Learning languages independently can be more accessible in today’s online environment. Polyglots, who are speakers of more than three languages, take advantage of this online learning environment to learn even more languages in Indonesia. Using transcendental phenomenology, the researchers interviewed these adult learners on their lived experience with online platforms for learning languages not traditionally spoken or used in daily life in Indonesia. Researchers found that the polyglots reported learning many foreign languages through interactive resources, receptive resources, social media, and authentic resources. Importantly, they held positive attitudes towards online learning platforms and their experiences left them with feelings of helpfulness, enjoyability, even bravery. In many cases, these polyglots often used freely available online resources to learn their foreign languages successfully. Implications include the idea that their language learner experience coupled with online opportunities can lead to successful language learning experiences.
In this study, participants learning an endangered language variety shared their experiences, thoughts, and feelings about the often complex and diverse language-learning process. I used phenomenological interviews in order to learn more about these English or Spanish language speakers’ journey with the Nahuatl language. From first encounter to their current state in their journey, participants described their challenges with gaining access to the language through courses, materials and institutions, their language observations and their sustaining motivations. In addition to those descriptions, my analysis showed many participants shared two underlying motivations for studying this language: (a) using the Nahuatl language for specific purposes, and (b) using Nahuatl as a connection to an historical or cultural past. Both of these motivations were driven by a higher purpose in ensuring the survival of speakers of this language group.
Cooperative learning has evolved over the years to include web-mediated elements within traditional and virtual classrooms. In this chapter, authors discuss a collaboration that used computer-supported collaborative learning through an online socially-mediated network. This collaboration served as a bridge between two universities from different countries. Not only did this collaboration link the students from each university together, but it provided language learners and pre-service student-teachers with the ability to benefit from the unique connection between them (i.e. students needing to learn language and teachers needing to practice teaching a language). Authors discuss the collaboration, the framework, and the format of this cooperative learning project. Much of this discussion is rooted in the experiences of some of the students who participated in its evolution with the intent to provide a direction for implementing such a type of collaboration in other institutions.
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