EnglishCentral: Introduction and User's Session
In this session, the presenter will demonstrate several of EnglishCentral's cool new learning tools, including a spaced-repetition system for quickly acquiring knowledge of important vocabulary words in the context of authentic videos, a tool for bilingual captioning of these videos with clickable html dictionaries, and a voice recognition software that not only quickly identifies which words and sounds the student are having difficulty with but also delivers focused, in-context practice for those sounds and tracks learner's progress on individual sounds over time.
1. Dr. Charles Browne, Professor of Applied Linguistics Director, EFL Teacher Education Program Meiji Gakuin University; Tokyo, Japan [email_address]
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4. Words % known # known Researcher 1 7% 97/100 West(53), Nation(90) 10 25% 3/4 West(53), Nation(90) 100 50% 1/2 West(53), Nation(90) 1000 75% 1/4 West(53), Engles(68) 2000 81% 1/7 West(53), Nation(90) 5000 95% 1/20 Hirsch & Nation(92) 8000 98% 1/50 Laufer (92), Coady(93) 350,000 100% 100/100 Oxford English Dictionary The Importance of “Frequency”
5. Coverage within the BNC for high frequency words (Leech, Rayson, & Wilson, 2001)
6. Problem 1: EFL learners don ’t know enough high frequency words…
7. How many words do L2 learners know? Minimum 5000 words needed for independent learning Country Vocab. Size Hours of Instruction Reference Japan (University) 2000-2300 800-1200 Shillaw (95), Barrow (99) China (English Majors) 4000 1800-2400 Laufer (99) Indonesia (University) 1220 900 Nurweni & Read (99) Oman (University) 2000 1350 Hort et al (98) Israel (HS graduates) 3500 1500 Laufer (98) France (HS students) 1000 400 Arnaud et al (85) Greece (age 15, HS) 1680 660 Milton & Meara (98) Germany (age 15, HS) 1200 400 Milton & Meara (98)
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9. 75% Coverage 1000 high frequency words … another possible problem with _____ _____ is how to _____ learner _____ although research suggests that _____ are a very _____ way to learn new words (Leitner, 1972, Mondria, 1994, Nation, 1990, 2001), students may lose interest if _____ are the _____ _____ of doing _____ _____. There is a _____ _____ in the _____ classroom of using games with a _____ purpose to increase and _____ learner _____ (Ersoz , 2000, Uberman 1988, Wright, Betteridge & Buckby, 1984), as well as lower the learner _____ _____ (Asher, 1965, 1977, Dulay, Krashen & Burt, 1982) [ 19 missing words ]
10. 85% Coverage 2 000 high frequency words … another possible problem with _____ _____ is how to _____ learner _____ although research suggests that _____ are a very efficient way to learn new words (Leitner, 1972, Mondria, 1994, Nation, 1990, 2001), students may lose interest if _____ are the _____ method of doing _____ _____. There is a rich tradition in the _____ classroom of using games with a communicative purpose to increase and maintain learner _____ (Ersoz , 2000, Uberman 1988, Wright, Betteridge & Buckby, 1984), as well as lower the learner _____ _____ (Asher, 1965, 1977, Dulay, Krashen & Burt, 1982) [ 13 missing words ]
11. 95% Coverage 5 000 high frequency words … another possible problem with vocabulary _____ is how to sustain learner motivation although research suggests that _____ are a very efficient way to learn new words (Leitner, 1972, Mondria, 1994, Nation, 1990, 2001), students may lose interest if _____ are the sole method of doing vocabulary review . There is a rich tradition in the _____ classroom of using games with a communicative purpose to increase and maintain learner motivation (Ersoz , 2000, Uberman 1988, Wright, Betteridge & Buckby, 1984), as well as lower the learner affective filter (Asher, 1965, 1977, Dulay, Krashen & Burt, 1982) [ 4 missing words ]
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13. Problem 2: Reading and Listening materials in Japan (i.e. INPUT ) are too difficult…
