Reading Post #5

Output is just as important as input because we want our ESL learners to be able to apply what is being learned in the classroom in different domains outside of school, in the real world. Computers are a great tool in helping us to elicit such output by allowing for creativity and production in many ways. Egbert gives us great ideas on how different projects can be done with the aid of technology. It is also important to give our students choices and allow them to take the initiative and control of their language production. For example, I like to give my students the freedom to choose a topic within limits of course, and I also allow them to use different software. For example, we did a unit on telecommunication and media. We looked at online newspapers in Spanish first, such as El nuevo Heraldo to get ideas and examples first. Their project was to create a headline or a front page of a newspaper or an article. Some of them used Publisher and others used Microsoft Word. All work had to be in Spanish and include illustrations. The work varied in terms of creativity and design, but I was pretty happy with the production. After i'm done with this class, I'm sure I'll be able to assign an even better project that will incorporate more technology. On the next project, I will try to implement the use of Wikis. I ahd no idea what a great tool these can be. I have never used a Wiki before. They too seem to be a great way to expand audience for students. This is important for there collaborationa nd communication of the language. These can also let them realize how many ESL learners there are, for example, if we create a Wiki just for language learning. This way they can write about their experiences and struggles with the language per se.