Connection between Technology and Language Skill - Speaking (Desi Purnamasari)

Connection between Technology and Language Skill - Speaking

Speaking is one of the skills that have to be mastered by students in learning English. It is an essential tool for communicating. In the classroom, improving the speaking abilities of students has always been a concern. In the fast developing 21st century various innovative technologies are being introduced to teach speaking skill in the classrooms. Technology is the vehicle to get access with this modernized world. Technology gives  learners a chance  to  engage  in  self-directed  actions,  opportunities for  self-paced  interactions,  privacy,  and  a  safe  environment  in  which  errors  get  corrected  and specific feedback is given. With devices like Smartphone for example, students are no longer confined to a computer lab. As soon as an assignment is available students can work on it inside their classroom, at home, while waiting on the bus, in between classes, etc. Mobile classroom technology can bridge the gap between classroom and home learning. Because technology is a central part of our everyday lives now, so of course it should be a key aspect to education in order to prepare students for the real world and their future careers where they will most likely be using mobile devices.

One of the characteristics of the modern classroom is collaboration and technology helps to empower it. With classroom technology students can collaborate with other students and their teachers in and outside of the classroom quickly and easily. Web tools 2.0 provides sufficient such tools which are interesting, fun creating and learning oriented, entertaining as well as catchy to use. Nowadays, students who are more gadget and techno-freak, web tools would appeal in whole to them. Such tools seem like playing video games which is funny and time-taking and the same could be utilized for the development of oral skills. Here, Voki and Voxopop, web tools, which is very interactive and fun-oriented, can actually help students developing vocal skills. In Voki, the main usage is that in it students, after registering, can record one’s audio-video, customize it according to one’s likeness and share with others to get the feedback. While the teacher can managing students by giving common instructions, managing classroom lesson or material by providing link of message on VOKI, reviewing students’ Voki tasks and giving feedback and then can sharing it in a team and getting peer feedback.

Tech and new media are fundamentally changing human interaction. One of the earlier ways of communicating online is through email. This is not some kind of antiquated system, however, as email is still the primary way that people use to communicate with each other. Email can be excellent for personal use, keeping in touch with family and friends as well as with those that may have a common interest. As well as existing social media, in terms of speaking, one can talk to others only via the internet as with Skype apps, MSN, AOL, and more current with the existing video call in Whatsapp, BBM, and other applications. It can make it easier for them to stay in touch in the context of speaking even if they do not look directly. Here, we do not discuss because with the technology can reduce the relationship directly, but to facilitate communication due to long distances. And also, talking is not only done by mutual voice, by chat alone it is included in the activities of talking with the resulting in the form of writing or typing.

Practicing our  English speaking can helps us become more fluent, feel more confident and get experience actually using all the words and grammar we have learned. It is an important step in the learning process! There are thousand of people who can help us practice our spoke English, and they're all right at our fingertips. We can find them all right here on the internet.

Here are some excellent websites where you can find a speaking partner, no matter where you live.

1.      Skype Tutors

Many English and ESL teachers  use Skype to teach English language learners over the Internet. Skype is a program that lets you chat with people using text, voice or video. It is a bit like using a video phone, and it is very convenient when our teacher does not live close to us. There are many people using Skype to teach, and it might take some looking around until we find the teacher who’s perfect for us. Websites like English Tutor Live and Preply have many different teachers to choose from, so we can look at a lot of options before we make our choice. 

2.      Verbling

Verbling offers a selection of tutors at different prices and for different skill levels. The teachers are hand-picked by Verbling, and we can view an introductory video from each one before we make our choice. We can also watch some scheduled online classes either by signing up for them. Sometimes we can just join in on a class if the class is in session when we visit the website.

3.      Physical Meeting

You can use the website Meetup to find a group of people meeting near you. There are even meetups for people who want to do language exchanges. In language exchanges, we will teach your native language to someone and they will teach our English.

4.      Toastmaster

The Toastmasters Club is a place where people can learn public speaking skills. It is not an English learning organization, but rather it is a general speaking practice organization. Here, anyone can learn and practice speaking in front of others. It is a great place to get more confidence for speaking with people in English. There are videos online that we can check to see if this is the kind of speaking practice we are looking for, and there are clubhouses all over the world. 

After the learning and teaching process is complete, what I get when learning about this technology is I get a lot of information related to technology knowledge to help me in improving my language skills especially in terms of speaking. there are many websites that have been given one of them namely British Council. It can be used to improve one of my language skills is speaking, it can also very useful and easier for me and for the future I use when I will teach students.

"Advances in technology can be empowering and enriching. History has shown this across civilizations and societies. But it has also shown, and the present and future will continue to show, that it is foolish, risky, flawed and folly without us raising our individual and collective consciousness and mindfulness to accompany it - to ensure we use it shrewdly, kindly and wisely." - Rasheed Ogunlaru 

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