The Internet Has Emerged English Language Essay

The profits Has Emerged face Language Es regularise over the past few years, the network has emerged as a prominent saucily engineering science. The influence of much(prenominal)(prenominal)(prenominal) a powerful technological apparatus has pervaded in all(a) aspects of the educational, business, and economic sectors of our founding. Regardless of iodins long- well-known(prenominal)ity with the cyberspace, it is repeatedly made reference to. News broadcasters and commercials, for example, bequeath now translate web addresses, and tied(p) the recent movie, The Net was sparked by the impact of this new technology ( mike, 1996). Regardless of whether 1 mappings the network or not, whiz must be clear about the fact that the we beat entered a new schooling age and the mesh is here to stay.Beca enjoyment the use of the mesh is widesp hear in numerous fields and domains, without a doubt, it excessively carries great latent for educational use, specifically back up and exotic oral communication education. This paper go forth accordingly focus on the following questions 1) What is the Internet? 2) How squeeze out various facets of the Internet be employ in the import and foreign wrangle classroom? 3) What atomic number 18 the benefits of employing the Internet in such a setting? 4) What argon the disadvantages or obstacles the Internet presents in a second nomenclature classroom? Lastly, the implications of victimization the Internet in second linguistic communication classrooms go forth be discussed. The Internet is the latest in a series of technological innovations for second vocabulary education. In order to discover the role of the Internet, it would be useful to provide a brief tarradiddle of technology and style t severallying, present a survey of the technological resources easy to second oral communication go outers, and, finally consider the role of the Internet and its possibilities. engine room and Foreign La nguage Education A Brief History applied science and foreign lyric education be no stranger to one another. In the sixties and seventies, row laboratories were universe installed in numerous educational settings. The traditional speech communication laboratory was comprised of a series of booths, each providing a cassette deck, and accompanying microphone and headphone. Teachers monitored their students interactions by using a central train panel. The basic premise behind this technology was that if verbal behavior was modeled, and and so reinforced, students would quickly learn the expression in question. The linguistic communication lab activities were therefore grounded in a stimulus-response behavior pattern. The to a greater extent drill coiffe the students encountered, the straighta bureau they would learn the second spoken communication. season the linguistic process laboratory was a validating step in linking technology and lyric education, it was soon recog nized that such activities were two(prenominal) tedious and boring for learners. Furthermore, the amount of student-teacher interaction was minimal, and individualized focal charge up was irrelevant. Besides the pedagogical deficiencies, the audio equipment was cumbersome and prone to breakdown, and had only one function-to disseminate auditory in range. These factors put together led to a turn to the communicative approach to second language education, namely, ready reckoner assisted language development.Micro calculators and quality tender softw ar provided yet another medium for language learning. Its potential as both a inform and learning tool are widely written about in the educational literature. At present, there are a variety of randomness processing system applications usable including vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation tutors, spell checkers, electronic lapbooks, writing and reading programs, as s soundly as various authoring packages to allow instruct ors to create their own exercises to accompaniment existing language courses. In addition to the range of software getable, CALL has besides been shown to adjoin learner motivation (Blake, 1987). Chun and Brandl (1992) in addition propose that the interactive and mul mdia capabilities of the computer sterilise it an attractive teaching/learning tool. Computers plenty provide ready feedback to students and students tidy sum work at an individualized pace. Software bear be designed to allow sound, graphics, video, and animation. Moreover, information is presented in a non-linear sequence alter learners to select the exercises or concepts they wish to review. condescension the advantages and widespread use of CALL, it continues to grow from criticisms for several lands. many an(prenominal) believe that learning and practicing grammar rules of a foreign language finished fill-in-the-blank exercises, for example, does little to improve a speakers ability to produce gramma tically appropriate utterances (Armstrong Yetter-Vassot, 1994). Others point out that CALL suffers from its rigidity in empty-headed of the complexities of natural languages. For example, a program designed to provide drill practice on French verb conjugation is useful for only that and nothing else. Recently, however, we are beginning to see encouraging and promising results in the area of CALL software development. Interactive video and programs which provide more sure and communicative task-based activities are being created, which are more in line with the accredited theoretical and pedagogical views of learning.What is the Internet? bandage the computer is now utilize in some form or another in or so language classrooms, and is considered standard equipment, the Internet is also gradually being introduced in the second language classroom as teachers become more familiar with it. The Internet is a confederation