This was the first time we had used Zoom for the Coffee Breaks (after experimenting with Facebook Rooms) and also the first time we had options for the morning and the afternoon. There were about a dozen of us in the morning and four in the afternoon. If you prefer bigger groups, the morning session is the one for you and so far, the afternoon’s for people who prefer more intimate surroundings. People preferred Zoom for sound quality, the ability to use the chat and on-screen features as well as the possibility to use breakout rooms when groups are bigger.
We used Harry’s webinar and the Wednesday question about dubbing in Iceland as possible starting points. You can catch up and re-watch Harry’s webinar “Zooming Around”, as well as all the webinars thus far through the TEFL Development Hub Facebook page; go to “more” (at the top of the page) then “media”, then “videos” and they’re all there, all 14 of them!
The conversation went something like this…
Is dubbing a good thing as it decreases the domination of English over other languages, in this case specifically in Iceland?
So much important cultural stuff and acting quality is lost through dubbing.
There is a skill involved in reading subtitles; it can also increase reading speed.
Bilingualism can grow through exposure. If we just put everything in the “target” language, they will learn.
Students driven by curiosity will learn, perhaps they enjoy the sounds and this creates a bond and a “feeling” with the language.
People, especially children, get bored and demotivated if they can’t understand enough.
Several Irish “learners” shared their stories of being forced into Irish and struggling despite society doing its best to make it real and immersive.
The quality of exposure is important to consider. Too easy or too difficult is low quality.
Enjoyment and understanding should be the guide to things outside the classroom.
Disney are confident that people won’t turn off if it’s not dubbed. (Who pays for the dubbing? Is it Disney or the country?) Netflix has a language learning plug-in.
There have been studies into acquisition vs active learning in 2 hours a week. Results indicate that active learning is better.
Authentic materials are great when the student is ready for them. Adapted materials are part of the process. There was mention of Steve and Maggie for YLs.
When we tell stories, should we adapt the language to aid learning and understanding?
“Teacher what can I do?” Ask our motivated A2, B1 students… try a trailer first without subtitles and then with, how did you do?
B2 and up… watch whatever you want!
We should be mindful of not patronizing our lower-level adult students.
Use tik tok to add captions to video, play with the language and the formats.
There were a couple of sites mentioned: edpuzzle lets you add comprehension questions to YouTube videos and English Attack (which requires you to sign up to access) has movie clips with activities already prepared. There’s also PlayPhrase where you can hear clips with a particular phrase and Youglish does something similar
Getting creative with homework… the internet is an unlimited resource; encourage students to do things for pleasure, e.g. follow your favourite celebrities.
Value any contact with English; in gaming change the language, play with lyrics to songs, etc. Find a challenge.
What songs can we use in “Songversations”? Be guided by your students but watch out for the bad language. Ed Sherran is generally ok, as are most slow love songs.
Coach our students as well as teach them.
Coerce students into using English! Trick them into learning through memes and tik tok.
Students read a huge amount. Mostly short pieces. Are we all being dragged down to the lowest common denominators?
We discussed the merits of extensive and intensive reading tasks.
There seems to be more students struggling with the receptive elements of official exams than there were before (10-20 years ago) Is there a noticeable decrease in people’s abilities in receptive skills?
In exam preparation classes, we need to help our students with these skills. If they have a reason to read, they will. Exam readings are boring. Will exams change to reflect society?
Use extensive reading programmes to encourage reading for pleasure. During COVID we need to consider quarantining books. Are there online options? Are there any second hand sharing possibilities? You could check out Oxford Owl, Vooks, Oxford Learners Bookshelf and Usborne
Should extensive reading programmes be optional or does there need to be an element of compulsion?
How do we feel about translation? To summarise, to translate in and out of different languages? Translation is important in many ways, use it wisely. Some good ideas about translation in this webinar from Philip Kerr. Online students can message back and forth translating back and forth and then find the differences.
Also mentioned…
Brexit and recruiting teachers in Europe was briefly talked about.
Writers’ groups and the “Society of Authors” also got a mention too as communities which support writers.