THE LEARNING TOWN PROJECT: THE COMPUTER AS MEDIATOR TO COMPLEMENT THE TEACHING OF ENGLISH FOR KIDS

TEACHERS MANUAL

MRCIA LUIZA DE ABREU

BELO HORIZONTE 2011

SUMRIO

1 INTRODUCTION 2 - BACKGROUND 3 THEORETICAL BASIS 4 - THE LEARNING TOWN 4.1 Target Public 4.2 - Objetives 4.2.1 General Objetive 4.2.2 Specific Objectives 4.3 - The Website 4.3.1 - Homepage 4.3.2 Message Board 4.3.3 Town Council 4.3.4 Food Centre 4.3.5 Pet Zoo 4.3.6 Cinema (Movie) 4.3.7 School 4.3.8 Contact Page 4.4 Social Networks 4.5 Implementation and Evaluation. 5 TO TEACHERS 6 FINAL THOUGHTS 7 - REFERENCES

To Teachers

It is a great honor to present this manual with information about the project The Learning Town. The wish to create a complementary space to textbooks which could bring together the most innovative Digital Technologies began when I enrolled myself in the course Especializao em Ensino de Lnguas Mediado por Computador (ELMC). The course is an activity of the Post graduate Program in Linguistic Studies of the Faculdade de Letras of UFMG (Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais) whose objectives are to bring-up-to-date and deepen the qualification of teachers in the use of the Digital Technologies. In the course we had the opportunity to debate the admission and performance of education in the digital world. As Paulo Freire, I believe that education needs to be "up to its time" having the teachers the responsibility to adapt their ways of teaching according to the characteristics of their public, called "digital natives". It is needed, paraphrasing Freire, to change the school, making it a new born as current and innovative as the technology. The project The Learning Town is my contribution to the birth of this new school.

Welcome!

Mrcia Luiza de Abreu Project Coordinator

THE LEARNING TOWN PROJECT: THE COMPUTER AS MEDIATOR TO COMPLEMENT THE TEACHING OF ENGLISH FOR KIDS

1 INTRODUCTION

The Learning town is a

website with the

interface of a small town where the

students can Interact with the inhabitants and, while visiting each they will face specific situations of language use and consequently with the genres of text used in these situations, providing a deeper, systemic and frequent interaction with the language in question in this case: English.

2 BACKGROUND

The computer, from the revolution of new technologies, has debuted in education and even the most radical traditionalists cannot deny that the new Technologies have brought significant results to the teaching/learning process. The use of computers and internet by students is increasing considerably and rapidly on the last years. Kids and computers are almost inseparable nowadays and, with school aged children, and even younger, spending hours in front of a computer, to not take advantage of this interaction is literally live in the past. Facing the new educational reality, in which the old behaviorist model definitively doesnt suit the questioning and critical profile of todays students, we perceived the benefits of the usage of new technologies as mediator element in the process of teaching English for kids. The project The learning Town originate from the understanding that anything isnt enough in itself regarding education, better explaining, a curriculum, no matter how good; a textbook, no matter how embracing; a teacher, no matter how eclectic; none of these elements is enough by itself. For a global learning, it is necessary that these elements combine among themselves and to others, to form complete

students, able to interact in the world, building their knowledge through interaction within the group where they live. The experience of working in a bilingual school, where the teaching of English doesnt follow ESL patterns, but provide the student, since the early years, the instruction in a system that Harmers & Blanc (2000) call Initial Partial Immersion, in which both languages L1 & L2 are used as means of instruction since the beginning of school life, directed us to think of a tool that could be a support to the teacher, complementing the textbook and reinforcing the curriculum. The textbook adopted in the above referred school is rich concerning the development of the four basic abilities in language acquisition: speaking, writing, reading, listening; besides bringing besides providing interdisciplinary contents covering the areas of Science, Social Studies e Math. However, we realized that these contents do not contemplate basic standards at each level. From this observation, the Project The learning Town was idealized with the objective to create learning situations that allow students to develop specific competences in each content according to the series (year), moreover, expanding the circumstances of the L2, both in the classroom and beyond.

3 THEORETICAL BASIS

The project The learning Town was idealized to be a website aiming the teaching of English for kids, with a sociointeractionist proposal, and a genre based approach. In the city of Learning Town the students Interact with the inhabitants and, while visiting each place they get in touch with specific situations of language use and consequently with the genre of texts used in these situations. Thus, we can affirm that the project is based on the work of the theoretical and methodological of the Socio-Discursive Interactionism (SDI) which understand the human behavior as situated actions whose structural and functional properties are, above all, a product of socialization (BRONCKART, 1997/1999), which is based on social-historical psychology of Vygotsky (1934/1993) and the propositions of genres presented by Mikhail Bakhtin (2000).

