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Phonological processing of written characters has been recognized as a crucial element in acquiring literacy in any language, both native and foreign. This study aimed to assess Japanese primary school students' phoneme-grapheme recognition skills using both paper-based and touch-interface tests. Differences between the two test formats and the relationship between phoneme-grapheme recognition skills and interaction with gamified digital tests were investigated. Participants were sixth-grade students from two public schools. The results of comparison tests indicated that the touch-interface test had lower success rates compared to the paper-based test for most items, suggesting a difference in performance patterns. A consistent relationship between tested phoneme-grapheme knowledge and successful gamified interaction was found. Findings highlight the potential of touch-interface assessments for assessing phoneme-grapheme recognition skills in primary school classrooms and suggest incorporating more digital tasks to enhance student adaptation.

This exploratory study compared the effects of two different mediums of reading—interactive e-book reading and paper-based reading—on learners' reading comprehension. A specific focus was placed on literal vs. inferential comprehension. Thirty Korean middle school English language learners were randomly assigned to an interactive e-book reading (treatment) group or a paper-based reading (control) group. A pre-test and five comprehension tests were administered to both groups over a total of six reading sessions. A survey was also conducted to investigate students' perceptions of how helpful interactive e-book features were in aiding their reading comprehension. Results from the reading comprehension test scores showed no statistical differences between the groups across the five tests. Analysis of literal and inferential questions also showed no significant difference overall. Findings from the survey data along with researcher observation notes suggest that interactive features that are not designed to aid students' understanding can distract students from the task of reading which may hinder their comprehension. The overall results of this study suggest that it may not be the medium of reading, but how students engage with each medium that can affect their comprehension of text. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The majority of research papers in computer-assisted language learning (CALL) report on primarily quantitative studies measuring the effectiveness of pedagogical interventions in relation to language learning outcomes. These studies are frequently referred to in the literature as experiments, although this designation is often incorrect because of the approach to sampling that has been used. This methodological discussion paper provides a broad overview of the current CALL literature, examining reported trends in the field that relate to experimental research and the recommendations made for improving practice. It finds that little attention is given to sampling, even in review articles. This indicates that sampling problems are widespread and that there may be limited awareness of the role of formal sampling procedures in experimental reasoning. The paper then reviews the roles of two key aspects of sampling in experiments: random selection of participants and random assignation of participants to control and experimental conditions. The corresponding differences between experimental and quasi-experimental studies are discussed, along with the implications for interpreting a study's results. Acknowledging that genuine experimental sampling procedures will not be possible for many CALL researchers, the final section of the paper presents practical recommendations for improved design, reporting, review, and interpretation of quasi-experimental studies in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research uses the theoretical framework of CALL normalisation developed by Bax (2003) and Chambers and Bax (2006) to offer a systematic review (Gough et al., 2012) of the uses and spread of data-driven learning (DDL) and corpora in language learning and teaching across five major CALL-related journals during the 2011–2015 period. DDL research represented 4.2% of all published papers on CALL during this time frame. The main focus of research was found to be the use of concordancing and collocations when developing university students' writing skills. Contrary to previous research, access to technology was not identified as an impeding factor for normalisation. Syllabus integration and a lack of contribution from language teachers other than researchers emerged as threats to the normalisation of corpora use. Further theorisation is needed if DDL and corpora are to expand their influence on mainstream second language education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of International Journal of Language Academy is the property of Rota Kariyer and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The COVID-19 outbreak has transformed various parts of life, including teaching and learning methods. Teachers, especially Indonesian English teachers, were taken aback by the abrupt transition from offline to online instruction because it was unanticipated and unprepared. This paper attempted to investigate how teachers implement their pedagogical knowledge in the online environment during the pandemic and how they improve on using computer-assisted language learning (CALL) during the sudden shift from offline to online instruction. The findings revealed that teaching methods are being adapted to accommodate the features of the online platform. In order to adjust to this new situation, teachers use their creativity to adapt the stages of cooperative learning, collaborative learning, and class discussion in an online context. Participating in virtual workshops and training also helps teachers improve their digital skills concerning internet material. In the future, the results of the present study can be applied to improve the teacher education curriculum. Specifically, it is suggested to construct a course for the teacher education curriculum that places pre-service teachers in diverse and challenging conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

