Hi,
I happened to rush into the site www.livemocha.com, which is a free learning second language (now there are six languages available --- English, Spanish, French, Hindi, German, and Mandarin Chinese) with a global community of language learners.
The most powerful things:
A. Quantified learning content and self-supervised learning process
Every course have a specific hour which is counted for its online detailed marterials for learning, reading, testing, assignment etc., which it is 40 pics serving for every term above. When you finish one question or one sentence, the processing bar grows up a little.
I've installed an ILP module, but it is complicated for me and students to understand and use, as there are too many blocks and contents need to be editted and set.
B. It still shows your learning process of the complete course and the same information of other students which encourages you to catch up with.
The above two functions, I think it can be realized in moodle.
C. Easy, fluent application of flash technology
I've installed flash and flashcard module both, just tried to use flash, it's really hard for me to make that work for the association with moodle grade system, i.e. "modify the code, call the serve" , but it is built well in this website, if teachers just need to change pictures, audios, question texts then it can works well for the cognition and memory of basic stuffs like nature, time, place etc.( sorry, I don't try flashcard module, maybe it can carry out that functions I mentioned above, sorry for my rash if that is true.)
Record tool
In Moodle, the recording process is always complex that you must tell your students that you must enable ACTIVE X plugin installed in your browser, what's more some just enable in IE.,but they just use your adobe flash player to record , because when I clicked "add auio submission", it popped up a window for enabling my digital camera, record, listen to check, submit.) very simple and easy for students.
D. The idea of share learning brain resources
Every native is a professinal on his own language, so he is almost actively guided to help the one who want to learn his mother tongue to check the reading, or spelling or pronunciation if correct or not, because ASA you submit your assignment, it is put forward to the community immediately so that the native users will adjust or correct for you right now. After I submit mine, there are 8 replies responded in 10 minutes, but what a teacher can perform in 10 minutes?
Of course, reversely, you also receive prompt that the completion of other's assignment, what's more, they can make friends through internet as you will receive invitation of chat online.
E. An Effective, executable and powerful marketing weapon of your website
It has another grade system that works for recording your deeds, such as if you log in everyday, if you invite others to join, if the person you invite completes the register...
"Member points are based on a user's contribution to building the Livemocha community. Different actions are worth different amounts of points. All of the possible actions are listed below with their corresponding point values. "
because it is free now but will charge later, if you grades are high, you may benefit from it, e.g.,enjoy free forever.
I know moodle is mainly working for the schools or universities, but it still has a lot of user who wanna put it in commercial use.
F. Concise, concentrated, easy to use
is the impression after my experiment. The course main page with a lot of functions but distracts students' concentration easily, especially for newbies, it is dazzling that you don't know which step you should take first during the first visit.
I know all the view I have as I stand on the level of pratical use, not so much big like a university system, yet I also think a thing should shine its light of ultimate utility, my idea is on the top of every lesson , it can be presented a brief horizontal process buttons by sequences that you hope the students to follow step by step, refer to learning language,
I hope it can be conducted as
1.a simple introduction or presentation or funny story starts
2. video or pictures or audios or flashes that presents the content formally.
3. Listening exercise
4. Oral Practice
5. Review the lesson text
6. Write some sentences with the language point improvisationally.
but Lesson 2 maybe I like to change another order to train students' audition, writing. I mean it is like an instruction for combination of a toy, that you give a brief illustration first.
It's hard to understand literally, that I will upload an image to demonstrate that.
The lesson module I think it's stiff, cannot be split freely, it is easy to make students feel himself isolated, that is to say, he doesn't know when the lesson ends, the question is exercises embedded in class or exercise after class. If your attempt is wrong, it's hard for you forward. When you are questioned in the middle process and need help of the lesson context, the back procedure troubles students etc..
Every teacher here can try the website, viewing course doesn't require register.
Above all, I am not sure if the comparion of this site and moodle is all-around, as I haven't operate some modules or functions yet, maybe already exist, please kindly let me know. But they do have somethings that we can learn from.
There are also another free language learning site Mango.com if you are interest in e-learning language site.
Regards,
Joanna
