The Role of Technology Acceptance Model in Constructing Unbounded Learning Environments for Second Language Learners

Author(s):  
Nurdan Kavaklı ◽  
Rabia Ölmez

This chapter provides a foundation as to why second language teaching and learning as a discipline should be refocused with caution in the world of technology, what sort of theoretical and practical implications should be in place for second language teachers to employ in unbounded learning environments, what the roles of technology acceptance model (TAM) in shaping unbounded language learning environments for second language teachers and learners are, in what ways it can be possible to provide an ecological perspective on learning to utilize web-based technologies for second language learners, which is basically different from traditional learning models. More specifically, this chapter takes an informed look at the significance of teachers' technology acceptance in constructing unbounded learning environments to teach a second language.

2006 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 21 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle Szabo

The aim of this article is to raise awareness in L2 education about the relationship between second-language learners' linguistic choices in the L2 and their identities. The author reviews empirical research and language-learning narratives that show that L2 learners may purposely use nonstandard L2 forms. Using a poststructuralist framework to conceptualize identity, the author argues that these second-language learners use nonstandard language in the L2 in order to create positive identities, and in some cases to resist social inequalities, in the L2 community. The implications of this research for second-language teachers are discussed and suggestions for classroom practice are offered.


Author(s):  
Xiaoling He ◽  
Haojiang Ying ◽  
Sureenate Jaratjarungkiat

Abstract As an important form of second language input, videos have been given much attention by both language teachers and SLA researchers. Second language learning videos typically come in two forms: live-action videos (with human actors in realistic settings) and animation videos. In this paper, we report on an empirical study on the relative merits of these two kinds of videos for beginning learners of Chinese. A total of 82 participants took part in this research as students in a Beginners’ Chinese Language course at a university in Singapore. Each participant attended four learning sessions, two of which being based on live-action videos and another two on animation videos. Post-tests showed that the efficacy of the two kinds of videos differed between students who had had richer community exposure to Mandarin before attending the course and students who did not have such exposure. The former group performed significantly better than the latter after attending live-video sessions. However, students in the latter group reported a preference for animation videos during the post-interviews due to the more well-controlled quality of the soundtracks (i.e., less noisy background).


2017 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 24-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zana Ibrahim

Motivational surges in language learning occur when a number of personal and contextual parameters come together to induce intense and long-term motivational experiences. In the second language learning literature, this phenomenon is known as the directed motivational current (Dörnyei, Muir, & Ibrahim, 2014). As a novel concept in the field, little is known about what might induce this extraordinary motivational surge. The current study empirically examined the parameters of nine participants who provided accounts of the conditions around the initial stages of their motivational currents. The qualitative analysis found that five factors triggered the motivational currents in the participants: emergent opportunities, negative emotion, moments of realization/awakening, new information, and meeting others who shared the goal. The study also revealed two main conditions necessary for a DMC to begin: goal/ambitions and perceived feasibility. The final section of this paper presents practical implications of the current findings in relation to how second language teachers and educators might benefit from the findings to help incite motivational surges in their language learners.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 58
Author(s):  
Fan Xu

Over the past three decades, a growing number of different theories in second language acquisition field have come out in an effort to provide explanations as to how language learning takes place, to figure out what variables are effective for second language acquisition as well as to offer guidance to mass second language learners and language teachers. Because behind every teaching approach exists certain kind of theory of language acquisition and good theory in turn can help students master language skills in an effective and efficient way.Each theory is considered to have contributed to the field by highlighting a specific aspect of the language acquisition process. Second language acquisition theories are intrinsically related with various disciplines such as applied linguistics, psychology, education, sociolinguistics, neurology, etc. Considering the impossibility to elaborate all second language theories, I will focus on sociocultural theory and bottleneck hypothesis in second language acquisition. There is an overview which follows the introduction to the Sociocultural Theory and Bottleneck Hypothesis and its contribution to second language acquisition respectively, and then I will evaluate them to see their contributions to the SLA disciplinary development.


Author(s):  
Angelene McLaren

Language teachers and students are making a mass exodus in theory and practice in the field of secondlanguage instruction. They are leaving behind boring drills, nonsensical memorizations and endless strings of grammatical rules and are demanding a shift from traditional language learning to modern language acquisition. Language acquisition means being culturally literate and commutatively competent in a language (Byrnes, 2001). This change requires finding effective ways to facilitate this paradigm shift. This chapter will try to answer the following questions: Can language simulations foster language acquisition and communicative competence in adult second-language learners? It will also explore: what language acquisition is and how it is obtained; theoretical foundations of language acquisition; learning simulations and what makes them effective; language simulations – how and why they work; what simulations can do to promote communicative competence; a practical example; future applications and importance of language simulations; and what future research is necessary to fulfill this promise.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Jagdish Joshi ◽  
Tapan Shah

This paper portrays the structure and improvement of a Mobile language lab system called MLab. The Mobile Lab structure hopes to displace the customary language lab which commonly has a prohibitive plan and needs correspondence with an all the more straight forward, minimal effort versatile language lab. The Mobile Lab is profitable to language teachers and Students, and the system offers them the chance to move around and use their very own contraptions at whatever point and in wherever. The Mobile Lab system has been made by using a couple of web developments to give a snappy and profitable technique for getting to required substance.


