[etni] Re: Chagit's comment on teaching ABC
- From: HAGIT LAHAV חגית להב <hagit_27@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <etni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 22 Oct 2011 10:45:49 +0200
Laurin and all
Since I am checking the other lessons now, with the codes you have sent me,
I will not respond not now and not here.
I did sent you some emails over the weekend, with my opinion and impression
not only about the use of mnemonics and not only for the letters' names, but
also as to teaching vocabulary methods which I, again, found no sense or
logic in the mnemonics that you use there too, and it contradicted the new
ministry curriculum that we need to teach according to, and EFL teaching
practice theories that I know.
(I am sure there are a lot of theories that I don't know(.
I downloaded it after having read about it here sometime, and only during
Sukkot vacation had the time to go into it.
I wrote it to you personally. I think you haven’t read it yet, maybe after
Shabat.
The way it's done, as I explained, collides with all the theories to teach
EFL that I was taught, teach vocabulary or sounds of letters.
Nevertheless, I am sure there are a lot of things I can and should still
learn, and this is why I check (and share) anything I come across with, that
intrigues me, usually with colleagues.
I am not a thirty years teacher, only three...so there's always what to
learn and I am on it!
I did point out those issues in my personal emails to you. I also commented
about other features out of care, not in a purpose of bashing Has Vehalila!
(software graphics and recordings' voice and what our pupils are exposed to
today, though I mentioned the fact, that as a teacher I wouldn't rule out a
useful teaching aid just because of that).
I guess you'll read my comments and relate to me directly as I did send them
directly to you, and of course we can discuss here issues of disagreement or
teaching methods/ theories and how to implement then in our classroom or
with individual pupils.
I hope that all will be conducted in a respectable and useful manner and
there will be no hard feelings for I do not come to offend, just to share
opinions.
Respectfully-
Hagit Lahav
------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 21 Oct 2011 01:02:49 +0200
From: Laurin Lewis <lewisl@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: [etni] Chagit's comment on teaching ABC
Chagit
Thank you for posting some comments on our software. (You refer it as
Dr. English, but the actual name of the package is Lamad Anglit LeloMoreh.)
But it appears that you have only seen the first lesson of the
beginners' program -- the one that teaches the names of the ABC. The
complete package gives you not only that introductory lesson, but 192
other lessons, mainly dealing with vocabulary (5000 words) and
ranging from the beginners' level to high-level bagrut preparation.
It also reviews basic grammar. The free trial version gives 7 sample
lessons. It's available from our web-site at www.english4students.com.
The complete version is currently offered without charge to English
teachers and also to schools. You just have to download the trial
version. Then e-mail me at
<mailto:info@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>info@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx and
request your free activation codes, which convert the trial version
into a full version.
Teachers, I suggest that you download and install the trial version
from our web-site, Yes, look at the Names of ABC lesson and make up
your mind, but also look at the whole range of vocabulary lessons.
Then, if you find that the program would be useful to your pupils,
you can have licenses for as many computers as you have in your
school. Hey, it's a gift! You can reach me by e-mail or by phone at
050-6734414.
By the way, the method of teaching the ABC by visual mnemonics is not
exactly original. It was inspired by the success, reported in an
academic journal, of an American university using this concept to
teach the Russian alphabet to American students. I had the idea that
visual mnemonics might work to teach the Latin (English) alphabet to
Israelis. I don't have any hard data about the method, but I used it
in a chug that I taught to elementary school kids a few years ago,
and I was impressed by the results. The method has solid theoretical
credentials and, in fact, was the subject of my M.A. dissertation in
Teaching English as a Foreign Language (London University). Anyway,
it's only a small part of our whole software package, which is yours
for the asking. If you don't like it, nobody is forcing you. And,
Barry, it wouldn't hurt to have a look at the method before rendering
an opinion about it, or about me, personally. (That said, we've met
at ETAI and I have a high personal regard for you.)
Laurin Lewis
Self-Access English Learning Center
Jerusalem
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