Using
the Internet in a LOTE Classroom
Extract from
Professional Development day held by Wendie Walker August 16th, 1999
Information about
using the Internet for researching, Language acquisition, discussion groups and themes
There are several ways of using the Internet in the classroom situation. Some
uses can include e-mailing other students - either schools within Australia or overseas;
research information such as projects or cultural information; access language acquisition
sites and help learn the language; use conferencing facilities and chat to people directly
in the language being learnt; or keeping abreast with current information, news and ideas.
The possibilities are endless and the more familiar you become with using the Internet,
the more you will find it a very valuable tool.
Using the Internet for researching
Set out a topic for the students to research. In this example we will look at Indonesian
Animals in the Wild. This report was actually carried out by students from years 3
- 6 in a primary school. The students were required to write a report about an animal that
can be found in the wild in Indonesia. They had access to books, magazines and the
Internet for their information, and each child was required to use the Internet to look
for suitable information.
They were required to find out where the animals live, what they eat, their
breeding and lifespan, their size and other general knowledge about the animal. They had
to indicate on a map where the animals can be found in Indonesia. They were all given a
report sheet with the details on it and a list of web sites they may find useful.
Before setting an activity like this, where you are using the Internet as a
resource tool, make sure that you check that all the sites you recommend are suitable for
children and that they do not have links to other sites that are unsuitable. We recommend
that you give the students a list of sites to use rather than letting them search for
their own site unless you can supervise them or provide a safe Internet environment.
Student
Handout
Laporan Binatang
(Animal Report)
For this report you need to choose an
animal that you can find in Indonesia and write a report to share with the class.
Some suggestions are:
| Komodo dragon |
Asian elephant |
| Tapir |
Fresh water dolphins |
| Tree kangaroo |
Rhinoceros |
| Monkeys |
Wild buffalo |
| Rainbow bee eater |
Cuckoo |
| Clouded leopard |
King fisher bird |
| Sumatran tiger |
Orang utan |
| Snakes |
Green Sea Turtle |
In your report include the following
information:
| Tempat hidupnya
/ location, where it lives |
Anak dan pemeliharaan/ its
young and breeding |
| Tinggi
/ height |
Berat / weight |
| Panjang
/ length |
Warna / colour |
| Kesukaan
/ likes |
Makanan / food |
| Ciri khas
/ special features |
jangka hidup / life span |
A map will be supplied and I want
you to colour in the area where the animal you have chosen can be found in Indonesia.
This report needs to be done on A3 paper, should be neat
and tidy and colorful, and include a list of good references you found for information and
any Internet web sites you used.
Web sites you might find
useful
Komodo dragons
www.merl.org/komodo.htm
www.cbsg.org/komodo.htm
www.amnh.org/Exhibition/Expedition/Treasures/Komodo_Dragons/Komodo.html
www.fonz.org/cp3.htm
Orang utan
www.ns.net/orangutan/index1.html
www.redcube.nl/bos/
www.fonz.org/cp3.htm
www.205.168.252.101/stories/nature/orangs/zooms/dis1zoom5.html
www.205.168.252.101/stories/nature/orangs/report1.html#5
Rhinoceros
www.rhinos-irf.org/rhinos/javan.html
www.rhinos-irf.org/programs/sumatranprograms.html
Tapir
www.tapirback.com/malayan
www.schoolnet.ca/collections/notebook/english/etapir.htm
Reptiles
www.herpafauna.com/park.html
Sumatran Tigers
http://5tigers.actgroup.com/tsimemo.htm
http://5tigers.actgroup.com/allabout.htm
Sunbears
http://fonz.org/zoogoer/1999/28(2)sunbear.htm
www.lightedway.org/Kidsite/bear.html
www.native-net.com/bears/sunbears.html
General
Information Sites about Animals
Animal Lovers & Information of South East Asia
http://members.tripod.com/~lwrobin/index
Indonesian Myth Homepage
www.st.rim.or.jp/~cycle/MYdeerE.HTML
www.st.rim.or.jp/~cycle/MYbaseE.HTML
Kids Zoo - The Indonesian Rain Forest
www.kidszoo.com/indonesi.htm
Nature Conservation in Indonesia
www.noord.bart.nl/~edcolijn
Dhole Homepage - about Indonesian Wild dogs
www.dcpbase.demon.co.uk/dcp/
Belajar Bahasa Indonesia
www.seasite.niu.edu/Themes/Animals/wild_animals/Default.htm
Good site to look up animal names.