MWE knowledge is key in the process of learning a foreign language, but its teaching remains hindered by the lack of list of expressions connected to pedagogical aims. In this paper, we present an extended version of the PolylexFLE database, containing 4,525 French multiword expressions (MWE) of three types: idioms, collocations or fixed expressions. In order to propose exercises following the difficulty scale of the European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), we used a mixed approach (manual and automatic) to annotate 1,186 expressions according to the CEFR levels. The paper focuses mostly on the automatic procedure that first identifies the expressions from the PolylexFLE database (and their variants) in a corpus of pedagogical texts (with CEFR labels) using a pattern-based system. In a second step, their distribution in this corpus is estimated and transformed into a single CEFR level. The automatic approach proposed is finally evaluated by 52 French as foreign language learners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Large Language Models (LLMs) are a powerful type of Artificial Intelligence (AI) that simulates how humans organize language and are able to interpret, predict, and generate text. This allows for contextual understanding of natural human language which enables the LLM to understand conversational human input and respond in a natural manner. Recent examples of this, such as the Generative Pre-Trained Transformer (GPT) model, popularized by OpenAI's web application, ChatGPT, are able to complete an astounding variety of tasks when provided with simple language input. For education, LLMs can alleviate teacher curriculum and grading workloads and even perform specific tasks such as generating creative ideas for activities. Specifically for language learning, LLMs can draw on their immense corpus of language content to generate learner-centric materials to aid teachers in delivering targeted, personalized language instruction. The aim of this paper is to provide the reader with examples of how LLMs can be utilized for materials development, classroom activities, and providing feedback. After giving specific examples and explanations, the paper will conclude with a discussion of how this technology can provide teachers with new innovative ways to streamline the teaching process to focus on learner needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents an overview of teaching English vocabulary in the context of 21st century advancements and challenges, within the field of English language teaching and outside. It takes review of 21st century learning components comprised of learning competencies, learning modalities, ICT, and infrastructure in relevance to English language teaching in general and English vocabulary teaching in particular. It discusses different approaches and techniques of vocabulary teaching. It argues that vocabulary is foundational blocks of language. Mastering vocabulary is indispensable in (second) language learning. Besides methods of vocabulary teaching, learners’ personal trait such as motivation and self-efficacy are also crucial in mastering English vocabulary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the effect of implementing a new Arabic language learning software Test Survey for Students (TSFS) developed by the researchers and marketed as brain training software for primary students on language skills using Science, Technology, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) subjects. The teaching of Arabic language via computer-assisted language learning (CALL) takes place for the first time in Qatari schools specifically for primary students. The researchers included a theoretical analysis of current trends in CALL and Arabic language skills. Reading skills, learning word and sentence skills, and dictation skills were the three Arabic basic skills tested to measure the effectiveness of developing these skills and improve achievement for third-grade students using CALL in STEAM subjects. Mixed models analyzed using the statistical software for social sciences suggest that teaching Arabic language skills with STEAM topics using educational software is effective and has a promising potential to be extended to the whole of middle east and north Africa region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores expanding a self-access language learning desk online. In 2017, Osaka University's Center for International Affairs expanded its Language Support Desk to allow students from different campuses to access its services via online synchronous language support sessions that mimic the in-person ones. While there is an abundance of resources available to students online through online writing labs and online writing centers, most of these services only consist of reference materials with no option for advising or language teaching. Furthermore, the few universities that offer language learning services usually implement an asynchronous system through a delayed medium such as email. In this paper, we describe the implementation of online sessions at Osaka Unversity and highlight issues and opportunities for the future based on our experience