Technological tools for distance education
Aubrey Olsen, Erik Ramsay and Tarryn Goodman
Brigham Young University - Hawaii
Hawaii, USA
The new administration at Brigham Young University (BYU), Hawaii, recently endorsed a distance learning initiative. English language teachers, accustomed to teaching in a faceto-face environment, were called upon to develop distance courses for students in Asia and the islands of the South Pacific. This mandate provided the necessary motivation to explore various technological possibilities and incorporate technological tools now available to language teachers.
One simple but effective tool is the Comment feature in Microsoft Word, which allows teachers to make electronic comments on student writing. While this technology is available to many language teachers, it is often underused. Another tool that can be particularly useful in organizing listening/speaking tutor sessions is Skype -- a software which downloads quickly and is extremely user-friendly -- that allows users to make free calls over the Internet.
This paper outlines a variety of ways to integrate these two tools into an English language teaching/learning environment. First, participants learn to use the Microsoft Word Comment feature to make comments on student writing samples, and then they are introduced to the process of creating a Skype account: downloading the free software and navigating Skype. Participants also enjoy observing a live Skype session with a volunteer at a remote location.
The final portion of this paper focuses on evaluative research currently in progress. At this point, B Y U Hawaii is interested in determining the effectiveness of these two technological tools for online tutoring in distance education. The results of this research will help to guide the development of tutoring components for future distance courses.
While the original implementation of these tools was designed to meet the needs of distance students, the use of this technology will enhance the curriculum for any on-campus or online language course.