Maximising the proficiency of advanced Japanese language learners in a blended-learning environment: A pilot study

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Author(s)
Tsurutani, Chiharu
Imura, Taeko
Year published
2017
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Within the blended-learning paradigm (Picciano, Dziuban & Graham, 2014) various attempts have been made to maintain the standards achieved by teaching face-to-face. However, it is often a challenge to incorporate oral communication into language courses with online components. Many practitioners highlight the lack of adequate online speaking activities, particularly in the case of advanced language courses. This paper describes our initial trial to incorporate oral-aural exercises into the online component of a course for Japanese language learners at an advanced level. Our aim was to build students' oral communication skills ...
View more >Within the blended-learning paradigm (Picciano, Dziuban & Graham, 2014) various attempts have been made to maintain the standards achieved by teaching face-to-face. However, it is often a challenge to incorporate oral communication into language courses with online components. Many practitioners highlight the lack of adequate online speaking activities, particularly in the case of advanced language courses. This paper describes our initial trial to incorporate oral-aural exercises into the online component of a course for Japanese language learners at an advanced level. Our aim was to build students' oral communication skills through active learning as effectively as in face-to-face classroom delivery. Within a blended-learning environment students were given opportunities to conduct project-based learning to improve their proficiency. Students' progress, their comments, and our reflections as instructors will also be discussed. The learners' willingness and readiness for self-study was found to be one of the key factors in achieving a successful outcome.
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View more >Within the blended-learning paradigm (Picciano, Dziuban & Graham, 2014) various attempts have been made to maintain the standards achieved by teaching face-to-face. However, it is often a challenge to incorporate oral communication into language courses with online components. Many practitioners highlight the lack of adequate online speaking activities, particularly in the case of advanced language courses. This paper describes our initial trial to incorporate oral-aural exercises into the online component of a course for Japanese language learners at an advanced level. Our aim was to build students' oral communication skills through active learning as effectively as in face-to-face classroom delivery. Within a blended-learning environment students were given opportunities to conduct project-based learning to improve their proficiency. Students' progress, their comments, and our reflections as instructors will also be discussed. The learners' willingness and readiness for self-study was found to be one of the key factors in achieving a successful outcome.
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Journal Title
Babel
Volume
51
Issue
1
Publisher URI
Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2017. The attached file is reproduced here in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher. For information about this journal please refer to the journal’s website or contact the author[s].
Subject
Japanese Language
Curriculum and Pedagogy
Language Studies
Linguistics