Lesson Reflection: Food en español

Lesson Plan

Student and teacher read through vocabulary. Student then repeated each item and was encouraged to ask questions. Teacher directed student to set on Quizlet.com using a laptop and student’s iPhone. Once Quizlet was accessed, teacher provided a brief tour so that student was aware of the various practice options. Student was then given time to practice with site. Finally, teacher had student take the “Test” option and reviewed results with student. *Compared to the original lesson, this included a shorter vocabulary list due to time constraints and no creation of a plan for further study.

Implementation

The lesson went smoothly. Having only one student—my husband—to work with was vastly different from teaching a full class. He enjoyed working with food vocabulary, as he is a Chef. He behaved the same as my younger students when given a website to review with; he immediately went to the game options and preferred those to the flashcards. I also found him working with iPhone in hand, using an online translator to “help” with words he couldn’t remember. Students do that, too.

Question Set One

The learning goal was to understand Spanish food vocabulary. The underlying assumptions were that vocabulary knowledge can be acquired through basic audio/text association and that games are a reasonable way to practice and demonstrate linguistic knowledge.

The technology used afforded the opportunity to listen to a native speaker and individualized practice. A major constraint was that the technology was only available with Internet access. As we were without Internet for a week, my student could not practice for as long as I would have liked.

Learning took place through direct instruction and independent practice. The website is constructivist in that the user rehearsed Spanish vocabulary to increase memory retention. Also, the site tapped existing schema (the student’s knowledge of similar words in English) to create new knowledge. Behaviorism was seen when correctly answered questions yielded positive reinforcement (green check marks and positive points) and incorrect answers resulted in negative reinforcement (red check marks).

While this lesson could supplement my curriculum, I tailored it to the needs of my “summer student”. This was new territory for this learner, who knows some French, but little Spanish. I chose food words, as they fit his occupation.

In this case, I only had to account for one learner. I considered his preferences (games on iPhone, his job), as well as his beginner level. Knowing that Quizlet provides basic practice, I chose it as his learning tool.

In using Quizlet, teachers need to know the URL and which sections they want students to do. Teachers should also know the process for each activity. Learners will need to be directed to the site and provided with expectations. Only a basic knowledge of computers (click, type) is needed.

My student was assessed via the “Test” feature. To hold him accountable, I had him take the test at various intervals and share his results. At the beginning, he failed the test. However, at the end, he scored 85%, or B. He was elated by his improvement.

Question Set Two

Technology played a major role in my lesson. While I introduced the content, I relied on Quizlet for practice and assessment. An advantage of the technology is its appeal. The student enjoys playing games. Another advantage is the technology keeps track of the student’s progress and gives appropriate feedback.
A disadvantage of this tech is increased chance for distractions and “alternate routes”. For example, I encouraged use of the “flash cards”, but my student preferred learning via the “Scramble” game and quickly shifted to that instead.
Technology was used how I expected. Once I showed my student the site, he did not have any questions, as Quizlet is very easy to use. He maneuvered through the various options easily and settled on the matching game for the majority of his time, enjoying the online practice.

Since the student primarily made sense of the content through a match game, he learned to identify the vocabulary, not how to generate it. Because of this, he did well on matching and multiple-choice portions of the assessment, but less well when he had to type the word on his own. Overall it was a positive experience—my husband gained some Spanish skills and I enjoyed helping with his progress.

Computer-Based Instructional Objects

In having students work independently with computer-based instructional objects (such as StAIR projects and WebQuests) teachers must consider many variables. For one, there may be a limited number of computers available for use in the school, meaning that some students may have to partner up or the teacher may have to plan far in advance to have access to a computer lab. Also, there is always the chance that the school servers could go down, keeping students from accessing the information at all. There is always a need for flexibility and open-mindedness when these kinds of issues arise. There may be a need to have a "plan B" ready, as well, to provide instruction until the resources are available.

In considering the students directly, there may be accessibility issues that need to be addressed, such as a hearing-impaired student's inability to listen to an audio portion. The teacher must make sure to include workable options (like text versions) to meet student needs. Also, some students will be more comfortable with the technology than others. This can be helped through introductory tutorials, partnering with a more tech-savvy classmate, or through added guidance built-in to the instructional object itself.

In general, teachers must carefully pre-plan the incorporation of these activities and expect that some issues may arise. A readiness to deal with whatever pops up as well as a solid plan with student needs in mind will help prepare teachers for success in utilizing computer-based instructional objects with their students.

Exemplary WebQuest
http://www.personal.psu.edu/jxz8/Student_Webquests/Bradley_Knudsen/WEBQUEST.HTML

I chose this WebQuest because the introduction catches your attention (you found Antonio Banderas' wallet!) and presents the traditional "trip planning" idea in a fun and thorough way. Also, I like that the team member roles are very clear, with extra details & hints for each person, and the rubrics for each part of the evaluation are linked to their descriptions and provide clear requirements to achieve each possible score.

Another WebQuest of Note
http://www.allenschool.org/spanishfoodwebquest.htm

This website is for elementary students and explores Spanish food, having individual students create their own menus. I like that it has students explore traditional SPANISH foods, as many people think that Spanish food is the same as "Mexican" food--yet they are vastly different! Designwise, I like that the WebQuest is very basic and seems to be easy for elementary-level students to work with and understand. I also think this WebQuest could easily be modifed for use with middle or high school students in their first year of Spanish as a quicker, short term WebQuest.