Effectiveness of feedback for enhancing English pronunciation in an ASR‐based CALL system

This paper presents a study on implementing the ASR‐based CALL (computer‐assisted language learning based upon automatic speech recognition) system embedded with both formative and summative feedback approaches and using implicit and explicit strategies to enhance adult and young learners' English pronunciation. Two groups of learners including 18 adults and 16 seventh graders participated in the study. The results indicate that the formative feedback had a positive impact on improving the learners' speaking articulation, and the summative feedback aided the learners' self‐reflection and helped them to track their speaking progress. Furthermore, the implicit information such as model pronunciation with full sentences and audio recast benefitted the adult learners, whereas the young learners preferred the explicit learning information such as textual information of individual words for self‐correction. In addition, the results of this study also confirm that learners have different perceptions of the media modalities designed with implicit and explicit strategies in the feedback. Feedback with audio modality is more suitable for adults, whereas juxtaposed textual and audio modalities are better for young learners.     

Exploring Online Learners' Interactive Dynamics by Visually Analyzing Their Time‐anchored Comments

MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) are increasingly prevalent as an online educational resource open to everyone and have attracted hundreds of thousands learners enrolling these online courses. At such scale, there is potentially rich information of learners' behaviors embedded in the interactions between learners and videos that may help instructors and content producers adjust the instructions and refine the online courses. However, the lack of tools to visualize information from interactive data, including messages left to the videos at particular timestamps as well as the temporal variations of learners' online participation and perceived experience, has prevented people from gaining more insights from video‐watching logs. In this paper, we focus on extracting and visualizing useful information from time‐anchored comments that learners left to specific time points of the videos when watching them. Timestamps as a kind of metadata of messages can be useful to recover the interactive dynamics of learners occurring around the videos. Therefore, we present a visualization system to analyze and categorize time‐anchored comments based on topics and content types. Our system integrates visualization methods of temporal text data, namely ToPIN and ThemeRiver, which can help people understand the quality and quantity of online learners' feedback and their states of learning. To evaluate the proposed system, we visualized time‐anchored commenting data from two online course videos, and conducted two user studies participated by course instructors and third‐party educational evaluators. The results validate the usefulness of the approach and show how the quantitative and qualitative visualizations can be used to gain interesting insights around learners' online learning behaviors.     

Role of personality in computer based learning

With the rapid growth of technology enhanced learning, new mediums for learning have emerged. One of these mediums is computer based learning where the main concern is how to design a computer based learning system which takes into consideration the learners' differences. Personality is considered as one of the most critical sources of individual differences. This study investigates how personality differences within learners can affect computer based learning, through a comprehensive review of the literature. The highlighted results from the obtained nineteen studies are: (a) the most referred to personality model in computer based learning is MBTI; (b) personality traits affect how learners prefer learning content and learning approach like collecting information, communicating with instructor and peer, study behavior, acting and performing; (c) a new model of personality variables should be considered in computer based learning by taking all interested researchers and practitioners into accounts; and (d) the traditional questionnaire approach which is still the pre-dominant method to identify the learner's personality; and this needs to be changed with new potential of big data and learning analytics. Furthermore, this study presents a new implicit approach using learning analytics instead of questionnaire-based approach to identify the learner's personality.     

Integrating modified WebQuest activities for programming learning

The study designed WebQuest activities and explored the learning performance of learners to understand the suitability of using WebQuest in a college programming course. The study modified the processes of WebQuest based on social constructivism and scaffolding learning, and included programming tasks such as debugging practice to encourage learners to develop their problem-solving abilities. The WebQuest learning sheets include the following four parts, introduction, task, resources and evaluation, and the learners had to complete the tasks without the detailed processes. After they had tried to solve the problem for approximately two weeks, the detailed WebQuest processes were provided. A total of 109 learners (third year of college) participated in the study and were separated into two groups. The experimental group underwent WebQuest teaching, while the control group received the traditional IT-integrated teaching. The study duration was 18 weeks (3 hr/week). The results indicated that the modified WebQuest activity gave learners scaffolding to do try-and-revise practice, and the processes of using provided possible information to test and debug the resulting codes encouraged them to associate and analyze learning information before programming and then to generalize the programming steps on their own instead of following the instructor's step-by-step instructions. The learners thus have a deep understanding of the programming concept rather than surface learning. The findings revealed that the modified WebQuest activity is a helpful form of scaffolding for promoting learners' positive learning experiences regarding organizing information and problem solving and reasoning skills. Besides, integrating debugging practice in the WebQuest activity could promote learners' intermediate and advance level programming ability. Subsequent research could further explore the effects of adding after-practice WebQuest activities to assist and trigger learners' self-reflection for refining their problem-solving processes after the in-class WebQuest activities.     

