JALT CALL 2011, June 3 - 5 at Kurume University
The 2011 JALT CALL SIG Conference will be held on June 3 - 5 at Kurume University, Mii Campus, in Fukuoka.
The theme will be Building Learning Environments
Proposal submission : February 15
Proposal Abstract
(Yamauchi & Uchida)
Overcoming Barriers to Student Engagement in Using English Online
Japanese university students not majoring in English have few opportunities to use English outside of the classroom. In this study, online learning environments have been used to compensate for this disadvantage of EFL contexts. The authors chose Moodle forums, which provided a secure platform for students to experiment with online interactive English activities, such as discussions, sharing work, and posting comments. Also, one of the authors connected one of the classes to the Moodle network, which allowed students to roam into associated classes. These scenarios will be described in more detail in the presentation.
Before commencing our pilot studies, it was anticipated from a literature review and previous university classroom observations (Yamauchi 2009; Stout 2010; Kikuchi & Otsuka 2008; Kiyota 2008; and Maeda 2009) that most students had limited computer experience (vis-à-vis cellphones), some had negative feelings about learning or using English, some were reluctant to engage in dialogue, and classrooms provided limited access to ICT. These observed attributes were thought to inhibit participation in online activities outside of the classroom.
This presentation summarizes three case studies using Moodle for out-of-class activities, and presents student performance data and feedback to discuss the relationship between the above limitations and the motivation of students to participate. In brief, features of learning technology, characteristics of instructional settings, appropriateness of student skill sets, attitudes toward language, and dispositions toward dialogic interaction may be implicated in student behavior. Based on these findings, suggestions will be made to overcome the above limitations and increase student engagement. (249)
(Posted on January 29, 2011)
Presentation Slides
(Updated on June 13, 2011)
