Write your comments here. Debate another person's opinion, add ideas, respond to questions you didn't get to respond to on the chat.

Chatting today was an interesting experience. I was confused at first, but after a Little while I was able to follow. As we discussed earlier, chatting can be used to help students develop abilities to speak and express themselves informally before moving on to more formal assignments. My only concern, however, is how to keep it organized and focused on one topic, especially with middle and High school students. Nadia


I had a great time chatting yesterday with everyone. I appreciate now more than ever the level of teacher preparation required. Student expecations need to be very clear and as Lisa B. said, strictly enforced. It is so tempting to jump right in and comment rather than wait your turn! I have a feeling this would be equally as hard for my students. This is why I would rather set them up in smaller groups of maybe five. I just think 23 middle school students chatting all at the same time would be total chaos. Also, pairing students from another school as Lisa M. mentioned is a great idea. That would be really cool to try. Amanda

COMMENTS
It was my first ever chat room experience. I called my son to tell him that I had entered one for the first time. He is proud of the baby steps I am taking into his world. I am going to visit a friend in Costa Rica in August. I like the idea, Chris, of chatting with a class in a Spanish speaking country and may look into finding one in CR. We would just have to see if we could mesh the times. Pam

I really enjoyed the chat session, though there were several steps to going through it that gave me pause. For me, at times the 'chatting' happened so quickly that it was confusing and challenging to keep up. Also, as I mentioned during the session, one could be working on an idea and waiting for one's turn, and by the time it comes their may have been several subjects discussed since then. I also thought that for the non-native English speakers, the pace at which the conversation moved may have been a bit much.

I think in class it could be a really great tool. Amanda and I have already informally discussed trying to get our students in chatrooms together during class one day to essentially pen-pal in French. I think we'll try it and if it goes well (we will prep them heavily beforehand on netiquette as Lisa B. did) it may become a regular thing (monthly, or every other week). ///

Lisa M.

Chatting was fun, and different. I think that the students would enjoy it a lot. I think that it could have some wonderful learning benefits. I'm just not sure that I'm ready for it....Melissa

Say more about that, Melissa. What kinds of problems could it cause for the teacher? Lisa B.

Although the session today included too many people to effectively receive equal participation I became extremely motivated to integrate the “chat” into my plans for next year. Currently my Spanish class is serving as a “mother school” to a school in Ecuador who just recently received internet possibilities. I would love for my classes to establish pen-pals with the student from Ecuador, and the chat would be an ideal arena for such an activity. Viva la “chat”. – Chris

Chris, I think that's great idea. I also have students In France with whom my students communicate via mail. It takes a long time to send and receive letters, but chatting could resolve this problem. I worry only about the time difference factor.... Nadia



I also enjoyed the chat (my first!), and can see many benefits to chatting with Foreign Language students (who have been properly educated in netiquette). I feel that it is a great way to practice spontaneous "conversation" and communication in real time, and a great way to practice reading and writing skills in a context where students could see the value of those skills. Laura

The group chat was a fun experience. I would love to do it another class that is learning French or English. What I would like to know is how Lisa knew if we were chatting outside the room? Christine

It was an excellent example, how a chat can work out on the right direction, being leading for the teacher. In addition, we can apply technology in the classroom once a week, twice a month, depending, depending...I am sure that it will be a fun tool for many students, and we see that we can supervise perfectly the chat process just paying a lot of attention, and probably with a huge cup of coffee. Thank you LIsa to bring us this great tool to continuing to improve our technology skills in the Spanish class. Veronica Mezza

It wasn't my fist experience in chat room but my second so that tell you how much I like chatting. I can see the good for MATSL or other group of student but I personnally don't like it and it has nothing to do with the lack of English I don't liket it in French either. -Linda

This was my first time in a chatroom and for me it was difficult. I have 'chatted' before but it was one-to-one. It would take a lot of work and resolve for me to use this format in my classroom but I can see how it would work in the situation for a smaller group and even as an alternativeto pen-pals. I like the idea of having 'office hours' on IM to get feedback from the students and even from the parents who might be too busy to come in for a conference. I understand that there will be things missed like facial expressions and body language but, some contact with parents is so much better than none at all. As for the pen-pal and time difference factor, Why couldn't we chat with students in our same time zone like Quebec or some of the Caribbean islands? The proffesional organizations for language teachers should be able to help with this. If hey can't, maybe we could encourage them to explore the benefits of this type of cultural link. Autumn




CHAT ARCHIVE
This chat will end at 5pm so let me begin right away with the chat netiquette I will be using today. I have a bunch to say so be patient and please don't interrupt, thanks :

where are you??

