ICT in ELT Tilly Harrison University of Warwick 10 th Feb 2012

Tilly Harrison Overview Push and Pull Autonomy and M-learning Self Access and Podcasting Affordance Rethinking Society? Future Directions

Tilly Harrison Push and Pull Technologies Push - sent to you, not chosen – Advertisers, commercial companies, – SMS, spam, pop-up windows – Teachers? Pull - you choose – Customers – Web pages, , mobile phone – Students?

Tilly Harrison Autonomy - challenge for teachers How can we create an environment in which the learners are both capable of taking charge of their own learning and willing to do so? Leni Dam (1995:4) How do the concept of autonomy and Web 2.0 technology interface with each other?

What is M (mobile)-learning? Mobile technology? Movement in space Mobile learner? Movement in time / crossing boundaries Tilly Harrison CALL option “Mobile technology can assist learners at the point of need and in ways that fit in with their mobile lifestyles.” (Kukulska-Hulme, 2009)

Tilly Harrison M-learning Ipod / MP3 players Mobile phone Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) Laptop iPad Audio recorders Digital cameras Digital camcorders

Tilly Harrison Advantages of Mobile Phone Portable Familiar Transferable Convenient Under user’s control No need for books Visible in the dark! Short, repeated exposure Good for revision Useful adjunct in a blended learning situation

Tilly Harrison Range of uses of m-learning Main content admin info In-class out of class Individual collaborative Receptive practice productive Interactive static Connected off-line Pull technology push technology

Tilly Harrison To learn what…? Vocabulary Listening skills Pronunciation Short chunks of information And…?

Tilly Harrison Disadvantages Distractions Small keyboard Limited capacity? Unstructured? Repetitive?

Tilly Harrison New mobile devices iPad Kindle Kno Will they overcome all the disadvantages that mobile phones present?

Affordance Concept described by Gibson (an environmentalist) Quality that gives an opportunity for action – Solid ground > walking – Fire > cooking Dependent on perception and capability Adopted in relation to technology Useful concept to explain the classroom environment Affordances may be there but unused because not perceived or do not fit with capability of teacher.

Discussion What are the basic affordances of a classroom (without technology)? What does technology add?

Affordances of Touch Tablets Personalisation (camera, customisation, choice) One-to-one, anywhere, anytime learning device Pull (apps you want, follow your interest) Notes, files kept together, easily available Interactive through touch technology Connected - information / people Portable, convenient, intuitive Push (information updates)

Discussion Are touch tablets the future of education? Assuming all students have one - what kind of benefits will they bring? Disadvantages?

One View of Web 2.0

The Machine is Us / ing Us Changing texts - linear > digital Change in HTML > XML Form separated from Content Unlimited linking Unlimited uploading (text, video, graphics) Mashing data types together Linking people (sharing, trading, collaborating) Organising the data - tagging content Remembering searches Teaching the machine Rethinking society

The Machine is Us / ing Us Copyright Authorship Identity Ethics Aesthetics Rhetorics Governance Privacy Commerce Love Family Ourselves

Looking Forward Is society being ‘rethought’? What will the teacher’s role be in a world of M-learning? Research directions? CAL dissertations: – Attitudes to using mobile phones for ELT – Reading speed on iPad / Kindle / laptop / paper – Does teaching change with an IWB?