Living in the 4th Screen

Exploring the use of mobile technology in education and life

Using Student Cell Phones to Prepare for AP Exams

Last year a few of our teachers successfully used Google Voice in some of our World Language Classrooms. They use Google Voice to quickly capture audio recordings of the students speaking in the target language. The use of student cell phones and Google Voice allows the teachers to provide opportunities for students to improve their oral proficiency and creates a forum for the teacher to assess that ability. 

The other day our AP Spanish teacher told me part of the AP exam has a section for a timed audio portion. The problem is most students think they are talking longer than they really are and do not use the full amount of allotted time on the test. Therefore, it is important for the students to practice this skill. Enter Google Voice. The students call the teacher's Google Voice number and leave a recording. The message ends up in the teacher's inbox and is matched to the student's contact information. It also tells how long the recording is. The teacher can listen to the recording, play it back for the student, email the file to the student, save it as an audio file, or send feedback to the student via a text message or an email. If used over and over again the students should get a good feel for how long a 1 or 3 minute conversation is and be better prepared for the audio portion of the AP exam. I think this teacher is making great use of the technology available to her. The process is very quick and can be done from home using a land line phone if a student does not have a cell phone. Below is the information the teacher sent home to parents to get their permission to use the student's cell phone as part of classroom lessons. She included the links to two articles that wrote up what we were doing last year with cell phones.


GOOGLE VOICE:

This year students will be asked to record themselves using Google Voice.  This is a tool for me to easily record and assess student pronunciation and oral communication.  It is free and I can access the recordings through the internet or my phone.  It is completely private and the recordings are sent to my Google Voice account.  Students may use their cell phones or home phones to create these recordings.  I have a separate Google Voice line so no students will be communicating using my private home or cell number.  I am able to text them through the Google Voice number or have the message sent to their email.  This makes feedback easy and accessible.  Students can also hear their own recording if I send it to them so they can listen and make improvements.  This will be a useful tool on days when we will not have access to the lab, or when I ask for a recording for homework.  I used it successfully last year with the support of Administration.  I respectfully ask for your permission to request the cell phone number of your child in order to implement the use of Google Voice recordings.  If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me.


Here are two articles featuring our use of Google Voice in the classroom last year:

http://www.convergemag.com/edtech/Google-Voice-Helps-Students-Learn-Spanish.html

http://www.app.com/article/20100225/LIFE/2250306/Teachers-use-technology-to-break-down-language-barriers


NAME OF STUDENT:   ______________________________________

Parent/ Guardian Contact Information:  I would like to have this information so that I can communicate with you about your child’s progress.

 

Parent/Guardian Name: ____________________________________________

Email address: ___________________________________________________

Phone:  Home__________________________________

             Work___________________________________

             Cell ____________________________________

 

Parent/Guardian Name: ____________________________________________

Email address: ___________________________________________________

Phone:  Home__________________________________

             Work___________________________________

             Cell ____________________________________

 

Student email address: _____________________________________________

*Student cell phone number:_________________________________________

*I understand that my child will be using his or her cell phone to create recordings and text messages using Sra. Taylor’s google voice phone number.

Parent Signature ___________________________ Date _______________

 

 

The Walled Garden of Analog Educational Resources is Crumbling

Judy Breck, a New York based expert in open content, recently wrote on her Golden Swamp blog a post titled, The Scarcity of Learning Sources is Contrived, the Best Stuff is Free. It is a thought provoking post. I am not sure I agree with everything she writes, but some of her points coincide with what I have been stating here on my blog. She writes:

The gushing spigots of money poured into analog educational materials manufacture a scarcity that belies the reality of 21st century learning resources. Billions alloted into the printed walled gardens of textbooks and digital walled gardens of for-pay school resources deepen economic woes ...

Teaching and learning should now, and inevitably* will, use the open internet instead. An individual’s mobile internet browser will become the primary access to knowledge for each student and teacher. We should be working to make this happen soon. “Shame on us” when we do not do so.

I agree completely that a mobile device will become the primary access to knowledge for all students. When I started this blog and my research on mobile devices in education I was not sure what role these devices should or would play in a school setting. I am now more than convinced that the mobile space is where the future lies for education. More and more content will be accessible via a mobile phone and the devices and associated costs will begin to become more affordable. This will drive adoption to even greater numbers than currently exists.

Ms. Breck, in her post, goes on to say:

Now that learning resources are emergent online, it is only a matter of time before they break down the garden walls of learning resources. What broke the grip of the music industry and is now going on with main stream media will happen soon to educational materials. It has already begun.

She predicts the paradigm shift that has taken place in the music industry, and now in print journalism, will soon happen with educational resources as well. Provocative ideas to say the least. Follow the link above to read the full post.