TASK 2 - ARTICLE REVIEW

Article Review - Collaborative Learning Skills Used in Weblog

this is the website : http://callej.org/journal/11-2/kanniah_krish.html

Section A

The article that I have chosen for this assignment is from a website CALL-EJ online. This article is actually a research on collaborative learning skills used in weblog. This research is taken from the Computer assisted Language Learning Journal, Volume 11, number 2. The article was written by Anuratha Kanniah and Pramela Krish. Pramkela Krish is a lecturer in Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. She is a lecturer with the school of language studies and linguistics in the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities at the university. Over the years, she has done many researched in online learning and her worked has been published international journals all over the world. She is very interested in doing research regarding computer enhanced language learning. Anuratha Kanniah on the hand is a lecturer from University College of Innovation and Technology Malaysia. She is teaching English as foreign language to the international students at the college. She also conducts training for teachers and professionals from the corporate world. She is very much interest in doing research in the area of e-learning.

Section B – Summary

The aims of the research

Since that both of the researchers have interests in E- learning, the research is obviously on that. As the title of this article suggests, this research is Computer Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL). The aim of this research is to discover the learner’s collaborative learning skills and sub-skills that improve the interaction in the context of CSCL. The researchers studied the attributes that been used in both skills and sub-skills to have more detailed information about the underlying processes that take place in the interaction. To achieve this aim, the researchers have come up with two research questions for this research which are:-

1. What are the skills and sub-skills used among the participants in the weblog?
2. To what extent the internal and external processes predispose a collaborative discussion in a weblog?

The methodology of the research

Due to the nature of this study, the qualitative research is much more suitable for this research as it can investigate a deeply for finding out the results. That is why the researchers used qualitative theory techniques, in which the designed were to explore how a topic was being discussed where the researchers construct the findings based on the ideas of the participants through interviews. For this research, the researchers used the constructivist and socio-cultural perspectives posted by a group of postgraduates in the weblogs to analysed the aspect of collaborative learning. This is parallel with the purpose of the where the researchers to find out the preferred collaborative skills and sub-skills that the students used in the context of computer-based learning. Due to the nature of this study, the qualitative research is much more suitable for this research as it can investigate a deeply for finding out the results.

The subject/sample

A literary text was given to 11 postgraduates that have been chosen to be the sample of this study. One of the similar characteristic that these 11 samples have is that they all possess a basic degree.

The Findings of the research

For the research question no 1, the findings is that 59.82% of the overall interaction is based on Active Learning skills. The next one is conversation with the percentage of 21.68% while creative conflict skills only used around 18.5% percentage from the overall interaction. The researchers has also identified the sub-skills for each skills that been used. The sub-skills that been used, for Active learning are inform, request and motivate. The sub-skills for conversation are acknowledgement, task and maintenance while sub-skills for creative conflicts are argue and mediate. For research question no 2, based on the results shown, the researchers has summarize that the samples are cognitively and socially inclined thus makes learning the presence of both social and cognitive factors involves in learning.

Section C – My reaction

Does the research interest you?

Generally this research interests me. At the first glance of the title – collaborative learning skills used in weblog-, I quickly looked into it because to be honest, before this, I never thought that collaborative learning skills are used when we are using weblog. So the title itself has made me interested in looking deeper into it. Another reason why this research interests me is because my knowledge about CALL is very little. I believe, in taking deeper look and reading about this article, I will learn more knowledge and perhaps can apply it for my own benefits later in the future. One more reason why this research interests me is because I am a weblog user too. I use weblog everyday and I also surf internet everyday too. This is why I want to take a closer look at this research because I probably can relate to what I have been doing every day.

Do you think the research well conducted?

I think this research is well conducted. However, I do believe that perhaps few steps can be taken in making this a much better research. One of the few steps that I would suggest is that the number of samples is to be increased. For example to 30 or 40 students so that the results can be more reliable if the number of students is a lot more than eleven. I would also suggest that the population of the samples can be among the undergraduates’ students, rather than just postgraduates students. I believe if there is more variety in conducting this research, it will be more interesting regarding the result of the research.