Indonesian Language Learning
www.arts.qut.edu.au/languages/indonesian/indosite/net4new/tests/frm7.htm
Has an interactive form where you can look up animals names
Natural History Notebooks
www.schoolnet.ca/collections/notebook/english
A very good site for general interest about endangered animals and has lots of good
pictures to download.
Units of Work about Animals
www.stpetersgirls.sa.edu.au/Asiapage/Unittitl.htm
This site has a unit of work already prepared by a school in South Australia, which
has lots of useful information and worth printing out and looking at.
Language acquisition sites
Some sites required that you download some software to run their programs. This
software is usually a very small package that does not take up much room on your computer,
is free and, generally easy to download and install. Just follow the directions.
Foreign Languages for Travellers
www.travlang.com/languages/
This is a very good site for primary students which has sound files that you can
listen to. It also has some links to other interesting and useful sites
Radio Australia
www.abc.net.au/ra/indon/indhome.htm
A great site with lots of information and you can click on the Audio
and it downloads an Indonesian program. It needs RealPlayer to run.
Kamus Indonesia-Inggris
www.iit.edu/~syafsya/searchconv.cgi
This site had some sound files. You need to type in a
in the search field to view the database and the choose the conversation you want to hear.
It was a bit slow downloading and I experienced a few problems from time to time.
Pacific Net
www.pacific.net.id/segmen/anak_i.html
This is a fantastic site produced in Indonesia which has heaps of information and
should be on everyone's bookmark. There is a section for children with games and
activities that the kids just love. There are also lots of links to other interesting
sites as well.
Kamus Indonesia-Inggris
www.iit.edu/~syafsya/searchword.cgi
This site had a dictionary with approximately 9200 words and included whether they
were nouns, verbs, adjectives etc.
Bahasa Indonesia
www.geocities.com/Athens/Forum/2871/
This site had some interactive questions and answers activities to do. It was not a
bad site but some areas of it are still under construction.
Belajar Bahasa Indonesia
www.seasite.niu.edu/Indonesian/
A fantastic site! It has an interactive dictionary. Lots of games students can play
and is suitable for primary students.There is an interactive game which examines word
order.
Indonesian Language Learning
www.arts.qut.edu.au/languages/indonesian/indosite/net4new/index.html
This site also has some interactive activities for students and has some audio
functions as well. Worth a visit!
How to Learn Indonesian in 7 Days
http://mbordt.webjump.com/bahasa8c.htm
Don't believe the title! This site mainly consists of vocabulary lists of the basic
phrases and vocab. Useful for some terms and worth visiting.
Inside Indonesia
www.inside indonesia.org/
There is lots of information and if you click on Learning you can go to many
activities which are supported by information in the Inside Indonesia Magazine.
Foreign Languages for Travellers
http://dictionaries.travlang.com/
A site with a downloadable dictionary.
Free Dictionary
www.freedict.com/onldict/ind.html
A searchable database for words both in English and Indonesian and you can cross
check the meanings. I found that there were a lot of words that were not on the database
and there were better sites around.
Search Engines
When researching on the Internet for anything it is important to remember that
not all search engines have all the sites listed. You will need to look in several search
engines to get the best possible range of sites for the information you require. Listed
below are a number of search engines we found useful when doing this research.
Go to the search engine site and put in the key words for your topic. Also, try
different combinations of those words and slight variations and you will amazed at how
many sites you come up with. Just remember that some may not be suitable so you need to
look at them before you recommend them to your students.
Discussion Groups
There are currently a couple of Australian discussion groups on the Internet
which are very useful for Indonesian teachers. It is worth joining these groups - you do
not have to have an input if you do not want to, but they often notify you, by email, of
new sites, news and current information.
Indonesian Teachers
Run by Eddie Ridwan, this group tends to be specifically for Indonesian Teachers
and they often notify members about new courses, jobs, interesting information, and
resources. To join the group you need to email Eddie and give him your details and email
address to be put on the mailing list.
Email to: indonesian-teachers@rite.ed.qut.edu.au
Asia on Line
Run by Lan Wang this group has an Asian focus so you often receive information
about various Asian countries including Indonesia. They send lots of information out and
there is a high participant level. Well worth looking at. To join you can either fill in
the online form at www.curriculum.edu.au/accessasia/network/online/join.htm
or email with details to Lang Wang at lan@curriculum.edu.au
This is an extract of a Professional Development inservice given to LOTE
teachers. If you would like any more information please contact me at wendie@tpg.com.au
Thematic |
Animals |