HCT''s A Team

WordTag for English vocabulary & left brain exercise

WordTag is a great new FREE social gaming iPad App similar to 'Draw Something' and excellent for learning new vocabulary and left brain exercise. The aim of the game is for students to describe words to other students, friends or random players in 120 characters or less.


There are 3 levels of word difficulty to choose from (so it’s good for variety of English levels) and each word has six associated locked words that you can’t use e.g. for the word ‘AirBag’ you can’t use ‘car, crash, save, accident, cushion or inflate’.

Unlike Draw Something, the App keeps a history of all the words previously played as well as other stats such as points and badges. Great as a class warm-up or for fast finishers.

New Road to IELTS App just out

Clarity Language Consultants Ltd have just launched their first iPad App which was especially commissioned for the Higher Colleges of Technology.  Co-produced by the British Council,  this brand new version of ‘Road to IELTS’ features:

• Over 300 interactive activities
• Progress tracking and graphs
• 17 videos of British Council experts giving IELTS advice
• 4 eBooks explaining the task types
• Mock test papers with model answers
• Videos of the Speaking test

The majority of HCT campuses have already purchased licences for their Level 4 Foundation students (over 3000).

This is currently the best IELTS online preparation resource on the market and highly recommended. Please contact the Independent Learning Centre Coordinator at your campus for further details.

Screencast-O-Matic - Screen Recorder Software

Screencast-O-Matic is a free and easy way to create a video recording of your screen and upload it for free hosting all from your browser with no install.


www.screencast-o-matic.com/

Best iPhone and iPad Apps of 2011

From Angry Birds to WebMD, these are the iPhone apps you don't want to be without.

Likewise, from Djay to Zite, these are the iPad apps you don't want to be without either.

Top 100 Tools for Learning 2011

The 5th annual survey of learning tools based on the contributions of 531 learning professionals worldwide has just been published. Here’s the top 10:

1. Twitter (for the 3rd year running) - micro-sharing site
2. YouTube - video-sharing tool 
3. Google Docs - collaboration suite
4. Skype - instant messaging/VoIP tool
5. WordPress - blogging tool
6. Dropbox - file synching software
7. Prezi - presentation software
8. Moodle - course management system  
9. Slideshare - presentation sharing site
10. Glogster - interactive poster tool

http://c4lpt.co.uk/top-tools/top-100-tools-for-learning-2011/

WriteFix for IELTS

This revised and improved website from ADMC’s very own Enda Tuomey is aimed at people learning English and taking the IELTS or TOEFL exams (apparently, that’s over two million people per year!). The site includes comprehensive advice and guidance on how to write argument and opinion essays as well as some neat features such as the random essay topics on the homepage and instant explanations on the writing pages. Speaking is also featured with tips and practice exercises for IELTS speaking parts 1, 2 and 3.

http://writefix.com/
Good for intermediate IELTS and TOEFL students

A Google a Day Daily Challenge



Crack the ‘Google of the Day’ by using the full range of Google search techniques. Submit your answers and they'll tell you if you're right or need to keep searching.

Today's Question: A coconut hits your head and you have no idea where you are. It’s pitch dark and all you can hear are proboscis monkeys shrieking and friendly Bush-warblers chirping. What country are you in?

http://agoogleaday.com

Great for digital literacy skills!

Stroome – Edit Video Online Anytime, Anywhere With Anyone

Stroome is the world’s most comprehensive collaborative online video editing community. A place where anyone (students, journalists, filmmakers, musicians, sports enthusiasts, travelers, activists, bloggers), with a camera and a point of view can polish, publish and promote their content to a potential audience of millions.

www.stroome.com/

Your Own Personal Journal & Online Diary

Penzu is an online diary and personal journal that’s free, easy to use, and accessible from anywhere in the world with an internet connection.

To launch the program https://penzu.com/content
To watch the intro video http://screencast.com/t/4BeKVi5ds2r

7 Things You Should Know About…..

The EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative's (ELI's) 7 Things You Should Know About series provides concise information on emerging learning technologies and related practices. Each brief focuses on a single technology or practice and describes 7 key questions:

1. What it is
2. How it works
3. Who’s doing it
4. Why it’s significant
5. What are the downsides
6. Where it is going
7. What are the implications for teaching and learning

My personal favourites include “7 Things You Should Know About iPad Apps for Learning”; “Organizing Files in the Cloud” and “Mobile Apps for Learning”.

To view the full collection click here

Movie Clips Listening Comprehension Exercises

Research has shown that learning through media (movies, music, etc.) is one of the best ways to learn a new language and the movie trailers featured on this website help to improve listening comprehension skills.

New trailers recently uploaded include: “The Green Lantern”; “Midnight in Paris”; “Limitless”; “Hereafter” and “Bridesmaids”.

www.learnenglishfeelgood.com/eslvideo/index.html

Check It Out: 1001 Free e-Books

Bookboon.com offers a huge range of over 1000 free quality ebooks for university students, books for business professionals and travel guides. The textbooks are all written by university professors, while the books for business professionals are written by experts within their fields to ensure the highest quality possible. Books can be downloaded directly in PDF format.



http://bookboon.com/

English Attack - Designed For The Digital Generation

English Attack! claims it’s the first English-language learning service specifically designed for the digital generation. Their approach features a worldwide community of learners of English that uses short-session online entertainment to encourage frequent digital immersion in real everyday English, with fresh content published daily.

http://www.english-attack.com/