To Vygotsky, the main function of language is the social interchange: men create and use the language systems to communicate with his fellows. Further, according to Vygotskys thoughts, the psychological processes of an individual formation take into account the social and historical context in which language activities occur. The proposal of the SDI relies on this view, since the language activities have a central attribution. Thus, the activities and language production that occur in certain social constructions lead to awareness, learning, and consequently, to human development (MACHADO, 2000). The language activities are related to various forms of communication used in a particular social group, which lead us to the study of genre of text. Bakhtin (2000) Bakhtin (2000) defines speech genres as "relatively stable types of utterances." This definition is similar to the term genre of text, used by Bronckart (1997/1999), Schneuwly and Dolz (1996). In this view of language, its functional and interactive nature gets more attention than its formal and structural aspect, thus the grammar is no longer the key point of the teaching/learning process, but only one of the language skills involved in the production of a genre of text (ABREU-Tardelli, 2007). Based on the theoretical propositions that guide our teaching practice, all the interactions in the website begin in a communicative situation that will develop through the genre that is usually mobilized in that communicative situation, whether oral or written. The contact with the genre will allow the student to use the language capacities cited by Dolz & Schneuwly (1996) - capacities of action, discursive and linguistic-discursive. The interactions, wheter reactive or mutual, take place according to the necessity of each situation and genre.

4 - THE LEARNING TOWN

4.1 Target Public The website The Learning Town is directed to the infant public, students in the first years of elementary school. Firstly, the project is restricted to the students of a

certain school in Governador Valadares, MG. Later it is intended to expand its reach to every educational institution interested in the project, considering that the website aims to be an ally for the teacher who seeks to improve his/her classes through the use of the new technologies.

4.2 - Objetives

4.2.1 General Objective

Through the website www.thelearningtown.com we wish to stimulate in the student, in his early years, the competence to analyze, discuss, select, organize and apply information through real situations of usage of the English Language, thus contributing for the improvement of the read, writing, speaking, and listening skills in the target language.

4.2.2 Specific Objectives

The systematic navigation through the website and the interaction with the inhabitants of Learning Town (pedagogical agents) allow the student:

Express in the target language in an increasing level of fluency; Register his/her adventure in the small town in a daily journal; Describe situations faced day by day in the small town; Narrate events in chronological order and with richness of details; Practice vocabulary and communicative functions with the pedagogical

agents, or with classmates, through chats, forums, wikis, etc; Discuss and solve, in a collaborative way, simple problems of social matter, such as finding a family for stray animals.

Besides these objectives, others, more specific, can be incorporated by the teacher according to the necessity and with the branch of knowledge the teacher wants to explore. Since the site allows the teacher to assign the student to visit specific places, the teacher can plan their actions according to his/her goals for a particular group of students.

4.3 - The Website

4.3.1 - Homepage

As a website dedicated to children, The Learning Town has an interface, though simple in terms of usability, is rich in visual incitement. By entering the site the visitor is greeted with an animated introduction, welcomes the the city's visitor mayor inviting

him/her to visit all the facilities in town. On the homepage, the

ludicity is highlighted with signposts that appear on various parts of the city, opening up the page by clicking on them.

4.3.2 Message Board

As

real

town,

Learning Town has cinema (movie theater), club, petting zoo, food centre, School, library, fun square. In each place the student/visitor will find different ways to Interact building his/her knowledge through this interaction. At the end of this visit the student is invited to leave a message on the towns message board, highlighting points that he/she learned during the visit. The message board will be an evaluation tool for the students spontaneous writing.

4.3.3 Town Council The student, when visiting Learning Town, receives the title of Towns Citizen being able to participate in the meeting at the town-council. This interaction will allow the student to get in touch of contents of Social Studies, and will provide the student to act as a citizen, discussing social themes with his classmates through forums, and even participate in the decisions of the town.

4.3.4 Food Centre In the Food Centre the student will be in touch with all kinds of subjects related to food. How to buy food in a grocery store, supermarket, restaurant; fast how food, to or

make

delicious recipes, how to be healthy eating the right kind of food.

4.3.5 Pet Zoo The petting zoo is a special place where kids can get in touch with animals, learn and have fun. At the Learning Towns petting zoo this situation is not different. Here students will find all kinds of information regarding animals:

their habitats, characteristics, food habits, survival strategies, etc.

4.3.6 Cinema (Movie) This is the space for videos of all kinds. At the movies kids can have fun and learn. In this page the student will watch short movies and video clips, and will be redirected to other pages to do activities related to the content of the movie.

4.3.7 School

Inside the school the visitors will be redirected to three different pages. If they go to the Library theyll find lots of good books. Choose one, and after reading it they will be guided to do some activities related to the books content. If the students decide to enter the Classroom they will find many interesting activities in all kinds of subjects. For the teachers theres the Teachers Room where they can find many Class Plans and all the directions that will help them in their mission.

4.3.8 Contact Page

Finally, theres the contact page, where the visitor can get in touch with the websites administrators, for questions, doubts, suggestions, and etc.

