6. A Framework for Supporting Students Studying English via a Mixed-mode Delivery System

Dreyer, Carisma; Bangeni, Nwabisa; Nel, Carisma

doi:10.21832/9781853597770-008

Cited by 13 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 0 publications

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“…Traditional paradigms for distance language teaching form much of the literature emphasising independent learning facilitated by self-instructional materials with access to support, feedback and, in some cases, some group learning opportunities. Experience within traditional paradigms for distance language learning and teaching has opened up avenues of research into enhancing progression and persistence and reducing learner isolation (Hau Yoon 1994;Dreyer, Bangeni & Nel 2005), learner support (Hurd 2001), developing interactive learning opportunities and oral-aural skills (Poon 2003), and course design (O'Dwyer 1993;Garrido 2005), with descriptive studies and case studies as predominant research approaches.…”

Section: Traditional and Emerging Paradigmsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Student retention and persistence in distance language courses provide a further dimension to the learner support literature. Writing from the South Africa context, Dreyer et al (2005) note that higher education institutions are being confronted with unacceptably high dropout and/or failure rates among distance learners at a time when distance education has been embraced as a means of reaching the new populations for higher education within South Africa. Dreyer et al propose a proactive approach to learner support beginning with profiling students to determine their strengths, weaknesses and needs, and identifying possible factors that are known to lead to dropout.…”

Section: Learner Supportmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Distance learning of foreign languages

White¹

2006

Lang. Teach.

115

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This article provides a critical overview of the field of distance language learning, challenging the way in which the field is often narrowly conceptualised as the development of technology-mediated language learning opportunities. Early sections focus on issues of concept and definition and both theoretical and pedagogical perspectives on the field. Emphasis is placed on evident shifts from a concern with structural and organisational issues to a focus on transactional issues associated with teaching/learning opportunities within emerging paradigms for distance language learning. The next section reviews choices and challenges in incorporating technology into distance language learning environments, foregrounding decisions about technology made in particular sociocultural contexts, the contribution of 'low-end' technologies and research directions in developing new learning spaces and in using online technologies. The investigation of learner contributions to distance language learning is an important avenue of enquiry in the field, given the preoccupation with technology and virtual learning environments, and this is the subject of section six. The two final sections identify future research directions and provide a series of conclusions about research and practice in distance language learning as technology-mediated interactions increasingly come to influence the way we think about the processes of language learning and teaching. Important themes explored in the literature include traditional and emerging paradigms for distance language learning, the development of hybrid learning opportunities, course development and evaluation, teaching roles, learner support, the advent of computer-mediated communication (CMC) and new learning spaces, technology choice in particular sociocultural contexts, and learner contributions to the process of distance language learning, all of which are reviewed here. Throughout the article emphasis is placed on the complexity of distance language learning and teaching given the presence and interplay of human, institutional and sociocultural influences; emphasis is also given to the value of adopting a learner-centred focus in exploring the actual experience and potential of the distance learning of foreign languages.

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Section: Traditional and Emerging Paradigmsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Learner Supportmentioning

confidence: 99%

Distance learning of foreign languages

White¹

2006

Lang. Teach.

115

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“…This fact points to some issues with retaining students in online sections; a discussion of online learning should not ignore enrollment numbers. As has been pointed out in other research, retention is an issue in online education (Allen & Seaman, ; Dreyer, Bangeni, & Nel, ). In our case, we see a good number of students withdraw from online sections they had previously enrolled in during the drop period.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 61%

Assessment in Online German: Assessment Methods and Results

Goertler

Gacs

2018

Die Unterrichtspraxis

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As online educational programs and courses increase (Allen & Seaman, ), it is important to understand the benefits and limitations of this delivery format when assessing students and when comparing learning outcomes. This article addresses the following two questions: (1) What are some of the best practices in assessing language skills online and how do they differ from assessment in face‐to‐face (F2F) courses? (2) How do learning outcomes differ in online vs. F2F courses? Both questions are answered based on previous research and our own practices and results in second‐year German. We found that the most effective online practices are too time‐consuming and costly to implement. Poor computer literacy skills and test security can be further issues in online environments. The solution lies in frequent formal and informal assessments. When comparing online with F2F language learning, meta‐analyses give online formats a slight advantage over F2F (Means, Toyama, Murphy, Bakia, & Jones, ). In this study no significant differences were found between the F2F and online sections. Noteworthy, however, is that large differences in standard deviations and score ranges between online and F2F classes suggest that online language learning works well for some and not as well for others.

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“…According to Hurd (2005), 'for the distance language learner, it is perhaps affective variables -beliefs, motivations and anxiety -that are of greater relevance [than other variables]' (p. 7). Dreyer, Bangeni, & Nel, 2005;Moore & Kearsley, 2005;Simpson, 2002). The challenges in learning Chinese mean that students need considerable support, both academically and emotionally.…”

Section: Forumsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Building course cohesion: the use of online forums in distance Chinese language learning

Qian

McCormick

2012

Computer Assisted Language Learning

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This paper examines a sample of online discussion data from the course forum for the large-scale beginners' Chinese course offered by the UK Open University. This forum is open to all registered students, their participation is completely voluntary and they (rather than tutors) initiate communications. The aim of this study is (i) to seek to establish the nature, patterns of use and functions of forums amongst distance language learners of beginners' Chinese; (ii) to provide a greater understanding of the role and the significance of learner participation in online forums, and how forums contribute towards Chinese language learning and (iii) to offer a fresh perspective on the understanding of distant Chinese language learning experience, involving a relatively under-reported group of learners. Quantitative data collected from questionnaires and qualitative data from interviews were analysed together with the routine forum data. The analysis indicates that most students had a very positive experience of the forum. The sense of belonging to a group with the same shared goal of learning Chinese helped them deal with the challenges of learning Chinese. They perceived the online discussion forum as a virtual meeting place where they could find support and help, and where they could share their learning experiences, resources, difficulties and frustrations as well as sense of achievement. The analysis also shows that the forum played a very important role in creating course cohesion, supporting the learning of Chinese and making the learning process enjoyable and fun.

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6. A Framework for Supporting Students Studying English via a Mixed-mode Delivery System

Cited by 13 publications

References 0 publications

Distance learning of foreign languages

Distance learning of foreign languages

Assessment in Online German: Assessment Methods and Results

Building course cohesion: the use of online forums in distance Chinese language learning

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