Recent studies have explored English vocabulary learning in environments where students used mobile technologies for prescribed vocabulary learning tasks, or tested designed personalized learning systems to enhance student vocabulary learning for short periods of time in language related courses. Dictionary use via mobile devices has mostly been used for referential purposes. Referential use refers to applications that provide student access to content such as dictionaries, e-books, etc. at places where learning activities occur, taking advantage of the portability and mobility of mobile devices. Research on free student use of mobile devices to foster incidental vocabulary learning in non-English courses remains scant, and no in-depth studies have been carried out to investigate the value of dictionary use on mobile devices for incidental vocabulary learning in higher education. This one-year multiple-case study investigated undergraduate students' dictionary and other uses of Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) to enhance their incidental vocabulary learning in an English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) university. The research findings show: (a) the students made various uses of the PDA to improve their vocabulary learning, namely, referential, situated, constructive, reflective, explorative and conversing uses, (b) the students adopted integrated uses of the tools on the PDA and the computer for their incidental vocabulary learning, and (c) the integrated use of the PDA and the computer shaped the vocabulary learning activities and vice versa. These research results indicate that PDAs can be used in more flexible, novel and extended ways for English as a Foreign Language (EFL) vocabulary teaching and learning in higher education, taking student needs and contexts into consideration.

Learner corpora have become prominent in language teaching and learning, enhancing data-driven learning (DDL) pedagogy by promoting ‘learning driven data’ in the classroom. This study explores the potential of a local learner corpus by investigating the effects of two types of DDL activities, one relying on a native-speaker corpus (NSC) and the second combining native-speaker and learner corpora. Both types of activities aimed at improving second language writers’ knowledge of linking adverbials and were based on a preliminary analysis of adverbial use in the local learner corpus produced by 31 study participants. Quantitative and qualitative data, obtained from writing samples, pre/post-tests, and questionnaires, were converged through concurrent triangulation. The results showed an increase in frequency, diversity and accuracy in all participants’ use of adverbials, but more significant improvement was made by the students who were exposed to the corpus containing their own writing. The findings of this study are thus interpreted as suggestive that combining learner and native-speaker data is a feasible and effective practice, which can be readily integrated in DDL-based instruction with positive impact.

The aim of this study was twofold: we investigated (a) the effect of two types of captioned video (i.e., on-screen text in the same language as the video) on listening comprehension; (b) L2 learners’ perception of the usefulness of captions while watching L2 video. The participants, 226 university-level students from a Flemish university, watched three short French clips in one of three conditions: the control group watched the clips without captions (N = 70), the second group had fully captioned clips (N = 81), the third group had keyword captioned clips (N = 75). After each clip, all participants took a listening comprehension test, which consisted of global and detailed questions. To answer the detailed questions, participants had access to an audio passage of the corresponding clip. At the end of the experiment, participants completed a questionnaire and open-ended survey questions about their perception of captions. Our findings revealed that the full captioning group outperformed both the no captioning and the keyword captioning group on the global comprehension questions. However, no difference was found between the keyword captioning and the no captioning group. Results of the detailed comprehension questions (with audio) revealed no differences between the three conditions. A content-analysis approach to the questionnaire indicated that learners’ perceived need for full captions is strong. Participants consider captions useful for speech decoding and meaning-making processes. Surprisingly, keyword captions were considered highly distracting. These findings suggest that full rather than keyword captioning should be considered when proposing video-based listening comprehension activities to L2 learners.

With the growth of chatbots, concerns about implementing artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots in educational settings have consistently arisen, especially for the purpose of language learning. This study introduced a task-based voice chatbot called “Ellie”, newly developed by the researchers, and examined the appropriateness of its task design and performance as an English conversation partner and students’ perceptions on using it in EFL class. Korean EFL learners (N = 314) aged 10–15 years performed three speaking tasks with Ellie in their school classroom. The participants took 9.63 turns per session on average using the first 1,000-word band, indicating that the chatbot highly encouraged students to engage in conversation, which rarely occurs in general EFL classes in Korea. The high task success rates (88.3%) showed the design appropriateness of both L2 tasks and operational intents in terms of users’ successful understanding and completeness of the given chatbot tasks. The participants’ responses to the survey not only supported the positive potential of the chatbot in EFL settings but also revealed limitations to be resolved. Future suggestions for advancing and implementing AI chatbots in EFL classrooms are discussed.