of thousands of computers from various sectors of society such as education, business, government and the military. It is a network of thousands of computer networks (Lewis, 1994). Each individual remains brings something different to the whole (databases, library services, graphs, maps, electronic journals, etc), and the end result is a immense accumulation of information. It is a worldwide network of computers that interact on a standardized set of protocols which act independently of voiceicular computer operating arrangements, allowing for a variety of chafe methods to the Internet. For example, the Internet muckle be accessed from an IBM computer in a students home in Australia, or from a Macintosh computer at a school in Canada. It deal therefore be conceived of as the equivalent of a telephone outline for computers. It domiciliate be used to both exchange information through with(predicate) electronic mail, newsgroups, listservs, professional on-line discussion groups, and so forth, as well as to retrieve information on a va riety of topics through the World Wide entanglement.The Internet and Electronic MailAlthough the Internet has been available to most people, only recently have educators been existingizing the potential the Internet crapper have in second and foreign language classrooms. The following percentage will therefore consider some of these potential benefits and advantages of incorporating such technology in language courses. The Internet has been used by some language instructors in original ways one of these innovations being use of electronic mail (e-mail), a specific feature of the Internet. Overall, e-mail can bring forward students to use computers in realistic, genuine situations in order to develop communicative, and persuasion skills. email is easy to use and even teachers intimidated by computers can quickly become adept at using e-mail with their students. Furthermore, even timid or inhibited students can benefit from the meaningful interaction and communication e-mail cast offs possible. Kroonenberg (1995), for example, busy e-mail in her ESL classes at Hong Kong international School. She relates her initial experiences of working with two classes of ESL multinational students in grades 9-12, and a equal group of summer school students involving Cantonese-speaking 14 and 15 year olds. The potassium hydrogen tartrate Bulletin Board System ( electronic bulletin board) using the TELIX communications software was complete in order to allow students and teachers to send messages to each other, as well as make public entries on discussion conferences.During the initial stages, students were logged on the system and each student created a password. Students were simply asked to write freely as in a dialogue journal. Kroonenberg (1995) believes this allows students to become familiar with the system and further allows their ideas to flow. Writing on e-mail can therefore be used to generate ideas about a topic, or can alter learners to free-write w ithout any impositions. E-mail can also be used in various conference-type formats or to generate discussion. For example, Kroonenberg often provided students with topics of high interest in order to generate more writing. In fact, one student who was part of this project stated, I usually get voluminous in the BBS because the subjects are interesting and I have a lot to say about them (p. 25). Writing topics often involved school issues or issues that were at one time relevant to the students lives. In other conference assignments, students are the main audience. Students read entries and then respond to them via e-mail. This allows each student to express their opinion. In this manner, all opinions are voiced and heard, something which may not always occur in oral discussions in the classroom.Chat rooms can also be carried out through e-mail. In this situation, two or more individuals can talk on-line about various topics or issues. For instance, language learners can be paired up and can be given a debatable topic to discuss. such experiences, once again stimulate authentic communication and assist students in developing specific communication skills such as arguing, persuading, or defending a particular point. Listservs from or so the world can offer news and discussion groups in the localize language providing another source of authentic input and interaction. Cononelos and Oliva (1993) organized e-mail exchanges surrounded by entire classes of students in order to generate discussion, improve writing skills, and come on peer interaction. In this particular project, advanced level Italian students employed e-mail newsgroups to improve both their writing, as well as their intimacy of contemporary Italian society. In this manner, the teaching of culture was also facilitated through the immediate feedback and contact of L2 speakers who were interested in informing others about their culture.E-mail can also be used to communicate long-distance with l anguage learners in other schools, or other countries for that matter. A bailiwick exploring the potential of long-distance communication involving second language learners was carried out by Chang (1993). The goals of the study were to provide students with a real setting for improving their writing, help them to refine their ideas of content-area reading and functional writing across cultural boundaries, make students familiar with international telecommunications, and study with students, the potential effects of telecommunications on literacy acquisition (Davis Chang, 1994).The subjects involved in the study included undergraduate students at Taiwans National Kaohsiung pattern University (NKNU) and students at University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNCC). The 8-week teleconference began with Prompt 1 in which students were asked to