distance learning foundation and us embassy relo office session #3 unlocking learners’ voices 3...

Distance Learning Foundation and US Embassy RELO Office

Session #3Unlocking Learners’ Voices

3 February 2011

Review of Sessions #1 and #2

• Unlocking learners’ voices• Helping learners develop their voice in written

English• Helping learners develop their voice in spoken

English• Assignments for Shei Sanchez (February 17,

March 2, March 16)

Overview of Session #3

• Blogs with text and audio• A review of rubrics for writing and

speaking• How to create your own rubric• Critique of rubrics

Let’s look at some Blogs

• http://www.dioenglish.com/space.php?uid=6325&do=blog&view=me

• A thread about “how to learn to write in English”.

Another blog

• http://oupeltglobalblog.com/

A blog for English language teachers from Oxford University Press.

A look at the DLF Blog

• http://dlfenglishtraining.blogspot.com• E-mail: training.engteacher@gmail.com• Password: t1234567

How can we use this space?

Create your own rubric for writing or speaking

Objective Excellent Good Unacceptable

Objective #1 Criteria for excellent

Criteria for good Why it is unacceptable

Objective #2

Objective #3

Objective #4

4 common areas for rubric assessment

• Content / ideas• Organization• Style / voice• Conventions

Content / Ideas

• Are the ideas original?• Does the writer or speaker make

their perspective clear?• Does the writer or speaker refer to

other’s ideas?

Organization

• Is there an introduction, body and conclusion to the text?• Does the text have coherence?

Style / Voice

• Is there a good use of vocabulary and other features to make the piece interesting?

• Do we have a sense of the writer’s own perspective and their opinion?

• Are they taking in to account the audience?

Conventions

• Grammar• Word choice• Punctuation• Sentence structure

Create your own rubric for writing or speaking

Objective Excellent Good Unacceptable

Objective #1 Criteria for excellent

Criteria for good Why it is unacceptable

Objective #2

Objective #3

Objective #4

Fill in the rubric

• The assignment is a short persuasive essay on how Thailand should better prepare for flooding.

• Think of the students you teach.• What rubric would you create for this

assignment and your students?

Sharing and comparing

• Now get in to groups of 4 and share the 2 rubrics your group has created.• How are they similar?• How do they differ?

Creating a rubric for a blog

• Use the same template• If your students are participating in a

blog (oral and written) what will be on your rubric?

Critique of rubrics

• What do the critics say?• Rubrics were created to make sure that

different teachers agreed upon assessment.• But individual teachers SHOULD have

individual responses.• There is no way to “lock-step” assessment.

Assignments

• For February 17: Send a sample of student persuasive writing to Shei by February 13.

• For March 2: Let Shei know that you will bring (or send) a sample of student persuasive speaking.

• For March 16: Have at least one student post some kind of writing or speech on the DLF Blog Spot.

• Shei’s e-mail address: shei.sanchez@gmail.com

Thank you!

• Until next time. . .• Thank you.• E-mail me (marti.r.anderson@gmail.com

) or Shei (shei.sanchez@gmail.com) with any questions.