View Your Mailvu!

Assalamualaikum and Hi to all

This is the latest website that I am going to share with you. It is called the Mailvu. Mailvu is a video recording tool which allows you to record your video and speak about whatever you want and send it to your friends. This website is fantastic as it is free (unless if you need other services like putting the widget onto your website) and it can be done in just a few steps. This tool is probably one of the popular online video tool that is used for marketing purposes as it allows marketers to engage with their audience. Unlike Audioboo, this tool allows you to record video, which is more convincing as the audience will be able to see your face and body gestures while listening to the recording. Not only that, it allows the customers to record their testimonials and put it into the blog or website which certainly be more interesting. Not only business, Mailvu can also be used for leisure purpose as well as education. The recording can be up to 10 minutes which is long enough for a video recording. The organisation of the website is fairly satisfying as there are not too many thumbnails and you can just record from the homepage.

Mailvu and language learning.

The existence of online video recording makes the communication between teacher and students. This is because students can interact with their teachers (what I mean by interacting is that students and teachers will be able to see each other's face) easily and more frequent. If the students have any problems with a particular lesson and need to consult the teacher outside the classroom, they can just send their Mailvu to the teachers. Teachers will also be able to reply and give feedback even if they are at home, which is likely to produce instant result. Not only that, Mailvu can be used as an idea of connected classroom where the lesson taught in the class can be reflected using Mailvu. For example the teacher can pre teach the students some vocabulary items of describing a person in the class then ask students to describe about their best friend at home, using Mailvu. The students will be able to not only speak but make use of the video by showing pictures of their friends of any related pictures. This will make the lesson more interesting as thus motivate students in language learning.

Is it difficult?

As I said, the steps are fairly easy as you do not have to register in order to make recording and send it to someone. All you need to do is just record, information such as name, email address and subject then you are ready to send.

Recording can be made directly at the homepage 

Just edit the video information and then you can send
it to your friends.

Advantages of this website:


1. It allows you you connect with your friend any time you want whether your friend is online or offline as you just have to record and send it to their emails
2. Students will be able to engage in the classroom teaching through connected classroom. They can apply what they learn in the class, make a video and send it to their teacher.
3. Teachers can also know about the students by using this video for self introduction. So teacher will be able to get access to the information whenever necessary.
4. It can enhance students motivation for communicating they are able to preview their recording. This will allow them to reflect and improve in the future.

Disadvantages of this website:


1. It does allow you to embed your recording for free. You have to pay for extra services if you need them. For example, if you would like to have this widget on your website, you have to pay USD5. (This is what I get from the website: http://mailvu.com/blog/how-to-add-a-video-email-widget-to-your-website/

Apart from that, I do not see any disadvantages of this website and this website is one of the websites that I like the most. Here is the link to the website:
http://mailvu.com/

Meet the Boo!

Assalamualaikum and Hi to all.

In this entry, I would like to share a website that is very useful in doing Podcasting. For those who are new to the term, Podcast is a way of recording either audio or video and usually can be downloaded from the Internet. Using Podcasting as a main medium, Audioboo allows people to upload their voice recording onto the Internet, which can be access by anyone who are using the tool. This website is currently one of the famous website for information sharing and is very useful for people who are doing business as they can use this platform for online promotion. Not only that for business purposes, most of the users use this tool for leisure purposes as they can speak about everything that they like or even sing a song!

Audioboo and language learning.

Despite the huge advantages on business, Audioboo can also be used a medium for language learning, especially those who are learning a second language. Students can exploit this website to practise communicating skills as they can upload their audio and listen to their own recording as well as share it with their friends or teachers. By doing so, it will likely to enhance their confidence in speaking as they are not communicating face-to-face but rather speaking to the computer. It is important to know that some students are less confidence to speak in the public due to poor language proficiency but this website allows them to practise their script beforehand yet they still get to share their thoughts with public.

How to do it?


