Internet/Information Technology Applications in the
Pedagogy of Modern Foreign Languages
By Juanita Villena-Alvarez
Useful Options and Features for Class/Academic Searches
Some of these search engines have options that help delimit or widen the scope of a search. These options are noteworthy, particularly when one needs to scale down the research for a specific detail. Lycos, for example, gives us a choice between the Web français and the Web mondial. To further narrow down a search, one can click on the recherche approfondie and the entire screen is filled with options in refining the search.
Each search engine has a different way of refining their results and it is just a matter of playing around with the options. A nice option of particular engines is their ability to link you directly to another search engine with the results of your current search, or to give you an option of using a different engine. For example Acticiel provides an option to search other engines like Altavista, Voilà, Google or Linux. In Spanish, www.imk.es/netstudio/buscadores/multib.htm links 13 search engines, 8 meta search engines, 8 directories, 6 personal search engines and allows one search using a maximum of 6 search engines used simultaneously.
Search results are presented in different ways. Francité gives the document title, a summary, the date, the size of the document and the linkable Website address itself. Excite, on the other hand, ranks results with a percentage rating based on their pertinence to the actual search. One has to be careful because sometimes too many options and too many results make the search more complicated.
Use of the Internet in Language Courses:
The Internet can be used in every level of language being taught. From grammar to composition, from music to economic trends, teachers can take advantage of the Net for course enrichment. One must not forget, however, that an activity using the Net should not be an end on its own. It is a valuable and creative supplement for further use of the language. Once a vocabulary or grammatical lesson is first learned in class, these Internet activities can provide follow-up reinforcement to the lesson. Follow-up activities could enhance the language viewed/heard on the computer. Using the Net for reading and comprehension exercises will be more effective if they are followed by writing and speaking activities. Internet viewing should include or be followed by activities such as completing sentences, dialogues, and paragraphs; verifying comprehension through multiple choice; providing words and/or phrases for definitions or vice versa, etc.
It is expected that the Internet text will contain a lot of premature grammar and vocabulary. Students have to be prepared to encounter these new and still unlearned grammatical structures and terms. They should not be deterred from their given task. The beginning level college French grammatical text Rendez-vous: An Invitation to French suggests and incorporates some techniques in reading such as:
-recognizing cognates,
-contextual guessing,
-skimming for the gist,
-reading for Global Understanding,
-anticipating content,
-scanning paragraphs,
-awareness of the audience,
-summarizing the main idea in the paragraph, and
-understanding complex sentences by identifying main and dependent clauses
(Muyskens and Omaggio Hadley)
Applying one or some of these techniques should enable students to sift through information in the Internet. When the student goes to the computer, the reading will most likely be done silently. The are 2 possible ways to prepare the student for the reading: 1) a pre-reading activity where questions and topics are provided, discussed, brainstormed before the assigned Internet search; 2) a post-reading activity with a prepared list of either multiple choice, true or false or comprehension questions. Richard K. Curry of Texas A & M University has some very useful suggestions in the development of post-reading skills that students can apply when searching the Internet:
With these in mind, here are some possible activities:
Despite the limitations of beginning students, they can surf the Net on topics such as shopping for clothing and food, looking for lodging in a particular city, or finding a nice vacation spot. Students will be exposed to words related by a certain context. Vocabulary words, grouped into clusters, make skimming for Information more efficient. The following class practice and activities can improve the ability of the students to retain and use again these words (Foerster 70). The use of the Internet in foreign languages will allow students to re-view vocabulary and expressions (some of which are part of the lesson currently being learned in class) that are interrelated and contextualized by the website.
Surfing the Net will not only provide our students quick access to information in the target language; it also exposes them to "foreign" ways and systems of doing things. Colorful pictures, video clips, and even music and sound add so much life to this educational resource. No foreign langauge textbook in the market can compete with the resources available through the Net. It is just a matter of tapping into them.
The following activities can be done inside a networked classroom or as a homework. It is assumed that most students have access to the Internet in their school.
a. Shopping for a trip to Paris/Madrid/Buenos Aires etc.
Day 1 – Students learn vocabulary on clothing, colors and numbers till 1000. Then they are given a list of 5 to 10 items of clothing and $700 worth of pretend money. They are asked to window shop (without overspending their $700) in the Net using any of the foreign language search engines. They then provide a list of the items with the prices, the colors and if possible, the names of the stores and the city/country where they are located (reading/skimming for comprehension/cultural exposure).
