Learner Agency - how learning happens online

It sometimes feels as if the COVID-19 pandemic has pushed a sizeable part of TEFL back to pre-Chomsky days, but not all is lost!

This isn't so much about researches on how languages are learnt but rather how learning happens online, which brings me to the topic of Teacher/Learner Agency.

Oxford University Press has invited several speakers to deliver webinars on this topic: Andy Gao, Terrie Cradd, Kathy Kampa, and many more at their ELT Online Conference 2021.

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VUyxvfJQNH4 (Andy Gao)
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHVZyD_Ce0s (Terrie Cradd)
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCpuZbYg2nI (Kathy Kampa)

How to teach online, but how to learn online

I was a schoolboy when the SARS pandemic broke out in 2003. Back in those days, there was unlimited broadband (yes, you read it correctly!) at home already thanks to the digitisation push in 1997. School moved online to the internal email network for two months. Video meeting was still in its embryonic form on the laggy MSN Messenger, so online lessons were out of the question.

Fast forward 17 years, we had to move online all of a sudden, but the methodologies which most EFL teachers are using in their online lessons still consist of assumptions based on the in-person mode of instruction. I, myself, am one of such teachers.

This has got me into thinking about how learning actually happens online. With little time to delve into research results, webinars are a much quicker way of getting as much information as I possibly can. The webinars above are a good place to start.

My current belief is that there need not be massive changes to language acquisition theories, but I'm going to have to think hard about the potential affordances which some digital materials can offer. Learner Agency comes into play because students need to know how to take notes (screenshots? Word documents?) and organise the information they've received in online lessons. No matter how effectively we teach, students need to be taught online study skills before they can reach their full learning potential.

Success stories

I wrote a post about being Powerpoint-drunk, but I still use Powerpoint as a (prepared) digital whiteboard in my online lessons. It's worked better with older teens and adults than younger kids. I've also verified successful learning with some of my most motivated students by using language proficiency tests and appropriately designed end-of-course tests. Maybe 'motivated' isn't the best word, but I've noticed those students tend to possess good note-taking and organisational skills which help them refer back to their past learning.

Patchy 4G in the age of 5G

This is a tech-related post - it's been a tricky second half of the week due to Internet issues.

As I've decided not to tie myself to 24-month fixed-line rental (and broadband Internet plans) in Italy, I'm using mobile Internet at home. The Internet is vital to online teaching and so I have SIM cards with two different major network operators. In case one fails, I thought, the other one would still save my day. But after this week, I might have to reconsider my options.

By Sod's law, the back-up SIM card failed me this time round. On Wednesday evening, my main SIM card started connecting to the barely functional 4G+. Normally it would stay on 4G even though my router is '4G+ capable'. This meant the 'stop' mechanism wasn't working. The constant shift between 4G and 4G+ caused the Internet to cut off for a few seconds every time it happened. 

So I temporarily switched back to using my old '4G only' router and tried it with both SIM cards. The speed on 4G was dead slow. By this point I had figured out that upgrading work was being done to my nearest mobile radio tower. I remember a similar two-week ordeal in 2019 - the trigger was a mild rainstorm at that time.

You can imagine my annoyance since a stable Internet connection is required for online lessons.

The solution? I'm going to use a '4G only' router to avoid my SIM card switching inadvertantly to 4G+. It seems my three-day ordeal is over (slight improvement!) and I truly hope I didn't speak too soon. Then I'll also have to look into a third mobile network provider whether it's on mobile or fixed-line Internet.

(For those techies out there, I'd prefer using my '4G+' router on 5 GHz since the family living next door generously uses up two out of three chunks of 2.4 GHz channels.)

Teaching prefixes: mental associations

What's your 30-second story about a word?

It was an improvised idea which worked well with a C1 (Advanced) group of General English adult learners.

We were using a coursebook graded article about a hotel as the langauge input. Halfway through teaching the lesson, the word 'preposterous' suddenly came to my mind. I started pondering how this word had became stuck in my mind. Then I figured out it was the sound of which I've formed strong mental associations - the way how Sir John Gielgud said this word in the screen adaptation of Herman Wouk's War and Remembrance. My brain immediately evokes the image of Sir John, who played the role of Aaron Jastrow, saying this word in a disapproving tone. (The other words are 'mischance' and 'misjudgement' which come from Jastrow's final diary entry.)

Tapping into my personal experience of forming associations with words, I decided to ask my students to choose a word with prefix and tell the class about their mental associations with it. (When did they first come to know the word? What was the occasion?)

It worked well - two students picked the same word by chance! This was an excellent example which illustrates how each of us forms highly personal mental associations even with the same word.

Teacher Training - a humbling experience

It was a while ago when I read Teresa Woodward's article on being a teacher trainer.

I wouldn't call myself one, but I feel fortunate to be involved in a couple of teacher training initiatives by the school.

The way I approach this is of a bottom-up style - I see myself as someone who helps other teachers and has something to offer them, so that it makes their lives easier.

It's been a humbling experience because it makes me realise how much more I still need to learn. There's also the obvious - being able to demonstrate what I'm preaching!

(By Sod's law, I read an article on the BBC about how mispronouncing names is increasingly seen as an intentional offence. And one thing I need to learn is to pay greater attention to the spelling of names!)

Powerpoint-drunk

Am I suspicious of virtual whiteboards? No.

Do I really need Powerpoint for every single lesson? No.

Can't students wait when we're writing on the virtual whiteboard? Of course, they can.

 

Though I suspect the online mode of communication has subtly changed our expectations. Some would argue that a culture of 'instant information' has taken hold thanks to Google. What do you do when you want to find information about something? Google (it's even become a verb!) it and you'll have the information available in a matter of seconds, which brings me back to the last question above.

Being a fast typer myself, I'm able to minimise student waiting time (SWT?) , but I still prefer pre-written Powerpoint sildes which work exactly as a planned whiteboard. It saves lesson time, which translates to 'greater practice time' (potentially) for the students.

 

Perhaps I should ask myself these questions instead:

• Do I really need to include a visual? Does it serve any teaching or learning purpose?

• Do I need to share my Powerpoint slides for the entire lesson?

• Can I put some slides on a digital worksheet so that my students can work 'off-screen (share)'?

For now, I'd be glad to say goodbye to the orange letter P. Bring on a Powerpoint-free Christmas!