Discussion Question 4

1. According to Wikipedia, top-down and bottom-up are both strategies of information processing and knowledge ordering, mostly involving software, but also other humanistic and scientific theories. In practice, they can be seen as a style of thinking and teaching. In many cases top-down is used as a synonym of analysis or decomposition, and bottom-up of synthesis. Top down approach starts with the big picture. It breaks down from there into smaller segments.
A top-down approach is essentially the breaking down of a system to gain insight into its compositional sub-systems. In a top-down approach an overview of the system is formulated, specifying but not detailing any first-level subsystems.
A bottom-up approach is a type of information processing based on incoming data from the environment to form a perception. Information enters the eyes in one direction (input), and is then turned into an image by the brain that can be interpreted and recognized as a perception (output). In a bottom-up approach the individual base elements of the system are first specified in great detail. These elements are then linked together to form larger subsystems, which then in turn are linked, sometimes in many levels, until a complete top-level system is formed.

2. http://www.ellentv.com/

The Ellen Degeneres Show is good for top-down approach. It has entertainment, story, people, facebook updates, criticism for the unfairness. Just by briefly listenting to the show, students can enjoy with catching keywords.

3. According to Wikipedia, a podcast is a type of digital media consisting of an episodic series of audio, video, PDF, or ePub files subscribed to and downloaded through web syndication or streamed online to a computer or mobile device. The word is a neologism derived from "broadcast" and "pod" from the success of the iPod, as podcasts are often listened to on portable media players.
To discuss the benefit of podcasting for L2 learners, it is important to have a premise of diligent L2 learners who are intrinsically motivated. They can make themselves used to listening L2, analyzing the story of each and catch new words. They can also dictate.