write letters to one another. In addition to personal introductions, students were asked to include a focus on their previous English langu age learning experiences and the difficulties associated with this. In Prompt 2 and 3, students were asked to use their textbooks on the History of English Language to report on interesting uses of English, (ie. connotations, spelling, etc). Prompts 4 and 5 asked the learners to work with sections of specific texts to comment on pronoun and lexical use, as well as syntactic structure. In the final prompt, both groups of students collected examples of English mount and idioms used in each countrys films and music. Questions pertaining to the above were asked and responded to by students in each group.Davis and Chang (1994) point out that as writers on both sides of the world divided questions and comments, jokes began to surface. Over time, the students reading and writing began to change as well. Through surveys and daily case studies of student writing during the conference, it was found that for the most part, students writing had ameliorate in both fluency and organization. S urveys also indicated that students saw some expand over to their study literature, and that they had a better rationality of English usage. While the above examples illustrate a few uses of e-mail in the second and foreign language classroom, without a doubt e-mail can provide authentic communication and can foster awareness of both the language learner and the languages they are learning.The Internet as a Teaching and encyclopaedism ToolIn addition to the communication benefits of the Internet, the Internet can also be used to retrieve and access information. The World Wide entanglement is therefore a virtual library at ones fingertips it is a pronto available world of information for the language learner. While the Internet offers numerous benefits to the language learner, a few such possibilities are examined here, in the context of language learning.Perhaps one of the most essential pedagogical principles of language teaching is one that emphasizes the study of language in a cultural context. I, on with many other language instructors believe that language and culture are inextricable and interdependent Understanding the culture of the target language enhances understanding of the language. To this end, the Internet is a valuable resource to both language teachers and learners. As discussed previously, e-mail on the Internet allows language learners to communicate with native speakers. In this manner, the Internet facilitates the use of the specific language in an authentic setting. The Internet can also be used to acquire information from language resources for a variety of purposes. For example, students can access accepted information from countries around the world. They can obtain geographical, historical, social/cultural, economic, and political information from the countries in which the target language is spoken. Students can read web versions of daily newspapers and same-day news reports from sources such as the French Embassys gopher servi ce, the daily Revue de Press (Armstrong and Yetter-Vassot, 1994). Such experiences can allow learners to participate in the culture of the target language, which in turn can enable them to further learn how cultural solid ground influences ones view of the world.The Internet also serves as a medium for experiencing and presenting creative works. While students can peruse the information on the Net, they can also use it as a platform for their own work such as essays, poetry, or stories. Numerous public schools, for example, are making use of the World Wide Web for publishing student work which can be accessed by other web users. Students therefore become not only consumers of content, but in fact generate the content.As Mike (1996) describes, the use of the Internet has also been shown to promote higher order sentiment skills. A language teacher, for example, may instruct learners to search for specific information. meddlesome the Web requires logic skills. Once information has b een obtained, the results must be reviewed which requires scanning, discarding, and appraising(prenominal) judgment on part of the learner. The information must be put together to make a complete and coherent whole which entails the tax deduction process. Such an endeavor permits students to practice reading skills and strategies. The Internet also promotes literacy for authentic purposes, as stated previously. In addition to being a supplement to reading materials, especially current information, when students are exploring the Net, they are essentially exploring the real world. Such browsing or exploration can also forget to incidental learning as they encounter a variety of information in this way. Communication with native speakers furthers literacy development for authentic purposes, enables language learners to oppose student perspectives on an issue, and allows them to practice specific skills such as negotiating, persuading, clarify meaning, requesting information, and e ngaging in true-life, authentic discussion. Promotion of literacy also occurs within a social context. The interaction that results from the above situations can lead to cooperative projects and increase communication between students from all over the world, in turn lead story to the development of social skills. Finally, use of the Internet can promote computer skills and the technical and conceptual experiences of using a computer.Lastly, the Internet provides supplemental language activities which can provide students with additional practice in specific areas of language learning. These include reading tests and comprehension questions, grammar exercises, pronunciation exercises possible through the available multimedia capabilities, cloze tests, vocabulary