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Using technology in language learning
System, Vol. 22, No. 3, pp. 401-414, 1994 Elsevier Science Ltd Printed in Great Britain
Pergamon
REVIEWS Scholars who would like to publish in this section of System are requested to contact the Review Editor before submitting a paper. As a rule, all contributions should be made in English. French and German will, however, be considered. The Review Editor may be contacted at the following address: Sprachenzentrum der Universitat Bayreuth D-95540 Bayreuth Federal Republic of Germany.
Syskm, Vol. 22, No. 3, pp. 401-403, 1994 Elsevier Science Ltd Printed in Great Britain
HAGEN, STEPHEN (ed.), Using Technology in Language Learning. London: CILT, 1993, 101 pp., f8.50. Conferences and symposia on multimedia and language learning are manifold nowadays, but the body of literature on the subject is still not fully developed (as exemplified, for instance, by the limited number of entries in ERIC’s Computer Research data bank-41 in July 1993). Using Technology in Language Learning edited by Stephen Hagen thus fills a gap. Its object is to address “issues concerned with introducing technology into language learning from a practical viewpoint”. The questions are straightforwardly stated: “what works, how much does it cost and where do you put it ?” Although secondary education in the United Kingdom is the main field of inquiry, the authors’ comments and conclusions certainly hold true for other levels of education, e.g. higher education. Above all, the book especially targets those who want to introduce multimedia equipment into their language centres, or update their current equipment. The collection includes an introduction by Stephen Hagen, four chapters-each devoted to a specific theme and based on a school language centre-and nine appendices. Instead of reviewing each article separately, we shall present an overview, while bearing in mind that each author sheds a specific light due to his respective insight, and the different stages of development in the use of technology. Chapter one, by Lynne Kay of George Stephenson Community High School in Tyne and Wear, deals with “Flexible learning in modern languages”; chapter two “Upgrading the language laboratory to a multimedia centre” by Bertold Weidmann of St George’s Grant Maintained Technology School, Sleaford in Lincolnshire; chapter three “Developing an integrated multimedia approach to language learning” by Paul Regan of Djanogly City Technology College, Nottingham, and chapter four “ELOQUENT: the LINGUA interactive digital language project at Thomas Telford School” by Stephen Hagen. 401
402
REVIEWS
Each article follows a rather similar pattern: the environment, the layout of language classrooms, the technological specifications of the hardware, the software, their use and evaluation, and future developments. Additional information is given in highly informative appendices. The rationale for the room layouts, together with plans (pp. 17, 31, 50, and Appendix H), will give food for thought to those who still think a language room can only be arranged in the horseshoe design, or-even worse-with the traditional rows of tables. Stephen Hagen defines the rationale for a learning environment based on the communicative approach; he lists the “learner needs” and the “tutor requirements” which imply the choice of state of the art equipment. The design of the modern language classroom has to allow for individual work, pair and group work. The various facilities are described, together with furnishings (e.g. Paul Regan’s recommendations, p. 5 1). A “checklist for modern language teaching facilities” in Appendix G is a helpful reminder for those who might forget about important details, such as power points and good acoustic properties. The technological specifications of the hardware are fully developed in the introduction (“What is the state of multimedia language learning technology?“), each of the four chapters, as well as in Appendix B. They include information on computers, with interesting views on the choice of audio support for PCs (pp. 34-35) or standards (pp. 60-61), satellite television and video, CD-ROM, telecommunications (electronic mail). The language laboratory is described at length in the third chapter (Tandberg ISlO), as well as in Appendices I and J (audio-active comparative and voice card language laboratories). The information is precise and thorough, even though one might have liked to find the meaning of some abbreviations. There is indeed a useful glossary at the beginning of the document, but not all acronyms and abbreviations are listed. Of course HD stands for hard disk, but what about SVGA graphics and BGA monitor, to name only two? As for the software, the last appendix (Appendix K) “Review of multimedia platforms and authoring systems for language learning” could be used as an overture to the actual book: the explanations and definitions enable the uninformed reader to understand the of current descriptions provided in each chapter. Appendix A, “A short bibliography multimedia materials”, lists the software currently available, whereas the approximate costs of both hardware and software are given in Appendix C. Of particular interest are the passages on the use of multimedia, the teaching methods, and practical examples of the implementation of the software. Stephen Hagen recalls the theoretical background of the ELOQUENT project based on second-language acquisition theory, reviews the various categories of multimedia authoring systems, and gives a “pilot courseware model”. Lynne Kay lists some activities carried out with multimedia authorware, such as Trilogic and Siviile. Bertold Weidman discusses the learning applications based on the use of word processing, spreadsheets and databases. Other topics dealt with, even if only briefly, are the new roles of the language teacher as facilitator-and that implies inservice training-the financing of projects, and the rationale for using technology in language learning as dictated by the British National Curriculum, a topic which will interest the British audience.
