Critical Issue: Using Technology to Improve Student Achievement

“This paper was original adapted from a manuscript by Margaret Honey, director of the Center for Children and Technology, Katherine McMillan Culp, assistant director for research at the Center for Children and Technology, and Robert Spielvogel, senior scientist at the Center for Children and Technology. In 2005, the article was updated to reflect some of the new educational priorities, demands, and developments that have entered the field since the last article was published. The Center for Children and Technology is a part of Education Development Center, Inc., an international nonprofit organization handing 335 projects taking place through the United States as well as around the globe.”

European Commission Report
The impact of the use of new information technologies and the Internet on the teaching of foreign languages and on the role of teachers of a foreign language

 “The report is the outcome of a Europe-wide study coordinated by the International Certificate Conference (ICC), Frankfurt.”

A Model for Listening and Viewing Comprehension in Multimedia Environments

“This paper proposes an instructional design model appropriate for humanistic multimedia Computer-Enhanced Language Learning (CELL) in a self-access environment for second language learning through listening and viewing comprehension. The model is grounded in sociocultural theory, and set against a background of research into the complexities of listening and viewing, individual learner differences and learning styles, characteristics of self-directed and autonomous learning, and user-friendly instructional software design.”

Perspectives on Technology in Learning and Teaching Languages

“The first section of this article identifies and discusses four key issues arising from the recent technology-related literature (the status of CALL, its theoretical grounding, its cultural embeddedness, and its effectiveness). The second section synthesizes research findings from three current areas of research: computer-mediated communication, electronic literacies, and telecollaboration. The third section develops implications for teaching and research, highlighting the importance of the teacher, new understandings of language and communication, critical awareness of the relationships among technology, language, culture, and society, and new trends in research methods.

Recent Developments in Technology and Language Learning: A Literature Review and Meta-analysis 

“The purpose of this study is to assess the potential of technology for improving language education. A review of the effectiveness of past and current practices in the application of information and communication technology (ICT) in language education and the availability as well as capacities of current ICTs was conducted.”

 Teaching and Learning with ICT: New Technology, New Pedagogy?

“The paper therefore focuses on four issues that have arisen within and across the subject design initiatives: the tension between teaching about or teaching through ICT; the persistence of pedagogical style; the centrality of confidence and competence; and the curriculum contradictions that arise when ICT is incorporated into established subject cultures.”

Technology and Change in English Language Teaching (ELT)

 “This paper examines the ways in which computers are impacting upon change in ELT and argues that Asian countries are, in a sense, at the heart of this. The paper reviews and further develops a shorter forthcoming colloquium article in The British Journal of Education Technology and begins by linking the growth of English to the growth and widespread availability of computers. It briefly examines the ways in which computers have historically contributed to ELT with both pedagogical applications and by helping us understand the nature of the language; however, it is suggested that the Internet, and the resulting computer mediated communication (CMC), has now gone way beyond this to change the language itself.”

The Technology-Infused English Classroom

“This article outlines the minimum code for a technology infused English classroom. It then presents a series of scenarios in which teachers and students utilise technology to enhance the learning process. Finally, Westside Elementary School in Hood River, Oregon and Tahatai Coast School, in New Zealand are used as case studies to explore the teacher development processes which are a necessary precursor to the technology infused school and technology enhanced learning.”

Using Technology to Enhance the Classroom Environment

“Much is being written about the use of technology as a teaching and learning tool. However, much of the focus is on distance learning. This article deals with another aspect of this topic, namely, the use of technology to enhance teaching and learning in a classroom environment. While my experience stems from teaching mathematics at the undergraduate level, the approaches described can be utilized in the teaching of other subjects as well.”

Utopia or Chaos? The Impact of Technology on Language Teaching

“Because the use of the Internet has become so widespread, this article will focus attention on that medium, starting with some historical perspective on computers and then suggest a few practical ideas to improving successful integration of the Internet and language teaching.”

Accessed 21 March 2009