Learning a language through new media: an audio documentary

If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to learn a language using new media: podcasts, streaming video, iPod apps, etc., then you’ll want to listen to this documentary.

Avant-Garde: Learning a Language Through New Media is the end product of my year-long college thesis in the Creative Communications program at Red River College which was to do just that: learn French, using new media.

It’s been a wild ride that has opened my eyes into the big, wonderful world of e-learning, of which I’ve only just scratched the surface.

Whether you’re a technology guru or a casual Internet user, I encourage you to try it for yourself and experience how the face of education and language learning is evolving.

The full documentary is expected to air on 92.9 KICK FM in Winnipeg, and a portion of it on CBC Radio One in Manitoba in the upcoming weeks. I’ll update this post with the dates as soon as I know them.

If you’re interested in using my documentary or discussing my project, please leave a comment below and we’ll get in touch.

Egypt’s ‘citizen journalists’: whose voice do you want to hear?

I don’t normally take an interest in international conflicts as much as I have in the one happening now in Egypt.

It piques my curiosity because a country which I had previously thought to be relatively stable is now erupting in chaos.

I’m also amazed at how organised the protestors are in getting their message out and how quickly they adapt to different mediums when the Internet and cell phone service is shut down.

When the Internet is up, however – look out! It seems to me this whole event is increasing awareness of how powerful social media is beyond the pointless status updates (something that, of course, us CreComms have studied and known all along).

CBC did a feature this past week on the role of social media in the Egyptian crisis which gives a good summary on the topic. What's really interesting is the host's comment right at the end of the feature: “It’s incredible – the technology has made almost everyone into citizen journalists.”

I’m not a journalism major, but I did my time learning the ways for a year, and I’ll admit a part of me cringed at the comment coming from none other than a professional journalist.

This is a subject we’ve broached many times in some of my classes – whether social media is weakening the quality of journalism and turning anyone with an opinion and an Internet connection into a ‘citizen journalist’.

I recently started following Nahla Ayed (CBC), Sonia Verma (G&M), and Nick Kristof (NYT) on Twitter – all of them professional journalists accredited by their respective media stations to provide reports from Egypt.

I suppose I chose to follow them because they were easily accessible (I found Sonia Verma’s account after reading about her detainment on the G&M site) – I wouldn’t know where to find an English-language Twitter feed from an everyday Egyptian (suggestions?).

But I also realise that in the unrelenting chatter that is today’s social media, I still rely on the ‘real’ journalists: those who know how to keep an ear to the ground and are trained to filter out the most important stories from the many that are out there (an arguable point, obviously). It is also these abilities that, among other things, are currently making journalists targets for the country’s pro-government supporters.

As the situation escalates in Egypt, whose voice do you want to hear reporting it?

Out ‘n about in la belle pays

Bonjour tout le monde!

Cette post est plus tard, mais c’est tres important aussi!

In August, I went on my first trip to Paris and I am thrilled to say it was a grand succès. Up until that point I’d been learning French for almost three months and the trip came at good point in the learning process. It was the proof I needed to see that all my hard work really would pay off.

Before Paris, the only practice I got speaking French with other French speakers was during my monthly visits with my old high school French teacher, and I was a little concerned about how I’d fare with perfect strangers.

For starters, I surprised myself with how much confidence I had when I was in Paris. Though I’m not fluent by any means, what little French I did know assured me that I would be able get my message across – spur of the moment – if I had to.

For instance, I had no qualms about asking a security guard at the Louvre for directions to the Venus de Milo, or explaining to a street vendor how many scoops and what flavour ice cream I wanted on my cone (pistachio and dark chocolate, of course).

The highlight of the trip, however, was our waiter at Le Soufflet restaurant who was extremely friendly and patient with us, and graciously paid me a compliment on my “parfait Francais”.

Just walking through the streets everyday and being constantly surrounded by a French environment made an improvement on my language skills – words came easier to me and I was able to pick up a few new catch phrases, like “bonne journee a vous”, instead of the tried and true “au revoir”.

I should note that you don’t have to travel all the way to Paris just to get some experience speaking in French and hearing others use the language.

If, like me, you know someone who’s fluent in the language and willing to help, meeting regularly and talking to each other in French is a great way to practice constructing your own sentences on the fly while getting feedback and suggestions.

But if you don’t have anyone on hand, that’s no big deal either. New media has made this easier, especially for people looking to speak with someone from the language’s country of origin. There are numerous online language communities – some well managed and free to use, some not – which give users the opportunity to practice a language with others either through text, audio, or video chat.

The only downside with this, of course, is the time difference between countries and continents can make it hard to find a time to meet that’s at a decent hour for both parties.

Perhaps I’ll try an online community like Skype when I’m not in school full time. For now, I’m trying to keep my language skills fresh by listening to podcasts and Internet radio where French is the primary language.

I recommend One Thing in a French Day (also available to download from iTunes), and the CBC French Radio app.

Coming soon: my audio documentary about my experience learning French through new media.

#wpgvotes, new media is there

I’m fairly interested when there’s an election in my community, and usually spend the evening of the big day watching the results appear on TV. But yesterday’s election was easily the most exciting I’ve experienced so far.

Why? Because I didn’t watch it on TV.

My primary source as news developed was the #wpg votes Twitter feed with CBC Radio 1 streaming live online in the background.

Together, they gave me the up-to-the-minute (or, with Twitter, up-to-the-second) information I needed, while eliminating what I now consider the rather useless visual that TV provides.

I didn’t miss the line of candidates’ photos on screen with vote numbers flickering beside them, or the constant turn to a panel of experts giving their thoughts and predictions as the votes come in.

Instead, thanks to Twitter, I looked at the occasional backstage photos that journalists and CreComm J Majors tweeted and enjoyed the mixed commentating and news updates from “regular” people, and media professionals with some nice interaction and RTing between the two.

Sometimes I think that presenting local events in the traditional newscast format can create a disconnect, in that it doesn’t give that close-to-home, unscripted feel of news as it happens.

Following the election via the very untraditional Twitter, however, made the entire thing seem more relevant by being able to read real reactions from “regular” people (admittingly not always a good thing), while at the same time just as informative because of input from media outlets, too.

That being said, new media isn’t for everyone, and this time around the local TV stations really failed to deliver for those looking to them for immediate results.

I should point out that I don’t live in Winnipeg, and therefore couldn’t vote in that election (even though its results still very much affect me), but way out in my small part of the world, new media also tried to be a voice in the election fray.

Tried, and... well, it was a very quiet voice. Of the nine people running, only two had an online presence.

One candidate effectively (in my case) used this presence to appeal to youth voters, sending them a targeted letter with links to his blog and Facebook page.

He was the only person running to acknowledge the youth vote, as well as understand that it required an approach different from the usual canvassing. Case in point, although my parents read the brochures, letters, and other scraps of paper handed to them at the door, I preferred to read up whatever I could about candidates online.

I imagine there was a time when people didn’t know who was their new mayor until they read the (print!) newspaper the next day. Now, with better technology and web posting, people can – and demand – to know the results immediately.

Unless, of course, you have to rely on the Association of Manitoba Municipalities (AMM) for your results. Even with their website advertised as the new “one-stop shop on election night”, I still had a day’s wait. As Kenton Larsen would say, 'wah wah'!

New media works, but only if you use it well. AMM election organizers take note.