Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-r5fsc Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-23T03:17:17.206Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

The development of meaningful interactions on a blog used for the learning of English as a Foreign Language

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 September 2010

Annick Rivens Mompean*
Affiliation:
Université Lille 3 (France), UMR STL 8163 (email: [email protected])

Abstract

The use of a blog as a pedagogical aid for the learning of foreign languages is gaining support among teachers’ communities (Soubrié, 2006; Tomé, 2007) as it can help students develop online interactions and authentic productions. The current study is analysing the use of such a multimedia setting in a group of Master’s students in France, studying English as a Foreign Language, who had to keep a blog in groups of three or four, dealing with a specific topic of their interest. The introduction of such a tool was meant to motivate learners to practise written expression with an added value: the authenticity of the posted message, aimed not only at the teacher and the learning community but also made visible to the outside world.

The aim of this article is to measure the pedagogical added value of such a blog for the development of written expression more specifically, and to see the potential to transform a real activity which is well-known to the younger learners’ community1 into a learning activity for the learning of English. The aims are in agreement with the principles of the Common European Framework of References for Languages (Council of Europe, 2001), which establishes specific goals for language learners with the implementation of ICT: task-based learning, authentic interactions or collaborative learning (Wenger, 1998).

Three main aspects have been considered in this article:

(i) a description of the way the interactions take place on the blog;

(ii) an analysis of the motivating factors for such a publication online;

(iii) reflection on the role of the tutor and on the place for feedback.

A quantitative analysis of the interactions shows that the project is quite successful in terms of participation, as there are more posts on average than required in the pedagogical contract. Yet there are some disparities, concerning the level of activity from one blog to another and among the participants, that can be related to the role they undertake within the blog (do they prefer to post messages or comments, who are these for and why are they posted?) and to their level of motivation. Qualitatively, the project is also positively perceived: although the blog is not considered as a “real-life” one (the activity is perceived as a pedagogical one), the interactions are meaningful because they make sense for the learners who are fully engaged in the writing process and in the interactions. Finally, the place for feedback needs to be discussed, as the corrections online, although described as necessary, are also very often perceived as inhibiting and appear to be a critical element of the project.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © European Association for Computer Assisted Language Learning 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Campbell, A. P. (2003) Weblogs for Use with ESL Classes. The Internet TSL Journal, http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Campbell-Weblogs.htmlGoogle Scholar
Camilleri, M., Ford, P., Leja, H.Sollars, V. (2007) Le blog dans l’enseignement des langues vivantes. CELV: Centre Européen pour les Langues Vivantes, Graz.Google Scholar
Cardon, D.Delaunay-Teterel, H. (2006) La production de soi comme technique relationnelle. Réseaux, 24(138): 1571.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Celik, C.Mangenot, F. (2004) La communication pédagogique par forum: caractéristiques discursives. In: Les Carnets du Cediscor 8. Paris: Presses Sorbonne Nouvelle, 7588.Google Scholar
Council of Europe (2001) Common European Framework of References for Languages. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Herring, S., Scheidt, L. A., Bonus, S.Wright, E. (2004) Bridging the gap: a genre analysis of weblogs. Proceedings of the 37th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS’04). Los Alamitos: IEEE Computer Society Press. http://www2.computer.org/portal/web/csdl/doi/10.1109/HICSS.2004.1265271CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kerbrat-Orecchioni, C. (2005) Le discours en interaction. Paris: Armand Colin.Google Scholar
Lara, T. (2006) Usos de los blogs en una pedagogía constructivista. Revista Telos, 65: 8693.Google Scholar
Mortensen, T.Walker, J. (2002) Blogging thoughts: Personal Publication as an Online Research Tool. In: Morrison, A. (ed.), Researching ICT’s in Context. Intermedia Report 3/2002. Oslo: University of Oslo, 249279. http://imweb.uio.no/konferanser/skikt-02/skikt-research-conferance.htmlGoogle Scholar
Norman, D. (1999) ‘Affordance, usages et conception’ d’après ‘Affordance, Conventions and Design’. Interactions, VI(3): 3842.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
ORegan, B., Desmet, P.Rivens Mompean, A. (forthcoming) Writing Aids and Grammar and Style Checkers for English and French as a Foreign Language: Challenges and Opportunities. Revue Française de Linguistique Appliquée, 1(5).Google Scholar
Rivens Mompean, A. (2007) Pratiques langagières sur un forum pédagogique en anglais. In: Gerbault, J. (ed.), La langue du cyberespace: de la diversité aux normes. Paris: l’Harmattan, 221238.Google Scholar
Soubrié, T. (2006) Utilisation d’un blog en formation initiale d’enseignants de FLE: pratiques réflexives et délibérations collégiales. In: Mangenot, F. and Dejean, C. (eds.), Les échanges en ligne dans l’apprentissage et la formationLe français dans le monde. Recherches et applications, 40: 111–122.Google Scholar
Soubrié, T. (2008) Images de soi dans un blog professionnel d’enseignants stagiaires. Alsic, 11(1). EPAL. http://alsic.revues.org/index843.htmlGoogle Scholar
Thorne, S. (2009) Language learning as bricolage in new media environments. Plenary address at EUROCALL 2009, Gandia, 10–12 September 2009. http://eurocall.webs.upv.es/eurocall2009/speakers.phpGoogle Scholar
Tomé, M. (2007) Recherches et expériences dans les blogs du Campus Virtuel FLE, Çédille. Revista de estudios franceses, 3: 265268.Google Scholar
Trémion, V. (2005) Le blog, un outil d’apprentissage en classe de FLE? Communication au colloque de l’ASDIFLE, Université Lille 3, 21–22 October, 2005.Google Scholar
Wenger, E. (1998) Communities of practice – Learning, meaning and identity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Williams, J.Jacobs, J. (2004) Exploring the use of blogs as learning spaces in the higher education sector. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, 20(2): 232247. http://www.ascilite.org.au/ajet/ajet20/williams.htmlCrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wrede, O. (2005) “Are weblogs different to forums?” from the blog Details of a global brain http://wrede.interfacedesign.org/archives/992.htmlGoogle Scholar