Month: June 2021

Hi, Ruijie Yang
I am glad to read your blog. The video you provided explains in detail how to draw a birthday cake. In the drawing, students can use their creativity and explain their creative ideas in a short speech. I also think it is important to give feedback to students. Comments and corrections to students’ work can help them do better.

Hi, Aini Jiang
Thanks for your blog. It helped me learn how to improve my speaking skill. Taking notes and practicing speaking can help students improve their speaking skills. Sharing through YouTube, Facebook, and other platforms can make it easier for students to interact with each other. But teachers need to finally put all the videos together so that students can evaluate them easily.

Hi, Weiran
I’m pleased to read your blog, and I agree with your solution for English learners and the hearing impaired. Providing videos with subtitles can really help students understand the lessons better. Students can choose the speed of the video and pause to look up words they don’t know. I noticed in your blog that you mentioned equity in education. I think this is very important. Due to the epidemic, many students return to their home countries to attend classes. For example, 1 pm in the Victoria area is 4 am Beijing time. Students in China have a hard time staying awake in the early hours of the morning and understanding the lessons well, so the recorded classes help them be more efficient.

Hi, Yiran
I’m glad to read your blog, and your idea of combining a half-hour live class with a half-hour recorded class is beneficial to me. The teacher can explain the lesson’s main points in the recorded class and then have a Q&A and group activity in the live class. This is a great way to learn for those who have time differences or are English learners!

1. What kind of interaction would the video require from your students? Does it force them to respond in some way (inherent)?

This video is about food culture in China. The video explains what Chinese food is and how it differs from region to region. The video does not force students to interact but expects learners to respond to why the north likes to eat noodles.

2. In what way are they likely to respond to the video on their own, e.g. make notes, do an activity, think about the topic (learner-generated)?

This video may require students to take some notes and do some activities. Because the video mentions many regional differences in climate and the abundant foods in each place, taking notes will help students better remember the content of the video. Students can volunteer to participate in classroom activities. In the classroom activity, we will give the food of different regions for the students to guess.

3. How would students get feedback on the activity that you set? What medium or technology would they and/or you use for getting and giving feedback on their activity?

Each week, students can post their feedback on their own blog. Or students can contact me by email. I will respond to students’ messages as soon as possible. If the student’s question is more complicated, we can discuss it through zoom.

4. How much work for you would that activity cause? Would the work be both manageable and worthwhile? Could the activity be scaled for larger numbers of students?

I will keep the class size under 35 students, and I want to have the time and opportunity to discuss with each student. If the class is too large, there is no way I can take care of everyone. Our group’s interactive communication learning consists of two parts: individual blogs and group assignments. Each week students will post their feedback and topics of interest (content should be about Chinese food culture) in the discussion forum, and I will give comments under each student’s blogs. In addition, I will need to create lesson materials and activities for each lesson. If there are too many students, I may consider offering a Q&A session to summarize students’ questions and answer them in class.

In today’s blog, I’ll start by introducing you to what inclusive design and universal design are. I will then discuss how my interactive learning resources will specifically ensure that the needs of all learners are met.

Inclusive design: teachers are able to develop learning programs for students from different backgrounds and at different academic levels. This type of learning design ensures that all people are treated fairly and that all learners are helped to achieve their goals (Hance, 2020)

Here’s a short video from Jiyoung Jung of the YouTube channel.

Universal design is intended to allow everyone to reach their goals without barriers.

How will your interactive learning resource specifically ensure that the needs of all learners can be met?

During the pandemic, our group switched from face-to-face classes to online classes due to the health concerns of our students. Because of the variety of students in the class, such as the hearing impaired, single parents with 2 children, and English learners, we will use a combination of live and recorded classes. Learners can learn and master the material by reading articles, watching videos and ppts. Live classes are voluntary, and we provide review sessions during the live classes to help learners gain a better understanding. If learners are unable to attend regularly or do not understand English, we will provide video recordings with subtitles in each language. For English learners and the hearing impaired, we offer various videos in the form of comic strips to facilitate learning. Each video is no more than 20 minutes long so that single parents can watch them while waiting for their children to leave school or cooking dinner without spending too much time. Our courses are designed to give the learner the freedom to learn at their own pace and time, with the teacher only guiding and stimulating the student’s curiosity.

It is difficult for teachers to increase learner engagement in online classes, so we ask students to post a weekly blog in the teaching community, sharing what they have learned new during the week or topics of interest in the course. Then, evaluate one or more of their peers’ blogs according to their ability.

Reference：

Hance, M., (2020). What is an Inclusive Learning Environment? Retrieved June 14, 2021, from https://www.graduateprogram.org/2020/03/what-is-an-inclusive-learning-environment/.

Hi, deannatran. Your post on experiential learning was very informative to me. I think experiential learning emphasizes learners’ active participation in the process of practice. Through practice, we can reflect and think. The video and part two examples in your post gave me a good understanding of experiential learning and its benefits. I like experiential learning because it allows me to directly apply what I have learned and strengthened my passion for learning. However, I wish I could apply experiential learning to our group’s blueprint. For example, maybe it would be interesting for students to experience making Sichuan food at home.