FLEAT VI

In communication-oriented instruction, like the one implemented in our programs at Boston University, students at all levels need to have ample opportunities to develop and reinforce speaking skills. During the past two years, several language faculty members have participated in workshops aimed at measuring performance as well as developing proficiency in all four skills, including speaking. Co-sponsored by the Director of Language Instruction and the Geddes Language Center, these workshops cover a broad range of topics. They include Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) training through ACTFL, CARLA Summer Institute workshops at the University of Minnesota, and ACTFL Webinars from the Series entitled “Developing Learners’ Performance Aiming at Proficiency.”

Accompanying this effort has been the sustained use of five specific technology applications involving digital audio and video. These are: Flipgrid, Voicethread, RecordPad, TalkAbroad, and DiLL (The Digital Language Lab). Our approach in selecting and supporting these technologies is to rely on four key principles in agile systems design, namely usability, accessibility, portability and scalability. Such an approach helps ensure a smooth and simple integration as well as the continued use of these technologies by faculty and students with long-range implications for enhanced learning.

In our presentation, we will describe activities created by our faculty in which students practice speaking at different levels of language learning, and that utilize these technologies either in our lab or in the cloud. We will also provide details on the benefits of applying agile systems design principles to the selection of eLearning tools for the development of oral proficiency, including handhelds and other mobile devices. Additionally, we will focus attention on integrating and accessing the recordings of students’ oral production in the university’s learning management system.