An Invitation to CALL
UNIT 1
Introduction to Computer-Assisted Language Learning.
From my first task I can conclude some explanation about CALL. The meaning of CALL is One of subject of computer related with language learnig. The acronym of CALL is computer-assisted language learning. Although, as we will see below, the field or significant parts of it sometimes go by other names, CALL seems to be the most widely accepted generic term. In this foundation course, CALL will be used in a broad sense to refer to any endeavor involving the computer in some significant way in language teaching and learning. In reality, all aspects of CALL have continued to develop, and in this course, I do not attempt to rate one as being more important or useful than the other.
This field has gone by a number of different names as groups of practitioners have attempted to promote their own views and philosophies, in some cases in an attempt to distance the field from tutorial CALL, which is sometimes regarded as incompatible with interactionist and social constructivist approaches to language teaching. The list below is representative but not exhaustive.
· CALL - Computer-assisted language learning
· CELL - Computer-enhanced language learning
· TELL - Technology-enhanced language learning
· TALL - Technology-assisted language learning: variant of CALL and TELL
· CALI - Computer-assisted language instruction
· CBLT - Computer-based language training
· IT and ICT - Information Technology/Information and Communication Technologies
· NBLT - Network-Based Language Teaching
· DLL - Digital Language Learning
· MALL - Mobile Assisted Language Learning
THE SCOPE OF CALL
These all about the scope of CALL.In previous versions of this course, I noted that teachers interested in CALL can get involved in a number of different ways, which I referred to as teacher roles.
· As researchers
· As consumers of CALL
· As directors
· As managers of computer-mediated communication
· As software or web developers
· As coaches
· As CALL experts for your program
· As CALL professionals
UNIT 2
Courseware Evaluation, Development, and Implementation
In my task two I have got the sub-field of tutorial CALL from the perspectives of both the end users (teachers and students) and developers. In practice, courseware has been used to refer to everything from complete software packages that can be used without a teacher to software that is just a part of a language learning course, sometimes a minor or optional supplementary part. We will use the term interchangeably with that of tutorial software to include any software designed for language learning purposes.
FRAMEWORK FUNDAMENTALS
The three modules (development, evaluation, implementation) share core components inspired by Richards & Rodgers (1982). In each case their original components are adapted, interpreted, and supplemented to include the reality of the computer as the interface between the teacher/developer and materials and the learner.
DEVELOPMENT MODULE
Like the development module, both the evaluation and implementation modules rely on versions of Richards and Rodgers' categories of approach, design, and procedure.
Approach. A language teaching approach is taken to include assumptions about what language is and how languages are learned.
Design. The design portion of the development framework draws heavily from Phillips (1985) and includes elements such as the following: language difficulty, program difficulty, program content, language focus (also called program focus), skill focus (also called learner focus), and learner styles supported.
Procedure. The procedure considerations are much more specific to the computing environment..
Unit 3
Computer Mediated Communication
TEXT-BASED CMC
In unit 3 we will look at the text uses both for their own value and as a vehicle for introducing concepts relevant to audio and video-based CMC.
Asynchronous text. The first use of CMC in language teaching almost certainly came through email exchanges from teachers to students and among students within classes.
Synchronous Text. With synchronous text, or chat, the messages are exchanged in text form, but in real time.
Unit 4
CALL on the Web
We have been looking at CALL software and activities involving it regardless of whether it is accessible through disk, the Internet in general (like email) or the World Wide Web. The Web is also where you find the most common tool applications for CALL, in particular the browsers and online video players that give access to a seemingly endless collection of both dedicated and authentic English language material.
DISADVANTAGES OF THE WEB
Because of the hype surrounding it for language learning, it is useful to begin with some of the disadvantages of the Web over alternatives
- Text-based material on the Web is sometimes not as easy to read
- Sound and video sometimes take a noticeable time to transfer
- Sound and video are typically compressed to speed up transfer
- Because of the way that HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) works
- Because of this delay
- Down servers or broken links may lead to frustration.
- The sheer amount of material can make it hard to find what you want
- The Web is dynamic and often as unpredictable as the humans behind it.
- Sites and applications that used to be free and only supported by text ads that could be easily ignored are increasingly charging fees requiring subscriptions
- As is widely known.
ADVANTAGES OF THE WEB
Despite the disadvantages, there are many good reasons for using the Web for certain language learning activities.
- There is anytime, anywhere access (for some people at least).
- There are enormous amounts of free material.
- Material can be found that is current.
- Language reference and other learning support materials can be found.
- Student and teacher publication opportunities exist.
- A cultural window is opened through the authentic material readily available.
- Meaning technologies, such as transcripts, dictionaries, and translators,
- Increasing amounts of audio and video allow building of comprehension skills beyond reading.
- Previous disk-based activities (like tutorial exercises) and Internet-based activities (like email) can often be handled through the Web.
