One of my other big changes for this semester was the introduction of Google Voice. This is a listening and speaking activity that the students are required to complete every week.
After spending two years trying to find good listening for Spanish III and beating my head against the wall, and always trying to find more ways for the students to do graded speaking assessments, I have finally found the answer....Google Voice.
So true, listening to me (una gringa) does not replace authentic listening, I am able to tailor the listening to what we are working on and where I think the students' deficiencies are. Also, it is a very convenient way for me to assign speaking tasks.
The first week, I asked students to just simply leave their name and class period, and only half of them did it. <sigh> This week they have a listening prompt about how their vacation was, etc., and they are due on Sunday night, and as of 9:42 on Saturday, exactly 6 students have done it. So, I think that there is going to be a transition period for the kids to get in the rhythm of doing it, but the ones I have heard actually aren't too bad. I know that the kids are preparing what to say in advance, but that doesn't even really bother me....at least they are speaking.
This is not going to replace the authentic listening we do in class, nor will it replace conversation questions that I expect the students to work on in class. This is just a good way for me to keep them practicing and be able to continually assess their work.
Now I just have to find a way to organize it all ..........75 students doing this (with a lot of hang-ups and call backs) is not easy to organize and I am terrified of deleting anything!
I've used Google Voice for student recordings and oral assessments on several occasions. The students are intimidated at first, and, there was some trepidation on my part the first time. But, nothing gets deleted unless one actively deletes it. And, I've come to accept the hang-ups and call-backs from nervous students. But, in the end, it works well.
ReplyDeleteI know that my kids are, for the most part, writing down what they say and then reading it. However, I am hoping that as we continue, many will move to doing it more spontaneously. If nothing else, they are doing a listening and speaking assessment every week.
DeleteI wish I could get all my students to do it. I assign it every Monday, and it is due on Sunday night. Out of my 72 students, I usually only have between 50-55 calls. I have some students that seem to be refusing to do it, and then some that can't seem to get in the habit, so they do it one week and miss it the next.
I am pleased with the results I have had so far, and I have even had an administrator, whose daughter is in my class, tell me what a good assignment it is.
Do you have trouble with this? Have you convinced kids to move away from written scripts?
I absolutely love this idea! Looking back on the end of the year, do you have any more insight or ideas on this? I will be teaching Spanish 1, so am looking at ways to creatively get them headed this direction.
ReplyDeleteAlso, how do you provide the listening activity via google voice? Meaning, what are they listening to?
I think this would be a great way to get first level students talking.
DeleteGoogle Voice works like voicemail. So, I leave a different voicemail message every week for the students to listen to based on what we are learning in class, or a daily life event. So, for example, a message during my past review is "Describe what you did during your summer vacation." The prompts get longer, more complicated, and faster as the year progresses.
Then, after they hear the voicemail message, the students leave a response. I require at least a minute, but I for a level one, maybe just a sentence or two would do.
I required the students to do this every week. Unfortunately, I had some students that just refused to do it, no matter how much it affected their grade. However, I am hopeful that it will be better this year. Last year, the 2 students were required to do Conjuguemos practice once a week, so they are already conditioned to a weekly activity.
I did just give this a daily grade last year, and this year I am going to do it the same way. However, I am going to do a formal speaking assessment with each unit, and I am planning on reusing the prompts that I used for Google Voice. So hopefully that will be a further motivator.
The biggest thing about this activity is that the students often did the listening together, which wasn't a big deal, but they almost all totally wrote out their responses and read them. Quite a few used Google Translate, which annoys me to no end.
Maybe by starting in level 1, you can condition them to do it without the crutches. Good Luck!
Loved reaading this thanks
ReplyDelete