It is not difficult to use this tool as it is free and easy to operate. All you need to do is just sign up for free account (which is needed is you would like to put your podcast online) as well as have the microphone ready. The maximum recording that you are allowed to is 3 minutes and the recording will be automatically stopped after that. The recording can be made either by record it instantly or upload other existing audio file from your computer. You can always delete the recording that you have made and make a new one if you are not happy with it, which I found very convenient. Then you just have to follow some simple steps, as shown below:

step 1: click Make a Recording button

Step 2: Choose whether to record
it online or upload it from your file.

Step 3: Start the recording. After finish
the recording, click "Happy? Add title'
button.

Step 4: After editing your Boo, click Publish.
It will then be saved in your profile.

Example of my Audioboo

Advantages of Audioboo.

1. Allow audio sharing from all over the globe.

2. Platform for marketing management;

   a. It is fast and can reach people within a single click.

   b. It is cost free 

   c. Saves a lot of time because marketers do not have to come for meeting but they can just do it online.

3. Allow sharing on Facebook,Twitter, Blogs as well as Itunes

4. You can follow other people's profile and listen to their Boos.

5. You can download this application into your smartphones.

Disadvantages of Audioboo

1. It does not allow video recording as you can only record your voice.

2. No face-to-face interaction

3. You can not record anything longer than 3 minutes.

   a.  If you have a longer information to convey, it will need you to do it in two or more different Boos. 

   b. You have to compress ideas within a short period of time, which may result in less information sharing.

Here is the link to the website:
http://audioboo.fm/

Educational Trip to Australia.

Assalamualaikum and Hi to all.

For this week entry, there is one particular website that I would like to share which is beneficial for teachers as well as students to make use of the available resources for language teaching and learning. It is called the National Film and Sound Archive which contain hundreds of audio and video clips related to the Australian context. Although the topics are about Australian environment, teachers are still able to use this website for learning purposes because this website also provide guidelines of how the materials can be used in class. It is also a good tool for learning Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) as the students get to learn the language through particular content. For example, students in Malaysia will also be able to explore this website and learn about Australian community as well as improving their English as a second language. Apart from that, it also offers  a range of topics that teachers can choose from such as history, ceremony, arts, education a lot more. So teachers and students can choose the topic of their interest, see the video and also download it if they wish to. The process of streaming and downloading the audio or video clip is not complicated as they web developer has provide clear instructions and it can just be done with a click.

Variety of topics available.

Need some guide?


As I mentioned, this website is easy to operate and I have explored one particular section which I will show you the content. The section that I choose is Arts Portal.

Arts Portal section

There are two main sections under this topic which visual arts and performance arts. This two topics are similar and you can just choose which topics suit you best. There is also a clear description of what this section is all about so that you will be able to get a general overview of the section. Apart from that, there are also featured videos suggested in the page which are related to the topic.

List of labels, featured video and highlighted clips available.

If you click on one of the topics ( visual or performing arts), you will be taken to the requested page and there will be a list of labels which relates to the previous topic that you have chosen. there will also be a suggested video and highlighted clips that relates to the topic. Then you will be able to see video and audio clip suggestions that are arranged according to the level of the students. There will also be suggestions for classroom activity as well as further resources for students to access.

Different levels to choose from.

Available video to stream and download, description
of the video, suggestion for activity and further
resources.

Advantages of the website.

1. It has variety of topics to choose from which make the learning process become interesting. This is because students can choose the topic of their interest.

2.  Students have the opportunity to learn about other culture and develop the language from the materials.

3. The archive is arranged in different levels so that it will be easier for learners to choose clips based on their level.

4. The quality of video is very satisfying even if you download it.

5. The topics are well organised that it helps users a lot to locate their preferred clips.

6. Students get to share the materials on Facebook as well as twitter which is good as it allows interaction with other people.


Disadvantages of the website.

1. One particular thing that I dislike the most is the audio provided when you enter the Arts Portal section. There is no control button and the audio will go on until you click on another subtopic, which is very annoying.

2. The content is limited to the Australian context, which may not be familiar to some students and may result in less effective in language learning.

Here is the link to the website:

http://nfsa.gov.au/learning/digital-learning/