Teacher-training materials for introducing MyBrainshark to a real, educational setting

MA ELT (Multimedia and ICT) Profession Practice Core Module student no: 1163612

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STUDENT ID NUMBER: 1163612

PROGRAMME: MA IN ELTMM/ICT

MODULE NAME: PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE (ICT) – ET960

MODULE TUTORS: RUSSELL STANNARD / TILLY HARRISON

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Date submitted: 24 April 2012

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MA ELT (Multimedia and ICT) Profession Practice Core Module student no: 1163612

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CONTENTS:

PART ONE: OVERVIEW 2-3

PART TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 4-11

PART THREE: BACKGROUND INFORMATION 12-14

PART FOUR: RATIONALE 15-19

PART FIVE: COURSE ADMINISTRATION 20

+ MATERIALS 21-32

PART SIX: REFERENCES / NOTES / DVD 33-35

PART ONE: OVERVIEW

I propose to introduce the use of the asynchronous cloud-based software tool, myBrainshark,

into the English language programme syllabus on the International Foundation Course (IFC)

at the Central Academy of Fine Arts (CAFA), Beijing, http://www.cafa.edu.cn/aboutcafa/.

MyBrainshark is created and operated by the Massachusetts technology company,

‘Brainshark’. I am proposing to demonstrate the free version,

http://www.brainshark.com/mybrainshark and persuade the institution to adopt this.

Although I have previously been employed as a language teacher on the IFC, I wish to take

the perspective of an external advisor to the institution who will run a six-hour training

course for the both the art and language teachers to use the tool for developing speaking and

presentation skills with the students. I will produce PowerPoints for six interactive classroom

sessions. I will also use Camtasia Studio 7 to produce some instructional videos

demonstrating the tool, which will be accessible at any time.

MyBrainshark enables different kinds of content to be uploaded and shared online. A voice

recording (narration) can be added, with many editing possibilities to the individual slides.

Content is automatically converted into a shareable format. Because it is free and an email

registration is all that is required, there is no financial barrier either to the student or

institution.

CAFA’s foundation year course is a prestigious institution for Chinese born teenagers

wishing to study art and design abroad, full-time, in overseas institutions. Alongside the

requirement to build a physical portfolio of work during their art studies, the students are

required to sit IELTS tests with a view to increasing their scores, in order to be offered a

place. This tool would have the dual benefits to students of enabling speaking practice in the

target language and to formally present their work.

There are a number of potential obstacles with this proposal, not least in convincing both the

institution and teaching staff alike that this tool will be effective. I will discuss this in more

detail, as well as the educational requirements, in later sections.

PART TWO >

PART TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW

In this section I will firstly discuss what MyBrainshark is and how it has been implemented

already. Secondly, I will discuss the theoretical underpinning of e-learning and the theory of

learning behind designing activities using innovative web tools, such as MyBrainshark.

Thirdly, I will discuss the situational context and the relevance of learner autonomy with

Chinese students. Finally, I will link this with out-of-class learning activities, before setting

up my rationale.

What is an innovation and what is an innovative tool? According to Collins (2006), an

innovation is ‘something newly introduced, such as a new method or device’, or ‘the act of

innovating’. Being innovative is ‘using or showing new methods or ideas’. A ‘tool’ is

anything used as a means of performing an operation or achieving an end. An innovative

tool, therefore, is a new method or device used to perform an operation or achieve an end.

For the purpose of this paper, MyBrainshark can be considered as a digital technology tool,

asynchronous cloud-based, web-based software, which enables users to present using

multimedia formatting. An innovative tool does not necessarily correlate with efficiency.

Once designed and made available to the public, a digital technology, such as MyBrainshark,

is dependent on the way it is used, but not necessarily subject to the purpose for which it was

designed.

MyBrainshark is intended for corporate business, sales and marketing teams, or ‘enterprises’

to produce multimedia presentations. The company website acknowledges its usefulness in

e-learning, although its detailed use in education is hardly mentioned and there is nothing

about it being used for language learning. There are hundreds of ‘enterprise’ case studies on

the Brainshark website, effectively advertising the software, but no empirical or objective

academic research. After contacting the company for teaching examples, they could only

offer two tiny case studies. One was an American high school teacher (Heisey, 2011, see

image below left) who used it for personalisation purposes. He introduced information about

himself by narrating a PowerPoint which uploaded, before getting students to embed their

own presentations onto the educational social networking site, Edmodo.

The other (VanderMolen, 2011) was an American Health and Nursing lecturer who used the

tool as a visual/audio discussion board. The lecturer used it to present developing lecture

material to students, including some questions. The students apparently benefitted from the

nuance of the discussion by hearing the tone of the lecturer and other students’ voices as they

subsequently re-edited the material.

A further example I discovered was a recent blog entry by a Spanish teacher demonstrating

five A2 level students using MyBrainshark for presentations on geographical landmarks

(Cabal, 2012, above right). I could not find examples like this, however, on the company

website.

Despite only sporadic examples of educational use, the tool clearly has a major relevance for

language learning at the macro-level of speaking because of the facility to talk over slides,

edit and perfect recordings. It could therefore be used for personal narrations, commentaries,

interpretations and even translations or dubbing. The idea for the latter uses comes from a

paper (Danan, 2010) which outlined a ‘dubbing’ project at a military language school, using

standard issue iPods and Tablet PCs equipped with Windows Movie Maker. A crucial point

was made here with regards to motivation:

Since the completed projects were to be shown to classmates, teachers and possibly

other classes, the performance element was likely to heighten the non-routine nature

of the experience and be a strong motivator.

Danan (2010: 446)

MyBrainshark could be useful for creating lecturecasts to post on a course blog (Byrne, 2010)

or uploading the new Slideshare for Box application which enables users to upload their

finished PowerPoints and share using their iPads (Byrne, 2012).