I'm at a friend's house who has BROADBAND!!!!

lisa, can you invite merrie again ?

in Wilmington, VT

OK, invited her again, but that's the last time I'm con't on...

ok! i'll tell them!

Because 16 people chatting at once can make for a totally chaotic experience we'll use a few rules.

i am sharing with pam

shhhhh

First - wait until you are called on. The way you "raise your hand" to let me know you want to speak is to type a "?". ..
In your reading it suggests a ? for a question and a ! for a comment, but honestly whether comment or question it will be obvious once you begin "speaking", so just use the ?, okay? ...

Second - instead of typing out sentence after sentence while we all wait, type just a phrase or sentence at a time with three periods ...
after the end of the phrase to let us know you are in mid-thought and will be continuing...

Third - when you are finished type a / or as one of the articles suggests /// to let us know you are done. Any number of forward slashes will do. Then wait until I call on the next person.
In a smaller group you can all keep track of who goes next, but with 15 students you'll be composing your next thoughts or questions in a word processing program...
, or sticky note, or notepad, and be busy reading the comments of your classmates as the chat continues, thus might lose track of who is next. I will keep track. So wait for me to call on you, okay?...

Fourth - notice I mentioned you might be pre-composing? This is way to keep up with the chat, typing out your questions or comments ahead of time before you are called on to speak. ...
This speeds up the whole chat process and helps keep it dynamic. ...
Finally, I will post an archived version of the chat in the wiki and point you to it from the home page. I've already added a page under "about us" with all your IM handles or buddy names.
OK? Let's begin...
whew! that was long, but here's the first question:...
remember to raise your hand

how might you use synchronous chat in your classroom (synchronous means real time, vs. asynchronous which is more like a discussion board, or not in real time, more like an email chain or thread)./
?
Pam/
When schoo is closed for snow we scould meet on this
the rest of you can be composing.../
?
!
Pam are you finished?/
end your comment with a ///
fyes forgot ///
K, Guille/
What sort of cruel teacher would chat on a snow day???///
Well, to discuss topics open for interpretation, this would certainly be ideal
sorry
4:45 PM
?
oops, Chris, you must have had a fast return key!
?
Chris or Guille do you have more to say/
no
/
?
I did the slashes.///
K, Chris/
Then melissa, amanda, veronica/
go ahead Chris/
I was saying that a question open for interpretation would lea to a rich discussion
in the classroom?
or as homework?/
in the classroom///
OK, thanks, Chris, Melissa/
!
?
Melissa? The rest of you waiting, amanda, V, LisaM and Christine, be composing/
it came up on my screen...
i sent it twice already
can anyone else see Melissa's post?
I can't/
We can try to get the IM handles of students in other schools (perhaps from our wonderful Matsl colleagues)...
who also want to practice their emerging language skills and set up a chat during class time in the computer lab. ///
?
super idea, melissa! V/
oops, Amanda, I'll get you next/
V?
It is an efficient tool for building sentences in Spanish chatting during the class...
4:50 PM
It can be so fun for junior high students
Yes! they would LOVE IT! Amanda?
great idea melissa! i would like to pair students together rather than have an entire class discussion like this - my students would go nuts with this - they are not as well behaved as we are ///
?
Well, if you set the boundaries, kids can be amazingly well behaved but you...
have to be VERY strict in the beginning....
just like in the f2f classroom (face to face)/
/
LisaM you're on/
It is a good way for the students to practice their written language skills in a less formal (less pressured) situation.///
It would be fun to have students go to a specific Web site to read a story, article, listen to music, etc.. And then come on to chat about these readings/findings as a start to a discussion///
?
!
Yup, both of those are terrific! Guille you are next/
During a discussion, at home or in class, in which ideas are presented on the board as they are shared, ...
the chat would serve as the board instead. ...
nwhittleone has joined this chat.
It could also be useful for brainstorming ideas in class. Easier than writing them on the board, so everyone could be present while using the chat in the classroom.
I love that brainstorming idea! You folks must be teachers...you're all really cook'n! Autumn/
Could we do this with students who are in the countries where the language we teach is spoken?/

