"Mixing and matching" Podcasts, Vodcasts and Text-to-Speech tools to promote listening and speaking skills.

                                                         

                                                                  Modern Problematic 

    Authenticity, relevance and saliency go hand in hand with learner autonomy, engagement and motivation. In an attempt to avoid "fancy talk", I will start by saying that: "often enough we as educators find that "keeping it real" along with "keeping it short and simple" empowers us in helping our students learn easier and faster. So if that's the case, why does lesson planning that involves Podcasting and Vodcasting tools often enough, ends up in going towards the exact opposite direction, spreading the focus in a admittedly vast spectrum of conflicting subjects! Can we really hide behind the argument that "as long as students produce and practice the target language, the open-ended nature of the task justifies the absence of a clear outcome"? My answer is NO, especially in my teaching context where clear constructivist approaches into teaching involve Task-Based and Project-Based approaches with clear quantifiable outcomes that cover streamed course curricula.  

   In the next few lines, I will quickly skim through some of the tools used for Podcasting and Vodcasting. To my own defence (and for my assessors consideration), the reason I am deviating from my original path of outlining the functions and interface of a specific ICT tool is that there is a plethora of amazing web sites and blogs, which in all honesty, stand as shinning examples in matters concerning ICT usage in the modern ELT classroom. Even more so, as an MA student in ELT, that only recently became a blogger (about 6 weeks ago), I strongly believe that there is a very thin line that separates  recycling other colleagues blogs for "internal consumption" and reviewing entries for pedagogical, CPD or best practices dissemination purposes. 

    As mentioned in the previous paragraph, in an attempt to go deep and narrow, in order to outline the theories and pedagogy that underpin the use of these ICT tools, I will try and avoid those lengthy (and boring) "step sequencing" presentations.  The blog that by far stands out in this respect is called Teacher Training Videos (providing a step by step comprehensive guide of short and to the point video tutorials on how to use ICT tools in the classroom) and belongs to one of my teachers, Russell Stannard. In an effort not to look like I am "brown nosing" , Free Technology for Teachers, is also one of my favourite blogs also offering a step by step review with the difference that, often enough, it manages to go above and beyond the technology by underlining the  hidden pedagogical values of using these ICT tools.

A Brief Review on selected tools.

    Before I begin, I would like to underline the fact that the following review isn't exhaustive and as a matter of fact there are plenty of other tools that do the same job. However, for the scope of illustrating the various degrees and levels of "disruptiveness", "saliency" and "learner and teacher motivation in using them" , I will limit myself in a linear presentation of tools, moving from "heavily and inherently" disruptive tech to user-friendly, compatible with other tech, engaging, motivational technology.  
   First off is Audacity, which is admittedly the most complete, open-source audio tool that even transcribers use in Critical Discourse Analysis. The editing features are pretty much endless, but at the same time much more elaborate, so the potential for use by the students is ambiguous. Some argue that with greater challenge comes a greater reward-especially with advanced learners, however I don't feel confident letting my Cambridge Proficiency (CPE) students use it, because there are so many things that can (and probably will) go wrong, ending up with putting them off. The company that's behind the tool, obviously knows that, so they have created a complete set of Audacity Tutorials, which painfully reminds me of my own personal experience when making my first transcription for my Spoken English Assignment at The University of Warwick. So for the time being, I will only limit myself to saying that this tool is inherently "disruptive" and can in fact have dubious results that mainly concern measuring "output" in accordance to the amount of time "invested" in using this technology or "input". 

   Second in line in my review is AudioBoom (former AudioBoo). This tool empowers users to match pictures with their audio recordings to offer a multi-modal approach into input sessions. Amongst other features that include "a one button embedding procedure", AudioBoom comes in an "app" form for iPad, iphone and Android users. A possible scenario for its use would include learners taking pictures with their smartphones, recording a narrative where they have to describe the picture and then with a click of button embed it in the class blog for group viewing and classroom discussion. However, in my opinion, perhaps the best feature is the "AudioBoom for Education" section, that functions as a "case study" library. The added value here is that this section really assists educators in their attempts to incorporate AudioBoom in their teaching practice, functioning as a guide for best practices or in a way as a forum for Continuous Professional Development. 

    Vocaroo on the other hand is on the exact opposite side from Audacity. With the most user-friendly interface that doesn't require any account, sign-in or registration process, program downloads or plug-ins/media players etc, short recordings and embeddings are turned into a fun activity. 

