highlights on How to Engage my ESL Students with Digital Tools while Teaching Remotely – a webinar hosted by Flowchase CEO and Linguist Zoé Broisson, joined by UNamur EFL Lecturer François-Xavier Fievez (May 4th, 2021)
Let’s face it, online teaching took its toll on a lot of us – be it for the lack of social interactions, the isolation, potential technical issues, the demanding efforts… or for a whole bunch of other reasons that eventually led to students giving up.
In the eyes of many, computers were the ones to blame… maybe deservedly. Yet, when almost everyone else had started rejecting devices once back to in-person classes, we hadn’t. “I – for one – believe that digital tools can really be of help with [students dropping out],” confessed Zoé in the introduction to her webinar.
Yep, you heard it right! At Flowchase, we still wanted to place our bets on technologies, putting up together an ever-growing database of resources suggested by English teachers, for English teachers. To our educational team, digital tools can be more than just a fashion trend!
“As a language enthusiast with no teaching duties, I still wanted to do my part and ensure all this knowledge [teachers] are building as language educators isn’t lost, but rather is shared around the world in an effort to advance our field and the learning experience of many students.” — Zoé Broisson, in her Preface for Flowchase’s eBook
Keep reading and get to freely download our eBook, containing an exclusive access to our online toolbox, as well as no less than 4 ready-to-use activities based on digital tools – as introduced below – to help you keep your students engaged while teaching remotely AND in class!
But first, let’s go around the table!
No. 01 - Padlet: the interactive wall
Create your own interactive wall on Padlet to organize classes, curate information, generate debates or brainstorming sessions, play games, display media on any topic and interact with your students in real-time through comments.
- ⭐️ super intuitive – ⭐️ customizable interface – ⭐️ endless possibilities
- 🛠 empty shell – 👩🏼🏫 classroom interaction
🖥 Our activity, inspired by Jean-Luc Delghust from UCLouvain, will keep your group involved during their peers’ presentations! Use Padlet to make everyone participate, by asking for thoughts, comments, and advice.
No. 02 - Flowchase: the pronunciation companion x Kahoot!: the learning game platform
Now, let’s spice things up a bit by playing with two digital tools at once!
Meet Flowchase, our language learning mobile app relying on voice recognition technology to boost your students’ English pronunciation.
- ⭐️ ready-to-use content – ⭐️ personalized feedback – ⭐️ various games
- 📚 content-based
And Kahoot!, a game-based platform to create, play and share awesome learning exercises.
- ⭐️ super gamified – ⭐️ easy to use – ⭐️ access other educators’ templates
- 🛠 empty shell – 👩🏼🏫 classroom interaction
🖥 Mix these both together and obtain an interactive activity focusing on word stress.
Find the material and more tips in our smart eBook
No. 03 - Wooclap: the fun live quiz platform
Ever heard of Wooclap, the intuitive and fun collaborative quiz platform? If not, now is maybe the time to try out.
- ⭐️ variety of question formats – ⭐️ easy marking export – ⭐️ many software and LMS integrations
- 🛠 empty shell – 👩🏼🏫 classroom interactions
🖥 Created by co-host François-Xavier Fiévez from UNamur, our following activity uses Wooclap to support transition to learners’ autonomy – as students will work on their own in order to answer your questions.
No. 04 - Flipgrip: the interactive video forum
Use Flipgrid, a fun and collaborative platform where you and your students can interact orally or through written comments, as well as record videos and presentations with visual aids.
- ⭐️ easy marking – ⭐️ access other educators’ templates – ⭐️ secure access for students
- 🛠 empty shell
🖥 Our activity, partly inspired by Jean-Luc Delghust from UCLouvain, will promote discussion and get your students to practice their English pronunciation.
Interested in our ideas? Find the presented material and more tips in our smart eBook, here.
Laura Théate
Content Editor @ Flowchase, well-traveled and real language nerd, she creates content to help ESL teachers and students make the most of their learning experience.
Zoé Broisson
Zoe has lived all over the world: Australia, China, Spain, Belgium & the UK. Her passion for languages and cultures is contagious! She turned it into her career by co-founding Flowchase after studying linguistics for 6 years.