MyBrainshark has some similarities with the free cloud-based application, Present Me -

http://present.me/ which enables presentations to be uploaded with a videocam narration very

easily. Other similar presentation tools are Slideshare, which also allows users to upload

audio onto essentially PowerPoint presentations, Google Docs, Empressr, Slide Boom and

Prezi, to mention just a few.

A presentation by Ian James of tefltecher (2011)

THEORETICAL UNDERPINNING

I will now discuss the theoretical underpinning of using a tool like MyBrainshark by first

quoting some statements about technology and learning, before highlighting some specific

pedagogic principles for language learning.

According to Diana Laurillard (2007):

We still focus the majority of technology provision on what we already understand

[…] rather than using it to tackle the really difficult problems presented by our

ambitions for universal and effective education. Imaginative and innovative use of

digital technologies could be transformational for teaching and learning, taking us

well beyond the incremental value of more accessible lecture presentations.

(Laurillard 2007 in Beetham and Sharpe, 2007: xvi)

In teaching and learning, she continues, we […] use technology to support more traditional

modes of teaching. That is to say, we tend to use technology to improve the quality of lecture

presentations […] and to engage otherwise non-attentive students. (Laurillard, in Beetham

and Sharpe, 2007: xv)

In instructionist pedagogy the main focus is on the delivery of materials in which information

can be more effectively transmitted by teachers and understood by learners. At this year’s

IATEFL conference in Glagow, Laurillard indirectly referred to this instructionist pedagogy.

She rhetorically asked ‘why do we look to technology’ in learning? Her argument was that

teachers who use technology should ‘pull back from putting stuff onto the web and beaming

it onto students’ computer screens’ (Laurillard, 2012: 3) as many practitioners still do.

Laurillard’s opening remarks echoed Paiget’s assertion that ‘conceptual development occurs

through intellectual activity rather than by the absorption of information’ (Beetham and

Sharpe, 2007: 17). The cognitive perspective of learning involves interpretation and

construction of meaning. Understanding is gained through active processes, personal

experimentation and observation.

Four essential areas, she argues, of learning through technology, are: Discussion –

synchronous webinars, with chat and playback; asynchronous text forums; Practice –

adaptive digital interactive tools with meaningful feedback on actions; Collaboration

– role play simulations with user-generated scripts in interactive games; Production –

user-generated digital multimedia combinations of film, animation, sound, images,

captions. (Laurillard, 2012: 4)

Of these, ‘practice’ and ‘production’ are especially relevant to MyBrainshark. Students’

speaking and presentation skills could be practiced using meaningful, digital multimedia tools

such as being proposed. But which learning theories draw on personal meaningfulness?

According to Biggs (in Beetham and Sharpe, 2007: 14), there should be a ‘constructive

alignment’ of learning theory, based on a constructivist approach, where learning activities lie

at the heart of the process. Constructivism is ‘a humanistic model […] where learners

construct new ideas or concepts by making use of their own knowledge and experiences.’

(Beatty, 2010: 99). To this we can include ‘Schema Theory’, the psychological model of

aspects of the world or of the self that is structured in such a way as to facilitate the processes

of cognition and perception. Discourse is interpreted with reference to the background

knowledge of the learner (Nunan, in Beatty, 2010:99). Finally, we can add the particular

situation of the institution under discussion and the learning outcomes of this particular group

of students. This social perspective reflects how knowledge is ‘situated in the practices of

communities and outcomes of learning involve the abilities of individuals to participate in

those practices successfully’ (Mayes and de Freitas, 2007: 18). Underlying the slightly

different perspectives above is ‘an assumption that learning must be personally meaningful.

[…] Activity, motivation and learning are all related to a need for a positive sense of identity

[…] shaped by social forces’ (ibid). I will make further reference to ‘constructive alignment’

when discussing the proposed course in the rationale.

AUTONOMY IN CHINESE LEARNING

A critical aspect of using tools like MyBrainshark is the extent to which Chinese students

would need to develop some autonomous learning in order for its use to be effective. I will

now briefly discuss the perception of learner autonomy amongst Chinese learners before

looking at the potential to overcome this.

In 1995, an examination took place of Chinese cultural traits as an obstacle to the promotion

of autonomy (Ho and Crookall, 1995: 235). What kind of obstacles might be encountered by

a teacher in promoting learner autonomy in a traditional Chinese institution and how might

these obstacles be overcome? While personal autonomy appears ‘universally desirable’, they

wrote, ‘it is exercised within the context of specific cultures ... the culturally-constructed

nature of the classroom setting needs to be taken in to account’ (ibid: 236-7).

One such traditional ‘obstacle’ is seeing oneself as part of a ‘relational hierarchy’. The

Chinese students’ respect for authority and their view of the teacher as the authority figure is

very important. Scollon and Scollon (1994) generalise the fundamental differences between

Asian and Western perceptions:

The Asian focuses on the care, nurture and benevolence (or their absence) of the

person in authority while the westerner tends to focus on the restriction, limitation and

dependence of the person over which the authority is exercised.

(Scollan and Scollon, 1994: 21)

Closely linked to this, is the Chinese pre-occupation with ‘face’. In communicating with

another person, one must ‘protect the other’s self-image and feelings, [as] he or she is not

confronted directly’ (Ho and Crookall, 1995:237). There is a reluctance to challenge a

teacher’s position, and to maintain their teacher’s mien-tzu or ‘face’ (ibid). Presenting

opinions that differ from those of the teacher, coupled with the notion of working

independently suggests that it is extremely difficult for Chinese students to learn to exercise

responsibility for their own learning.

The development of learner autonomy, however, does not need to be impeded by assumed

cultural barriers such as these. A constructivist, situated pedagogy can develop autonomy

without conflicting with cultural values. Furthermore, a web-based tool that requires the

majority of the learning to be done outside of the classroom lowers any potential face-loss

while developing confidence.

