Review #3

Name: English Language Centre Study Zone University of Victoria
http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/studyzone/

Level and Skill: Level 1 through to Level 5 Advanced. The skills focused on are: reading, grammar, comprehension and vocabulary building. There is also a link to an Intermediate level listening course.

Interactive: Yes

ESL/Non-ESL: The site is definitely for ESL learners with its connection to the English Learning Centre at the University of Victoria.

What makes it good? Upon clicking on the Study Zone link to the ELC, you are immediately invited to choose a level of which, there are 5 and then one additional, called Extras. These access levels all have grammar, reading, vocabulary and puzzles but in a level appropriate variation. The Level 1 or 200 materials, have pictures that the learner must identify from a list. Easy to scroll through for the correct answer and if boredom sets in, the next level is easy to access. The gradient level of difficulty and content is ideal as many of the activities are not unlike those that might be taught in the classroom but are beefed up with an interactive aspect that is totally controlled by the learner. The titles of the material are also attractive like ‘Pulp Friction’ at Level 5 making reference of course, to the movie Pulp Fiction, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110912/trailers
corny nonetheless, a clever psychological mechanism. The viewer, however, is unlikely to see Uma Thurman or John Travolta featured in the article about the Pulp and Paper Industry in B.C., although the subject of drugs (hemp and marijuana), is a good part of the reading comprehension! I liked the way that the skills of predicting, scanning and skimming were the first steps to reading this article. The timer at the top is an excellent tool for this exercise, which provides a bit of additional motivation for the reader. The time allowed for reading is perfect for the level. Likewise, at Level 4, the titles for reading are imaginative and catchy, “The Death Car”, “The Chocking Dog” etc.

The Sample Listening Course provides good opportunities to listen to English pronunciation, conversation in context and an opportunity to discuss the topics with the teacher or other learners. Although some of the clips are staged, the fundamentals of listening and interactive communication are integral. The instructions are easy to follow and all the units are labeled and described prior to listening. Although this aspect of the website is designed as a tutorial course of study over 12 weeks, it simply serves as good listening practice. This is a great, well designed site that I would highly recommend.