Overview

Speaking and listening are fundamental to language learning. VoiceThread offers the best of both worlds here with Q&A like functionality with the benefit of video, audio or text commentry or narration on presentations or within conversations. Some basic strategies include:

• Assessment 1:1 Instruction & feedback- Create a 'comment on a VT' assignment for your students. Create a VT slide/presentation outlining their task eg. tell me a story in this language
• Collaborative Learning peer-to-peer- Create a whole of Class Course VT and have students respond to each other in Q&A, Debate or interview fashion. Create this as a 'comment on a VT' assignment (no marks) if you want to capture who has engaged, and remind those who haven't.
• Set an entire presentation ito be delivered in the foreign language as assessment using the'Create a VT' assignment. This might be a research assignment about the language Country of Origin for example.

Check out the links below to see how others are using VoiceThread to implement Language Learning strategies.

Considerations

STUDENT ENGAGEMENT

• You will find that if you give students the option to comment in voice, video, or text, most will choose text.
• Keep in mind that students will be nervous — so leaving friendly feedback levels the playing field and helps creates a supportive environment for all learners (setting the tone)

USING VOICETHREAD FOR ASSESSMENT PURPOSES?

New Voicethread Assignments enhancements were released 23rd Nov, 2020.  To see these enhancements visit the VoiceThread 'New Assignments' guide.

Rubrics

VT does not integrate with Academic Integrity Systems or RubricsWorkaround in placeSome Academics are doing rubric work using other cloud-based applications such as Microsoft excel/word etc. and providing a link to that students rubric as part of a ‘text comment’ in VoiceThread

Enabling Technology

Equipment & Browser compatibility

Students will need access to the following equipment:

• Laptop, phone or device with camera and microphone
• PC with USB microphone or camera

VoiceThread is supported fully by the latest versions of Firefox and Chrome. Learn more about VoiceThread browser requirements

Implement

Important - Always have your students access your VoiceThread links via Learning@Griffith to avoid user-account conflict.

Basic Access, set-up and guides can be found on the ‘Using Learning@Griffith for Staff’ VoiceThread page

VoiceThread conducts regular online 'Language Instruction' Workshops.

Griffith Graduate Attributes

The use of VoiceThread may assist the attainment of the following Griffith Graduate Attributes:

• Effecitve communicators and collaborators
• Innovative, created and entrepreneurial

Support Resources

• Teaching Languages with VoiceThread (VT)

  A VT outlining how to Teaching Languages with VT

• VT Research Category | Language Learning

  Articles about Language Learning using VT

• VoiceThread - Using Learning@Griffith (Staff)

  Basic VoiceThread Guides

• Developing oral proficiency with VoiceThread: Learners’ strategic uses and views

  This study explored Russian as a foreign language (RFL) learners’ self-reported strategic uses of VoiceThread

• Dynamic Dialogue in Interpreter Education via Voicethread

  This paper provides a glimpse into the use of interactive dialogue to increase and improve interactivity among interpreter education students via Voicethread

• VoiceThread (Fact sheet). Getting Started with the VLE Tools and the Course Design Standards.

  Fact sheet

• VoiceThread (Module). Getting Started with the VLE Tools and the Course Design Standards.

  Module

Contributed by

• Learning Futures
  

Preferred Citation

Learning Futures (2020). VoiceThread for Language Learning. Retrieved from https://app.secure.griffith.edu.au/exlnt/entry/7271/view