and observations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper aims at describing an online training initiative (Learning Event) promoted by eTwinning on CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) and technologies within an international community of practice. The discussion starts from a brief conceptualization of experiential learning with reference to teacher training for continuous professional development. Selfreflection on the learning outcomes and the added value of the experience in terms of competence development (referred to language, technology and subject content) are key issues. After explaining the reasons why nowadays it is deemed essential to use technologies for CLIL and language learning, the paper will try to describe the processes of discovering, learning, experimentation and socialization activated in the participants during the training pathway, by mentioning some data from the surveys and by describing some digital contents produced by the teachers. Forum and blog interactions will be quoted to give evidence of the added value such training episodes can have to enhance teachers' continuous professional development and personal and professional growth, especially in the framework of the recent Italian "Good Reform" Law. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The various possibilities that social media offers to language learners and teachers have long been recognized by researchers within the field of language instruction, and many studies have been carried out in an attempt to address and unpack its potential contributions. This paper aims to review such research on the use of mainstream social media in language teaching and learning published in Computer Assisted Language Learning, a top tier (i.e., Q1) journal indexed in major citation index systems (e.g., Arts & Humanities Citation Index, the Social Sciences Citation Index and Scopus), between the years 2016-2020 inclusive. For the purposes of the study, a total of 23 articles that meet the selection criteria is reviewed and presented in five sections. The first section deals with the majority of the articles, which are found to be on the use of social networking in language teaching and learning. In the following sections, studies on the use of videoconferencing, wikis, blogging and forums are discussed. Collectively, the studies reviewed in this paper outline a critical role for the use of social media in language instruction and the study aims to provide valuable insights for researchers, teachers and learners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Technology & Chinese Language Teaching is the property of Middle Tennessee State University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The current study aims to identify research trends in papers published in Multimedia-Assisted Language Learning (MALL). To this end, the bibliographic information on 567 papers published from 2002 to 2021 is analyzed using network visualization analysis. The results find that MALL has published about 28 papers per year during the period; however, it has published more papers than average to respond to social and educational issues promptly. According to the network visualization analysis based on keyword and term extraction, it is revealed that MALL has focused on publishing papers related to the terms 'blended learning', 'elementary school', and 'korean university' over the past 20 years. In addition, the cluster analysis confirms that the research topics that have been discussed in MALL are as follows: blended learning, elementary school learners with writing ability, computer-based language (education), and English education. The results of the timeline view analysis on clusters, compared to its earlier papers, find that published papers in MALL tend to research multiple topics across clusters. The burst terms analysis reveals that blended learning, elementary level, and Korean college topics were burst terms during certain periods. The suggestions and implications of the findings are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores how technology, and specifically the application of social media, in the English as a foreign language (EFL) classroom is changing how language is taught. The paper begins with a depiction of computer-assisted language learning (CALL) and how technology has generally been employed in EFL classrooms in the past few decades. This critical appraisal, which provides the context for the paper, assesses how successfully technology has been viewed in relation to language teaching and learning and how it has developed up to the present day. The focus then moves to social media apps and mobile technology as a contemporary form of CALL. The discussion considers the ways in which social media is used in language classrooms and more importantly the things it can offer the EFL teacher and learner. Importantly, the paper concludes by proposing ways in which these types of technologies can be better incorporated across cultures and contexts to promote EFL teaching and learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the trends and most recent results of a systematic bibliographical review concerning digital literacy and English language education. The databases used for this purpose were "Web of Science" and "Scopus." The quantitative and qualitative analysis of the academic literature was based on the most significant scientific studies (374 articles) and the most relevant bibliometric indicators from 1997 to 2020. The study was complemented with a qualitative approach to detect the use and evolution of digital literacy, particularly in English language education, and to identify the methodological trends and different lines of research in applied linguistics. The