TOPIC 24: Aspectos tecnológicos y pedagógicos de la utilización de materiales audiovisuales (el periódico, la TV, el

magnetófono, el vídeo, etc.). El ordenador como recurso auxiliar para el aprendizaje y perfeccionamiento de las
lenguas extranjeras.

3. VISUAL, ORAL AND AUDIO-VISUAL MATERIALS.

In this part of the essay I will make a deep analysis of three types of materials: visual, oral and audiovisual.

 Visual materials provide additional clues for understanding, and they can serve to integrate oral and written
skills.

Some of them are very simple to elaborate and to use, like worksheets, flashcards, posters or a blackboard. In fact,
simplicity and availability are their main advantages.

The blackboard is a very effective tool for presenting contents, guiding the lessons and clarifying doubts. On the other
hand, it is time consuming and it requires clear hand-writing and a good organization skill.

In recent years, boards have been complemented by projectors. They basically play the same role, but they are attention
catching and allow to display contents from various kind of media (documents, presentations, videos).

To finish with visual materials, we can outline some authentic ones like realia, newspapers, magazines or leaflets. They
provide a meaningful context and topicality. They also constitute an opportunity to promote reading habits and to put
into practice intensive and extensive reading (scanning and skimming). However, they have to be carefully chosen
according to students' capacities, since they normally include difficult grammar points and vocabulary.

 Oral materials are also quite useful, mainly for developing the listening capacity, coping with both segmental
and supra-segmental features of the language (stress, rhythm and intonation).
One of them is the radio, which presents natural and realistic language and various accents. As it may be too difficult for
children, teachers normally take advantage of CDs, audio-clips and songs. They allow teachers to play the fragment
several times or to stop it when necessary. Besides, the language they include is adapted.

In order to get the most from oral materials, we can follow a scheme presented by Alburquerque to organize a session
based on the receptive skills. It is divided into three phases.

o During the pre-listening stage teachers introduce the topic and create some expectations, presenting the
vocabulary and preparing students for further work.
o In the while-listening stage students use strategies to get general and specific information from the text, while
teachers focus on the linguistic aspects of the lesson.
o Finally, the post-listening stage is focused on checking children's comprehension, and on the consolidation and
extension of the contents by connecting them to their previous knowledge and to the rest of skills.

 Thirdly, audio-visual materials have to be analyzed.

Similarly to the radio, TV can be used to include socio-cultural elements of English speaking countries, to provide a
meaningful context and to take into consideration students' interests. Obviously, it is more frequent to select DVDs,
videos or cartoons adapted to the level of the pupils.

Some practical techniques for this kind of materials are the following: watching the video without listening in order to
make predictions; stopping the video and asking questions; summarizing the plot of a story or writing a different ending
of the story.

Additionally, I will make reference to video cameras, which can give the students the opportunity to produce creative
language. We can record drama activities for further study and correction, and children can be shown how they are
progressing.

[Just to finish this point, I would like to point out that teachers’ own voice and body constitute one of the most effective
tools in the English class and can be considered audio-visual resources. It is important to use a good model of language, a
catching rhythm and intonation, and a variety of gestures and non-verbal communication features with the intention to
get the attention of the children and transmit information in an efficient manner.]

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4. THE USE OF COMPUTERS FOR TEACHING ENGLISH.

All the materials presented previously have been widely used by teachers for decades. But in recent years, computers
have emerged as one the most useful tools for education, and a huge amount of computer-based materials have
proliferated.
In fact, computers compile most of the resources, techniques and materials explained so far. In combination with other
devices, we can use them to play CDs, DVDs, videos, listen to online radios, read texts and online newspapers, display
images, etc.
Additionally, while other resources are quite fixed, the use of computers is continuously developing and new software
applications will appear in the future.

