Chen, Hsieh & Kinshuk’s study (2008) on the use of mobile phones for vocabulary learning is an example of an increasing (but still relatively small) number of studies that investigate mobile learning. I sometimes use it in my MA classes as an example of research that does not actually investigate defining aspects of the core constructs of the study; in this case, participants were given exercises to complete on their mobile phones in a lab (therefore completely obviating the potential benefits of mobility that phones bring) that did not in any way take advantage of the medium (the exercises could have been presented on a computer, or even in a book). However, this does not mean that the study is not interesting. One of the pedagogically relevant findings of the study was that participants themselves said they enjoyed using their phones. This may have simply been a novelty effect (which was not controlled for), but one of the reasons they gave was that they felt they learned better with the ‘bite-sized chunks’ of learning content that a cellphone necessarily is limited to presenting (due to limitations such as screen size).
Learners felt phones were useful because they could be used anywhere and anytime (as one would expect) but also because the ‘mini-lessons’ fitted in better with their own preferred ways of learning. I am very interested in out-of-class learning, and it seems to me that this is an important finding for materials developers and those interested in supporting learning outside the classroom; the presentation (including amount, format, portability) of learning materials is likely to have a big impact on its actual use. As much as applied linguists debate the various benefits or otherwise of various types of instruction, surely anything that increases (or decreases) the amount of exposure to input or amount of practice learners get should be a prime consideration. A lot has been written about the supposedly different ways in which young learners now interact with information. Without entering that discussion, it is clear to me that mobile technologies offer, at the very least, alternative, or perhaps more accurately, complementary means of engaging with learning content. The nature of out-of-class learning is that it is less structured and less consistent, and mobile technologies seem promising in supporting the type of incremental learning that this entails. We need more research investigating how learners interact with and - crucually - learn from this.
Chen, N., Hsieh, S., & Kinshuk. (2008). Effects of short-term memory and content representation type on mobile language learning. Language learning & technology, 12(3), 93-113.
COMPUTER-ASSISTED LANGUAGE LEARNING AND THE LEARNER
AILA ReN Symposium
Call for Papers
Background and Aims
Recently, attempts have been made to make learning more flexible for the learner. With developments in mobile technologies, learners have freedom that was previously unavailable to them, and researchers have started capitalising upon this, through provision of lessons that learners can access whenever and wherever they wish (e.g., Stockwell, 2007, 2008), or through encouraging them to access audio and/or video resources of their choosing (e.g., Gromik, 2008). Other researchers have chosen to use these mobile technologies as a supplement to class activities (Levy & Kennedy,
2008; Reinders, 2008) and to make increasing links between formal and informal learning, for example by capitalising on the potential of computer games (e.g. Ranalli, 2008).
Social networking sites such as Active Worlds and Second Life have also empowered learners to make decisions about who they wish to converse with, by what mode (i.e., text chat or oral communication), and freely engage in discussion with a real audience who shares similar interests (e.g., Dudeney, 2008). This is a growth area, where researchers examine the way technology facilitates interaction between teachers and learners, between native speakers and learners, and between learners themselves and the unique characteristics of this type of communication. Another related strand of research looks at the identities learners create online and the ways they develop and build on communities of learners for their language development (e.g., Lam, 2004).
These recent developments in the area of social networking and mobile-assisted language learning are of particular interest to researchers interested in understanding in changes in the way learners approach the learning of a second language. In saying this, however, a crucial question that remains is how best to support learning in these environments. We are only starting to develop methodologies for investigating these forms of language learning, where the teacher’s role is less dominant in controlling learners’ actions, but rather one where the learners must be guided to use the existing resources in a way that has the potential to lead to personal development and to language acquisition. Furthermore, in such an environment where a good deal of the learning may occur outside of a classroom situation, methods of ensuring maintenance of learner motivation also become paramount.
Although research is carried out in the above areas in many parts of the world, the research is not connected and studies done in one field may not be informed by research done in another. It is the aim of this Symposium to bring together people working in the different areas related to the role of the language learner in CALL.