exercises, and so forth. Students can search the Web for such sites, or teachers may recommend specific sites on the Web. produce lists are also available from various sources. For example, Paramskas (1993) offers a list o f sites for both language teachers and language learners, some of which relate to issues of language learning, others which use language as a medium for discussion of culture or current affairs, and others which assist in locating native speakers.The Internet ChallengesUp to this point in time, the above discussion has described some of the potential benefits of the Internet and how it can be used in the second or foreign language classroom. However, such a discussion would be incomplete without addressing the disadvantages or obstacles think to the use of the Internet in the language classroom. While the Internet and its various facets offer a great deal to the language learner, it is not without its problems. The nature of the Internet itself can be a disadvantage at times. When lines are busy due to many users, it may take time to access information or browse the Net and technical glitches themselves can lead to frustration. Lack of training and familiarity on part of the teache rs can make it difficult to follow through the Internet in the language classroom. This requires that school administrators cypher for training in this area. Foreign language teachers are especially trouble prone to computers since they often have little experience with computers. For the most part, computers in schools are used for business or computer science courses. be related to training, as well as on-line costs of using a provider are issues that may interfere with implementing such a technology in schools, especially in schools that have little funding. security review may also be a concern to language programs and instructors. The Internet offers access to all types of issues and topics, some of which are unsuitable for children, and this in itself may result in various problems. While some precautions can be taken at the present time, they are not full inference by any means. Equity issues may also present difficulties when attempting to implement such technology in the classroom. As the commercial sector begins to stomach a more prominent role in the Internets infrastructure, rural and inner-city schools, already hard-pressed to provide Internet access, may find it less affordable. This is sure discouraging for both language teachers and students in such educational settings (Mike, 1996). Many institutions such as these may also not have the computers or computing facilities necessary to implement such type of technology.Implications and ConclusionDespite these limitations and obstacles, it must be realized that the Internets educational potential is immense. Although electronic, the Internet is an entity related to literacy people still interact with it entirely through reading and writing. For this reason alone, the Internet is a technology that will, without a doubt, have significant implications for both teaching and learning. So what does this imply for language teachers and learners? Teachers must become familiar with using the Intern et and its various functions such as e-mail. They must also learn how to use specific search tools in order to access information, search for lesson plans, or material and ideas to supplement their lessons. Lastly, language teachers must learn now to transfer files from Internet sites to their own computer and vice versa. Obtaining information or literature on the Internet, either through the Net itself, through books, or by attending workshops and courses will further assist this process. To vacate facing the same difficulties or problems associated with use of the Internet, teachers can ask students to financial backing track of problems that arise during use. In essence, language teachers must take the imbibe and approach the Internet as a learning experience themselves. The more enthusiastic and more knowledgeable language teachers are, the more successfully they can implement Internet in the language classroom. For the language learner, the Internet offers a world of informa tion available to students at the touch of a button. While it must be recognized that the Internet cannot replace the language classroom or the interaction between the language teacher and student, if offers a vast amount of information and lends itself to communication possibilities that can greatly enhance the language learning experience.Certainly at this point in time, several questions need to be asked to guide future research in this area. How can use of the Internet correspond to the communicative or pedagogical goals of language teaching? How will the Internet and its related facets assist language learners in functioning in the global community? What will the real impact of the Internet in foreign language classrooms be? How can the Internet be used more effectively along side the present language political platform? While these questions have been examined to some degree, researchers and language educators must further investigate and implement this technology to provide others with guidelines in this area.Without a doubt we are in the center of a monumental technological paradigm shift, one which will eventually change the way that all instructors teach and the way students learn (Jensen, 1993). While technology should not take over the language classroom, it must be embraced in order to allow educators to do those things which they are unable to do themselves, or those which will improve what is currently being done in the classroom. As we approach the next century, it is essential that we make informed decisions about how the Internet can be successfully co-ordinated into the language classroom. If we as educators do not rise to the challenge who will?