Monday, February 25, 2008

Theory-driven call and the development process

I support the systematic approach from Meskill and it is impossible for anyone to develop any CALL materials or fully utilize it without a solid knowledge of technology and the use of media. How can a teacher create and make effective use of CALL without a comprehensive knowledge of different software and useful resources on the website? The “fit” between the computer’s capabilities and the demands of language pedagogy is another important issue.
My school has advocated the use of CALL for many years, however, there is no practical use of CALL for language teaching. The use of CALL is just a dish on the menu, that’s meant it is just an item on the teaching schedule. Instead of using the software in MMLC for teaching English, teachers insist in teaching English in their own way. They treat the use of CALL in an ad hoc manner. Thus, teachers’ IT training about the effective use of CALL is imperative. How can we, as teachers, use and develop CALL more efficiently and effectively for the language need of the students?

1 comment:

Christoph said...

Hi Charlotte,

Interesting observations. Often using computers in language education can be seen as an optional extra, rather than as an important part of the curriculum.

Can anyone give examples of projects that effectively integrate ICT and language education?