Speaking Tool: Discord

 

Discord is an app that allows individuals to create groups called "servers" dedicated to a topic or just for chatting, and these servers can be divided into separate groups called "channels" that are dedicated to different topics. These channels can be put into two different categories: text channels and voice channels. These are self explanatory, the text channels are for texting and the voice channels are for individuals to speak with each other. 

A teacher could create a server for a classroom, and use the voice channels to practice speaking with the students. The teacher could also monitor the students speaking each other via muting themselves as to not distract the students while they practice. Also, as the server manager, in this case the teacher, could mute or unmute someone at any time, and they could also check if the student has lower their voice input and make it higher, so no cheating! 

Listening Video: Wall-e : How to Tell a Story Visually - Pixar Video Essay

                        Question: What do you think the speaker means when he says "This shot tells you                                         everything you need to know about Wall-E."? (Timestamp:5.32)

Reading Tool: Archive of Our Own (Ao3)

 

Ao3 is a website that allows users to share their creativity and read what others have written. Ao3 is actually a fanfiction sharing website, which might make it seem inadequate for classroom use to some people, but Ao3's contents and tagging system allows readers to be autonomous in their reading and learning. 

Ao3's unique tagging system allows readers to filter out what they want to or do not want to see. Readers are able to search for works that align with their interests, so they have the freedom to choose from the thousands of works Ao3 has to offer. Readers are able to select if they would perefr a light reading or not, or if they want to they can choose the language level, altough it is not very adequate. If the reader accidentally stumbles upon a work that is NSFW, the website warns them asks the reader if they wish to proceed before showing the content. This allows the readers who did not exclude the necessery tags to avoid encountering unwanted content. 

Ao3 is made by fans for fans, so the content and the grammar are not regulated or checked for errors. There is also a chance that the author of the work does not tag their work properly, so the reader might stumble upon a work that is harder for them to read based on their level. To become an author, one must be sent a digital invitation by another author, so not everyone can share their work.

In conclusion, while Ao3 can be inadequate at times, the fact that it allows readers to engage in their interests while reading in English outweighs that. 

Vocabulary Tool: Urban Dictionary

 

Urban Dictionary is a free website that allows users to learn the meanings of every day, or newly formed, slang by givin gexplanations and examples. However, the data is provided by users themselves and is not regulated. This means that while Urban Dictionary can be a great tool for learning every day vocabulary, false information could also be spread using it. 

An account is required if you want to post, but its not necessery if you wish to access information. Urban Dictionary is easy to navigate, it provides users with information about how many people agree or disagree about what was shared, or if it is correct or not, with the like and dislike buttons under every post. Since Urban Dictionary is not regulated, some explanations for the given vocabulary may not be comprehensible to an L2 speaker due to the individual making the explanation including certain words, phrases or references in the name of humour. 

Grammar Tool: Grammarly

 

    Grammarly is a writing aid in the cloud that checks texts for spelling, grammar, punctuation, clarity, engagement, and delivery errors. Artificial intelligence is used to locate the problem and look for a suitable substitute. Users can also alter their language's style, tone, and context according to their preferences. Alex Shevchenko, Max Lytvyn, and Dmytro Lider launched it in 2009. The Google Docs-optimized beta version of Grammarly's browser extension was released in 2018. By the year 2022, it will be offered as a desktop application download, a browser extension, and a smartphone keyboard.