USING WEBSITES

By Yefi P. Telaumbanua

02063

The Use of Websites in ELT

Using websites is one of the easiest and least stressful ways of getting started with technology in the classroom.

The web is a source of content which can be used as a window on the wider world outside your class, and is － of course － readily available collection of authentic material.

We also can use web pages in the classroom in a variety of ways:

1.As printed pages, with no computers.

2.With one computer with an Internet connected.

3.In a computer lab with a set of networked and connected computers.

ELT websites or authentic websites?

ELT websites:

1. Providing content that your learners can use, for example language practice activities

2. Providing valuable opportunities for more controlled language work and are often a great help to learners who need to brush up on certain aspects of the language or to prepare for an exam.

Authentic sites:

1. Can be chosen to fit your learners’ interests.

2. Providing an ideal opportunity to work through the issues of total comprehension that plenty of learners have to deal with at some point in their studies.

Criteria in Evaluate Websites

• Criteria 1: Accuracy

To determine how reliable and free from error the information contained on a website is, remember to look at who is hosting the site.

- A good website should state its purpose and intended audience.

- It is always a good idea to check with other web resources, journals or magazines that publish website reviews to see if the site has received a stamp of approval, and if so, by whom.

- Always remember to verify the information on the website with information found in other print and/or web-based sources.

• Criteria 2: Authority

To determine the authorship of a website, examine the page closely for information about the author and to see if anyone else has contributed to the site.

- A good website should provide a way to contact the producers of the site.

- Identify the type of Webpage i.e. educational, professional, personal, advocacy, advertising, etc.

- Determine where they are getting their information. Check to see if the author or contributor to a Webpage has published in print.

• Criteria 3: Objectivity

To determine the objectivity of a website, check if advertising and informational content are being supplied by the same person or organization. If so, examine whether there is a bias to the informational content. Keep in mind that many websites with excellent information are sponsored by commercial entities or take advertisements to finance the website.

• Criteria 4: Currency To determine the currency of a website, find out when

the page was last updated. Also look to see if there are broken links on the site, it could be an indication of an abandoned page. You should also check to see how often new links appear on the site.

• Criteria 5: Coverage To determine if the information is adequately covered

on a website, compare the information with information found on other websites. Does one site provide more information, more references, more contacts? Also compare the information on the website with information available in print sources such as books, journals, reports, etc. (if available).

How to find Useful websites?1. Search engine• Google: www.google.com• Yahoo: www.yahoo.com• Altavista: www.altavista.com• Ask.com: http://www. ask.com/• Clusty: http://clusty.com/• Lycos:http://www.lycos.com/

2. Subject Directory/ subject guide• Yahoo:http:// dir.yahoo.com/

3. Specialized search engines and directory• http://webquest.sdsu.edu/searching/specialized/html

4. Meta search enginesDogpile: http://www.dogpile.com/Kartoo: http://www.katoo.com/en_index.htmMetacrawler: http://www.metacrawler.com/Mamma : http:// www.mamma.com/

5. OthersAnswer.com: http//www.answer.com/bb/Yahoo! Answer: http:// answer.yahoo.com/

How to evaluate Website

The Internet can be a great tool for doing research, but it is necessary to evaluate websites to insure their quality and accuracy. Below are some aspects to consider.Key Areas to Review

ACCURACYIs the information reliable and correct?Is there an editor who verifies the information?Anyone can publish anything on the Web, and there are no web standards for accuracy.

AUTHORITYIs there an author? What are his or her qualifications?What is the sponsoring organization? Is it reputable?Is the domain appropriate for the search (.edu, .com, .gov, .org, .net, etc.)?Look for links providing information about the author and his or her e-mail address.Check for "about us," "philosophy," etc. for information about the organization.

OBJECTIVITYDoes the website show a minimum of bias?Is there advertising on the page?What is the purpose of the site? To sell, to inform, to persuade?

CURRENCYDoes the site include the dates it was created and updated?How current are the links? Have any expired or moved?Consider if currency is especially important for the research topic.

COVERAGEHow does the site compare with other sites on this topic?Is material covered in depth rather than superficially?Is there a balance of text and images?Is the site readily viewable, not needing special software or requiring a fee?The site should contribute something unique to the subject.

Planning lessons using the Internet• Plan your session well: visit the websites you

intend to use and make sure you know your way around them properly.

• Three parts typical web-based session(www):1. Warmer － prepares your learners for what they are

going to be doing in the web part of lesson.

2. Web － it’s important to spend only as much time as you need working with your computer.

3. What next

Planning lessons using the Internet• The sample of the lesson plan － Movie star

Working with lower levels of language proficiency

• Websites which are more suitable for lower levels will include:

1. Websites with simple, clearly presented text.

2. Websites with non-linguistic data which is easy to interpret.

3. Websites with visuals － a task can be based around the visuals only.

4. ELT websites, where the content has been written, edited and prepared with this audience in mind.

Web teaching do and don’t• A few consideration and some contingency

plans:1.Whenever you use technology you should

always have a backup plan in place.

2.Use the knowledge of other teachers and of your learners to help you with the technical side of the lesson.

3.If it’s a lesson that involves relatively few web pages, try saving them to your computer hard disk.

Web teaching do and don’t• A few consideration and some contingency

plans:

1.Unless you are working on something like an email pen pal exchange, it is rarely conducive to have learners working alone on computers.

2.Try to arrange the computer room in such a way that you can easily maintain control over learner activities.

3.Not all the content that you come across with your learners will necessarily be suitable for them.

Resources

http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/Evaluate.html

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_evalsource4.html

http://academics.smcvt.edu/cbauer-ramazani/present/ELT-Conf-Bogota-07/WebSites/search_eval.htm