Designing learner-controlled educational interactions based on learning/cognitive style and learner behaviour

Recently, research in individual differences and in particular, learning and cognitive style, has been used as a basis to consider learner preferences in a web-based educational context. Modelling style in a web-based learning environment demands that developers build a specific framework describing how to design a variety of options for learners with different approaches to learning. In this paper two representative examples of educational systems, Flexi-OLM and INSPIRE, that provide learners a variety of options designed according to specific style categorisations, are presented. Experimental results from two empirical studies performed on the systems to investigate learners' learning and cognitive style, and preferences during interaction, are described. It was found that learners do have a preference regarding their interaction, but no obvious link between style and approaches offered, was detected. Derived from an examination of this experimental data, we suggest that while style information can be used to inform the design of learning environments that accommodate learners' individual differences, it would be wise to recommend interactions based on learners' behaviour. Learning environments should allow learners or learners' interaction behaviour to select or trigger the appropriate approach for the particular learner in the specific context. Alternative approaches towards these directions are also discussed.     

Instructor accents in online education and their effect on learning and attitudes

Reductions in perceptual fluency have been shown to negatively impact attitudes towards learning material, but not learning itself. The current study extends this work to spoken presentations and examines whether the presence of a foreign accent negatively affects learners' experience in an online learning environment. Results indicate that the presence of an instructor accent, consistent with prior work on perceptual fluency, does not impact learning, but does cause learners to rate the instructor as less effective. Further, for those who received accented presentations, changes in participants' attitudes towards both the content area and online instruction were not predicted by learning, but instead their attitude towards the instructor. This suggests that learners in online learning environments with accented narration are potentially miscalibrated, and these biases in judgement could be inappropriately linked to a specific instructor, rather than their success of learning in the field.     

Mobile-Assisted Language Assessment: Assessing speaking

The present study was intended to investigate the feasibility of Mobile-Assisted Language Assessment as well as the learners' attitudes to such phenomenon. This was achieved with the use of electronic portfolios and a social networking application (WhatsApp) on smart mobile phones. Seventeen advanced-level learners of English doing an FCE preparation course participated in this study. Every session one participant volunteered to record a two-minute speech on the second task of the FCE speaking module and shared her recording on the WhatsApp group consisting of all class members as well as the teacher. In the end, the participants were interviewed for their attitudes and views on the method used to assess their speaking proficiency. The results indicated mixed attitudes towards MALA on the side of the learners; the concerns were mainly regarding fairness and lack of authentic communication. It is suggested that MALA be used alongside other forms of assessment to form part of the learners' final score.     

Challenges and opportunities of multimodal data in human learning: The computer science students' perspective

Multimodal data have the potential to explore emerging learning practices that extend human cognitive capacities. A critical issue stretching in many multimodal learning analytics (MLA) systems and studies is the current focus aimed at supporting researchers to model learner behaviours, rather than directly supporting learners. Moreover, many MLA systems are designed and deployed without learners' involvement. We argue that in order to create MLA interfaces that directly support learning, we need to gain an expanded understanding of how multimodal data can support learners' authentic needs. We present a qualitative study in which 40 computer science students were tracked in an authentic learning activity using wearable and static sensors. Our findings outline learners' curated representations about multimodal data and the non-technical challenges in using these data in their learning practice. The paper discusses 10 dimensions that can serve as guidelines for researchers and designers to create effective and ethically aware student-facing MLA innovations.     

A web-based tutoring system with styles-matching strategy for spatial geometric transformation

It has been a major objective for researchers to develop computer systems that can effectively deliver instruction to learners. Therefore, how to incorporate instructional strategies in computer-assisted learning systems in a systematic manner deserves further investigation. In this paper, a style-matching strategy that attempts to match learning materials' styles to learners' latent traits is proposed and realized in a web-based tutoring system, called CooTutor. The mechanism of adaptive material selection takes learners' different spatial ability and learning styles as an integral learning profile into account, and performs traits-based personalization of learning experience. This system is specifically designed to conquer the difficulty of tutoring the topic on fundamental spatial geometry in conventional curriculums. By conducting empirical evaluation with a small group of students, it is found that CooTutor is generally beneficial to learning the domain, but the effect of the styles-matching mechanism remains inconclusive. The work aims to contribute to the community of adaptive hypermedia in providing an explorative example adopting the concern of individual difference for personalization. The system design, a usage scenario, and an exploratory evaluation are presented in this paper as implications for further studies.     

