Final Project for CMC

Today, we did a workshop in class on our final project. I have actually completely changed my final project to be a lot more manageable and realistic.

I am really interested in learning languages in an EFL setting so I created a unit that helps students in Taiwan and Korea practice their listening and speaking skills.

Here is the context and rationale of my unit:

• Target level of group: High intermediate to advanced. They are university students in Taiwan and Korea. The reason these two countries were chosen was because there is a 1 hour time difference between the two countries and they can do synchronous activity together. It would be an opportunity to practice listening, speaking, reading and writing in authentic contexts.

• It is supplemental to what they will be learning in class. It is an opportunity to practice listening, speaking, reading, and writing English outside of the classroom.

• Identified special needs of any students: Students may or may not have access to computers. This is why it is necessary to do this in a university setting. Students may not have the needed technology to complete this assignment individually, but they can use the universities facilities to complete their assignments. If students have a difficult time figuring out how to use the technology, the teacher could easily assist them.

• Class typology (EFL, cross-disciplinary): EFL and it will be a cross-disciplinary unit. It will work on all four skills of language (reading, writing, listening, and speaking).

I find this unit much more doable than my small talk idea. I believe that I could do this unit in the future when I am teaching overseas.

When I did my workshop, my classmates did not offer that much feedback, but I know that I still have a ways to go before it is ready to be turned in. Something my professor suggested is to have a tangible objective for the students. They will be creating a video that compares and contrasts two organizations that try to solve a world problem. At the end they will recommend one organization over the other. My professor suggested that they submit this project to a philanthropist who is contemplating donating his or her money. This would encourage them to do a good job because someone other than the teacher will be looking at it. I think it is an interesting idea, I'll think about it for my presentation.