Technology and Foreign Language Learning and Teaching

TECHNOLOGY AND FOREIGN
LANGUAGE LEARNING AND

TEACHING

Editor:
NURAIHAN MAT DAUD
i

TECHNOLOGY AND FOREIGN
LANGUAGE LEARNING AND
TEACHING

ii

Published by:

IIUM Press
International Islamic University Malaysia

First Edition, 2012
IIUM Press, IIUM

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or
transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or
otherwise, without any prior written permission from the publisher.

Perpustakaan Negara Malaysia Cataloguing-in-PublicationData

Technology and Foreign Language Learning and Teaching/Nuraihan Mat Daud
ISBN: 978-967-418-027-0

Member of MajlisPenerbitan Ilmiah Malaysia MAPIM (Malaysian Scholarly Publishing
Council)

Printed by
IIUM PRINTING SDN. BHD.
No. 1, Jalan Industri Batu Caves 1/3
Taman Perindustrian Batu Caves
Batu Caves Centre Point
68100 BatU Caves
Selangor Darul Ehsan

iii

Contents

Preface iv

1. Language Teachers' Web Surfing Skills: Teachers' Knowledge of Metasearch
Engines and Advanced Search Facilities
Nuraihan Mat Daud
1

2. Challenges Facing Primary and Tertiary Language Teachers in Implementing
CALL
Nor Shidrah Mat Daud & Nuraihan Mat Daud
12
31
3. MOODLE in Teaching Writing
Mohd Azrul Azlen Abd Hamid, Adeline Low Hui Lin, Shahrizal Idzuan
Wahab Abd Rahman & Nuraihan Mat Daud

4. Designing Language Activities Using Second Life
Mohd Azrul Azlen Abd Hamid, Adeline Low Hui Lin & Nuraihan Mat
Daud
49

5. Developing Arabic Writing Skills Using Facebook
Wan Rusli Wan Ahmad & Nuraihan Mat Daud
62

6. SMS-aided Teaching of Reading in Malaysia: Factors to Consider
Nuraihan Mat Daud & Zamnah Husin
73

7. Arabic Language Learners Font Preferences
Nurkhamimi Zainuddin & Nuraihan Mat Daud
88

8. Young Learners Use of ICT Facilities and the Development of Their
Language skills
Nuraihan Mat Daud
98

9. The Relationship Between Learning Style and Writing Performance of Young
Learners in Powerpoint Assisted Classes
Nuraihan Mat Daud & Radzita Radzi
108

10. Factors Affecting the Teaching of Writing Using WIKI
Nuraihan Mat Daud, Nor Shidrah Mat Daud & Zailin Shah Yusof
123

Contributors 133
Index 135

iv

Preface

The fast pace of technological advancement has a direct impact on the evolution of Computer
Assisted Language Learning field of study. The more sophisticated yet user-friendly facilities
and devices give language teachers and researchers more opportunities to explore new ways of
teaching. The ever-changing teaching scenario can make learning interesting with the appropriate
application of the technology in the classroom. This book presents research and classroom
applications of some of the Web 2.0 and 3.0 technologies. The book covers a wide range of
topics relating to the integration of technology into language teaching. Topics that would be of
interest to language practitioners include Facebook and PowerPoint in the teaching of writing, the
potential of Second Life in language teaching and teachers use of meta-search engines.
Important factors concerning the implementation of Mlearning and the use of wiki are also
presented. Research has also focused on the potential of ICT in developing young learners
language skills. Amidst the interest in adopting technology, it is also worth investigating the
problems that teachers face in trying to adopt the technology in the classroom. Comparisons are
made to see if there are significant factors affecting their decision to use the technology.

NURAIHAN MAT DAUD
Kulliyyah of Languages and Management
International Islamic University Malaysia
Technology and Foreign Language Learning and Teaching 2012

1

CHAPTER 1

LANGUAGE TEACHERS WEB SURFING SKILLS: TEACHERS
KNOWLEDGE OF METASEARCH ENGINES AND ADVANCED
SEARCH FACILITIES

NURAIHAN MAT DAUD

The Internet has useful information for those in the teaching profession.
Yet it is not known how much knowledge teachers have about Internet
surfing. This study is conducted to analyse language teachers common
practices when surfing the Internet. A survey was conducted to analyse
teachers knowledge of available search engines and their surfing skills.
The study found that the majority of the teachers were not aware of the
presence of metasearch engines. Many were also not aware of the
advanced search facilities available. They went for any domain and all
formats when surfing without knowing that they could select for specific
files and specific language when looking for materials. This research
points to a need for teaching effective Internet surfing skills in pre-service
and in-service teacher training programmes.

Keywords: Internet surfing skills, metasearch engines (MSEs), advanced
search facility

INTRODUCTION

Though the Internet is an important source of information, the issue of users knowledge
and skills in using the search engines is often neglected (Sahin, Cermik and Dogan,
2009). Internet users normally know how to log on, find an URL and type the URL in the
address box. When searching for information many a time one gets thousands of hits but
the first few pages do not have links that contain the information that one seeks. Many
Internet users are not aware of the existence of advanced search facilities and the
metasearch engines (MSEs) in solving their surfing problems (Moghaddam, 2006).


2

According to Teeler & Gray (2000), a search engine is a search tool that collects
information from the Web by running an automatic programme which visits a huge
number of web pages. A search engine (SE) serves as an effective and efficient Internet
information search tool that is developed to help users look for information (Dreilinger
and Howe, 1997). Basically a single SE creates its own database by crawling web pages.
It stores this information in a database and searches it by keyword when it receives a
search request. It then provides a list of sites that include the keyword(s). However, a
single SE cannot index the entire web. Normally it concentrates on a section of the web
pages.

One of the leading search engines is Google (Markoff and Zachary, 2003). However, in a
study on prospective teachers, Sahin, Cermik and Dogan (2009) found that the majority
was uninformed of Google search information. They put the blame on the teacher
education process for the teachers lack of web-surfing skills.

Advanced Search Facility

The advanced search facility allows users to get the information needed based on the
exact combination of words. One can also specify the number of pages that are needed,
the language preferred and the format of the file wanted. The advanced search facility is
usually placed on the web search page. Language users who are not sure whether certain
lexemes co-occur in natural texts can use the exact wording or phrase facility to see
whether there are any hits when a phrase is typed. The number of occurrences serves as a
guide whether such collocations occur. In some cases users may prefer to read only
PowerPoint presentations on certain topics. This can be done by limiting their search to
.ppt files only. Advanced search features are also available on many of the metasearch
engines.

Metasearch Engines (MSEs)

A metasearch engine (MSE) does not have its own database. It is to be differentiated
from multiple search engines that maintain separate lists of the search results for each
engine (Gunn, 2005:51). Metasearch engine serves to search multiple search engines,
and present the combined results. They do not maintain their own databases (Bruemmer,
2000). According to Garman (1999), a metasearch engine can save time compared to the
practice of multiple search engine searches. Using several MSEs also mean that one can
search for more information and compare results from several search engines.

3

According to Spink et al. (2006), metasearch engines have multiple web search engines.
Yet they differ in 3 ways: crawling reach, frequency of update and relevancy analysis. A
small overlap exists in different web searches for the same queries. Ding & Marchionini
(1996) and Lawrence & Giles (1998) state that any single web search engine index
reaches not more than 16% of all websites. By using MSEs, the information will be
filtered based on its size, indexing structure, update frequency, and search options.
Educators can use several search engines at the same time.

Barr (2002) mentions that MSE allows one to locate the desired information within the
information system. It is a better option for learners who are looking for a cluster of
information on a particular topic. MSEs can search for information but they do not have
any stored resources that they can access (Sadeh, 2004). For instance, Vivisimo, which is
one of the MSEs, enables sites to cluster search results and offer many options to the end-
users. Clustering is one of the functions of MSEs (Gunn, 2003). For instance, Clusty,
another MSE arranges the search results into groups around a common theme. It also
separates results for ambiguous words or words with double meanings.

The search engine coverage refers to the number of different single SEs to which an MSE
directs its queries. It is one of the important variables affecting search effectiveness.
Generally speaking, the more single SEs an MSE covers, the better it is. The number of
SEs could range from three to sixteen. Based on the statistics of 20 MSEs, AltaVista,
LookSmart, and Yahoo were the most popular single SEs covered by MSEs. One major
reason for the exclusion of a single SE in an MSE, is payment. In other words, SEs
usually pay the MSEs to get their search engines included (Sullivan, 2001).

Teachers Level of Information Literacy Skills

Yusuf (2000) stresses the importance of having access to the Internet for teaching and
research purposes. Teachers could obtain their instructional content from the Internet.
The technology also provides a sophisticated repertoire of teaching strategies (Kirschner
& Woperies, 2003). With the integration of the Internet in the classroom, teaching can be
fun as teachers can capture teachable moments (Scholastic, 2011) using the device.
Pictures, stories and facts can be used to expand that moment.

Teachers need to move from teaching isolated technology skills to an integrated skill for
a more effective teaching. This calls for appropriate search tools and commands for
searching the Internet (Eisenberg & Berkowitz, 1992). These skills could solve
information search problems experienced by the educators.

4

According to Moursund (1995), many teachers and students are not making full use of a
computer. It is treated more like flash cards, electronic worksheets or a little more than a
typewriter. They often neglect the productivity side of the computer use in generating
content for curriculum. Realizing this, an increasing number of educational associations
are advocating a more meaningful use of technology in education. Educators are
encouraged to use the technology as a tool for organization, communication, research,
and problem solving (ISTE, 2000).

A study by Korobili et al., (2011) on high school teachers in Greece indicated that most
of them did not use any electronic sources when teaching. They were also poor at
helping their students attain a certain level of information literacy. The frequent users of
e-sources were likely to be male teachers with a Masters or a PhD and teachers with less
working experience. Madden et al (2005) also mention that teachers hardly integrated the
Internet into teaching. They conducted their study on teachers teaching in the state
schools in Sheffield, England. They also found that the younger teachers of technical
subjects were more confident about their ability in using the Internet. In Demiralay and
Karadenizs (2010) study on pre-service teachers in Turkey, they found that the
elementary student teachers used ICT frequently. Computer and Internet accessibility has
a significant effect on their perceived information literacy self-efficacy.

PROBLEM STATEMENT

The Internet offers abundance of useful teaching materials, teaching suggestions and
interactive language exercises for teachers to use in their classroom (Nuraihan &
Zamnah, 2004). Numerous studies have shown that it can help make teaching more
effective. To help in surfing for information, various techniques can be used. These
include the use of meta-search engines and also advanced search techniques. There is,
however, a dearth of study on teachers Internet surfing habit (Sahin, Cermik and Dogan,
2009). This study focuses on language instructors use of the Internet.

OBJECTIVES

The objectives of the study are to:
(i) investigate the relationship between length of teaching experience and the
number of years that teachers spent on looking for materials on the Internet;
(ii) examine which search engines are popularly used by language teachers and

5

(iii) analyse teachers perception of their rate of success when looking for materials
on the Internet.

RESEARCH METHOD

The primary methods used in this study are participant observation and questionnaire
survey.

Participants

English language teachers who attended the ICT courses offered by the Department of
English Language and Literature (DELL) from the year 2008 to 2010 were observed for
this study. The researcher taught the ICT courses offered by DELL since its inception.
She took note of the teachers Internet skills when they joined the courses.

Apart from the postgraduates, the participants included language teachers who were
teaching at the Centre for Languages and Pre-University Academic Development
(CELPAD) of the International Islamic University Malaysia. Teachers from both the
Centre and the Department came from various institutions and have gone through training
programmes in various parts of the world.

Procedures

Being a member of the academic community makes the researcher a participant observer
in the data collection process. It gives the researcher direct access to information related
to the study. A questionnaire survey was developed based on the findings made in the
qualitative study. The survey was distributed to the language instructors in CELPAD.

FINDINGS

Based on the observation made on the language teachers who were following the
Technology course at DELL from 2008 to 2009, it was found that none were aware of the
availability of metasearch engines and advanced search facilities on the Internet.

In 2009, a total of 300 questionnaires were distributed to the language instructors
teaching at all IIUM campuses. About sixty-five percent of them (195) responded to the
questionnaire. The age of the respondents varies from 24 to 65 years old. There were

6

122 female and 73 male staff who responded, and this reflects the actual male to female
ratio of staff at the Centre. Seventy-four of them have a Bachelor degree, 107 Masters
and 13 were PhD holders. Out of these 68.7% were educated in Malaysia. Others went to
the UK, USA, Australia, Kuwait, Egypt, Jordan, Sudan and Libya to pursue their studies.
The analysis shows that those who have taught for 11 years and less surfed the Internet
more than the others. A majority of them also found that the Internet helped improved
their teaching performance. Out of the total population, 42.1% felt that it improved their
teaching a great deal, 46.2% said it improved some, 10.3% a little and 1% not at all.

Bivariate correlation was run to see if the number of years spent on using the Internet to
search for teaching materials and their language teaching experience was related to each
other (Table 1):

Table 2: Correlations Between Years of Searching the Internet for Teaching
Materials and Teaching Experience

Years Using
Internet
Lang.
TeachingExperie
nce
Years Surfing for
Teaching Materials
Pearson Correlation 1 .226
**

Sig. (2-tailed) .002
N 186 185
Lang.
TeachingExperience
Pearson Correlation .226
**
1
Sig. (2-tailed) .002
N 185 193
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).

Table 2 shows that there was a moderate but statistically significant correlation (r=.226,
p<0.01) between years of teaching experience and years of surfing for teaching materials
among teachers.

As to the average surfing time, 42.1 % of them spent 6-10 hours per week, 25.2% spent
less than six hours per week, 12. 8 % spent 11-15 hours and 19.5 % spent more than 15
hours per week surfing the Internet. When asked which search engine they normally use,
49% used Google, 39.7% went for Yahoo and 6.2% used MSN. The illustration is given
in Bar Chart 1 below:


7

Bar Chart 1: Type of Search Engine by No. of staff

The study shows that very few teachers employed MSEs and advanced search facility to
look for information. The search engines that they utilized did not necessarily help them
in getting the information they needed. The survey revealed that 37.4 % of them often
found the results vague, 52.8% had the same problems sometimes, 7.7 % rarely had any
problems in getting the exact information and one had never had problems when surfing.

DISCUSSION

The majority of the teachers in this study found the Internet useful in improving their
teaching performance. Like the teachers in Madden et als (2005) study, this does not
mean that they integrated the use of technology into teaching. Many utilized it to look
for information.

