MASTER IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE AUTONOMOUS LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS 2012
SETTING AND OPTIMIZING LANGUAGE RESOURCE CENTRES The architecture of your VLRC
Patricia Alvarez
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•Select a group of learners you know well. You may have identified already their linguistic and / or affective needs. • Identify only ONE particular linguistic and or affective need you want to address by means of your VLRC
MODULE I PART 2 COMPETENCE • Demonstrate abilities to analyze and select the best structure for a VLRC according to the needs of a group of students. • Reflect on and discuss the features and challenges of using a given open source content management system to host a VLRC
VLRC Concept • In 2002, Paquette characterized a VLRC as a learning scenario which “rests on the networking of actors and resources, aims to provide access to learners, synchronously or asynchronously, to different resources: instructors and tutors, subject-matter experts, training managers and professors acting as designers”. Paquette, G (2002). Handbook on information technologies for education and training: Designing virtual learning centers. Berlin: Springer Verlag. Online available: http://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/docs/00/19/06/67/PDF/Paquette-Gilbert-Chap162001.pdf
The arquitecture of a VLRC The use of sections(tabs) makes it easy for users to jump straight to the information they need.
Rationale This section includes a brief reference to the VLRC and the educational significance it represents for the educational community in which it is to be implemented. The main purposes of the centre and also the users’ profile are also included in this section.
Home Here users are welcomed and guided to a more effective acquaintance with the different sections of the centre. A separate section where other users such as parents, other teachers or stake holders can also be devised, this section will facilitate the involvement of other members of the educational community.
Collaborative project Here users are invited to take part of a project related to the a topic of their interest in which the foreign language serves as a means of communication. Additionally, users find a general overview of the project, its objectives and the learning objects that will give them the input they need for the successful completion of the project.
Resources This section is based on the principle that “a learning system supports the learning process through various seamlessly integrated resources, tools and documents within a coherent set of objectives, tools and methods�. The resources will have to be chosen according to the learner needs and the production required from the learners in the collaborative project.
Help Desk Resources like a Shoutbox (where users are to leave and answer queries), a FAQ section, and the tutor and peer contact details are available in this section for users to post any questions they may have related to the collaborative project and the VLRC.
Forums & Chatrooms The communication tools provided in this section facilitate synchronous and asynchronous communication among the users of the centre. Their primary function is to enact different forms of collaboration or cooperation between learners for team work, group discussion and collaborative problem solving, etc that lead to the development of their collaborative
Visit some local VLRCs‌
LOCAL VLRCs
Content management systems • Some CMS/ open resources to host your VLRCs – – – – –
www.wordpress.com www.socialgo.com www.webs.com www.wix.com www.blogger.com
Post your Qs to the FAQs forums in our course