Transforming the Teaching of Language Online (TTLO)
Tuesday, June 20–Sunday, July 16, 2023
Asynchronous* 4-week intensive online summer institute
After the experiences of emergency online teaching, language instructors want to expand their knowledge of what really works well online. This institute delves into important elements of a successful online language class, such as online course design guidelines, best practices for online teaching, oral practice and feedback techniques, universal design for learning (UDL), and the analysis of communicative-based online activities and the tools to create them. Best of all, participants will see these principles in action by taking part in online language activities as language learners in this unique institute taught by a team of experienced online instructors.
This highly participatory institute is perfect for teachers who want to transform their online teaching skills as well as for those who are brand-new to teaching online. By the end of the institute, participants will have an e-portfolio of new—or improved—activities ready to be incorporated into their next online language course, along with the learning experience to better support their online students.
| Program Schedule | |
| Week 1 |
Introduction—Getting to Know Each Other and TTLO!
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| Week 2 | Online Language Teaching and Learning
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| Week 3 | Course Design Guidelines and Teaching Best Practices
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| Week 4 | Technology for Instruction and Student Engagement
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After this institute, you will be able to:
- Use your experiences as an online learner to better support your online students;
- Apply guidelines, checklists, and best practices to improve your online courses;
- Create online community with teacher presence and group activities;
- Develop online lessons with authentic materials and oral production;
- Deliver feedback and assessments in new ways;
- Use online tools to create activities within the framework of the 3 communicative modes; and
- Make your course site and documents more accessible to all by applying UDL principles.
Instructors
Ritu Jayakar (Instructor) is a Lecturer of Hindi and Asian Studies at the Pennsylvania State University. She is interested in language pedagogy and the use of technology for second language acquisition.
Marlene Johnshoy (Program Director) is the Online Education Program Director and Web Manager for CARLA. A former Spanish instructor, she has given numerous workshops across the country on many aspects of web-based language teaching and learning, with a special interest in the professional development of online language teachers.
Frances Matos (Instructor) is a Language Education Consultant. She was formerly a Senior Instructor in Spanish and Portuguese Studies, University of Minnesota. She developed and taught a hybrid Spanish institute at the University of Minnesota that has been offered successfully since 1997 and designed, developed, and revised the fully online first-year Spanish institutes for the University's College of Continuing Education, which she taught for 3 years.
Leslie Plyler (Mentor Teacher/ePortfolios) currently teaches middle school online French and high school online French (levels 1-5) after retiring from the traditional French classroom in 2019 after 30 years. She wrote the curriculum for the online French courses for her district: Iredell-Statesville Schools, North Carolina. Leslie enjoys sharing information about the tech tools and strategies she has learned over the last six years in teaching online.
Target Audience
This institute is designed for foreign language and ESL teachers at the high school and postsecondary levels who are interested in developing and improving online language classes. This institute is not designed for elementary or immersion teachers, but it could be applied with adaptations for a specific context.
*IMPORTANT NOTES FOR THIS ASYNCHRONOUS ONLINE INSTITUTE:
- Book Purchase: The book The Online Teaching Survival Guide: Simple and Practical Pedagogical Tips (3rd edition), by Conrad & Boettcher, is required for this online institute. The paperback version of the book (ISBN-13: 978-1119765004) is approximately $28 USD; the cost of an ebook version from Amazon is approximately $32. You may also be able to request a copy from your school or university library.
- This intensive 4-week institute is almost entirely asynchronous (not real time) with two deadlines each day.
- You must keep up with assignments each day as they build on each other. Many assignments involve collaboration with other participants.
- There will be 1-3 synchronous activities—one with a partner, others with a small group. Times will be arranged by the partners/group. There may also be optional synchronous small group discussions or office hours.
- "Intensive" means that you can expect 6-8 hours of work per day. You may spend more than that if you enjoy digging further into the content or need more time to read. Do not plan to teach or work at the same time when taking this institute!
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Make sure you can meet the tech requirements for this institute.
Priority Teacher Professional Development Scholarship Program–NEW!
The Priority Teacher Professional Development Scholarship program is designed to promote equity and access to affordable professional development for world language educators who are currently teaching at a Community College, Minority Serving Institution, or Historically Black College/University in the United States and/or are currently teaching a Less Commonly Taught Language in the United States. The program provides funding for selected teachers in these categories to attend a CARLA Summer Institute for no charge.
Learn more and apply by March 17, 2023 on the Priority Teacher Professional Development Scholarship website.
I loved this institute! I felt like I grew so much as an educator (both online and in-person) through the thoughtful, thought-provoking units of these four weeks. This is a must-take institute if you need a refresher on the most up-to-date, effective pedagogy! You'll leave with lots of great resources, reflections, and a whole network of colleagues.