Themes of the symposium include:
- Learner motivation
- Computer-mediated communication (with a focus on the role of the learner)
- Learners’ beliefs in CALL
- (Materials development for) individualising instruction
- Social networking and computer games and second language acquisition
- Mobile-assisted language learning
- Supporting out-of-class language learning
- Teacher education for CALL (this follows on from the AILA Symposium in Essen).
Submitting a proposal We are inviting proposals for contributions to the symposium. Each paper will be given 20 minutes and there will be time for questions and discussion at the end. To submit a proposal, please send a 250 word abstract to
callandthelearner@gmail.com
You do not need to submit your paper to AILA, as ReN symposium papers are vetted separately.
You can find more information about the conference here: http://www.aila2011.org/en/default.asp
To find our more about, or to join the Research Network, please visit: www.callandthelearner.info
The deadline for submitting a proposal is May 30.
How cool is this? Speak into your Iphone in English and get a spoken translation in Arabic (and vice versa). I actually saw a device that did this (I think by the same company) but it was a dedicated piece of (expensive) hardware. Having this available on your Iphone (it’s not public yet), would be amazing.
Why do students not like to keep portfolios? I think it’s largely because they require a lot of effort, and effort that is clearly separate from and in addition to that demanded by the language activities they engage in. It takes an extra step to pull out a notebook or (more likely) log on to a website to update your learning record or to write up your reflections. That’s why it’s important to make the process as easy as possible and to integrate reflection into the learning process. Since most learning takes place outside the classroom, how can we encourage this reflection ‘in-the-moment’? To my mind cellphones are an excellent candidate. Using the simple voice recorder available on most phones students can be asked to record such things as:
- their use of the language outside the classroom (length, location, purpose)
- examples of the target language (for example a particular feature discussed in class)
- their success or otherwise in doing so (self-assessment)
- any questions they come up with
Several applications let you automatically upload voice notes to an online account. Some, such as one of my favourite pieces of software, Evernote (www.evernote.com), let you share an account. As a teacher you could set this up and let students send their recordings directly to that account so that both they and you can review it. An audio message as feedback will certainly cost you less time than a written comment. The (audio)record of students’ learning gives you a chance to give them credit for their out-of-class learning while giving you an immediate account of whether and how they use and learn the language on their own. In this way, mobile portfolios could be a feasible way to assess students’ development towards autonomy.
Coursesmart, a publisher of college textbooks in the US, is offering an Iphone application that gives you access to over 7,000 textbooks. Why are publishers of language education materials so far behind….?
The fourth instalment of this excellent conference series, held both in Second and in Real Life on 19/20 February. I hear they have some interesting keynote speakers ;-)
A very neat application was just realised by Ipadio for use with any cellphone. Essentially this lets you dial a number in the UK (or if you have an Iphone or Android phone you can use a dedicated app) and record yourself, a call or a presentation (if you have a mic). It then automatically uploads that to an audioblog, so it’s ‘live-to-web’. It also includes voice-to-text transcription and it will geo-tag your post so that people can see where the recording was made. Needless to say this would be wonderful for a range of uses, such as data collection (interviews, recordings of classroom interactions, personal reflections/portolios), and also teaching (get students to do interviews or be ‘journalists’ and report on events outside the classroom; they then read or listen to eachother’s posts and comment on them). Has anyone usd this yet for language teaching or research purposes?
In the past I have used www.wirenode.com to make mobile versions of my website. I have now found a new website called Mippin, which seems just as easy. It will take an RSS feed from your website and turn it into a mobile-ready version, complete with pictures, formatting and layout. Brilliant.
Mobile phones are widely used by people, so why are researchers not making more use of them to collect data? In an upcoming project in Hong Kong I hope to get participants to record language learning experiences outside the classroom - and what better way to do this than by using a tool that each of them carries around all the time anyway?
This article talks about the technical aspects of mobile data collection and is a good read if you think you may be interested in this area. Recommended!
Please drop me a line if you are using mobile data collection - I’d love to hear about your experiences. Maybe we can exchange tips.
Edukate is a programme designed for use on the Ipod to faciliate teaching. It contains a range of features to support class planning, student tracking and the use of teaching strategies. More information is available here or on their Facebook page. If anyone has used this, please drop me a note through the contact page to let me know your thoughts!