4.4 Social Networks

A 2007 research done by the British Council1 showed that students who felt they were getting enough opportunities in their lives to socialize informally were also successful in their learning. Its important to understand that successful students combine studying and socializing, and that combining the two things helps them to be successful at both. With this in mind the website The Learning Town has pages on the main social networks such as Facebook, Orkut and Twitter and the pages can be reached by clicking on the icons at the bottom of the homepage. These social networks will be used as teaching tools to stimulate the interaction among the students and teachers. Besides, the students will also use a wiki page in order to improve their writing skills in a collaborative manner.

4.5 Implementation and Evaluation.

As previously mentioned, the website presents itself as a tool for teacher support, complementing the didactic material and deepening the curriculum. Thus, the teacher must include in his/her Lesson plan the activities the student must accomplish in the learning environment. The website has a special page where the teacher will find guidelines for the use of the website, lesson plans and tips for evaluation. Since the website is directed to children, it wasnt idealized for total distance education, but a model that combines classroom activities with the distance activities. The project is flexible concerning its utilization, allowing the teacher to act as a tour guide, directing the student during his visit to the town. Based on the theoretical propositions that guide the project The Learning Town, the student will be evaluated throughout the process. By participating in the project, for example, each student is asked to write a daily journal as a basis for the evaluation of their progress in written language. In the restricted area (Teachers

http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/articles/teaching-learning-through-social-networks

Room), the teacher will find lesson plans with suggestions for assessment in accordance with the objectives of each activity. The following concept map brings the dynamic structure of the Project and its association with the theoretical concepts in which the Project is based.

5 TO TEACHERS

This Project has been designed to help teachers, by using the new technologies, to reach better results with their students. The website must be used as a complement for the class instruction and the activities can be assigned as homework or class work, in groups or in individual basis. The website has a friendly interface and all the activities are integrated. The student is redirected to the next page as needed. Once in a while an avatar will remind the student about the safety rules for the internet, but you teacher, must keep

your students aware of the dangers they can face if they do not follow the rules for a safe navigation on the web. In each page theres a menu with the name of the activity, the subjects it embraces, and the objectives that must be accomplished.

Date

Pictures

Subject The Water Cycle Subject: Science - Earth Science Students will be able to: *understand that water travels in a cycle. *understand the parts of the water cycle: evaporation, condensation, and precipitation. *Theyll also get in touch with the concept of water storage and transpiration.

Files:

12/7/2011

Understanding Fossils School subject: Science: Earth Science - Students know that fossils provide evidence about the plants and animals that lived long ago and that scientists learn about the past history of Earth by studying fossils. 10/7/2011 Students will be able to define fossil. Students will be able to explain the job of a paleontologist. Students will be able to list and describe the four types of fossils. Students will better understand how fossils are formed.

6 FINAL THOUGHTS The use of computers and the Internet by students is increasingly common and begins earlier year by year. Children are learning English through a variety of devices and games such as DSs, PSPs, and akin, and it's important that schools walk in that way instead of continue to use "obsolete" technologies as the old homemade flashcards. To incorporate the modern Information Technology and its gadgets on school's curriculum since its first years allows students to take advantage in the race for literacy, which is increasingly important today. But to be a vehicle of change it is necessary to have sufficient resources such as well-equipped multimedia laboratories, digitally literate teachers, and above all, these technologies must be incorporated to traditional methods of teaching in a symbiosis that can increase the use of computers and internet a broader level than just additional tools in the teaching / learning, or "fads trainers of a consumer market, losing the opportunity to promote an effective change in teaching" (Seabra 2010).

7 - REFERENCES

ABREU-TARDELLI, Llia Santos. Elaborao de seqncias didticas: o ensino e aprendizagem de gneros em lngua inglesa. In: DAMIANOVIC, M.C. (org) Material Didtico: Elaborao, Implementao e Avaliao. 2007 BAKHTIN, Mikhail Mikhailovich. Os gneros do discurso. In: Esttica da criao verbal. M. E.G. G. Pereira (Trad.). So Paulo: Martins Fontes, 2000. BRONCKART, Jean-Paul. Atividades de Linguagens, texto e discursos. Por um interacionismo scio-discursivo. Trad. Anna Rachel Machado e Pricles Cunha. So Paulo: Educ, 1997/99. HARMERS, J e BLANC, M. Bilinguality and Bilingualism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000. MACHADO, Anna Rachel. Uma Experincia de Assessoria Docente e de Elaborao de Material Didtico para o Ensino de Produo de Textos na Universidade. DELTA., So Paulo, v. 16, n. 1, 2000. Disponvel em: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0102-44502000000100001 SEABRA, C. Tecnologias na escola. Porto Alegre: Telos Empreendimentos Culturais, 2010. Disponvel em: https://www.institutoclaro.org.br/banco_arquivos/Cartilha.pdf Acesso em : maio de 2011 SCHNEUWLY, B; DOLZ J, Gneros orais e escritos na escola. Traduo e Organizao Roxane Rojo e Gals Sales Cordeiro. Campinas: Mercado das Letras, 2004. VIGOTSKY, L. S. Pensamento e Linguagem. Traduo de Jferson Luiz Camargo. So Paulo: Editora Martins Fontes, 1934/1993.