Final Project Idea: It's just a draft

This is a draft of my final project. I'm afraid it might be too much for me to handle plus I lack the technological knowledge needed to realistically implement this with language learners. However, for the sake of just keeping track of where I am in this CMC Journey, I will post my final project idea below. I know that there are flaws and ways that it can be improved; hopefully, I figure out how to perfect it.

Title: Small talk in different cultures

Context

Target level of group: Adolescents, adults. They have intermediate to advanced proficiency

Identified special needs of any students:

Class typology (EFL, cross-disciplinary): EFL setting

Summary of the project (in general terms, what the students will do, subproducts, final output, etc.)

Students will learn about the semantics and pragmatics behind “small talk.” It will be a language exchange activity. Both classes would learn the pragmatics or semantics of speaking in each others’ languages. The teacher will create a Virtual World on Second Life (or some other equivalent) for their interactions.

The teachers will have activities for scaffolding like starting off with the vocabulary first. Taking them through the VW to get them acquainted. Then introducing with the other students. Getting them comfortable doing telecollaboration with students around the world.

The Spanish-speaking students will produce a recorded session of them doing “small talk” on Virtual World with a native speaker in English and the English speaker students can record themselves doing “small talk” in Spanish with a Spanish-speaking student. So there will be 2 assessments for this Project.

Focus of teaching (main content students will learn):

The focus of the teaching is to teach students how to do small talk within the target language. “Small talk” is a surface level conversation with someone you do or do not know. Generally, it is used with someone you don’t know very well.

How these are linked to key competences, according to level in the national curriculum:

The timeline of activities, materials, output and SWBATs:

Activity

Materials

Output

SWBAT*

LSs (learning situation)

Schema activity

Video showing small talk interaction

Small group discussion

Distinguish between how the two different cultures do small talk

Vocabulary

Vocabulary words that are usually associated with small talk. Maybe some formulaic language

Vocabulary game

Comprehend the vocabulary necessary for small talk

Explore Second Life, Virtual World

Computers

Get an avatar, learn how to use SL

Navigate through out the safe SL environment given to them.

Topics to talk about in small talk/ topics to never talk about in small talk

Watch different videos on different small talk and have them evaluate the people’s reaction to see if it was appropriate small talk or not. Provide both good and bad examples

Students work with a partner to discover the appropriate and inappropriate

Do this within SL

Identify good and bad small talk

Role-play with their partners

Different scenarios for them to role-play

Do small talk with their partner

Practice/use appropriate small talk

Go onto second life to practice with interlanguage exchange people

Second Life, Virtual World

Being able to interact with a native speaker

Know who their partner is and practice with them for the assessment

Assessment

Second life, VW

Students will record a session of them talking with each other in their L2s

Have an appropriate small talk conversation with people of a different culture speaking their native langauge

*Students will be able to …

Short summary of how to implement each session:

Assessment Outline (type of assessment, when it will be used, how it is linked to the rest of the activities and project)

The Spanish-speaking students will produce a recorded session of them doing “small talk” on Virtual World with a native speaker in English and the English speaker students can record themselves doing “small talk” in Spanish with a Spanish-speaking student. So there will be 2 assessments for this Project.

Annex (materials developed for the project, e.g. rubrics, hand-outs)

• Schema hand out

• Vocabulary hand out

• Different scenarios for role play

• Second life, computers