This study examines the effects of subtitled similar task videos on language production by nonnative speakers (NNSs) in an online task-based language learning (TBLL) environment. Ten NNS—NNS dyads collaboratively completed four communicative tasks, using an online TBLL environment specifically designed for this study and a chat tool in WebCT-Vista. Five dyads were provided with subtitled similar task videos and the remaining five dyads were not. Language production was investigated in terms of fluency, accuracy, and complexity, including lexical and syntactic complexity. The data from the chat-scripts showed that NNSs produced more fluent and more accurate language when provided with the subtitled similar task videos than when they were not provided with them.

The purpose of this article is twofold: to describe a prototype for a computer‐assisted task‐based language instruction (CATBI) tool designed and developed for Turkish as a Foreign Language, and to report on the effectiveness of the CATBI tool. More specifically, this work discusses an experimental study that examined the role of teaching approach in foreign language development by comparing CATBI to computer‐assisted form‐focused language instruction (CAFFI) on language production in terms of accuracy, lexical complexity, and fluency. For a duration of 7 days, two intermediate‐level Turkish as a Foreign Language classes consisting of 28 high school students participated in this experiment. The classes were randomly assigned to two treatment groups: an experimental group with CATBI and a control group with CAFFI. Statistical analyses revealed that students in the CATBI group produced significantly better and more fluent language than students with CAFFI. However, no significant effects were found in terms of accuracy and lexical complexity of the language produced. Based on these results, it was concluded that CATBI is more effective than CAFFI in enhancing language production in general, and fluency in particular.

Teachers' implementation of a problem-based learning (PBL) program was examined to determine both how they assessed student learning and their reasons for these assessment practices. Ten 6th grade science teachers used Alien Rescue, a computer-based PBL module, with their students for approximately three weeks. Interviews, observations, and teacher-developed artifacts were analyzed qualitatively. The results suggest that assessment-related issues impacted the way that teachers implemented this PBL program, with teachers using grades as extrinsic motivators, deemphasizing PBL' usual focus on student reflection on their process and solutions, and adding assignments to the PBL program in order to provide greater structure for students' process and help prepare them for standardized tests. Some of these adaptations conflict with practices typically advocated in the literature on PBL. The implications of these results for the design of PBL programs are discussed, with an emphasis on supporting teachers' (a) local adaptations of PBL materials and (b) professional development through educative components embedded in PBL programs.

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