This paper describes an intercontinental project with the use of interactive tools, both synchronous and asynchronous, which was set up to internationalize academic learning of Spanish language and culture. The objective of this case study was to investigate whether video-web communication tools can contribute to enriching the quality of foreign language curricula, by facilitating a motivating virtual communication environment for purposeful interaction between non native and native speakers of Spanish to accomplish learning tasks. The project was carried out between a class of twenty Spanish as foreign language students from the University of Utrecht, The Netherlands, and a class of twenty Chilean trainee Spanish teachers from the University of Concepción, Chile. Students interacted weekly, over two months, in dyads and small groups making use of a video-web communication tool, Adobe Connect. The video-web communication tool enabled synchronous interactions, during which participants could see each other while talking and sharing audiovisual documents on-line. A blog was also used to promote collaboration, reflection and exchange of ideas about issues raised during the synchronous sessions. Qualitative data was collected through a questionnaire, analysis of recordings of learners' interaction sessions and the project blog. Results show a positive impact on motivation and on learning outcomes, particularly regarding understanding of the use of language in given contexts, and of cultural issues.

One of the many new features of English language learners’ dictionaries derived from the technological developments that have taken place over recent decades is the presence of corpus-based examples to illustrate the use of words in context. However, empirical studies have generally not been able to produce conclusive evidence about their actual worth. In Frankenberg-Garcia (2012a), I argued that these studies – and indeed learners’ dictionaries themselves – do not distinguish sufficiently between examples meant to aid language comprehension and examples that focus on enhancing language production. The present study reports on an experiment with secondary school students carried out to test the usefulness of separate corpus examples for comprehension and production. The results support the need for different types of examples for comprehension and production, and provide evidence in support of data-driven learning, particularly if learners have access to more than one example.

This study aims to explore the impact of different captions on second language (L2) learning in a computer-assisted multimedia context. A quasi-experimental design was adopted, and a total of thirty-two eighth graders selected from a junior high school joined the study. They were systematically assigned into four groups based on their proficiency in English; these groups were shown animations with English narration and one of the following types of caption: no captions (M1), Chinese captions (M2), English captions (M3), and Chinese plus English captions (M4). A multimedia English learning program was conducted; the learning content involved two scientific articles presented on a computer. To track the learning process, data on oral repetition were collected after each sentence or scene was played. A post-test evaluation and a semi-structured interview were conducted immediately after viewing. The results show that the effect of different captions in multimedia L2 learning with respect to vocabulary acquisition and reading comprehension depend on students’ L2 proficiency. With English and Chinese + English captions, learners with low proficiency performed better in learning English relative to those who did not have such captions. Students relied on graphics and animation as an important tool for understanding English sentences.

Online interactive exchange offers learners many opportunities to use the target language to negotiate both meaning and form in a social context that is crucial for second language acquisition (SLA). This paper discusses the interaction between non-native speakers (NNSs) and the types of communication strategies employed during the online communication. A total of forty students participated in online discussions using a private chatroom. Data from this study suggest that interactive strategies facilitate comprehension of input and output. The results show that regardless of proficiency level, students used a variety of communication strategies. However, students tended to use more comprehension checks, clarification checks, requests and self-repairs to negotiate with each other. The quick interactions taking place in cyberspace impeded students from producing correct and coherent discourse, especially during the learner-learner interaction. Pedagogically, students need to be advised of the need to write correctly to maintain a balance between function, content, and accuracy. One of the corrective techniques is to make students re-examine and revise their exchanges with guided instruction. The current study focused on online interaction among NNSs. To claim the effectiveness of online interaction in SLA with certainty, future studies on online negotiation must include both NNSs and native speakers.