Littlewood (1999) argued that the view of autonomy being a Western concept unsuited to

East Asia which has different educational traditions is unfounded. The different aspects of

autonomy, however, need to match with the characteristic and needs of learners in specific

contexts (1999: 71). The ‘autonomous interdependence’ (Ryan, ibid: 74) required by the

students means the teacher still has a large role to play in developing learning, setting goals

and encouraging.

Gao (2008), more recently, has highlighted the non-native presence of ‘English corner’ social

communities in Chinese cities, which ‘enhanced autonomous learning and fostered subtle

changes in their self-indentites’, away (ibid: 60) from the classroom. He argues that

traditional Chinese pedagogy suffocates the students’ capacity for developing their

autonomous learning. It is not recognised, utilized and enhanced in the pedagogical process

leading to negative impact on their language learning experiences (ibid: 65).

The idea of transportable ‘self-identities’, allied with perceptions of English as a ‘must-have

educational skill is a motivational cornerstone itself (Ushioda, 2011: 206). The average

Chinese 19 year-old student now could be considered amongst the ‘digital natives’, (Prensky,

2001) born into an already digital world. It is commonplace for students at this age to be

familiar with using interactive web 2.0 and mobile technology, which has taken the Internet

from being full of ‘expert-generated taxonomies to individual-created folksonomies’ (Beatty,

2011: 40), where anybody can and does create, contribute to and edits content. A more

involved editorial and creative role for many is the popular media ‘mashup’, combining two

or more sources (ibid). These technologies, though often played with for fun, present real

innovative opportunities for language teaching. This is the highly interconnected, interactive

world of the current net generation, which can be tapped into as a motivational resource, as

participation becomes such an integral part of their identity, motivation and place in the

world (adapted from Ushioda, 2011, 207).

CONCLUSION

With unfounded beliefs about Chinese learner autonomy postulated, I will conclude this

section with reiterating how the use of MyBrainshark would disregard assumed cultural

barriers, draw on many of the learning theories mentioned and set up my rationale for

devising materials where the tool is used purposefully and meaningfully.

Although I propose that the ‘speaking class’ remains part of the curriculum, the majority of

the learning will be done outside of class, away from the teacher and in the students’ own

time. Fairly recent studies suggest that students needing to improve their second language

acquisition ‘engage in out-of-class learning activities more frequently than their teachers

believe, often showing considerable creativity in situations where opportunities for out-of-

class learning appear to be limited.’ (Benson, 2007:26)

Any concerns about classroom speaking performance and the potential loss of face are

immediately overcome by the use of MyBrainshark. Although some might argue that if these

students are going to study at western institutions they should not be accommodated in this

way. I believe, however, it would help to generate more output, provide something

meaningful and personal to the learner and, importantly, provide a permanent record and

evidence of improving speaking skills.

As I conclude this section, it is important to mention that, so far, I have not discussed the

skills needed by the teachers to carry out this proposal. Hampel and Stickler (2007) have

reported on the training of tutors to teach languages online and, in particular, a skills pyramid

(ibid: 316-319). Although writing specifically about an Open University programme, they

have important pedagogical issues for my study. Again, I will save further discussion for the

rationale.

PART THREE>

PART THREE: BACKGROUND INFORMATION

The Central Academy of Fine Arts (CAFA) is the leading Art Academy in China,

internationally recognised for its expertise across a range of over 20 disciplines within six

schools including Fine Art, Design and Architecture. It is also the leading Art institute for

Research in China. The one year International Foundation Course (IFC) aims to prepare

students who are interested in Fine Art and Design and wish to study, full-time at an overseas

Art institution at undergraduate level. They each specialise in one area of study and for

2009-10 this is shown in the graphic below. In any one academic year there are

approximately 100 students enrolled on the course. CAFA has close links with several

overseas institutions, such as California College of the Arts, University of Arts in London,

Birmingham Institute of Art and Glasgow School of Art.

The students are all Chinese nationals, coming from provinces all over China. The age range

is generally between 17 and 19 years of age, with most of them having graduated from school

or college the previous year. They have to demonstrate a high level of motivation and

interest in working in art and design as places are limited. All of them are required to attend

English tuition, predominantly to improve their IELTS score. Depending on which overseas

institution they are applying for, a mark of 5.5 is an absolute minimum, although 6.5+ is

preferred. A few students receive special dispensation if they have already achieved their

required grade or do so during the year. The majority, however, need to attend one of four

streamed classes, consisting of around 20 students, depending on overall entrance level,

which in my experience was as low as 3.0. The students are encouraged to take practice and

real IELTS tests at regular intervals throughout the year.

There is a significant constraint placed on the English language teachers as the institution

accepts gifted, artistic students from well-off backgrounds who have otherwise shown little

progress in their English acquisition throughout years of compulsory foreign language

instruction in school. There are a number of organisations, tied up with publishing

companies who promise guaranteed success with intensive English courses, where a student

can increase their IELTS score by two or more within a short space of six months. This kind

of unrealistic expectation has an impact on a evidential learning on the language programme.

Other constraints include the early morning timing of the English classes, the tendency of the

institution to change the syllabus mid-term and, as discussed in part two, cultural perceptions

of the teacher’s role in the classroom. Furthermore, my proposal would undoubtedly require

a greater level of learner autonomy. I will return to these constraints and proposals to

overcome these in the rationale.

