English Australia Conference
Gold Coast Convention & Exhibition Centre
Gold Coast, Australia
16 – 18 September, 2010

Amongst a diverse set of themes, the 2010 English Australia Conference included a technology strand with a strong focus on the initial implementation of technology in TESOL contexts and, in particular, how to approach teacher training.

Getting teachers excited about learning technologies was the title of the talk by Clementine Annabell, Neil McRudden and Mark Steinward, who focused on the introduction of IWBs at Embassy CES. Taking a 3-phase approach to teacher training, Embassy CES began with a seed-and-grow phase for those who were really enthusiastic about the use of IWBs. This was followed by a creative eclecticism phase involving the appointment of learning technologies staff, who were given non-teaching hours to champion the use of IWBs and to provide support.  Different needs on different campuses necessitated a range of different strategies.  A strategy used successfully in Melbourne took the form of 10-min sessions in a ‘Coffee Club’, where uses of IWBs were explained.  Participants were rewarded with free coffees and eventually a free USB after attending a set number of sessions.  The third phase was a structured program in the form of a worldwide online course called StudySmart, built in a Moodle VLE, where teachers improved their skills and had to produce lesson materials which could then actually be used in their classrooms.  Creative solutions to typical problems – lack of time and lack of funding – were discussed.

In a presentation which exemplified the possibilities of multimedia delivery, and was entitled A bite of the apple: Real life takes on e-learning, Katrina Hennigan and Lucy Blakemore  outlined key principles for e-learning which emerged from 360 degree interviews: it should be simple, collaborative, seamless, guided, and engaging.  These are the same principles, they argued, that underpin good teaching more generally.  The went on to outline a series of e-learning ‘apps’ (technologies and/or strategies that can be easily used in the classroom) under each of these headings:

> simple:

• use of iPods
• use of PowerPoint (e.g., in a Pecha Kucha format, with 20 slides shown for 20 seconds each)

> collaborative:

• Values Exchange (a web-based tool for students to debate social issues)
• Skype (text chat, with chat logs being annotated by teachers and emailed to students to improve)

> seamless:

• using sharing options included with articles, etc, available online
• use of TED talks to show how class activities have been done or researched in the ‘real’ world

> guided:

• the importance of narrowing down choices for choices for teachers & students
• “the best ‘app’ is a person” – teachers want hands-on experience with face-to-face support

> engaging:

• visuals from sites like Information is Beautiful
• visual search engines like TagGalaxy

In a talk entitled Technology integration in ESL: Teaching and learning, Adrienne Vanthuyne began by focusing on Koehler and Mishra’s TPACK [Technological, Pedagogical and Content Knowledge] model and discussing how it might be applied in the context of training language teachers.  She suggested that we should be aiming for high-level ICT integration (involving instructional activities for higher order thinking among students) rather than low-level ICT integration (involving digitised drill and practice).

She also spoke of five Stages of Technology Integration: Entry (where not many technologies are being used) – Adoption (where new technologies support text-based drill-and-practice instruction) – Adaption (where teachers adapt new technologies to suit students and promote higher order thinking skills) – Appropriation (where there is development of new instructional patterns like team teaching, interdisciplinary projects and individually paced instruction, with teachers becoming facilitators) – Invention (where teachers invent interdisciplinary learning activities that engage students in gathering information, analysing and synthesising it, and ultimately building new knowledge). Teachers find themselves at different positions along this continuum.

It was suggested that for teacher training to be effective in this area, teachers need training that is appropriate for their context as well as a supportive environment including technical support through a community of practice, colleagues who are enthusiastic about technology, and a ‘technology positivist’ environment.

In her talk, Wiki: A support tool to assist and support homestay families, Jennifer Petrie ran through the wiki concept with the help of Lee Lefever’s video Wikis in plain English.   She went on to explain that La Trobe University has developed a wiki (on pbworks) for homestay families, in order to provide more support and easier communication, and create a sense of community.  The homepage contains key contact details, while other pages cover a range of areas such as announcements; information on incoming groups; a recipes page where host families can post recipes they cook for their students; and, most interestingly, a student feedback page where families can see anonymous aggregated feedback from homestay students, annotated with advice from the homestay co-ordinator, and where families can comment and offer advice on the issues raised.  Use of the wiki by host families has increased dramatically over recent months.  Jennifer listed key benefits of the wiki as:

• Streamlining of processes
• Efficient use of time and resources
• A permanent record
• Transparency
• Collaboration

Emerging Technologies: Mobile learning was the title of the talk by Larry Anderson from the Australia Network. Indicating that mobile phones, with a worldwide penetration around 45%, have become the number one screen in the world, ahead of computer screens and televisions, he outlined a number of English m-learning projects in different countries.  He noted, for example, that three of the top-selling iPhone apps in South Korea are for  English learning. Mobile phones, he suggested, provide  cheap and easy access to content; publishers are busy producing both free and paid apps; and schools and universities are experimenting with mobile devices inside and outside classrooms.  In short, he argued, mobile phones offer important ways of diversifying educational delivery.  This is an area in which Australian TESOL educators need to engage much more.

In his plenary address, entitled New literacies, teachers and learners, Gavin Dudeney  started with a definition of digital literacy from Wikipedia: “the ability to understand and use information in multiple formats from a wide range of sources when it is presented via computers”. One of the limitations of this definition is the use of the word ‘computers’, which doesn’t take into account the recent proliferation of mobile devices.  A second, more recent Wikipedia definition, which puts more accent on the productive aspects of digital literacy, is: “the ability to locate, organize, understand, evaluate, and create information using digital technology […] Digitally literate people can communicate and work more efficiently, especially with those who possess the same knowledge and skills.”  In addition to talking about ESL, Gavin went on, we are now hearing mention of DSL – ‘Digital as a Second Language’.

While there are some generational differences in approaches to technology, they are not as stark or clear as is sometimes imagined.  The OU has recently suggested that instead of talking about digital natives and immigrants, we should talk about digital residents and digital visitors.  The latter set of terms is more flexible that the former.

He went on to list various categories of digital literacies, based on those discussed in my 2009 book From blogs to bombs: The future of digital technologies in education and summarised in a more recent document here.  After a discussion of the digital skills possessed by audience members, Gavin went on to ask the question: ‘Why is [digital literacy] important?’  One reason is that we’re preparing students for jobs that don’t exist yet, so we need to future-proof education to some extent.  People are changing; technology is changing; there’s a shift towards mobile devices; and students are changing, becoming more digitally literate, and expecting technology use in education.  There is a great missed opportunity in asking students who come into the classroom to switch off the technologies they use in their everyday lives.  This message comes through clearly in the Engage me! video about new technologies by pupils at Robin Hood Primary School, Birmingham.

The real problem may be that teachers are not changing, mainly because they are not receiving training in the pedagogical aspects of teaching with new technologies – and, said Gavin, this is the case in every country he’s worked in over the last 10 years.  This lack of training leads to frustration and fear.  One possibility is to rely on students as a technological resource, which also helps them become invested in the success of the class.  It’s also important to use computers to open up your class to the world and to foster interaction.

The bottom line, he argued, is that the use of technology shouldn’t change our pedagogy; it should enhance current pedagogical practices.