This exploratory computer assisted-language learning (CALL) study used a computer-mediated communication (CMC) interface to allow English as a foreign language (EFL) writing students in classes at two universities to give each other anonymous peer feedback about essay-writing assignments reacting to selected news stories. Experts also provided…

With the advancement of such Web 2.0 applications as weblogs, language learners have more opportunities to use a target language for communication purposes and to experience peer collaboration and interaction. In the search for ways to augment an EFL curriculum in which speaking practice is limited but the demand for improving oral proficiencies…

This review summarizes evidence for the effectiveness of technology use in foreign language (FL) learning and teaching, with a focus on empirical studies that compare the use of newer technologies with more traditional methods or materials. The review of over 350 studies (including classroom-based technologies, individual study tools,…

Pronunciation training based on speech production techniques illustrating tongue movements is gaining popularity. However, there is not sufficient evidence that learners can imitate some tongue animation. In this paper, we argue that although controlling tongue movement related to speech is not such an easy task, training with visual feedback…

Besides focusing on grammar, writing skills, and web-based language learning, researchers in "CALL" and second language acquisition have also argued for the importance of promoting higher-order thinking skills in ESL (English as Second Language) and EFL (English as Foreign Language) classrooms. There is solid evidence supporting the…

This article discusses the comparative effectiveness of student input at different times during the design of CALL tools for learning kanji, the Japanese characters of Chinese origin. The CALL software "package" consisted of tools to facilitate the writing, reading and practising of kanji characters in context. A pre-design questionnaire…

This article is an effort to add to computer-assisted language learning by extending a study on an essay critiquing system (ECS) feedback to secondary school language learners' writing. The study compared two groups of participants' performance, namely the treatment group which received both the system feedback and teacher feedback (i.e., blended…

Many computer-assisted language learning (CALL) studies have found that teacher direction can help learners develop language skills at their own pace on computers. However, many teachers still do not know how to provide support for students to use computers to reinforce the development of their language skills. Hence, more examples of CALL…

Today Web 2.0 technologies, including blogs, are presenting both teachers and learners with new horizons in the field of language teaching and learning. A blog is an online journal which can be continuously updated by its users [Matheson, D. (2004). Weblogs and the epistemology of the news: Some trends in online journalism. "New Media & Society,…

Asynchronous communication by means of discussion forums plays an essential role in supporting collaborative learning. Online forums allow learners to ask questions, express their thoughts, share resources, and justify their opinions beyond the four walls of the classroom. Proponents of collaborative learning claim that this type of learning can…

This case study focuses on the feedback that is provided by tutors to learners in the course of synchronous online teaching. More specifically, we study how trainee tutors used the affordances of Visu, an experimental web videoconferencing system, to provide negative feedback. Visu features classical functionalities such as video and chat, and it…

Pronunciation errors may be caused by several different deviations from the target, such as voicing, intonation, insertions or deletions of segments, or that the articulators are placed incorrectly. Computer-animated pronunciation teachers could potentially provide important assistance on correcting all these types of deviations, but they have an…

Most previous studies in blended learning simply involved on-site and online instruction without considering students' control of their own learning in these two different modalities. The purpose of this study was to investigate how college students with English reading difficulties integrate their conceptions of and approaches to blended learning…

This paper reports the results of a study on the use of a learner response system (LRS) by a group of students of English as a foreign language (L2). Via a methodology that included the analysis of survey questionnaires and open-ended oral interviews, the study examined learners' perceptions of the use of an LRS by a group of 30 Brazilians…

In this article, we set out to assess QuADEM (Quality Assessment of Digital Educational Material), one of the latest methods for evaluating online language learning courseware. What is special about QuADEM is that the evaluation is based on observing the actual usage of the online courseware and that, from a checklist of 12 different components,…