Great Professional Development Opportunity

Have you discovered the free PD offered through Pearson? I am very impressed with the online newsletters that Pearson Longman has been posting.  Today's links to a video of Kate Kinsella's TESOL presentation on academic vocabulary.  It's a professionally produced video of a TESOL presentation that most of us were not able to attend. What an opportunity to stay current in the field!

I discovered the website also has a full library of podcasts from well-known professionals in our field.  Some are teaching tips; others are personal stories.  Choose your favorite ESL author from the pulldown menu or browse topics. A great resource!

Tech update for summer 2010

1. We’ve got some document cameras
   You can go to the equipment reservation page to reserve the document cameras
   Come to the lab to check it out, set up is as simple as hooking up two cables



2. We moved some whiteboards
   Now the whiteboard in each room is aligned with the projector screen. Easier to write on the projected images now!



3. The Plone website is in the process of upgrading, and the bookmark website is the temporarily replacement
   Please use http://teacher.moodle.sjsu.edu before the new plone is ready to go. You can also use the other URL: http://sal.sjsu.edu/bookmark



4. We have a new way to add students into Moodle Classes
   Now if you tell the student to use their SJSU id as the user name and pin number as the password, they will be able to log in to the Moodle directly. No more waiting for confirmation email!
   Check the pin number for your student at this page: http://moodle.sjsu.edu/studentdata
   Use the same username and password as the teacherdata to login to the page

Sally's CATESOL 2010 Highlights

These are brief write-ups of the two most interesting talks I attended at the recent CATESOL conference.
By Sally Teeple.

Promoting Academic Honesty in the ESL Classroom

I attended this presentation because I recently had a student in a writing class turn in an essay that was 100% cut-and-pasted from the Internet, so the topic of plagiarism and academic (dis)honesty was fresh in my mind. The presenter, Jessica Plotner, had many good ideas for introducing this topic in class early in the term, and for engaging students in activities to help them learn what is considered plagiarism and what isn’t. For example, she recommends spending time on a thorough discussion of the cheating/plagiarism policy of the classroom and of the institution. She also provided a handout with a number of plagiarism-related scenarios that can be used to do various activities. For instance, students could categorize them into “cheating” and “not cheating”, or they could do role plays of some of the situations. The presenter had many other great ideas, and I hope to be able to apply some of the her suggestions in my own classes in the future. In her presentation, she used a saying which is somewhat hackneyed, but nonetheless appropriate for this topic: The best offense is a good defense. I agree with her. If we engage our students early in a discussion of plagiarism, and show them what they shouldn't do, we will have to spend less time later in the semester backtracking and telling them what they shouldn't have done.

How IEPs and College/Universities Work Together to Prepare Students for Freshman Academic Life

Since I teach at two IEPs, I am interested in how students adjust from the comfortable ESL classroom to a large college or university (like SJSU or Mission College). I often find that in my classes, students don’t know basics like how to compose an email to a teacher (they often use lots of happy faces and text-type abbreviations), how to write an assignment heading (I’ve had students simply scrawl their name at the bottom of a paper in pencil), and what size and type of paper is appropriate to write an assignment on (Asian students often use cute, small paper), and I wonder how these students will fare in the “real world” of the university. The talk I attended was given by a teacher at CSU East Bay. She teaches in a program designed to prepare their IEP students to enter the university. In her presentation, she discussed how they designed the program and what sorts of skills they teach students. I really like some of the projects they have students do. One project is a sort of scavenger hunt on campus, to help students get familiar with places like the health center, library, book store, etc. They also have students make appointments with and interview professors and other faculty and staff on campus, so that when they become university students, they have had some practice visiting office hours and asking questions of their teachers. Many of the assignments they do in this program could be easily turned into shorter assignments in a listening and speaking class to help students become familiar with American college culture.

CATESOL 2010 The Culture of Conversation Strategies

"What happens if you don't XXXXXX correctly?"  

"What happens if international students don't shake hands correctly?"

Josh Kurzweil presented on the problem of international students with strong language skills sabotaging conversations by being unaware of American cultural expectations.  He filled his Saturday afternoon presentation at CATESOL with examples of how student behavior (or lack of) in conversation has consequences.  His strategies for teaching students are based on the four Cultural Knowings from the book, Teaching Culture, by Patrick Moran.