findings revealed that the most popular articles dealing with digital literacy and the English language increased in the period from 2011 to 2019. Further exploration addressed a gap in the research literature in the year prior to 1997. In addition, while the more cited studies had a significant presence in the research fields of linguistics and educational research, the more recent papers offered a future perspective providing evolutionary contexts not only in digital but in multimodal literacy and English language education. The review sought to answer these questions: What is the evolution of digital literacy in English language education and its correspondence with active learning approaches that are supported by Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL)? What are the methodological trends and different lines of research in Applied Linguistics and CALL? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Audiovisual input has received increasing attention from the Second Language Acquisition (SLA) and the Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) domains during the past few decades due to its vividness, authenticity, and easy accessibility. Videos with on-screen texts, as a widespread way of audiovisual input in second language (L2) teaching and learning, influence L2 learners' performance in various aspects, including their vocabulary learning. The wide application and profound influence of such kind of input call for a systemic review on this important domain of research. Accordingly, this paper reviews the empirical studies on the effects of on-screen texts on L2 vocabulary learning. Specifically, it seeks to evaluate the role of different types of on-screen texts (i.e., subtitles, captions, and dual subtitles) and various modes of captions (i.e., full captions, keyword captions, glossed captions, annotated captions, and enhanced captions) in L2 vocabulary development. It also discusses other factors that concur with on-screen texts and influence L2 vocabulary gains from audiovisual input, such as learners' vocabulary size, L2 proficiency, frequency of occurrence, number of viewing, instructional strategy, and test time. Finally, some suggestions are provided for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The need for ministerial training has been debated for some time now. On the one hand is the view that when one receives ministerial gifts from God, the person is already equipped for ministry and does not need any formal training. On the other hand is the contention that having ministerial gifts alone does not make one ready for ministry; there is a need for formal training to prepare one for effective ministry. This paper argued for the necessity to formally train people for the ordained ministry using the Methodist Church Ghana as a case study. The paper examined selected aspects of the process of candidature into the ordained ministry and then demonstrated how each step prepares the candidate for ministerial efficiency. The paper used a literature-research approach to gather data from books, articles and dissertations/theses on the subject. The main finding was that the process of candidature in the Methodist Church Ghana involves series of stages, each of which is meant to scrutinize one’s call and/or to prepare the candidate adequately for ministry. The paper recommended that each individuals or groups who are part of the candidature process must be effective and unbiased in their scrutiny in order to ensure that only those who are truly called are accepted into the ministry. The paper contributes to scholarship on practical theology, specifically the area of pastoral ministry.

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Copyright of ESPecialist is the property of ESPecialist and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper describes an endeavour to build natural language processing (NLP) tools for Runyakitara, a group of four closely related Bantu languages spoken in western Uganda. In contrast with major world languages such as English, for which corpora are comparatively abundant and NLP tools are well developed, computational linguistic resources for Runyakitara are in short supply. First therefore, we need to collect corpora for these languages, before we can proceed to the design of a spell-checker, grammar-checker and applications for computer-assisted language learning (CALL). We explain how we are collecting primary data for a new Runya Corpus of speech and writing, we outline the design of a morphological analyser, and discuss how we can use these new resources to build NLP tools. We are initially working with Runyankore–Rukiga, a closely-related pair of Runyakitara languages, and we frame our project in the context of NLP for low-resource languages, as well as CALL for the preservation of endangered languages. We put our project forward as a test case for the revitalization of endangered languages through education and technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports on the experimental use of a recently developed musical looping app with a class of Japanese university students of English during 2014. Working in groups using shared hand-held devices, students created compositions based on lexical chunks or formulaic sequences selected freely from a fixed text. A scored example of one such group composition is included in the paper. During research, the author acted as instructor and a participant/ observer role afforded an intimate view of the educational process. Self-assessment questionnaires prior to and post working with Loopy indicate that students experienced increased confidence in their ability to produce spoken English over a three-month period. The affordances and constraints of using the musical