Recent research indicates that Web 2.0 applications contribute to supporting a social constructivist approach for language learning. However, students encounter different types of barrier associated with technologies and learning tasks, which can cause disengagement during different phases of learning. Thus, based on flow theory and the strategic motivation framework, this study aims to investigate students’ motivation and their engagement patterns while participating in Web 2.0 digital storytelling activities. The participants are 24 elementary school students of a suburban school in northern Taiwan. Over 19 weeks of observations on students aged 9–10 years in a third-grade classroom, data were collected through three sources: surveys, students’ digital stories, and English tests. The analysis of the data showed that motivation was a dynamic process, initially low but increasing in later phases. A dynamic pattern was also identified in the students’ flow perceptions, which included two cycles of disengagement and reengagement. Students encountered different challenges that led to disengagement phases, which highlighted the need for specific types of learning support in elementary school contexts. In addition, the participants’ vocabulary and oral fluency were found to have been enhanced by the end of the study. The implications for educational practice are discussed and the direction for future studies addressed.

This article will start with the situation at the Open University, where languages are taught at a distance. Online tuition using an audio-graphic Internet-based conferencing system called Lyceum is one of the ways used to develop students’ communicative skills.

Following Garrett’s call for an integration of research and practice at EUROCALL 1997 (Garrett, 1998) – a call which is still valid today – the present article proposes a conceptual framework which can support the use of conferencing systems such as Lyceum in language learning and teaching. In the first part of the article, I examine several pedagogical theories supporting language learning, that is, second language acquisition and sociocultural theories, and multimodality, and apply them to the practice of audio-graphic computer-mediated communication (CMC) as used at the Open University. I also build on previous research, which, however, is still dominated by written CMC. What Erben stated in 1999 is still true: that audio-graphic technology “remains under-researched and under-theorised.” (Erben, 1999:230). Firstly, I therefore examine studies on written CMC and secondly those that have been conducted on audio-graphic CMC in order to identify the benefits and challenges of these media.

Both the pedagogical theory and previous studies of CMC have informed the design and implementation of online tuition at the Open University. Thus the second part of the article reports on a research project on Lyceum, which took place in 2002. The goal of the project was to evaluate the use of audio-graphic conferencing in practice, and this in turn has instigated both improvements in the software used and in student support as well as further changes to the task design. I present some findings and discuss both the challenges of audio-graphic conferencing that were encountered and the benefits that were identified.

Virtual worlds have been described as low anxiety environments (Dickey, 2005), where students may feel “shielded” behind their avatars (Rosell-Aguilar, 2005: 432). The aim of this article is to analyse the evolution of the Foreign Language Anxiety (FLA) levels experienced by a group of participants who used the virtual world Second Life for oral interaction (VW Group). The data gathered was compared to that of a group of students who completed similar oral interaction activities in the traditional classroom (CR Group). The quantitative and qualitative data analysed indicates that the FLA levels of the VW Group decreased as weeks went by and that they were lower than those experienced by the CR Group. The anonymity afforded by the VW had a positive effect on some of the students, who reported increased self-confidence and decreased nervousness. However, the students’ comments suggest that this anonymity may wear off once they feel they know their interlocutor. Anonymity may not be the only reason to explain the decrease in FLA.

Many researchers have investigated learning through playing games. However, after playing games, players often go online to establish and participate in the online community where they enrich their game experiences, discuss game-related issues, and create fan-fictions, screenshots, or scenarios. Although these emerging activities are an essential part of gaming culture, they have not attracted much attention from researchers and only a few empirical studies have been done on learning through beyond-game culture. Language learning in particular has not been extensively researched despite the proliferation of game players who speak English as a foreign language within this community. To address how non-native English speaking (NNE) game players participate in language learning through game play and beyond-game culture, three generations of activity theories and a multiple-case study design were employed in this study. The asynchronous computer-mediated discourses were repeatedly reviewed, and email interviews with participants were conducted over three stages. The discourse analysis of interaction data and interview scripts showed how participants were engaged in language learning through gaming culture. First, words or phrases used in game play could be learned while playing games. Second, sentences or discourses could be practiced through interaction with native or more fluent peers in the online community after playing games. Third, these two types of engagement in gaming culture were closely related to influencing language learning through repeated practices and collaborative interactions. In conclusion, language learning through gaming is appropriately understood when ecological perspectives are adopted to look at both sides of gaming culture.

