Computer-assisted language learning: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 06:11, 12 September 2023

Revision as of 14:07, 17 September 2023

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The emergence of the [[World Wide Web]] (now known simply as "the Web") in the early 1990s marked a significant change in the use of communications technology for all computer users. [[Email]] and other forms of [[electronic communication]] had been in existence for many years, but the launch of [[Mosaic (web browser)|Mosaic]], the first graphical [[Web browser]], in 1993 brought about a radical change in the ways in which we communicate electronically. The launch of the Web in the public arena immediately began to attract the attention of language teachers. Many language teachers were already familiar with the concept of [[hypertext]] on stand-alone computers, which made it possible to set up non-sequential structured reading activities for language learners in which they could point to items of text or images on a page displayed on the computer screen and branch to any other pages, e.g. in a so-called "stack" as implemented in the [[HyperCard]] program on Apple Mac computers. The Web took this one stage further by creating a worldwide hypertext system that enabled the user to branch to different pages on computers anywhere in the world simply by pointing and clicking at a piece of text or an image. This opened up access to thousands of authentic foreign-language websites to teachers and students that could be used in a variety of ways. A problem that arose, however, was that this could lead to a good deal of time-wasting if Web browsing was used in an unstructured way (Davies 1997: pp.&nbsp;42–43),<ref name=davieslessons/> and language teachers responded by developing more structured activities and online exercises (Leloup & Ponterio 2003).<ref>LeLoup J. & Ponterio R. (2003) "Interactive and multimedia techniques in online language lessons: a sampler", ''Language Learning & Technology'' 7, 3 [Online]: http://llt.msu.edu/vol7num3/net/default.html</ref> Davies (2010) lists over 500 websites, where links to online exercises can be found, along with links to online dictionaries and encyclopaedias, concordancers, translation aids and other miscellaneous resources of interest to the language teacher and learner.<ref>Davies G. (2010) [http://www.camsoftpartners.co.uk/websites.htm Graham Davies's Favourite Websites]</ref>

The launch of the (free) ''[[Hot Potatoes]]'' (Holmes & Arneil) authoring tool, which was first demonstrated publicly at the EUROCALL 1998 conference, made it possible for language teachers to create their own online interactive exercises. Other useful tools are produced by the same authors.<ref>Holmes M. & Arneil S. ''Hot Potatoes'', University of Victoria, Canada. Downloadable from: http://hotpot.uvic.ca: A library of Clipart for use with ''Hot Potatoes'' and other authoring tools is also available at the University of Victoria site: http://hcmc.uvic.ca/clipart/</ref>

In its early days the Web could not compete seriously with [[multimedia]] CALL on CD-ROM and DVD. Sound and video quality was often poor, and interaction was slow. But now the Web has caught up. Sound and video are of high quality and interaction has improved tremendously, although this does depend on sufficient bandwidth being available, which is not always the case, especially in remote rural areas and developing countries. One area in which CD-ROMs and DVDs are still superior is in the presentation of listen/respond/playback activities, although such activities on the Web are continually improving.