Suchergebnisse

[EN] Language instructors who adopt the role of materials writers in order to provide their students with more accurate tailor-made learning resources usually start by closely examining their learners needs and demands, as well as the distinctive features of the teaching context or situation in which those materials are going to be implemented. This idea is especially relevant when the linguistic resources are developed to be used by future engineers who access them to practice and learn a language that will have a dominant presence in their future working environment. This is a fact that encouraged the authors to design an online upper-intermediate level English course which incorporates relevant language resources directly linked to the disciplines and content covered by their students university undergraduate degrees. The course is known as the InGenio FCE Online Course & Tester (Universitat Politècnica de València, 2011). The article illustrates how language instructors try to explore and find new ways, methods, typologies of exercises, and techniques which might help them create, promote, and implement learning systems capable of fostering an integral communicative competence and make the entire learning process more dynamic and attractive. A specific case study dealing with students who seek to make the most of combining Computer-Assisted Language Learning and English for Specific Purposes is described and analysed here. The reader is presented with a description of the steps that were taken to design innovative and engaging online courseware to cater for the learners specific needs and the conclusions that have arisen from conducting a survey to analyse student perceptions and expectations prior to and after completing the said online course. ; The authors would like to thank the Valencian Regional Government (Generalitat Valenciana) for funding the 4-year pre-doctoral research scholarship awarded to Antonio Martínez Sáez for the development and completion of his PhD, which was successfully defended ...

Tras el anuncio por parte del Gobierno de la inclusión de una sección oral en el examen de lengua extranjera de la Prueba de Acceso a la Universidad, que estaba prevista para 2012, diferentes posibilidades en cuanto a la informatización de dicha sección se analizaron en un esfuerzo por encontrar una propuesta viable para la evaluación de las destrezas orales y un estudio cualitativo se llevó a cabo con 286 participantes. Los resultados arrojaron luz en cuanto a la recepción inicial de las soluciones tecnológicas desarrolladas dentro de un sistema de gestión del aprendizaje y en cuanto a la viabilidad de la informatización de la sección oral de la prueba, mostrando que es posible implantar un examen de lengua extranjera asistido por ordenador y adaptado a las características y requisitos anunciados en relación al contenido, la facilidad de uso y la seguridad ; Following a Governmental decree announcing the inclusion of oral assessment in the foreign language exam within the Spanish University Entrance Examination to become effective in 2012, the authors set forth to analyse the possibilities of computerizing this exam and design a viable proposal to assess oral skills. To this end, a qualitative study with 286 participants was conducted. The results shed light on the initial acceptance of the technological solutions developed within a dedicated learning management system and on the feasibility of incorporating computerised oral assessment. Evidence that it is indeed possible to implement a computer-assisted foreign language exam adapted to the characteristics and requirements announced with regard to content, usability and security is also provided

[EN] This paper presents APPRAISALWeb, a 2-year Research & Development project jointly funded by the Universidad Politécnica de Valencia and the regional government of Valencia (Spain), and developed by the CAMILLE Research Group at that university. In general terms, the project aims to suggest a comprehensive methodology for the pedagogical analysis of the Web as an environment for language learning. More specifically, a major objective of the project is to develop an online interactive platform that serves as a tool to analyze, classify and evaluate Web-based resources for language learning from a pedagogical point of view. As CALL (Computer Assisted Language Learning) research literature suggests, it is necessary to conduct a thorough pedagogical analysis of the Web and its CALL resources if we are to take full advantage of its many possibilities. Thus, the project meets two fundamental needs that have been extensively expressed in the area of CALL: the need for theoretical models and methodologies and the necessity of specific tools for analysing and searching for available Web-based CALL resources. First, the context of the project will be presented. Then the methodology behind APPRAISALWeb will be discussed. Finally, conclusions will be drawn from work in progress during the first stage of the project. © 2011 Published by Elsevier Ltd. ; S ; 667 ; 671 ; 15 ; 1

[ES] Tras el anuncio por parte del Gobierno de la inclusión de una sección oral en el examen de lengua extranjera de la Prueba de Acceso a la Universidad, que estaba prevista para 2012, diferentes posibilidades en cuanto a la informatización de dicha sección se analizaron en un esfuerzo por encontrar una propuesta viable para la evaluación de las destrezas orales y un estudio cualitativo se llevó a cabo con 286 participantes. Los resultados arrojaron luz en cuanto a la recepción inicial de las soluciones tecnológicas desarrolladas dentro de un sistema de gestión del aprendizaje y en cuanto a la viabilidad de la informatización de la sección oral de la prueba, mostrando que es posible implantar un examen de lengua extranjera asistido por ordenador y adaptado a las características y requisitos anunciados en relación al contenido, la facilidad de uso y la seguridad. ; [EN] Following a Governmental decree announcing the inclusion of oral assessment in the foreign language exam within the Spanish University Entrance Examination to become effective in 2012, the authors set forth to analyse the possibilities of computerizing this exam and design a viable proposal to assess oral skills. To this end, a qualitative study with 286 participants was conducted. The results shed light on the initial acceptance of the technological solutions developed within a dedicated learning management system and on the feasibility of incorporating computerised oral assessment. Evidence that it is indeed possible to implement a computer-assisted foreign language exam adapted to the characteristics and requirements announced with regard to content, usability and security is also provided ; Agradecemos al Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación del Gobierno de España la concesión y financiación del Proyecto PAULEX (HUM2007-66479-C02-01/FILO), a partir del cual se ha generado este estudio. ; Sevilla Pavón, AM.; Gimeno Sanz, A.; Martínez Sáez, A. (2016). Viabilidad de la informatización del examen lengua extranjera de las Pruebas de Acceso a la ...

Nowadays, finding, choosing and developing or adapting materials is a very important component of education as well as a key element for the success of the whole learning process. A language teacher is also a materials developer and the materials development process should aim at ensuring that local needs and wants do not dictate decisions and that important learning principles are not forgotten. In the case of materials for Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL), a very thorough and pedagogically-sound set of guidelines should be followed prior to the design of the materials. Following that, a careful evaluation should take place so as to guarantee that those guidelines have been followed and that the materials are therefore valid, efficient and effective. This is especially important in the case of in-house CALL materials development. This paper describes the basis for the evaluation and validation of the InGenio FCE Online Course and Tester. These are two language learning in-house CALL materials for students of English, developed by the CAMILLE Research Group at the Universidad Politécnica de Valencia (UPV) in Spain. A large part of the focus of this paper will be on the aspects concerning the evaluation of the two previously mentioned materials according to well-established frameworks and guidelines from the most relevant literature.[EN] ; This work was supported in part by the Valencian Regional Government in Spain (Generalitat Valenciana) under Grant FPI (Formación del Personal Investigador) ; Sevilla Pavón, AM.; Martínez Sáez, A.; Gimeno Sanz, A. (2011). Designing and Evaluating Online Language Learning Materials for Higher Education. International Journal of Social Science and Humanity. 1(4):269-273. doi:10.7763/IJSSH.2011.V1.49 ; S ; 269 ; 273 ; 1 ; 4