Madrid Young Learners

Context

High re-enrolment rate

Supplants English studied in school

Enrolled whole academic year

Study English 3 hours per week

4,500 studentsAges range from

5 – 18 +

Learner support

Learners supported traditionally through

f2f counselling

Tendency to view as ‘grammar clinics’ for

‘ailing’ students

Counselling groups contain variety

of needs.

Difficult to support large numbers.

Parents value, but problems

Research into learner profiles

Students on support and levels of motivation – bespoke questionnaire

Student ‘multiple intelligence’ profiling – Berman (2002) after Gardner (1983)

Multiple intelligence scores

Sample sizes:

Juniors (10 – 12 years) c. 135 responses

Seniors (13 – 18 years) c. 300 responses

Multiple intelligences and EFL course books

Palmberg (2000)

“Catering for multiple intelligences in EFL Course books”

Found that in typical EFL coursebook:

“97% of the 300 exercises catered for verbal linguistic learners, 76% for intrapersonal learners, 25% for interpersonal learners, 8% for mathematical logical learners, 5% for bodily-kinesthetic learners, 3% for naturalist learners, and 2% for musical-rhythmic learners.”

Social/educational software

Shirky (2003) “Social Software and the Politics of Groups”

Social software ‘supports group communications’.

Anderson (2005)

“Distance learning – Social software’s killer ap?”

“…a new genre of networked-based learning tools known as educational software…”

“…where normal software links people to the inner workings of a computer or network, social software links people to the inner workings of each other’s thoughts, feelings and opinions.”

Which educational software?

3 step set up security

1. Platform

= (existing) extranet individual logins

3 step set up security

2. Google Apps

= personal email and document storage 3000 (free) educational licences with individual logins

3 step set up security

1. Ning

= private (closed) social community personal (approved) invitations only

Link

Features of the social community

• Students’ personal home page and profile

• Internal email (private) and comments (public)

• Community groups (public or private) – embedded media / links

• Discussion forums (public)

• Blogs (public / shared / private) comments optional

• Video (embedded / uploaded) comments / discussions *

• Photos (linked / uploaded) comments / discussions *

* Cannot be submitted without approval

The story so far

•Approaching 200 members – including several from Poland

•Over 12,000 views

•21 activity groups formed (20 by teachers, 1 by a student)

•Students responding to discussions, embedded media objects

•Some students taking care over profiles – revisiting and building

•Minimal inappropriate use – some content rejected (e.g. Spanish used, partisan political, alcohol reference – minimal and of little importance)

What next?

•Currently approaching 10% of (senior) student body registered – aim to reach around 50 % by end academic year.

•Workshops and user guide to encourage greater teacher uptake.

•Publicity and competition prizes to encourage greater student participation

•Anticipate greater participation from other centres

•Aim to reach ‘take off’ point to make community self-sustaining

References

Anderson, T. (2005) Distance learning – social software’s killer ap.http://www.unisa.edu.au/odlaaconference/PPDF2s/13%20odlaa%20-%20Anderson.pdf

Shirky, C. (2003) Social software and the politics of groupshttp://shirky.com/writings/group_politics.html

Palmberg, R. (2000) Catering for multiple intelligences in EFL Course books http://www.hltmag.co.uk/jan02/sart6.htm

More at: http://scholar.google.com/ > Search for ‘Educational software’