This week my grandma passed away and as I was compiling my Wiki, a thought crossed my mind...
What if senior citizens were to teach Maltese to the children of emigrants through the use of video-conferencing, chatting in Maltese, exchange of anecdotes from their own childhood and times of war, etc...? I think it would be very beneficial for both parties.
Sons of emigrants are very keen to communicate with Maltese people; they are constantly looking for their roots! I have learnt this through personal experience when I was in Australia for WYD2008. Young people of Maltese origin, were extremely enthusiastic to meet us just because we had the same surname or knew someone in Malta with their own surname. They even wanted to speak to our parents, even though they didn't even know them, just for the sake of hearing someone speak Maltese from Malta!
In particular, the invaluable stories from times of war, the times when Malta and Gozo were still simple and quiet islands, the development of our nation in what we are today, the daily-lived traditions... All these treasures can be lost forever with the loss of our dear ones, unless they pass them on to the newer generations!
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First of all, sorry to hear of your sad loss John.
ReplyDeleteI would also like to add some further comments on your topic. Apart from learning languages through informal methods, as John has explained in his post, there is also the possibility to learn a langauge using an online Learning Management System. This method provides the following benefits:
• The absence of traditional classrooms which leads to reduced operating costs for the service provider,
• Absence of traditional way of teaching which reinforces autonomous learning for students.
• A service which is offered 24h a day, 7days a week leading to maximum exploitation for the service provider while at the same time being more convenient for the users.
• Flexible pace of attending the lessons.
The Virtual School is managed using a Learning Management System which may include the following features:
• Speech recognition technology
• The speech graph and pitch curve
• SETS Technology (Spoken Error Tracking System)
• 3D phonetic animation
• Automatic transfer of learners’ progress to the tutors
• Synchronous/ Asynchronous Communication Tools
• Detailed students’ follow up
• Tutor’s possibilities
• File Management
• Database with Frequently Asked Questions
• Individualized Learning Paths and adaptable Parameters
• Internet Services for building linguistic skills
These features may be offered through specialised software like TeLL me More, by Auralog, a French software company.
References:
Mantzari, D. Economides, A.. Cost analysis for e-learning foreign languages. Retrieved June 9, 2010, from http://www.eurodl.org/materials/contrib/2004/Mantzari_Economides.htm
Language Learning Software - Auralog. (n.d.). Retrieved June 9, 2010, from TellMeMore: http://www.tellmemore.com/
I think this is a good idea using senior citizens to teach Maltese to emigrants or possibly even immigrants. The only issue I have is that Maltese grammar is changing so frequently that one has to take care to keep abreast with the latest changes. Only last summer we got a new set of updates. Anothoer good thing is that Maltese by nature is very phonetic and letters tend to have only one sound not like in English, so software can be easily adapted to take on e-learning. Despite this few techies take the challenge to work on computational linguistics.
ReplyDeleteI think John brought up a point which has not really been discussed so far namely that e-learning tools must adapt to cross-cultural challenges that are increasingly becoming part of today’s life. An e-learning course never stands alone. A student from a different cultural background than the instructor’s will find that an e-learning course will also act as a window on another culture. The material may contain many clues about the social assumptions of the society in which it was created. Along with the material, the student may be faced with additional practices such as how to subscribe, and how to be supervised and graded. All these elements of learning can be quite valuable for the learner, even though they are not in the terms of reference. According to the author, Andrea Edmundson, of the book Globalised E-learning Cultural Challenges, many studies have found that participation and involvement are important aspects of pedagogy in catering for diverse learner needs online. It is also important to establish a community online and provide clear terms of reference with embedded cultural understanding. Third, differences in learning approaches and styles used in different cultures must be acknowledged (Edmundson, 2006).
ReplyDeleteBibliography:
Edmundson, A. (2006). Globalised E-learning Cultural Challenges,. Idea Group Inc.
