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Category: updates

Website Update May 2024

Written by Randall on . Posted in updates.

A lot has happened over the past two months, including presenting at the TESOL 2024 International Convention in Tampa, Florida. It was an interesting conference in which everything seemed to revolve around the use of AI technologies in the language classroom and its application in materials development. A colleague and I gave our own presentation on how to leverage AI in language teaching, and we reported on research that we had done on teachers’ perceptions of AI.

I also continue to create content on this website that includes authentic and unscripted video interviews on a variety of topics. Now, I have organized the interviews by topic to help teachers and learners find content that supports their areas of interest. I have many other videos that I am editing, and I will continue to build these lessons throughout the summer.

I also am preparing for some upcoming presentations during the summer on technology, and I am planning on some family activities that often serve as the springboard to new ideas on my websites.

Wishing you all the best in your teaching and learning.

Randall

Website Update March 2024

Written by Randall on . Posted in updates.

Our daughter, Emily, is a ceramic artist, and she has created some beautiful soup/drink mugs with my website on them. I love the feel of these, and I will give away a few at the TESOL International Convention in Tampa, Florida, next week.

If you’re at the convention, and I still have one in my backpack, just ask me for it. I’m happy to showcase my daughter’s work and thank people for sharing my websites with their students over the years.

Here is my presentation schedule at the convention:

Presentation Title: “The Ripple Effect: How Effective Conflict Resolution Impacts Educational Culture”
Date and Time: Thursday, 21 March, 3:00-3:45 p.m., US EST in 414/415 at the Tampa Convention Center.

Presentation Title: “Leveraging AI: Enhancing Language Learners’ Academic Research Skills”
Date and Time: Friday, 22 March, 12:00-1:15 p.m., US EST in the Poster Session Area at the Tampa Convention Center.

Presentation Title: “Changing the DNA of Cross-Cultural Training”
Date and Time: Saturday, 23 March, 8:00-9:45 a.m., US EST in 113 at the Tampa Convention Center.

Take a look at Emily’s work here: https://www.instagram.com/thorpeceramics/

Website Update February 2024

Written by Randall on . Posted in updates.

Hi everyone,

In addition to a busy month of creating new content, I also experienced a challenging time when my websites (I have 5 main ones and one dealing with mental health) went down for three days and 11 hours. It wasn’t due to the site being hacked or anything like that, but it was the result of an unplanned, unexpected, and immediate need to switch to a new server. Normally, people migrate from one server to another, the transition is almost seamless because there is no downtime at all. This was not the case.

There are too many details to explain the process of website migration and DNS propagation (the process of updating domain name system records across the Internet, which can take a couple of days itself), but I routinely back up my entire websites regularly to restore them in such situations. Perhaps, I will explain this more at some point.

However, for the moment, I will spend the next few weeks dealing with the hiccups of such migrations which often include missing files, quirky server behavior, and system modifications. With this in mind, I invite and strongly encourage you to use my sites as much as you want and then contact me when–not if–you discover something that needs to be fixed. I expect this.

Perhaps, my main website was trying to tell me something; in the past 26 years of existence, I can only remember a few times when the sites were offline for more than a few hours at a time. There have been times when there have been issues that affected performance or the pages have not loaded properly or as quickly as I would hope, but in a way, the site said, “Hey, after 23 years, I deserve a few days break!”

Will such events happen again? Certainly, websites back in the 1990s were so simple without SQL databases, PHP coding, and the multiplicity of elements that go into sites today. However, I’ve learned a lot as well.

Thanks for being a part of this learning community. Your kind comments are what makes this work exciting.

Randall

 

Website Update January 2024

Written by Randall on . Posted in updates.

Happy New Year, Everyone!

Realizing that everyone experiences highs and lows throughout the year, I wish you all the best in your life’s journey in 2024. May you find meaning in every challenge that you encounter along the way. Relish in your success and seek out others who need physical and emotional support to achieve their own.

I am in the 26th year of developing my main Website, Randall’s ESL Cyber Listening Lab (https://www.esl-lab.com), and I never imagined that I would still be developing it in new directions.

Here are some of my plans in 2024:

  1. Engaging Video Interviews- https://www.esl-lab.com/interviews/

Continue creating lessons involving critical thinking and discussion by interviewing native speakers in natural, spontaneous conversations. Such lessons for intermediate to advanced learners include pre-listening learning tasks, key vocabulary, a video, comprehension questions, and post-listening discussion topics.

 

  1. Innovative Content Development with AI Technologies – https://www.esl-lab.com/stories/

Develop and expand upon my Life Stories section of the Website that makes use of different AI technologies, including an advanced AI voice generator, to create new accents and voices for my listening content. Using such technologies can expand on language-learning content that focuses on critical thinking, a needed skill in today’s world.