app to learn English are examined and a significant increase in speech rate when reading from a fixed text is also noted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Educational technology has evolved tremendously over the past fifty years. Computer- and mobileassisted tools have enabled language learning to take place anytime and anyplace. This paper examines the effectiveness of computer/mobile-assisted language learning (C/MALL) by reviewing findings as reported in the literature and by discussing benefits as well as issues linked with using technology in second/foreign (L2) language education. Overall, despite reports that technology has enhanced language instruction and acquisition, some find that it has not been as effective as anticipated or may have even impeded learning. This paper argues that the deciding factor defining the depth and breadth of technology's effectiveness, in and outside of the classroom, is the teacher. Good teachers must precede technology for it to be effective in language learning. To improve the likelihood of effectively employing technology, this paper outlines key questions for teachers to consider when deciding whether to include technology in language instruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Few people who did not grow up speaking Zulu have learned the language later. There are limited resources for second language Zulu learning, whether textbooks, readers, or computerised resources. We set out to develop software for this purpose, to support learners' independent learning. Drawing on research on language learning, we used a number of principles that then informed the design of the programmes. In this paper, we reflect on the applicability of the principles and the difficulties in structuring an application for an agglutinative language. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last few decades, the field of artificial intelligence and machine learning has evolved. Due to the advancement in these fields, much work has been done to assist language learning with the help of computers called Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL). Mispronunciation detection is one of the significant tasks of the CALL system. An efficient mispronunciation detection model has a positive impact on the life of second language learners by providing phoneme level feedback. In this paper, we introduce the phone grouping technique for mispronunciation detection that is based on mistakes probability. We consider mispronunciation detection as a classification problem, traditionally for this purpose, a separate classifier is trained for each phoneme mistake that requires a lot of memory and time. Instead of training a separate classifier, we group the phoneme based on their mistakes probability that helps in reducing the number of the classifiers to be trained and also saves memory and time. We use the Support Vector Machine (SVM) classifier and test the results on the Arabic dataset (28 Phonemes). The performance of our proposed method is evaluated by using accuracy. The results of the model are evaluated using the confusion matrix and gives an accuracy of 88%. Our approach outperforms the existing systems developed for Arabic phonemes in terms of accuracy and is also time/memory efficient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study takes place in the context of a federal laptop-mediated English language preuniversity course in the United Arab Emirates. Despite predictions and claims from policy makers and practitioners that 1:1 classroom devices would revolutionise teaching and learning, student results remain static and student attrition remains high. Through the lens of activity theory this paper identifies ten contradictions, and their discursive manifestations, potentially causing failure and attrition. This paper contributes to the fields of technology enhanced learning, 1:1 device initiatives, English language teaching, computer assisted and mobile assisted language learning and activity theory by highlighting several problematic experiences in teachers' practices and mapping these within the activity system context. The paper also questions the positive impact of a 1:1 laptop initiative in this particular context, with implications for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Didáctica. Lengua y Literatura is the property of Universidad Complutense de Madrid and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In this paper Idiscuss the foundational relationbetween personal responsibility and historicity according to Ludwig Landgrebe. On the one side responsibility is rooted deeply within the structures of the historically shaped world-horizon: responsibility then answers to the call of the situationreflecting its historical genesis and failed moral aspirations. Furthermore, responsibility is realized as the search for the adequate means and their rational justification. On the other side Landgrebe demonstrates how history results from responsible position-taking: As historic events flow from the uniqueness of individual moral freedom they are not derivable from any kind of historical determinism. The realization of a humane future by means of moral freedom consequently is understood as the vanishing point of responsibility born from the commitment to the situational call. