Since we are language teachers and must always keep an international perspective in mind, I wonder about using Internet technology to learn languages in countries where the Internet is censored.
In the US we tend to take for granted how powerful and free (as in freedom, not as in costless) the Internet is, but it is important to remember that not everyone has that experience. I remember hearing about the Western journalists who complained during the Beijing Olympics about Chinese Internet censorship.
Perhaps some of my classmates from China (or other countries where the Internet is censored) can comment on this. What websites are censored? Do you notice a difference in the experience of using the Internet in the US vs. China? Do you see this affecting language learning?
Blogs for Specific Purposes
12 years ago
Definitely! People often find it difficult to access youtube, where there is a lot of interesting stuff that could be used in clssroom, e.g ads, music videos, and even teaching ideas. Also facebook is often censored.
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ReplyDeleteI have the same experience about Internet censorship in U.S. I feel using Internet is not that free here. Sometimes I cannot open a webpage, or cannot download something either.
ReplyDeleteWait, I want to make sure I understand you, Yi...I am not aware of anyone who censors the Internet in the US...is the U of A maybe censoring certain things?
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