403
REVIEWS
Down-to-earth, extremely useful advice, is provided by each author. Here are two such modest recommendations: “do not be too ambitious to start with” (p. 15) and “the aim is to make the most of existing resources and not necessarily to substantially increase stocks” (p. 18). Important pitfalls are evoked such as “the danger of overwhelming the less able students”, “the over-emphasis on the skills needed to drive the technology, rather than on the linguistic learning objectives”, etc. (p. 44). The conclusions drawn by Stephen Hagen concerning “the provisos to the successful introduction of new technology into the language classroom” (p. 11), as well as his seven guidelines (pp. 1l-12), should be followed to the letter. The weakest part of the book is its analysis of the improvement in the standards for teaching languages with new technology, in the first chapter. For instance, the “dramatic” rise in the “number of boys choosing to study a language” goes from 48 to 86; but the total number of boys is not given in either case. The statistical analysis is scanty, to say the least. In the same way, academic researchers will be disappointed with the “Attitude survey of the technology-based flexible learning at George Stephenson Community High School” (Appendix F). It merely lists students’ views and staff perceptions, with no attempt at ordering the answers nor providing data in terms of methods, analyses or results. Hagen whetted the reader’s appetite in his introduction: “There is, unfortunately, a dearth of sound empirical research into the relationship between second language acquisition and the use of technology on which to base decisions” (p. 6). The present collection of articles may not be entirely satisfying in this respect. However, substantial quantities of up-todate information can be found in the book, which will help language teachers to navigate in the complex world of multimedia.
REFERENCE Cuhiers de I’APLZUTn” 48 (XII, 3) mars 1993, Actes du XIV kmeCon& B distance” (ISSN 0248-9430).
“Pkdagogie multimedia et enseignement
Monique MCmet Universite Paris XII Institut Universitaire de Technologie Avenue du General de Gaulle F-94010 Crtteil cedex France
System,
Vol.
22, No.
3, pp. 403-406, 1994 Elsevier Science Ltd Printed in Great Britain
CANDELIER, MICHEL and HERMANN-BRENNECKE, GISELA: Entre le Choix et I’Abandon: Langues &rang&es, Vues d’Allemagne et de France. Paris: Didier, 1993, 253 pp., FF. 90, (Collection CREDIF Essais).
Pergamon
REVIEWS Scholars who would like to publish in this section of System are requested to contact the Review Editor before submitting a paper. As a rule, all contributions should be made in English. French and German will, however, be considered. The Review Editor may be contacted at the following address: Sprachenzentrum der Universitat Bayreuth D-95540 Bayreuth Federal Republic of Germany.
Syskm, Vol. 22, No. 3, pp. 401-403, 1994 Elsevier Science Ltd Printed in Great Britain
HAGEN, STEPHEN (ed.), Using Technology in Language Learning. London: CILT, 1993, 101 pp., f8.50. Conferences and symposia on multimedia and language learning are manifold nowadays, but the body of literature on the subject is still not fully developed (as exemplified, for instance, by the limited number of entries in ERIC’s Computer Research data bank-41 in July 1993). Using Technology in Language Learning edited by Stephen Hagen thus fills a gap. Its object is to address “issues concerned with introducing technology into language learning from a practical viewpoint”. The questions are straightforwardly stated: “what works, how much does it cost and where do you put it ?” Although secondary education in the United Kingdom is the main field of inquiry, the authors’ comments and conclusions certainly hold true for other levels of education, e.g. higher education. Above all, the book especially targets those who want to introduce multimedia equipment into their language centres, or update their current equipment. The collection includes an introduction by Stephen Hagen, four chapters-each devoted to a specific theme and based on a school language centre-and nine appendices. Instead of reviewing each article separately, we shall present an overview, while bearing in mind that each author sheds a specific light due to his respective insight, and the different stages of development in the use of technology. Chapter one, by Lynne Kay of George Stephenson Community High School in Tyne and Wear, deals with “Flexible learning in modern languages”; chapter two “Upgrading the language laboratory to a multimedia centre” by Bertold Weidmann of St George’s Grant Maintained Technology School, Sleaford in Lincolnshire; chapter three “Developing an integrated multimedia approach to language learning” by Paul Regan of Djanogly City Technology College, Nottingham, and chapter four “ELOQUENT: the LINGUA interactive digital language project at Thomas Telford School” by Stephen Hagen. 401
402
REVIEWS