The study also reflects that most of the teachers employed single search engine searches
when looking for information. This is in line with Moghaddams (2006) finding in that
many of the Internet users were not familiar with MSEs and the advanced search
facilities. This could be the reason why a big majority of them found it difficult to access
the information that they needed.


8

CONCLUSION

The study shows that the use of the Internet was limited among the teachers. They also
lacked the proper surfing skills. The majority experienced problems when searching for
the needed materials. The experienced teachers spent more time looking for teaching
materials on the Internet than the less experienced teachers. Single search engines were
often used when looking for materials. Thus there is a need to include a topic on surfing
techniques in the teacher training module. This may lead to cost-effective practices in
terms of teaching, time and information management.


9

REFERENCES

Barr, D. (2002). The problem of recall in information rich environments: Notes from the
field. In David Loertscher and Blanche Woolls (Eds.), Information-rich
environments: Blessing or curse: Papers of the Treasure Mountain research
retreat #9, Brown County, Indiana, November, 2001 (p. 21-26). Hi Willow
Research &Publishing.
Brummer, RJ. (2000). Getting found by metasearch. Retrieved February, 20, 2009, from
http://www.clickz.com/search/opt/article.phpl 830141
Demiralay, R., Karadeniz, S. (2010). The Effect of Use of Information and
Communication Technologies on Elementary Student Teachers Perceived
Information Literacy Self-Efficacy, Kuramveuygulamada Egitim Bilimleri, 10 (2),
841-851.
Ding, J., L. Gravano, and N. Shivakumar, 2000. Computing geographical scopes of Web
resources, Proceedings of the 26th VLDB conference (Cairo, Egypt), at
http://www.cs.columbia.edu/~gravano/Papers/2000/vldb00.pdf, accessed 9
December 2005.
Dreillinger, D. & Howe, A.E. (1997). Experiences with selecting search engines using
metasearch. ACM Transactions on Information Systems, 15(3), 195-222.

Eisenberg, M. B. & Berkowitz, R.E. (1992). Information problem-solving: The big six
skills approach. School Lib=rary Media Activties Monthly, 8(5), 27-29, 37, 42
(EJ 438 023)
Eisenberg, M. B. & Berkowitz, R.E. (2000). Teaching information & technology skills:
The Big6 in secondary schools. Worthington, Ohio: Linworth Publishing.
Garman, N. (1999). Meta search engines, Online, 23 (3), 74-8.

Gunn, H. (2005). With queryster, Teacher Librarian, 32(3), 51.
Gulli, A., & Signorini, A. (2005). The indexable web is more than 11.5 billion pages.
Paper presented at the Proceedings of the World Wide Web 2005 Conference, 10-
14 May 2005.
International Society Technology in Education (ISTE), (2000). National educational
technology standards for students-connecting curriculum and technology. Eugene,
OR: International Society for Technology in Education.
Kirschner, P. & Woperies, I. G. J. H. (2003). Mindtools for teacher communities. A
European perspective. Technology, Pedagogy and Education, 12 (1), 129 149

10

(Electronic version). Retrieved December, 23
rd
, 2003, from
http://www.triangle.co.uk/jit/
Korobili, S., Malliari, A., Daniilidou, E., Christodoulou, G. (2011). A paradigm of
information literacy for Greek high school teachers, Journal Of Librarianship
And Information Science, 43 (2), 78-87.

Laubach Literacy Ontario (2000) Teaching InternetLiteracy to Tutors. Retrived on 4
th

November 2011 from
http://www.nald.ca/library/learning/llo/teaching/teaching.pdf.
Lawrence, S. & Giles, C.L. (1998). Searching the world wide web. Science, 280, 98-100.
Notess, G.R. (1998). Toward more comprehensive Web searching: single searching
versus megasearching. Online, 22(2), 73-6.
Madden, A., Ford, N., Miller, D., Levy, P. (2005) Using the Internet in teaching: the
views of practitioners (A survey of the views of secondary school teachers in
Sheffield, UK, British Journal Of Educational Technology, 36 (2), 255-280.

Markoff, J. & Zachary, G. (2003). In Searching the Web, Google Finds Riches. Retrived
September, 28, 2004 from
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F6015FE3E5FOC708DDDAD08
94DB404482&incamp=archive:search

Moghaddam, Alireza Isfandyari .(2007). Web metasearch engines: a comparative study
on search capabilities using an evaluation checklist, Online Information Review,
31 (3), 300-309.
Moursund, D. (1995). Effective practices (part 2): Productivity tools. Learning and
Leading with Technology, 23 (4), 5-6.
Sahin, A., Cermik, H. and Dogan, B. (2006). Crawling In the Virtual Environment:
Prospective Teachers Usage of Google Search Engine, Egitim Arastirmalari-
Eurasian Journal Of Educational Research, 9 (35), 77-92.

Scholastic (2011) Welcoming the Internetinto your classroom. Retrieved on 4
th

November 2011 from http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/welcoming-
Internet-your-classroom.
Spink, A., Jansen, B.J., Kathuria, V. & Koshman, S. (2006). Overlap among major web
search engines. InternetResearch, 16(4), 419.
Sullivan, D. (2001). Meta search or meta ads?. Retrieved February, 20, 2009, from
http://searchenginewatch.com/sereport/Ol/ 05-mrtasearch.html

11

Teeler, D. & Gray, P. (2000), How to use the Internet in ELT, Harlow: Pearson
Education.
Yusuf, Mudasiru Olalere (2006) Using the Internet for teaching, learning and research in
higher education, The Journal of Nigerian Association of Teachers of Technology,
JONNAT, 6 (1), 163 171. Retrieved on 4 November 2011 from
www.unilorin.edu.ng


12

CHAPTER 2

CHALLENGES FACING PRIMARY AND TERTIARY LANGUAGE
TEACHERS IN IMPLEMENTING CALL

NOR SHIDRAH BINTI MAT DAUD
NURAIHAN MAT DAUD

Language teachers at all levels are being encouraged to integrate
technology into teaching. Yet each has his/her own story to tell where
implementation is concerned. This paper attempts to capture the
experience of teachers in two different settings with regard to technology
integration in language teaching. It focuses on language teachers teaching
in primary and tertiary institutions. A survey was conducted to investigate
if they are equally prepared for the integration and whether they share the
same interest in technology. The extent to which the teachers are using
computers in teaching will also be presented. The obstacles to the
adoption of technology in their language classrooms will also be
discussed. The subjects of the study were lecturers of the Academy of
Language Studies UiTM Terengganu (a public university in the East Coast
of Malaysia) and primary school teachers in a number of states in
Malaysia.
Keywords: CALL, language teachers, primary school, tertiary institution,
language teaching

INTRODUCTION

Computer facilities have improved markedly and studies have shown that they can be
effective instructional tools. With careful planning computers can be used to support the
various pedagogical techniques and theoretical frameworks. Despite these possibilities,
they are still underutilized at many educational institutions (Lever-Duffy, 2003; Ginsberg
& McCormack, 1998; Bennet, 1997). Much of the constraints are unique to a particular
institution but there are those that are common across institutions. This paper reports the

13

findings of a study to investigate the problems faced by language instructors at the two
ends of learning institutions, namely primary and tertiary levels of education.

Teacher Factor in the Implementation of Computer Assisted Learning

The use of computers can complement the traditional way of teaching if approaches such
as self-directed learning (Lever-Duffy et al., 2003) and resource-based learning (Maier
and Warren, 2000) are adopted. The earlier supports inquiry-based learning, and this may
satisfy students inquisitive mind. The later encourages the students to practice
independent or autonomous learning, which may lead to critical thinking skills
development. These are made possible by the features offered by the technology which
are enriched by graphics and animation, and updated information together with facilities
like video conferencing, email, chat rooms, bulletin boards and instant messaging. The
possibility of tailoring its use to suit the needs of different learners is also the strength of
this teaching aid (Wang, 2005; Shigemitsu, 2005; Knezek & Christensen, 2000).

The presence of these facilities, however, may not benefit the students if teachers are not
willing to adopt them in teaching. The demand made by its adoption is said to be one of
the major factors for its lack of usage (Fernandez & Victoria, 2001). A longer time is
usually needed to develop high-quality instructional materials (Calderon-Young, 1999;
Krysa, 1998; Fernandez & Victoria, 2001).

To optimize the effective use of computers and to overcome teacher resistance to using
computers there is a need to familiarize them with the technology, and this can be done
through training (Cummings, 1995; Fernandez & Victoria, 2001; Lever-Duffy, 2003).
However, the content of the training would have to be relevant before this can be
achieved. In a study by Knezek and Christensen (2000), it was found that there is a
greater need for training in teaching techniques and strategies to integrate technology into
the curriculum rather than in how to use the computer.

Honey and McMillan (1993) investigated the impact of factors such as prior experience
with technology, availability of training, administration commitment and type of Internet
connection on educators attitudes toward the use of the Internet. The results revealed that
those who constantly engaged themselves in the process and those who received
extensive training from experts were more positive towards the innovation.

Training is critical since technology integration requires adapting to changes in the
teaching practice (Van Dusen, 1997). Training also helps to make teachers more positive

14

towards its implementation and this may lead towards effective use of the technology
(Becker, 2000; Smerdon et al., 2000 and Zhao and Conway, 1999).

Cummings (1995, 1996) listed the lack of incentives, educational technology
understanding, model for teaching, lack of resources, presence of technological
challenges like virus, reliability and constant changes of system and institutional
traditions (curriculum and staff overload) as the barriers that discourage teachers use of
educational technology.

Background to the Study

The study was conducted in Malaysia where the integration of computers into teaching is
highly encouraged by the authority at all levels of education. A number of projects have
been implemented for this purpose. Computing Tablet, Smart School, MySchoolNet and
Malaysia-British Schools Link projects are among the initiatives taken by the Ministry
for this purpose.

Teachers are sent for training and facilities are provided to allow for such an integration
to take place. Yet the level of teacher commitment is still low. Among the reasons
mentioned is the lack of facilities available at the institution concerned. Samuel and
Zaituns (2006) study on three premier secondary schools in Banting found that the
available facilities were not enough to cater for the needs of the whole school. In
addition not all of them were in proper working condition. Where the Internet was
concerned, broadband access was often not reliable and sometimes there was no
connection at all. The teachers also complained that the SchoolNet was always down.
The number of computers that were allocated for staff use was also limited. Furthermore,
some of the PCs and laptops were either out-dated or poorly maintained. Different
schools experience different types of problems and it is interesting to see the challenges
that they face in their attempt to use the computers for teaching.

PROBLEM STATEMENT

It is often assumed that teachers at different levels of education faced different constraints
due to the different levels of courses and the kinds of students that they have. The
assumption is that the tertiary institutions receive more funding and hence better facilities
are available there. The presence of academic staff with the expertise in the use of
computers may also help the language instructors at the university to integrate the
computers into their teaching with rigour. Apart from that, the higher level of education

15

possessed by the language instructors teaching at a university may also contribute to the
possibility of them using the technology more as they may have greater exposure to its
use in the course of their study. Yet these are mere assumptions, and studies comparing
the problems faced by the two categories of instructors are scarce. Thus this study
attempts to see whether the language instructors at these two types of institutions have
different problems where the implementation of computer integration is concerned.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The present study attempts to examine the extent of computer integration in language
classrooms in two different settings namely the primary and the tertiary institutions of
learning. The objectives of the study are to investigate:
(1) which instructor use the computer as a teaching aid;
(2) what activities are conducted using the computers;
(3) which application software is used by the instructors and
(4) what barriers are faced by the instructors in their attempt to integrate the
computers into teaching.

Significance of the Study

The findings from the study help to indicate the problems faced by teachers in both
settings. Serious attention may need to be given to the stated problems in the move to
improve computer integration initiatives in learning institutions, particularly where the
problems are common to all. Policy makers and those in the position of authority can use
the information as a starting point in the effort to encourage more teachers to adopt the
technology.

METHODOLOGY
A questionnaire survey developed by Smerdon et al. (2000) on public school teachers
use of computers and the Internet was adopted in this study. The questionnaire
comprised five sections covering: demographic data, teaching experience, computer-
assisted activities conducted, skills taught using the computers, the software used for
teaching, feeling about meeting the objectives and the barriers to computer use in
teaching.

The responses were entered into the SPSS Data Editor to create a database. The
transcription was checked and errors corrected. Standard statistical methods were

16

employed which included cross-tabulation, independent sample t-test and Pearson
correlation.

An in-depth interview was also conducted to probe further into the issues. Both
researchers were themselves participant observers in the study as they were also members
of the community in which the study was conducted.

The Subjects

The subjects were 30 language instructors at the UiTM Academy of Language Studies in
Dungun, Trengganu. They taught English, Mandarin, Arabic and French. The group
who represented the primary teachers was 20 English language teachers who were
selected to pursue their studies at the Institute of Education, International Islamic
University Malaysia.

ANALYSIS OF DATA

Quantitative Data Results

There was 100% response rate from the survey. Only 17 (34 %) were males which
reflect the overall smaller percentage of males who joined the teaching line in Malaysia.
The distribution of subjects is presented in Table 1.

Table 1: Distribution of Instructors by Sex

Primary/Tertiary Total
Primary Tertiary
gender male 2 15 17
female 18 15 33
Total 20 30 50


17

Table 2 shows that the majority of the respondents were between 30-39 years old.

Table 2: Distribution of instructors by age

Primary Tertiary
age 24-29 years 9 1 10
30-39 years 10 14 24
40-49 years 1 12 13
50 and above 0 3 3
Total 20 30 50

Table 2 also implies that many of the instructors at the tertiary institution have a longer
teaching experience, and this is shown by Table 3:

Table 3: Distribution of instructors by teaching experience

Primary Tertiary
teaching
experience
0 1 0 1
1-4 years 8 2 10
5-9 years 8 9 17
10 years and
above
3 19 22
Total 20 30 50

Computer Usage

A greater number of teachers used computers at the university compared to the schools.
However, when an independent sample t-test was done the difference was not statistically
significant.


18

Table 4: Distribution of Instructors by Computer Use

Primary Tertiary
use
computer
to teach
yes 19 27 46
no
1 3 4
Total 20 30 50

Table 5 illustrates that all had ICT knowledge.

