Captioned video is widely used to enhance second language (L2) learners’ exposure to oral input beyond the classroom setting, and captioning has been found to provide an instantaneous, useful visual aid for parsing and understanding L2 oral discourse. Nevertheless, a meta-analysis has shown that captioning exerts a selective effect on L2 learners with different profiles. This study investigated whether L2 learners’ modality preferences (visual vs. auditory) and working memory capacity (high vs. low) would modulate the effect of full captions on L2 listening outcome. Results from 60 participants revealed that both cognitive variables affected their L2 listening to different extents. Notably, working memory capacity modulates the impact of L2 learners’ preferred modality on their listening outcome. Modality preference did not exert any significant impact on the listening outcome of L2 learners with lower working memory capacity. For L2 learners with high working memory capacity, their modality preference played a pivotal role in modulating their listening outcome; in this case, auditory learners had the best listening performance viewing the video without captions, whereas visual learners did best when watching the captioned video. These findings speak to the need for taking individual differences into consideration when employing captioned videos.

Promoting speaking interaction remains a challenge for language massive open online courses (LMOOCs), both from a pedagogical and technological standpoint. This paper describes the design process of the tandemMOOC, which exploits the massive, open and online features of MOOCs in order to offer language learners online speaking interaction practice with native speakers of their target language. The course is based on eTandem language learning principles and equips learners with the necessary competences to be able to cope with online second language (L2) speaking opportunities. Following a design-based research approach, this paper presents an analysis and discussion of seven components of the design: learning environment, facilitation dynamics, dyad configuration, task types, task topics, feedback provision, and gamification components. The analysis of the implementation of these elements results in a set of key features for the integration of L2 speaking interaction activities in LMOOCs.

Commonly, low completion rates in massive open online courses have called into question the quality of their learning materials and instruction. This paper attempts to identify crucial factors of engagement and retention in language massive open online courses (LMOOCs) in the context of the open online program of Icelandic Online, a self-guided course for second language learners of Icelandic. The study seeks to explore the impact of factors associated with the course’s instructional design on engagement and retention and reveal crucial determinants of attrition. The study depends on survey and tracking data from 400 learners and qualitative data from 62 informants in one course. It builds on previous studies on student engagement and retention in LMOOCs (Friðriksdóttir, 2018, 2019). The present study identified six content-specific factors that the majority of participants considered to be important for their motivation. Some factors, such as gradual and scaffolded presentation of input, had a positive impact on retention. Furthermore, statements from learners in the study who disengaged before completing show that non-course-related factors, such as time constraints, affect LMOOC retention. The study provides a new framework for how to promote student engagement and suggests specific strategies for other LMOOC developers.

This paper introduces a novel captioning method, partial and synchronized captioning (PSC), as a tool for developing second language (L2) listening skills. Unlike conventional full captioning, which provides the full text and allows comprehension of the material merely by reading, PSC promotes listening to the speech by presenting a selected subset of words, where each word is synched to its corresponding speech signal. In this method, word-level synchronization is realized by an automatic speech recognition (ASR) system, dedicated to the desired corpora. This feature allows the learners to become familiar with the correspondences between words and their utterances. Partialization is done by automatically selecting words or phrases likely to hinder listening comprehension. In this work we presume that the incidence of infrequent or specific words and fast delivery of speech are major barriers to listening comprehension. The word selection criteria are thus based on three factors: speech rate, word frequency and specificity. The thresholds for these features are adjusted to the proficiency level of the learners. The selected words are presented to aid listening comprehension while the remaining words are masked in order to keep learners listening to the audio. PSC was evaluated against no-captioning and full-captioning conditions using TED videos. The results indicate that PSC leads to the same level of comprehension as the full-captioning method while presenting less than 30% of the transcript. Furthermore, compared with the other methods, PSC can serve as an effective medium for decreasing dependence on captions and preparing learners to listen without any assistance.

In this paper we present the Report Manager of our Web-based tutoring system for German – an interface to a persistent learner report that students can inspect and manipulate. The learner report collects and retains information on the learner’s progress and performance that is saved between visits. It also provides access to a journaling system that records prior inputs along with detailed error analysis, and a bookmarking system that tracks exercise completion. Finally, results can be printed or emailed to an instructor. In the Fall semester 2003, we conducted a study with 87 learners of German to investigate how their study habits are affected by an inspectable learner report. Our study indicates that students reviewed their learner profiles frequently – 33 times on average over the course of a semester – and that 70% of the students repeated exercises after having inspected their learner profile. So, while detailed user profiles and performance tracking are invaluable tools for CALL researchers, our study suggests that students also utilize and are influenced by the information.