Using augmented reality to support a software editing course for college students

This study aimed to explore whether integrating augmented reality (AR) techniques could support a software editing course and to examine the different learning effects for students using online‐based and AR‐based blended learning strategies. The researcher adopted a comparative research approach with a total of 103 college students participating in the study. The experimental group (E.G.) learned with the AR‐based contents, while the control group (C.G.) learned with the online‐based support. The findings demonstrated the potential of AR techniques for supporting students' learning motivation and peer learning interaction, and the AR‐based contents could be used as scaffolding to better support blended learning strategies. The AR‐based learning interaction could also be a trigger arousing learners' interest in becoming active learners and the students presented great learning involvement after the AR‐based supports were removed, while the learners in the C.G. were passive once the supports had been removed. Moreover, it was found that (1) their lack of experience with AR interaction and applications, (2) the slow speed of the Internet in the school, (3) the affordances of each learner's mobile learning devices, (4) the screen size of the learning interface and (5) the overloading of the learning information from the AR contents and teacher lectures might be the reasons why the learners were still more used to the online‐based support. It was therefore concluded that when integrating AR applications into a course, technology educational researchers should take into careful consideration the target learning content design, the amount of information displayed on the mobile screen and the affordances of the learning equipment and classroom environment so as to achieve a suitable learning scenario.     

The influence of individual espoused cultural values on self-directed use of technology for language learning beyond the classroom

Students' use of technology for learning beyond the classroom is critical to maximizing the educational potential of technology, and understanding factors that affect learners' adoption of technology is critical. This study examined the influence of individual espoused cultural values on learners' voluntary technology adoption in informal learning contexts. Structural equation modeling was used to test a model of the direct and moderating effects of espoused cultural values on learners' self-directed use of technology for learning beyond the classroom, based on the survey responses of 661 foreign language learners from three countries/regions. The study found strong direct effects but weak moderating effects of cultural values. It further found that long-term orientation and uncertainty avoidance were two individual-level cultural value orientations that played important roles in the voluntary adoption of technology for self-directed learning beyond the classroom.     

Language learners' digital literacies: Focus on students' information literacy and reading practices online

The widespread use of technology and the Internet have changed many of language learners' everyday practices, including literacies. While there have been many studies with the focus on language learners' digital literacies, few, however, have explored language learners' digital information literacy and online reading practices with the use of social bookmarking tools, especially in a community college setting. We address this gap by investigating community-college language learners' digital literacies when social bookmarking with the focus on digital information and online reading practices from an ecological perspective. In this qualitative multiple-case study, the focal participants were five English learners, students in an English as a Second Language writing course in a community college in the northeastern United States. Data collection included interviews, observations, and researchers' e-journals. Thorough within- and cross-case analysis of data shows that language learners searched for digital texts and evaluated them based on relevance, reliability, interest, language, and importance for them and their learning community in the social bookmarking tool. The participants struggled with the number of results in search engines, keywords, and evaluation of digital texts for relevance and reliability. We show the need for more instruction, support, and guidance of language learners' digital information literacy practices as well as the benefits of providing students with opportunities to read digital texts. Our suggestions for future research include investigating the role of multimodality and other factors that influence language learners' evaluation practices when they look for and read information online.     

基于情境学习的射孔仿真培训系统应用研究

由于传统的仿真培训中只能通过鼠标的点击与键盘进行交互,存在着现场感缺乏以及用户体验不足等缺点,针对油田射孔岗位仿真培训中的交互问题,提出了应用情境学习理论结合体感交互技术的仿真培训系统。通过将Unity与体感交互技术结合,学习者可以运用手势与姿势来实现与仿真培训系统的交互操作。结合应用这一技术可以使得学习者能够在更逼真的虚拟学习环境中尽情的体会和学习,满足学习者的体验和参与需求,可以有效促进学习者从具体的感知经验上升到抽象的知识概念,为教学培训的顺利开展创设有利的条件。     

Cognitive Modeling of Student Learning in Web-Based Instructional Programs

There has been tremendous growth in Web-based instruction over the past few years. Because the user group of Web-based instruction includes learners from heterogeneous backgrounds, individual differences become an important issue in the development of Web-based instructional programs. Among a variety of individual differences, cognitive style is a particularly important characteristic. This study aims to determine the relationships between learners' cognitive styles and their perceptions and attitudes toward the features of a Web-based instructional program. The results indicate that cognitive styles influence students' reactions to nonlinear interaction, independent learning, and navigation tools and the difficulties and problems that they encounter. The findings are applied to develop a learning model that can support the design of Web-based instructional programs.     

Effects of anxiety levels on learning performance and gaming performance in digital game‐based learning

Anxiety plays an influential role in foreign language learning. However, a lack of attention was paid to examining the effects of anxiety levels on learning performance and gaming performance in digital game‐based learning. To this end, this study developed a game‐based English learning system and investigated how different levels of anxiety affected learners' learning performance and gaming performance. A quasi‐experiment was conducted in an elementary school. The results showed that high‐anxiety learners performed worse than low‐anxiety learners in speaking, word/sentence match, and overall learning performance. However, they performed similarly in listening performance. Moreover, the results showed that high‐ and low‐anxiety learners demonstrated a similar level of gaming performance. A subsequent analysis showed that significant correlations existed between learning performance and gaming performance for learners with high anxiety whereas such positive correlations were rarely found for learners with low anxiety, indicating that high‐anxiety learners' learning performance could be fostered by their gaming performance. The findings suggested that digital game‐based learning was particularly beneficial to high‐anxiety learners, whose gaming performance was a facilitative factor of their learning performance.     

