Every cloud has a….phrasal verb:Experimenting with wordles

46th Annual International IATEFL Conference and ExhibitionGlasgow, 19 – 23 March 2012Glasgow, 19 – 23 March 2012

Anne RocchiccioliAnne RocchiccioliCentro Linguistico di Ateneo

Università degli Studi di Siena

The learning context A brief introduction to ‘Wordle’ Phrasal verb wordles in the F2F classroom and

online in Moodle Other uses of wordles Learners’ response and feedback Reflections and suggestions

Focus

Scenario

CLA Siena - Weblingua, blended language courses

2 blended courses, 35 students per class

Learners: postgraduate students at B1 level

Course objective: prepare students for compulsory B2

level English examination

Reading and Use of English

B1 and B2 refer to the CEFR - Common European Framework of Reference

Blended course structure

2 F2F lessons per week for 11 weeks (44 hours)

10 topic-based lessons online with tutor in Moodle

Grammar, vocabulary and listening resources and

quizzes, reading and Use of English practice

collaborative forum and wiki activites - word

formation, transformations, phrasal verbs

3-4 hours per week online + programmed self-

study (coursebook)

Why wordles?

To try to take the stress out of Use of English.

Reading Use of English

Both

19.5% 69.5% 11%

Which part of the exam are you more anxious about?

A word to describe your feelings towards phrasal verbs….

Wordles and learning styles

Strong visual impact in F2F lesson Springboard for class discussion Group / pair activities in F2F lesson Self-study online Collaborative and learner-centred online

activities

‘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.’

http://www.wordle.net

What is ‘Wordle’?

http://www.wordle.net/

Tapescript taken from BBC Learning English - 6 Minute English http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/general/sixminute/

2009/10/091022_6min_quiet_london.shtml

Unwanted items?

Removing unwanted items

New version generated automatically

Choosing the colour scheme

Selecting the font

Choosing the layout

Removing common words

Useful links

http://www.wordle.net/

http://www.wordle.net/faq

http://web20edu.com/2011/03/25/save-a-wordle-for-use-in-the-classroom/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhL5D9nz5aI

Creating wordles for specific purposes:

phrasal verbs by preposition

Phrasal verbs by verb

Phrasal verbs by topic

Phrasal verbs with different meanings

Phrasal verb wordles in the F2F classroom

Visual presentation of new phrasal verbs

Springboard for brainstorming, discussion and pair/group activities

Quick review at start or end of a lesson

A way of fostering ‘noticing’ and awareness

Visual presentation and discussion

Phrasal verbs with ‘off’: separation /departure

Matching activity in pairs/groups

Reporting back and discussion

see sb off

put off

switch off

clear off

go to the station/airport to say goodbye to sb

postpone

stop giving your attention

go away

go to the station/airport to say goodbye to sb

postpone

stop giving your attention

go away

see sb off

put off

switch off

clear off

Matching activity in pairs/groups

Reporting back and discussion

see sb off

put off

switch off

clear off

at the station

the meeting till Friday

during the lecture

and leave me alone

go off

see sb off

call off

set off

clear off

put off

switch off

turn off

OFF

Group activity: invent sentences

Visual presentation and discussion

Phrasal verbs with ‘on’ (idea of continuation)

Matching activity in pairs/groups

Matching activity in pairs/groups

get on with

keep on

go on and on

carry on

move on

drive on

stay on

drag on

ON

Going beyond the classroom

Volunteer group member posts sentences in the Moodle wiki

Students collaborate on the wiki

Tutor offers feedback and sets up peer correction activity

Tutor gives final feedback

Wordles online: wikis for collaborative knowledge construction

Group collaborates on matching activity 1

Group collaborates on matching activity 2

Students create and share their own examples online

Wordles become more learner-centred

Objective: students create their own wordle-based phrasal verb activity for future use online.

Step 1 Teacher sets up the blank structure in a wiki

(tables and activity instructions) but no content.

Student 1 creates a wordle with 6 phrasal verbs of his/her choice.

Student 1 creates a wordle

Wordle is uploaded into wiki structure

Step 2

Class works online to complete wiki table of phrasal verb + meaning using online dictionary.

Student 2 creates wordle for phrasal verb + meaning.

Students complete part 1 of the activity

Student 2 creates the second wordle:

phrasal verb + meaning

Step 3

Students collaborate on part 2 of the activity by inventing sentences and inserting them in table 2 online.

Student 3 creates final wordle with the 2 parts of the sentences for future matching activity.

Students complete part 2 of the activity: insert the sentences in the 2 columns

Student 3 creates the final wordle

Final product: wiki activity created using students’ wordles and content

Worksheet version to be uploaded in Moodle

Wiki activity created using students’ wordles and content

Worksheet version to be uploaded in Moodle

Phrasal verbs beyond the classroom

wordle presentations online collaborative activities in Moodle wiki explanations and interactive quizzes online online glossary created by students phrasal verb reference resources online phrasal verb section in vocabulary notebook wordle worksheets downloadable from Moodle textbook practice

Phrasal verb resources and activities online

But not every cloud has ….

