TEXT-TO-SPEECH

If you are using your Mac, iPhone or iPad, and you want to train your listening and speaking skills, you can make it talk to you in different ways with it's built-in Text-to-Speech abilities. The easiest one is using the simple text editor TextEdit. Set the cursor to where you would like it to start, and from the Edit menu, select 'Speech', then 'Start Speaking'. You could also open system preferences and go into 'Speech setting' to switch it on. It needs fixing, but still comes in handy. Check out these external links for on-line services with virtual assistants : 

http://imtranslator.net/translate-and-speak/

http://www.oddcast.com/home/demos/tts/tts_example.php?sitepal

SOFTWARE FOR SPECIAL NEEDS EDUCATION

Here is our pick among the most promising educational websites on the Irish market. EdTech Educational Software provides a wide range of products for special needs education. A quick rundown on how to improve working memory in children and adults with attention deficit can be achieved having a go at Memory Flex Quest. 

ENGLISH, BABY!

Visit daily for free real conversations about popular culture. Downloadable lessons for iPod or MP4 player. You can chat with people from all over the world or join online forums to practise English while meeting international friends. Cool. Quizzes and vocabulary building lists provided.

GLOGSTER EDU,- 21st CENTURY MULTIMEDIA TOOL

Glogster EDU is a global education platform where educators and students can create glogs - online multimedia posters- with text, photos, videos, sounds, drawings, attachments and more. Now over 7,000,000 people use it across the world to keep their portfolios, presentations or bookmarks. It expands digital literacy and encourages creative learning. Check out glogs and tutorials in the net. And remember, the word glog was coined in 2007. 

SOUNDS, THE PRONUNCIATION APP

Excellent application by Macmillan, both available at Apple Store and Play Store, to help you study, practise and play with pronunciation. Interactive chart included. Premium version available. Clear your voice and have a shot.

BRITISH COUNCIL ON iTUNES U

Visit the British Council on iTunes U. You can download or listen to a wide range of audio and video resources from LearnEnglish. Over 150 series of podcasts and videos providing insights into British culture, and listening materials  with free activities that you can do on your computer while you listen, or print out and do whenever you want. Food, sports, environment, jobs, there is a large number of topics available. Worth playing on your iPod, iPad or Mac. 

SOCIAL BOOKMARKING TOOLS: MISTER WONG AND RISAL

Mister Wong is a social bookmarking site, a centralized online service that enables users to add, edit and share bookmarks of web documents. Delicious, created in 2003, popularized the term. Unlike file sharing, socialbookmarking does not save the resources themselves, merely references, and most services provide web feeds, including lists organized by tasks. Institutions including businesses, libraries and universities use them as a way to improve web search. Have a look at RISAL (Repository of Interactive Social Assets for Learning), a service used for supporting teaching and learning at university level) that enables collaborative learning.

SECOND LIFE CHAT "Microrrelato Hispánico" | Hotel Kafka

 Second Life Chat : "Microrrelato Hispánico" | Hotel Kafka

If You are keen on Lit and a techno geek, why don't you create an avatar and join the chat? Fun granted. Once in, go to Café Gijón and attend the 'Microrrelato Hispánico' venue. They intend to set up a whole thing on creative writing. Surf the net for similar stuff in English.

A SCHOOL THAT GAVE ITS PUPILS iPADS

A British school which gave out iPads to its 1,200 pupils in hope of improving their education, has admitted that just a year later half the costly devices have been broken.  Parents were asked only to pay fifty pounds towards insuring the expensive piece of kit. It seems obvious that buying technology for schools has to be about educational results, not just trying to appear cutting-edge for the sake of it.

HOW TO HELP - HURRICANE SANDY

I'm sure many of you know, the New York Marathon was called off,  but many of the runners got out and headed to Staten island to help out with relief efforts. For those of us both near and far who would like to give a hand, I would suggest donating money to the Red Cross by text or through iTunes, helping out on eBay or Amazon, or local Food Banks.

MOBILE LEARNING

If you are interested on innovation, I strongly recommend 'Mobile Learning: Transforming the delivery of Education and Training', edited by Mohamed Ally in Canada (2009), AU Press, Athabasca University (also online). It contains a comprehensive view of advances, research and applications of Mobile Learning by experts from both European and American Universities. Do not miss the glossary, or the differences between e-learning and m-learning.

EDUCATIONAL COMIC STRIP

To support innovation in learning you could use MakeBeliefscomix, which generates comic strips. Do you have any ideas for using it? It encourages writing and reading in a quick and fun way. Both for literacy and ESL.

TOOLS FOR MILLENNIAL LEARNERS

Engaging the newest generation of learners, age 18 to 30, implies a shift from a teacher driven classroom, to a student-driven one. Read Allen & Swindle (2007). Explore the wide range of educational cool tools as Wordle, Screencast-o-matic, Jing, Prezi or Glogster. They will boost your creativity and enhance your writings and presentations with powerful visuals. List your top five tools.

OER COMMONS (OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES)

UNESCO claims that the universal access to quality education is key to the building of peace and intercultural dialogue. In 2002 they coined OER to mean teaching and learning materials freely available online. Willing to design resources on your own? Check out Richey & Klein (2007) for Design and Development research. Lane (2010), or Mulder (2011) for further reading.

EPOSTL2: PILOTING AND IMPLEMENTING THE EUROPEAN PORTFOLIO FOR STUDENTS TEACHERS OF LANGUAGES (2008-2011)

Piloting and implementing the European Portfolio for Student Teachers of Languages 

(EPOSTL 2) 2008-2011.

http://coordination.ecml.at/Portals/3/documents/AM1_EPOSTL2_ProjectDescription_ETem.pdf

Further reading: http://epostl2.ecml.at/

NEVER MIND THE EDUPUNKS

Never Mind the Edupunks; or, The Great Web 2.0 Swindle (EDUCAUSE Review) | EDUCAUSE.edu

Do not miss this article. It raised great controversy a couple of years ago. Check out an article published in 2008 at The Guardian, called: 'Nevermind the pedagogues, here's edupunk'. Learn this buzzword, and leave your comments here.