How to Use the Student to Student Language Lab

LAB OVERVIEW

The Chinese section of the Student to Student Language Lab (the Lab) is a free multimedia online Mandarin Chinese teaching resource for middle and high school grades. It features students in China speaking Mandarin Chinese and contains 55 progressively more challenging modules, divided into three levels. Each module centers on a dialog acted out by students and a related vocabulary list. Modules also contain student-created skits; student-presented poems, songs, proverbs or idioms; student artwork flashcards; student-written calligraphy; student introductions in Chinese and English; and Google Earth tours and maps. Overall, the Lab contains over 3,000 videos, 1,600 audio files and 1,600 images of student artwork flashcards. The modules range from Novice High to Advanced Low proficiency levels. (Currently, only Level 1 is available.)

REGISTERING AND LOGGING ON

The Lab is a free, password-protected learning resource. Users must register at www.oneworldclassrooms.org/register.html and select a unique username and password. Once registered, users may access the Lab at www.oneworldclassrooms.org/lab/index.html (or the Chinese section of the Lab only at www.oneworldclassrooms.org/lab/chinese/index.html).

SCREEN RESOLUTION SETTTING

For optimum viewing, click CONTROL + or – (on a PC) or COMMAND + or – (on a Mac) on your keyboard one or more times until the Lab interface fills the screen.

LAB INTERFACE OVERVIEW

The functional regions of the Lab interface (numbered on the image below) are:

1. An expandable Level/Module menu (1) on the left with links to all Lab modules.

2. A central viewing area (2) – for video or flashcard display.

3. A module section menu bar (3) above the central viewing area.

4. A vocabulary list/transcript box (4) to the right of the central viewing area (on most pages), with Chinese, Pinyin and English tabs (5).

5. A Search field and button (6) above the central viewing area.

Lab interface overview.

6. A Help link (7) to the right of the Search bar.

7. A menu of related links (8) below the central viewing area (on the bottom frame of the bulletin board).

PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES

Will be added soon.

POP-UP ‘POST-IT’ NOTES

When first visiting a module section (Overview, Listen, Watch, Practice or Meet the Students) during a new Lab session, pop-up ‘post-it’ notes appear providing tips for using that section. Click on a note’s X-CLOSE button to remove it. Once a note’s close button has been clicked, that note will not appear again during that session. (If the close button is not clicked, the note will continue to appear throughout the session.)

Lab ‘Post-It’ notes.

SELECTING A LEVEL AND A MODULE

Use the menu on the left of the Lab interface to select a LEVEL and then a MODULE. Click on a LEVEL to display that level’s modules. Click on a module number to view that module. Mouse over a module number to display that module’s title in Chinese and English. The Levels and Modules are progressively more challenging and build on knowledge gained in previous levels/modules.

Alternatively, users may access modules from the Module Index page.

Level/Module menu.

MODULE SECTIONS

Each Lab module has six sections: Overview, Listen, Watch, Practice, Games & Quizzes and Meet the Students. The module sections may be selected from the module section menu bar above the central viewing area. See the section titles below for information about how to use each section.

Module sections menu bar.

OVERVIEW PAGE

The Overview page is the default module starting point (where users arrive when selecting a module from the left menu). This page lists the selected module's title, proficiency level, cultural theme and grammatical element. It also lists descriptions of the module's WATCH videos, contains the module's vocabulary list (with Chinese, Pinyin and English tabs) and links to sample performance objectives.

TIP: At some resolutions, it may be necessary to scroll down to see the link for the performance objectives.

Sample module overview page.

LISTEN SECTION

The Listen section of each module features 20-40 videos of students in China pronouncing the module’s vocabulary words and saying original, culturally authentic sentences that contain those vocabulary words. In each video, the student says the respective vocabulary word/sentence slowly and then repeats it at normal speed.

This Listen section is designed to provide students with opportunities to: a) hear their Chinese peers pronouncing Chinese words and sentences; b) listen to their Chinese peers communicate authentic cultural information through their original sentences; and c) practice communicating information using Chinese and practice pronouncing words and sentences and their tones and tone sequences. Additionally, students may read related Pinyin and Mandarin and check English translations.

It is recommended that students use recording software while working in the Listen section to: a) record themselves saying the same words and sentences spoken by their Chinese peers;

and b) compare their pronunciation with that of their Chinese peers, with the goal of approaching the pronunciation of their Chinese peers.