The English language teachers employed on the programme are expected to be bachelor

degree qualified and possess a minimum Celta certificate or equivalent. They should have

substantial knowledge of teaching IELTS, and preferably have previous employment with

The British Council as an IELTS examiner. They should have reasonable experience of

studying or working in an international higher educational setting. The performance of the

language teachers and/or their contracted employer is measured, as I have already suggested,

by improvement or otherwise in students’ IELTS score. In addition, academic skills classes

are welcomed, as well as a focus on English for the specific purpose of working in art and

design. There used to be a sole contract with one external language provider who supplied

the teaching staff. Now all contracts are directly between the institution and the locally and

internationally sourced teachers.

The facilities on campus for the IFC include access to various studios, such as printmaking,

oil painting, product design, photography and computer art. There are accessible computer

labs for the students, although all students have a laptop and usually at least one other

technological device, such as an iPad or similar Chinese tablet equivalent. Facilities for the

English teachers are not great, with run-down, 1960s behaviourist language labs and old-

fashioned lecture theatres. A front-screen projector is available, however, in all rooms,

allowing for documents, presentations to be shown and allowing (state monitored) Internet

access.

PART FOUR>

PART FOUR: RATIONALE

In this section I will describe the materials which I have designed. I will include my

justification for using MyBrainshark in the context chosen. I will explain my choices in

designing the training materials and show examples.

MyBrainshark has not been used extensively within second language learning. Despite its

great potential, it has so far been used predominantly within marketing and business and, as I

mentioned in the literature review, some e-learning outside of language teaching.

I propose to deliver a six hour training course for the English language teachers working on

the International Foundation Course (IFC), at the Central Academy of Fine Arts (CAFA),

Beijing. There are approximately 100 students on the 10 month course and there are four

separate English classes (A-D), streamed by language ability (IELTS score at acceptance

onto the IFC). My rationale is to demonstrate how the tool can be used by teachers – a

mixture of local and international - and students alike on the IFC. I have already described

the context in detail in the background information section and the expectations of both

institution and students.

I have already outlined the constraints at this institution in terms of impatience by the

institution for proof of learning having taken place. The only evidence that matters in this

context, however contentious this may seem, is improved IELTS scores. Monitoring of

lesson delivery also takes place. The barrier in convincing the institution to allow an untested

pedagogy is an additional constraint. One method of overcoming this barrier is to

demonstrate the alignment of English and Art content, as I will now explain.

CONSTRUCTIVE ALIGNMENT

In designing the course for the teachers, I am demonstrating the ‘constructive alignment’

principle proposed by Biggs (1999) mentioned earlier. Outcomes, activities and assessment

can be consciously aligned (Sharpe and Oliver, 2007: 42). Although the course itself is not

necessarily based on this model, I am suggesting this approach to the teaching. The power of

assessment to shape students’ experience comes into this, in terms of the feedback that

teachers can deliver from the presentations the students create. By connecting their

speaking activities to the wider art course, I hope to inspire the teachers to make this

alignment, engender motivation to complete activities and, ultimately, for the students to

perform more confidently in both IELTS speaking tests and overseas institution applications.

In the second and fifth lessons, I propose a discussion over pedagogy in the digital age, with a

follow-up, as shown by the two slides below. I propose introducing the concept of

‘constructive alignment’ and try to make links with the art course on the IFC.

Slide from lesson 2 Slide from lesson 5

In Fine Art, the stimulus may be, for example, a painting, a photograph, a

critique or a body of work that students are required to respond to in some

way. They may discuss the work’s significance or explore a concept that it is

intended to illustrate. This discussion might then inform further work. The

stimulus will produce a response but not an ‘answer’.

(Derek Harding and Bruce Ingraham, in Beetham and Sharpe, 2007: 144.

Rethinking Pedagogy for a Digital Age, London/New York : Routledge)

PEDAGOGY AND JUSTIFICATION

My own justification for persuading the teachers to ask the students to use MyBrainshark is

as follows; taken from slide 9 of first PP:

Speaking is the least practiced macro skill for many second language learners. It is certainly

the case amongst Chinese learners. This is because of a lack of opportunities to engage with

native speakers outside of the class. Even ‘English Corners’, mentioned earlier, don’t

usually have this, although they can enhance autonomous learning and foster changes in self-

identity (Xuesong Gao, 2008: 60).

I now need to discuss the teachers’ technical skills to deliver this material. Although

ultimately this proposal is for MyBrainshark to be used by the students, this will not happen

if the teachers do not learn the tool for themselves. That is the objective of designing the

course material. I am assuming that the teachers at CAFA will have no prior knowledge or

experience of using MyBrainshark but they have the aptitude to learn it quickly. The

technical skills required can be placed somewhere on a ‘skills pyramid’, as outlined by

Hampel and Stickler (2007, see adapted image below). Although discussing a completely

online Open University course, they have some salient points about the training of ‘tutors’, as

they refer to them.

I will assume that the CAFA teachers already have the most basic skills of using computer

applications; they would not be employed if they didn’t. The second level is concerned with

‘the skills necessary to use the specific software application [which] ‘tutors need to

familiarize themselves with […] before they can be expected to use (sic. Ibid: 317). The next

level is concerned with problem solving and the constraints of using the software. This

requires some effort on the teachers to adapt their material to incorporate MyBrainshark. My

training intentions effectively stop at this level, because the teachers will still have classroom

contact and the ability to create an online community (ibid: 317-318) is less important in this

context. To summarise, the CAFA teachers need to understand how MyBrainshark works

and be able to confidently overcome technical issues using it. These are my objectives and

this is what my training course aims to address.

There are a number of technical questions which I had to consider. The inspiration for this

project proposal is undoubtedly the Teacher Training Videos website,

http://www.teachertrainingvideos.com/, owned by my dissertation supervisor, Russell

Stannard. We were shown MyBrainshark on the ICT in ELT course and I immediately was

sold on the use of the tool for learning languages. The idea of using Camtasia Studio 7

screencasts to give step by step tuition for using the tool is also inspired by TTV. In addition,

Anglia Ruskin, in Cambridge, has a selection of tutorials using Camtasia Studio 6 on its

Learning and Teaching ‘Inspireplayer’ – www.inspire.anglia.ac.uk/inspireplayer/, such as one

on podcasting (Kadirire, 2009).

