Assignment #1

Making English Lessons Engaging Through Video Materials Supported With Advance Organizers And Prediction Activities
By Winnie Lee
http://firma.northwestu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=47111440&site=ehost-live

This article was very interesting and surprisingly extremely informational about the significance of the use of videos in the classroom, primarily for ESL students.
For ESL students, videos give them the opportunity to see and hear the language in a cultural context. Videos have shown to stimulate the students' sensory impact, enhance affective attitude, stronger engagement, a higher motivation for learning, and increased self-confidence.
Videos open up the opportunity for students to not only see language in action, but to mimic what they have seen in a role playing situation. Videos set the example for what the students strive for.
In learning of the different functions and effects that videos have on language learners, I feel a little creatively challenged to really put thought and effort in to choosing which videos I would show to my students. I would like to show interesting dialogue scenes from movies that attract the students' attention, I believe that would be most effective in my classroom as an ESL teacher.


NETS For Teachers
The standard that is especially important to me is to Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity. As a person, a leader, and as a teacher I have always felt that my main gifting is in the ability to relate and inspire the young adolescents that I work with. My goal as a teacher is for students to experience learning in a fun way and that they would discover what their passions are. For the best academic success and enjoyable engagement, students must be intrinsically motivated. I will do this by facilitating an inspiring environment to my students that encourages their individual creativity.
Three ways that I plan to advance myself in this area this semester is by discovering new activities and lessons involving internet games and SMARTboard lessons, discover how to get in touch with other classrooms overseas (this is very helpful and fun in ESL or foreign language classes), and by researching successful teachings that have already been done by others.


NETS For Students
In my classroom I would really love for my students to have the standard of Communication And Collaboration. Communication and collaboration is important for ESL students because, well obviously they need to learn to communicate with all sorts of people, but also I believe collaboration in a helpful skill that will teach them to work with others and give them the opportunity to learn from each other. When learning any language, communicating and collaborating with others is always beneficial. Students need to interact!
One specific assignment I believe the students would really enjoy as well as benefit from is creating a blog/website/podcast for a class in another country. Being able to communicate with students in another culture and be able to teach them what they are learning would definitely improve their own learning. Another lesson that would be beneficial would be a research report/presentation on the culture and lifestyle of a country that speaks the language they are learning. So in an ESL class I would split students into groups and they could study England, the U.S. Canada, etc. Or in a Spanish class they could study Spain, Mexico, Guatemala, etc.