    Next up is Clyp.it. This tool combines the user-friendly interface of Vocaroo with the advanced options offered by AudioBoom. What this means in practice is that users can just visit Clip.it and press the big red button to start the recording without again having to download any additional plug-ins or even register. At the end of the recording, users can either continue by just clicking a button to directly download the file on their computer or select "advanced options" to "grab" the embedded code and post the audio file on a blog. Another option would be to sign up for an account which allows for cloud storage and later access for editing purposes. Last but not least, Clyp.it also comes in the form of an application for iPad, iPhone and Android users. 

     On the same length, SoundCloud  offers the same features as Clyp.it with the extra options to add an image to your recording, save your audio recordings to your personal SoundCloud storage account, add tags, descriptions and give instructions, have advanced administrative rights to allow or block downloads from students, accessibility/visibility/sharing capabilities in social media, a dashboard with all of the recordings and finally the ability to send messages and reminders to all of the recipients. On the downside, although it's completely free, it requires an account which can  prove to be discouraging for many students that might encounter problems with registration.  

      AudioPal is a podcasting tool for teachers with an intimidating or high pitched voice that always seems to upset learners! On a more serious note, this tool allows users to modify their voice (to an admittedly high number of US, English, Australian and even Indian accents in both genders), using an advanced text-to-speech software. Even more so, while this tool is completely free, it also manages to incorporate more cutting edge technology that allows for recordings via calling AudioPal's phone system! On the downside, when trying to embed multiple Podcasts in one blog post using this tool, I sadly found out that it confuses embeddings. In simpler terms, I ended up with a blog post that had the same podcast over and over again. (with the last embedding overwriting the previous ones). A small drawback though, if we consider that there is a plethora of podcasting tools that can actually liven up a blog post further motivating learners by braking "repeated" patterns.          

       

     This is a podcast (an audio file) on what AudioPal's text-to-speech sounds like.

 


    And this is a vodcast (audiovisual file) on how we can create a AudioPal Podcast using the text-to-speech interface. Notice that I am using a very popular screen capture technology called Snag.it

     
 

  Finally, Voki is a FREE service that lets you create customized speaking characters. The possibilities for speaking avatars are endless however the most important feature for me is the pedagogic value that this technology fosters. More specifically, Voki seems to help timid students bypass inhibitions that derive from "stage fright" or "past bad experiences" that involve negative criticism from peers for a mistake they made. Suggestopedia, a method of learning languages in the 1970's was one of the pioneers in this field that helped students gain confidence by assuming another name and identity. Nowadays, this notion has been brought to its full potential with Second Life, linking careful listening with the production of accurate speech acts.  

 

Underpinning the theory of using Podcasts, Vodcasts and Text-to-Speech tools.

 

    The need to go beyond old practices that included the use of a tape recorder or a CD player in the classroom to help learners develop their listening skills, has resulted in a large number of books and journal articles presenting innovative research in this area.  The move from Computer Assisted Language Learning in its various forms (Structural/Restricted CALL, Communicative/Open CALL, Integrative CALL) to Technology Enhanced Language Learning (TELL) and the Web 2.0 (Dudeney. G., Hockly. N., 2012, p.533-4) brought forth the idea about 'digital natives' and 'digital immigrants'. (Marc Prensky 2001)
  In psycholinguistic terms, Levelt (1993) first cited that speaking processes mirror listening processes, which basically means that students (as receptors) first analyse the speech signal-using acoustic/phonetic processors-and then produce a representation of these sounds in a "bottom-up approach". On the contrary, in terms of the social aspects of listening-as a "top-down" approach-, Levelt cited that when listening, learners' brain is capable of processing different elements of the message at the same time.
    At this stage, I would like to place emphasis on the fact that nowadays there is a wide spread consensus amongst teachers that these two approaches into helping learners develop their competence in listening and speaking need to co-exist in harmony. Podcasts, Vodcasts and Text-to-Speech tools are primed to help learners develop a specific skill-set which is eloquently presented in taxonomies produced by many scientists. Elements in these taxonomies include (Walker, A., White, G.,2013, p.31):

1. Perception,
2.Matching sounds to language items in an effort to move towards understanding meaning,
3.Interpreting meaning using knowledge of the world,
4.Dealing with information and
5.Interacting with the speaker.
 
