To mark this significant milestone staff past and present got together at Walton Hall in Milton Keynes along with guests and speakers.
Contributions included that of Dr Regine Hampel whose presentation focused on the use of technology to overcome the possible isolation of the distance language learner.
Learnosity has worked with The Open University on a number of significant projects where Learnosity Voice was used by French and English language learners. This two phase project saw students’ first using mobile phones and later OU Voice, an app for iPhone/iPod.
More than 80 students took part in the projects which enabled them to submit spoken work for self assessment and tutor for review. Feedback from the project was very positive with students feeling that Learnosity Voice offers a more “realistic experience”, stretching and developing their skills in oral interaction more effectively, especially in the context of having little opportunities for real oral interaction.
Open University Mobile strategy coordinator, Rhodri Thomas, highlighted the benefits of Learnosity Voice,
"students are able to respond to verbal prompts as if they are out and about in France talking to local people. In the past students would have been given oral testing drills online or on DVDs"
He believes that because users have to give an almost immediate response to the verbal prompt as opposed to when using a DVD Learnosity Voice offers,
"the potential to offer a more natural conversation approach ... getting closer to a reviewable real-time role-playing model than previously."
With the kind permission of QATESOL and Leigh Williams, Independent Schools Queensland, we are delighted to share this paper as published in the QATESOL Newsletter, October 2010.
The article discusses education in the 21st century, the availability of mobile devices and the changing attitudes of teachers to the use of these devices for learning.
Independent Schools Queensland (ISQ) have partnered with Learnosity on a 12 month trial using iPod devices with ESL learners. The use of these devices addresses the issue of ensuring adequate student practice coupled with one-to-one teacher guidance. The article tells us how the program has extended learning beyond the classroom in a way that is very engaging to students.
The devices allow students to be part of a supportive framework that allows them to take responsibility for their own learning with the constant and timely guidance of their teacher.
Increased motivation amongst students has been reported, a key factor in the success of any learning experience. Teachers can enjoy improved one-to-one time with students as they can better hear the spoken work of the students outside of a noisy classroom. Personalised feedback is a feature that benefits shy students who may be less confident speaking in front of the class.
The article explains that as the trial continues, the benefits and relevance of these devices are being recognised, not only in the ESL classroom but also across the mainstream curriculum.
The Queensland Times newspaper recently featured the students of Ipswich Girls Grammar School and their success in using the Learnosity Voice app for the iPod Touch.
The school has provided sixteen students who are learning English with iPod Touch devices so that they can access specially designed English speaking and listening exercises. Teacher Justine Bomm explains in the article how she has a website where she can monitor the work and feedback to students. Bomm went on to say how the lessons can be played back to the students during class.
The project which kicked off in April has already had positive affects, the paper reports.
Yasmine Wilson a year 9 student spoken to the Queensland Times about her personal experiences on the project.
“I arrived in February and I felt a bit left out until I joined this class”
Janelle Wills, Independent Schools Queensland Assistant Director, explained the unique benefits of the Learnosity Voice app as it gives 24-hour access to learning materials, results and teacher feedback.
“In a society where many things compete for student’s attention this program is particularly exciting as it has managed to captivate and motivate students to learn and succeed. “ Janelle Wills, Assistant Director, Independent Schools Queensland.
The Queensland Times newspaper reported last week on the Learnosity Voice iPod app that has been so popular with English learners in Independent Schools Queensland.
Learnosity and Independent Schools Queensland have partnered to deliver this exciting project that started in April 2010 and will run for 12 months. Initial results from the trial are showing that the initiative is already a success.
The article tells us that the app is crossing social, cultural and language boundaries to inspire great results in and out of the classroom.
Executive Director of Independent Schools Queensland, David Robertson, says,
“The trial is a great example of how schools are beginning to understand the potential value of new technologies and learning capabilities. Even better, the students have deemed the application ‘cool’ and has encouraged them to extend their learning experience outside the confines of the classroom and school. ”
The article echoes findings from other Learnosity Voice projects, students are more motivated and both listening and speaking skills have clearly improved.
Janelle Wills, the Assistant Director (Teaching and Learning) with Independent Schools Queensland spoke of the advantages the app provided in terms of allowing students 24-hour access to learning materials as well as teacher feedback and the opportunity to access results or submit work outside of the classroom.
“Teachers are rewarded with more engaged and confident students.” Janelle Wills, Assistant Director (Teaching and Learning), Independent Schools Queensland.
Independent Schools of Queensland recently unveiled a video featuring their ESL programme that uses the Learnosity Voice iPod app.
“Projects combining principles of effective teaching and learning with advances in mobile technology have been developed to enhance student learning experiences and to assist teachers with on-going assessment. The aim is to blend traditional learning approaches with mobile phones, PDAs and handhelds, to develop flexible learning and assessment opportunities that extend the use of ICT outside of the classroom.” Independent Schools Queensland
In the programme students use a combination of an iPod Touch device and a Learnosity online workspace. Teachers set speaking and listening tasks from a computer using this online space. These tasks are automatically sent to the students devices. The students complete their tasks, listen to them and, with a push of a button, synch them back up to the teacher’s online space.
The teacher can see and hear the students completed work on line with any feedback automatically synched back down to the student. The result is a constant, seamless, automated flow of communication between teacher and student that can happen at anytime, anywhere.
The video tells us how this partnership with Learnosity has been beneficial for both teachers and students.
“I think language learning is sometimes so academic, so if we can marry it up with playing they are acquiring skills without actually realising it and keeping up to date with technology. I think it’s just the perfect match.” Lana Van Den Berg, ESL Coordinator, Citipointe Christian College.