Table 5: Distribution of instructors by perceived ability to use computers

Primary Tertiary
ability to use
computer
Competent 5 12 17
Average 13 16 29
Weak 2 2 4
Total 20 30 50

Activities Conducted Using Computers

Whether the computer integration benefits students or not depends on the types of
activities initiated by the instructors. The nine activities examined in this study were: (1)
practice drills, (2) problem solving/data analysis, (3) using computer applications such as
word processing, spreadsheet, etc., (4) graphical presentation of materials, (5)
demonstrations/simulations, (6) producing multimedia reports/projects, (7) conducting
research using CD-ROM, (8) conducting research using the Internet and (9)
corresponding with experts, authors, students from other schools, etc., via email or
Internet. Comparisons of the mean scores as shown in Table 6 display that the primary
school teachers scored higher for the use of computer applications and research using
CD-ROM (Table 7).


19

Table 6: Differences in the Types of Activities Conducted Using Computers
Activity

Level of
institution
N Mean Std. Deviation Std. Error
Mean
1 Primary 20 2.35 1.27 .28
Tertiary 30 2.67 1.45 .26
2 Primary 20 2.15 1.13 .25
Tertiary 30 2.33 1.38 .25
3 Primary 20 2.65 1.27 .28
Tertiary 30 2.50 1.49 .27
4 Primary 20 2.40 1.27 .29
Tertiary 30 2.53 1.38 .25
5 Primary 20 2.40 1.42 .32
Tertiary 30 2.70 1.49 .27
6 Primary 20 1.95 .99 .22
Tertiary 30 2.53 1.55 .28
7 Primary 20 2.15 1.27 .27
Tertiary 30 2.13 1.48 .27
8 Primary 20 2.15 1.35 .30
Tertiary 30 3.23 1.50 .27
9 Primary 20 1.75 .97 .21
Tertiary 30 2.00 1.39 .25

Based on a t-test (table 7), it was found that there was a significant difference between
the language instructors at the university and the school in terms of conducting research
using the Internet (p=.01). The university instructors were more likely to use the Internet
to conduct research than the school teachers.

20

Table 7: Types of Activities Conducted Using Computers

Activity
t-test for Equality of Means
t

df

Sig.
(2-tailed)

Mean
Difference

Std. Error
Difference

95% Confidence
Interval of the
Difference
Lower Upper

1
-.796 48 .430 -.317 .398 -1.117 .483

-.817 44.379 .418 -.317 .387 -1.097 .464

2
-.494 48 .623 -.183 .371 -.929 .562

-.514 45.644 .610 -.183 .357 -.902 .535

3
.371 48 .712 .150 .404 -.662 .962

.383 44.908 .704 .150 .392 -.639 .939

4
-.345 48 .732 -.133 .387 -.911 .645

-.350 43.153 .728 -.133 .381 -.901 .634

5
-.709 48 .482 -.300 .423 -1.151 .551

-.715 42.032 .479 -.300 .420 -1.147 .547

6
-1.489 48 .143 -.583 .392 -1.371 .204

-1.620 47.974 .112 -.583 .360 -1.307 .141

7
.042 48 .967 .017 .400 -.787 .820

.043 45.627 .966 .017 .385 -.758 .791

8
-2.601 48 .012 -1.083 .416 -1.921 -.246

-2.658 43.786 .011 -1.083 .407 -1.905 -.262

9
-.699 48 .488 -.250 .358 -.969 .469
-.750 47.878 .457 -.250 .333 -.920 .420

21

Which Application Software Was Used

The types of application software used were analyzed to see if there were any differences
in the teachers and lecturers preferences for software. The applications listed were (1)
word processing, (2) desktop Publishing, (3) PowerPoint, (4) Spreadsheet (Excel), (5)
Database (Access), (6) Internet and (7) Software provided by the Ministry. When the
means were compared, the primary school teachers indicated higher scores for all
applications except for application 6 which was slightly lower than the language
instructors at the university. The results are given in Table 8:

Table 8: Difference in Instructors Preference for Application Software
Application Institution N Mean Std.
Deviation
Std. Error
Mean
Word- Primary 20 3.35 1.09 .24
processing Tertiary 30 2.33 1.27 .23
desktop Primary 20 2.10 .91 .20
Publ. Tertiary 30 1.57 1.07 .19
powerpt Primary 20 3.45 1.05 .26
Tertiary 30 2.80 1.32 .24
spreadsht Primary 20 2.35 1.09 .24
Tertiary 30 1.57 1.31 .24
database Primary 20 2.05 .89 .19
Tertiary 30 1.47 1.01 .18
Internet Primary 20 3.05 1.39 .31
Tertiary 30 3.07 1.29 .24
Ministry Primary 20 3.15 1.07 .24
Tertiary 30 .43 1.13 .21

Results from Independent-sample t-tests (Table 9) indicated that there was a significant
difference (p<0.05) between the language instructors at the university and the schools in
terms of the use of the word processor (p=.01), spreadsheet (p=.03), database software
(p=.04) and software provided by the Ministry (p=.00). Primary teachers were more
likely to use this software than the language instructors at the university.

22

Table 9: T-Test for the Use of Computer Application Software
Application
t

df

Sig. (2-
tailed)

Mean
Difference

Std. Error
Difference

95% Confidence
Interval of the
Difference
Lower Upper
1
2.93 48 .01 1.02 .35 .32 1.71

3.03 44.86 .004 1.02 .34 .34 1.69
2
1.83 48 .07 .53 .29 -.05 1.12

1.89 45.09 .07 .53 .28 -.04 1.10
3
1.84 48 .07 .65 .35 -.06 1.36

1.93 46.43 .06 .65 .34 -.03 1.33
4
2.22 48 .03 .78 .35 .07 1.49

2.29 45.47 .03 .78 .34 .09 1.47
5
2.10 48 .04 .58 .28 .03 1.14

2.16 44.29 .04 .58 .27 .04 1.13
6
-.04 48 .97 -.02 .38 -.79 .75

-.04 38.51 .97 -.02 .39 -.81 .77
7
8.42 48 .00 2.72 .32 2.07 3.37
8.49 42.03 .00 2.72 .32 2.07 3.36

23

Barriers to Teaching

One of the concerns of this paper was to investigate the respondents perceptions in terms
of the barriers in using computers or Internet for instruction. A total of twelve barriers
were identified for this question and they were: (1) number of computers available, (2)
condition of computers, (3) accessibility to the Internet, (4) availability of good
instructional software, (5) availability of training opportunities, (6) allocation of time for
training, (7) availability of administrative support, (8) availability of support regarding
ways to integrate telecommunications into the curriculum, (9) availability of technical
support or advice, (10) allocation of time in class scheduling for students to use
computers in class, (11) concern about student access to inappropriate materials and (12)
availability of funding. When the two groups were compared it was found that the means
for items 9, 11 and 12 were higher for primary teachers than language instructors at the
University (Table 10).

Table 10: Difference in Instructors Perception of Barriers to Computer Use for
Instruction
Barrier Level of
Education
N Mean Std.
Deviation
Std. Error
Mean
1 Primary 20 2.20 1.32 .29
Tertiary 30 2.97 .99 .18
2 Primary 20 2.10 .97 .22
Tertiary 30 2.77 1.04 .19
3 Primary 20 2.65 1.35 .30
Tertiary 30 2.70 1.26 .23
4 Primary 20 2.45 1.05 .24
Tertiary 30 2.73 1.11 .20
5 Primary 20 2.60 .82 .18
Tertiary 30 2.77 1.04 .19
6 Primary 20 2.75 1.16 .26
Tertiary 30 2.93 .94 .17
7 Primary 20 2.15 .99 .22
Tertiary 30 2.43 1.14 .21
8 Primary 20 2.50 1.05 .24
Tertiary 30 2.77 1.17 .21
9 Primary 20 2.65 1.18 .26
Tertiary 30 2.60 1.04 .19
10 Primary 20 2.85 1.18 .26

24

Tertiary 30 3.27 1.11 .20
11 Primary 20 2.50 1.051 .24
Tertiary 30 2.97 1.033 .19
12 Primary 20 2.70 1.302 .29
Tertiary 30 2.80 1.157 .21

Based on a t-test (Table 11), there was a significant difference (p<0.05) between the two
groups in terms of the number ( p=.02) and condition (p=.03) of computers available.
One would normally expect that the instructors at the university had greater access to the
computers but in this study it was found that it was not the case. Table 11 illustrates that
the language instructors at the university were more dissatisfied with the number and
condition of computers available compared to the school teachers. The table also reflects
that the instructors at both places shared the same problems where using computers as a
tool for teaching was concerned except for the first two variables.

25
Table 11: T-Test for Barriers to Computer Use for Instruction

Barrier
t

df

Sig. (2-
tailed)

Mean
Difference

Std. Error
Difference

95% Confidence
Interval of the
Difference
Lower Upper
1 -2.33 48 .02 -.77 .33 -1.42 -.11
-2.20 33.09 .03 -.77 .35 -1.47 -.06
2 -2.28 48 .03 -.67 .29 -1.25 -.08
-2.31 42.87 .03 -.67 .29 -1.25 -.09
3 -.133 48 .89 -.05 .38 -.80 .70
-.132 38.99 .89 -.05 .38 -.82 .72
4 -.90 48 .37 -.28 .31 -.92 .35
-.91 42.48 .37 -.28 .31 -.91 .34
5 -.60 48 .55 -.17 .28 -.72 .39
-.63 46.52 .53 -.17 .26 -.69 .37
6 -.61 48 .54 -.18 .29 -.79 .42
-.59 34.93 .56 -.18 .31 -.82 .45
7 -.91 48 .37 -.28 .31 -.91 .34
-.94 44.55 .36 -.28 .30 -.89 .33
8 -.82 48 .41 -.27 .32 -.92 .38
-.84 43.67 .41 -.27 .32 -.91 .37
9 .16 48 .88 .05 .32 -.59 .69
.15 37.17 .88 .05 .33 -.61 .71
10 -1.27 48 .21 -.42 .33 -1.08 .25
-1.25 39.12 .22 -.42 .33 -1.09 .26
11 -1.55 48 .13 -.47 .30 -1.07 .14

-1.55 40.38 .13 -.47 .30 -1.08 .14
12
-.26 48 .78 -.10 .35 -.81 .61

-.28 37.46 .78 -.10 .36 -.83 .63


26
Table 11 shows that University instructors were more likely to have difficulties accessing the
computers because they were usually placed in designated laboratories whereas at the school the
teachers were given a laptop each and the classes were equipped with a projector. Even though
the school teachers were likely to be less happy with the kind of teaching that they could do with
the one computer that they had, they had the option of teaching with the aid of the laptop that
was provided. This was not generally so for the university language instructors. They had to
compete with other lecturers for the same computer laboratories. For instance, the presence of
only three language computer labs at the university where this study was conducted did not do
much to help ease the problem. The labs with 30 to 35 computers could only accommodate an
average of 18 sessions per lab (54 sessions per three labs) and per week compared to the number
of groups of students taking the language courses which were approximately 370 sessions per
week.

DISCUSSION

The study shows that there was actually not much difference in terms of challenges facing the
instructors teaching in the two educational settings where the use of computers was concerned.
Other studies have also suggested that technical and the lack of various kinds of support were a
major stumbling block in the integration of technology into the curriculum (Samuel & Zaitun,
2006; Nuraihan, 1994). The assumption that language instructors at the university used the
computers more did not hold water. The school teachers also used more application software
than the language instructors at the university.

CONCLUSION

The study shows that at both places the instructors were not really prepared to integrate the
technology fully into teaching. Several barriers were identified with some teachers feeling worst
than others. Given a situation that was not conducive for this to take place, such a result was not
unexpected. The study also highlighted the need for looking into the problems that might
discourage them from changing their teaching approach. There is a need for the authority to look
closely into what are involved in the implementation to reduce the prevailing and the potential
problems. This may help towards a greater rate of success in ICT integration in education.


27
REFERENCES

Becker, H. J. (1994). Mindless or mindful use of integrated learning systems.
International Journal of Educational Research, 21, 65-79.

Becker, H. J. (2000). Findings from the teaching, learning, and computing survey: Is
Larry Cuban right? Education Policy Analysis Archives, 8(51), 2-32.

Bennet, F. (1997) . Computers as tutors. solving the crisis in education. Retrieved June
20, 2006, from http://www.concentric.net/~Faben1/.

Boon, R. T., Burke, M. D., Force, I. C. and Hagan-Burke, S. (2006). Improving student
content knowledge in inclusive social studies classrooms using technology-based
cognitive organizers: A systematic replication. Learning Disabilities-A Contemporary
Journal, 4(1), 1-17.

Calderon-Young, E. (1999). Technology for teaching foreign languages among
community college students. Community College Journal of Research and Practice,
23(2), 161-169.

Cummings, S. L. (1995). Educational technology A faculty resistance view. Part I:
Incentives and understanding. Educational Technology Review, 13-18.

Cummings, S. L. (1996). Educational technology A faculty resistance view. Part
II:Challenges of resources, technology and tradition. Educational Technology Review,
30, 18-20.

Christmann, E. P. & Badgett, J. L. (1999). A comparative analysis of the effects of
computer-assisted instruction on student achievement in differing science and
demographical areas. Journal of Computers in Mathematics and Science Teaching,
18, 135-143.

Fernandez, C. C. & Victoria, M. (2001). The EFL teacher and the introduction of
multimedia in the classroom. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 14 (1), 3-14.

Ginsberg, R. & McCormick V. (1998) . Computer use in effective schools. Journal of
Staff Development, 19(1). 22-25.

Honey, M. & McMillan, K. (1993). Case studies of K-12 Educators Use of the Internet:

28
Exploring the Relationship Between Metaphor and Practice. New York: NY.
Education Development Center for Children and Technology. (ERIC Document
Reproduction Service No. 372726).

Hulshof, C. D., Eysink, T. H. S., Loyens, S & de Jong, T. (2005). ZAPs: Using
interactive programs for learning psychology. Interactive Learning Environments,
13(1), 39-53.

Knezek, G. & Christensen, R. (2000). Refining best teaching practices for technology
integration: Kids project findings for 1999-2000. Denton, TX: University of North
Texas. Institute for the Integration of Technology into Teaching and Learning
(IITTL). ISBN 1-931410-01-1.

Kramarski, B. & Mizrachi, N. (2006). Online discussion and self-regulated learning:
Effects of instructional methods on mathematical literacy. Journal of Educational
Research, 99(4), 218-230.

Krysa, R. (1998). Factors affecting the adoption and use of computer technology in
schools. Retrieved May 20, 2006, from
www.usask.ca/education/coursework/krysa/krysa.PDF.