To start with the various possibilities that computers provide, I am going to explain interactive activities. Nowadays, the
majority of course-books include this kind of activities, but we can also create our own, using free online websites such as
Quizlet, Kahoot, Live worksheets or E-valum. They are quite varied, as they include reading and answering, multiple
choice questions, crosswords, matching words and pictures or labelling images. They present such a variety of benefits,
that a whole methodology appeared based on their use: CALL (Computer Assisted Language Learning). It promotes
autonomous work and provides students with immediate response and feedback in a rather individualized and interactive
teaching scenario.

Computers also give us the chance to use software applications with general purposes , like word processors, designing
programs such as Canva or Genially or interactive maps. They can be used to improve reading and writing skills, and to
work on the key competences of the students, especially the digital one. They are also an opportunity for implementing
contextualized activities, cross-curricular work, projects or CLIL tasks.

When dealing with computers, one of the most powerful tools is internet. It has multiple values.
 Internet as a source of materials : many materials can be found online, like videos, activities, online questionnaires,
diagrams, worksheets or interactive games.
 Internet as a source of information : it also serves for researching on specific topics, to find answers to questions, to
read and summarize the news, etc. Related to this issue, we can set up web-quests or interactive escape rooms to
induce the students to investigate on a topic.
 Internet as a place to set up other interactive tools : blogs, websites and the virtual classroom from EducaMadrid
are useful in the class, and also for pupils to practice at home.
 Internet as a tool for communication : it allows individuals to connect with other people and take part in
conversations by using e-mails, video-chats or forums.

[Due to the increasing existence of online teaching situations, the use of internet and online software has become a
priority in modern teaching. In this sense, we can remark two types of techniques.

o An asynchronous session can be set up by recording videos, creating presentations and interactive activities;
uploading them to a blog or a virtual classroom so pupils can access to them whenever they can at their own pace.

o A synchronous session, on the contrary, implies the teacher carrying out the session online while pupils receive the
explanations by being connected at the same time thank to a video-conference application. (Jitsi or Teams)]

In fact, uploading contents in an asynchronous manner has become so frequent for revision and reinforcement of
contents both in the classroom and at home, that a brand new tendency has appeared: flipped classroom. It tries to
switch the way in which pupils interact with contents and activities, so students are exposed to the contents at home and
they eventually do activities later on in the classroom, reverting the usual order that has been traditionally used.
Another resource that is becoming increasingly important in teaching is smartboards. The combination of a computer, a
projector and a sensitive touchscreen has significantly changed the way in which teachers and students interact with the
contents. They can be an alternative version of the traditional blackboard, but their potential is much higher. They can be
used to control computer applications, to write notes, to display charts and images, to search on the Internet, to play
videos and games, or to save the work for following sessions. They are ideal for whole-class work due to its size, so we
will avoid groups of students around a single computer. They are attention catching, interactive and promote
participation.
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The last element to take into consideration is computer games. It has been proved that the use of games implies a huge
number of psychological and methodological benefits, like an increase of motivation, participation and sense of
achievement.
In the English class, teachers normally select simple games based on linguistic aspects, from online platforms like Word
wall or Quizziz in order to induce the children to revise and practice pronunciation, lexical items and grammar structures.
Concerning games, we should be aware of a modern tendency, the use of computers and technological tools for the
“gamification” of the teaching process, which introduces game elements and techniques such as avatars, points,
challenges and badges; giving students the opportunity to get points and to improve one's own achievements. This
technique is frequently used for implementing motivational and behavioral plans, which allow teachers to manage the
group in a more effective way. For that purpose, we can even find free online applications like ClassDojo or ClassCraft.

Additionally, I would like to highlight that Information and Communication Technologies is a wide field that will continue
to develop in a consistent manner. In fact, modern devices like tablets and smart phones are increasingly getting the
attention of educators.

To bring this essay to an end, I would like to remark that all the resources and techniques I have analyzed are quite useful
and beneficial from various points of view, so their use is widely justified when they fit the necessities of the group.
However, they are just one of the many materials that can be selected for the English class, and we need to bear in mind
that the dynamics of the lessons can never be submitted or conditioned by them , since they are just a medium to achieve
the objectives.