Technology Vision for Exploratory Spanish and Exploratory French at EHMIS

Sharon Marvon

Technology Vision for Exploratory Spanish and Exploratory French at EHMIS

My vision includes a computer for each of the students in my classroom. The computers should include headsets and microphones in order to promote interactive language learning. Using technology on a daily basis is a tremendous asset for learning a language in that the students can hear, speak, and read the language. Students would have the opportunity to work at their own pace and level through the use of technology. The students would be able to access pronunciation web sites which would give them the opportunity to hear and understand native speakers. Using interactive computer activities will prepare them for face to face use of the language in the classroom.

The students would be able to use various web sites to create dialogues. A good example is the use of one of the cartoon web sites to create cartoons with dialogues in the target language. They can participate in interactive games such as memory, flash cards, and hangman using the target language. These interactive games will help students with instant recognition and response which is important in language learning. The students can take virtual field trips to Spain and France as well. For instance, there is a wonderful web site on a virtual field trip to the Louvre. There are interactive cartoon video language sites in both Spanish and French where the student would watch the cartoon videos and translate the spoken script into English.

Most importantly, the students could actually speak, record the target language, and then play back and listen to themselves. Speaking and listening to themselves allows them the ability to change pronunciation and sentence structure. Currently, the only opportunity the students have is the use of a microphone and a cassette recorder. The cassette recording is like taking a step backwards forty years when language students recorded themselves on tape recorders.

Students could also interactively use the language by sending emails to each other in Spanish and French. The opportunities are endless for learning a language through using computers. Learning the language would be as it should be—interactive through the use of technology. The students could also access cultural web sites in order to understand the culture of the countries which would add to their appreciation of the language.

Having computers for each student would take them into the 21st century of language learning.