Course Syllabus

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Using Educational Technology in the English Language Classroom

Massive Open Online Course Syllabus

[February 10 - July 27, 2020]*

*The course end date has been extended from May 4 to July 27

Download a copy of the syllabus here

 

Course Overview

Description

This course is designed to help English language teaching professionals around the world acquire and maintain basic knowledge and skills in technology for professional purposes. It will help teachers integrate pedagogical knowledge and skills with technology to enhance language learning and teaching through course readings, quizzes, and discussions. The course will not only help participants utilize technology in lesson planning, materials development, feedback, and assessment, but also for professional communication, collaboration, and efficiency improvement by participating in online discussions as well as completing the quizzes.

Learning Objectives and Learner Outcomes

The main objective of this course is to acquaint participants with technology tools and how they can integrate these tools into their own English language teaching. At the end of the course, participants should be able to:

  • Define computer-assisted language learning (CALL);

  • Discuss how technology affects language learning and teaching today;

  • Use strategies to teach vocabulary growth through social media;

  • Identify appropriate grammar activities that include opportunities for learners to discover, analyze, and produce English grammar during language interactions;

  • Select and adapt appropriate reading texts for specific learner groups and language learning goals;

  • Demonstrate how to teach writing through CALL by selecting appropriate model texts, showcasing technology supported help options, considering the audience for writing activities, and developing writing strategies;

  • Select and adapt existing listening resources on the Internet to address language learning goals and learner needs;

  • Select CALL materials that teach speaking skills and focus on the sounds and accents that are relevant for their learners;

  • Develop lesson plans and teaching units with one or more of the technologies learned throughout the course.

Course Expectations and Grading            

Participants will be expected to

This self-paced course is composed of 5 modules and delivered over a 12-week period, from February 10 to May 4, 2020. There are no specific deadlines for the assignments. Participants are required to self-pace their work.

Grading

Participants work through the MOOC in a linear fashion: in order to advance to the next activity, a participant needs to have completed previous ones. Participants’ grade in the MOOC is based on their participation in all required activities. This includes frequent follow-on quizzes throughout the course. Participants may retake quizzes to try to earn a higher score. A score of 70% or higher on each quiz is required in order to advance to the next activity. All discussion assignments are optional.

Assessment and Certification

Participants who complete all activities and earn 70% or higher on the graded quizzes, within the timeframe of the course, will receive a badge.

Netiquette

A MOOC is a very special encounter. Its participants are from diverse cultures from all over the world, and their interaction happens entirely online, without the direct supervision of an instructor. The quality of our online interactions will be much higher if everyone follows certain basic rules of etiquette – or in our case (online), netiquette.

  1. Try to be clear and direct

Make sure that your content title reflects the content of your post and that your post is succinct and direct.

  1. Make it easier for colleagues to read your comments

- Put a blank space at the beginning of a message and between paragraphs.

- Be brief and specific. This is especially important in Massive Open Online Courses which have thousands of participants.

  1. Be constructive

Respond to colleagues’ postings or comments in an encouraging and supportive tone. Think before you write or respond. Any criticism should be constructive—if in doubt, think about how you would feel reading a posting.

  1. Be open to differences in opinion

Be open to other people’s opinions and try not to get emotional if someone disagrees with you. Make your learning experience a constructive and positive one by avoiding ‘flaming’. For example, capitals can be interpreted as shouting. Think before you push the ‘send’ button. Words are powerful and can hurt; avoid anything which could be misinterpreted in any way.

  1. Accept others

Accept your peers’ differences, e.g., cultural and language differences. You are part of a community which means caring about your own progress and that of your colleagues’.

  1. Cite other people’s work

If you use a quote or reference in your post; make sure that you cite it or provide a link to it.

  1. No spamming

Please don’t send advertisements to your peers or use your peers’ emails in any way other than how they intend it to be used.

Download Syllabus with Timeline here

Course Summary:

Date Details Due