Done.///
YES!
This is amazing since you can actually have a chat...
with kids from Spain,...
Argentina...
Mexico!!!!/ Nadia/
It can also be a great tool to practicereading comprehension while developping (speaking) in public///
?
Nadia, question?
How about France?
4:55 PM
Sorry, Nadia, my bad! Of course France...
Canada...
etc/ Pam you're up/
I like the idea of a less pressured situation. cant remember what that felt like. But is important for yourger kids to feel comfortable
finished Pam?
all done///
Here's something I've found...people who are not comfortable ...
speaking up in class...
are often amazingly proficient in a chat...
?
?
I've had students tell me they really felt they could be themselves...
in a chat vs. f2f in the classroom/
Amanada/
?
?
what i wonder about though is losing the accents marks...
?
it is too m uch for them to copy and past and dealing w/ inserting acents...
so, we would lose that....is that ok? what do you all think?///
!
?
!
it might be you wouldn't worry about that for this format? Guille/
are we really preparing our students well by allowing them to avoid social contact? They're learning a language.....
/
/
sure, it's good that they have a new way to participate, but you can't hide behind a computer all your life.///
?
yup, true, amanda do you want to respond to that?
this is a way of communicating...they are not hiding...they are expressing themselves in a different way...
Nadia, Christine, Laura, Lisa, Melissa are next in line/
The only disadvantage that I see is that it doesn't give any opportunity for the students to speak, and they might get too confortable communicating by writing only. Don't we want our students to speak as well?///
they feel more confident with their written words///
?
As far as student-teacer communication goes, some students may feel more comfortable with self-evaulations through chatting, as well as a nice arena to discuss projects, essays etc..
5:00 PM
?
Hey! It's mine turn.Yes, there is the issue with accent marks, but maybe the goal here would just to get students to use the language. IMing, as we already have said, can be used in a variety of ways.
Yes, chris/
I'll wait my turn
Thanks, Christine...okay Chris, then it is Laura's turn/
I think losing the accent marks is, in a way more authentic...
but what I think is so key here is that the students are going to love this and be using the language.
if real Spanish/French students text they probalby don't use accents//
all done.///
?
Lisa, Melissa, amanda/
We would have to decide ahead of time what our expectation would bein terms of spelling, accents, grammar, etc....
?
(also I feel like my comment is a little irrellevant now as by the time I type it....
15 people have moved in a different direction! ///
nope, not at all, this is one big thinkstorm!!
to respond to the lack of accents/informality...
Go ahead Melissa, Amanda, Nadia and then we will stop/
I think that the younger generations in French and Spanish speaking countries have developed their own tech-friendly language...
It's like a new dialect//
?
amanda, nadia, then Christine, but guys it is 5pm so let's stop after that okay?
C'a été amusement, chacun. Merci pour le voyage.
i just posted but it didn't work...
i said that i don't know what a french or spanish chat....
looks like, but i was just curious about what you all thought...
to me it is not a big deal at all if there are no accents...
done///
Nadia and Christine/
I don't think that we should have to worry as much about spelling while chatting. We need to think about the time factor. We can worry about that in other assignments///
Yes, just like Melissa said. By learning the lingo, it is in fact cultural.///
YES! I agree with all of you...
it is important at some time to deal with grammar, accents, etc., but the chat is about spontaneity, oops bad spelling sorry...

how fitting
Soooooooooooo, I will save this chat and post it to the wiki. You will blog and wiki about it. and GUille, you are welcome/
Oh...one more thing...
Think about how cool this could be for office hours or parent meetings!
?
Lisa/
Any other final comments or questions?
I don't understand what you mean
about?
The parent or office hours thing...///
Oh, well let's say this was just me the teacher with a handful of my student dropping by...
Melissa just explained it... thanks!///