CALL Course Design for Second Language Learning: A Case Study of Arab EFL Learners

Introduction

In recent years, the question of what it means to know and learn and its implications on how we should teach have inspired various academic disciplines, e.g. mathematics, science, and language teaching, to undergo a significant change in the epistemology which underlies their pedagogical practice (Reagan, 1999). In order to address the limitations of the commonly practised teacher-based instructional pedagogy, scholars turned to constructivism as a theory of learning that gives more attention to the learner, as learners become active and engaged in the learning process (Schcolnik, Kol, & Abarbanel, 2006). Among the core principles of constructivism is the rejection of the behaviorist model of learning, e.g. the teacher-centered approach, which is the linear transmission of knowledge from teacher to student with the student in a passive role. Instead, constructivism focuses on the learners as active participants in constructing their own knowledge. According to constructivists, learners construct their knowledge with the help of the teacher by means of various types of interaction, including interaction with their learning environment (Fosnot, 1996; Gagnon & Collay, 2001; Meunier, 1994). Students’ active participation in creating learning materials has been associated with higher levels of achievement, as shown in early and more recent research (see for example Clarke, 2007; Hunter & Harman, 1985). It is important, however, that the tasks are challenging, authentic, and multidisciplinary in order for the learners to be engaged (Wang & Kang, 2005). Such tasks are often collaboratively performed by the students and their peers. Therefore, in addition to active learning, constructivism is also associated with collaborative and project-based learning as essential and integral components of the learning process (Herrington, Reeves, Oliver, & Woo, 2004; Neo, Neo, & Xiao-Lian, 2007). Unlike the traditional teacher-centered classroom, where each student works alone and is assessed individually, in the constructivist classroom students engage in the investigation of real life problems (Barron, 1998) and create meaningful collaborative learning projects. Although the study of collaborative learning has a relatively brief history (Littleton & Hakkinen, 1999), there are empirical studies that have shown positive results when investigating group work (see Meunier, 1994). In the language learning classroom, when the learners are actively engaged with other learners to express meaning this can promote the language skills needed for effective communication in the target language (Chen, 2005; Rust, Price, & O’Donovan, 2003). Seliger (1983) found that the learning rate among students who were interacting with their peers was faster than the students who were passively receiving their knowledge from the lecturer. Pica and Doughty (1985) also observed that ESL students showed more expertise in negotiating meaning when working in groups rather than through the teacher-centered model. Similarly, Green (1993) found that students who work together showed a higher degree of achievement and better attitude toward the language they were learning.