A context-aware video prompt approach to improving students' in-field reflection levels

Engaging students in reflection during real-world observation and inquiry activities has been recognized as an important issue for improving students' learning achievement and motivation. Many studies in the literature have adopted text-based reflection prompts as an important strategy to promote learning performance, this study argues that using videos as a reflection prompt would be more effective for improving learners' ubiquitous learning experiences and can provide a more sensible scenario that is better fitting the real-world contexts than the text-based prompts. In this study, a context-aware video-based prompt approach is proposed for improving students' reflection levels and satisfaction by providing timely and personalized guidance using mobile, wireless communication and sensing technologies. An experiment was conducted for evaluating the effectiveness of the proposed video-based prompt strategy with 70 participants in two groups. The results show that learners' reflection levels were significantly improved with the use of the proposed approach and that positive attitudes were observed toward the use of video-based prompts in the context-aware ubiquitous learning environment.     

Could a mobile‐assisted learning system support flipped classrooms for classical Chinese learning?

In this study, the researcher aimed to develop a mobile‐assisted learning system and to investigate whether it could promote teenage learners' classical Chinese learning through the flipped classroom approach. The researcher first proposed the structure of the Cross‐device Mobile‐Assisted Classical Chinese (CMACC) system according to the pilot survey and reviewed literature, and then adopted a quasi‐experimental design to understand whether the developed system could promote and support flipped classroom learning for classical Chinese. A total of 56 eleventh graders from two classes participated in the experiment. The learners in the experimental group learned classical Chinese with the flipped classroom learning strategy with the assistance of the CMACC system, while the control group adopted the flipped classroom learning strategy without using the CMACC system. The results reveal that all of the students improved their Chinese performance, but it was noticeable that the learners who used the CMACC system showed better motivation in terms of self‐directed preview learning, while those who only learned with the traditional textbooks tended to be more passive. In sum, the mobile‐assisted learning system added value in providing learners with opportunities to achieve anytime and anywhere flipped classroom learning. The integration of ubiquitous mobile learning technology and the flipped classroom strategy can be viewed as a critical factor leading to students achieving self‐regulated learning. It is also suggested that instructors should carefully take the targeted learners' cultural background and the availability of supporting learning devices into consideration so as to prevent the flipped classroom from exacerbating the digital divide. Other suggestions for educators and instructional designers are also proposed.     

Learning with an active e‐course in the Knowledge Grid environment

An active e‐course is an open, self‐representable and self‐organizable media mechanism. Its kernel idea is to organize learning materials in a concept space rather than in a page space. The tailored content and flexible structure of the e‐courses can be dynamically formed to cater for different learners with different backgrounds, capabilities and expectations, at different times and venues. The active e‐course can also assess learners' learning performances and give appropriate suggestions to guide them in further learning. An authoring tool for constructing course ontology and a system prototype have been developed to support an active e‐course, enabling a learner‐centred, highly interactive and adaptive learning approach. The results of an empirical study show that the system can help enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of learning. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Comparing the social knowledge construction behavioral patterns of problem-based online asynchronous discussion in e/m-learning environments

In recent years, researchers have conducted various studies on applying wireless networking technology and mobile devices in education settings. However, research on behavioral patterns in learners' online asynchronous discussions with mobile devices is limited. The purposes of this study are to develop a mobile learning system, mobile interactive teaching feedback system (MITFS), linked to both mobile devices and the internet, to support learners with online asynchronous discussion, and combine content analysis and sequential analysis to compare and contrast the social knowledge construction behavioral patterns of problem-based asynchronous discussion in e-learning and m-learning environments. This study investigated four weeks of online discussions in an “Introduction to Computer Science” course involving forty first year university students. The control group (online asynchronous discussion without mobile devices) and the experimental group (online asynchronous discussion with mobile devices) in the group discussions were explored. By using content analysis and sequential analysis for the problem-based online asynchronous discussion of the behavioral patterns and differences between students in control and experimental group, the results showed that using mobile devices in online asynchronous discussion influenced students' learning performance. Some interesting results were found. Firstly, when the students used mobile devices in discussion situations, they could more engage in reflecting thinking, sharing more information, and further facilitating social knowledge construction among group members. Secondly, the experimental group performed better than the control group in terms of participation and diversity in knowledge construction behavioral patterns. Finally, based upon the findings, some implications are proposed for further research.