What is/are the implication(s) of the research in the teaching and learning of ESL ( in the general and Malaysian contexts)

I believe, through this research, it can give great effects towards teaching and learning of ESL. Generally, it will add another method of teaching English throughout the world. As people keep saying, the world is getting smaller and smaller, thus the importance of English as the international language becomes more important. That is why, having using this weblog method in addition to the already-a lot method of teaching English, it can help the learners to learn the language better., With the rapid growth of globalization, this method is also going to be useful as it is updated with the current trend nowadays, and it is going to indirectly to attract interest of people to learn English more. For the Malaysian context, with the introduction of using weblog and learning English at the same time, this will have great impact on our people to advance their knowledge in English, but also with the technology so that we can always keep up with other well-developed country. It also can increase the use of IT among the Malaysians citizens. It may seems a small step, but this small step can lead to a much bigger step in the future.

J-cross exercise! :)

http://www.mediafire.com/?rf9v5fy7wv582a5


hope you will enjoy doing it sir! :)

Hotpotatoes - JCloze

this is my closed passage exercise using the hotpotatoes software - JCloze.

click HERE

TASK 1 ESL WEBSITE EVALUATION

Question 1

What does the application attempt to teach?

The application is trying to teach the visitors English in a very fun and easy way. When I said English, it means that the website does not just focus on one aspect of English, for example grammar. But, it provides exercises and lessons in various aspects in English. For example, it got different zones for the visitors or students can go into based on what they want to learn. They got grammar zone, writing zone, idioms zone, spelling zone and many more. I also mentioned the word fun in my first sentence. This is because, this website also attempt to teach English in a fun and interactive way by providing some language games and jokes. The websites also provides teacher’s zone, where teachers can print some worksheets and materials for them to use in teaching their students English. Not just providing exercises, this website also provides tips and lesson on how to be better in certain areas in English. Here is some of the list that the website provides:

1. Grammar Zone
2. Verb Zone
3. Idiom Zone
4. Spelling Zone
5. Conversation Zone
6. Pronunciation Zone
7. Vocabulary Zone
8. Teacher Zone
9. Reading Zone
10. Writing Zone
11. How to be a Good Student
12. Basic Skills Zone
13. Holiday Zone
14. Fun Stuff Zone
15. Joke Zone

Question 2

What sorts of things is the application user expected to do with regards to learning the content?

The application users are expected to be learning English and understand the language better with a relatively easy and fun approach. The user will engage a fun and entertaining way of learning English. They can do a lot of activities in learning the content. First the users will be given options in which they category they want to learn. If they, for example, wish to learn writing, they can click at the writing zone option. In there, they can choose from various exercises for writing. For non-members, they can use the free exercises, while if you are a member of the website, you can choose from more choices of exercises. For the exercises, the users can choose whether to do the exercises with multiple choice questions, fill in the blanks, writing exercises, answering quizzes and lots more. If the user does not wish to do the exercises, they can also read on the tips and lessons that are also provided in the website. The users can also learn the language through funny but educational jokes. The application user only needs to choose between all those options and they are set to learn the language.

Question 3

What sorts of computer skills is the application users expected to have in order to operate/access/use the application?

Since this application want the users to learn English fun and easy way, the users do not need to have great computer skills. The users only need to have the very basic computer skills. Most of the exercises, the users only need to use the mouse to click on the answers. The users also need to know how to use the keyboard, means that users need to know how to type using the keyboard. This application also does not require for the users to use any difficult skills because based on the questions and information website, the website is targeting children and people who are beginning to learn the language. This can also be seen in the exercises that they provided. Basically, the user need to know how to use the mouse and the keyboard in order to complete the exercise or to read all the tips and lesson in the website.

Question 4

While you are “playing”/”accessing”/”assessing” the application, does it remind you of anything you do in a classroom, or with a teacher, or with a fellow classmate, or in self-study?

While I was accessing and assessing the application, the exercises do remind me of the exercises that I was once did in my classroom during my school years. It also remind me that I gave handouts or exercises to my students that was almost similar to the questions that was asked in the application during my practicum years, especially the grammar questions. It also got me thinking that if I have known about this earlier, it would have probably made things a lot easier during that time. It also remind me of the time when I was study English in my school days, that none of this was implied by my teachers. The exercises on the website really make things easier and more interactive ways for students to learn and enjoy studying English.

Question 5

Can you pinpoint some theories of language learning and/or teaching underlying application?

