Language Centers continue to change rapidly. Since their lab-era days they have always been built around technology. Until recently. The decreasing cost of computing devices, ubiquity of mobile devices (laptops, tables, smartphones, …), and dwindling size have changed the nature of the Language Center in recent years. As fewer computers, especially desktops, Read more…
It’s been a while… After receiving tenure, I took a small break from blogging. Also, I was elected as President-Elect of the International Association for Language Learning and Technology and have been working on a couple of articles and an (edited) book project entitled “From Language Lab to Language Center Read more…
Teaching writing in a foreign language is an interesting challenge, especially if it’s the focus of a particular course. Last semester I taught an advanced German writing and conversation course. The communicative aspect during class sessions is clear. But how do you have students write in class? On the surface, it is often perceived Read more…
My experiences with Storybird this semester were great. I wrote part one of this a few weeks ago, and now that the projects are in, I’d like to write a few lines about the final results. First of all, we did not have any technical glitches, and the administrative side of Read more…
I have been using Storybird this semester with my German introductory and advanced writing courses this semester. the browser-based software provides a very large amount of artwork as prompts and allows writers to add text to their stories. You cannot use your own images, you have to rely on the provided ones. I Read more…
I recently received a grant to work on electronic portfolios on our campus. Today I offered our first hands-on workshop on the topic: creatingelectronic portfolios for beginners. I introduced 3 relatively accessible tools that are available for free or for a fee with additional options: weebly, wordpress.com and lucidpress. Here’s Read more…
Wordcloud creators are very popular tools for educators. I have long been a fan of wordle and have used in many times to create pre-reading images, brainstorming activities and various student projects. Another service, Tagxedo, adds an interesting feature: using shapes for your word clouds. It’s really easy, and you can simply download your Read more…
Padlet (formerly called Wallwisher) is a shared virtual space which can be used and shared in a variety of ways (moodle, blog, e-mail, facebook, twitter, etc.). Accounts are not necessary, but it helps to get a free account if you want more control over the site and use it frequently. Read more…
I’ve been using Quizlet for my courses for a number of hers now. Last year I purchased a teacher license ($25 for one year), and I am glad I did. It’s been really easy to monitor progress, avoid ads for my students, and see which vocabulary items are more difficult Read more…
When it comes to managing teams, such as student workers, it is difficult to make sure everything gets done. When there is a group of people, something always falls through the cracks. For example, a student worker A is working on task for a professor. His shift is ending, but Read more…