21. Japanese High School Textbook (Spectrum Unit 16) 85% expected for 2000 words 76.8%
22. Summary of Vocab-Profile Results for Various Texts
23. Are Japanese students reading the right vocabulary? (Browne, 1996, 1998) Text Coverage from 2000 High Frequency Words Spectrum 71% Milestone 78% Unicorn 79% Unsimplified Native Texts 85%
24. Are universities testing the right vocabulary? (Kikuchi, 2006, Browne & Kikuchi, 2008) Text of Entrance Examinations for: % Coverage from 2000 High Frequency Words Keio Univ. 69% Sophia Univ. 72% Waseda Univ. 72% Kyoto Univ. 77% Nagoya Univ. 68% Tokyo Univ. 80%
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26. Solution Number One: COMPREHNSIBLE INPUT authentic and motivating listening and reading materials
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28. How to Grade Reading Materials http://www.lextutor.ca/vp/
29. How to Grade Reading Materials http://www.lextutor.ca
34. Graded Authentic Videos How can an “authentic” video be graded?.... Stage 1: Teacher intuition Stage 2: Readability Formulas Stage 3: Readability Formulas informed by vocabulary frequency
45. How to Identify Keywords http://www.lextutor.ca/ Key Words for Obama ’s Education Speech...
46. Solution Number Three: COMPREHENION SUPPORT Scaffolding tools to help learners deal with videos above their level
47. 100% 0% Video Captioning (Google auto-captioning for YouTube videos…)
48. 100% 0% Video Captioning (Google auto-captioning for YouTube videos…)
49. 100% 0% “ Keyword” Captioning (“Automaticity” – decreasing cognitive load by deleting less important/known vocabulary )
50. 100% 0% Bilingual Captioning Select difficulty level of videos you want Click on video you want to study
51. 100% 0% Bilingual Captioning Transcripts available for pre-listening study Key vocabulary words selected for study by corpus analysis
52. 100% 0% Bilingual Captioning Captioning in English, plus one of five 2 nd languages, Transcripts can be hidden by pushing these buttons
53. 100% 0% Clickable HTML dictionaries Definitions written based on the meanings given in the videos Click on any word in the transcript to get definitional info: • definition • part of speech • sample sentence • pronunciation
54. 100% 0% Speed Control for Speech Encourages learners to listen multiple times until they can catch the meaning Push this button to slow the speed of speech
55. Solution Number Four: KEYWORD LEARNING In-context, spaced-repetition vocabulary learning system
58. Spaced Repetition is the science of long-term memory Based on the research of Ebbinghaus, Pimsleur, Leitner, and Mondria, electronic flashcards automatically repeat each new word at spaced time intervals, and until the learner achieves long-term, instant-recall ability.
69. Vocabulary Flashcards: by corpus analysis of videos (1) Select a video category to study
70. Vocabulary Flashcards: by corpus analysis of videos (2) Go to the vocabulary application, then click on the list of words from the category you want to study
71. Vocabulary Flashcards: by corpus analysis of videos (3) Study the words as a list, or just pick a word to learn it in all the different contexts it occurs in the database
72. Vocabulary Flashcards: by corpus analysis of videos (4) All clips in the database which contain your keyword are played in context, in succession. You can listen only or record your voice and compare to the native speaker
73. Vocabulary Flashcards: by corpus analysis of videos (5) Study your words in QUIZ mode to work on definitions in context, listening and CLOZE type activities
74. Vocabulary Flashcards: by corpus analysis of videos Quiz mode is based on Ebbbinghaus, Leitner and Pimsleur ’s “spaced-repetition” approach
75. Vocabulary Flashcards: by corpus analysis of videos First, the meaning and context of 2-3 new words are introduced via video flashcards
79. Thank you ! For a copy of this Powerpoint, please contact: Dr. Charles Browne, Professor of Applied Linguistics Chair, EFL Teacher Training Program Meiji Gakuin University, Dept. of English [email_address]