The decision to create online content was so that the teachers would be able to access the

tutorials at any time, and this allows for individual differences in the teachers’ technological

aptitude to incorporate the tool.

The seven screencasts that I have made are asynchronous tutorials to help the teachers

familiarise themselves with the tool. These screencasts will be partially played and linked to

during the lessons. Each lesson will take place during induction week, after the students have

arrived but before teaching begins. There are some out-of-class activities, using the tool, for

the teachers to complete before the next session, where additional questions can be addressed.

There is a review in the sixth and final class. I created PowerPoint tutorials and handouts for

the sessions, using an existing template, and created the screencasts using a purchased copy

of Camtasia Studio 7.

PART FIVE>

PART FIVE: COURSE ADMINISTRATION

My materials consist of six PowerPoint presentations (hand outs)

on using MyBrainshark. These will be delivered over six

classroom lessons during an induction week (or fortnight). In

addition, there are seven screencasts available. The PowerPoints, which follow after this

outline of how the course will be administered, are as follows:

For the six hour long classes the teachers, consisting of the language teachers, art tutors and,

if possible, an administrative representative from CAFA, will bring their own devices (laptop,

netbook etc) and collaboratively work with the tool. There are seven screencasts – lesson 3

split into two (3 and 3b) - which aim to complement the classroom activities and provide out

of class tuition. These screencasts are step by step guides to using the tool, but also

summarise some main points from the classroom lessons. There is opportunity to ask

questions in class time after these screencasts have been watched for the first time. The

screencasts are all hosted on a screencast.com account, which I enabled when I purchased

Camtasia. These are all included on the enclosed DVD and are available at the following

URL address: http://www.screencast.com/users/teacherphili.

Direct link to Tutorials folder::-

POWERPOINTS >

http://tinyurl.com/d7prpwp

Powerpoints above. These are enclosed with hard copy.

Screencasts are held online at screencast.com. See also hard copy and DVD.

PART SIX: REFERENCES

Beatty, K. 2010. Teaching and Researching: Computer-Assisted Language Learning (2nd

ed). Harlow: Pearson

Beetham, H. and Sharpe, R (eds.). 2007. Rethinking Pedagogy for a Digital Age: Designingand delivering e-learning. London/New York : Routledge

Benson, P. 2007. ‘State-of-the-Art Article : Autonomy in language teaching and learning’.Language Teaching 40/1: 21-40.

Byrne, R. 2010. MyBrainshark – Easily Share and Narrate Slideshare presentations.Available at: http://www.freetech4teachers.com/2010/10/my-brainshark-easily-narrate-and-share.html. Accessed 24 January 2012.

Byrne, R. 2012. Try Slideshark and Brainshark for sharing presentations. Available at:http://www.freetech4teachers.com/2012/04/try-slideshark-and-brainshark-for.html. Accessed4 April 2012.

Cabal, C. 2012. 5 Students using MyBrainShark for their landmarks presentations.Available at: www.cristinacabal.com/?p=2428. Accessed 4 April 2012.

Dunan, M. 2010. ‘Dubbing projects for the language learner: a frameworkfor integrating audiovisual translation into task-based instruction’. Computer AssistedLanguage Learning 23/5:441-456

Gao, X, 2008. ‘The ‘English Corner’ as an out-of-class learning activity’. ELT Journal 63/1:60-67

Hampel, R. and Stickler, U. 2005. ‘New Skills for New Classrooms: Training tutors toteach languages online.’ Computer Assisted Language Learning 18/4: 311-326

Heisey, Mr. 2011. Introduction to Mr Heisey – a MyBrainshark Presentation. Available athttp://my.brainshark.com/Introduction-to-Mr-Heisey-413950718. Accessed 14 March 2012.

Ho, J. and Crookall, D. 1995. ‘Breaking with Chinese Cultural Traditions: Learnerautonomy in English Language Teaching’. System 23/2: 235-243.

James, I, 2011. The Balance of PowerPoint. Blog Entry. Available at:http://tefltecher.wordpress.com/2011/05/31/presentations/. Accessed 5 April 2012.

Kadirire, J. 2009. Podcasting. Anglia Learning and Teaching Inspireplayer. Available at:www.inspire.anglia.ac.uk/podcasting-rlo/. Accessed 5 April 2012.

Laurillard, D. 2012. Supporting the teacher as innovative learning designer. PlenarySession at IATEFL conference, Glasgow, 21 March. Available at:http://iatefl.britishcouncil.org/2012/sessions/2012-03-21/plenary-session-diana-laurillard.Accessed 30 March 2012.

Littlewood, W. 1999. ‘Defining and developing autonomy in East Asian contexts’. AppliedLinguistics 20/1: 70-94.

Longwell, P. 2012. MyBrainshark. Blog Entry – 22 January. Available at:http://teacherphilisictinelt.blogspot.co.uk/2012/01/6-my-brainshark.html. Accessed April2012.

Longwell, P. 2012. TP Timeline. Available at: http://my.brainshark.com/TP-Timeline-176031451. Accessed April 2012.

Mayes, T and de Freitas, S. 2007. ‘Learning and e-learning : the role of theory’ in Beetham,H. and Sharpe, R (eds.). Rethinking Pedagogy for a Digital Age: Designing and delivering e-learning. London/New York : Routledge

Scollon, R. and Scollon, S. 1994 ‘The Post Confucian Confusion’ . Research Report No.37.Department of English, City Polytechnic of Hong Kong, in Ho, J. and Crookall, D. 1995.‘Breaking with Chinese Cultural Traditions: Learner autonomy in English LanguageTeaching’. System 23/2: 235-243.

