IKT Software & Site Evaluation

Overview Part I –A Little Bit of Business –Warm-up Discussion –Site & Software Evaluation –Introduction to Project I Part II –Workshop: Getting Started on Project I –Sharing Findings –A Look Ahead

A Little Bit of Business

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Warm-Up Discussion

Questions How do you use technology in your own language learning? What works for you? What do you look for in software/sites/apps)? What about in your language teaching?

Introduction to Site/Software Evaluation

The Definitive March At my own university it is difficult to imagine what it would take to divert the definitive march toward technologizing all aspects of learning and teaching.... As far as I can tell, it was the president of the university who decided that the English Department should have approximately 12 computer labs as a part of an effort to make the university have a high tech look. It seems very unlikely that he first weighed the research results on teaching English in a computer lab before making this decision. (Chapelle, 2003, p. 73))

Why Evaluate – Common Goals What software should be purchased? How well does X software meet Y standards? How can software and sites be redesigned to better meet the needs of users? How well do students feel the software is meeting their needs?

When Formative –Conducted during the development stage –Used to inform the actual construction of the program –Beta testing Summative –Conducted after completion of a project Or –After completion of a major stage of a project

How Checklists –Easy to administer but restricting and easy to incorporate bias (Levy & Stockwell, 2006, p ) Surveys of Users –Emphasizes attitude not necessarily effectiveness (pp ) Designer Oriented Evaluations –Reflects the design goals of the tool but not necessarily the pedagogical goals and needs of users (pp ) General Evaluation Framework –Broadly applicable and situated in a particular theoretical approach (p. 82)

Situating the Evaluation in Theory What type of interactivity is supported by the application? –Type I – unidirectional information such as descriptive or informative text –Type II – computer-tutors that rely on an algorithm to provide feedback on learner responses –Type III – learning tools that enable contact between students and other TL speakers (Levy & Stockwell, 2006: 51)

Situating the Evaluation in Context How flexible or open is the curriculum? –Fixed and rigid curriculum can lead to restricted and unimaginative use of CALL –Too open a curriculum can result in unclear learning goals and insufficient guidance in the use of CALL tools The user’s perspective –What technologies and interfaces are students used to? –How does technology vary from one class to the next?

Situating the Evaluation in Context What institutional standards and requirements are in place? –What technical support is available? –What financial resources are available? –How compatible is new software with currently used systems?

A Return to Why “…to assess the quality, effectiveness, or general value of a program or other entity.” (Johnson, 1992, p. 192 as cited in Levy & Stockwell, 2006, p. 41)

Project 1 - Evaluation 1. Using the evaluation form, critically and thoroughly evaluate a piece of CALL software or a site. sprakundervisning.wikispaces.com/Project+1http://ikt- sprakundervisning.wikispaces.com/Project+1 2. Report your findings in a brief online presentation and in a discussion. Group A: Kent, Linda S., Celine, Lisa, Henrietta (Swedish with Jonas) Group B: Tina, Maria, Linda B., Karina, Helena (English with Shannon)

Possible Sites & Software Below is a list of language learning sites you can evaluate. Some of these will require registration for access. If you would like to evaluate another site/software please let me know. Active Chinese *Active Chinese Babel Online *Babel Online Curso de Quechua Cambridge Ventures and Arcade Innovative Language Learning Online Courses *Innovative Language Learning Online Courses Byki*Byki LiveMocha *LiveMocha Spanish AVE program from Instituto Cervantes +

Workshop: Getting Started on Project I

Instructions The purpose of the after lunch workshop session is for you to familiarize yourself with the evaluation form by working in pairs to explore a single site. Focus on Sections I-VI only. There will be no formal break during this time, so take a break when you need to. We will report back findings as a whole class at 2:30. Randall’s ESL Cyber Listening Lab

Report Back 1.What are the main strengths of the site? 2.What are its major limitations? 3.How could this site be integrated into a language course and for what types of learners? 4.What questions or challenges did you encounter while conducting the evaluation?

A Look Ahead

Next Session Online in Adobe Connect to test out features to prepare for presentation of Project I. Please follow instructions to be sent in . Art by Kresselak on DA