This document discusses the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) in language classrooms. It notes that students now need to be self-directed learners able to identify issues, synthesize ideas and develop solutions. ICT can help engage students by tapping into their cultural experiences. A variety of ICT tools are mentioned that can be used for word processing, communication, internet research, online learning, and moving between applications. Specific websites and programs are provided that allow students to create presentations, stories, comics, animations and more using ICT.

1. ICT in the
Languages Classrooms
Domenica Mufale
R/Community Languages Consultant

2. Changing nature of students and education
• In order to be informed and active
participants in our changing society,
students, now and in the future, will
need to be self-directed learners, able
to identify issues, pose questions,
synthesise ideas and develop solutions
to problems.
• Teacher is no longer the bearer of all
wisdom.
• The evolution of technology
necessitates a continual, ongoing
learning process in order to harness it.

3. Using ICT
In each year, from Kindergarten to Year 12, students should participate in
activities that assist in the development of their ability to:
• use ICT to locate, access, evaluate, manipulate, create, store and retrieve
information;
• express ideas and communicate with others, using ICT;
• develop an awareness of the range of applications of ICT in society;
• discriminate in the choice and use of ICT for a given purpose;
• develop the confidence to explore, adapt and shape technological
understandings and skills in response to challenges now and in the future.

4. Making Connections with ICT
• ICT is mandated in the K-10 syllabus
• ICT provides a different way of learning for the students and an
alternative way for teachers to present information and skills
• ICT can be more engaging and motivating for students by tapping into
their cultural experience and assisting in the development of a sense of
personal relevance
• ICT can be used as part of the process and product of rich assessment tasks
• ICT enriched activities can be used effectively to enhance deep understandings

5. Moving between ICT
• Word processing - Word, PowerPoint, email, comics
• Synchronous and asynchronous communication - E-mail, Instant Messenger,
Video conferencing
• Internet - information search, web quests, on-line dictionaries
• On-line learning - software programs and Internet based language lessons
• Teacher and Student centred approaches allowing self discovery learning
and traditional teacher focused presentations

6. www.wordle.net
Wordle
Wordle is a toy for generating “word
clouds” from text that you provide. The
clouds give greater prominence to words
that appear more frequently in the source
text. You can tweak your clouds with
different fonts, layouts, and color
schemes. The images you create with
Wordle are yours to use however you like.
You can print them out, or save them to
the Wordle gallery to share with your
friends.
Students cannot type in script, however ALT codes can be used for European characters.
Useful Websites

7. Tagxedo
Note: You can type in Script in this site but Microsoft Silverlight should be
installed in advance.
Tagxedo turns words -- famous speeches, news articles, slogans and themes,
even your love letters -- into a visually stunning word cloud, words individually
sized appropriately to highlight the frequencies of occurrence within the body of
text.
http://www.tagxedo.com

8. Image Chef
Visual Poetry tool
You can use it to:
•Inspire creativity
•Independent writing
•Display
•Consolidating vocabulary
•Making calligrams
http://www.imagechef.com/

9. Bubbl.us
http://bubbl.us
Bubbl.us is a mind-mapping product which makes it easy for anyone to start
planning and sorting out their ideas through the use of linked text bubbles.

10. http://en.linoit.com/
Lino it
Online stickies

11. Microsoft Photo Story
• A presentation program you can use to create media presentations with
digital photos
• Add transitions, music, narration, and special effects to create a movie
• Free to download

12. Glogster
“Poster yourself”!
This is a fantastic website to support
writing skills. Students register, then
create their own topic-based posters,
appropriate to any Stage of learning. They
can add their own images, sound files,
movie files, text, graphics, etc. Students
can type special characters and accents
(e.g. è, ß), and Chinese and Japanese are
available. Perfect for primary students
through to Stage 6.
http://www.glogster.com/
http://edu.glogster.com/

13. Audacity
A free audio editor and recorder that can be used to record and edit sounds.
The program has multiple methods of editing including copying, cutting and
pasting audio files
http://audacity.sourceforge.net/

14. Voki
Is a brilliant site allowing students to create an avatar, type in their script and
hear the avatar speak!
Students can create their own avatar (choosing character, hair and eye colour,
mouth colour and size and clothing, accessories...), even voices...!
http://www.voki.com/create.php

15. Voice thread
http://voicethread.com/
Using VoiceThread, students can realise the power of voice as a tool of expression.

16. iTunes
• Songs are among the best ways of teaching a language
• Download and use ITunes to download songs/music/podcasts
www.apple.com/au/itunes/

17. Interactive Whiteboard
SMART Notebook
http://www.interactivewhiteboard.net.au/

18. Quia
• 30 day free trial or school subscription
• Many activities already created in different languages
www.quia.com/web
• Create 16 types of games and learning activities:
Matching game
Flashcards
Concentration game
Word search puzzle
Jumbled words
Ordered list activity
Picture perfect activity
Pop-ups
• Create quizzes with 10 types of questions:
Multiple choice
True-false
Pop-up
Multiple correct
Fill-in
Battleship
Challenge board
Columns activity
Hangman game
Rags-to-riches game
Scavenger hunt
Cloze activity
Patterns
Initial answer
Short answer
Essay
Matching
Ordering

19. Quizlet
Quizlet is the largest flash cards and study games website with over 5 million
free sets of flashcards covering every possible subject.
http://quizlet.com/
An online flashcard maker and vocabulary learner. You can create your own
flashcards, or students can create their own sets of vocabulary (by chapter, by
topic, etc.) and then learn the vocabulary through a series of steps and games.
You can also access existing games created by other teachers and students
(Caution: there may be errors!). All languages available.