Sharpe, R. and Oliver, M. 2007. ‘Designing courses for e-learning’ in Beetham, H. andSharpe, R. (eds.). Rethinking Pedagogy for a Digital Age: Designing and delivering e-learning. London/New York : Routledge

Smith R. and Ushioda, E. 2009. ‘Autonomy: Under whose control?’ in Pemberton, R.,Toogood, S. and Barfield, A. (eds.). Maintaining Control: Autonomy and Language Learning.Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press.

Stannard, R. 2011. MyBrainshark – step by step tutorials. Available at:http://www.teachertrainingvideos.com/brain/index.html andhttp://www.teachertrainingvideos.com/brain2/index.html.Accessed at various times, January-April 2012.

Stannard, R. 2012. The Flipped Classroom and the Connected Classroom. Lecture Notes.Delivered at the University of Warwick, 23 January.

Ushioda, E. 2011. ‘Language learning motivation, self and identity: current theoreticalperspectives’. Computer Assisted Language Learning 24/3:199-210

VanderMolen, J. 2011. Using Brainshark as a Visual/Audio Discussion Board. Available at:http://www.brainshark.com/ideas-blog/customer-articles/Using-Brainshark-as-a-Visual-Audio-Discussion-Board.aspx. Accessed 14 March 2012.

Watkins, D.A. and Biggs, J.B. (Eds.) 1996. The Chinese Learner: Cultural, Psychological,and Contextual Influences. Comparative Education Research Centre, Hong Kong.

Word count (1) 334+(2)2222+(3)694+(4)1144+(5)2000 (approximate equivalent of courseadministration page + 6 x PowerPoints and 7 x screencasts!) = 6394

Notes/Image references:

Part one: http://tinyurl.com/c6umvwl; http://www.brainshark.com/; Longwell, P (2010).

Part two: http://tinyurl.com/br8epqb

Part three: http://www.cafa.edu.cn/aboutcafa/lan/?c=1101; http://my.brainshark.com/Introduction-to-Mr-Heisey-413950718; www.cristinacabal.com/?p=2428; http://tefltecher.wordpress.com/2011/05/31/presentations/;

Part four: Longwell, P (2009).

Part five: Longwell, P (2012).

Images on PowerPoints used by fair use terms.

All photos, including original ones from CAFA, on PowerPoints: Longwell, P (2009).

I used a licenced copy of Camtasia Studio 7 for the screencasts, Windows Movie Maker 6.0 for creating theCAFA Open Day video. I used Microsoft Windows 7 ‘snipping tool’ to capture many of the images used.

All materials would be legal to use in the UK. However, the material is intended to be used in China. It isassumed that access to MyBrainshark is permitted, but also that access to certain social networking sites and,possibly, other web tools are restricted.

No specific guidance using material design was followed. The PowerPoints are based on standard templates andno music has been used for the materials. The only instance of music is on the You Tube video of CAFA: OpenDay which is briefly linked to in the PowerPoint no.5, slide 9, which uses ‘1979’ by James Blunt, written byMark Batson and James Blunt and published by Atlantic/Warner Music Group.

Contents on enclosed DVD:

MA ELT (Multimedia and ICT) Profession Practice Core Module student no: 1163612

2

1. Project Specification Sheet2. Professional Practice Project Presentation Proposal – Blended Version (Full) 21m:57s3. PowerPoint/Handout 1: Introduction4. PowerPoint/Handout 2: Uploading Content and Recording Audio5. PowerPoint/Handout 3: Working with Photos or Video6. PowerPoint/Handout 4: Working with a Presentation (PPP) or Document (PDF)7. PowerPoint/Handout 5: Being Creative + Constructive Alignment8. PowerPoint/Handout 6: Further Ideas + Review9. Screencast 1: Introduction 6:2810. Screencast 2: Uploading Content and Recording Audio 13:2511. Screencast 3a: Working with Photos 16:3912. Screencast 3b: Working with Video 13:0013. Screencast 4: Working with a PPP or PDF 18:2114. Screencast 5: Being Creative 15:0015. Screencast 6: Review 7.03

Note: All the above content has been uploaded to YouTube (PPPPP - Blended Version), Scribd (projectspecification sheet), SlideShare.net (6 x Powerpoints) and Screencast.com (7 screencasts).

The complete content is linked to on my ICT in ELT blog:http://teacherphilisictinelt.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/professional-practice-ict.html

1. IntroductionWith Phil Longwell

[email protected]

Each lesson is one hour long.

We shall be in this room all day this week

Monday – Saturday (inclusive) time: tbc

Aim: to introduce a digital cloud-based softwaretool to use with students on the InternationalFoundation Course @ CAFA

Requirement: BYOD (Bring your own device)

中央美术学院

An asynchronous, cloud-based software tool.

What does that mean?

What do you think it can do?

Here’s an example: My Timeline

An asynchronous, cloud-based software tool whichallows you to:

Upload different kinds of content to share online.

e.g. a document, PPP,

photo album or video.

You can add a voice-over or

narration.

It also allows podcast to be

produced.

It allows sharing and

embedding (+ tracking).

Multimedia digital presentations

It’s free for individual users.

Quick four minute tour of ‘my Brainshark’:

Quick Tour

There are thousands of presentations alreadyuploaded. Authentic listening practice.

They are mostly created by sales andmarketing teams to sell their products.

However, we could still use them with ourstudents.

Do you know of some other software whichis similar to my brainshark? Discuss..