 

  1. Facebook Live Broadcasts – https://www.esl-lab.com/broadcasts/

Record new live broadcasts with educators and students from around the world on topics ranging from language learning to tips on understanding other cultures. Contact me if you are interested in participating in such an event.

 

Here are other resources on my Website that you might find useful:

1. Watch my video tutorials on how to use my Website more effectively. Often, people tell me, “Oh, I didn’t know that I could do that on your site!”

2. Download and share my instructional handouts in PDF format that can help inform others about the site’s content. These are very helpful in spreading the word on how to learn English online. Post them to your social media feeds if you like.

3. Visit the different sections of my site for audio and video listening practice. Some of these areas include:

4. Try over 300 vocabulary quizzes that recycle the topics and vocabulary from my listening activities.

5. Watch over 50 broadcast episodes with teachers and students worldwide, where we discuss language and culture. Each episode contains learning activities to extend your learning.

6. Enjoy language games that engage learners in fun ways.

7. Watch my video lessons on useful English idioms.

8. You can also visit my other online channels for learning content and information:

My other Websites:

Website Update December 2023

Written by Randall on . Posted in updates.

With Christmas approaching, I want to point out all the holiday-related listening activities on my site. I realize that there are many other wonderful end-of-year holidays as well. Enjoy. You might find some of them useful for your language study or teaching.

Also, here is a broadcast I did with several educators from around the world (Tunisia, Ukraine, Brazil, and Mexico) about end-of-year traditions in their countries. You might find something that piques your interest or ideas to add to your classroom curriculum.

 

Select Website Update November 2023

Written by Randall on . Posted in updates.

In addition to several ongoing projects with my interviews with my adult children and life stories using different AI technologies, I participated in a broadcast on the transformative power of AI technologies in language teaching and learning. Take a look:

 

Website Update October 2023

Written by Randall on . Posted in updates.

Fall is truly here. I’ve spent some quality time in the Utah mountains enjoying the changing leaves, and I have been adding new content to my Interviews and AI-generated content in Life Stories.

My plans for the rest of the year are to add new content to these sections, focusing on critical-thinking skills and more discussion practice. Enjoy.

Randall

Website Update September 2023

Written by Randall on . Posted in updates.

As I have done in the past, I want to remind teachers and students of the many learning resources on all of my sites.

I wish you a successful school year!

Feel free to add a link to any of my Websites in your class syllabus or online course.

1. Watch unscripted and natural conversations with some of my children on language and social issues.

2. Listen to life stories with various new voices and accents, plus a host of discussion questions, activities, and comprehension questions in collaboration with new AI technologies. Everything in this section is aimed at building critical-thinking skills, and I try to include a variety of relevant topics for everyday living and conversation.

3. Watch my video tutorials on how to use my Website more effectively. Often, people tell me, “Oh, I didn’t know that I could do that on your site!”

4. Download and share my instructional handouts in PDF format that can help inform others about the site’s content. These are very helpful in spreading the word on how to learn English online. Post them to your social media feeds if you like.

5. Visit the different sections of my site for audio and video listening practice. Some of these areas include:

6. Try over 300 vocabulary quizzes that recycle the topics and vocabulary from my listening activities.

7. Watch over 50 broadcast episodes with teachers and students worldwide, where we discuss language and culture. Each episode contains learning activities to extend your learning.

8. Enjoy language games that engage learners in fun ways.

9. Watch my video lessons on useful English idioms.

10. You can also visit my other online channels for learning content and information:

My other Websites:

Website Update August 2023

Written by Randall on . Posted in updates.

The summer is in full swing and is, in some ways, winding down, with many schools returning to classes in less than a month.

Two of the main projects I have been working on involve interviews with my adult children on various language and social issues. These have been fun to create because they are completely unscripted:

https://www.esl-lab.com/interviews/

The second section is called Life Stories where I have created stories with various new voices and accents, plus a host of discussion questions, activities, and comprehension questions in collaboration with new AI technologies. Everything in this section is aimed at building critical-thinking skills, and I try to include a variety of relevant topics for everyday living and conversation.

https://www.esl-lab.com/stories/

Give them a try.

Website Update July 2023

Written by Randall on . Posted in updates.

Wow! So much has happened over the past few months in the world, and new technologies are at the forefront of these developments.

For my part, I have published almost 60 video interviews with a variety of pre-listening and post-listening discussion questions. I really like this section of the site because my children, as adults, share their perspectives on a whole host of topics.

https://www.esl-lab.com/interviews/

Furthermore, I have added content to my newest section, Life Stories, in which I have created stories with various new voices and accents, plus a host of discussion questions, activities, and comprehension questions in collaboration with new AI technologies. Everything in this section is aimed on building critical-thinking skills so desperately needed in our modern times.

https://www.esl-lab.com/stories/

Keep an eye on my site throughout the summer. More fun and excitement are just around the corner.

Randall