Developing Technology Enhanced Language Learning Activities: the CASLT Project

John Erskine

Winnipeg School Division No. 1

One thousand years ago, very few people even knew what date it was. It was an age of windmills and Viking explorers. Trades were learned through apprenticeships. Formal education for a privileged few took place in monasteries. Who could have predicted the impact of communication technologies and on-line learning possibilities that are proliferating at the beginning of this new millennium?

The time has come for second language teachers to embrace the new millennium by exploring the possibilities of the Internet to enhance the teaching and learning of French and other languages for our students. An excellent place to start would be to look at the new activities for second language learners on the Web site of the Canadian Association of Second Language Teachers (CASLT). We will discuss the purpose, design, development process and format of these activities.

Purpose

The CASLT Project involves the posting of language learning tasks or activities on the WEB to encourage second language educators to use existing technology to support and enhance second language learning. The objective of the site is to serve as a clearing house where second language teachers can contribute and access a large repertoire of activities based on the model of the National Core French Study. These activities are organized in three levels - beginner, intermediate and advanced- to reflect the age and language skills of the student. At each level, there is a choice of activities categorized by fields of experience. All of the activities incorporate learning outcomes that are common to Canadian Core French curricula.

Design

The learning activities on the CASLT site are designed by Core French teachers for use by students and their parents. English versions are available for many of the activities and to date, one activity has been adapted in Spanish. The activities are intended to complement the learning of second languages using a communicative-experiential approach. They may be used exactly as they are, but it is more likely that teachers will direct students to do portions of the activities, or will adapt the final projects or tasks to the abilities, needs and interests of their students. Many of the activities are designed for students working in groups and most of them can be accomplished with limited student Internet access. In cases where a class has limited access to the Internet or when a teacher is looking for enrichment or remedial activities for students in the class, it is possible to assign the activities for independent use at home, in the library or wherever Internet access is available.

Four design principles underlie the creation of these activities. The first principle is that Computer-based language learning tasks must be consistent with an experiential language learning model. The model that was chosen here is Dr. H.H. Stern's multidimensional curriculum. The second principle is that computer-based learning tasks must be directly linked to common learning outcomes. The third principle states that the materials must be congruent with what teachers know to be sound pedagogy. In other words the computer-based tasks must be dynamic, interactive, authentic, relevant and they must take into account individual styles and speeds of learning. Finally, computer-based language learning tasks must be user-friendly.

Development Process

During the initial phase of development, a group of grade 4 to 12 educators from across Canada met, under the direction of Claire Bélanger, to discuss how technology could realistically be integrated into second language programs in Canadian schools. Then rough drafts of projects were developed for various levels in a variety of fields of experience that targeted specific learning outcomes from provincial Core French curricula. At the same time, the components that would make up each activity were established and initial Web page design was undertaken. The original activities were adapted and fine-tuned and posted on the CASLT Web site in French and English in November 1998. Since then a number of activities has been added and more will be added on a regular basis. Classroom teachers, students in faculties of education and other educators are invited and encouraged to contribute activities using the on-line forms.

Activity Format

Each of the language learning tasks follows the same format and leads to the accomplishment of a specific task. After choosing the level and Field of experience, the user is invited to choose a specific activity that is related to the Field of experience. It is possible to see a list of all the activities that are currently available in a given level by clicking the button Projets disponibles maintenant. Once a particular activity has been chosen, a Welcome Page appears on the screen. It includes a menu for the components of the activity along with a brief message to the students to let them know what the project is about. An example of a Welcome page may be found at: http://caslt.org/2ndlang/project/00032/frn_o/00032.htm

The top of the screen identifies the title and indicates if the activity involves research, creation or communication. It also indicates whether the activity has been designed for individual, pair or group work. The left-hand side of the screen consists of a menu for linking students to each of the other pages of the activity.

The Student Page provides a step by step explanation of the activity. It may include links to external sites or to further activities on the CASLT site. It may also include questions, grids to be filled out, and alternative activities.

The Teacher Notes include a detailed description of the project. They include the learning outcomes that are targeted, the technology skills and material required, and possible evaluation criteria. There are also suggestions for extension activities and variations. Teacher and parents may choose to see the French or English version of these notes.

The Student Evaluation Page may be used by students, their peers and teachers to help with assessment of the activity.

The Language Help page, where present, is intended to help students with vocabulary or structures that are necessary to complete the activity.

The student tasks vary greatly from one activity to another. Students may be asked to access a Web site to select a zoo to visit, to write clues to identify a francophone artist or to participate in an interactive trip or riddle. In other activities they may be required to use on-line reference tools or to create multimedia presentations. In some cases, they make use of e-mail to communicate in French with other students or French speaking Canadians. The beginner level includes French activities relating to the following fields of experience: l'alimentation, les amis, les animaux, les arts, les médias and les voyages. At the intermediate level, activities can found for les consommateurs avertis, les francophones au Canada, la vie de tous les jours, and les voyages. The advanced activities include: les arts, les langues et les communautés qui parlent français dans le monde, les médias, le monde technologique, le monde en évolution, and les voyages.

Invitation

No one can deny that technology and the World Wide Web are evolving continually and the potential for supporting learning is enormous. As second language educators, we are challenged to explore and exploit and evaluate elements of technology that support and improve language teaching and learning. The CASLT technology enhanced activities are one response to this challenge. As teachers become more comfortable with using these kinds of activities with their students, it is our hope that they become increasingly involved in suggesting and developing new activities for the CASLT and other sites. At the same time, it is important to monitor and research the impact and effectiveness of the integration of technology and second language teaching.

The URL of the CASLT site where the technology enhanced second language activities may be found is: http://caslt.org

References

LeBlanc, R. (1990).. Étude nationale sur les programmes de français de base : rapport synthèse. Ottawa : Canadian Association of Second Language Teachers.

Walz, J. (1998). Meeting Standards for Foreign Language Learning with Word Wide Web Activities. Foreign Language Annals, 31, 103-114.

Warschauer, M. (1997). Computer-Mediated Collaborative Learning: Theory and practice. The Modern Language Journal, 81, 470-481.

 

About the Author

John Erskine is the French and Languages Consultant for the Winnipeg School Division No. 1 and Basic French Consultant at the Manitoba Bureau de l'éducation francaise. He is also responsible for the Web Site of the Canadian Association of Second Language Teachers and has developed a number of technology enhanced second language learning activities.

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