Lam, Y. & Lawrence, G. (2002). Teacher-student role redefinition during a computer-
based second language project: Are computers catalyst for empowering change?
Computer Assisted Language Learning, 15(3), 295-315.

Lever-Duffy, J., McDonald, J. B. & Mizell, A. P. (2003). Teaching and learning with
technology. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Liu, M., Moore, Z., Graham, L., & Lee, S. (2002). A look at the research on computer-
based technology use in second language learning: A review of the literature from
1900-2000. Journal of Research in Technology in Education, 34(3), 250-274.Maier,
Maier, P. & Warren, A. (2000). Integrating technology in learning and teaching: A
practical guide for educators. London: Kogan Page.

Nuraihan Mat Daud (1994) Problems in the implementation of computer assisted language
learning, PhD thesis. University of Hull, UK.

Roszell, D. D. (1995) . The use of information technology in schools. Unpublished
master's thesis, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada.

29
Segers, E. &Verhoeven, L. (2005). The effects of computer training of phonological
awareness in kindergarten. Journal of computer Assisted Language Learning, 21(1),
17-27.

Shigemitsu, M. (2005, April/ 14,2005). CALL for researcher: Capturing a ubiquitous
influence of technology. Paper presented at 2005 AERA Annual Meeting, Montreal
Canada.
Smerdon, B., Cronen, S., Lanahan, L., Anderson, J., Iannotti, N., & Angeles, J. (2000).
Teachers tools for the 21
st
century: A report of teachers use of technology.
Washington DC: National Center for Educational Statistics.

Smidt, E. & Hegelheimer, V. (2004). Effects of online academic lectures on ESL
learning comprehension, incidental vocabulary acquisition and strategy use. Computer
Assisted language Learning, 17(5), 517-556.

Soe, K., Koki, S. & Chang, J. M. (2000). Effects of computer-assisted instruction (CAI)
on reading achievement: A meta-analysis. Retrieved 13 June 2006, from
www.prel.org/products/Products/effect-cai.htm.

Tanguay, E. (1997). English teachers, prepare yourselves for the digital era, [the
Internet]. Retrieved June 5, 2006, from http://userpage.fu-
berlin.de/~tanguay/English-teachers.htm[1998].

Tuysuz, C., Akcay, H. & Aydin, H. (2005). The effects of the Hybrid Model on the 7
th

and 8
th
year Turkish students success related to the chemistry subjects. Journal of
Baltic Science Education, 8, 35-45.

Van Dusen, G. C. (1997). The Virtual Campus: Technology and Reform in Higher
Education. ASHE ERIC Higher Education Report 25, No. 5, Washington, DC: The
George Washington University, Graduate School of Education and Human
Development.

Vincent, J. (2001). The role of visually rich technology in facilitating childrens writing.
Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 17(3), 242-250.

Wang, L. (2005). The advantages of using technology in second language education.
THE Journal, 32(10), 38-42.

Zhao, Y. (2001). Recent developments in technology and language learning: A literature

30
review and meta-analysis. Retrieved June 10,2006, from
http://ott.educ.msu.edu/elanguage/about/literature.asp.

Zhao, Y. & Conway, P. 1(999, April/ 19-23,1999).What is for sale today? An analysis of
state educational technology plans. Paper presented at the 1999 American
Educational Research Association Annual Meeting, Montreal Canada.


31

CHAPTER 3

MOODLE IN TEACHING WRITING

MOHD AZRUL AZLEN BIN ABD HAMID
ADELINE LOW HUI LIN
SHAHRIZAL IDZUAN BIN WAHAB ABDUL RAHMAN
NURAIHAN MAT DAUD

This study aims to investigate the possibility of using MyArabic (using Moodle
platform) in developing students writing skills. Students perceptions of learning
Arabic writing through Moodle were also sought. The study was conducted at a
public university in Malaysia on a group of 47 pre-university Arabic language
students taking elementary Arabic language course. Data collected using
questionnaire survey was analyzed to assess the effectiveness of teaching writing
using Moodle platform. The finding of this study suggests that the majority of the
students found MyArabic interesting. The study also shows that it can be an
effective tool for developing Arabic learners writing skills.
Keywords: Moodle, MyArabic, Writing Skills, Collaborative learning

INTRODUCTION

Writing can be challenging to a language learner. In a traditional classroom, teachers usually
discuss the possible structure and vocabulary to use when writing on a certain topic. To help
enhance the development of writing skills, several pedagogical approaches and teaching aids
have been proposed. One of the teaching tools that can be used is Moodle.

Moodle is a web 2.0 tool that can be utilized to teach a second language. This tool supports
multiple languages. Learning tools such as online vocabulary activities, discussion boards,
grammar clinics, and learning resources are available on Moodle. Studies have found that it can
be a useful tool in language teaching (Al-Ajlan & Zedan, 2008). Moodle can support
collaborative learning (Brandl, 2005) and offers a wide range of synchronous and asynchronous
collaborative learning opportunities (Filippidi, Tselios, & Komis 2010).


32
Moodle is a web-based Learning Content Management System (LCMS) that is designed around
the social constructivist philosophy using the collaborative possibilities of the Internet (Zenha &
Carvalho, 2006). It is also a platform that allows instructors to provide and share documents,
grade assignments, do quizzes with students in an easy-to-learn way, and create quality online
courses (Al-Ajlan & Zedan, 2008). Besides that, Moodle has 75 language characters
(Dougiamas, 2008) that enable language teachers and instructors to design lessons in those
languages. The platform can be used as their teaching tool to support discussion, learning
activities, feedback and assessment.

Moodle in the Teaching of Writing

Writing is a crucial and important skill for most fields of study. Writing serves multifarious
purposes. The writing process requires learners to reflect, write, review, edit and rewrite with a
purpose in mind. Feedback through peer and/or teacher responses occurs throughout the writing
process, thus it should not be perceived as a static product (Mideros, 2009). Writing is a tool for
the creation of ideas and can be shared in an interactive manner. The exchange of ideas and
information can help in developing students language skills.

Chapelle (2001) proposes that second language acquisition in the 21
st
century requires one to
recognize the potential for a strong presence, influence and outcome from technology in the
classroom. He states that there is a need to grasp the uniqueness of technology-mediated
learning that allows students to be engaged in their learning. Developing writing in VLE offers
learners the opportunity to build self-confidence, fluency and autonomy. Through the process of
writing they are encouraged to find their own voice and express their personal opinions and
thoughts.

A number of studies have been conducted to see how Moodle can help develop students writing
skills. Diego (2009) conducted a study on enhancing writing for Spanish using MyeLearning
(using Moodle as a platform) at the University of West Indies, Trinidad and Tobago. He found
that MyeLearning could serve as an excellent tool to encourage student autonomy in learning. In
terms of writing, the study indicated that through MyeLearning there was greater flexibility to
work on the different writing processes. There was concentrated focus on providing feedback
through interaction between teacher-learner and learner-learner. As a result, these interactions
encourage a process of editing and rewriting which also helps to improve their writing, and helps
them to articulate their thoughts with clarity.

Similarly, Moodle was also used at the Chung Hua University in Taiwan in an English writing
course (Wen-Shuenn Wu, 2008). She also agreed that Moodle could be a viable enhancement
tool for language learning especially writing. She stated that both synchronous and asynchronous

33
computer mediated communication between learners and teachers can be constructed. The result
of the study showed that Moodle helped writing teachers in terms of organization of course
materials, improvement of communication with the learners and retrieval of interaction records
between users. In other studies, Vilhelmina (2008) conducted a study on students learning
experience in the integrated information literacy course constructed in the virtual learning
environmentat the Mykolas Romeris University in Lithuania. She found out that achievement in
writing ESP vocabulary tests is significantly higher in the experimental group utilizing Moodle
as a platform. Petrides (2002) and Vonderwell (2007), as cited in Siti Sarah, Issham and Rozhan
(2010), reported that students are more critical in thinking and writing when utilizing Moodle.

The use of Moodle as a platform was also applied at the English Language Department, Nizwa
College of Technology, Oman. Kohnke (2011) reports that the objective of using Moodle was to
enhance autonomous learning and in-class learning of the learners studying English as a second
language; he states the biggest advantage of using Moodle is that it provides a blended-learning
environment to the students. In-class teaching is supported on-line teaching using this system. He
also adds that there have been numerous studies that present evidence that online teaching can
significantly increase the amount of language produced by learners (Beauvois, 1992; Kelm,
1992; Warschauer, 1996 as cited by Kohnke, 2011).

One significant feature of the use of Moodle at Nizwa College of Technology was that the
department was able to control the online environment. This was deemed as important as the
learners were not familiar with technology-based activities,therefore the teachers could make a
gradual introduction to aspects of e-learning to the learners in order for them to familiarize
themselves with the technology. It was found that the use of Moodle had significant impact on
communication, teaching, and learning. It is stated that there was opportunity for second
language learners to communicate with native speakers in real situations, and this resulted in an
overall improvement. Furthermore, it had an impact on the participation of the learners and
changed the manner in which teachers and learners interact with each other (Kohnke, 2011).

On the other hand, Cetini and Seljan (2011) in their research on evaluation of on-line
multimedia assessment among Croatian students studying Italian language and literature at the
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb concluded that long essays are
better written using pen and paper to minimise usage of online proofing tools.

PROBLEM STATEMENT
The Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) helps to facilitate a complete learning and teaching
experience and includes several key features such as communication between tutors and
students, self-assessment and summative assessment, delivery of learning resources and

34
materials, shared work group areas, support for students, students tools, management and
tracking of student activities, consistent and customizable look and feel, and navigation structure
(www.ltsn.ac.uk/genericcentre).

It also provides an opportunity for universities to offer courses in any language. In addition,
virtual learning facilities can be used to develop cooperation and collaborative skills between
second language students and native speakers (Sawatpanit et al, 2004). Furthermore, Hadley
(2001) also states that the communicative use of language with other students is one of the
secrets to success in second language learning. Virtual learning can provide this opportunity as it
provides good content and interactive multimedia materials that can be incorporated into
language learning activities (Bush, 2007).

However, among the issues often raised by researchers of virtual environment are its challenges,
type of technology used in the virtual environment, and its impact on teaching and learning
(Vilhelmina, 2008, Latreille, 2008, Coughlin and Kadjer, 2009, Cetinic and Seljan, 2011).
Learning a second languages virtually not only needs a system that can support the characters
use, but it also requires learning tools that support discussion, vocabulary, grammar clinics, an
online dictionary, and evaluation and assessment methods. In relation to that, the functions of
many commercial learning management systems use today are not adequate since they are not
dedicated to foreign language learning (Sawatpanit, Suthers & Fleming, 2004).

Although MOODLE provides opportunities for teachers of languages that use characters other
than Roman Scripts to use their facilities, it is hardly exploited by these teachers. One such
language is Arabic. MOODLE platform has yet to be fully explored in the teaching of Arabic.
This study thus looks into the possibility of using MOODLE to teach Arabic language
proficiency.

OBJECTIVES OF STUDY

The objectives of this study are to see whether Moodle can be utilized to develop Arabic
learners writing skills. The specific objectives of the study are to:

1. identify improvement in the mechanics of the Arabic language at elementary level.
2. analyse students perceptions of learning Arabic writing through Moodle.


35
Background to the Study

This study was conducted at the Centre for Foundations Studies (CFSIIUM), International
Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM). In 2005, a learning management system (LMS) was
introduced as a platform for online learning where students were encouraged to use it to access
learning materials for courses taught at CFS. However, it was hardly used for language teaching
because it lacks the functions that would be of interest to these teachers. Many teachers claimed
that it was not user-friendly enough to make them use the platform for teaching (Siti Baidura,
2008). The platform that was chosen by the university did not support Arabic texts. It did not
have a function that allows students/teachers to change the format of text written from left to
right to right to left (the Arabic script is written from right to left). As a result, the text that is
written from the right is positioned to the left. Mohd Feham (2006) stated that the integration of
Arabic materials and contents into a web-based environment should be handled carefully because
the right-to-left writing system requires specially enabled Arabic software in composing and
editing. In response to these problems an alternative platform was needed that could support the
learning and teaching of the Arabic script to be adapted to the teaching of Arabic language for
elementary learners. Moodle is one possible alternative as it is used in blended learning
environment to support face-to-face teaching and learning.

In 2010, the management of CELPAD decided to go for MOODLE instead of the university
dedicated LMS. It was felt that MOODLE was more suitable for the language courses offered
by the Centre. MyArabic was developed on MOODLE platform for students of the Centre who
are following its Arabic language courses.

METHODOLOGY

A number of approaches were adopted in this study. This included semi-structured interviews
and questionnaire survey that was distributed to beginners level students who used MOODLE in
learning Arabic.

Participants

The study was carried out on a group of 47 Arabic language students taking Elementary Arabic
language course at the International Islamic University Malaysia.The students were required to
attend weekly classroom instructions where learning contents were delivered using various
pedagogical approaches. Classroom instructions were extended beyond the confine of the
traditional classroom setting to the virtual world. MOODLE (MyArabic) was used as a tool in
developing students writing skills.

36
RESULTS AND FINDINGS

Staff of the Arabic Division developed materials suitable for online learning for the Elementary
Students. The LMS for Arabic courses is named MyArabic. Snapshots of the MOODLE screens
of the lessons are presented in Figure 1-5:

Figure 1: Main page of MyArabic

Figure 1 displays the main menu of the Arabic lessons. The various options are given here to
make it easy for students to choose the activities that are relevant to them.


37

Figure 2: Teachers resources for teaching writing

Figure 2 shows one of the lessons taught. Various activities and lessons are provided via
MOODLE platform.

