“Trends in Computer-Based Second Language Assessment” (Jamieson
2005)
Jamieson’s article provided a broad overview of how language
assessment has integrated various technological forms of assessment. For the
most part, the format of computer based language assessment exams has proven to
be efficient since it allows learners to pace themselves when taking a test, can
be more economical and ecologically resourceful, and can also automatically provide
evaluation results, other times we might have to question the authenticity of
the activities and the accuracy provided in terms of expressive abilities.
Often times, computer-adaptive tests can accurately assess receptive abilities
(regarding vocabulary, grammar, reading/ listening comprehension), but “computer-adaptive
tests are not [always] currently possible, such as speaking tests in which oral
discourse is scored by human raters” (232). Additionally, written discourse may
also need to be analyzed for lexical and syntactic characteristics by human
raters. The new TOEFL uses research in corpus as a “baseline for language used
in different registers and genres” (234). The use of a corpus would definitely
seem to make the most sense in terms of evaluating language based on authentic
contexts as a reference point.
Part 2
Reflections on Social Networking, Gaming and CALL
This week’s discussion led by Torrey was probably one of the
most abstract concepts to me as a language instructor, not in terms of the
social networking tools available for educational means, but because of the
gaming aspects that were discussed. Social Networking (especially such as
tuenti.com) I feel is an excellent choice for giving students the opportunity
to chat/ interact with Native Speakers of the L2 language they are learning.
Gaming on the other hand, has other elements that also appeal to education, in
terms of their goal structure and motivational aspects.
As a former gamer, I really
admired Jane McGonigal’s TED talk, which we watched in class about gaming, and
how we can apply these problem solving
skills to the “real world” instead of solely restricting ourselves to operating within these “virtual worlds.” While
this does seem a bit farfetched, I definitely see how these qualities of gaming
do indeed force us to develop certain social skills/ strategies that we can
apply to learning as well. Her talk goes into the anthropology of gaming in
Lydia, and how this ancient civilization could have possibly used gaming as a
means of overcoming a famine (which is just incredible if indeed true!) Also, an “epic win” can represent a
significant accomplishment in gaming, but we achieve success in sequences by
meeting certain goals (or learning objectives) just as we do in the classroom.
Perhaps the most motivating aspects of gaming, just as Jane mentioned, are the
positive feedback, along with the collaborative nature that engages gamers in amicable
social learning environments.
Hi Christine,
ReplyDeleteI've enjoyed reading your posts throughout the quarter. I can see how gaming is such an abstract content when thinking about learning, especially language learning. It's interesting to think about the ways that technologies can be adapted to improve student learning - games, social media, smartphones. It's a way to meet students at their own levels (i.e., use what they are already using) to encourage them to spend time learning beyond class time. While I'm not sure how well games fit into lesson plans, the gaming principles (feedback, achievement, teamwork, communication) can be used to design effective learning environments.
DeleteHi Torrey, thanks for your feedback. I agree that the principles are probably the most appealing aspect as far as what gaming can contribute to the learning environment. I personally feel that the actual games themselves fall short of giving learners opportunities to communicate/ complete tasks in authentic contexts. Fantasy worlds are not exactly "authentic" in my perspective :) Virtual communities, however, can make up for this with social networking and other Web 2.0 forms of communication.
Hi Christine (and Torrey),
ReplyDeleteI see how these principles of gaming could be implemented into virtual learning environments. Like Christine, I'm not sure how much the games could contribute in terms of providing meaningful communication opportunities. This may be due to the fact that I haven't tried out these games myself. On the other hand, social media lacks the motivation, feedback, and meaningful tasks that are integral parts of gaming. If there is no task or motivating factor, how many students are going to create accounts or make use of (possibly foreign) social media in order to simply chat with native speakers? Also, from the native speakers' perspective, it might be hard to become or remain interested in communicating with second language learners. Since they weren't designed with these pedagogical goals in mind, social media and gaming are both tricky tools to try and integrate into the foreign language course.