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New Computer and Technological Resources for Latin Language Instruction |
| Barbara F. McManus, The College of New Rochelle | |
| |
New Computer and Technological Resources for Latin Language Instruction |
| Barbara F. McManus, The College of New Rochelle | |
LATIN SOFTWARE ON DISK AND CD-ROM
LATIN FREEWARE ON THE WEB
LATIN TEACHING AND TRANSLATION AIDS
RESOURCES ON HISTORY, CIVILIZATION, CULTURE
THE VROMA PROJECT
1. VRoma is first and foremost a community of teachers and learners; the project includes teacher training (through summer workshops) and community building (through follow-up mentoring and ongoing reflective conversation).
2. As an on-line virtual environment, VRoma contextualizes and situates linguistic and cultural information within a simulated space, a virtual "city" containing historical places (a simulation of the city of Rome circa 150 CE) and non-historical places (simulations of various types of spaces that imaginatively evoke ancient life).
3. The project brings together pre-college and college Classics faculty and students.
4. The project emphasizes pedagogy and assessment, encouraging not only the development of teaching resources, but also the testing of their effectiveness and the publication of assessment results and models for classroom use.
PRELIMINARY CONCLUSIONS
| Internet Tools and Online Learning Environments | |
| Advantages | Disadvantages |
| Appeal | Access |
| Flexibility | Learning curve |
| Interactivity | Time |
| Requirement of precision | Scheduling (for synchronous activities) |
| Wide distribution and inexpensive publication | Cost |
1. Tremendous potential of computers, particularly internet technology, to improve educational practice in the direction of more project-based, student-centered learning.
2. Crucial role of community in this process, including hands-on, discipline-specific teacher training and long-term mentoring and support.
3. Importance of incorporating goal-driven assessment into every step of the process.
Barbara F. McManus