Day 2 – Using cued questions in the target language, students share and compare answers among themselves (speaking activity). (Les robes bleues à (store) _____ coûtent ____ …)
Day 2 or 3 or 4 – Students work in pairs to come up with a short paragraph in the target language describing what they have and don’t have in their suitcase (valise) or what they plan to buy for the trip based on their Net search (writing practice). (Pour le voyage nous avons …. Nous achetons le (item and color)____ à (store)______, les …)
b. Looking for Lodging in Montreal/Mexico City etc.
Day 1 – Vocabulary lesson for the day is Lodging/Housing or the parts of the house. Give students varying amounts of price range ($500, $1000, $1500, $2000, $5000 per month) and ask them to surf the Net and print ads for lodging in Montreal/ Mexico City for each of the price range given (reading/skimming for information/cultural exposure).
Day 2 - The teacher reads aloud 2 or 3 ads or describes some of the lodging then asks the students to guess the price range (listening activity). Students then work in groups of 3 or 4 doing the same thing (speaking/listening activity).
Day 3 – Students are asked to write an ad (using a cued form similar to the ads that were previously discussed) describing their present lodging for rent in the city of Montreal/ Mexico City. How much will they price it? (writing practice).
2. Intermediate Level
In this level, the Net becomes a valuable resource for compositions and class discussions. Topics such as geographical regions and current events in French are already at the fingertips of our students. To avoid possible plagiarism at this point, it might be preferable to use specific Internet Websites and have some guide questions already prepared based on the particular site.
Day 1- Students pretend that their family will be spending 12 days at the place picked. Using the future tense, they describe the up-coming vacation, including transportation, food, lodging, and holiday activities. 75-100 word mini composition (reading and writing practice). Some verbs and expressions may already be provided to the students.
Day 2 – For class discussion, the instructor uses the 3 and 3 method of Richard Curry, while listing items on the board (speaking).
Day 1 – Before assigning this Internet reading, the class discusses the difference between the 40-hour workweek in the U.S. versus France’s 35-hour workweek. After doing the assigned reading, students are asked to make a list of the advantages and disadvantages of a 35-hour workweek. Students should come to class prepared for a discussion.
Day 2 – First half of class time – The class is divided into four groups (more groups for greater individual student participation), 2 groups will brainstorm for a list of ideas on the 40 hour workweek, while the other 2 groups brainstorm the 35 hour workweek. Like groups are merged and an informal debate/discussion takes place, while the teacher notes important items on 2 columns on the board.
Day 2 – Second half of class time- after the discussion, students are asked to write a short paragraph (75-100 words) on the 35-hour workweek in France.
Day 1- Lesson on "Banking." As a reinforcement of the lesson learned in class, business language students are asked to search and print out homepages of French, Canadian and Swiss Banks or Mexican, Spanish and Argentine Banks using the list of Internet Search Engines in French. They are then asked to underline terminology learned in class on banking.
Day 2 - In class, they are divided into groups to make a comparison of the services offered by different banks. The group work starts with a discussion, followed by a preparation of a list of the similarities and differences on an overhead transparency. The class ends with each group presenting their overhead transparency results to the rest of the class (with the help of the professor).
The Web is rapidly changing the world we live in, making almost everything close-knit and accessible. The world. whether Francophone or Hispanic, becomes one through the Internet. It is for all of us. Our curriculum and our syllabi as well, have to respond to globalization. The Internet facilitates the globalization of French and Spanish classrooms – why settle for 2 or 3 foreign language newspapers or magazines in print from the library when the world is just a few keystrokes in the computer? As Cornell University professor Nelly Furman recommends, "our course offerings as well as our pedagogical emphasis need to adjust to and exploit this new technology" (70). I agree with her concluding statement that the challenge for us teachers is "to create a (foreign language) studies program that is attractive to students with pluridisciplinary interests, across national borders and historical time zones, answering the needs of today’s society" (79).
If any participant here knows of other Internet search engines that might facilitate our research and our teaching in foreign languages, please share the information with me at [email protected]. A full text version of this article can be downloaded at my university website at ____________.
Works Cited
Curry, Richard K. "Working with Readings." Puntos de partida: Instructor’s Manual and
Resource Kit. Marty Knorre et al. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1997. 73-75.
Foerster, Sharon. "Vocabulary Cluster Cards." Puntos de partida: Instructor’s Manual and
Resource Kit. Marty Knorre et al. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1997. 70-71.
Furman, Nelly. "French Studies: Back to the Future." Professions (1998): 68-80.
Muyskens, Judith A. and Alice C. Omaggio Hadley. Rendez-vous: An Invitation to
French. 5th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1998.