This paper reports some of the findings of a distinctive innovative use of audio-conferencing involving a population (campus-based advanced learners) and a type of application (task-based language learning) that have received little attention to date: the use of Wimba Voice Tools to provide additional opportunities for spoken interactions between advanced learners of French. The experiment had a dual aim: (a) to examine the suitability of Wimba Voice Tools as an environment for sustained interactive talk, and (b) to study the nature of interactions between advanced learners, with particular reference to the processes supporting collaborative activity.

After a brief summary of the rationale and main characteristics of the experiment, the paper focuses on the strategies used by three non-native speaker (NNS) dyads to resolve language problems as they worked on a set of four tasks. Extending the classical model of negotiation for meaning to cover other instances of language-related episodes identified through discourse analysis of the empirical data, the study offers a detailed account of the incidence and nature of negotiated interaction and collaboration between partners. This leads to a discussion covering the impact of functionalities, scaffolding and task effects. The paper ends with some suggestions for future research.

Driven by their affinity to popular culture, fans frequently engage in linguistic practices that may be conducive to language learning. This study seeks to find out how a group of Catalan-speaking gamers decided to start producing fan translations of video games from English into Catalan. Based on a digital ethnography (online interviews and observation of the group’s activity), two types of analysis were conducted: a content analysis for recurrent trends and a focused analysis of internal metalinguistic discussions on the quality of translations. Results indicate that fan translators (1) organize hierarchically with set roles and functions, (2) curate their group identity and care for the promotion of Catalan as a vehicle for cultural production, (3) learn language incidentally in three ways: while translating (ensuring the comprehension of English and the linguistic quality and creativity of the transfer into Catalan), through sharing language doubts with their peers on their Telegram group and dialogically agreeing on pragmatically acceptable English-Catalan translations, and through metalinguistic discussions on translation tests received from potential new members. The study resonates with a novel subfield in computer-assisted language learning: language learning in the digital wilds, which might be fertile ground for studies on incidental and informal language learning online. The study may also serve as inspiration for effective integration of translation into language classrooms in a manner that bridges vernacular fan translation and pedagogic translation, considering the importance of metalinguistic discussion for language learning and the sociocultural dimension of both translation and language learning.

The growing popularity of online CALL professional development (PD) courses and programs has necessitated a more in-depth look into their design. For so doing, a qualitative case study was carried out to explore how project-based learning (PBL) contributes to six in-service teachers’ CALL PD. Drawing on data obtained from technology-review projects and follow-up discussions, it was observed that the experience of review, reflection, and discussion enhanced participants’ technological knowledge, along with their attention to the affordances and constraints of different tools, their application for materials development or selection, and CALL evaluation. The potential contribution of this study to PD research lies in the account of how inquiry-oriented projects can be defined into the design of a CALL PD. The integration strategies are applicable for online PD attempts across various contexts.

In this digital era, online intercultural exchange has gained increased popularity in language and culture education. However, concerns arise over its productiveness and efficacy in engaging participants cognitively. In addition, there is a paucity of research on out-of-classroom synchronous online exchange projects, let alone those involving Chinese English learners and English-speaking Chinese learners. Guided by the social constructivist theory, this study examined the productiveness of a small-scale intercultural online exchange project from its quality dimension measured by the participants’ use of questions. The purpose was to gain a better understanding of the dynamics and educational value of online synchronous text communication in language and culture learning. Participants were six English learners from China and six English-speaking Chinese learners from the U.S. Unlike many previous intercultural exchanges, this project was entirely independent from the curricula on both sides. Within a certain time frame, participants chose when and where exactly the synchronous text chat took place. Data analyses focused on the self-generated questions found in chat logs. Although participants seemed to self-generate more lower-order than higher-order thinking questions, the latter were frequently used in the process of online discussion to engage learners from both sides in critical thinking and self-reflection. Differences in the use of questions were found across dyads, languages, and groups of participants. Implications for future research and project design were discussed.

