2.

5
ComputerAssisted
Language
Learning (CALL)
Research
Computer-mediated communication (CMC) is the umbrella term that refers to
human interaction
by means of computers. Since the early 1990s, research into CMC has
examined how electronic
media can be employed to enhance second language learning (Kern &
Warschauer, 2000).
The various types of interaction that fall under CMC can be grouped into two
categories:
asynchronous and synchronous interaction. Asynchronous interaction involves
participants
communicating over elapsed time. In this type of interaction, a time delay
exists between the
time the sender sends a message and when the receiver reads the message.
Examples of asynchronous technologies include email, text messages transmitted over cell
phones, and bulletin
boards. Synchronous interaction involves interactants participating online at
the same time in
order to communicate in real time. Examples of synchronous communication
include telephone
conversations, board meetings, voice conferencing, video conferencing, and
electronic chat. The
use of both asynchronous and synchronous technologies has intensified in all
sectors of society
including educational settings (Perez, 2003). It is, however, essential to ask
why teachers should

use CMC for interaction when communication can be achieved just as easily, if
not more easily,
in traditional face-to-face classrooms.
To answer this, we need to refer to research that has been conducted in the
field of second
language acquisition. CMC research suggests that, when communication occurs
online, there is
increased participation on the part of students (Blke, 2003), the teachers role
as the instructor
shifts from disseminator of knowledge to a moderator, thus increasing student
participation (Heift,
2007), participation is equalized among students when no one student
dominates (Warschauer,
1996), and the quality of language generated by students is favorably
impacted by their participation in CMC (Stockwell & Harrington, 2003). Additional benefits of using CMC
in order to
facilitate ELLs language learning include increasing an ELLs access to
comprehensible input
(Warschauer and Healey, 1998), providing ELLs with opportunities for output
production (Blake,
Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) Research 85
2000), and giving ELLs opportunities to negotiate meaning (Fernndez-Garca
and MartnezArbelaiz, 2002).
Negotiation of meaning is an important concept for second language
acquisition research,
since it has proven to greatly promote second language learning. In effect,
negotiation of meaning
is the efforts of two people engaged in any type of interaction when both work
to maintain the
flow of communication. As native speakers we all use communication strategies
to facilitate communication. These include requests for help (How do you say . . . ?),
clarification checks (Did

I understand you correctly? Did you mean . . . ?), self-corrections (No, no . . .

let me explain, I
meant . . .), comprehension checks (Let me repeat that so we are on the
same page . . .), confirmation checks (I get it now . . .), circumlocutions (You know . . . that air ball
thingy in the sky
. . .), redundancies (The big, large, huge traffic jam . . .), simplifications, and
repetitions, to name
but a few. However, ELLs often fail to use these communication strategies
when speaking. Often
they are so cognitively overloaded in classrooms, especially when they are
trying to use academic
English, that they forget to employ the above simple strategies to grease the
flow of their own
interactions with the teacher and other native speakers of English. As
mentioned above, research
in CMC has shown that CMC used in classroom settings greatly minimizes an
ELLs anxiety levels
so that they pay more attention to their own communication strategies.
Pellettieri (2000) explored negotiation of meaning and task-based instruction
using electronic
discussions with 20 second language learners. Learners participated in
communicative online
tasks ranging from focused open conversation to more closed tasks such as
jigsaw activities. This
study found that task-based synchronous electronic discussions do indeed
foster negotiation of
meaning. In addition, these negotiations do facilitate mutual comprehension
and learners do
attend to their own grammar and modify their own output. In another study,
Fidalgo-Eick (2001)
examined differences in the quantity of negotiation of meaning according to
different task types.