“I could see from the very first lesson that it is very, very engaging and a lot of fun. The amount of laughter that is occurring tells me that they're interested and involved.” Justine Bomm, Teacher in charge of Enrichment and Learning, Ipswich Girls Grammar School.
Katrina Keogh, Education Officer at the NCCA, speaks in depth to John Hurley from TeachNet about the FÓN project. Katrina shares some fascinating insights and findings from the project. It’s a must hear for anyone interested in language learning and assessment.
Greetings from the United States! I recently attended and presented at CALICO 2010 in Amherst College, MASS. Despite my presentation starting at 8am on Saturday, a sizeable and good natured group turned up.
It was really interesting to hear from the group how community colleges, four year colleges and universities, both in the US and elsewhere, are responding to huge demand to develop English language proficiency. Naturally students have a requirement to interact with the academic content of their fields of study. The group were really interested in how Learnosity Voice could help address the needs of these students in higher education.
Some members of the group are teaching the next generation of K-12 English language instructors and a lively discussion ensued about how best prepare teachers to work with students on the Speaking and Listening components of the Common European Framework of Reference for Language, TESOL standards, and the Common Core standards in the US. We discussed how content teachers will be equipped to teach and assess in any of these areas when language instruction was not part of their pre-service experience and nor does it seem to be available in in-service.
I am confident that Learnosity can play a big part in delivering solutions to assist with these challenges. Have a look below at the presentation that I delivered.
Please contact me with any questions you may have (jesse.markow [at] learnosity.com), or leave a comment here.
Jesse Markow, Learnosity Education Consultant, USA.
The Irish Minister for Trade and Commerce Mr Billy Kelleher TD announced on Friday that Learnosity has signed a €100k contract with the Association of Independent Schools in Queensland Australia.
The Minister who led a week long trade mission to Australia, met staff and customers of Learnosity.
“Learnosity is a prime example of the technology-led, export focused companies that are leading Ireland’s smart economy. It has established a fast growing business, not just in Australia, but in many other parts of the globe and it is a leading innovator in the field of digital education." Minister Kelleher, Making the announcement
Mark Lynch, CTO and co-founder of Learnosity said, "We are delighted to be working on this innovative project with Independent Schools Queensland. This project will demonstrate how language learning can be accelerated through the appropriate use of iPod’s and Learnosity’s innovative solutions.”
Gerry Murphy (Enterprise Ireland), Minister Billy Kelleher, Gavin Cooney (Learnosity)
Learnosity partnered with The Open University on a project that looked at how mobile devices can be integrated into course study.
The research project explored and evaluated the contexts in which students find mobile devices most beneficial in learning. Furthermore, the project sought to inform future plans for integrating mobile speaking activities into the design of new courses.
The most interesting finding, I would say, was students commenting on the challenging and authentic aspect of tackling listening and speaking in this more 'realistic' way. That made me re-think how we teach listening and speaking. Valérie Demouy Lecturer in French Department of Languages, The Open University
A second, larger, project with the Open University is already underway.
"Can mobile phones help in the teaching, learning and assessment of Irish? 'Yes they can!' according to the experiences of teachers and students"
The National Centre Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) February 2010 Newsletter features the FÓN Project
Learnosity was delighted to team up with the NCCA to deliver the FÓN project. The project focused solely teaching the Irish language using Learnosity Voice. The Irish language (Gaeilge) is widely taught in schools throughout Ireland.
The latest NCCA newsletter (info@NCCA February 2010) reports on the findings of the project, addresses the facts and figures in terms of impact, as well as some really interesting feedback and insights from the teachers and students involved.
The scale of the project was large; in total 16 teachers and 368 students from six post-primary schools took part.
Student Usage - The Facts:
Students listened to and spoke Irish for a phenomenal 882 hours.
15,374 calls were made by students to the Learnosity Voice system.
On average Learnosity recorded 42 calls per student or 2.5 hours of Irish talk time during the 11 week period per student.
Phone calls were made by students as late as 11pm and 6 am to Learnosity Voice.
The highest user of Learnosity Voice made 272 calls on the project, totalling 4 calls per day, including usage on the weekend.
Students continued to use Learnosity Voice after the project had finished, all at their own cost.
Improving Language Skills
Teachers reported increased competence in language skills amongst the students. The scope of the improvement was broad and is reported to include improved speaking and listening, greater vocabulary, better ability to construct sentences and greater user of tenses in Irish.
Increased Motivation and Confidence
The NCCA newsletter reports the first hand teacher insights into the increased motivation and confidence witnessed amongst the students.
Students described the experience as "fun", "interesting", and "different" and "new" and also suggested that the project improved their pronunciation of the spoken language.
The students remained fully engaged for the duration of the class and often spoke Irish for the entirety of the 40 minute session.
Advantages for the Teacher
The teachers involved in the FÓN project shared their experiences in using Learnosity Voice. They reported getting a greater sense of how the student was progressing in terms of their Irish language skills.
They found it easier to note and address any recurring mistakes with each student and importantly each student in the class was heard, even the quiet ones.
Autonomous Learning
The newsletter reports on how students took control of their own learning. They took advantage of the flexibility of Learnosity Voice and how it enabled them to speak Irish where and when it was most convenient for them.
Students felt that they spoke more Irish using their mobile phones than they would have normally.
The self assessment aspect of Learnosity Voice was reported as a positive by the students as they could listen and re-record any of their answers and gauge their level of Irish against other students.
Both teachers and students recognised one of the greatest benefits of Learnosity Voice as being the enablement of Irish language learning outside of the school building and outside of school hours.
The team involved in the FÓN project were recognised with the European Award for Languages- the Language Label in 2009. The award recognised the projects ability to motivate and engage language learners as well as being meaningful and productive project.
