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Interactive Smart Classes Using Web Services
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. The Story of Smart Classes
In 2011, my school(Modong Middle School) had budget to create English Teaching classrooms. English
teachers at my school decided to buy 40 tablet PCs for the English teachers and students rather than equip
the classrooms with electronic blackboards. I was so fascinated with ebooks and ebook applications that I
wanted to implement extensive reading programs with the help of tablet PCs. However, my journey with
tablet PCs went beyond extensive reading. I wanted to use tablet PCs to interact with my students. In
addition, I also wanted my students to interact more with each others. With those goals in mind, I looked
for ways to implement smart classes where my students could interact effectively by practicing speaking
and writing in English. What I have decided to do is to create my educational blog that functions as a
portal for classes and holds web services which helps my students interact with each others.
Currenetly my blog(totoromaum.blogspot.kr) holds various web services like Google Document,
Wallwisher, Voicethread, and Proprofs quiz tool. I have been leading smart classes for the last 3 months
and now I want to move towards the next step.
. Background of Smart Classes.
Smart Classes have been a trend since the change of the web from 1.0 to 2.0, and the arrival of tablet
PCs and Smart phones. Web 2.0 has created a new platform where participants can create their own
contents in the web and communicate effectively beyond the limit of time and space. In addition the
mobility and web friendly aspect of tablet PCs and smart phones has made it possible for both teachers
and students to use them for the purpose of teaching and learning.
The Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology(2011) says smart classes have five features :
self-direction, motivation, adaptiveness, resource enrichment, and technology embedment. Through my
experience of the past 3 months, I would like to share some aspects of smart classes with examples.

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1. Self-Directed Learning of Students
The raditional way of studying English through paper books and teachers' lecture has been supplemented
with Youtube videos, blog articles, Google hHangout, and other SNS sites like Facebook and Twitter. This
means students can implement self-directed learning by exposing themselves to English input beyond the
limitation of paper books and classrooms. Teachers can also use this Web 2.0 environment to supplement
learning materials at school or direct students towards self-study.
2. Enhancing Students' Motivation for Learning
Motivation is one of the key factors of learning. Smart classes can motivate students to write and speak
in English more than traditional classes. Google Document makes it possible for a group of people to
share documents and edit it together in real time. Therefore, if students are supposed to write in English
through Google Document and share their writings with their classmates through their tablet PCs, they are
motivated to try writing because they know their participation is essential for their group work. In
addition, students can feel safe in speaking in English through Voicethread, which is an interactive
presentation tool even though they are reluctant to speak English in front of other students and afraid of
making mistakes while they do so.
3. Easily adaptive to students' needs and proficiency level
Let's say, hypothetically, there's no Youtube service. As an English teacher, I would feel frustrated since
I will have a hard time finding teaching materials to teach pop songs to my students. However, since
Youtube is at our hands, we can easily adapt the materials to supplement our reading lessons, teach
listening skills, and, yes, teach pop songs. As a result, we can satisfy students' needs to learn English
more easily.
Likewise I would feel uncomfortable without Google Document. I often use it to teach writing and
grammar for my students. Through Google Document I can give each student different writing tasks made
according to their English proficiency level, which would be quite a complex job if I had to do that
through paperwork.
4. Resource enriched teaching and learning materials
I use an online quiz tool, Proprofs(www.proprofs.com), to facilitate students' learning process and check
their understanding. I'm satisfied with the quiz tool because I can insert movie files, audio files, and
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pictures into my quizzes, which would be unimaginable with paperwork. Students can solve the quizzes at
their own pace in the class or at home. I can also use Quizlet(www.quizlet.com) to help students study
specific words. I can fill up the Quizlet online flashcards with pictures and example sentences which will
help students understand the meaning of the words more clearly. Then I can post the resource enriched
flashcards onto my blog for students' word practice. These features help students feel smart classes are
resourceful and useful.
5. Using technology to enhance students' interaction.
With the help of technology, it is possible to give comments to students' works as soon as students
finish their writing. Social wall web service is one of my favorite tools that I use to do so. I use one of
the social wall websites called 'Wallwisher'(www.wallwisher.com) to consolidate students' grammatical
knowledge. Students write down sentences using certain grammatical structures on a social wall and share
them with other students as well as teachers. This is all possible thanks to technology and facilitates
interaction between students.
. Web Services for Smart Classes
I've chosen four web services for my smart classes: Google Document, social wall(www.wallwisher.co
m), presentation(www.voicethread.com), and online quiz tool(www.proprofs.com). I have selected these
because they can be used with any tablet PCs and are compatible with representative web browsers like
Internet Explorer, Chrome, and Safari. Even if schools are not equipped with tablet PCs and wifi network,
teachers can use these web services to give students homework which gives students the chance to
practice speaking or writing and check their understanding after the lesson, through online quizzes.
However, there's one thing left to be desired a portal, which will hold all these web services and help
students find materials they need. Here Google blog or an educational blog will be used for that purpose.
1. Google Document
Google Document is an effective tool for writing, sharing each other's writing, and giving teachers'
comments to their writing results. <Figure 1> is an example of how Google Document can be used in the
classroom.

