Abstract:

“If you do not know something, Google it”. In this well-known motto whatever kind of information appears to be undeniably at a hand. However, there is a subtle but sensible difference between surfing on the web casually but, thanks to serendipity, finding useful information, and looking for some piece of information intentionally, devoting time, effort, concentration to reach a specific goal. And it is not only a matter of staying focused, or being motivated to learn something or to learn to do something. It is a matter of knowing exactly what to ask for, and how to ask for it. A relevant lack in basic skills such as vocabulary, reading comprehension, logical reasoning and numeracy often represents an obstacle to a proficient use of the huge quantity of information available in the net.

LIBE project - Supporting Lifelong Learning with Inquiry Based Education, funded within the Lifelong Learning Programme by the European Commission (ref. no.: 543058-LLP-1-2013-1-IT-KA3-KA3MP), aims at offering young adults (16-24 years old) with low levels of education a set of personalized e-learning courses on transversal competences, i.e. literacy, numeracy and problem solving in technology-rich environments, in four languages (English, Italian, Norwegian, Portuguese).

LIBE courses are composed of 32 Multimedia Presentations (MPs) and 125 Learning Objects (LOs). The present contribution illustrates specifically the activities related to students’ vocabulary enhancement proposed across the 63 learning objects organized in two learning units (LUs):

LU01 - “How to write a resume like a wizard” is focused on literacy and concerns employment issues (e.g. how to write an effective cv and a cover letter, the comprehension of job ads structure). The general aim of the LU is to develop in low-achievers job-search skills and to provide them with the basic information needed to prepare an effective curriculum vitae and contact prospective employers
LU02 - “Everything you want is out there waiting for you to ask” is focused on computer information literacy and digital competence (e.g. how to perform an effective search in a search engine for general learning purposes). The overall objective of the LU is to make students acquire the necessary skills to surf the web effectively for personal, learning and job purposes.

The LUs intend to develop students’ vocabulary with progressive critical questioning on the meaning of the words, their semantic fields (synonyms, opposites, hyponyms, hypernyms, meronyms) on a very different sets of topics (from modern music to filmmaking, poetry, comics, cooking or History). The text in the LUs, presenting real life inputs mostly retrieved from the web (resumes in the Europass format, authentic cover letters and job ads), have been adapted to LIBE target group needs and knowledge and are therefore focused on those words relevant in understanding the key information on the topics. All inputs are provided with activities and exercises related to reading and vocabulary comprehension such as cloze tests, matching exercises, multiple choice questions. A formative assessment feedback is offered at the end of each activity.

The paper will present the learning goals, the structure, the pedagogical approach and the assessment tools designed to foster vocabulary and to rebuild transversal skills in low achievers.

Keywords:

Search engine, information, reading, vocabulary development, youth employment, job search skills.