Each article follows a rather similar pattern: the environment, the layout of language classrooms, the technological specifications of the hardware, the software, their use and evaluation, and future developments. Additional information is given in highly informative appendices. The rationale for the room layouts, together with plans (pp. 17, 31, 50, and Appendix H), will give food for thought to those who still think a language room can only be arranged in the horseshoe design, or-even worse-with the traditional rows of tables. Stephen Hagen defines the rationale for a learning environment based on the communicative approach; he lists the “learner needs” and the “tutor requirements” which imply the choice of state of the art equipment. The design of the modern language classroom has to allow for individual work, pair and group work. The various facilities are described, together with furnishings (e.g. Paul Regan’s recommendations, p. 5 1). A “checklist for modern language teaching facilities” in Appendix G is a helpful reminder for those who might forget about important details, such as power points and good acoustic properties. The technological specifications of the hardware are fully developed in the introduction (“What is the state of multimedia language learning technology?“), each of the four chapters, as well as in Appendix B. They include information on computers, with interesting views on the choice of audio support for PCs (pp. 34-35) or standards (pp. 60-61), satellite television and video, CD-ROM, telecommunications (electronic mail). The language laboratory is described at length in the third chapter (Tandberg ISlO), as well as in Appendices I and J (audio-active comparative and voice card language laboratories). The information is precise and thorough, even though one might have liked to find the meaning of some abbreviations. There is indeed a useful glossary at the beginning of the document, but not all acronyms and abbreviations are listed. Of course HD stands for hard disk, but what about SVGA graphics and BGA monitor, to name only two? As for the software, the last appendix (Appendix K) “Review of multimedia platforms and authoring systems for language learning” could be used as an overture to the actual book: the explanations and definitions enable the uninformed reader to understand the of current descriptions provided in each chapter. Appendix A, “A short bibliography multimedia materials”, lists the software currently available, whereas the approximate costs of both hardware and software are given in Appendix C. Of particular interest are the passages on the use of multimedia, the teaching methods, and practical examples of the implementation of the software. Stephen Hagen recalls the theoretical background of the ELOQUENT project based on second-language acquisition theory, reviews the various categories of multimedia authoring systems, and gives a “pilot courseware model”. Lynne Kay lists some activities carried out with multimedia authorware, such as Trilogic and Siviile. Bertold Weidman discusses the learning applications based on the use of word processing, spreadsheets and databases. Other topics dealt with, even if only briefly, are the new roles of the language teacher as facilitator-and that implies inservice training-the financing of projects, and the rationale for using technology in language learning as dictated by the British National Curriculum, a topic which will interest the British audience.
403
REVIEWS
Down-to-earth, extremely useful advice, is provided by each author. Here are two such modest recommendations: “do not be too ambitious to start with” (p. 15) and “the aim is to make the most of existing resources and not necessarily to substantially increase stocks” (p. 18). Important pitfalls are evoked such as “the danger of overwhelming the less able students”, “the over-emphasis on the skills needed to drive the technology, rather than on the linguistic learning objectives”, etc. (p. 44). The conclusions drawn by Stephen Hagen concerning “the provisos to the successful introduction of new technology into the language classroom” (p. 11), as well as his seven guidelines (pp. 1l-12), should be followed to the letter. The weakest part of the book is its analysis of the improvement in the standards for teaching languages with new technology, in the first chapter. For instance, the “dramatic” rise in the “number of boys choosing to study a language” goes from 48 to 86; but the total number of boys is not given in either case. The statistical analysis is scanty, to say the least. In the same way, academic researchers will be disappointed with the “Attitude survey of the technology-based flexible learning at George Stephenson Community High School” (Appendix F). It merely lists students’ views and staff perceptions, with no attempt at ordering the answers nor providing data in terms of methods, analyses or results. Hagen whetted the reader’s appetite in his introduction: “There is, unfortunately, a dearth of sound empirical research into the relationship between second language acquisition and the use of technology on which to base decisions” (p. 6). The present collection of articles may not be entirely satisfying in this respect. However, substantial quantities of up-todate information can be found in the book, which will help language teachers to navigate in the complex world of multimedia.
REFERENCE Cuhiers de I’APLZUTn” 48 (XII, 3) mars 1993, Actes du XIV kmeCon& B distance” (ISSN 0248-9430).
“Pkdagogie multimedia et enseignement
Monique MCmet Universite Paris XII Institut Universitaire de Technologie Avenue du General de Gaulle F-94010 Crtteil cedex France
System,
Vol.
22, No.
3, pp. 403-406, 1994 Elsevier Science Ltd Printed in Great Britain
CANDELIER, MICHEL and HERMANN-BRENNECKE, GISELA: Entre le Choix et I’Abandon: Langues &rang&es, Vues d’Allemagne et de France. Paris: Didier, 1993, 253 pp., FF. 90, (Collection CREDIF Essais).