Interactivity #3 : Generating a State of Art Iventory

Learning a new language can be very difficult and challenging for kids. Most students do not feel motivated to learn if it doesn't involve exciting and well organized lesson plans. Students want to be able to learn in a didactic and fun way, such as working with technology in the classroom as a great way to promote active and fun learning. Having students use computers or audio recorders in foreign language labs can increase the communication in the target language and allow them to be more engaged in learning and with their classmates.
            After gathering all the different technologies and creating the inventory, I have noticed that there are many technologies I would consider incorporating into the Spanish curriculum. For example, I would consider using foreign language TV channels, youtube, music video and songs, pronunciation tools and vocabulary activities because I consider all these being a critical part of a didactic and fun learning environment. Involving music and art can also be a very effective way to have students get in touch with culture. I would love to use Virtual Environments such as second life, where perhaps students from the US can keep in touch with students from Spain or other Latin American countries. This way both groups can be part of sharing cultural ideas that will help them strengthen their language skills and make learning a lot more interesting.
            As for assessment, I think any of the dynamic websites would be great to use because not only are students practicing what they are learning in class but they are also making the best out of that experience by being able to spend time in the foreign language labs and use the computers and audio recorders. Even though most of theses technologies can tempt students to wander away from the material, they can still be helpful in stimulating and motivating students to learn.

"Computers in Language Labs stimulate the learning process of even the youngest minds"

Interactivity #2: The History of Technology in Schools.

The technology that has influenced my education in a positive way was the computers used in foreign language labs. As a future foreign language teacher, it is important to make use of different technologies that will help students comprehend and better develop the target language. The video informed me that foreign language labs were established in the 1960’s.  The use of computer labs enriched the learning processes in all content areas from English, Sciences, learning how to type to even learning a new language.  Although I speak Spanish at home, Spanish is not my first language. I was born and raised in New Jersey and when I was 12 years old I moved to Colombia for several years. It was then where I became completely fluent in Spanish.  Learning the Spanish language in Colombia and taking Spanish during my junior and senior year in high school, i realized that the use of Language Labs made the learning experience more fun and interesting.  Now when I look back at when I was in high school I can certainly say that students were more interested in doing the work when the assignments didn’t require them to be mechanical with their learning. In other words we were able to use different software such as Encarta and other animated pictures and videos to learn new vocabulary with audio incorporated.  This made it easier to memorize and understand the lesson, compared to a traditional lesson plan where the teacher verbally teaches the class with little visualization and interactions from the textbooks provided. The use of computer labs accompanied with the normal lesson plan gives students a break from the norm and allows them to think outside the box and learn from seeing, hearing, and associating the topic with the newer and current events of the time. I also believe the use of language labs excelled the learning process in my content area because of the use of word processors which can correct and input accent marks where necessary, therefore teaching students on the go. It allows them to practice and be corrected at the same time.  Now a day’s students and teachers have access to newer software products such a Rosetta stone which gives the learner access to highly interactive activities to learn a specific language or languages. My friend is a teacher in the Guttenberg School District where they actively use Rosetta Stone in their language labs. The students have the ability to choose which language they would like to learn, as to the usual option of Spanish, French, Italian, and Latin. She mentioned because of the availability of Rosetta Stone, students are able to choose from other languages such as Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Arabic, and many more. Since the inception of Language Labs in the 1960's they have proven to be effective in my content area of Foreign Languages.