Technology offers much to teaching foreign languages, especially for those of us who are teaching in an environment that offers no immersive experiences outside of the classroom. Even incorporating videos and audio into the classroom is easier than ever, and we can provide students with popular music videos from the target language in just a few clicks through YouTube.
I personally liked even bringing in PowerPoint presentations with interactive text (for doing drills), and slides of just pictures coupled with words in the target language (Italian) so as to avoid using our common English (I also had many non-native speakers). It was also fun to include memorable, funny images to hopefully help the information sink-in, as in the infamous color vocabulary section:
An example of my in-class vocabulary slides (shown to students one at a time).
Although mobile devices are often a distraction, I tried to find a balance as sometimes allowing them in the classroom proved to be very useful on occasion. During pair and group work, the devices were used to look up words from dictionary sites or apps such as WordReference.com, which also provides verb conjugations, phrase information and forums. I am quite interested in expanding the use of mobile devices within the classroom, and believe that they can be a valuable resource.
An example assignment that makes good use of technology involves doing direction drills through podcasts. A student would play or download an audio file onto their phone or iPod and then leave the classroom to navigate the school via the in-ear instructions. Following these directions, they will come upon an end point, which they would report back to their instructors. For example, the audio file may provide these directions if we are teaching English language:
Exit room 209 and turn left. Follow the hallway until the end and then turn right. At the first hallway, turn right and then go until you reach the library. Go into the library and then down the stairs and look for the first hallway on the left. At the end of this hallway turn to your right, and what you are looking for will be in front of you.
The student following these instructions may find Room 115 at the end of this hallway, and would tell the instructor that that is what she found. Here are audio examples used in a high school Italian classroom. This assignment really ties spatial reasoning into the target language in a practical way, and is certainly useful for anyone hoping to use the language in their future travels.
At home, my students would often use technology, not just to check our class’s Blackboard and to review my online materials, but also to find relevant study aids, revealing their interest in using technology as a means to learn, understand, and commit key concepts to memory.
A popular language-learning app such as Duolingo can also offer support to students of foreign languages. Although it is marketed as a complete course in language, and has the noble mission of translating the Internet, I find that it is not a replacement for in-person language instruction. I have found the app to be a bit nitpicky with spelling and grammar (though this may not be too different from human instructors), as well as vocabulary (it did not allow for synonyms in writing exercises, suggesting a less-than-robust dictionary). I also found the speaker of transcription exercises — though not a typical computer voice — to be very difficult to understand, making the tasks difficult. Although it utilizes gamification, it does not quite feel like a game (more like discreet quizzes), but it could prove to be a great tool for my own students to use at home.
If you are interested in technology for teaching foreign language, the journal Language Learning and Technology offers studies of additional pedagogic techniques in language acquisition, and its articles explore mobile technology, podcasts, and emerging technologies.
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