QR codes and increasing access to language

I’m a big fan of QR (quick response) codes. You know, those funny-looking square bar-code-looking things. They’ve been around for a very long time now, and their heyday was about 10 years ago. However, I think there are some really helpful ways that QR codes can be used inside classrooms and inside the school library.

One way that QR codes can be used is for learners with language acquisition, or English language learners. A poignant unattributed quote that has stuck with me is:

Never make fun of someone who mispronounces a word. It means they learned it by reading.

And this is true for many English language learners. In our classrooms and in the school library, we can help English language learners with content-specific vocabulary with QR codes and audio files.

In the following video, Richard Byrne from Freetechnologyforteachers.com demonstrates how to record an audio file with Vocaroo, a free online voice recording service. After a recording is made, you can download (or copy-paste) a QR code to be used in a presentation, a word-processing document, or a set of flash cards. Here’s Richard’s brief explanation of how to do it:

[ If you have trouble accessing the video embedded above, you can view it directly in YouTube at https://youtu.be/idveV_pB-Qg ]

Using audio recordings with QR codes for language learners

The audio recordings with QR codes could be combined for content-specific vocabulary. For example, in a science class or lesson, content-specific vocabulary could be difficult for English language learners to pronounce and/or learn. In this case, vocabulary could be connected to audio pronunciations. (Also, using universal design for learning principles, audio pronunciation may benefit other students as well if these slides were used as flash cards.)

In the example below, I have created just a few slides with science vocabulary that may be part of an early unit on laboratory equipment, and I have added QR codes for audio pronunciations. Give it a try.

[ Embedded media description: Embedded slideshow of seven slides from Google Slides. After the title slide, are five slides with science laboratory equipment names, photos, and QR codes for audio pronunciation. The final slide is a credits slide to SlidesCarnival.com for the slide template. ]

An important tip

There’s a really important tip to know about using Vocaroo, though, and I learned this from Julie Smith over at The Techie Teacher: Vocaroo recordings are not permanent. So you can’t use them year after year. So, instead, if you want to use your recordings over time, here's what you need to do:

1. Make the recording in Vocaroo.
2. Download the .mp3 file.
3. Upload the .mp3 file to your web space, such as Google Drive or Microsoft Onedrive, making sure it is set to share publicly (or within your school's domain).
4. Copy the shareable link to the .mp3 file.
5. Create a QR code with the URL at https://goqr.me/. (This is my favorite site for creating QR codes to use with learning materials because you can easily generate a variety of codes and make them large to work in a classroom, presentation, or library setting.)

The screenshot below shows the options in Vocaroo after you record an audio clip. You can (1) select to create a QR code or (2) you can download an .mp3 file.

Screenshot of Vocaroo to create a QR code or download an .mp3 file.

How to scan QR codes?

New to QR codes or wondering how you might do this with other classroom devices? Good news! There are lots of options. QR codes can be scanned on mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablet computers. You can do this with the built-in camera app or you can use a school-safe QR code app, such as Quickmark, which is available for iOS and Android devices.

They can also be scanned using the webcam on Chromebooks and laptops. QR codes are printed out and then scanned using the webcam and a QR code scanner at https://webqr.com/.

Let me know...

Let me know how this worked for you and if there are any suggestions you have. Also, if you have some other suggestions for integrating QR codes and audio, please share those in the comments.