Figure 3: Students writing activities in MyArabic


38
Exercises are also designed for students on MOODLE. A sample of this is displayed in Figure 3
above.

In the writing lessons students are encouraged to produce a related glossary before they
embarked on the essay-writing task. The students used MyArabic to develop the glossary. The
beginner level students are then asked to construct sentences based on the words that they have
in their glossary. At this level, students typically learn to write by producing two types of
sentence patterns, that is, subject-noun sentence pattern, and predicate-noun sentence pattern.
Upon mastery of these sentence structures, they then learn to write sentences with subject-verb
and predicate-noun sentence patterns. Snapshots of the lesson on MOODLE are given in Figures
4 and 5:

Figure 4: Snapshot of glossary building activity on MyArabic


39

Figure 5: Snapshot of sentence building activity on MyArabic

ANALYSIS OF SURVEY RESULTS

The questionnaire survey consisted of 4 main themes. The internal consistency of the survey is
rather high. The Cronbach's Alpha reliability coefficient is 0.8818. The results of the
descriptive analysis are given below:

Table 1: Results of Descriptive Statistics
Categories N Mean S.D
Motivation in using MyArabic
1- Fun to use 47 4.30 .803
2- More interested in work 47 4.16 .871
3- More time in class 47 2.51 1.183
4- More time out of class 47 2.14 .990
5- Good working with other students 47 4.40 .728
6- Show what friends learn 47 4.40 .660
9- More care with work 47 3.91 .781
11- Show people what I'm good at 47 3.67 1.063
13- Helps be creative 47 4.65 .529
14- Helps feel confident 47 4.30 .964
15- See where need to do better 47 4.21 .940
18- Show progress to others 47 3.95 .844
19- Understand work better 47 4.16 .785
20- Pleased with progress 47 4.05 .925
22- Helped me to learn 47 4.37 .787

40
23- Feedback each other's work 47 4.19 .732
26- Put a lot of effort in essay writing 47 3.63 .900
Managing writing task
7- Think more about own learning 47 4.49 .703
8- Space to store stuff 47 3.98 .988
10- Organize work better 47 3.93 .828
12- New ways to present work 47 4.53 .592
Time in class
16- Plan how to improve 47 4.14 .990
17- Self/ Peer evaluation 47 3.70 1.013
21- To use in future 47 4.60 .623
27- Achieved more than expected through essay writing using MyArabic 47 3.77 .718
Time out of class
24- Easy to use, lecturer helped 47 4.37 .691
25- Independent learning 47 3.86 .966
Overall mean score: 4.01

Based on Table 1, it can be generalized that the students were positive towards the use of
MOODLE in learning Arabic. This is evident from the high overall mean score (4.01) signifying
that students felt that MOODLE motivated and helped them to learn Arabic. Most of them also
claimed that it was easy to use, and it helped them in managing the writing task.

In the open-ended section, students were asked what they gained from MyArabic. The responses
were presented in Table 2 below:

Table 2: Positive Aspects of MyArabic
No Responses Frequency
1 To develop new hobbies 2
2 To organize information and to publish them 3
3 To use MyArabic as a medium of learning writing and educational
purpose
6
4 To access information in MyArabic 2
5 To learn and discuss the lessons by using technology 7
6 To use computers more effectively 5
7 To see the progress of other/peer learners performance 4
8 To learn new skills of learning Arabic by computer such as typing
Arabic words and other skills
4
9 To share learning materials with friends 6
10 To learn collaboratively with others and communicate. 15

41
11 It is a helpful collaborative learning tool 6
12 It promotes reflective learning by reading the feedback 8
13 An easy way to learn writing 4
14 Making the learners to learn a topic more deeply 5
15 It is a new and creative way of learning 4
16 It is an attractive and fun way of learning 6
17 Improving the Arabic language 5
18 Improving the English language 3
19 It is a useful way of learning 2
20 Getting to know many websites for learning Arabic 3
21 To learn how to manage learning materials in MyArabic 5
22 To learn many new things by technology 4
23 Learn to use Moodle 3
24 To learn Arabic by using technology 4
25 Easy access to find references 1

Table 2 indicates that many of the students (15) felt that it helped them to learn collaboratively
and to communicate with each other in Arabic. The learners felt that they were able to learn
many skills via MyArabic such as learning by discussion via technology, learning through
collaborative communication, managing the learning materials, using MyArabic as a writing
tool, sharing learning materials, and an improvement in their computer skills. The learners also
found that MyArabic was a new and attractive way of learning and that it was more helpful, fun
and useful as well as it helped improve their Arabic and English language proficiency.

The students were also asked what they did not like about MyArabic in the open-ended section
of the questionnaire. The results are given in Table 3:

Table 3: Negative Aspects of MyArabic
1 Dont have time to check updates in MyArabic 2
2 Influence to do other things not related to learning such as chatting
using another social networking tool
5
3 It is not user-friendly sometimes 2
4 Dont have laptop to write essay in MyArabic 5
5 Having problems of losing any saved information 3
6 Having Internet connections problem 4
7 Taking long time to open MyArabic due to Internet connection
problem
7
8 Rarely open MyArabic after class time 1

42
9 Just dont like to use MyArabic 2
10 Having difficulties on how to use MyArabic and the tools 4
11 Having low tendency to look at others work 2
12 Affected learners to addiction 1
13 Should be used effectively and wisely 2
14 Dont like to spend long time in front of computer 1
15 Have to go to cyber-caf and affected negatively to other
commitments
3

Table 3 reflects that the main problem with regard to MyArabic is related to technical issues such
as slow Internet connection. The slow speed prevented them from accessing MyArabic as a
platform for essay writing.

The students were also asked to give their comments on MyArabic, and their responses are
tabulated in Table 4:

Table 4: Issues Concerning the Implementation of MyArabic
1 Making Arabic learning more fun and interesting 6
2 Certain marks should be given on a task performed, not just the
notification of done.
6
3 More effects found after watching Arabic movie and extracting the
dialogues, and making sentences from pictures.
1
4 A good medium of sharing knowledge and information 3
5 Hopefully it is to be used in other subjects as well 3
6 Should be used by others as a medium of preaching (dakwah) 3
7 Hopefully it is to be used in other lecturers as well 1
8 Hopefully it is to be used in the future 4
9 Give a new learning experience 1
10 Have a lot of benefits 2
11 Should be used effectively and wisely 1

Generally the students were happy with the use of MyArabic in learning the Arabic language.
Suggestions on how to improve the system were also given by some of them. The lessons can be
improved further based on the students feedback.


43
Observation and Interview Results

It was observed that in the writing class students could develop their glossary online, and they
could search for relevant words with minimal assistance from their teachers. The wiki function
was used to produce the essay. The students worked collaboratively to complete the assignment.
Through the use of Wiki and the collaborative real-time editor feature students were able to view
and provide feedback to their peers. Peer feedback can be useful because it is usually more
specific than teacher feedback, and students can edit their writing based on the feedback given
(Rollinson, 2005). A supportive collaborative community could be formed among the students.
This community extended itself from a physical classroom to a virtual learning environment.
Vygotsky (1978) proposed that students tap the knowledge of their peers as it is a viable means
to maximize their potential in academic writing, while Mehlenbacher et al (2001) suggests that
language teachers focus on the writing process and provide opportunities for collaborative
writing to the students. The collaborative writing process would include elements of peer
feedback, discussion, and teacher feedback. From the analysis of the students writing, it can be
concluded that a range of vocabulary items, lexical phrases and sentence patterns are learnt based
on the feedback provided.

Figure 6: Snapshot of essay writing task using collaborative real-time editor


44
The Collaborative Process

Apart from peer editing it was noticed that the students also shared information relevant to the
assigned task. This they could do by using the chat facility on MOODLE as was mentioned by
the students in the interview. A few of the comments on this are given here:

Based on this title, we give an example of a sentence like
(Ahmad who went to the school). After that, other friends will make other
sentences by using the same words. Thus, we could learn many sentences through
collaborations with friends.
Student 1

If I dont know how to build a sentence using certain word, my friends will help
by explaining the solution.
Student 2

Actually, MyArabic has been the interest, because through it, we could
communicate with other friends. So, the usage of MyArabic is a good strategy to
gain students interest.
Student 3

Actually, chatting is one of the functions in MyArabic. So, when I am online to
write my essay, I will discuss with my friends.
Student 4

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

The results and findings indicated that MyArabic could be an effective mean of teaching Arabic
to the elementary adult learners. The functions available on Moodle such as wiki and chat could
be used to support collaborative learning. Students found the system helpful in the learning
process. This is in line with studies done in universities such as Chung Hua University in
Taiwan (Wen-Shuenn Wu, 2008) and Mykolas Romeris University in Lithuania (Vilhelmina,
2008) where MOODLE was found to be an effective device in teaching language.

In a context where learning a third language is challenging, the positive feedback given by the
students can be considered encouraging. Learning Arabic language is considered to be difficult
and challenging in Malaysia. The difficulties felt by the Malaysian students can be attributed to
the complexity of its grammatical rules, where students experience difficulties in understanding,

45
memorizing, and applying the Arabic language rules in writing and speaking (Norhayati, 1998).
The environment is also not conducive for the learners to use the language since it is hardly
spoken in Malaysia. In order to make the learning experience more meaningful suggestions
given by students could be used to improve the content of the course. Cooperation of the
university is also important in providing a faster Internet connection. This will help to make
online learning more accessible to users.


46
REFERENCES

Al-Ajlan and H. Zedan (2008). Why Moodle. 12
th
IEEE International Workshop on Future
Trends of Distributed Computing Systems.Filippidi, A., Tselios, N., & Komis, V.
(2010).a blended learning environment. Learning, (November), 4-5.
Brandl, K. (2005). ARE YOU READY TO MOODLE ? Language Learning & Technology,
9(2), 1623. Citeseer. Retrieved on 12 September 2011 from
http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.113.7330&rep=rep1&am
p;type=pdf
Cetini, A., & Seljan, S. (2011). Evaluation of Classroom-based Online Multimedia Language
Assessment.International Conference Future of Education. Retrieved on 14 September
2011 from http://www.pixel-
online.net/edu_future/common/download/Paper_pdf/ENT39-Cetinic,Seljan.pdf
Chapelle, C.A. (2001). Computer Applications in Second Language Acquisition. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press.
Coughlin, E., & Kajder, S. (2009). The Impact of Online Collaborative Learning on Educators
and Classroom Practices.Cisco System Inc. (pp. 4-15). Retrieved on 22 October 2011
from http://www.cisco.com/web/about/citizenship/socio-
economic/docs/Metiri_Teacher_Collaboration_Research.pdf
Dillenbourg, P., & Schneider, D.(1995). Collaborative learning and the Internet,
[Onlinedocument]. Retrieved on 20 October 2011
http://tecfa.unige.ch/tecfa/research/CMC/colla/iccai95_1.html
Filippidi, A., & Tselios, N. (2010). Impact of Moodle usage practices on students performance
in the context of a blended learning environment.Applications for Life Long Learning,
(November), 4-5. Retrieved on 12 September 2011 from
http://orion.westgate.gr/sall2010/documents/SALL 2010.pdf#page=12
Glatz, L. (2000). Computer technology in foreign language teacher training.Society for
Information Technology and Teacher Education International Conference, 1, 641-646.
Grill, D. (2006).Effects of technology on second language learning.Journal of College Teaching
& Learning, 3(2).

47
Ismail, I., Mohd Johari, S. S., & Mohammed Idrus, R. (2010). Technical Appliance in E-
Learning: Students Perception on the Usage of Online Learning. International Journal of
Emerging Technologies in Learning iJET, 5(2), 31-35. doi:10.3991/ijet.v5i2.1145
Latreille, P. (2008). Student Attendance and Lecture Notes on VLEs: Part of the Problem, Part of
the Solution. Higher Education AcademyEconomics Network. Retrieved November 5,
2011, from
http://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&btnG=Search&q=intitle:Student+attendance+&
+lecture+notes+on+VLEs:+part+of+the+problem,+part+of+the+solution?+|+The+Econo
mi#0
M. Dougiamas (2008). Moodle. Retrieved on 12 December 2009 from http://www. moodle.org.
M. Zenha and R. Carvalho (2006). Work in progress: Self-evaluation through monitored peer
review using the Moodle platform. Frontiers in Education Conference.San Diego, CA:
IEEE.
Mehlenbacher, B., C. R. Miller, D. Covington, and J. S. Larsen. 2000. Active and interactive
learning online: A comparison of Web-based and conventional writing classes. IEEE
Transactions on ProfessionalCommunication 43(2): 166-184.
http://www4.ncsu.edu/~crm/Publications/MehlenbacherIEEETPC00.pdf
Mideros, D. (2009). MyeLearning as a tool to enhance the writing process in Spanish as a
foreign language.International Journal of Education and Development using ICT, 5(4).
Retrieved on 5 January 2010 from
http://ijedict.dec.uwi.edu/viewarticle.php?id=851&layout=html
Rollinson, P. 2005. Using peer feedback in the ESL writing class.ELT Journal 59 (1): 23-30.
Russell, A. L. (1995). Stages in learning new technology: Naive adult email users. Computers in
Education, 25(4), 173-178.
Russell, A. L. (1996). Stages in learning new technology: Naive adult email users. Computers in
Education, 25(4), 173-178.
Sawatpanit, M., Suthers, D., & Fleming, S. (2004). BRIX: Meeting the requirements for online
second language learning. Prosiding 37
th
Annual Hawaii International Conference on
System Science.

48
Vilhelmina, V. (2008).Students learning experience in the integrated information literacy course
constructed in virtual learning environment.Informatics in Education, 7(1), 127142.
Citeseer. Retrieved from
http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.148.7451&rep=rep1&am
p;type=pdf
Vygotsky, L. 1978. Mind in society. London: Harvard University Press


49

CHAPTER 4

DESIGNING LANGUAGE ACTIVITIES USING SECOND LIFE

MOHD AZRUL AZLEN BIN ABD HAMID
ADELINE LOW HUI LIN
NURAIHAN MAT DAUD

Second life (SL) promises the possibility for the development of useful and
meaningful learning activities in various educational environments. SL should be
viewed as an adjunct to classroom teaching and also other online e-learning
activities and applications. It has the potential to enrich and enhance educational
activities. SL serves as a platform for collaborative learning and authentic
exchanges. This paper discusses the possible applications of SL including for
learning and teaching.
Keywords: Second life, avatar, collaborative environment

INTRODUCTION

The current societal trend and the rapid advancement of technology have called upon education
to be viewed in new perspectives. This view of learning resonates in the global education
scenario. Studies have shown that the 20
th
century style of learning does not sufficiently prepare
students for their future (Partnership of 21
st
Century learning, 2004).

To better prepare and empower learners for the world of tomorrow, there is a need for educators
to rethink the pedagogical approaches to be adopted in teaching with the advancement of
technology in view. The Digital Natives (Prensky, 2001) are greatly influenced by the arrival
and rapid diffusion of digital technology. These are individuals who a) receive information very
fast, b) perform parallel processes at the same time, and c) multitask (Prensky, 2001). Prensky
recommends that existing education institutions change the methodology and learning content to
suit the new type of learners by taking into account the new and rapidly evolving current
scenario. As such, formal educational institutions are faced with the challenge of addressing the
needs of this generation of learners and thus take into account the new and rapidly evolving
current scenario.

