Reading Response Five

Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Reading Prompt #5
•RICHARDSON Ch. 8. Podcasting, Video and Screencasting, Live Streaming: Multimedia Publishing for the Masses
•BLACKBOARD - McQuillan, J. (2006). iPods in Education: The Potential for Language Acquisition
•BLACKBOARD – Stansbury, M. (2009). iPods help ESL Students Achieve Success. eSchool News (May 11).
Do you have an iPod or another type of .mp3 player? If so, have you used it or anything other than listening to your own music, such as downloading and listening to podcasts? Note some of the points McQuillan made about how podcasting can support second language learning. Which of the ideas from the readings would you be interested in trying out in your own classroom?

I have an iPod, but I have never listened to a podcast. Although, now I am interested in doing so. I really liked the article about Poli, and how she used iPods in her classroom. I can see a real advantage in using iPods in the classroom. I liked how she created exercises using music for all different levels of students.

McQuillan's article on using iPods for second language acquisition was very interesting. He talked about comprehensible input being an important aspect of second language acquisition. He also talked about a state of flow. Here are some of McQuillan's suggestions for teaching a second language,
"• Slowing the rate of speech
• Providing contextual support for language
• Using vocabulary appropriate to the student’s level
• Building on the student’s existing background knowledge
• Fostering a comfortable environment
• Encouraging identification with people who speak the target language
• Creating a topic-driven rather than a grammar-based syllabus"
I thought these were good ideas to foster second language acquisition. Some of these points can be supported with the use of an iPod, for example, "providing contextual support for language, and building on the student's existing background knowledge".

Besides using iPods in the classroom, I liked the idea of using podcasts, and am excited about creating on for our blogs. This is something I would really like to incorporate in my own personal blog, as well. Over all, I really enjoyed the readings for tonight's class.