The article reports on a mixed-methods study evaluating the use of a three-dimensional digital game-based language learning (3D-DGBLL) environment to teach German two-way prepositions and specialized vocabulary within a simulated real-world context of German recycling and waste management systems. The study assumed that goal-directed player activity in this environment would configure digital narratives, which in turn would help study participants in the experimental group to co-configure story maps for ordering and making sense of the problem spaces encountered in the environment. The study further assumed that these participants would subsequently rely on the story maps to help them structure written L2 narratives describing an imagined personal experience closely resembling the gameplay of the 3D-DGBLL environment. The study found that immersion in the 3D-DGBLL environment influenced the manner in which the second language was invoked in these written narratives: Participants in the experimental group produced narratives containing more textual indicators describing the activity associated with the recycling and waste management systems and the spaces in which these systems are located. Increased usage of these indicators suggest that participants in the experimental group did indeed rely on story maps generated during 3D gameplay to structure their narratives, although stylistic and grammatical features of the narratives suggest, however, that changes could be made to the curricular implementation of the 3D-DGBLL environment. The study also puts forward ideas for instructional best practices based on research findings and suggests future areas of development and investigation.

Computer-assisted language learning, or CALL, is an interdisciplinary area of research, positioned between science and social science, computing and education, linguistics and applied linguistics. This paper argues that by appropriating methods originating in some areas of CALL-related research, for example human-computer interaction (HCI) or psycholinguistics, the agenda of “attention-focus” research can be shifted from a cognitive perspective to a learner-centred approach; understanding online language learning and teaching spaces as mediated by technology; second/foreign language learning; and online teaching culture.

Taking a method that has traditionally been used within a positivist paradigm, the authors exemplify the potential of eyetracking to advance online language learning research – extending it in ways compatible with a sociocultural paradigm. This is evidenced by two pioneering studies in which an innovative combination of methods allows participants, whose gaze focus was recorded during synchronous computer-mediated communication (SCMC), to reflect back on their involvement. Eyetracking is combined with stimulated recall interviews that trigger deep reflection on learner and teacher strategies by directing participants’ recollections on their attention focus.

The rich, multifaceted results shown by this original and innovative use of eyetracking methods in a sociocultural framework suggest a way forward in researching online learning by integrating insider and outside views coherently and systematically.

This study examined the impact of Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) on Korean TAFE (Technical and Further Education) college students in an English as a Foreign Language (EFL) reading classroom in terms of their perceptions of learning environment and their reading performance. The study compared CALL and traditional reading classes over one semester by measuring students’ reading performance. A group of 74 first year English major students were divided evenly into two classes. Both groups were taught by the same teacher and covered the same topics in their weekly two-hour reading lessons. A reading comprehension test was given at the beginning and the end of the semester to measure the students’ performance. A written survey was also administered at the end of the semester. Classroom observations and group interviews with students supplemented the data obtained from the surveys. Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was used for the performance test to explore the differences between the two classes while statistically controlling for the pre-test (covariate). The questionnaires were analyzed by a principle component factor analysis, a repeated-measure ANOVA and a discriminant analysis whereas the interviews with students were analyzed by a content analysis. Students’ performances in the pre-test and the post-test were not significantly different between the two classes. However, the students in the CALL-based English class were more positive in their perceptions of their learning environment than were those in the traditional English class. This study shows that computer technology had a positive impact on students’ perceptions of their learning environment, especially in relation to learning materials and tasks, and with regard to interaction and collaboration with the tutor and other students.

In this paper, we describe an initial exploratory study designed to compare the outcomes of online listening and online text-based tasks in the context of the study of Italian at The University of Melbourne. Our findings allow us to characterise online listening and online reading as a qualitative difference between deep and surface approaches to learning. Online listening seems to promote an integrative orientation and heighten students' desire to deconstruct and understand texts. There also appears to be higher vocabulary acquisition and knowledge retention with online listening tasks.

In an increasingly ageing, multilingual, and digitalised society, there is still a lack of research on older adults’ adoption and use of mobile technology for supporting their self-directed second language learning. In the present study, we investigated the extent to which seniors residing in Germany (aged 60+) engage in mobile-assisted language learning (MALL) and the factors encouraging or discouraging them from using language learning apps by conducting a web-based survey (n = 208) and a series of in-depth individual interviews (n = 22). Our results show that (1) participants were resistant to fully embrace the potential of MALL despite their active engagement in language learning and extensive use of digital technology, online resources, and mobile devices; and (2) self-perceived digital literacy and openness towards new developments are strong factors favouring the use of language learning apps in older adulthood. We interpret and discuss these results in the light of theoretical accounts of mobile learning and education in (older) adults, emphasising the need to consider the specific requirements of late-life learners in future implementations of language learning apps. Based on our results, we highlight several implications for designers and developers of such apps intended to facilitate full inclusion of seniors as mobile language learners.

