Assignment I

POP – QUIZ I

Course : ICT in Language Learning

Date : Friday, October 2008

1. Since early 1980s, the utilization of computers as a means of enhancing the language teaching and learning has been developing significantly. The underlying considerations to this fact are actually utilised in the computer’s unique features:

1. • Computer’s flexibility à Computer is flexible in a number of significant ways. It helps students to participate at any time they can and anywhere they want. Opportunities for feedback from the instructor and interaction with other students are not limited to a few fixed times per week. They can also spend as much time as they need to gain the benefits from the material according to one’s speed of learning.

1. • Computer’s ability to interact with learners à well-designed computer-mediated language instruction allows an extensive interaction between students and computers.

1. • Computer’s “human” functions à the more powerful the technology becomes, the more benefits will be obtained. If a computer is combined with other media, such as audio or video, it may become even more interactive.

1. • Computer as a motivating, flexible and provocative tool à computer can encourage students in learning a language. A well-designed foreign language lesson on the computer can motivate students due to the computer’s ability to present material in more diverse ways than either a book or video does.

1. • Computer’s potentials to enhance the development of communicative competence in a second language à

With computer assisted learning programs, students can learn actively, respond to questions, complete interactive task, and enter a personal dialog with their electronic tutor without feeling embarrased at their weaknesses.

1. • Computers are ideally suited for individual as well as group work à computers give students the chance to discuss their hypotheses, test them out, and learn from each other’s arguments.

1. The advantages of CALL :

1. • Call encourages students to develop a non sequential reading habit; it allows users to make their own decisions to develop a selective and critical reading habit which enables them to scan a large amount of information (topic) of their interest.
   • Call offers freedom for user to choose any topic of information available within the package.
   • Since the CALL tutorial package can also be used in pairs, it spurs the users to be able to collaborate very usefully in problem solving, which is considered to be a good skill, as it can be implemented in a wide range of different contexts.
   • Call’s flexibility of time allows student to determine what particular topics and how long he wants to learn. So, the students who miss the class still have the opportunity to learn the particular topic taught in the classroom as far as the topic available in the CALL program.

1. Individual differences play an important role in language teaching and learning process, because it can affect the learning outcomes. The relationship between individual differences and language learning has been reviewed in several models (Models of Second Language Acquisition/SLA) done by the experts; known as GLL model, Monitor theory, Brown and Fraser’s framework, Levin’s model, Gardner’s model, Skehan’s model, and Spolsky’s model. From the review of these models, there are two points that should be highlighted.
   • No matter what the model of SLA is, learner variables are claimed to relate to learning outcomes.
   • Most models posit learner variables as causal variables influencing the learning outcome (GLL model, monitor, Brown and Fraser, Levin’s model, Gardner’s model, and Skehan’s model)

1. Principles of Designing CALL :
   • Interactivity (feedback and instruction)

It refers to how the program can stimulate interaction, especially between the computer and the user. It includes the effectiveness of the instructions and feedback provided in the program.

1. • Usability (flexibility)

It refers to flexibility, ease and inherent interest of program used, and how easy it is to navigate within the program.

1. • Content appropriateness

It is concerned with the amount of material presented in the program, how easy the material is learned and understood, and how far the material meets the student’s need.

1. • Effectiveness

It refers to how effectively the program assists language learners to improve their mastery of grammar.

1. • Performance (attractiveness)

It refers to the presentation, layout of the screen, the colour, and the illustrations (picture, diagram, charts, etc) used in the program.

1. Is it possible to utilize and develop CALL in Indonesia ?

I think it is very possible to do so since this system has been done by alot of institutions in Indonesia. There is a major growth in the information, communication, and technology atmosphere in this country. Our country has been opened to the global era, which forces people to practise the advanceness of the ICT. This phenomenon is also affected by the fact that we open ourselves to the traffic of the world and become the member of the world, so it means that we need tools to be able to catch up with things happened in the world. It is the same in academic life. The teacher and students have been very open to this newly amazing system, because of the advantages offered by CALL. Nevertheless, this is still a luxury type of learning – teaching process for most of the academic institution, and computers are still luxury tools for many of the Indonesian people. Not to mention, we have to admit that we don’t have enough human resources in the academic institutions to be able to deal with this tool. It is quite well known that everytime Indonesia has a luxury and sophisticated tool, it will be broken soon because of the lack of human resources in dealing with the tool. Another obstacle, I might mention is the attitude of Indonesian people. The attitude toward many aspects in life, for instance, education and technology. Many of students are ignorant of this fact. They don’t care and they might stay with their old way of teaching and learning process, which is okay, their learning process; their choice. Only the people in big city has been very familiar with computers as tool for their teaching learning process. However, I still think that it is very possible to utilize and develop CALL in Indonesia because it’s obvious that people’s way of thinking has been changed alot, especially in ICT life. And last, it is also obvious that CALL offers alot of advantages: time saving, advance information, unlimited study materials and tutors, self development opportunity by having feedbacks from the tutors anywhere and anytime, and complete learning style methods which can cover almost every diferent style learners, etc.