Assessing The Effectiveness Of Virtual Technologies In Foreign And Second Language Instruction

Over the last few decades, the use of virtual technologies in education, including foreign/second language instruction, has developed into a substantial field of study. Through virtual technologies, language learners can develop metacognitive and metalinguistic skills, and they can practice the language by interacting with real/virtual users or virtual objects, a very important issue for language learners who have no or little contact with native or target language speakers outside the classroom. Assessing the Effectiveness of Virtual Technologies in Foreign and Second Language Instruction provides emerging research exploring the theoretical and practical aspects of virtual technologies and applications in engaging language learners both within and outside the classroom. Featuring coverage on a broad range of topics such as game-based learning, online classrooms, and learning management systems, this publication is ideally designed for academicians, researchers, scholars, educators, graduate-level students, software developers, instructional designers, linguists, and education administrators seeking current research on how virtual technologies can be utilized and interpreted methodologically in virtual classroom settings.

Population diversity is becoming more prevalent globally with increasing immigration, emigration, and refugee placement. These circumstances increase the likelihood that a child will be raised speaking a different language in the home than the common language used in each country. This necessitates the development of comprehensive strategies that promote second language learning through the adoption of new technological advancements. New Technological Applications for Foreign and Second Language Learning and Teaching is a scholarly publication that explores how the latest technologies have the potential to engage foreign and second language learners both within and outside the language classroom and to facilitate language learning and teaching in the target language. Highlighting a range of topics such as learning analytics, digital games, and telecollaboration, this book is ideal for teachers, instructional designers, curriculum developers, IT consultants, educational software developers, language learning specialists, academicians, administrators, professionals, researchers, and students.

Technology- mediated language learning has matured over the past few decades, with various tools and contexts now widely used in language education for all ages and levels. Many of today’s language learners have experienced technology as an ever- present feature both within and beyond the classroom, highlighting how the role of technology has expanded into many daily activities, and underscoring how research in Second Language Acquisition (SLA) can inform and support the use of established and emerging technologies. The role of technology in language learning has continued to grow, with the recent COVID- 19 global pandemic further demonstrating the potential contributions of technology for supporting and facilitating second language development. Answering this increasing interest, this Handbook provides students, teachers, and scholars with a comprehensive collection of chapters on foundational topics and key issues related to technology, SLA, and where relevant, pedagogical applications. Chapter 25 of this book is freely available as a downloadable Open Access PDF under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license available at http://www.taylorfrancis.com

This handbook draws together international perspectives on technology and its application to language teaching and learning, written and edited by leading scholars in the field. It meets the increasing demand for pedagogically-informed online language instruction, which is particularly important in the context of the effects that the Covid-19 pandemic has had on the education sector on a global scale, as well as exploring language learning in informal and non-formal contexts. With contributions from5 continents and over 20 countries, including Australia, Canada, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Japan, Spain, Sweden, the Netherlands, the UK and the USA, the book offers a thorough overview of the main influential theories and explores technology tools, approaches to research, and applications to practice. Carefully curated, this is an innovative and exciting volume for students, teachers, researchers and lecturers in language education.

The pace at which technology changes has created unique challenges in the integration of such technologies into language teaching and learning. Innovative pedagogies and strategies must be developed that adapt to these changes and accommodate future technological changes. Recent Developments in Technology-Enhanced and Computer-Assisted Language Learning is an essential research publication that focuses on technological influences on language education and applications of technology in language learning courses including foreign and second language learning. Featuring an array of topics such as artificial intelligence, teacher preparation, and distance learning, this book is ideal for teachers, language instructors, IT specialists, instructional designers, curriculum developers, researchers, education professionals, academicians, administrators, practitioners, and students.

This insightful book offers language teachers and teachers in training the opportunity to delve into 3D virtual worlds and see the benefits they provide for effective language teaching. Based on a decade of experience teaching and researching in Second Life (SL), Chen demystifies the dos and don’ts of SL teaching and research, whilst vividly walking readers through each step of the journey. Written in an accessible, jargon-free, and personalised tone, the book is divided into three parts. Part I builds the foundation in SL research, task-based language teaching (TBLT), and understanding fundamental skills for SL teaching. Part II showcases the author’s SL teaching blog that generously unveils their task-based, SL-enabled lessons, participant observations, critical reflections, and lessons learned from each SL session. Part III is complete with the highlights of the author’s SL research and hands-on resources and tips for readers. Each chapter also features a "Checkpoint" section to gauge reader understanding of chapter content, followed by a "Your Task" section to promote learning by doing in SL. Teachers and curriculum designers will find the well-detailed and guided lesson planning useful when starting their first SL class. Graduate students and novice researchers will also find the systematically recorded data collection helpful for their SL research.

This book syntheses cutting-edge research on the role of individual differences (IDs) in the field of SLA and in computer assisted language learning. It also outlines the theoretical and methodological issues at the heart of this research, presents empirical findings and charts future directions of this research. Pawlak and Kruk provide an overview of the latest theoretical developments in research on IDs in SLA as well as methodological considerations that are crucial when researching individual variation, with special emphasis on data-collection procedures that are most prominent in CALL. The book goes on to summarize and explore a body of empirical evidence concerning the role of individual difference factors in CALL, singling out existing gaps, methodological problems, and areas in need of further investigation. Finally, the authors provide a guide on how empirical investigations of individual difference factors in CALL can be improved by incorporating latest developments from the broader field of SLA. This book will be of great interest to postgraduates and scholars in the domain of applied linguistics and second language education who are interested in CALL, as well as those studying and undertaking research in second language learning and teaching.

In the context of continuing technological innovation, the field of technology-mediated foreign language learning is expanding rapidly. Advances in digital technologies are providing researchers with opportunities to investigate a range of exciting new areas of research. This edited volume is designed to showcase a selection of recent cutting-edge innovations. This publication incorporates chapters dealing with the use virtual reality, social networking, speech technologies and social semiotics. Also included are chapters that focus on the relevant review work that is vital for progress in the field. This publication provides an indispensable guide to a wide range of practitioners, including language educators, researchers, graduate students, learning scientists and instructional designers.