Abstract
The field of computer-assisted language learning (CALL) has grown in terms of second language acquisition (SLA) theory. Researchers have linked sociocultural theories to CALL, noting that technologies can create communities of practice. Although many L2 learners and language teachers are proficient in the use of technology, this does not mean they can use it systematically to learn or teach. The aim of this chapter is to connect current sociocultural perspectives with CALL-based technologies. The first part discusses interactionist and sociocultural theories of SLA and shows how technology can build communities of practice, encourage reflection, and ultimately promote autonomous learning. The second section describes three CALL-based practices: (1) wikis, (2) role-playing games, and (3) online record-keeping. Each description links these practices to sociocultural perspectives of SLA theory and TESOL technology standards (TTS).
TopBackground
In the field of TESOL, the use of technology for language learning has been guided by the roles of tutor, tool, and medium. From a theoretical perspective, theories of learning and language often color and shape the use of technology in the language classroom. As Richards and Rodgers (2001) and Salaberry (1996) note, the audio-lingual method relied heavily on audio-visual playback and recording devices, with the language lab playing a central role in the language learning experience. In this learning environment, technology took on the role of tutor, providing both instruction, feedback, and testing (Ducate & Arnold, 2011; Kern, 2006). When the audio-lingual method fell out of favor, so did language labs. As a tool for language learning, technology provides English language learners (ELLs) with information about the target language and culture. An excellent illustration of the role of technology as a tool is data-driven learning, or DDL (O’Keeffe, McCarthy & Carter, 2007). With the help and guidance of an instructor, ELLs can employ corpora such as the Michigan Corpus of Spoken Academic English (MICASE) or Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA) to examine concordance lines to view how specific node words (i.e., a specific vocabulary item or structure) collocate (i.e., frequently go together) (Lin & Lee, 2015). Finally, technology can play the role of a medium in which ELLs use computer-mediated technology to interact, collaborate, and form identities (Kern, 2006).
In his corpus-based study, Hubbard (2008) examined the words that collocated with the word theory in over 244 journal articles in 25 volumes of the CALICO Journal. One of the questions Hubbard asked was what specific theories were mentioned. He discovered that 113 distinct theories were mentioned, suggesting that CALL theory is an “amalgam” of theories extended to and adapted for CALL environments (Hubbard, 2008, p. 393). In an early analysis, Kern (2006) noted there are controversies surrounding which theory to apply to CALL. As was found in Hubbard (2008), CALL (not unlike the field of second language acquisition itself) is informed by a hodgepodge of theories and approaches. Ducate and Arnold (2011) identified four approaches to prior CALL research: technological, psycholinguistic, sociocultural, and ecological approaches. For this chapter, we have adopted social and sociocultural perspectives of learning (Zuengler & Miller, 2006) to CALL, while at the same time acknowledging that other perspectives and orientations have their place in CALL. Thus, we focus our attention on the role of technology as a medium for interaction.
The aim of this chapter is to explore how theory – in particular, sociocultural theory – informs CALL practices. It follows, then, that the authors of the current chapter identify with Vygotsky’s view that theory and practice share an interdependent relation in which each acts as a guide for the other (Lantolf & Poehner, 2014). To accomplish this, three CALL applications are examined related to writing (wikis), interaction (online gaming), and evaluation/feedback (online record keeping). For technology to be implemented and evaluated successfully, the TESOL Technology Standards (Healey, et al., 2011) were used as a guide for each of the three CALL applications described in the sections that follow.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Record Keeping: (In language program) the maintenance of the file of data on student performance.
Role-Playing Games (RPG): RPGs involve detailed story lines that require players to read parts of the story to complete tasks.
Sociocultural Perspectives: Perspectives of learning that focus on the roles of social and cultural factors in learning. These perspectives are informed by the work of Vygotsky.
Praxis: The interconnectedness of theory and practice in which each informs and guides the other.
CALL: The abbreviation for computer assisted language learning. The use of computers in teaching or learning of a second or foreign language.
TESOL Technology Standards (TTS): Technology standards that focus on how English language teachers, teacher educators, and administrators can and should use technology in and out of the classroom.
Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD): ZPD is the difference between what a learner can do without help and what he or she can do with help. It is a concept introduced, though not fully developed, by Soviet psychologist Lev Vygotsky (1896–1934) during the last ten years of his life.
Wikis: The Hawaiian word for quick , used to refer to a website with pages that the users can contribute and edit, often including photos, videos, and texts.
Communities of Practice: A term used to refer to a group of individuals’ participation in a communal activity that involves collaboration to achieve a goal.