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Form@re is the property of Firenze University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Receiving adequate pronunciation feedback is an ongoing challenge for l2 learners. Although instructors are the most important source of corrective pronunciation feedback (Szpyra, 2014; Timson, 2007), l2 learners can also benefit from peer pronunciation feedback (Lord, 2008; Kim & Yoon, 2014; Roccamo, 2015). This paper examines Japanese university students' perceptions of online peer feedback on intelligibility (Derwing & Munro, 2005). To aggregate the feedback, P-Check, a plug-in for the Glexa lms (Version2, 2015) was developed and its recognition and dialog functions were piloted in two studies. In the first exploratory study (N = 59), a post-treatment survey and diaries were used to explore participants' attitudes. Participants believed that peer feedback through P-Check was useful and had increased their awareness of their pronunciation strengths and weaknesses. In the second quasi-experimental study (N = 55), no significant difference was found in participants' perceptions of the usefulness of peer feedback, whether delivered face-to-face or via P-Check. Recommendations for further development of P-Check and other similar plug-ins are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores whether the CALL-based self-directed vocabulary learning could significantly improve students' strategy use and thereby enhance their self-directed vocabulary learning in comparison with the paper-based version. Subjects for the study were sixty-one freshmen from two classes at a university in China. They were randomly assigned to adopt a newly-developed learning system and a corresponding printed material. Subjects completed pre- and post- questionnaire surveys at the start and end of the study respectively, through which data were collected on students' satisfaction levels with their strategy use. It was ultimately revealed that there were key differences in strategy use between the two groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses the role of authenticity and authenticity claims in computer assisted language learning (CALL). It considers authenticity as the result of a social negotiation process rather than an innate feature of a text, object, person, or activity. From this basis, it argues that authenticity claims play an important role in both second language acquisition (SLA) and CALL, being utilized to support the legitimacy of an approach or discipline more generally, as well as in defending a specific didactic design, especially with regard to transfer and motivation. The paper distinguishes between three domains of authenticity claims essential to CALL contexts: authenticity through language (linguistic authenticity), authenticity through origin (cultural authenticity), and authenticity through daily life experiences (functional authenticity). It points out problematic aspects of engaging in authenticity claims and argues that a reflexive stance might be useful in questioning the role of authenticity claims in CALL theory and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

this study set out to address the problem of low efficiency and effectiveness in large classes of integrated english in china's colleges. the authors of this paper converted the previous teacher-centered, one-for-all teaching in a large class of integrated english into more student-oriented, individualized instruction. first, the students were asked to make their own learning plans. second, the teacher for the study (one of the co-authors) adjusted the teaching content based on a needs analysis. and third, the teacher guided the students in autonomous learning through a learning management system (lms) "rofall", which was co-developed by network technology engineers and college english teachers (including the authors of the paper). to evaluate this new teaching model, the authors compared students' scores on the cet-4 test with those of previous model tests and analyzed students' feedback from questionnaires and in-depth interviews. results showed students' comprehensive mastery of english was enhanced, especially in terms of vocabulary capacity, grammar knowledge, reading skills and listening ability; however, they showed a slight preference on the previous teaching model than the present one. a comparison of the two teaching models was surveyed and elaborated. the study concluded that individualized instruction based on students' needs analysis and through call environments could be a feasible way to improve efficiency and effectiveness of large class of integrated english. ways to ameliorate this model would include 1)improving students' perception of learning ; 2)training students' meta-cognitive abilities and language learning strategies; 3) the teacher's strict supervision; 4) valid assessment; and 5) understanding and support from the school administration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Before the 2019 COVID pandemic, universities in Japan had been slow to transition from paper-based to digital methods and materials. In addition, the most applicable theories for teaching and learning languages with digital technologies had not been considered deeply by many university teachers, and their beliefs about these theories had not been thoroughly investigated. This paper presents an investigation of the theoretical beliefs of English teachers at a university in Japan. It evaluates the extent to which these beliefs are in accordance with established theories of Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) and Technology Enhanced Language Learning (TELL). The investigation shows that English teachers at Japanese universities are guided by established theories of CALL and TELL to some extent, but such theoretical considerations are constrained by more pragmatic ones. Although teachers do not necessarily perceive there to be a significant difference between theories of traditional and digital language teaching and learning, there may be a need to reassess the theoretical underpinnings of traditional language teaching methodologies in the post-COVID word of hybrid and blended education.

