Use of Online Technology Tools

Online learning
The following online learning technologies will help me the most in my class:
1. WebQuest:
This tool gives students huge responsibilities in their learning.
Talk about how you could use one of the technologies that qualify as an online experience with your students. I could integrate this tool in my culture class. For WebQuest can be task- based, teachers can use a series of tasks to guide students in content learning. Students will be more engaged and they can finish the tasks in a enjoyable way since most of the WebQuest requires group works. The concern is that teacher need to make the learning experience sustained and group the students carefully so each member can work harmoniously and contribute to the group.
2. Interactive Discussions between Students
For language classes, the most crucial goal is to help students learn how to communicate. Learning in classroom is important but I believe that students learn the fastest through real life contexts. The difficulty that most of the Chinese teachers are facing is the lack of target language environment because students rarely have opportunities to use Chinese language in their lives. With technology, communicating to a foreign friend who is in a different country has become a possibility. One of my students once met a Chinese girl on the airplane, and then they exchanged skype number. This student later give me this number and then I talked to this Chinese girl, and we set up a time and the whole class skyped with her. Students were so excited!
3. Online Research
My students love to learn Chinese culture become it has so many interesting facts and stories. They like to compare their own culture with it as well. However what we learn in school are some basic cultural facts and there are abundant neat things that students need to find by themselves. Online research give students a way to do so. When we finish a culture class, I always give students some freedom to dig more out of it. I would assigned them some questions and they need to find their answers at home, and sometimes they come back and tell me something that they found but even I have never heard about and then my students would be very happy because they think that they are very cool.
4. Podcast/Videocast
We all know that motivation is what that pushes students forward in learning. Where does motivation come from. I believe part of the motivation comes from students’ sens of accomplishment. As teachers, we need to make our students to feel that they are successful. American students like to show their talents and their achievement. In my class, I use video/camera/recording a lot. For example, I use online recording tool to check my students’ pronounciation; I video-tape their role-play and then we watch it together; I also like to take pictures on students works. I use them to keep track of students’ progress and after certain period of time, I will show students how far they have grow, that sometimes surprise themselves.

The technologies that won’t work for me.
1. Career planning Tools
This technology does not integrate with the subject that I teach. It is hard for me to use it.
2.Educational Blog
Educational blogs can be teachers good helper, because we can learn from each other. As for students, especially younger learners, they are more interested in something that has more than just reading. In my class, I use Edmodo to assign homeworks, collect homeworks and share important information. I think Edmodo sort of plays a role as our class blog but it is more kid-friendly because it is simple and direct view. They can also comment on each other’s work so I will keep using it.
RSS Feed
Personally I am using RSS Feed, it just makes my life a lot more easier because it saves me hours of randomly searching for what I want. As for students, at this point, RSS Feed is not used as a class-wide learning tool. But I think, for students who is personally interested in specific Chinese related topics, it could be a useful tool as well.

My Wiki Space

In my wiki space, I added some basic information about my school. Such as the address, principals and office hour. I also insert a picture of my school.Then I invited my professor to my wikispace.
Here is the screen shot that for my Wiki:

Here is my wiki link:http://xiaochensong.wikispaces.com/

TPACK WEBQUEST

In my opinion, the lesson "Blending Fiction and Nonfiction to Improve Comprehension and Writing Skills" is the best blend of the pedagogy, technology and content.In this lesson, students are provided with various kinds of resource. As for the instruction part, the teacher has a very detailed plan. The activities allow students to start from the basic knowledge such as the difference between fiction and nonfiction and then students use what they have learned as tools to help them learn more. I also think the wrap up activity can truly assess students on if they are able to use these knowledge.
Among the three lesson plans, the Wiktionary Lesson Plan has the least of technology, pedagogy and content. The tasks are not diverse.
To me, the best blend means that teacher choose the useful content that guides students in learning. Meanwhile, the teacher should have concrete lesson plan that reinforces students' learning through practicing. In this process, tasks should be more than assessing if students remember the knowledge but more importantly, if they know how to use what they have learned.