key: cord-0049377-19tuh1u8 authors: Moorhouse, Benjamin L.; Beaumont, Andrew M. title: Utilizing video conferencing software to teach young language learners in Hong Kong during the COVID‐19 class suspensions date: 2020-08-19 journal: nan DOI: 10.1002/tesj.545 sha: e5d584506f4cb925128d8520391e8832fd106aa0 doc_id: 49377 cord_uid: 19tuh1u8 nan decided to trial the use of VCS to conduct synchronous live lessons as part of a sequence of learning. The teacher designed a three-stage lesson sequence including pre-live-lesson task (offline), live lesson (through VCS), and post-live-lesson task (on a LMS). Because this was the first time that the teacher and the learners had used VCS for an English language lesson, the teacher felt it was important to ensure the lesson was not cognitively and linguistically demanding (Butler, 2018) . To do this, he selected a familiar topic: global climate change. The learners had explored the topic in other school subjects. The teacher based the lesson sequence on an upcoming event: Earth Hour 2020. This is a global event organised by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) initiated to raise awareness of climate change. In the pre-live-lesson task, the learners watched an 8-minute video about Earth Hour 2020 and answered five questions. This helped to activate their preexisting schemata about the topic, build their understanding of Earth Hour, and prepare them for the live lesson. The task and instructions were uploaded to the school website for learners to access five days before the live lesson (see Figure 1 ). In the live lesson, the teacher began by explaining some basic features of the VSC. He then played the video about Earth Hour again and asked the learners to orally share their prepared answers from the prelive-lesson task. After that, the teacher used presentation software to introduce four effects of global climate change and five areas in which people could change their habits to reduce it. The learners were then asked to provide examples of how they could change their own behaviour, using the areas introduced by the teacher. Other learners were asked to give oral feedback to their classmates' ideas. Finally the teacher introduced the post-live-lesson task, which was for learners to make a pledge to change their behaviours for Earth Hour 2020 and present it in a mode of their choice (e.g. video, poster, or drawing). Language scaffolding was provided through exemplars, images, whole class brainstorming, and sentence stems (Butler, 2018) . Parents/ guardians were invited to join the live lesson to help with technical difficulties. In the post-live-lesson task, learners created and uploaded their work to the LMS. The task was open-ended. The post-live-lesson task provided an opportunity for the learners to engage in independent work that could be viewed, liked, and commented on by their classmates and teachers (Moorhouse & Beaumont, 2019) . It also provided the teacher with feedback on the learners' understanding. Based on the teacher's observations and learners' comments, the teacher believes the lessons were implemented successfully. Learners' post-lesson comments collected on the LMS suggest that they enjoyed interacting with their teacher and classmates in real time, and using VCS was "an interesting experience" and a platform they would like to use in "future lessons." The teacher found that having the live lesson, in addition to the asynchronous pre-and post-live-lesson tasks, was beneficial. Assigning the pre-live-lesson task meant the learners came prepared for the live lesson. By asking the learners to share their answers to the pre-live-lesson task at the beginning of the live lesson, the teacher was able to check their understanding of the task. With hindsight, he saw it would have been useful to have the learners submit their work ahead of the lesson through the LMS or on an student response system (see Figure 2 for an example). This would have allowed the teacher to see a greater number of the learners' responses and tailor the lesson content based on their responses. Introducing the post-live-lesson task during the live lesson meant the learners were able to ask clarification questions. For example, one learner asked, "Can we use special effects and video editing software?" The teacher was able to guarantee that all learners saw exemplars of the post-live-lesson task. The teacher thought that this helped make expectations clear. This is something that could be more challenging through F I G U R E 1 Example of the pre-live-lesson task Pre Task for Zoom Lesson on 25 th or 26 th March, 2020 BEFORE your Zoom lesson with Mr _______ , please watch the following video and think about the quesƟons below. Earth Hour 2020 (Click to Play) OR Copy and paste the link: hƩp://y2u.be/dZjhzP7oVD8 OR Scan the QR Code: You will be expected to answer these quesƟons during your Zoom lesson. Please write notes on A4 paper and bring the notes to your Zoom lesson. Watch the video and listen for the answers to the following quesƟons: 1. How many years ago was the world's first Earth Hour? 2. Which country was the first Earth Hour in? 3. What global problem does Earth Hour draw aƩenƟon to? 4. Which day and Ɵme will Earth Hour be in 2020? 5. What is the main thing that people do to celebrate Earth Hour asynchronous only approaches (Peachey, 2017) . Indeed, learners' understanding was evident in the range of pledges uploaded to the LMS. They produced attractive posters or created unique videos (see Figure 3 for an example). The teacher observed that lesson success depended on the learners' ability to manage the VCS effectively. It was important that learners muted their microphones when not speaking to stop ambient noise. The teacher noticed that when using "share screen" mode, there was a lack of paralinguistic F I G U R E 2 Example of using a student response system for the pre-live-lesson task F I G U R E 3 Example of student's work communication because he could only see six participants. This made observing learner engagement or understanding difficult (Peachey, 2017) . Paralinguistic cues are useful when teaching young language learners because they may not understand all verbal instructions (Butler, 2018) . The teacher found it useful to switch between the "share screen" mode to present information and the "gallery view" to communicate with learners. Although this took more time, it allowed the teacher to use questions such as "Everyone who thinks X, raise your hands"-giving the teacher vital feedback. The teacher learned several lessons from the first attempt at synchronous teaching through VCS: • Keep it simple-do not teach new topics or language so the focus is placed on familiarization of the VCS and its features (e.g., microphone mute / raise hand). • Utilize various VCS features such as "share screen" and "gallery view" modes • Include the VCS lesson within a sequence of learning: a. Assign a pre-live-lesson task so the learners can come prepared for the live lesson (Butler, 2018) . b. Design a post-live-lesson task to allow learners to continue their learning after the VCS lesson and provide feedback on learning (Moorhouse & Beaumont, 2019) . F I G U R E 4 Example of a Game-based Learning Platform used during a live lesson Understanding Hong Kong primary school English teachers' continuance intention to teach with ICT The Cambridge guide to learning second languages Adaptations to a face-to-face initial teacher education course "forced" online due to the COVID-19 pandemic Involving parents in their children's school-based English language writing using digital learning Synchronous online teaching The specific skills required of teachers who deliver K-12 distance education courses by synchronous videoconference: Implications for training and professional development The teacher was encouraged by his first attempt, but recognises the potential for improvement. In subsequent lessons, combining the VCS with additional tools such as a student response system (e.g., Mentimeter) or a game-based learning platform (e.g., Kahoot!) through the "shared screen: function to increase the variety of activities, will be explored (see Figure 4 for an example).Although there are aspects of teaching using VCS that are more challenging, such as facilitating learner-to-learner interaction, gauging interest, and giving individual feedback (Rehn et al., 2018) , the authors believe young language learners benefit from them. They can interact with their teachers and classmates in real time (Peachey, 2017) , providing a sense of normality, social contact, and opportunity to use English during unprecedented times. Further research should explore the effective use of VCS with young learners. Benjamin L. Moorhouse is an assistant professor in the Department of Education Studies at Hong Kong Baptist University. He was previously a lecturer in the Faculty of Education at the University of Hong Kong. His research interests include English language teacher education and primary English language education. Andrew M. Beaumont is an English teacher at a primary school in Hong Kong, where he teaches students aged 6-12 years old. His research interests include emerging technologies in education and primary English language learning.