2011 ◽  
pp. 1954-1966
Author(s):  
Angelene McLaren

Language teachers and students are making a mass exodus in theory and practice in the field of secondlanguage instruction. They are leaving behind boring drills, nonsensical memorizations and endless strings of grammatical rules and are demanding a shift from traditional language learning to modern language acquisition. Language acquisition means being culturally literate and commutatively competent in a language (Byrnes, 2001). This change requires finding effective ways to facilitate this paradigm shift. This chapter will try to answer the following questions: Can language simulations foster language acquisition and communicative competence in adult second-language learners? It will also explore: what language acquisition is and how it is obtained; theoretical foundations of language acquisition; learning simulations and what makes them effective; language simulations – how and why they work; what simulations can do to promote communicative competence; a practical example; future applications and importance of language simulations; and what future research is necessary to fulfill this promise.


2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 559-571
Author(s):  
Felix Kpogo ◽  
Virginia C Mueller Gathercole

Aims and Objectives: This study examined how age of acquisition, immersion in a native English-speaking environment, and phonological environment influence Akan-English bilinguals’ production of English inter-dental fricatives. Design/Methodology: Forty-five Akan-English bilinguals who immigrated to the USA between the ages of 10 and 64 participated. English inter-dental fricatives occurring in word-initial, intervocalic, and word-final positions were elicited through a production task using sentence frames. Accuracy of production was analyzed relative to age of acquisition, relative length of immersion, and phonological environment. Findings/Conclusion: Performance was better overall on the voiceless than the voiced inter-dental, but the phonological environment mattered: performance was at ceiling for both in the medial position, but less good in the initial and final positions. Early age of acquisition conspired with length of residence in the USA to foster better production for both sounds. However, substitutions for target segments were still observed in the most fluent speakers. These results indicate that in determining speakers’ proficiency in the second language, we must consider all of these factors—phonological environment, age of acquisition, and length of stay—together to gain a comprehensive picture of development. Originality: Few studies have examined Ghanaian speakers’ English, even though English is the official language of Ghana. Further, previous studies on second-language speakers’ abilities with inter-dental fricatives have largely focused on word-initial environments. The present study reveals that distinct phonological environments may not show the same effect. Here, speakers were particularly accurate in intervocalic positions. Significance: This study contributes to theoretical debates concerning the roles of input and age of acquisition for second-language learning. It also provides insights on some of the possible hurdles that second-language learners face as they strive to acquire additional languages, which can assist second-language teachers in designing appropriate methodologies to help learners.


2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 64
Author(s):  
Cao Wangru

<p>Vocabulary is an indispensable part of language and it is of vital importance for second language learners. Wilkins (1972) points out: “without grammar very little can be conveyed, without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed”. Vocabulary teaching has experienced several stages characterized by grammatical-translation method, audio-lingual method and communicative teaching method before obtaining great attention from second language teachers and researchers finally.</p><p>This study states four proposals for the improvement of vocabulary teaching, which refer that: (1) apply componential analysis to vocabulary teaching; (2) foster learners’ awareness of the difference between English and Chinese; (3) introduce lexical phrases; (4) develop effective word meaning acquisition strategies.</p>


Electronics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (14) ◽  
pp. 1692
Author(s):  
Letícia Garcia da Silva ◽  
Eduardo Gonçalves de Azevedo Neto ◽  
Rosemary Francisco ◽  
Jorge Luis Victória Barbosa ◽  
Luis Augusto Silva ◽  
...  

Language learners often face communication problems when they need to express themselves and do not have the ability to do so. On the other hand, continuous advances in technology are creating new opportunities to improve second language (L2) acquisition through context-aware ubiquitous learning (CAUL) technology. Since vocabulary is the foundation of all language acquisition, this article presents ULearnEnglish, an open-source system to allow ubiquitous English learning focused on incidental vocabulary acquisition. To evaluate our proposal, 15 learners used the developed system, and 10 answered a survey based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). Results indicate a favorable response to the application of incidental learning techniques in combination with the learner context. ULearnEnglish achieved an acceptance rate of 78.66% for the perception of utility, 96% for the perception of ease of use, 86.5% for user context assessment, and 88% for ubiquity. Among its main contributions, this study demonstrates a possible tool for ubiquitous use in the future in language learning; additionally, further studies can use the available resources to develop the system.


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