20. Languages Online
http://www.education.vic.gov.au/languagesonline/

21. PowerPoint Games
• Sale of the Century
• Who wants to be a Millionaire
• Mystery letter/word
• Reveal a picture
• Wheel of Fortune
• Jeopardy
• Twenty Questions
http://people.uncw.edu/ertzbergerj/ppt_games.html
http://jc-schools.net/tutorials/PPT-games/

22. JeopardyLabs.com
JeopardyLabs allows you to create a customized jeopardy template
without PowerPoint. The games you make can be played online from
anywhere in the world. Building your own jeopardy template is a piece
of cake. Just use our simple editor to get your game up and running.
http://jeopardylabs.com/

23. Hot Potatoes
The Hot Potatoes suite includes six applications, enabling you to create
interactive multiple-choice, short-answer, jumbled-sentence, crossword,
matching/ordering and gap-fill exercises for the World Wide Web.
http://hotpot.uvic.ca/index.php

24. Classmarker
http://www.classmarker.com/
ClassMarker allows you to add your own tests to be taken online and graded
instantly and accurately.

25. Dvolver
Is a great site to get students creating a mini animation. Students can:
• choose backgrounds, scenes, characters, music
• write the script which will appear in the speech bubbles
• give the animation a title
• name the director (themselves)
• students can write one (or several) scenes and change the characters
• email the movie to you or classmates!
The site is very easy to use and can be used immediately.
Note: Students cannot type in script, however ALT codes can be used for European
characters
http://www.dvolver.com/live/moviemaker.html

26. Goanimate
http://goanimate4schools.com/public_index
http://goanimate.com/
Go Animate! enables students to make
their own cartoons and animations,
choosing characters, scenes, props,
soundtracks, special FX, etc. It is a great
tool for encouraging students’ writing
skills and embedding ICT. European
characters can be inserted using the ALT
codes.

27. Kerpoof
Kerpoof's multimedia software is used by
kids worldwide to create original artwork,
animated movies, stories, greeting cards
and more. The site is meant to be fun, but
we're serious about its educational value.
Elementary and middle school teachers
can use Kerpoof in many ways to enhance
classroom activities while meeting a range
of educational standards.
http://www.kerpoof.com/

28. Lesson ideas: story-telling, talking about the cultural aspects .
Xtranormal
http://www.xtranormal.com/
Xtranormal Xtranormal is a text-to-movie website which allows you and your
students to create short films with your own scripts using very clever text-to
speech technology. This means your students write a script and then feed it into
Xtranormal to produce films with characters enacting it.

29. Animoto
http://animoto.com/features
Animoto provides an array of tools for creating video slideshows in your
classroom from your photos, video clips, and music..
http://animoto.com/education
Note: You can use your own images and photos to create a video.

30. Toondoo
Make a comic strip.
http://www.toondoo.com/

31. This is a comic strip generating tool. It is very easy to use as no sign-up required. You
can type and tag in Script.
The above is just a minimum of what you can do in the site. Your students might be able
to be more creative and artistic if you show how to use tools. Here is the link to video
tutorial: http://stripgenerator.com/video/
STRIPGENERATOR
http://stripgenerator.com/

32. Pikistrips
http://www.pikistrips.com/
Students create comic strips using their own photos and write descriptions. Not for
scripted languages
(note: students can type in script but, when published, the script will disappear).
Note: Students need to sign in and upload own images, so preparation required.

33. Pixton
http://www.pixton.com/uk/
Pixton provides a visual writing tool. From fully posable characters to dynamic
panels, props, and speech bubbles, every aspect of a comic can be controlled in an
intuitive click-n-drag motion. Comics can be published and shared, enabling
classmates to view and comment.
Languages available: Arabic, Chinese, French, Greek, Japanese, Korean, Spanish
(+ ALT codes can be used).

34. StoryJumper is a place to create and discover stories for kids.
StoryJumper
www.storyjumper.com

35. Lingt
The Lingt editor is simple enough for anyone to use while remaining flexible enough to
allow implementation of almost any spoken or written exercise. You can create:
spoken dialogues
dictations
pronunciation practice
oral examinations or diagnostics
reading practice
image or video commentary
your own inventions
Lingt allows students to listen to teachers' and their own recordings as many times as
they'd like, making it perfect for pronunciation and comprehension exercises.
http://lingtlanguage.com/

36. Storybird
Storybirds are short, art-inspired stories you make to share, read, and print.
Read them like books, play them like games, and send them like greeting cards.
http://storybird.com/
http://mfl-storybirds.wikispaces.com/