Images used under terms of ‘fair use’ policy

1. Getting started + Introduction

2. Uploading content and recording audio

3. Working with photos or video

4. Working with a PPP or PDF

5. Being creative + constructive alignment

6. Sharing and Storing +Further Ideas + Review

Discuss possible uses with another person. It helps students to practice and perfect their speaking skills It helps students to improve pronunciation (with classroom

feedback) It is based on a communicative and situated pedagogy It potentially overcome issues over face-loss and weaker speakers It encourages autonomous learning (already happening on the art

side) It is useful to watch other Brainshark presentations for authentic

listening practice It encourages reflective practice It creates space for classroom feedback and other connected

activities It allows students to create, practice and present their work It allows students to build up a digital portfolio of their art work

Skills Pyramid taken from Hampel and Stickler, 2005,

Open University. Skills for Online

Language Tutors.

Basic ICT competence

Facilitatingcommunicative competence

Dealing with constraints andpossibilities of the medium

Online socialization

Creativityand choice

Specific technical competence for the software

Ownstyle

Discuss and draw up a list of ways that the toolcould be used:

(a) in the classroom

(b) away from the classroom

How could the tool help with the objectives of:

(a) the teachers?

(b) the students?

What problems do you envisage?

So what do we think about using this tool?

What about the other presentation toolsmentioned today?

Screencast videos are available at:http://www.screencast.com/users/teacherphili

The website for this tool is at:

http://www.brainshark.com/mybrainsharkSign up with an email and a passwordand try it for yourself.

Next time: Uploading content and recording audio.

中央美术学院

2. Uploading content and recording audioWith Phil Longwell

[email protected]

Any questions ?

Any new thoughts or problems that havecome up in your minds ?

Have you had a look at the website yetand signed up for a free account ?

A quick thought about pedagogy…

What kind of learning theory ortheories are we drawing on by using a

tool like my brainshark?

…please spend a few minutes discussion thiswith the person next to you.

The main reason for using this tool is to get thestudents to work autonomously on theirspeaking skills.

The tool is not meant to be used for all 4 skills orreplace textbooks entirely (at this stage).

Classroom can be a place to do pair-work, group-work, interactive, task-based learning.

We can ‘connect’ the work students do out ofclass with what they do inside the class.

There are currently around 2,800 presentationsalready uploaded and active.

You can upload one of the following:

The main reason for using my brainshark is totalk over an existing file (e.g. PPP, PDF, video).

The most simplest thing to do is to either recordyour voice from an in-built or plugged-in laptopmicrophone -> create a podcast.

Or you can upload an existing mp3 file to share:

Podcasting is not new and there are many othertools out there that can be used to upload, createand share audio files.

Do you know any?

If you haven’t already done so, sign in to your‘mybrainshark’ account. Click here for link.

Chose a word (or similar) document to uploadfrom your device (e.g. netbook, laptop etc.).

once uploaded…

Spend 5-10 minutes playing around with thedocument.

What do you notice?

What things can you do with it once uploaded?

mybrainshark automatically formats yourdocument ready for adding audio to each slide.

Watch this demonstration of adding audio to thedocument you have uploaded.

Audio Input issues – microphone or headset? Display issues –document not shown.

Click link to tutorials here.

Try it yourself.

Comments and questions?

In what ways could the students use documents?

What other documents can be uploaded?

Further questions or comments?

So what do we think about using the tool for podcasts and narrating documents?

Would you use this tool or a different one?

Screencast videos are available at: http://www.screencast.com/users/teacherphili Or direct link to CAFA videos:

http://tinyurl.com/d7prpwp

Next time: working with pictures and videos.

3. Working with photos and videoWith Phil Longwell

[email protected]

Any questions ?

Any new ideas or ways that MyBrainsharkcould be used with the students?

Today we will look at

working with photos

and videos.

A quick thought about learner autonomy

What do you understand by learnerautonomy and the particular context

at CAFA ?

…please spend a few minutes discussion thiswith the person next to you.

Find some photos or images on your device .Browse and upload some of these first before weadd a description and tags.

Watch the following screencast about addingaudio to a photo album.

Remember: all the screencasts I am showing areavailable at the following link:

http://www.screencast.com/users/teacherphili

Any questions or

comments at this stage?

Q. What could CAFA students do toimprove their speaking skills usingMyBrainshark and a photo album?

Discuss this with the person next to you for5 minutes.

Any new ideas?

What do we know about video formats?

Watch the following screencast about addingaudio to a video.

Any questions or comments?

Try it yourself.

If you have a video on your device that you don’tmind playing with…. Upload it before we add adescription and tags.

Q: What could we get the students to dowith MyBrainshark and video capture?

Any other questions or comments?

So what do with think about using photos and videos+ MyBrainshark for speaking practice.

What are other possibilities are there using photoand video?

‘Homework’ – to do a 5 minute presentationnarrating a photo album or video.

Remember: Screencast videos available at: http://www.screencast.com/users/teacherphili Or clicking on tiny url: http://tinyurl.com/d7prpwp

Next time: working with a PDF or PPP file.

4. Working with a PPP or PDFWith Phil Longwell

[email protected]

Homework?? Any presentations to show…using photos or video?

Any technical issues or other problems withusing the tool that you want to report?

Today we will look at

working with other kinds of

documents such as PPP and PDF.

What do you know about PowerPoint already?

MyBrainshark works well with PP because itautomatically reads each slide as something whichrequires audio and breaks the PP down in thatway. So each slide audio can be individuallyrecorded and/or edited.

Is PP something out studentswould use and, if so, in what way?

If you haven’t done so already, signinto your MyBrainshark account.

Watch this screencast onadding a PPP.

More detail about each editing option on the screencasts.

Direct link: http://tinyurl.com/d7prpwp

Try it for yourself.

Spend 10 minutes uploading an existingPowerPoint from your device, if you have one.

Play around with the editing features.Although there are tutorials which go intothese in more detail, it is often better to learnthe different options yourself by trial anderror.

The final main kind of document that you canupload is a PDF but you can also add othertext files.

What is special about a PDF?

Why might the students work with one?