The spacing effect is known to be one of the most robust phenomena in experimental psychology, and many attempts have been made to realize effective spaced learning for L2 vocabulary learning. This study compares vocabulary learning with word lists, word cards, and computers in order to identify which material leads to the most superior spaced learning. In the experiment, 226 Japanese high school students studied ten English words with one of the three learning materials: lists, cards, and computers. One-way analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) showed that although no significant difference existed between the Card group and the other two, the PC group significantly outperformed the List group on the delayed post-test. Item analysis using Chi-squares demonstrated that on the delayed post-test, the List group's successful recall rates for four of the ten items were significantly lower than those of the Card or PC group. Correlational analysis indicated that the time invested in learning and the subsequent post-test scores did not correlate significantly for the List and Card groups. Paradoxically, a negative correlation was observed between the PC group's study time and their post-test scores. The lack of meaningful relationships between the study time and subsequent retention may be partially due to the limited ability of certain learners to learn effectively while using certain materials. A questionnaire given to the participants found that, in general, computers were evaluated more favorably than lists or cards. At the same time, however, learners exhibited large variations in their evaluation of computers, implying the importance of considering individual differences when introducing CALL to learners. In summary, the study has demonstrated the superiority of computers over lists, the limited advantage of word cards over lists, and no statistically significant difference between computers and cards. The findings are significant because although the advantages of cards or computers have been advocated, no study has ever tested such claims empirically.

This paper reports on an empirical case study conducted to investigate the overall conditions and challenges of integrating corpus materials and corpus-based learning activities into English-language classes at a secondary school in Germany. Starting from the observation that in spite of the large amount of research into corpus-based language learning, hands-on work with corpora has remained an exception in secondary schools, the paper starts by outlining a set of pedagogical requirements for corpus integration and the approach which has formed the basis for designing the case study. Then the findings of the study are reported and discussed. As a result of the methodological challenges identified in the study, the author argues for a move from ‘data-driven learning’ to needs-driven corpora, corpus activities and corpus methodologies.

Studies on computer-mediated communication often compare the affective affordances of different technologies with face-to-face communication. This study aimed to understand how three different computer-mediated communication modalities may affect EFL learners’ foreign language anxiety (FLA). Using a counterbalanced 3 by 3 factorial design, 30 undergraduate Japanese university students participated in this study, completing a spot-the-difference task in three different oral synchronous computer-mediated communication modes: voice, video, and virtual reality (VR). Upon completing each task, participants responded to an FLA questionnaire and answered questions regarding their learning experiences. Finally, a post-experiment questionnaire asked participants to explicitly compare their experiences of learning within each modality. Results suggest that although all three modes were successful in reducing learner FLA, no statistically significant differences were found between mean scores. However, the results of the learner perceptions questionnaire suggested that VR was the easiest environment to communicate in, was the most fun, and the most effective environment for language learning. Participant responses to an open-ended question suggested that learner dispositions to technology as well as their affective characteristics may be responsible for differing opinions regarding the affordances of VR for language learning. The study concludes with a call for more research in the area of learner affect and technology use, including studies that more effectively utilize the technological affordances of VR, and also qualitatively assess which elements of VR may affect learner FLA and motivation.

This paper represents an earnest attempt to identify specific pedagogical roles for blogs in language learning. After briefly describing various types of blogs and defining their purposes (Herring et al., 2005) we attempt to accommodate their position and application within language teaching (Thorne & Scott Payne, 2005), relating evidence from teachers' blogs (Edublog.org) and also within Second Language Acquisition (SLA) theories. In particular, we shall be concentrating on the process and post-process writing approaches (Matsuda, 2003), with particular emphasis on current cognitivist (Atkinson, 2003; Ferris & Hodgcock, 1998) and expressivist (Berlin, 1988) theories. These approaches will be discussed in terms of their effectiveness when establishing specific blog writing tasks. Whilst some researchers have advocated for a ‘lead blog’ or template for other students to follow (Stone, 2004), we have been seeking an eclectic approach based on the three approaches mentioned above. We shall describe our own blended task methodology (Abermann, 2004; Thorne, 2003) wherein language students at a Third Level Institution were set a blog writing task initially over a complete semester (12 weeks). The blog exercise employed both an early expressivist approach and later a (socio-) cognitivist one. Our findings, with examples from students' blogs (and also from students who continued their blogs over a 6 month period), will be presented as well as our recommendations for the integration of blogs into L2 virtual writing environments.