The Listen section contains a box that lists the module’s vocabulary words and/or transcripts (1) and a video viewing area (2) with a WORD/PHRASE tab (3) and a SENTENCE tab (4) on top. The vocabulary list is scrollable and has Chinese, Pinyin and English tabs (5). The Chinese tab is the default. Click another tab to change the vocabulary/transcript display language. The tabs appear orange when selected. When a word/phrase or sentence video appears in the viewing area, the corresponding Chinese character(s) appears in large print directly below the video viewing area (8).

Listen page overview.

The WORD/PHRASE tab (3) is selected (orange) by default. To begin, click the PLAY button on the initial WORD/PHRASE video in the video viewing area (corresponds with #1 in the vocabulary list). To view another video, click on another word/phrase in the vocabulary list - or on the << or >> buttons (6 & 7) below the video viewing area - to activate the corresponding video. Then click the PLAY button to view the selected video. IMPORTANT: SCROLL DOWN to see all of the words/phrases in the vocabulary list.

Click the SENTENCES tab (4) to activate the corresponding sentence videos. Use the << or >> buttons (6 & 7) to select videos and then click Play to view the videos. When the SENTENCE tab is selected, a transcript of the sentence featured in the current video replaces the vocabulary list in the box on the right (1). The default transcript is in Chinese. English and Pinyin transcripts may also be selected by clicking on the respective language selection tabs (5) When the SENTENCE tab is selected (1), a transcript of the sentence featured in the current video replaces the vocabulary list in the box on the right (2). To view the vocabulary list, click on Vocabulary List at the bottom of the vocabulary/transcript box. To return to the transcripts, click on Transcripts at the bottom of the box.

WATCH SECTION

The Watch section of each module features 2-5 videos of Chinese students acting out skits or reciting Chinese poems, children’s rhymes, proverbs, idioms, etc. The first Watch section video in each module is aligned with the Lab curriculum (matches the vocabulary list and is part of series of modules/lessons that introduce progressively more challenging vocabulary and grammatical elements). The section is designed to provide students with opportunities to: a) listen to their Chinese peers communicate through skits set in authentic settings; and b) listen to their Chinese peers share authentic cultural information through songs, poems, idioms, etc. that are commonly learned and used in China. Additionally, students may read related Pinyin and Mandarin transcripts and check English translations.

It is recommended that teachers use these skits as starting points for additional activities and learning.

The Watch section contains a video viewing area (1), a transcript box (2) with Chinese, Pinyin and English tabs (3) and a thumbnail video selection bar (4) w/ forward and backward arrows.

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Click the PLAY button on the video to see the Lab curriculum-aligned skit (the default video). To continue to other videos, click a thumbnail below the video viewing area (or click the forward or backward arrows on either end of the thumbnail bar and then select a video) and then click the PLAY button. Video transcripts appear in the box to the right of the video viewing area. SCROLL DOWN to see the full transcript. Select a display language tab on the transcript box (top left) to view the transcript in Chinese (default), Pinyin or English.

PRACTICE SECTION

The Practice section of each module features 10-20 calligraphy videos and 10-20 student art flashcards, one for each vocabulary word (in both cases). This section is designed to provide a) video demonstrations of how to write Chinese characters, performed by Chinese students; and b) an opportunity for students to test themselves on/drill the vocabulary words using flashcards featuring drawings created by their Chinese peers.

The section also contains 10-20 WORD audio files and 10-20 SENTENCE audio files, one for each vocabulary word (in both cases). The audio comes from the WORD and SENTENCE videos in the Listen section.

It is recommended that students listen to the audio files as they watch the calligraphy videos and view the flashcards. It is also recommended that students use recording software to: a) record themselves saying the same words and sentences spoken by their Chinese peers in the audio files; and b) compare their pronunciation with that of their Chinese peers, with the goal of approaching the pronunciation of their Chinese peers.

The Practice section contains a calligraphy video/flashcard viewing area (1) with a Calligraphy tab (2) and a Flashcard tab (3); a vocabulary list box (4) with Chinese, Pinyin and English tabs (5); and Play Word and Play Sentence audio tabs (6)

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When the Calligraphy tab is selected, calligraphy videos may be selected from the vocabulary list. Click the video PLAY button to play a selected video. The videos may be paused or moved forward or backward. IMPORTANT: Scroll down to access all of the vocabulary words.