More detail about each editing option on the screencasts.

Direct link: http://tinyurl.com/d7prpwp

So what is the most useful thing we have seen so far?

Any further questions or comments?

‘Out of class’ work – finish off a 5 min Presentation using a PPP or PDF.

Remember the full training videos are always accessibleat: http://tinyurl.com/d7prpwp

Next time: Being creative. More features of MyBrainshark + how to ‘align’ or connect what we do on thelanguage programme with what the students do in the artstudio.

5. Being creative + constructive alignmentWith Phil Longwell

[email protected]

Any presentations to show narrating aPDF or PPP?

Today we will look more at the editing features,additional features that exist on MyBrainsharkand we will discuss the alignment of speakingpractice, presentations and the work the studentswill be asked to do on the IFC art course.

Q. What technology do the students have access toat CAFA? - ‘ Bring Your Own Device’

A reminder about pedagogy… discussed inlesson 2…. Pedagogy + the Digital Age:

What kind of learning theory ortheories are we drawing on by using

a tool like my brainshark?

We usually talk about pedagogy being anapproach or methodology which is applied toour teaching.

‘Constructive Alignment’ is a concept first written aboutby John Biggs, who did a lot of research in East Asia.

In designing this course, I am trying to demonstrate the‘constructive alignment’ principle proposed by Biggs (1999) inthat outcomes, activities and assessment can be consciouslyaligned (Sharpe and Oliver, 2007: 42). I am suggesting thisapproach to the teaching. The power of assessment to shapestudents’ experience comes into this, in terms of the feedbackthat teachers can deliver from the presentations the studentscreate. By connecting their speaking activities to the widerart course, I hope to inspire the teachers to make thisalignment, engender motivation to complete activities and,ultimately, perform more confidently in both IELTS speakingtests and overseas institution applications.

◦ “In Fine Art, the stimulus may be, for example, apainting, a photograph, a critique or a body ofwork that students are required to respond to insome way. They may discuss the work’ssignificance or explore a concept that it isintended to illustrate. This discussion might theninform further work. The stimulus will produce aresponse but no an ‘answer’.”

(Derek Harding and Bruce Ingraham, in Beetham and Sharpe, 2007: 144.Rethinking Pedagogy for a Digital Age, London/New York : Routledge)

Here is an example of a photo album which hasbeen used to show a timeline:

Please sign in to your MyBrainshark account andopen your previously uploaded photo album.

http://tinyurl.com/d7prpwp

1. Tracking and Viewing Reports

2. Sharing Options

3. Add attachment orURL link

4. Add a question

5.Print slides

6.Link to or download the podcast of the presentation

Some of the additional features, such as mergingcontent, adding a guestbook managing privacy

and password protection and running a detailedviewing report, usually meant for businesses.

NEED PRO TRAINER – 19.99 per month.

Play video: Open Day at CAFA in 2009.

The whole essence of teaching students on theIFC at CAFA is the obvious autonomouscreativity required to pass the course.

General discussion: how can MyBrainshark(and other tools) be used in the English languageclass to tap into that creativity that is obviouslythere and the autonomy which is obviouslyrequired to progress and survive in an overseasinstitution?

One of BrainShark's signature offerings is their SlideShark service forsharing PowerPoint presentations over iPads. SlideShark convertsyour PowerPoint files without losing any of your original formatting,transitions, or animations. To use SlideShark just upload your PPTfiles to your free SlideShark account, SlideShark converts the files foryou, then you can access your converted files on your iPad atanytime using the free SlideShark app. See video below:

BrainShark also offers myBrainshark for Android to share presentationsthat you narrate on myBrainshark. Here's how myBrainshark works;upload a slide presentation that you've created then use yourcomputer's microphone to record your voice over each slide. If youdon't have a microphone My Brainshark provides a phone number thatyou can call to create a voice recording.

(Jason Byrne, FreeTeach4Teachers, 2012)

What have we discussed so far?

Creativity + Technology

There is only one more class,

but you are probably all set

to go…. Unless….. you have….

Any more comments or questionsat this stage?

6. Further Ideas + ReviewWith Phil Longwell

[email protected]

Presentation status inactive -> active

To share, simply click on the ‘share this’ linkbeneath the presentation, or you can get theembed code to put onto another website,such as a blog.

Or you edit presentation and then follow thescreen prompt to add to Facebook, Twitter,Linkedin and More.

With the free version you can see whatpercentage of the presentation is watchedand from where in the world it is viewed.

By now you have seen all the mainpossibilities for using the tool.

During this week, have you come up withany other creative ideas that thetool could be used for.

Could you integrate other tools,software with mybrainsharkto optimise learning opportunities?

What is the ‘flipped classroom’ and what is the relevance to ELT?What are the advantages of ‘flipping’?What are the disadvantages?

What does the ‘connected classroom’ mean?What is the relevance to ELT? To the IFC at CAFA?

My idea not common language.

We can get students to do much more interestingthings in language outside of the class.

We can use tools like myBrainShark, Eyejot,Audioboo, MailVu to record themselves speakingoutside of the class.

Russell Stannard, University of Warwick, 2012

What we do in class and what we do outside ofthe class ( connect them)

For example set up and practice a speakingactivity in the lesson but do speaking on own athome and then send it to the student.

It is the CONNECTION that is key. The morepreparation work you do, the better the studentswill do the activity.

Russell Stannard, University of Warwick, 2012

Using the tool for:

Uploading and narrating:

Documents, photos, videos.

Sharing, embedding. and tracking.

How to deal with problems / constraints.

Pedagogy of e-learning.

Final question:

What is going to work on the IFC at CAFA?

Don’t feel limited to just using myBrainshark,although this is the tool proposed to be usedfor practising speaking and presentationskills.

Other skills – Reading, Writing, Listening?

The End.

Good luck!