It was such a strong presentation that I'd like to bring him to SAL for an in-service for teachers, conversation club partners, and staff. I'll follow up to see if that's a possibility and I'll post the handout when I get it.

Pecha-Kucha Presentation style

I just recently read about this presentation style and found it quite interesting.
It consists of a tight restriction, 20 slides, 20 seconds per slide, 6 minutes 40 seconds in total The visuals on slides are only to support the ideas in the presentation, but not to list the points. So it comes out more of a speech than a slide by slide presentation.

More info in the following links:

What is Pecha-Kucha?
http://www.pecha-kucha.org/what

official website ( why would a presentation style have an official website... I don't know. But it looks almost like a cult now...
http://www.pecha-kucha.org/

Some examples: (around 6:40 each)
http://vimeo.com/5111955
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NZOt6BkhUg
Search for pecha kucha and you can see a lot of it..

It may be an interesting thing to play with our higher level students or any class you want them to do presentation.. Food for thought!

Faculty Memo 1/24/2010

Here's just a quick note to say to please refer to the online Classroom Schedule for your room numbers -- they may be quite different from what the students' schedules show or what it shows on the class list or attendance site; Megan is posting classroom changes in the plastic frames in the room windows.

I hope everyone has a good day tomorrow! We're also welcoming our group of 17 graduate students (chemistry) from Kyushu University. Tomorrow I'll be mostly focused on getting them oriented.

Here's the most direct and efficient contact for the following issues:

Lost students: Kim will be on hand at 8:30 and again at 1:00 to look up students who have lost their schedules

Level adjustments: You know the speil: students who think they are in the wrong class right away need to stay in the class and do their best while teachers do assessment (please do email Kim with a headsup if the student seems quite misplaced to you, though).

Elective questions: Sarah D.

Gateway issues: Ann S.

SAS issues about SJSU courses: Kristin C.

Requests for room changes: Megan (she'll sort it all out. We have an unusually complicated set of factors the first month of the term).

Facilities issues: Moe will know whom to call, (or Cindy: 924-2580)

http://sal.sjsu.edu.bookmark to connect to the classroom and lab schedule and calendar

Moving on to new sites

The intention of this blog a year ago was to provide an accessible place for SAL teachers to share new ideas gleaned from conferences - virtual professional development. Since my last post, I've been inspired to share from the LLD Best Practices session, the Pasadena CATESOL, the national NAFSA conference in LA and my meetings with students, agents, and universities in Asia.

I've discovered, though, that now other online resources offer even better formats for these posts. Facebook, Twitter, and Diigo each serve a different purpose but all support our objective of sharing strategies and inspirations. SAL teachers have two Diigo groups for posting and discussing articles and videos and their own Twitter for updating activities and passing along quick ideas.

So, I'll get up to speed on and move on to those social networking sites. Anyone else is welcome to post to this blog. Perhaps a reasons for rejuvenation is right around the corner, but for now please join SAL's Diigo and Twitter groups to stay in touch with your colleagues and conferences.

YouTube - TOEFLtv

This site has some useful and engaging tips for our students!

http://www.youtube.com/TOEFLtv

They are short and engaging (from both teachers and students), so you may want to show it to press a point...



You can also upload your own teaching tip!

Even though this is a commerical interest from ETS, it looks to me like something our students could really get into.



This came through on CATESOL's IEP listserv:



Do you have a great tip for English-language learners?

You can become a star on the TOEFL® TV Channel on YouTube®



We've created an educational channel on YouTube where teachers like you can use the power of video to reach millions of students to help them learn, share and grow. There are two ways to get your video on TOEFL TV:

1. Record your tip at TESOL 2009 in Denver. We're filming teacher tips throughout the TESOL conference at the TOEFL TV studio (booth #738). So come prepared, bring props and showcase your expertise and enthusiasm for English-language learning!

2. Make your own video and post it to YouTube. If you don't already have a YouTube account, sign up for one at www.youtube.com

Then join the TOEFL Tips by Teachers group at www.youtube.com/group/TOEFLteacherTips and click "Add Videos." Make sure you read the rules and guidelines before submitting, because videos require approval before they are added to the TOEFL TV channel. That's all there is to it!



Have fun putting your tip together and don't forget to ask your students and colleagues to rate their favorite videos or upload a TOEFL TV tip of their own. Also, be sure to incorporate TOEFL TV <http://www.youtube.com/toefltv> into your classes. We hope your students will love it!
Visit ETS Booth #617

Come to our book signing and reception at our 2nd Booth #617 Thursday, March 26th 2 pm. Meet the authors and network with colleagues and join the fun with drinks, snacks and prizes!

