4.1 Overview of Tasks

2 minutes

Description

In the days when labs were still tape cassette based, teachers would typically save and organize student recordings—captured on individual tapes—in a cardboard box.

In DiLL, student recordings are saved and organized in "digital boxes" called tasks. Assigning a student a task activates their recorder and any recordings made are automatically saved and organized on the DiLL Server by the Task and student's name.

Directions:

An overview of Tasks can be found on page 9 of the DiLL Teacher's Guide. A reproduction is provided below:


Task Types in DiLL:

DiLL Client: Default State, No Tasks Assigned

  • Record & playback controls inactive
  • Students can:
    • Load lesson audio from the DiLL Catalog or local audio files to practice with
    • Playback the lesson audio
    • Make practice recordings
    • Review, delete, and rename practice recordings
  • Note: Practice recordings made are NOT saved

DiLL Client: Recording-Only Task

  • Record & Play buttons are active
  • Client is locked to the assigned task
  • Students can:
    • Make & delete recordings
    • Review, delete, and rename recordings
  • Recordings are automatically saved and organized under the student's name --> Task Name --> Teacher's Name

Use recording-only tasks to:

  • Capture student responses to non-audio stimuli:
    • Describe a picture
    • Thoughts on a video clip
    • Read aloud a news article
  • Capture conversations (as long as one student records, all conversation partners' voices will be captured)

DiLL Client: Lesson-Based Task

  • Lesson audio is automatically loaded into the Client player
  • Record & Playback buttons are active
  • Client is locked to the assigned task
  • Students can:
    • Playback the lesson audio
    • Make & delete recordings
    • Review, delete, and rename recordings
  • Recordings are automatically saved and organized under the student's name --> Task Name --> Teacher's Name

Use lesson-based tasks to:

  • Capture student responses to an audio lesson file:
    • Drill recordings against audio from a textbook CD
    • Responses to pre-recorded teacher questions
  • Assign audio to students to listen to

DiLL Client: Synchronized Task

  • Record & Playback buttons disappear
  • Client is locked to the synchronized task
  • Students have no control:
    • Teacher controls record button centrally
    • Teacher controls what students hear and when they hear it
    • Teacher controls whether or not a student can playback their recordings
    • Recordings CANNOT be deleted

Use synchronized tasks to:

  • Conduct a listening or speaking assessment with the entire class simultaneously
  • Practice and proctor AP Music and AP Language exams
  • Stream out audio (from the Catalog, a CD, or local hard drive) to the entire class

Common Questions:

Work in progress