    Even more so, Podcasts, Vodcasts and Text-to-Speech tools, help learners develop their strategies in (Walker, A., White, G.,2013, p.32):

1.Inferring (or in simpler terms guessing the meaning),
2.Seeking Clarification,
3.Predicting and finally
4.Focusing.

    In terms of speaking - as an integral part of listening-, these tools can help learners develop their (Walker, A., White, G.,2013, p.37):

1.Pronunciation
2.Performing of Speech Acts (opinion giving, requests, denials, acceptances, comparing and contrasting etc)
3.Managing their Interaction (turn taking sequences, Q & A components etc)
4.Organising their Discourse (intonation, discourse markers etc).

    Putting theory into practice. 

    In the following lines, I will demonstrate just how easy it is to "tweak" an exercise into meeting the above aforementioned prerequisites. 

    One of the first tasks that I had to complete as an MA student in my ICT in ELT module was to access the Moodle Platform of my course and write 3 facts with one of them being a lie. The task was to try and "suss each other out". 

    A modified version of this task would be the following:

1. Learners are instructed to use AudioPal to create an audio file and send it to my email. I then embed it in the class blog. Learners are told to mention 3 facts about themselves with one of them being a lie. Emphasis must be given to the fact that they MUSTN'T REVEAL THEIR IDENTITY. Notice that, I am using a different Podcasting tool which is called Clyp.it.
    My main purpose for this is to build rapport by following a more individualized approach into instruction giving. In more simple terms, using my personal voice will hopefully motivate my students into trying out AudioPal's text-to-speech function. However, the underlining added value in this, is that, I am able to sneakily "prime" -or prepare, if you prefer- my (timid) students for the next steps, where they will have to use their own voice to produce an audio file. This linear, gradual passage "facilitation" through the use of technology is all what modern ICT in ELT is about.

2.Learners are then instructed to use Vocaroo to create a Podcast containing their guesses along with a full rationale that explains their choices. They are then instructed to send me this file via email so I can embed it in the classroom blog.

3.While the process of guessing is taking place, students are instructed to use Voki and create an avatar to present the 2 truths and the lie. When all members of the class are finished with their guessing, each student accesses the classroom blog and embeds his Voki avatar with the answers. 

                                                                 Audio and voice recording >>


4.The student with the fewest correct responses from other students is declared the winner (or the biggest "fibster")  .

    So the step sequencing in relation to the underpinning pedagogical values, can be illustrated in the following:

1.Using Clyp.it in step 1 manages to incorporate my own voice to deliver salient instruction giving, individualize input and engage learners and finally motivate students and build rapport. Furthermore, by asking learners to only use the text-to-speech function, I manage to "prime" my students to process stress, rhythm and intonation in response to written grammatical forms and place the language into context (and in my personal opinion, if I may, I really do think that we can't really do any better than this!)

3.After the "confidence building exercise" in step 1, learners use their own voice to make a podcast guessing on the "lie". Again notice that, Vocaroo which is by far the simplest, user-friendly tool that allows for multiple tries/recording, isn't a random choice here. Learners, take their time to record, listen and if not happy, try again to reach a final outcome, producing an audio file with their guesses.

4.As a last step, learners have the choice to either use their own voice or to use the text-to-speech function. The use of an avatar in Voki, again manages to motivate learners towards becoming more confident speakers with the sole purpose to prime them for opting to use their own voice. The added value in this is simply immense, especially in situations where learners have to present facts about themselves-I bet this sounds familiar to many teachers! (a situation which most of my learners experience when sitting their spoken exams module, where they have to speak about themselves for 2-but very critical- minutes as an "ice breaker").

Some "light" reading.

1. Aisha Walker and Goodith White, Technology Enhanced Language Learning. Connecting theory and practice. Oxford Handbooks for Teachers, Oxford 2013
2. Marc Prensky, Digital Natives and Digital Immigrants, MCB University Press, Vol. 9, no. 5, October 2001
3. Willem. J.M Levelt. Speaking from Intention to Articulation. Massachusetts Institute Of Technology, 1989
4. Gavin Dudeney and Nicky Hockly. ICT in ELT: how did we get here and where are we going?ELT Journal Volume 66/4  Oxford University Press, Special issue October 2012