Telecollaboration uses “…online communication tools to bring together language learners in different countries for the development of collaborative work and intercultural exchange” (O’Dowd & Ritter, 2006, p623). Such collaborations may also be known as Tandem Language Learning (TLL), Online Intercultural Exchange (OIE) or even Internet-mediated Intercultural Foreign Language Education (ICFLE).
In this video, Hungary-based teacher Eva Toth, shares her experience organising an online collaborative project with her students. The project is called Let’s get down to e-business! and was set up through the e-Twinning network, the community for schools in Europe.
In Part 3, Eva talks about:
- the best digital tools for Telecollaboration (Linoit, Symbaloo, Padlet TitanPad, Google Docs)
- the three main obstacles to project success
- how Telecollaboration leads to Integrative Learning
- the misconceptions of Telecollaboration
- one of her future projects – Sound Mind in A Sound Body
Great quotes from Part 3 of the interview about project-based learning:
“The best tool that I have found so far for my project is Symbaloo itself.”
Finding a proper partner, finding a great topic and having proper equipment. These are already 3 obstacles…but I think the outcome is always worth it.”
In Hungary, Project Based Learning is not well-known …they think I am just fooling around with the students.”
It won’t be the tests, the vocabulary or the grammar that these students will remember, but they will remember how they felt at your lesson. Or the feeling they had when they went to your lesson.”
…to somehow connect the students lives, and real life and what you are doing in the lesson: that’s the only way. To give them problems. To treat them as partners. They should come up with their own solutions to real life issues.”
I’d like to leave you with a question from Eva: is playing or having fun the total opposite of learning?
If you are interested in participating in a Telecollaboration project with students based in China, or the UK, please do get in touch.
Friends outside of China, feel free to watch the video on YouTube here.
Reference
O’Dowd, R. & Ritter, M. (2006). Understanding and Working with ‘failed communication’ in telecollaborative exchanges. CALICO Journal, 23 (3), 623-642.