UNIVERSIDAD AUTÓNOMA DEL ESTADO DE MÉXICO
FACULTAD DE LENGUAS
LIZETH GAMA VILLEGAS
ACTIVITY 11: ESSAY
22TH JUNE, 2015
ICT / CALL use in the
teaching – learning language classroom
Nowadays, Information and Communication
Technologies are a fundamental part of the teaching and learning process in
many subject areas. ICT have an increasingly important role to play in
education over the last few decades. Therefore, it is a significant research
area for many scholars around the globe.
Moreover, computer-assisted language learning
(CALL) have recently gained groundswell of interest. Recently, computers have
become so widespread in schools and homes and their uses have expanded so
dramatically that the majority of language teachers must now begin to think
about the implications of computers for language learning.
However, a small percentage of schools in some
countries achieved high levels of effective use of ICT to support and change
the teaching and learning process due to this has profound implications on not
only network design, but also on economics of each country.
Although transforming teaching is more
difficult to achieve “Changes that take full advantage of ICT will only happen
slowly over time, and only if teachers continue to experiment with new approaches”
(Underwood 2006) government has the responsibility to invest development of
these new technologies and training programs for teachers because education is
the main tool to face the globalized world.
To begin with, ICT has positive impact on
students’ performances. Schools with
higher level of e-maturity show a rapid increase in performances in scores
compared to those with lower level. In addition, schools with sufficient ICT
resources achieved better results than those that are not well-equipped.
It also helps to reduce the social disparities
between pupils, since they work in teams in order to achieve a given task.
Students also assume responsibilities when they use ICT to organize their work
through digital portfolios or projects.
Finally, teachers use ICT to support innovative
pedagogy. ICT allow for a higher quality lessons through collaboration with
teachers in planning and preparing resources (Ofsted, 2002). Teachers have not
fully changed their use of ICT in education; however, most of them changed
their way of thinking about the application of ICT in education.
On the other hand, CALL has developed gradually
over the last 30 years, this development can be categorized in terms of three
somewhat distinct phases which are behavioristic CALL, communicative CALL, and
integrative CALL (cf. Barson & Debski 1996). Levy (1997:1) defines CALL as
"the search for and study of applications of the computer in language
teaching and learning".
The history of CALL suggests that the computer
can serve a variety of uses for language teaching. It can be a tutor which
offers language drills or skill practice; a stimulus for discussion and
interaction; or a tool for writing and research. With the advent of the
Internet, it can also be a medium of global communication and a source of
limitless authentic materials.
Nevertheless, ICT is much more than computers
and the Internet or even telephony. When considering the use of ICT for development,
conventional wisdom is that even if hardware is free (e.g., donated), communications,
software, and training make ICT expensive. The degree of preparation of a
nation or community to participate in and benefit from ICT developments has to
be measure in terms of Technology choices/design, limited economies of scale,
local phone call charges, policy issues, etc. As a result, very few countries have
achieved a significant progress teaching by ICT because as it was mentioned
before, the more a country can invest on technology, the more advantage it has
to develop a school curriculum based on CALL.
An estimated one-third of the world has never
made a phone call an only one tenth have used the internet. Over 80% of the
world’s population has theoretical access to telephony. The question then
becomes not one of availability, but of affordability and perceived need for
access.
In conclusion, any viable solution for
developing countries will therefore involve sizeable investment in R&D,
ranging from enabling technologies to application. Reducing the divide requires
improvements across all the dimensions of ICT: Computing, Connectivity,
Content, and human Capacity.
I strongly believe that government needs to
focus on reduce taxes on connectivity for a higher free access to internet in
order for ICT to be available to everyone. Might in the future it will deserve
be consider as a right. We must be at the height to the major world powers,
therefore we must be aware that the technology is just beginning and our
children will face a world where the competition will be harder to get a good
job, since today the domain other languages is crucial to get a job with a
decent salary.
As can be seen, children in modern society need
to develop sufficient potentials and skills that enable them to take full
advantage from the new opportunities that ICT offer. In addition, there are
groundswells of interest of academic researchers in how technological tools can
enhance the quality of teaching and learning in schools, and so help learners
to achieve better outcomes. Furthermore, it has been proved that new
technologies have lots of benefits on the students. For that reasons, it is our
duty to be modernized according what is trending now.
References
Warschauer, Mark (1996). Computer Assisted
Language Learning: an introduction. Available on http://www.ict4lt.org/en/warschauer.htm
Information and communications technology (ICT)
(n.d.). Retrieved June 22, 2015, from https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~rtongia/ICT4SD_Ch_2--ICT.pdf
Advantages of Using ICT in Learning-Teaching
Processes. (n.d.). Retrieved June 22, 2015, from
http://edtechreview.in/trends-insights/insights/959-advantages-of-using-ict-in-learning-teaching-processes
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