50
Research has shown that teenagers are increasingly using the Internet or emerging technologies
tools, ideas and networks convergence such as social networking software - not only to socialise
but also to create content (Becta, 2009; PEW, 2007). Second Life is one of the popular emerging
technologies that can be used today to provide effective learning space for learners. It is
designed as a cyberspace venue for commerce, communication and camaraderie. As of March
2011, there were over 25 million registered user accounts in SL(http://www.kzero.co.uk/).
Linden Lab, a virtual world technology company, developed SL as a multi-user virtual
environment. It can also be described as a three-dimensional (3D) shared environment, where
thousands of participants can simultaneously collaborate with each other via their avatars in non-
competitive manners (Warburton, 2009).

Features of Second Life

The multi user virtual environment in SL allows a large number of simultaneous users to interact
synchronously (Salt, Atkins & Blackall, 2008). According to Dillenbourg, Schneider, and
Synteta (2002),
A virtual learning environment is a designed information space.
A virtual learning environment is a social space: educational interactions occur in the
environment, turning spaces into places.
The virtual space is explicitly represented: the representation of this information/social
space can vary from text to 3D immersive worlds.
Students are not only active, but also actors: they co-construct the virtual space.
Virtual learning environments are not restricted to distance education: they also enrich
classroom activities.
Virtual learning environments integrate heterogeneous technologies and multiple
pedagogical approaches.
Most virtual environments overlap with physical environments.

The Creation of Avatars

Participants can create their own avatars. The avatars may take a pseudo identity or they can
represent the users. The anonymity of the avatars allows the users freedom of expressing
themselves. The fact that they can customise their appearance and wardrobes makes it possible
for them to experiment with different social virtual activities without feeling embarrassed about
making mistakes. Avatars that are created out of users fantasies can perform limitless activities
which otherwise would not be possible if one were to take into consideration the values that one
has in the real world. In other words, they are not bound by the norms of society. For example, a
skinny cleaner can take the role of a muscular king in SL and he can also have his own virtual
kingdom. Examples of avatars are shown in Figure 1.

51

Figure 1: Examples of Avatars

Avatars that represent the users can play a realistic role especially in formal settings that may
include meetings and conducting business transactions. Some businesses may in fact be run in
SL. Users have the choice of buying products, land and services using SL currency known as
Linden Dollars. Linden Dollars can be bought using US Dollars. Figure 2 illustrates items that
can be bought on SL using Linden Dollars (L$).

Figure 2: Tuxedos on sale in SL

52
SL Environment

Activities in real life are normally confined by physical space. The reverse is true in SL, where
spatial architecture is limited only by users imaginations. SL offers a 3D building environment
where developers are free to simulate real life activities and create structures including the
creation of interactive objects. This world is rich in features with an ever-changing landscape
(Figure 3).

Figure 3: An example of a landscape in SL

Interaction and Technical Capabilities

Users in SL can interact through their avatars by a series of movements such as moving, walking,
running, flying, jumping, clapping, dancing, sitting, chuckling, and even teleporting to other
regions. In addition, there are a variety of communication tools in SL. These include text and
voice chats, instant messaging and calling cards. Besides these capabilities, SL also enables users
to import images and sounds. SL is distinctive from other virtual worlds as it offers sophisticated
technical capabilities. Users can create 3D objects and environments to respond to other people
and objects. This capability promises exciting opportunities for education.


53
SL also allows for both synchronous and asynchronous communication to take place. As the
users (through their avatars) interact with each other and with the environment, the dynamics of
the virtual environment is changed. These changes can be immediately viewed by all the users
who are logged in (Salt, Atkins and Blackall, 2008).

The Strengths of Second Life

Promising areas for educational possibilities include areas such as medicine, literature, forensic
science, tourism and language learning. It would seem that the overall consensus is that Second
Life promises the possibility for the development of useful and meaningful learning activities in
various educational environments. However, it is also pertinent to note that it is not practical to
assume that Second Life will usurp and replace other modes of delivery. Instead, it should be
viewed as an adjunct to classroom teaching and also other online e-learning activities and
applications. In other words, it has the potential to enrich and enhance educational activities.

Second Life offers new opportunities (and also challenges) for teaching and learning. It has the
potential of providing additional value to education. The creation of complex environments and
objects, and the possibility of an immersive learning experience make it a conducive
environment for learning. Furthermore, the game-like activities make it fun and more appealing
to users.

Second Life has evolved from its initial concept of an objective-oriented game and is now
perceived as more of a simulated environment that attempts to represent reality rather than
merely a game. In educational environments, Second Life has been used as an additional tool for
the teaching and learning of a variety of areas (Eduserv, 2008).

Integrating Second Life In Second/ Foreign Language Learning

SL allows learners to participate in language learning virtually and is well suited for teaching and
learning second languages (Henderson, Huang, Grant & Henderson, 2009). Besides that, SL also
provides a friendly, appealing, and contextually relevant space for foreign or second language
learners to interact through text chat, voice chat and instant messaging. The avatars body
language can enhance verbal communication. The virtual environment provides an authentic
setting for a particular discussion to take place. Interactions that take place in relevant settings
such as offices, shops, athletic events, business meetings and classrooms can be more realistic
and authentic than interactions conducted in a traditional classroom setting (Wang, Song, Xia &
Yan, 2009). The traditional classroom setting can be extended into space where interactions may
be more fluid and borderless.

54
Furthermore, the virtual social community may consist of learners of the same language from
different parts of the world. The extent of their interaction is not bound by their affiliation to
their educational institutions. The interaction is more authentic as it mimics real life
communication. It gives the learners opportunities to practice using the target language in a
particular setting. As Krashen (1981) argued, interpersonal meaningful communication in a
natural setting can benefit L2 learners acquisition of the target language. Van Lier (1996) and
Long (1996) also indicated that learners construct the new language through socially mediated
interaction. Subsequently, integrating SL into language learning could lead to greater
possibilities for interaction and collaboration between users of various cultures. Consequently,
the investigation on usage of SL in L2 learning and teaching has dramatically increased
(Krashen, 1981; Sadler & Nurmukhamedov, 2008).

Avatars in Language Learning

SL facilitates learner-centred design philosophy which emphasises the design of learning
software around learners goals, needs, activities, and educational contexts (Quintana et. al.,
2006). The virtual learning space can be a meeting place for learners, instructors and authorities
or professionals in the field. Active learning may take place where learners observe and model
the behaviour of experts. Learners can engage fully in a communicative language task rather than
just learning about language (Prabhu, 1987). The SL environment facilitates both the teaching of
language and the practical applications of language skills and best of all provides possibilities for
users to vicariously experience different situations and settings.

Communities of Practice (CoP) can be established by language learners who share the same
interest (Wenger, 2006). Such communities allow learners to learn by socialisation, visualisation
and imitation (Lave & Wenger, 1991). Users with common interest can gather in a specified area
and interact among themselves. They may teleport others to where they are to perform a task or
carry out an activity.

Learners learn and perform language task in context, within the community that practices the
task. Learning can be motivating especially when students are engaged in a situation that can
make them be what they want to be for instance, as the secretary to the United Nations (Brown,
Collins & Duguid, 1989).

The roles that teachers are comfortable with are normally influenced by their cultural and
linguistic backgrounds (Oxford, 2002). However, in an SL environment, teachers are free to
explore beyond these boundaries especially when pseudo identities are used. Similarly, students
can explore various linguistic structures particularly when they adopt pseudo identities without

55
feeling embarrassed about making mistakes. A task-based approach can be practiced to fit the
authentic language needs of their students.

The educational activities in SL can in fact cover the full range of learning theories. According to
Kay & Fitzgerald (2008), the 3D virtual world provides the platform for data visualisation. It
gives users the opportunities to collaborate and co-create. The authentic contexts provide
opportunities for experiential learning.

Cases of SL Use

One of the learning institutions that owns a piece of land in SL is the International Islamic
University Malaysia (IIUM). It is developed by the Language Centre of the University and was
officially launched by the Malaysian Minister of Higher Education in their 2
nd
International
Language Conference held on 22
nd
April 2011 (Figure 4). The avatars of the Minister, Rector and
the Dean of the Centre interacted with each other in the launching of the conference. They flew
from the conference venue to the language classes on the IIUM Island.

Figure 4: Snapshot of the conference venue for the 2
nd
International Language Conference in SL

Figure 5 presents snapshots of the conference venue and language classes that have been
developed by the Language Centre of the University in SL.


56

Figure 5: Snapshots of the conference venue and language classes that have been developed by
the Language Centre of the University in SL.

The snapshots in Figure 5 illustrate that in SL, classes can be held in places that would otherwise
be impossible to conduct in real life.


57
The instructors were interviewed about their perceptions of having classes in such an
environment. According to the Deputy Dean (Languages):

With the Y-generation, students want something new and up-to-date. They would
want something they can relate toalso SL is something that is fun to them. If
they, teachers use SL in their classes, they are perceived as cool and in touch
with the latest technology. The added bonus of SL is that users can go anywhere
they can explore other lands and interact with the other users (native speakers)
there.

Another Deputy Dean (Student Affairs) was also interviewed concerning the use of SL in
language teaching. He states that,

Although SL takes time and can be very difficult to master technically, it can have
potential in the future especially for student activities (co-curricular) as students
are very creative teachers just need to lead them.

The Head of English Department feels that,

Teachers motivation and enthusiasm are vital for SL to work it can benefit
students to be more interested to use the language. When you use SL you do
not feel embarrassed or insecureyou can use the language without fear of
making mistakes because you assume a different identity.

The Centre also has a coordinator in-charge of technology integration at the Centre. He was
given the task to assist teachers in integrating technology into language classes. According to
him,

Second Life can revolutionise the way we teach and learn. There are no more
borders in terms of acquiring knowledge.

The end users, who are the students, were also asked about what they felt about the use of SL in
language learning. One of them, S1, said that,

We love to use Second Life in language learning because it offers the immersive
digital experience and allows us to transfer the gaming experience into a learning
experience.


58
S2 echoes the feeling of S1. He states that,

At first I was so surprised by this university in Second Life. It was a totally new
experience for me. Every class was a virtual experience, but at the same time, I
get a real improvement in my language.

Interactions in SL

The interactions in SL can be represented by the following figure:

Figure 6: Learning Framework in SL Environment

Figure 6 shows that both students and instructors are free to create their personal avatars and
participate in synchronous and asynchronous activities in the open community provided by SL.
SL serves as a platform for collaborative learning and authentic exchanges. Teachers can
scaffold learners in completing a given task and an expert may demonstrate how a task is
performed. Feedback and hints may be given whenever required.

The avatars can explore the various virtual environments and interact in writing or orally with
other users in those environments. Articulation and reflection may take place in these
environments.

59
CONCLUSION

The features and technical capabilities of SL help to provide the environment for experiential
learning. Simulations and role plays give learners the opportunity for a rich and immersive
learning experience. Language learners can have the experience of interacting with both native
speakers and learners from other cultures thereby creating a global village. The SL, however, has
its drawbacks and its own challenges. The environment is not suitable for children due to the
possibility of becoming victims of cyber bullying. Although the simulation provides authentic
practice, it does not fully prepare the learners to face real life problems. They would still have to
face the reality before they can practice certain skills. In spite of these drawbacks, the SL
environment has its roles in the learning process.


60
REFERENCES

Becta. (2009). Bectas contribution to Rose Review. Conventry, UK: Becta.
Collins, A. (2006). Cognitive Apprenticeship. In R. K. Sawyer, The Cambridge Handbook of
the Learning Sciences (pp. 47-69). New York: Cambridge University Press.
Brown, J. S., Collins, A., & Duguid, P. (1989). Situated Cognition and the Culture of Learning.
Educational Researcher, 18(1), 32 42.

Dillenbourg, P., Schneider, D. & Synteta,P., (2002). Virtual Learning Environments.
Dimitracopoulou (Ed.). Proceedings of the 3
rd
Hellenic Conference Information and
Computer Technologies in Education Greece (pp. 3-18).
Eduserv. (2008). The Autumn 2008 Snapshot of UK Higher and Further Education
Developments in Second Life. Retrieved 23
rd
October 2011 from
http://www.scribd.com/doc/7063696/The-Autumn-2008-Snapshot-of-UK-Higher-and-
Further-Education-Developments-in-Second-Life
Henderson, M., Huang, H., Grant, S. & Henderson, L. (2009). Language acquisition in Second
Life: Improving self-efficacy beliefs. In Same places, different spaces. Proceedings ascillete
Auckland 2009, 464-474. Retrieved on 20 March 2011 from
http://www.ascilite.org.au/conferences/auckland09/procs/henderson.pdf
Kay. J., & FitzGerals, S. (2008). Educational Uses of Second Life. Retrieved on 23
rd
October
2011 from http://sleducation.wikispaces.com/educationaluses
Krashen, S. D. (1981). Second language acquisition and second language learning. USA:
Pergamon Press.
Lave, Jean & Wenger, Etienne. (1991). Situated Learning; Legitimate Peripheral Participation,
Cambridge: University of Cambridge Press.
Long, M. H. (1996). The role of the linguistic environment in second language acquisition. In
Ritchie, W.C., & Tej K. B. (eds.), Handbook of second language acquisition, pp. 413-468.
San Diego: Academic Press.
Oxford, R.L. (2006). Task-based Language Teaching and Learning; An Overview. Asian EFL
Journal, 8 (3). Retrieved on 23
rd
October 2011 from http://www.asian-efl-
journal.com/Sept_06_ro.php
Partnership for 21st century skills. (2004). Framework for 21st century learning. Retrieved on 20
April 2011 from
http://www.21stcenturyskills.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=254&Itemi
d=120
Prabhu, N.S. (1987).Second Language Pedagogy. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

61
Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, Digital Immigrants. On the Horizon, 9 (5), 1-6.