One of the theories that I can find in the application is the multimedia learning under cognitive theory of multimedia learning. Based on the modality principle and Pavio’s dual coding theory, which found that students that learn with multimedia, animation and narration are consistently better in transferring questions than those who learn with text-based materials. This can be seen in the application where visual are used to get the user’s attraction and to help them memorized better things that they have learnt. For example, in the game ‘win a million bananas’, under the Fun Stuff zone in the website, user will see pictures of bananas and if they answer the English question correctly, they will get bananas as the reward. Another theory that can be relate to this website is the constructivism, where the application divided some the exercises that they prepared by levels such as easy, intermediate and advanced. The users can choose which level they wanted to try and proceed to the next one when they have mastered the level before. Since that the students need to have basic some knowledge for some of the exercises in the web, the schema theory can be applied here. According to schema theory, learners have the knowledge and the teachers and the exercises will help them to inculcate the new knowledge and the previous one to make a new information. This theory was first introduced by Piaget but later was expanded by R.C Anderson.

Question 6

How well is the constructivist theory of learning applied to the chosen website?

Based on my evaluation, I think the constructivist theory of learning only applied in some of the exercises on the website. If you look at it as a whole, most of the exercises does not apply the constructivist theory. However, they are some exercises that gives the user lesson first then ask the students to complete the task or quiz, for example the exercises in the idiom zone. The user will be exposed to instruction first then they will be given a quiz. The exercises in the grammar zone are divided into levels, which are easy, intermediate, and advanced. The students will be answering the test to each level and towards the end, they can be good enough to answer more difficult question without any guidance or instruction from the web. But, most of the exercises did not have any instructions or guidance at all, the students have to straight away answer after been given very simple information or instructions on how to answer or do the exercise. Another point that strengthen the constructivist theory for this website is that some of the questions relates to the students experience in helping them to understand the language better. For example, in the writing zone, the students are ask to put their detail information, and based on that knowldege, the website will create an essay to help them to understand how an essay can be done. which is very much related to constructivist theory where experinece are use in building knowledge. That is why, in my opinion that the constructivist theory only applied in some of the exercises only.

Question 7

In 1980s and early 1990s, there was a major debate on whether computer was “master” of or “slave” to the learning process (Higgins and Johns, 1984). In relation to your evaluation – was the computer a replacement for teachers, or merely an obedient servant to students?

In relation to my evaluation, I believe that computer is a replacement for teachers, not merely an obedient servant to students, and I also believe that the computers should be viewed as the teacher’s assistant in the learning process. This is because; the students cannot individually do the task in the computer on their own. They somehow still need guidance from the teachers in order to complete the task or exercises. For example, in the application that I have chosen, some of the task still need explanation or guidance from a teacher for the users to complete the task. Not all exercises that the students will be given detailed explanation on the topic given. For example, under the BE verb exercise, students will be directed straight to the exercise prepared, so the students still have to learn what Be verb in the first place. In fact, this website is focus on acquiring second language, so in acquiring second language, interaction is very much importance between the learners in order to master the target language. All the grammar exercises can help, but language acquisition does not require extensive use of conscious grammatical rules, and does not require tedious drill (Stephen Krashen). So it can be said that despite the exercises and the task is important, it can be used as assistant for the teacher in helping the students, not let the students solely relies on the computer, nor let the computer gives everything to the students without any guidance from them to the students.

Question 8

Would you like to use the application yourself in future work?

Yes? Give reasons:

No? Give reasons:

My answer for this question is yes. If I were to become a teacher at any school or even to my own children, I would definitely use this application. This is because it is very useful in helping the user in enhancing their understanding on the language. The language use are very simple, the exercises are easy to understand, which is perfect for second language learners who are still young and trying to learn the language at the beginner level. The exercises also vary into different levels, so the users can levels by levels in completing the task. Another reason that I would use this application because it also includes fun stuff like jokes and idioms, which is much more fun and interesting than learning or reading a boring essay. The users can learn both languages, and other fun and cool stuffs as well. The use of games as the method of learning is also make the users more enjoy in completing the task and answering the questions. The website is also easy to use and easy to access to the exercise. When you open the website, all the options, which zones you want to go and which topic you want to choose is all list down in front of you. All you have to do is just choose and the website will lead you to the exercises. That is why I will use this application in future

