Week 5 - Extra credit lesson plan based on WebQuests and rubrics for TOEFL-iBT writing section

Dear colleagues,

I would like to share the following lesson plan. It has a new implementation for the use of rubrics in assessing my students by themselves. Another new point is the implementation of webQuests in a TOEFL test lesson. I think they will enjoy the experience of self-assessment and fun webQuests.

Class: TOEFL-iBT preparation session 

Section: Writing / Independent writing task

Learning objectives:

By the end of the session, students should be able to:

1. To identify the format and content of the independent writing task.

2. To identify how to organize an essay.

3. http://volweb.utk.edu/Schools/bedford/harrisms/studentpage.htm

4. To use online rubrics for self-assessment.

Aids (Technology accessed resources):

-http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php?ts=1319917357

-www.ets.org

-http://demo.toeflibtcourse.com/toefl_R11s.htm

Warm Up (Introduction):

-Students are asked to log online to ETS website and find information about the writing section in TOEFL-iBT test to identify the format of the independent writing task.

-Then, they are asked to discuss this information in groups.

Procedures:

-Introducing the independent writing task format, time and questions based on ETS website.

-Discussing ETS sample questions about the independent writing task.

-Starting screen icons discussion activity using the following website

 http://i-courses.org/?p=sample_tests

-Introducing the ABC format for the essay (Abstract, Body and Conclusion).

-Brainstorming activity about the body of a TOEFL-iBT question.

-Gallery-walk activity to discuss students responses.

-Online exercises from the following website:

http://demo.toeflibtcourse.com/toefl_R11s.htm

-Writing WebQuests exercises: asking students to log in to the following website and do one of its assignments:

http://volweb.utk.edu/Schools/bedford/harrisms/studentpage.htm

-Self assessment task: asking students to log in to the following website to assess their essays:

http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php?ts=1319917357

Home assignment:

- Students are asked to write an essay about the rubrics they have used and how useful they are to them.

Week 5 Reflection: Rubrics implementation

I could create my own writing rubrics for my class. The link to it is: http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php?ts=1319917357

 I like the ready made templates in the website. In the beginning, I had worries about having ready made wording and sentences that my not suit the level of my students but then I found out that I can edit it. This was really very helpful. I will recommend this website to my colleagues. I also decided to make an online rubrics portfolio to my classes. Now students can find useful and valid criteria to assess their learning progress.

Regards

Haggag

Week 5 Reflection

This week is very suggestive; this is how I can describe it. The various webQuests and rubrics websites are wonderful suggestions that can be implemented in my classes. Rubistar website took me back with memories 2 years ago to USA, Hawaii Pacific University, the first time I had training on these alternative assessment tools. I link this week with the advice we had then, that it is not the what, and rather, it is the how. It is how to implement a valid and reliable assessment and motivating as well. This is what rubrics can do. Another thing that astonished me was the new attempts to create a virtual 3D webQuests. Oh my God, can you imagine your child or student living in a 3D world of learning. After this week’s experience, I will rethink of the online exercises I am using now and search for more challenging and motivating ones.

Regards

Week 4 reflection

        The most important thing I remember for now was how to find reading and writing resources that count to your class. I mean by to count, is to really have an effect on students’ learning and language development. I thought” God, how can I find interesting websites to integrate to a class that is devoted for assessment like mine?” Then I found my lost links, just by logging in and searching or finding a recommendation by a colleague. This week I found a good recommendation from this course. It is the following website:

http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/

       This website has really interesting lesson plans and websites that can “assess” and “teach” your students what you want to teach for them and what they want to learn.  This week, helped me with a website that might be little in the wording but great in the effect that it may add to my class. This Thursday, I have participated in a CALL discussion with colleagues from the University of Graz in Austria and they liked it too and recommended using it.  What is good also about it is this integration of language skills that it stresses. This means I can use it in the instruction of reading, writing, listening and speaking sessions too.  To me, this week is very very fruitful.

Regards

Haggag

Project task 2 week 3- Reading the report

I enjoyed reading report number 6 for Joanna  Zubel. Her work can be classified into 8 elements:
1.She gave a background of her students, setting of the class, goals and needs. The experiment was run on 35 students (32 females and 3 males) of the first year of second cycle studies (Master studies). They are 22-23 years old. The experiment was in Jesuit University of Philosophy and Education "Ignatianum" in Cracow (Poland).
2.She gave a description of the problem.
3.She described the initial teaching practices that she provided and how the students reacted and how different was this to them.
4.She reflected on the practices to follow in the teaching of the course.
5.Then she described the changes that she did in the course and therefore the practices.
6.She stated the implications of the experiment and what results can be gained.
7.Project timeline  (From 14 April till 3 June)
8.The resources that she implemented in the experiment.
-I liked 2 things which are very important:
1. To reflect on what you will do, do and did.
2. To find implications to what you do.
It was a very concise and valid report. I enjoyed the ride of that experiment and I think the teacher is very creative.This report inspired me to add new elements in my project.
Regards
Haggag

Week 3: Aural/oral skills-building

-The four language skills have been long classified into receptive and productive skills. Reading and listening represent the first while speaking and writing represent the second category. During this week I could go deeper in learning about how to provide my students with online resources that can develop listening and speaking.  The articles provided in this week are also very valuable and could inspire me in looking for some ideas to implement in my current course as the communicative activities.

-The three new websites I could explore and share during the week are the following:

www.nonstopenglish.com

www.englishtogo.com

www.teachenglish.com

-I think teachers should look for such websites to integrate in their classes to guarantee a level of communicative input in their teaching especially with classes of large number of students. Another thing to add is that these websites provide a kind of communicative language evaluation and feedback. Students can receive spontaneous feedback from these websites and this has a big effect on his learning.

Reflection on week two

While I was reading the ABCE model-if we call it a model- I was thinking of why do teachers have to formulate an objective in any given way? The answer that came to my mind was that: To assess the objective. Moments later, it came to my mind that it is not assessment that matters, rather, the achievement of the objective. Then, I came to a conclusion, which is we specify the objective to clear it, teach it, verify it and assess it. The ABCD model is a very good model to clear, verify and find ways to asses the objectives.

Questions to answer

There are threequestions to answer before you start your serach:
1. What are you going to search for?
2. How would select the appropriate key words?
3. What websites to search?

Try these questions and see how it works.
Haggag

Description of my project task

Project Task-step 1

I would like to implement the project on a class that can be described as follows:

Who?

A class of 22 non-English language specialized learners who graduated from colleges of humanities (i.e. art and education).  They represent a sample in my research. The reason for selecting the humanities field is that natural sciences students know more English (in my country) than humanities students and this may affect the validity of the experiment.  Their ages range from 22 to 32.

What

The course is TOEFL-iBT course which is designed by me using active learning techniques and strategies. The course consists of 4 units (RWLS) and each unit consists of 3 lessons.  

When?

The course will take place this winter semester 2011.

Where?

In South Valley University in Egypt, Hurghada Faculty of Education. In a training room and a computer room which has 25 computers that are fully equipped with internet, software and projectors.

Why?

They want to take the TOEFL-iBT test for academic purposes as researching, travel and scholarships or grants awarding; this why they would like to participate in this course.

How?

Instruction will implement online and offline techniques and activities due to the nature of the test itself, which is an internet-based one. For this reason, two rooms will be used, a computer lab and a regular training groom.