__________
Let me know what you think of it, OK?
~Marianne

Free US Government Online English

USA Learns is a website designed to teach basic English skills to immigrants. Audio, video, test scores and more. The level is basic, but the technology is at least intermediate.

There's also a Spanish lesson track.

Privacy on Facebook

Here at the NAFSA meeting I’m attending a lot of sessions on technology in the educational workplace. Usually the first question for the Gen X presenting about Facebook/Twitter/Digby is from a Boomer sitting in the back who raises his hand to ask “but why?”.

One of the best responses was in an article here quoting Marian Salzman, a New York-based trendspotter:

We’re so much more public about posting everything now. We’ll post our breakups, our pictures. Privacy is now defined as something that’s in our hearts. We’ve redefined what’s private, so there’s less worry about what we post.

Interesting.

There have also been news items this week about teachers in Charlotte, NC losing their jobs because of inappropriate Facebook postings. I’ve been alerted to check SJSU policies on faculty/staff social interactions with students so that we can clarify that line and the role of social networking.

A Vision of Students Today video

I’m in Honolulu this week at the Bi-regional NAFSA conference. NAFSA is the professional association for international educators that deals primarily with out-of-the-classroom issues such as immigration and visa regulations, student services, marketing, and legal responsibilities for all facets of international education. So, while it’s informative, it’s usually less inspiring than great TESOL or CATESOL presentations.

However, yesterday in a session about generational diversity, I saw a student-made video I want to share. A Vision of Students Today is about 4.5 minutes and sends a clear message in a creative format. Take a look and let me know what you think. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGCJ46vyR9o

Free faculty development for Poster Sessions

Take advantage of this workshop to spiff up your poster session.

How to make a Poster for Conference Presentation Using PowerPoint and the Poster Output Service
Provided by SJSU Photographic Services

Fri. Oct 17
10:00 AM to 11:30 AM
IRC 210

Facilitated by Kathy Sucher, Faculty-in-Residence for ePortfolio, Professor, Nutrition and Food Science and Bob Bain, University Photographer, Academic Technology

Europe's Learning Tribes

There was much analysis of the trends and topics in student mobility at the conference of the European Association of International Education I just attended in Antwerp. Europe is rapidly adopting English-language instruction in order to internationalize their campuses and to graduate globally marketable job candidates. The result is a greater number of international students and several research projects.

Researchers from I-Graduate in London conducted “the world’s largest ongoing study of international students” and presented their data on how students “differ less by nationality and more by personal expectations and aspirations”. Researchers Archer and Bush named the following “tribes”, characterized by motivation, behavior, influence and ambition.

15% are Surfers looking for fun and a life experience. They are risk-takers ready to try the new culture without committing to it.

Let’s play games and watch videos. I want to meet Americans.

22% are Seekers studying for a better job. They are under strong parental influence and feel a great obligation to their families’ futures.

Can we have more homework?

22% are Gekkos focusing on money, status, and recognition. They are demanding, hard to please, and may not share their parents’ values or follow their advice.

How is this lesson going to be useful to my future? Don’t waste my time.

27% are Bonos working for the greater good and a work/life balance. They are optimistic; they want to make a difference and value recognition over money.


How can I join a club on campus?

14% are Kids exuding unfocused enthusiasm and little maturity. They are generally, but not always, younger and may not be ready to make mature decisions. They haven’t decided what they want to do and are under parental influence.

Can I borrow a pen and paper? Oh, yeah, I forgot to bring my textbook, too.

Personally, I still believe that culturally based communication styles have a great bearing on our students’ classroom behavior, but I’ll have to admit we see each of these stereotypes in SAL classes. Although the names serve to summarize the types, they seem a bit disrespectful to me. I’d say we are already addressing the different demands and learning styles of each group at SAL, but it’s interesting to consider these survey results.

SAL STUDENT LENDING LIBRARY

Our dedicated classroom building gives us the opportunity to build a center for international teaching and learning. We have just added benches to the 'back lobby' to provide seating so it seemed natural to try to define this area as a 'reading room'.

Today we rolled the book cart out of storage and into the 'back lobby' to give our students access to free reading materials. The books have orange dots on the spines simply to signal that they are part of our open collection to be returned to the shelves.