This article describes the contradictions reported by student-teachers in Barcelona who engaged in telecollaboration with transatlantic peers via Second Life, during their initial training in Teaching English as a Foreign Language. The data analysis draws upon Grounded Theory and is theoretically informed by Activity Theory and the notion of contradictions. The study discusses technology-based, intra- and inter-institutional contradictions, their impact on the development of the telecollaborative activity, and outcomes in bolstering student-teachers’ conceptual understanding of Network-Based Language Instruction.

Professional development (PD) is critical for instructors who are adopting new roles and competencies in online teaching environments. This mixed-method study examines an online faculty development programme in Turkey, reflecting upon participants’ expectations, readiness and satisfaction. The findings indicate a significant relationship between individual readiness and satisfaction, and reveal that readiness positively predicts satisfaction. Participants’ reflections demonstrate that, to enhance their traditional roles, they need competencies for online learning environments and active practice in real-life applications. PD is important for introducing the new pedagogies required and for integration of technology, while the adoption of new roles is key to developing competent online instructors who have a positive attitude to online learning.

Three-dimensional synthetic worlds introduce possibilities for nonverbal communication in computer-mediated language learning. This paper presents an original methodological framework for the study of multimodal communication in such worlds. It offers a classification of verbal and nonverbal communication acts in the synthetic world Second Life and outlines relationships between the different types of acts that are built into the environment. The paper highlights some of the differences between the synthetic world's communication modes and those of face-to-face communication and exemplifies the interest of these for communication within a pedagogical context.

We report on the application of the methodological framework to a course in Second Life which formed part of the European project ARCHI21. This course, for Architecture students, adopted a Content and Learning Integrated Learning approach (CLIL). The languages studied were French and English. A collaborative building activity in the students’ L2 is considered, using a method designed to organise the data collected in screen recordings and to code and transcribe the multimodal acts. We explore whether nonverbal communication acts are autonomous in Second Life or whether interaction between synchronous verbal and nonverbal communication exists. Our study describes how the distribution of the verbal and nonverbal modes varied depending on the pre-defined role the student undertook during the activity. We also describe the use of nonverbal communication to overcome verbal miscommunication where direction and orientation were concerned. In addition, we illustrate how nonverbal acts were used to secure the context for deictic references to objects made in the verbal mode. Finally, we discuss the importance of nonverbal and verbal communication modes in the proxemic organisation of students and the impact of proxemic organisation on the quantity of students’ verbal production and the topics discussed in this mode.

This paper seeks to contribute to some of the methodological reflections needed to better understand the affordances of synthetic worlds, including the verbal and nonverbal communication opportunities Second Life offers, how students use these and their impact on the interaction concerning the task given to students.

Corpora have been used for pedagogical purposes for more than two decades but empirical studies are relatively rare, particularly in the context of grammar teaching. The present study focuses on students' attitudes towards grammar and how these attitudes are affected by the introduction of concordancing. The principal aims of the project were to increase the students' motivation by showing them that English grammar is more than a set of rules in a book and to enable them to assume more responsibility for their own learning. The idea was to introduce the use of language corpora into the curriculum for first-semester English at Växjö University in Sweden, as a complement to grammar textbooks and ordinary exercise materials. Between classes, the students worked with problem-solving assignments that involved formulating their own grammar rules based on the examples they found in the corpus. In the classroom, a system of peer teaching was applied, where the students took turns at explaining grammatical rules to each other. Besides presenting a new way of working with grammar, we also provided the students with a tool for checking questions of usage when writing English texts in the future, since the corpus we use is free of charge and available to all. The work with corpora and peer teaching was evaluated by means of questionnaires and interviews. This article describes and evaluates this initiative and presents insights gained in the process. One important conclusion is that using corpora with students requires a large amount of introduction and support. It takes time and practice to get students to become independent corpus users, knowing how to formulate relevant corpus queries and interpret the results. Working with corpora is a method that some students appreciate while others, especially weak students, find it difficult or boring. Several of the students did not find corpora very useful for learning about grammatical rules, but realized the potential of using corpora when writing texts in English.