When the Flashcard tab (1) is selected, the flashcards (2) may be selected from the vocabulary list (3) in the box on the right or by using the << or >> buttons (4) underneath the flashcard viewing area. Random Flashcard (5) and Start Over (6) buttons are also available. Click the FLIP image (7) to view the back side of a flashcard, with Chinese and Pinyin (not visible below).

Meet the Students

The Meet the Students section of each module features 4-12 videos of the Chinese students who are featured in the module introducing themselves in Chinese and/or English; a Google Earth Tour that includes the contributing students’ school and city; a PowerPoint with photos of the students at their school or at/in the featured site/city in China (or in some cases a PowerPoint with a review of the module’s content and a related quiz); geographical information about the students’ school and city; and a Google Map of the students’ school.

This section is designed to provide a) an introduction to the participating students and b) geographical information about where the students go to school and live. It contains a listing of the participating students’ school (1), a photo of the participating students (2) and links to the student introductions, the PowerPoint, Google Earth tour, Google map and geographical

information (3).

The student self-introduction page contains a central video-viewing area (1) with English and Chinese tabs (2); a transcript area (3) with Chinese, Pinyin and English tabs (4); a thumbnail video selection bar (5) with forward (6) and backward tabs; and a BACK button (7).

The English introduction videos are initially available (by default). Click the Chinese tab to view the Chinese introduction videos. The video that corresponds with the first thumbnail is initially available by default. Click the Play button to view the video. Click another thumbnail to select another video and then click the Play button. The video transcripts appear automatically in the transcript box. When viewing the Chinese introductions, the Chinese, Pinyin and English tabs are available on the transcript box. When viewing the English introductions, only English transcripts are available. Click the BACK button to return to the main Meet the Students Page.

Games & Quizzes

The Games and Quizzes section is currently not available. Due to a significant reduction in the grant award due to federal budget cuts, development of this section has been suspended until further notice.

Search Function

To use the Lab search function, enter a word in Chinese or English in the search field and click the >> button. The results will show which Lab modules contain the word searched.

Help Link

The Help link leads to the How to Use the Lab page.

Bottom Frame Links

The following links appear on the bottom frame of the Lab:

Related Resources – A list of valuable online resources that may be used in conjunction with the Student to Student Language Lab.

China Online Travel Resources – OneWorld Classrooms’ content that explores Chinese culture through the eyes of students who live there.

Cultural Profiles of Modern and Historic China – A OneWorld Classrooms’ resource funded by the Freeman Foundation and the Rubin Foundation that visits seven Chinese cities/regions to explore the many faces of Chinese culture, past and present.

Contribute Content – This lab component is currently not available. Due to a significant reduction in the grant award due to federal budget cuts, development of this component has been suspended until further notice.

Teacher Feedback Form - Use this form to send comments, suggestions, questions, corrections, etc. to OneWorld Classrooms about the Student to Student Language Lab. We may not be able to reply to all feedback, but we will read your comments and take action where we can. Thank you for your input!

Teacher Forum – Communicate with other teachers who are using the Lab.

Textbook Integration - Access Word documents that chart where the content of popular Chinese textbooks (Huanying, Hanyu, Integrated Chinese, etc.) corresponds with the Chinese section of the Student to Student Language Lab.

Module Index – An index of all 55 Lab modules, divided by Level. Select a LEVEL or a MODULE to view the respective downloadable Word document. The LEVEL documents list ALL of that level's modules and an overview of each module. The MODULE documents contain an overview of the respective module. Each module overview lists the corresponding module's title,

proficiency level, cultural theme, grammatical element and sample performance objectives. It also lists descriptions of the module's WATCH videos and the module's vocabulary list.

Vocabulary Lists and Transcripts

A Note on Chinese Regional Accents

The students featured in the Lab videos come from various regions of China. Throughout China, there are many regional accents, which often influence how people speak Mandarin. For example, some students from Hunan Province may pronounce an ‘n’ sound more like an ‘l’ sound. Despite these regional differences, the variations are minimal and most pronunciations will be readily recognizable. Teachers may offer guidance in these cases.