Suggestions/recommendations

Although I mentioned earlier that I would use this application later in the future, I would like to suggest or recommend a few things for the moderator to improve the website. First of all, the website can add more colours or animations. This is because, if their main target is the young learners, they can create more colourful or and beautiful web as what it looks now is like only with four colours (including the font colours). The website can also use different fonts so that the website will look more interesting and fun. Another suggestions I want to make is to add more materials or method of teaching, for examples video or audio materials, so that it would be more fun and more options for the learners to choose from. Last but not least, I would made is to make all the exercises for free. As I stated before, some of the exercises are free and some are not, but it would be best if all users can learn the language and have access to all the lessons and exercises for free.

this are the link for the website : http://english-zone.com/index.php

In class task 2 - Excel

For this exercise, i choose an exercise that relates with our country. just to add some knowledge about our independence day. my target for this exercise is for students in primary school and i think it will not be a problem for them to answer the questions.

here is the link to my worksheets. have fun! :)

please click here. Merdeka! :)

P/S : I've used different font at first for this exercise, but when i tried to open it with my friends laptop, some of the fonts did not appear properly in his laptop, so i have to use different fonts, which makes me feel very sad! :(. i have changed it to a new font.

Electronic worksheet

In-Class Task 1

Assalamualaikum,

Question 1

My name is Nik Mohd Afiq Bin Nik Luqman. I was born 23 years ago on the 26th of January 1988 in Kuala Terengganu. My biological father passed away when i was 2 years old. My step father is a teacher and my mother is a government servant. She is currently working at Yayasan Terengganu. I only have one elder brother. He is 25 years old and now currently working in Singapore. I received my secondary school education at MJSC Pengkalan Chepa. After that, i did my Pre-degree in Tesl at UiTM Kuantan. One thing about me is that i dont like to be just hanging around and doing nothing. I like to get myself busy with something especially by doing the things i love. For example, i love acting. Last year, i got involved with 2 theatre productioins outside the college during my semester break. I also love travelling. I usually travel with my family and friends to anywhere locally or outside the country. I also enjoy sports. i watch almost every sports there is on television, though i rarely played them. I also love watching tv series and movies. i have a hobby of collecting DVD's and currently i own more than 300 DVD's. You can borrow it if you want. =) As we go along this semester, i'm sure we will get to know each other more.

Question 2

i would rate myself as novice. This is because i only know tou use the basic of things in computer. For example, I only know how to use simple things such as Microsoft Words and Microsoft Power Point. I also know how to use only famous and easy social network such as Facebook, Twitter and Wordpress. I also would rate myself as novice as when there are problems with my computer, i often ask my friend to help me repairing it as i dont know how to repair it myself.

Question 3

In terms of my knowledge in software and hardware, i have to say that i have a very little knowledge regarding these matters. For software, again, i only know about the basic software such as soundforge. I also know a little things about hardware. I dont even know what RAM means. yeah. so basically, i am not really good in this stuff.

Question 4

Formally, i have never experienced learning via computer/online. But indirectly, yes i do learn something from online, especially in terms of language. I learn English from the internet. Usually when i encounter difficult words that i do not understand, i will search for it in the dictionary. I also always surf the interent for more informations that i'm interested in. For example, i will go to Wikipedia.com to find add my knowledge on certain topics or information. so indirectly, i have been learning through computer/online, but for formal education, no i have not experienced any.

Question 5

Yes, i did incorporate technology in some of my lessons during my practicum. In fact, i tried to use technology as many times as possible during my practicum. This is because, using technology is much more easier and the students always got excited and will be more focus when i used computers or internet in the classroom. I have to say, it was succesful because it can be noticed that when i used technology such as showing videos from Youtube or pictures from the internet, the students will be more focus and pay attention during the class. they also did their work more efficient and managed to finish quickly compared to just read essays and answered the questions.

Question 6

In my opinion, i believe the use of technology in language teaching is very good and all teachers should be encouraged to use the technology whenver possible. This is because, the use of technology makes it a lot easier to teach. With the technology is rapidly and continuing from time to time, the teacher can be very creative in conducting the lessons and choosing their materials to teach. By using technology in language teaching, the students are also will be more excited to learn as the teacher will use different ways to teach evertime for the class. So in my opinion, i really think that the use of computer language will be very efficient and interesting.

Question 7

For this course, i hope that i can learn more about the use of my computers and expand my knowledge in using technology for the future. As the earth keeps spinning, technology has become a very important part in human's life, and they are everywhere. This is why i really think this course can help me a lot in become more expert in using technology for teaching and for other purpose as well.