Unit 5
CALL and Language Skills
LISTENING
Listening is potentially one of the most promising areas for CALL development. This is because multimedia computing has everything standard audio and video have with the addition of a variety of meaning technologies such as text support, hyperlinked glossaries, and even translations.
SPEAKING
In terms of direct practice of speaking, recent developments on the web have allowed for voice chat sites which make it possible for learners and teachers to interact through the Internet in distance education courses.
READING
- Just using the web
- Educational sites with ESL or adult literacy support.
- Text reconstruction activities, such as Storyboard
- Timed or paced readings to develop speed, for example, www.readingsoft.com/.
- Multimedia reading, such as voice enhanced texts and dynamically
- Student-produced material, such as the set of children's stories written by high school Spanish.
- Online graded readers such as those at www.eslreading.org/.
WRITING
Some other ways computers enhance writing instruction include the following.
GRAMMAR
Grammar practice was perhaps the earliest use of CALL. Today grammar work is largely focused on the following:
PRONUNCIATION
Pronunciation work is generally of three types.
- Listen, repeat/record, and compare.
- Visualization: wave form, pitch contour, spectrogram.
- ASR (automatic speech recognition) scoring.
VOCABULARY
Common CALL implementations for vocabulary include the following.
· Hypertext dictionaries/glossaries.
· Talking dictionaries
· Concordance programs.
· Picture dictionaries
· Word lists and vocabulary tests for English
CULTURE
Links specifically for teaching culture can be found at http://iteslj.org/links/ESL/Culture/. To review a proposed pedagogical framework for culture and technologies, see Levy (2007) at http://llt.msu.edu/vol11num2/pdf/levy.pdf.
PRACTICE ACTIVITY
Select one skill area that particularly interests you. After reviewing some of the sources mentioned above, find several other web sources on your own and review them for their potential to integrate into or supplement your class activities.
Unit 6
CALL Research
In unit six we can read and get all explanation of the CALL research, we have been going through this course with the implicit assumption that CALL works, that teaching language using computers in some way makes learning "better." But what exactly is "better?" Here are some possible interpretations:
· learners pick up language knowledge or skills faster
· learners pick up what is targeted
· learners can get materials or experience
· learners can learn with more or less equal effectiveness
· learners enjoy the language learning process more or are willing
· learners require less space, less teacher time, or less expensive materials (institutional efficiency)
CALL RESEARCH TRENDS
Over time researchers began to argue against comparative research (see for example Chapelle and Jamieson 1989), stating that the number of variables was too great. Research has continued in all areas of CALL but recently has focused on several identifiable areas, such as:
· Computer mediated communication
· Visual, text and sound annotation
· Effectiveness of online collaborative and constructivist activities
SURVEY OF UNANSWERED QUESTIONS IN CALL RESEARCH
One of the major concerns that scholars seem to have upon entering this field, particularly if they are trying to develop a project for a master's or doctoral thesis, is what sorts of research questions to study.
DOING RESEARCH
· Observation..
· Tracking
· Student surveys
· Pre- and post-testing to evaluate outcomes of the use of technology.
· Student journals.
LOCATING RESEARCH STUDIES
A search through Google Scholar (http://scholar.google.com) using appropriate keywords is one way to find research materials on a CALL topic. Two useful sites to search are CALICO (www.calico.org), which has CALICO Journal articles over three years old freely available, and Language Learning & Technology (http://llt.msu.edu), where all the journal articles are freely available. Both sites have internal search features.
Unit 7
CALL Learner Training
About unit 7 we can know more about the CALL learner Training, that will help us in language learning. CALL has given us some amazing possibilities for improving language learning. However, these possibilities create a problem.The result is that students may not use the computers in ways that are effective for achieving language learning objectives, and it is even less likely that they will use them in ways that are most effective. In the process, we may be able not only to help them with their CALL use, but also help them in general to become more effective autonomous learners. Surprisingly, this is not a well-developed area of CALL. Before continuing, let's consider three alternatives to CALL learner training...
One solution is to try to build software in such a way that it adapts to the learner on a number of different levels.
A second alternative is to take the philosophical position that learners have a right to self-discovery and that left alone they will naturally move to the
A third alternative is to acknowledge that learners would profit from training but that it's just too much trouble to train them since it obviously takes a lot of time away from other aspects of language learning and there's no guarantee it will be successful.
TECHNICAL TRAINING
Let us proceed under the assumption that it is worth the trouble to do at least some training. What do we need to do? Training can be divided at least into two areas: technical and pedagogical. Technical training naturally includes general computer literacy, but of greater interest here is learning technical skills and knowledge of particular value to language learning.
PEDAGOGICAL TRAINING
In a 2004 paper (Hubbard, 2004), I make a case for giving training not just on technical aspects but also on pedagogical ones, that is, how to use the tutorial software or tool effectively to meet specific learning objectives. To this end, I offer a set of five principles for learner training, summarized below.
- Experience CALL yourself.
- Give learners teacher training.
- Use a cyclical approach.
- Use collaborative debriefings.
- Teach general exploitation strategies.