Immediate student interest prompted Moe to post a temporary sign. I was thinking of posting something creative to tie reading to increased vocabulary and thus to higher TOEFL scores. Any ideas? We'll be trying a format of open lending - borrow, read, return - for now. Next step might be to ask students to note their recommendations in the front covers or on a clipboard.

Certainly you and students are welcome to add your used books (cookbooks? travel books? fiction? poetry?) to the shelves and to borrow freely from the collection.

New equipment in 2nd Street. - PowerPoint Remote, Tablet PC

Hi all,

Thanks to Karen, recently we have two new equipment coming in 2nd street classroom building. The first one is PowerPoint remote control, which allows you to control the PowerPoint slides when you are not around the PC. This way you don't have to walk back to the PC everytime just to press the mouse button.

The second addition is a Tablet PC, allowing you to write on the screen and project the screen content to the big screen. You can write on your PowerPoint to stress your point, or just start doodling on the screen if you want to make it an art class. Ursula has been our pioneer and tried out the tablet in her writing class this summer, and she likes it a lot.

If you want to try the two device to see if you can use it in your class, please feel free to contact Moe at 2nd Street building

Salzburg Global Seminar

Although my work this week at the Salzburg Global Seminar is not directly related to our classroom work, it has been an extremely valuable week for making campus connections. There are 11 representatives from 11 different SJSU departments, so the opportunities to introduce SAL programs have been very good.

Our purpose this week has been to discuss ways to internationalize the campus with the outcome of making SJSU attractive to students, staff, and faculty as a place of global education. The lectures have gone well beyond curriculum and campuses and conclude with the very important role that education - especially international education - can and must play in addressing global problems. Not only is education the only successful road we know to controlling population growth (effecting food, water, and pollution), it is also the best means to changing prejudices and opening dialogs.

Come to think of it - I should have started by saying this week IS directly related to our classroom work! All of the lectures and powerpoints will be distributed on a CD that we plan to post on a website to share with all.

Home-Away-From-Home Lunches

At NAFSA this week, I was part of workshop on student support activities that address student needs during the cycle of cultural adjustment.


Suffolk University acknowledges the predictable low period in cultural adjustment when students seek out their countrymen for support. Suffolk sets up lunches for country groups in October and February just as the excitement of living in the US is wearing off. Returning students are invited to join tables with new students from their country and share their experiences in surviving and thriving.


The conversations have included such things as the best place to buy/find their homeland food or how to interact with a particularly "different" teacher or interactions with a nationality that they had not experienced at home. One of the results is that the students help each other through some of the challenges in housing, food, relationships.

Suffolk has a smaller student population and so is able to provide lunches for all. Perhaps SAL could do something similar after classes in the afternoon with snacks? Or provide some reimbursement if the students want to go somewhere to meet? Any suggestions?

A related idea was to set up Peer Outreach Partners (POPs!) to pair 'senior' students with incoming students. The success is more dependent on the pairs getting along well - something impossible to predict.

I'm very big on keeping an English only environment, but I can see real benefit in creating or supporting student support networks within their compatriot groups.

EZ Slang Activities online

Randy Davis from University of Utah has created several sites for the ELI students. EZ Slang has slang vocabulary, audio files, and activities that would be interesting for our students. Very easy to use. This could be especially good in our ACC classes.

TESOL IT Fair

Perhaps just one more post from the NYC TESOL. Randall Davis runs the ELI lab at University of Utah. He gave a terrific presentation on technology in the IEP curriculum and also coordinated the Hardware Fair. I'm linking to the description of the Hardware Fair to give you an overview of the many possibilities that were on display. I hope these posts are inspiring us to try to new things ~ especially with Moe on board to help.

Windows Movie Maker

Windows Movie Maker is a great tool for our students to make short videos--probably for OC class. Suzanne Ludlum from Oakland Adult Ed showed us how her students make Digital Stories. Here are some results:
http://storiesforchange.net/stories
The idea is for the student to pre-write her story and then think of a sort of story board.
She can easily find images on Google images and save them or import her own pictures.
You insert your pictures, apply video effects and transitions, type over them using titles or credits or title overlays, and then use Audacity to narrate your story. You can have background music as well.
I'm quite interested in becoming more adept with this and after Moe gets other more pressing tasks under control, I want to work with him on this so that I can do a demo of it for interested teachers, OK?