This paper reports on the use of various online technologies to facilitate group-projects at a community college serving a multilingual population in a large metropolitan area. The paper explains why and how wikis, podcasts, and audio-editing software were selected and introduced to and by second language learners to carry out a multi-task project on the historical figure, Thomas Jefferson, an American founding father. It describes features of wikis that not only foster the acquisition of academic language and content, but also help students develop teamwork skills needed for college and workplace success. In short, this paper presents an on-going curricular project to integrate online technologies into ESL content-based instruction (CBI) using student-directed, small-group project work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within the context of on-going research, this paper explores the pedagogical implications of contrastive analyses of multiword units in English and Spanish based on electronic corpora as a CALL resource. The main tenets of collocations from a contrastive perspective - and the points of contact and departure between both languages - are discussed prior to examining the commonest types of verb+noun combinations as a significant case of so-called 'de-lexicalized', 'light', 'empty', 'thin', 'stretched' or 'support verbs'. A qualitatively and quantitatively-oriented case study is accordingly conducted, determining the weight of dar in support verb constructions within the Corpus de Referencia del Español Actual (CREA) and of the English equivalent stretched verb constructions with give within the British National Corpus (BNC). Based on the empirical data obtained in this way, this paper provides relevant insights for more accurate translations, helping to enhance the collocational competence of L2 students, who tend to avoid constructions including empty verbs like give in favour of full-verb forms. The detailed findings in this paper come to shed light on the potential of CALL resources for improving the collocational usage of foreign-language learners, as quantitative and qualitative comparisons of collocations based on electronic corpora serve to highlight the similarities and, more importantly, the lexical and typological differences between both languages, thereby substantiating the invaluable role that corpus analysis may play for language teaching in general and for collocational knowledge and proficiency in particular. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Current approaches to assessing digital competence in education may be too broad to support teachers in developing their online learning designs in specific subjects. During the pandemic, studies have identified that the development of teaching practices (and subsequently their learning designs) has taken a leap. However, because digital cultures differ between schools, local approaches need to survey how their practices have developed and what emerging practices can become good examples for others. Using a descriptive multiple case (n = 20) study methodology with observations, interviews (n = 33), and a survey, 12 elements in second language online learning designs (LDs) that seemed to engage learners and support online learning were identified. Data were analysed using pattern matching and descriptive statistics. Post observation, teachers were asked to rate the importance of the ability to include the element and how difficult they perceived its implementation would be. A case overview was used to contrast the survey. Results reveal that the number of digital technologies has little to do with the complexity of designs, and teachers with relatively few digital resources can offer more complex LDs. While most teachers rated the elements suggested as easy, the observations did not support this. However, around 30% of the teachers rated at least seven important elements as difficult or very difficult and designing learning activities that stimulate engagement in nuanced ways was considered challenging. This paper proposes that, identifying local elements may be a suitable way forward to support professional development, as well as to reframe teachers’ digital practices post Covid-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

M-reader is a free Internet site which helps educational institutions to manage extensive reading (ER). It enables teachers to verify that students have read and understood graded reader books. This is achieved by students taking online quizzes designed to test their understanding of a book's plot and characters, rather than how well they remember the book. Teachers and students can easily track the number of books and the number of words read. M-reader, established with the help of research funds from Kyoto Sangyo University in Japan and the Japanese Ministry of Education, was first made available online in March 2013 and is now used by educational institutions in 26 countries. In numerous contexts, teachers would like to conduct additive ER (extensive reading done outside of class time). Additive ER can only be widely used if effective measures are taken to ensure student accountability without overloading teachers or taking too much class time. M-reader meets these conditions. It also allows modification of several parameters to suit the needs of students. This paper outlines some principles of extensive reading, introduces the functions of M-reader, and reports students' perceptions of M-reader during a pilot program for M-reader in English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) classes at a private university in Tokyo. The authors hope that this paper can be used as a reference for English language teachers who are considering using M-reader to manage their extensive reading program. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Form@re is the property of Firenze University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)