Her results showed significant differences in the amount of negotiation

according to task type in
which decision-making tasks triggered more negotiation. In an earlier study,
Blake (2000) found
that jigsaw activities elicited more negotiations in online environments.
To sum up: Computer-mediated communication needs to be exploited in
settings across the
curriculum, especially in contexts where ELLs need to improve their English,
because, through
interaction, CMC has the potential of providing learners with comprehensible
input, of encouraging learners to produce comprehensible output, and of fostering negotiation of
meaning.
In the Introduction of this book, we presented five principles for creating
effective second
language learning environments. We repeat them here and link them to what
we have learned so
far about using ITs to teach ELLs.
1. Give ELLs many opportunities to read, to write, to listen to, and to discuss
oral and written
English texts expressed in a variety of ways.
Surf the web, have students use and create blogs connected with the topics of
your subject
area, modify classroom texts using PowerPoints, and add voice-overs and
visuals to scaffold
ELL comprehension, and have students join targeted subject-relevant listservs
so that they
learn by reading other peoples postings.
2. Draw attention to patterns of English language structure.
Create online grammar activities through Quia.com and other exercise builders,
use writing process tools such as writeboard.com or Google documents, and get ELLS
to reflect on

their written interactions with other people through asynchronous

communication tools
such as email.
3. Give ELLs classroom time to use their English productively.
Develop classroom activities that foster students use of a variety of ITs
simultaneously to
86 Teaching English Language Learners through Technology
create assignments, projects, and reports specific to your subject area. In this
way ELLs not
only get involved but utilize language to create learning products. Examples of
creative use
ITs include using a webpage builder to make a website, using online video
editing software to
make a movie, serializing audio and video podcasts, and creating blog sites.
4. Give ELLs opportunities to notice their errors and to correct their English.
Use online quiz generators and surveys to help ELLs monitor their English,
create e-portfolios to display and critique student work products, use online recording
software such as
k7.net for ELLs to audio-record their answers to questions raised in class or in a
text so that
they can re-listen to and self-correct their pronunciation, grammar and fluency.
5. Construct activities that maximize opportunities for ELLs to interact with
others in English.
Organize collaborative synchronous and asynchronous activities with email,
instant messaging, video conferencing, voice conferencing, bulletin boards, and discussion
boards. Use
DI practices, CP, and PBL principles to foster collaborative activities among
students. For
example, pair students when working through a webquest or have a group of
students create a digital story or a virtual tour (see Tramline, which creates virtual field
trips, at www.

field-trips.org/index.htm). Lastly, you may want the class to work within a social
network
environment such as Ning (www.ning.com), which is password protected and
safe for students, or be adventurous and try some of the newest virtual simulation worlds
such as SIMS
or Second Life to create student avatars for your students to speak with.
A teachers IT choices are only limited by his or her own imagination. Failing
that, talk to your
colleagues and surf the web for ideas. Take tiny steps in infusing ITs into your
classroom; you will
undoubtedly touch on any number of the five principles for creating effective
second language
learning environments and thereby help your ELLs in small though very
significant ways.
Conclusion
In Part 3 of this book, we continue to weave our story on how best to use ITs to
teach ELLs. Part 3
is very practical in its orientation. We highlight a range of technologies and
show how they might
educationally serve an ELLs learning. We continue to link back to and refer to
principles of second language acquisition, differentiated instruction, constructivism, and
project-based learning
to underpin the theoretical and research-driven nature of the IT activities that
we propose.
We want to conclude by drawing on the recommendations of the SouthEast
Initiatives Regional
Technology in Education Consortium (SEIRTEC), who have been providing
technical support
and professional development to teachers in technology-poor schools in
Alabama, Florida,
Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, and South Carolina. Their 14 years of work
in this area has

provided them with a rich base to make recommendations in terms of ways

that technology can
and cannot be successfully implemented in schools. We repeat their nine
recommendations here
to form the basis of informing your own thinking about integrating technology
in ways that will
help your ELLs be more successful in your classroom.
1. Leadership is the key ingredient.
2. If you dont know where youre going, youll end up someplace else.
3. Technology integration is a s-l-o-w process.
4. No matter how many computers are available or how much training teachers
have had, there are still substantial numbers who are talking the talk but not
walking the walk.
Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) Research 87
5. Effective use of technology requires changes in teaching, and the adoption
of a
new teaching strategy can be a catalyst for technology integration.
6. Each school needs easy access to professionals with expertise in technology
and
pedagogy.
7. While many of the barriers to using technology to support learning are the
same
for all poor communities, some populations have some additional issues.
8. In some schools, infrastructure remains a serious barrier to technology
adoption.
9. Educators can benefit from tools that help them gauge the progress of
technology
integration over time. (www.seirtec.org/publications/lessondoc.html, retrieved

October 14, 2007).

To learn more about SEIRTECs elaboration of these nine recommendations,
check out their
website.