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<Figure 1> Interactive Writing Practice through Google Document
The Google Document shown in <Figure 1> is shared among the teacher and students. Therefore
students' writing shows up both on the classroom screen monitor and on students' tablet PCs as soon as
they write. Students can give comments on other students' writing since they can see how other students
wrote and teachers also can do error correction activities during the class or give comments afterwards.
2. Interactive Presentation Tool - Voicethread(www.voicthread.com)
Voicethread is a presentation tool which can be used for the students' speaking practice. Since many
Korean students are reluctant to speak English in front of other students, Voicethread is an effective tool
to lower their affective filter. Although Voicethread also has a sharing function, many students do not
want to share their speaking with other students. Therefore, it is not recommended to open students'
speaking work through the teacher's blog. Instead, teachers can keep the speaking activity private between
the teacher and each student. That will lower their fear of making mistakes during speaking and thus
encourage them to speak freely. Teachers can pick up a few good students' speaking results to show them
the errors that students often make. <Figure 2> is an example of students' speaking practice through
Voicethread.
<The picture in Voicethread: from Jihaksa Middle School 3>
<Figure 2> Speaking Practice through Voicethread
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Students in the activity shown in <Figure 2> are supposed to describe future events using the expression
'will' or 'be going to'. After the speaking activity, comments can be made on the students' speaking results.

3. Social Wall - Wallwisher(www.wallwisher.com)
Wallwisher is one of the social walls. It can be used to share ideas or opinions. I've used it as a
teaching tool. <Figure 3> shows how a social wall can be used as a teaching tool.
<Figure 3> Interactive Practice of Grammar Knowledge through Wallwisher
The activity shown in <Figure 3> is a writing activity to consolidate the grammatical knowledge
students have learned in a lesson. They make sentences by arranging words given to their groups. Since
students' writing result is shared and shown on the classroom screen monitor, it is easy to give comments
on students writing. Therefore, social wall can be an effective tool for teaching writing skills for students
interactively.
4. Online Quiz Tool
Compared to paper quizzes, online quiz tools have several advantages. First, movies and audio files can
be inserted into quizzes. This aspect makes online quizzes resourceful. Second, both teachers and students
check the quiz scores and how each student responded to the quiz as soon as it gets solved. This aspect
of automatic scoring saves time for both teachers and students. Finally, online quiz tools make classes
more interactive since teachers can give feedback to the students during the class as soon as quizzes are
done. <Figure 4> is an example of an online quiz in which movies are included. On the right column of

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<Figure 5>, a quiz result is shown. Teachers can give feedback to students according to the result.
<Figure 5> Interactive Online Test through Online Quiz Tool
5. Google Blog or Education Blog
Blogs can be portals to teaching materials the same as Google can be a portal to news and information.
Various blogs can be used for teaching. For example, you can use Edmodo(www.edmodo.com) or Edu2.0
(www.edu20.com), both of which are blogs specific for education. However, I chose Google blog because
of its openness and it is very user-friendly. Some Korean blogs don't work well with HTML which is
essential for posting web service materials onto blogs. I would recommend Google blog for interactive
smart classes using web services. However, the open nature of blogs can cause copyright problems. In that
case Edmodo and Edu2.0 can be a solution since only authorized students can join your class and see the
teaching materials.
<Figure 6> shows how Google blog can be used to serve as a portal. Blogs has a label or category
function. That function can be used to organize teaching materials. Students who visit the blogs will find
materials they want by looking through the labels or categories.
<Figure 6> Using Blogs as a Portal to Smart Classes
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. Plans and Activities
For the past three months I have implemented interactive smart classes using web services and during
this process, had trials and errors. Reflecting on them, I have set up plans and activities for next semester.
I will reinforce the interactive nature of smart classes and increase the amount of smart classes up to the
proportion which I believe will maximize the effectiveness of smart classes. <Table 1> shows the plans
and activities which I plan to implement next semester.
<Table 1> Plans and Activities for Smart Classes Using Web Services
No. Web service Plans and Activities
1 Google Document
Guided and controlled Writing
Consolidating Grammatical Knowledge
Giving feedback to students' work actively
2
Speaking Tool
-Voicethread
-Google Hangout
Speaking practice
On line lecture of Grammar points
Reflecting students' speaking to their performance test
Giving feedback to students' work actively
3
Blogs
-Google
-Edu 2.0
Redesigning blogs for new semester
Using edu2.0 for copy right sensitive materials
4
Social Wall
-Wallwisher
-Primary wall
Sharing ideas
Guided and controll writing
Reinforcing grammar points students learned
Giving feedback to students' work actively
5
Online Quiz Tool
-Proprofs
-Hot potatos
Formative tests after lessons
Resourceful tests using movies and audios
cloze test using hot potatos
Giving feedback to students' work actively

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. Conclusion and Suggestion
The paveway to smart learning is upon us. Maybe there could be two ways for us to choose from. Like
Robert Frost said ; we can also choose the road not to be taken. However, the change of platform does
not give us many choices. When a new platform is accepted among most people because it is convenient
and effective, it becomes the norm. Internet banking and E-mail has changed the aspect of work in banks
and post offices as well as our everyday lives. Web 2.0 and web 3.0 coming in near future will affect our
profession of teaching English. It is true that smart classes are not ripe and the teaching environment is
not ready for them. Many teachers still debate if smart classes are good for our students or not. However,
it is certain that if we use web 2.0 environment, we can help our students reach a critical mass of English
input needed to become advanced learners more effectively. Korean students are struggling to learn
English in the EFL environment. They often get lost in the process or go wrong ways. They need
guidance and I believe we English teachers can do that since we know the whereabouts of English. If we
use web 2.0 tools, the work will be much easier.
<References>
Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology "Plans for Smart Education", 2011.