This study argues for grounding the teaching of presentational communication in a foreign language (FL) in Making- and Design-related concepts. We use the example of creating personal narrative podcasts in an advanced collegiate FL course to demonstrate how these concepts facilitate student learning outcomes in relation to genre awareness, digital…

In this paper, we attempt to investigate the pedagogical value of visual social media platforms, specifically Instagram, for the development of the online social presence of language classes. Students in intermediate university-level French and Italian classes used Instagram for a six-week period to reply to a series of questions prompted by the…

This article presents a process-oriented mixed-method study, focusing on the emergence of second language (L2) critical thinking (CT) skills in the collaborative discourse produced by a focal group of five college-level students of French working in a virtual language learning environment (the VLLE Cinet Second Life). Levels of CT ability were…

This study extends current research about L2 hypermedia texts by investigating the combined use of audiovisual features including: (a) Contextualized images, (b) rollover translations, (c) cultural information, (d) audio explanations and (e) comprehension check exercises. Specifically, student perceptions of hypermedia readings compared to…

Most pedagogical applications of wikis in foreign language education draw on this collaborative tool to improve (formal) writing skills or to develop target language cultural sensitivity, missing largely on the opportunity to support student-developed L2 content knowledge. Seeking an alternative to traditional teacher-centered approaches, this…

The qualitative study reported in this article explored the use of technology for language learning in a third-year French class at a public university in the Midwest of the USA. To address the need for a more holistic study of technology for language learning (Basharina, 2007; Thorne, 2003), an Activity Theory framework was employed to…

This paper reports on the piloting of podcasts created to support Anglophone French Immersion (FI) students in academic listening. The authors developed a series of seven English language podcasts grounded in metacognitive and L2 listening theory to provide FI students with strategies to enhance L2 listening ability and note-taking skills for…

This article presents student perceptions about different types of web-based activities used to seek information for French language learning. Group interviews were conducted with 71 students in five Canadian universities to elicit data on their use of the Internet for information-seeking activities. These students use the Web for three main…

Second language (L2) instruction in the United States has in recent history experienced significant change. Instead of emphasizing grammatical accuracy, L2 teachers are now asked to focus on developing student communication skills. Furthermore, L2 classrooms are being transformed via the growth of computer-mediated instruction. Traditional,…

This paper discusses issues surrounding the development of a learning object repository (FLORE) for teaching and learning French at the postsecondary level. An evaluation based on qualitative and quantitative data was set up in order to better assess how second-language (L2) students in French perceived the integration of this new repository into…

The use of PowerPoint presentations for explicit instruction of grammatical structures is increasingly encouraged at the university level. Some teachers are still reluctant to use this technology because they are not convinced that more benefits can be derived from their use than from the conventional use of textbook and blackboard. On the other…

This paper summarizes the assessment results of the Language Online project at Carnegie Mellon University. The study investigated the effectiveness of online language courses for students' learning outcomes in four hybrid online language courses (elementary and intermediate levels) and their counterpart conventional (offline) courses from Spring…

This study investigated the role of students' motivation and attitudes in second language (L2) study within an online language course context (LOL). Students' attitudes and motivation were examined within a socioeducational framework (Gardner & MacIntyre, 1993) while learning contexts were examined based on Dorneyi's (1994) components of foreign…

Describes the results of a pilot study to examine the attitudes of university students toward the use of computer-mediated communication in their French conversation and composition course. Results indicate that both introvert and extrovert personality types generally perceive the use of a local area network as a beneficial experience. (15…

Discusses the use of a French computerized grammar checker as a learning and teaching resource. Presents the results of a controlled series of experiments in which groups of students were given the task of correcting French texts containing grammatical, lexical, and orthographical errors using an on-screen grammar checker or grammar books and…