One can easily imagine how a science subject or a mathematical subject can be though online. But teaching a language is another thing. One can learn how to read and write but since a language is a means of communication, one would need some guidance in pronouncing words and practice the language. On Italian stations, there used to be an advert to learn English by buying a pack which contained books, DVD and Audio CD (I'm sure you all remember the guy saying Dank you on the graduation day). Such pack were and still are available for many language. Now such courses are also available online. One can find even free language lessons. For example one can find a number of Chinese sites which offer some lessons in basic Chinese such as
ReplyDeletehttp://www.clearchinese.com/learn-chinese/
http://www.chinese-tools.com/learn/chinese
Nowadays people tend to travel more and learning the basics of a foreign language are important. Thus such sites are very beneficial. Like what Caroline mentioned before, one can improve his learning through a number of learning management systems which offer the possibility to the learner to learn.
Currently teaching a foreign language is a cash cow for some companies. If we take a look at Malta in summer, one will find a number of schools teaching English. Therefore, offering language courses online will always find opposition and great competition from such schools.
I agree with John that e-learning can also be used by senior citizens, however we have to keep in mind that current technologies are twice as hard to use for the elderly than they are for young generations. The reasons for this are twofold:
ReplyDelete- designers for such systems are usually young themselves; and
- adults are less likely to use the internet and computers when compared to younger generations.
In my opinion technological discriminations could be easily eliminated by following some simple procedures:
- when designing a product designers should keep in mind the senior citizen; it should not be difficult to build a system which is user-friendly for everyone, including seniors.
- Training courses that can help the elderly acquire knowledge to use such technologies should be made available (although some already exist); these training courses should include step by step practical guidance on the use of the internet or computer so that the audience gains confidence and ability in the subject.
Reference: http://82.223.160.93/site/Output%201%20-%20Senior%20Citizens%20elearning%20needs%20report.pdf
Globalisation e-learning is ensuring that your E-Learning will be neutral enough to work well in any culture around the world, it is helpful if you consider that they will be localized when you create them.
ReplyDeleteI came across these useful tips to keep in mind when doing a globalising e-learning.
Keep it Simple – Use short sentences and phrases with simple verb choice.
Use Glossaries for Consistent Terms – A person can say “computer monitor,” “computer display,” or “computer screen.” It is important to chose one and use it consistently.
Analogies are quite common in the United States, but they do not translate very well in other parts of the world. The same goes for references to famous people.
Graphics and Visuals – Avoid culturally sensitive photos and graphics; and, whenever possible, account for gender and race appropriately
Include buffer on the audio track of your videos – Adjusting for language expansion is even more challenging for voice over than it is for on screen graphics. The less buffer there is, the more meaning you will have to cut from the script to fit it in the foreign languages.
Limit on screen appearances – Voice overs are easier to localize for off screen narration.
Limit the number of talent – Your extra cost to have several additional voices will end up multiplied by the number of target languages.
Avoid synchronization of on screen animations or text with audio – In the case of video, it will make translation constraints even stricter, and in Flash it will require a native speaker to adjust the animations to match the timing of the audio in each language.
The idea of having senior citizens teaching immigrants a language would have at least 3 areas of benefit
ReplyDelete1. The senior citizens would train in on-line learning/teaching
2. They would feel appreciated by the community
3. The students would be learning the language as well as the culture etc of the country.
We have an aging population, people are living longer. So much so, that that retirement age has been pushed forward to age 65. Many citizens have an enormous baggage of experience which could be very useful to the community. Maybe they are not very technological, but if the community gives them the opportunity to learn, they could give a lot back to the community.
I have seen languages being taught on TV and it is very effective. I do remember the CDs and DVDs mentioned above :) However having an online tutor, maybe in real time could be such an asset.
Tatjana Chircop
I agree with the benefits that Tatjana has listed. Another advantage of having senior citizens teaching Maltese to emigrants is that the Maltese language will be kept alive in foreign countries mainly Canada, USA, Australia and England.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, due to the small population in Malta the number of books published in Maltese is quite limited. Teaching Maltese online might help in increasing the number of readers of Maltese hence the need for more books in Maltese.