Quintana, C., Shin, N., Norris, C. & Soloway, E. (2006). Learner-Centered Design: Reflections
on the Past and Directions for the Future. In R. Sawyer, The Cambridge Handbook of the
Learning Sciences (pp. 119-134). New York: Cambridge University Press.
Sadler, R., & Nurmukhamedov, U. (2008, March). Second Life and task-based learning. Paper
presented at CALICO annual conference, San Francisco, CA.
Salt, B., Atkins, C.,& Blackall, L.(2008). Engaging With Second Life: Real Education in A
Virtual World. Retrieved on 23rd October 2011 from
http://piensl.pbworks.com/f/slliteraturereviewa1.pdf
Van Lier, L. (1996). Interaction in the language curriculum: Awareness, autonomy and
authenticity. London: Longman.
Wang, C., Song, H., Xia, F., & Yan, Q. (2009). Integrating Second Life into an EFL program:
Students perspectives. Journal of Educational Technology Development and Exchange, 2(1),
1-16.
Warburton, S. (2009). Second Life in higher education: Assessing potential for and the barriers
ro deploying virtual worlds in learning and teaching. British Journal of Educational
Technology, 40 (3), 414-426.
Wenger, Etienne. (2006). Communities of Practice; A Brief Introduction. Retrieved on 23
rd

October 2011 from http://www.ewenger.com/theory/


62

CHAPTER 5

DEVELOPING ARABIC WRITING SKILLS USING FACEBOOK

WAN RUSLI WAN AHMAD
NURAIHAN MAT DAUD

Facebook is fast becoming a popular writing medium among social network
users. Its interactive nature makes it a good medium for teaching writing. In this
study, a Facebook group for teaching writing was established for students who
were following an Arabic language proficiency course. The students were asked
to write and to give feedback to each others work in Arabic. The thread of
communication posted on the wall was analysed. The posts revealed that
Facebook was widely used by the students to communicate. A total of 89
comments or feedback were given by peers for every writing activity, with an
average of four comments made on each students work. Arabic was used by the
students, and the feedback focussed on grammatical and spelling errors. The
survey revealed that a majority of the students preferred using Facebook to
develop their writing skills.

Keywords: Facebook, Arabic writing skills, grammatical and spelling errors, peer
feedback, peer editing

INTRODUCTION

This paper aims to investigate the possibility of using Facebook as a tool to develop foreign
language learners writing skills. Writers proficiency in a language can affect the quality of their
writing. In L2 writing, their knowledge of the target language genres serves as another challenge
to the development of their writing skills (Swales, 1990). Teaching such a skill to foreign
language learners is more challenging in a situation where the language is hardly used for
writing. The fact is, writing in a second language is often done only in the classroom. This study
thus, attempts to provide an environment for writing to take place outside the classroom.

Since two-way communication is possible on a web-based social network it can be a good tool
for language teaching. Students can communicate and discuss online through this network. The
technology can increase students opportunities for collaboration and active participation. It also

63
gives them more opportunity to participate as everybody can contribute their ideas without
having to wait for their turn (Rozina & Nuraihan, 2003).

One such network is the Facebook. Facebook users can share messages, not only in one-to-one
but also in one-to-many mode of communication. Such attributes may facilitate collaborative
reading and writing (Warschauer and Kern, 2000 as cited by Rozina & Nuraihan 2003).
Facebook is fast becoming an integral part of students daily lives (Cloete, Villiers & Roodt,
2009). This study is therefore conducted to investigate how Facebook can be utilised as a
platform to develop students writing skills through peer editing.

Peer Review on Social Network

Peer editing refers to the interaction between a writer and a reader to help the writer improves
his/her text (Chandra, 2003). Peer editing may help in producing good writers since they have
the opportunity of getting feedback from the readers. Responding to the feedback is an important
step towards becoming a good writer. Franklin (2010) stated that through peer review activities,
students could build their community beyond the classroom. Teachers can help facilitate this
process of writing (Chandra, 2003).

Web 2.0 serves as an excellent platform for peer editing since it is more engaging (Huang &
Yoo, 2010). It is a writable webpage in which users can read and write. The facility allows
users to connect, communicate and collaborate (Thomas, 2009). According to Ajjan &
Hartshorne (2009), web 2.0 applications provide users with the opportunities for both social
connectivity and collaborative environments. These are considered as important elements of
effective teaching and learning by constructivists. A study by the National School Boards
Association and Grunewald Associates found that 96% of the online students subscribe to the
social network. Over half of them used it to discuss education, school, college options, and their
homework. The study points to its potential to revolutionise education (Harver, 2007).

Social networks like Facebook have a growing pedagogical potential, since it offers an
opportunity for students to share ideas, knowledge, and activities (Cloete, Villiers & Roodt,
2009). Students ability to use the language outside the classroom may help towards achieving
mastery of the language.

PROBLEM STATEMENT

Writing is a social activity (Chandra, 2003), and Facebook can be used to establish a community
of discourse. Such a platform helps provide an authentic environment for writing. Despite its
potential not many studies have been done on the use of Facebook in developing language skills.

64
This study is an attempt to develop Arabic as a Second Language (ASL) learners writing skills
using Facebook. The lack of interaction and an authentic environment for writing are among the
reasons for ASL students lack of writing skills (Zawawi et al 2011; Zainol Abidin, 2003). This
study is thus conducted to examine the extent to which Facebook can be used as a platform for
developing ASL learners writing skills.

RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

The objectives of this study are to:

1. examine if there is any improvement in the quality of writing;
2. investigate the quantity of feedback given; and
3. determine students perceptions towards the use of Facebook in learning Arabic.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

This study contributes to the research on the use of technology in teaching writing skills. It
attempts to answer the following questions:

1. Is there any improvement in the students quality of writing when Facebook is used as a
tool in writing?
2. Will the students provide feedback in Arabic to the written works produced by their
peers?
3. What are the students perceptions of the use of Facebook in teaching writing skills?

RESEARCH SETTING

The case study approach was adopted in this study since the research was exploratory in nature
(Robson, 1993). The study was conducted on undergraduate students who were following
Teaching Arabic as a Second Language course at the Institute of Education, International Islamic
University Malaysia. Arabic is the second medium of instruction at this university. English is its
medium of instruction, and yet Malay is the primary medium of communication since the
majority of its students are Malays. Arabic is hardly spoken outside the classroom.


65
METHODOLOGY

Participants

A total of 18 students participated in this study. They were enrolled in an Arabic Skills class.
Both face-to-face and online modes were employed in teaching this course. The students in this
Arabic Skills class meet once a week. One of the skills taught is the writing skill. The lecturer is
a native speaker of Arabic with more than 25 years teaching in Malaysia.

Task

The researcher set up a Facebook group account named maharah al kitabah which was
accessible through the URL: http://tinyurl.com/kitabah. To access and to be a member of this
Facebook closed group, a user would have to have a Facebook account. Once the permission to
join the group has been approved by the group administrator, the member can start to participate
in the group activities. Opening a Facebook group account is less complicated and requires no
recommendation for connection. Students personal profiles are not accessible from this
account. Earlier research found that students were normally against the idea of having the
profiles accessible to others (Wan Ahmad, 2011). However, every post and comment made by
the members will be notified to all. The essential features in writing are doc and comment.
Students were asked to register, and information on the course was discussed on this Facebook
site. This Facebook group task comprised three stages:
Stage 1: Every student was asked to write a short summary in Arabic using
Facebook note editing to be posted on the wall. They were required to write a 50-
80 word summary of an Arabic short story entitled which
was selected by their lecturer. Summary writing was chosen because it is a
challenging task for L2 learners (Baba, 2009: 191). Twenty points were allocated
for the summary and they were given a week to complete this task.
Stage 2: Students were asked to provide feedback to their peers to improve the
quality of their writing within the given period. They were also encouraged to
edit their friends work. This could be done by opening the post and clicking
the edit button. In Facebook, the names of the editors appeared under the post.
The writers may improve their work based on the feedback given.
The comment threads and feedback given form the data for this study. The writing
performance was assessed based on Jacob et al.s (1981) profile as shown in
Table 1. However, for the summary writing assessment, only the aspects of
language were assessed.

66
Table 1: Composition Profile Used In Assessing the Summary
Language

30-27
Excellent to Very Good: Confident handling of
appropriate constructions; hardly any errors of agreement,
tense, number, word order, articles, pronouns,
prepositions; meaning never obscured.
26-21
Good to Average: Well-formed sentences, but
constructions are not always appropriate to task (register);
some errors of agreement, tense, number, word order,
articles, pronouns, prepositions; meaning sometimes
slightly obscured.
20-15
Fair to Poor: Insufficient variety of constructions
available; problems mainly in complex constructions;
several errors of negation, agreement, tense, number,
word order/function, articles, pronouns, prepositions;
meaning sometimes obscured.
14-9
Very Poor: Major problems in sentence construction;
frequent errors of negation, agreement, tense, number,
word order/function, articles, pronouns, prepositions;
meaning often obscured.

Stage 3: After the writing activities were completed, a short online survey was
posted to the members of the group. The survey consisted of 6 questions on
students perceptions on the use of Facebook in teaching writing skills in Arabic.

FINDINGS

Comments by peers

A total of 89 comments were posted in this activity (Table 2) with an average of 4 feedback
given on each summary. Only one student did not post any comment to this site. Others were
relatively active, and one (Student 3) was more active than others.


67
Table 2: Number of Comments Made on Each Summary
Student No. of
comments
1 4
2 2
3 16
4 9
5 5
6 0
7 4
8 4
9 5
10 2
11 4
12 3
13 10
14 3
15 3
16 4
17 7
18 4
Total 89

The students focussed more on grammatical errors and spelling mistakes when commenting on
their peers work. Figure 1 shows one of the summaries, and the comments on this summary on
the Facebook wall. Students used Arabic in their interactions.

Figure 1: Facebook Wall Displaying a Students Writing and Peers Comments.


68
Apart from commenting on the summary, a few made changes to the summary itself. Figure 2
shows a summary that was edited by her classmate. The name of the peer editor appeared below
the post.

Figure 2: A Post Edited by a Peer Through Edit Button

Findings from the scores rubric received after and before peer editing

A comparison was made between the score obtained before and after peer editing took place. It
was found that there was an improvement in the quality produced by nine of the students. As a
consequence of having peer editing posted by the students, the researcher discovered that there
is an improvement in terms of language use in the writing. Table 3 shows the students results:

Table 3: Summary of Results Before and After Peer-editing Activities
Student Before Peer Editing After Peer Editing
1 23 24
2 19 19
3 20 23
4 22 23
5 20 20
6 19 19
7 22 22
8 19 19
9 18 19
10 19 19.5

69
11 20 21
12 20 20
13 23 23.5
14 22 22
15 21 21
16 19 20
17 20 22
18 22 22

Online Survey Results

This study also examined students' perception of the use of Facebook in teaching writing to
Arabic language proficiency students. Out of 18 students, 14 responded to the survey (80%). The
result of the survey is shown below:

Table 4: Students Preference for Facebook in the Teaching of Writing
No. I prefer to use Facebook in my writing class
1. Always 29%
2. Usually 36%
3. Sometimes 29%
4. Never 7%

Table 4 shows that the students did not necessarily want to use Facebook in learning how to
write. A few (7%) did not even want to have it integrated in the teaching of this skill.

Table 5: Students Confidence in Peers Comments
No. Do you trust your peer editors comments?
1. Always 29%
2. Usually 21%
3. Sometimes 50%
4. Never 0%

The students seemed to have a certain level of confidence in the comments made by their peers.
Half of them stated that they sometimes trusted the feedback given by their peers. Less than one-
third (29%) mentioned that they always trusted their friends (Table 5).


70
Table 6: Students Opinions on Helpfulness of the Feedback Given
No. Are the comments helpful in improving your written work?
1. Always 36%
2. Usually 57%
3. Sometimes 7%
4. Never 0%

More than half of the students found the feedback helpful in improving their written work (Table
6). More than 90% said that it was helpful most of the time.

Table 7: Students Opinions of Their Own Feedback
No. Do you feel your comments helped your colleague improve
his/her essay?
1. Always 43%
2. Usually 29%
3. Sometimes 29%
4. Never 0%

Table 7 illustrates that many of the respondents had the confidence in themselves. None
mentioned that their comments were not helpful.

Table 8: Students opinions on Facebook Usefulness for Peer Review Exercise
No. How would you rate the "coolness" of Facebook Group for
peer review in Arabic writing?
1 Always 36%
2. Usually 50%
3. Sometimes 14%
4. Never 0%

All the students felt that Facebook was a good medium for peer review. The figure in Table 8
shows that more than half were very positive about the use of Facebook in the peer review
activity.


71
Table 9: Use of Facebook for Other Courses
No. Would you be more likely to join Facebook Group for
other courses for next semester?
1 Always 57%
2. Usually 14%
3. Sometimes 21%
4. Never 7%

Although the students found the Facebook helpful for peer-review activity, there were those who
would choose not to join a class that uses it as a tool for teaching in the future. Table 9 shows
that 7% of the students answered that they would never join such a class.


This study examined the perceptions of students on the use of Facebook for teaching Arabic
writing skills. It also investigated the possibility of using Facebook as a platform for peer-review
activities. Students opinions on its use were sought to know what they felt about using Facebook
for teaching writing skills. The findings of the study reflected that technology could be used to
provide the platform for collaboration and active participation. The posts revealed students
engagement in the activity. However, the short period might not have given them much time to
make any remarkable improvement to the quality of the written work produced.


72
REFERENCES

Ajjan, H., & Hartshorne, R. (2009). Investigating faculty decisions to adopt Web 2.0
technologies: Theory and empirical tests. The Internet and Higher Education, 11(2), 71-
80.
Baba, Kyoko (2009). Aspects of lexical proficiency in writing summaries in a foreign language,
Journal of Second Language Writing, 18 (2009), 191208.
Chandra, Ramesh. (2003). Encyclopaedia of Education in South Asia. Delhi: Kalpaz Publication.
Cloete, S., Villiers, C.D, Roodt, S. (2009). Facebook as an academic tool for ICT lecturers.
South Africa : SACLA '09.
Harver Group, L. C. (2007). Integrating Web 2.0 Technology into the Classroom. Retrieved on
31 March 2010 from https://saywire.com/downloads/ClassroomTwoPointZero.pdf
Huang, Wen-Hao David & Yoo, Sun Joo. (2010) How do Web 2.0 environments motivate
learners?: A regression analysis based on MVP theory, Paper presented at E-Learn 2010,
Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education, Orlando. Retrived on 15
th

December 2012 from
http://illinois.academia.edu/SUNJOOYOO/Papers/434977/How_do_Web_2.0_Environm
ents_motivate_learners_A_Regression_Analysis_based_on_the_MVP_Theory
Robson, C. (1993). Real-world research: A resource for social scientists and practitioner
researchers. Malden: Blackwell Publishing.
Rozina Abdul Ghani & Nuraihan Mat Daud. (2003). CMC: Its pedagogical aspects and
considerations, Teaching English with Technology: A Journal for Teachers of English, 3
(2), 15-21.
Swales, J. M. (1990). Genre Analysis . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Thomas, Michael. (2009). Web 2.0 and Second Language Learning, London: IGA Global.
Warschauer, M., & Kern, R. (Eds.). (2000). Network-based language teaching: Concepts and
practice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Applied Linguistics Series.
Zainol Abidin. (2003). Kemahiran Menulis Bahasa Arab di Kalangan Pelajar Melayu : Satu
Kajian Kes, Master Thesis, UM, Kuala Lumpur.
Zawawi Ismail, Abdul Halim Tamuri, Nik Mohd Rahimi Nik Yusof & Mohd Ala-Uddin Othma.
(2011). Teknik pengajaran kemahiran bertutur bahasa Arab, Gema Online Journal of
Language Studies, 11 (2), 67-82.