Speech recognition technology (SRT) is now widely used in education because of its potential to aid learning, particularly language learning. Nevertheless, SRT has received only limited attention in earlier review studies. The present research aimed to address this gap in the field. To this end, 26 articles published in SSCI journals between 2014 and 2020 were selected and reviewed with respect to domain and skills, technology and their application, participants and duration, measures, reported results, and advantages and disadvantages of SRT. The results showed that English received much more attention than any other language, and scholars mostly focused on facilitating pronunciation skills. Dragon Naturally Speaking and Google speech recognition were the most popular technologies, and their most frequent application was providing feedback. According to the results, college students were involved in research more than any other group, most studies were carried out for less than one month, and most scholars administered a questionnaire or pre-/posttest to collect the data. Positive results related to gains in proficiency and student perceptions of SRT were identified. The study revealed that improved affective factors and enhanced language skills were advantages, whereas a low accuracy rate and insufficiency (i.e. lack of some useful features to support learning efficiently) of SRT were disadvantages. Based on the results, the study puts forward several implications and suggestions for educators and researchers in the field.

This article describes an email project between undergraduate non-specialist learners of Spanish and English in England and Spain. Students took part in a discussion forum and worked with a tandem partner exchanging information, ideas and corrections of each other's language. The project revealed a range of experiences and a case study of one particularly successful participant is presented. The contribution of email tandem learning to CALL within the communicative curriculum is also discussed. It is proposed that such learning plays a different role from classroom language learning, providing a bridge between the classroom and the natural language setting.

This paper presents a twelve-month evaluation of a Web-based CALL Project at London Guildhall University, highlighting its rationale and objectives within the design process, the adopted methodology and its findings, shedding further light on students’ attitudes regarding CALL design, multimedia delivery and language learning practices. The evaluated CALL environment, stemming from previously identified user requirements, combines both hypertext navigation with Java-written interactive CALL exercises and provides a built-in authoring mode for increased adaptability. Techniques used involved peer evaluation and discussions in the formative stages of the design as well as user walkthroughs, questionnaires and workshops in the summative phase of the process. Data related to requirements and feedback are presented, emphasising the user-centred approach and its integration within the design process itself. Finally, changes brought about by the evaluation are shown to illustrate the influence and impact the research undertaken has had on the original concepts and the design.

This paper sets out to discuss the monolingual problem within computer-assisted language learning (CALL) research and CALL product development, namely a lack of knowledge about how CALL products and projects can support learners in using all their linguistic resources to achieve language-learning- and language-using-related goals, and a lack of CALL products and projects that realize this potential, or that support specific plurilingual skill development. It uses an analysis of CALL-related papers to demonstrate how far CALL is impacted by a monolingual bias that it inherited from language learning pedagogy. An analysis of articles from four CALL journals across 10 years shows that although the words bilingual and multilingual appear in these journals fairly regularly, terms such as plurilingual, third language, tertiary language, L3, translanguaging, and translingual are extremely rare. Also, only eight articles could be identified that use any of these eight keywords in their title. Trends across those papers are identified. In a discussion of existing CALL products and projects that incorporate more than one language, it is argued that while commercial products often include more than one language, this is frequently in a behaviorist or grammar-translation tradition, while innovative plurilingual products and projects tend to be non-commercial and often EU/EC-funded initiatives. The article argues that CALL research and product development can not only avoid this monolingual bias, but also actively contribute to our knowledge of how all linguistic resources can be used for language learning. It makes suggestions for relevant future research areas related to multilingual computer-assisted language learning (MCALL).

This explanatory mixed-method study seeks to understand the relationships between second language (L2) motivation (including the ideal L2 self and the ought-to L2 self) and students’ informal digital learning of English (IDLE) and whether such relationships are mediated by the most prominent positive emotion – enjoyment. A total of 391 Chinese university students participated in the survey, and 15 of them were interviewed later. Quantitative analysis revealed a strong positive relationship between the ideal L2 self and participants’ IDLE, which was partially mediated by foreign language enjoyment (FLE), while the hypotheses that the ought-to L2 self significantly predicted FLE and IDLE were rejected. The qualitative data added details to how a vivid and elaborate L2 vision contributed to enhanced English learning enjoyment and served as the most influential motivator for IDLE practices. Meanwhile, the external and instrumental motives could not predict Chinese university students’ enjoyment, disempowering them to invest in productive language learning practices in the informal and digitalized environment. The discussion of these findings and pedagogical implications helps to chart the path for utilizing the power of the ideal L2 self to engage Chinese university students with the extramural and digitalized language learning ecology.