much too
look for answers using a computer or any digital media, like listening for
pronunciations of certain words for affirmations, or depending too much on the
assisted grammar corrective system, then the computer can be considered as
their slaves. This goes the other way around when we can assume the computer as
the students’ master. One way is by just using stiff and too structured form of
language used in the site’s examples, without really considering on using other
vocabulary in certain contexts. For example, a student would not be talking
using vernacular form of languages when speaking to the officials like the King
or the Judge in a court. These need practices in real life for sure.
8. Would you like to use the application yourself in
your future work?
Manythings.org is indeed an appealing site to be
explored by English learners as well as teachers. The user-friendly interface
as well as numbers of lessons and exercises really challenge the users into
clicking on the links and further broaden our knowledge and proficiency in
English. The variations of topics and skills to be learned are appealing and
easy enough to be explored. The visuals and audio recordings Plus, the numbers
of resources and ideas for teaching English lesson are also a laudable aspect
to be looked at. Thus it is very good for English teachers especially for the
new ones. The fact that the site does not use require sophisticated or up to
date flash player or plug-ins also made it accessible even by regular netbooks
or computers, which makes it easier for the senior teachers who are new to the technology-based
instruction to adapt themselves in a comfortable way.
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