…a phrasal verb

Other uses of wordles for Use of English

Word formation Adjectives + preposition Common collocations Prepositional phrases Connectors Identifying key word transformations

Group/pair matching activity + discussion

Group/pair matching activity + discussion

I’m proud of

My car is suitable for

I’m really satisfied with

Breakfast is included in

Teenagers are very dependent on

I was so surprised at

I’m enthusiastic about

Adjectives+

prepositions

Group/pair activity + discussion

Collocation: university

Group/pair matching activity + discussion

Group/pair matching activity + discussion

Group/pair matching activity + discussion

Prepositional phrases: spot the odd one out

Connectors:

Presentation and class discussion

Recognizing structures for key word transformations

Student response and feedback

Student progress in Use of English

Questionnaire results

Student feedback

End of course phrasal verb test

Part 1 – choose the correct phrasal verb (multiple choice)

Part 2 – insert a suitable phrasal verb (cloze)

Part 3 – key word transformations based on phrasal verbs

Results of phrasal verb test

Average mark

Group 1

Average mark

Group 2

79.4% 85.1%

Student progress – Use of English

Average mark

Group 1

Average mark

Group 2

Average mark in exam

session

Midterm test

Use of English 44.3% 44.9%

End of course test

Use of English 57.4% 59.8%

Final B2 Exam

Use of English 61.6% 65.4% 57.3%

End of course questionnaire

Questionnaire type anonymous 10 questions space for comments and suggestions

Purpose to get student feedback on the use of wordles to allow them to reflect on their progress regarding

phrasal verbs

How would you define your knowledge of phrasal verbs at the start of the course ?

A good knowledge

Some knowledge

No knowledge

0% 5% 95%

Did you find the wordle presentations in class useful?

From a visual point of view, did they help you remember the phrasal verbs better?

Yes No

93% 7%

Yes No A little

58% 33% 9%

Did you contribute actively to the phrasal verb wiki activities?

Did you look at the phrasal verb wiki activities, even if you didn’t contribute?

Yes No

60% 40%

Yes No

82% 18%

Did you use the phrasal verb collection presentation online to revise for the final test?

Do you prefer to learn phrasal verbs from a traditional list or with the visual aid of wordles?

Yes No

89% 11%

Traditional list

Wordles Both

24% 67% 9%

Do you think you have improved your knowledge of phrasal verbs?

Approximately how many phrasal verbs do you think you know how to use correctly now?

Yes No A little

93% 4.5% 2.5%

10 – 20 20 – 30

More than 30

38% 33% 29%

Describe your feelings towards phrasal verbs

Start of course

End of course

What the students had to say

‘I like to study using visual methods or alternative

learning methods in general, it's definitely less

boring studying with them than studying only by

reading words on a black and white book, so I

was happy to have encountered wordles during

my english course.’

‘I think that this teaching method is great because it

allows to learn using visual memory. Even the way he

was using was very productive because it allowed

students to interact directly, and repetition leads to

memorization easier. It is a very innovative and that

for my personal experience has been very

productived.’

‘I think that the wordles are useful for learning

phrasal verbs and grammatical rules. I have used

them widely for my preparation at the exam, also at

home.

However, I do not like very much the wordles in

which there are sentences and words messy, for

esample diagonally. I prefer wordles written in a

schematic form.’

‘The use of wordles in class, for my personal

preparation, was useful because I had the opportunity

to focalize and remember, at the same time,

grammatical points like phrasal verbs and syntax.

I have found useless the wordles online because I

prefered to study and make exercise on the books.

I surely felt more confident about Use of english by

the end of the course.’

‘Dear ms Anne

Every day I wake up five o clock in the morming. I put

my light on , but I stay in bed, I am tried at studing. My

studies go up by 50 per cent […]

The alarm goes off at 7.00. The sun's coming up. But

the television broke down so also I broke down at the

news. If I get behind with your lessons i hope to have

more to do later with practice and practice.

Teacher if I join the frases verb with my life I'll learn

these. […]’

But wordles are only one part of it ….

Reflections

effective springboard for various learning purposes adaptable to different learning styles not all students are visual learners – alternative

approaches must be offered use in moderation clarity – font, layout, avoid overcrowding choice of colours

Suggestions for other uses

prediction – reading / listening activities brainstorming and building on vocabulary story-telling activities introducing content/language of a lesson recording emergent language from a lesson recalling language from a previous lesson

Thank you and…

… I hope you have fun experimenting with wordles!

Useful links

http://www.wordle.net/

http://www.wordle.net/faq

http://web20edu.com/2011/03/25/save-a-wordle-for-use-in-the-classroom/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhL5D9nz5aI