ICTs and language learning

On this website are some examples of how some New Zealand teachers and schools are using information communication technologies (ICTs) to improve student language learning outcomes. The activities have been selected to represent exemplars of e-learning practice in a variety of year 7–10 settings and across a range of languages. They also show students' approach to linguistic and cultural interaction using ICTs. The activities and commentaries are not intended to be taken as models to be copied or uncritically reproduced, but rather to be a stimulus for discussion and critical reflection among teachers about language learning, about teaching and about the use of ICTs in education.

The Learning Languages area of the New Zealand Curriculum places communication as the core strand and the students’ ability to communicate at the centre. Supporting this strand is the development of language knowledge and cultural knowledge needed for communicative competence.

Communication

The communication strand is about how students learn to use the language to make meaning and to become more effective communicators, and how they develop the skills of listening, reading, and viewing, speaking, writing, and presenting or performing.

Language knowledge

The language knowledge strand emphasises that students study a language in order to understand how it works in different contexts and for different purposes, and how different types of text are organised. Students develop explicit knowledge of the language.

Cultural knowledge

The cultural knowledge strand requires that students learn about the interrelationship between culture and language, cultural practices and the different elements of the belief systems of speakers of the target language. Through comparison and contrast, they understand about different beliefs and practices, and more about themselves and their own cultural identity, and they become more understanding of others.

None of the webcases is a comprehensive example of the effective use of ICTs in language learning and teaching. However, each contains certain aspects of good practice. Most intermediate schools that are developing their language programmes do not have language specialists in their teaching staff. However, Papatoetoe and Tapakuna Normal Intermediate Schools illustrate ways in which teachers are developing their own and students' language skills 'on the hoof' and using technology effectively for that purpose.

In reviewing the ICT-mediated language learning activities and commentaries on the site you are invited to consider how, and how much, each activity as described by the teachers and students involved exemplifies or addresses:

• key principles of effective language learning
• key principles of effective e-learning
• effective relationships between teachers and learners (Ako).

Learning languages

The webcases introduce and exemplify some of the approaches known to improve language learning outcomes for students. They are:

• Input: Exposure to the target language. Learners need exposure to lots of meaningful and understandable language.
• Output: Providing opportunities for practising and using the language. Classroom activities should allow students to use natural and meaningful language with their classmates.
• Interaction: The opportunity to interact in the target language is central to developing proficiency. Social interaction is the context in which language acquisition takes place. When learners have a need to communicate, they will engage in negotiating for meaning. Teachers can incorporate interactive tasks into their programme.

In addition, the New Zealand Curriculum states that language knowledge and cultural knowledge support the core stand of communication. An exploratory and reflective approach to culture and culture-in-language is part of developing an intercultural competence.

e-learning: Learning with and through ICT

Research has shown that the integration of ICT-based activties into classroom programmes is most effective when their use is:

• Ubiquitous: that is, used frequently by learners, for activities covering a wide range of curriculum objectives
• Challenging: that is, used to foster thinking across the full range of lower to higher order thinking, including creative thinking and creativity
• Accessible: that is, readily available, wherever, and whenever students need them
• Philosophically coherent: ie. used in ways consistent with the pedagogical beliefs of the teacher and the educational values of the school
• Transparent: that is, taken for granted, or used spontaneously by both teachers and learners.

Ako: Effective pedagogy for diverse learners

Pages 34–35 of the New Zealand Curriculum give information on teacher actions known to have a positive impact on student learning. Creating a supportive learning environment is one such action.

In New Zealand, the concept of 'ako' is about building collaborative learning and teaching relationships within the classroom. It suggests a collaborative approach to leading classroom learning (Ka Hikitia).

Ako incorporates two aspects:

1. Making culture count – knowing, respecting, and valuing who students are and where they come from, and building on what they would bring with them
2. Productive partnerships – students, whānau, hapū, iwi, and educators all sharing knowledge and expertise with each other to produce better mutual outcomes.

In learning languages, a student compares and contrasts different beliefs and cultural practices, including their own, and they understand more about themselves and become more understanding of others. They develop intercultural communicative competence.