73

CHAPTER 6

SMS-AIDED TEACHING OF READING IN MALAYSIA: FACTORS TO
CONSIDER

NURAIHAN MAT DAUD
ZAMNAH HUSIN

Students ability to perform successfully in the content area is often correlated
with their ability to read and comprehend texts. However, the time spent on
reading is often limited to a dedicated learning environment. To ensure that
reading can be done regardless of time and space, mobile learning or MLearning
through its mobile technologies such as mobile phones may offer another
alternative to reading. As many students studying in a university own a mobile
phone it can be used for teaching purposes. This research is on the use of mobile
learning (Mlearning) particularly short message service (SMS) facility in
developing second-language students reading skills. It aims to see whether
mobile learning can complement traditional reading lesson. The study was
conducted on language learners in an intensive English language programme at
an institution of higher learning. SMSes were sent everyday within one semester
to the selected students. The study shows that students found the approach
interesting and helpful. Some mentioned that receiving the SMS daily had
encouraged them to use English or read English materials more often. Others
stated that the activity had enabled them to get access to English wherever they
were and they liked receiving extra exposure to English through SMS in addition
to classroom learning. Most of them appreciated the fact that they were chosen
for the study and expressed hope that the Centre would adopt this approach. The
study also highlighted possible problems when using this technology. Among them
were telecommunication networks incompatibility and limitation on the number of
characters per message.
Keywords: Mlearning, SMS (Short Message Service), EMS (Enterprise
Messaging Service), Reading skills


74
INTRODUCTION

Studies have found that Malaysian students do not read as much as American students (Pikkert &
Foster, 1996; Moore, 1992). A survey carried out on university students in Malaysia also
revealed that reading is not something students do on a regular basis (Kaur & Thiyagaragah,
1999). Based on this research, it can be assumed that reading is not part of the Malaysian student
culture. Some of the possible reasons for the lack of reading are the lack of time and accessibility
to reading materials. Mobile learning (MLearning) through its mobile technologies such as
mobile phones may offer another alternative to reading. The characteristics of mobile phones
which provide a ubiquitous learning environment to students may help them to be better readers.
It allows them the freedom to access reading materials anytime and anywhere.

MLearning via mobile phones can assist in students development of reading comprehension
skills. In MLearning, students are not restricted to an environment that is usually associated with
real and formal reading. Formal reading activities are often confined to areas such as the
classrooms, libraries, college dormitories and other formal settings. However, books or printed
reading materials may not be easily accessible outside the formal context of learning. To make
the teaching of reading less restricted, educators may want to explore the use of facilities such as
mobile phones.

Mobile phones provide students the freedom to access reading materials anytime, anywhere and
as often as they want (Goh & Kinshuk, 2006). This means that students do not have to restrict
themselves to an environment that is usually associated with real reading. It also makes learning
less rigid and interesting especially to reluctant readers as reading can be done anywhere and
anytime via mobile phones (Goh & Kinshuk, 2006). Since mobile phones are used widely in
tertiary institutions, they may be exploited for learning purposes. Studies on their use are,
however, still in their infancy (Librero et al., 2007; Goh & Kinshuk, 2006). This study is thus
conducted to determine its viability in the teaching of language.

Educators and learning experts universally agree that students ability to read and comprehend
texts is highly correlated with their academic achievement (Brown, 2007; Bishop, 2003;
Krashen, 1995 as cited in Brown, 2007). In an ESL/EFL context, a number of research strongly
indicate that reading plays a significant role in learning a second or a foreign language
(Camiciottoli, 2001; Constantino et al., 1997; Grandman & Hanania, 1991- as cited in Tanaka &
Stapleton, 2007). There is a link between the reader, the text and the reading activity (Rand
Reading Study Group, 2002). This link suggests that there is a relationship between students
ability to comprehend reading texts and the activity that reinforces that comprehension. Research
suggests the creation and integration of efficient and interesting reading activities to enhance
students reading comprehension skills (Romero-Ghiretti et al., 2007). The adoption of

75
MLearning via mobile phones in a learning context may provide students with interesting and
effective reading activities because they are able to access reading texts no matter where they are
(Landers, 2002). The literature suggests that research on the use of mobile phone as a reading
tool in an ESL context is still lacking. This study is thus conducted to investigate the use of
mobile phones in teaching reading comprehension skills.

PROBLEM STATEMENT

With regards to reading, the choice of learning approach may have an impact on students
motivation and enjoyment in reading (Brantmeier, 2005). An effective learning approach or
method may consequently lead to the development of good reading skills and achievement in
reading tests (Brantmeier, 2005). Studies have shown that there is a relationship between the
medium used in teaching, students interest in learning and their performance in reading
(Macalister, 2008; Tanaka & Stapleton, 2007). One of the possible approaches is via Mlearning.
Although it has the potential in helping students to learn, not many studies have been done to
look into factors that teachers/administrators need to consider when deciding to adopt this mode
of teaching. This study serves as a guide to those who intend to adopt the technology in
language teaching.

OBJECTIVES OF STUDY

This study will focus on students views on Mlearning in language teaching and also factors that
affect the effectiveness of the SMS reading activity. Specifically, the study attempts to:

1. investigate whether the SMS can be used to complement formal lessons and
2. explore the factors that are involved when using SMS to teach language.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The study seeks answers to the following questions:

1. What are students perceptions towards the use of SMS in the teaching of reading?
2. What are the factors to consider when adopting SMS in teaching?


76
RESEARCH SETTING

This study was conducted at the Centre for Languages and Pre-Academic Courses and
Development (CELPAD), International Islamic University, Malaysia (IIUM). CELPAD is
responsible for offering proficiency courses which focus on the improvement of students
speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills to achieve the level required for university study.
Most undergraduate programmes require at least Band 6 of IELTS or its equivalent. The
proficiency courses are divided into 6 levels and students are placed at the respective level based
on the results they obtained in the English Placement Test (EPT) conducted by the Centre. About
438 students took part in the study. It was conducted in Semester I, 2009/2010 academic
session.

METHODOLOGY

Both qualitative and quantitative approaches were adopted in this study. However, only the
qualitative results are presented here to focus on factors that influenced the application of
Mlearning in teaching reading skills.

Telecommunication Service Provider

One of the major service providers in Malaysia, namely CELCOM, was chosen for this study
since the company was willing to give a special rate for this research. The representatives of the
company suggested that use of Enterprise Messaging Service (EMS), which allows bulk mails to
be sent to all recipients at once. The information on the recipients and the content of SMS are
saved on the EMS database, and can be retrieved when needed.


77
Table 1: A Sample of a Page from EMS Screen

Table 1 shows the messages that were sent to the students, the time and the date when they were
sent. Based on the status column, the user knows whether the EMS has reached the intended
recipient.

Participants

SMSes were sent to a total of 438 students, that is, to those who owned a mobile phone in the
classes that were selected for this study. The classes were selected at random from the various
English language proficiency courses at CELPAD. These students received a reading
comprehension text, comprehension question and its answer via SMS every day for
approximately 3 months. All these had to be sent in three different SMSes due to the limitation in
the number of characters per SMS. Most of the students did not own a smart phone at the time of
the study.

Interviews and Emails

Semi-structured interviews were conducted at the end of the study to elicit the students
perceptions of information on the use of SMS in teaching reading comprehension skills. A total
of 35 students were interviewed for this reason. Apart from that emails were also sent to 113
students who were not selected for the interview.


78
ANALYSIS OF RESULTS

A majority of the students in the study used the SMS mainly to communicate with their friends.
When asked whether they saw the activity as helpful in developing their reading skills, 93.9% of
them said yes to the question. Only 1.4% did not like the activity. Among the comments given
were:

I really support this kind of activity. My friends and I would copy all the questions
we got into a book and when we have time, we would refer to the book for
revision.
(Student 3 via interview)

SMS activity really works for me. I feel excited in the morning to receive the
messages. I appreciate what CELPAD is trying to do for the students. Every
morning, I spend some time to think about the answer and most of the time, I got
it right.

I think it is important because through SMS we can get a lot of information and
any kinds of facilities used to improve in learning English language is good.

In term of this program (SMS reading activity), we got a lot of things whether
vocabulary and reading part. Moreover, I can gain my thinking skill to try to
answer the question. Therefore, the program should be continued next semester.
(Student U via email)

Perceived Improvement in Language Skills

The students were also asked about the aspects they felt they improved in after receiving the
SMSes. Many of the students in the study (31.1%) felt that the activities exposed them to new
words, and some said that they attempted to use them in writing. This is followed by an overall
improvement in language skills (25%). It is interesting to note that only 24.3% felt that it
improved their reading comprehension skills. A smaller number mentioned improvement in
other skills. These included writing (4.7%), critical thinking (4.7%), figurative language (4.7%),
grammar (2.7%) and obtaining new information (2.7%).

The students also commented that the SMS reading activities harnessed their critical thinking
skills since they had to think before they could answer the given questions. They also felt that
questions on figurative language such as idioms and proverbs enriched their vocabulary and

79
language proficiency. A few were thankful for the exposure to this method of learning. The
following excerpts reflect their opinion on the activities:
I think it does help me a little bit in terms of new words and vocabulary such as
idioms. I jot down the SMS and try to answer it before I got the answer.

The activity really helped me to build up my vocabulary besides reading skills. To
sum, the SMS was helpful and great. I faced some problems in the beginning but
by the time, I improved.
(Student B via email)

For me, as a student, the messages that CELPAD send reinforce the ability to
practise the English language every day. Really, they (texts) are very helpful and
they enrich the vocabulary students have. More than that, this kind of questions
urge students to think deeply, sharply, and accurately.
(Student D via email)

I like it because it helps me a lot by varying my vocabularyteach me to think
outside the box and how to tackle the questions as well as develops critical
thinking.
(Student G via email)

I like the activity because I get to learn new words, pronunciation, and get to
know new facts.

The most thing I like are SMS in English language because I can learn new
vocabulary and I can make good sentences. I also used the vocabulary in writing
essays.

Timing of SMS Delivery

The SMSes were sent at 10.00 a.m. to the students every day. It was assumed that it was the
most appropriate time for sending the SMSes. However, the interview revealed that it was not
the case. Twenty-three students commented that the time-gap for each of the SMSes (reading
texts, questions, answers) sent to them was not enough for them to read and guess the answers to
the questions before the actual answers were sent to them.

80
In order to solve these problems, fifty-one students (34.5%) suggested that the SMSes be sent in
the morning before class began. Twenty students (13.5%) suggested the SMSes be sent in the
afternoon while they have their lunch. A bigger percentage (35.8%) suggested that they should
be sent in the evening, that is, after they had finished classes. There were also those who
suggested that a time-gap of more than 5 minutes is given in between each SMS to make the
activities more effective. The excerpts below illustrate students preference for time:

May be CELPAD can change the time. I think CELPAD should make some
changes such as send the SMS early in the morning.

Students will receive the SMS at 10. a.m. Sometimes, by receiving those SMS will
disturb us to focus on teacher. Some students didnt make a silent phone in the
class so it could make the class lost the attention from learning.
(Student J via email)

The time is not suitable. The suitable time is during lunch time.

I got the SMS too fast. Sometimes I didnt have time to read the question and
another SMS was sent.

The time is not suitable. I think the suitable time may be in the morning or
evening. Maybe CELPAD can send the SMS before 8 am or after having lunch
and in the evening after finish classes.

I have a suggestion about time. Time is not suitable. I think it would be better if
the sending time is in the evening. That is because at this time most of students
are much more ready to read and revise than they are during the morning which
usually they have class.
(Student L via email)

What I dont like about the activity is the timing to receive the SMS. It is not the
best timing because it was often receive during lessons.
(Student M via email)


81
Interval of SMS Delivery

Other than the time of day, the interval between the SMSes was found to be an issue particularly
to those who subscribed to other telecommuniction providers. Nearly half of the students in the
study experienced difficulties in receiving the messages. Twenty-eight of them received the
answers first followed by the questions. Eleven students (7.4%) said they did not receive some of
the SMSes. Twenty-nine students (19.6%) mentioned that they received the questions and
answers later than their classmates. Below are some of the excerpts from the interviews
concerning the messages received:

Some of the messages I didnt receive because I changed line but I asked my
friends about the messages they received.

Sometimes the answers came before the questions. And sometimes the answer
came when I am still thinking about the question.
(Student N via email)

Yes, I had some difficulty in receiving the SMS. Sometimes I received the answer
before the questions. Also, I received all the messages in the same time. There
werent any gaps between the messages.
(Student O via email)

I think 2 or 3 times I got the messages later than my friends. There are also other
times when I got the messages very fast.

The reasons for these problems were that the services provided by the different
telecommunication providers were not necessarily compatible. Only texts that were sent through
the EMS company that the Centre subscribed to were sent at the planned time. A delay was
experienced by those who subscribed to other telecommunication companies.

Limitation on the Number of Characters

Most of the handphones used were the cell phones, thus limiting the number of characters that
can be sent to them. This was the reason for separating the text and the question in this study.
Longer texts could not be sent for the same reason. Only a maximum of 130 characters
including spaces could be sent per message to most of the students. Some students commented
that they preferred the texts and questions to be sent together as they found it difficult to read and

82
understand when they received the reading texts and the questions separately. This, however,
could not be done with the type of handphones they possessed at the time of this study.

Suitability of Reading Texts

In the interview held with the thirty-five students, they were asked about the suitability of the
reading comprehension texts and their level of difficulty. Nineteen students (54.3%) said the
texts and questions were acceptable. They acknowledged that the texts were of different levels
of difficulty ranging from easy to difficult. Ten students (28.6%) also mentioned that the reading
texts provided them with new words or new information. Six of them (17.1%) commented that
the texts were suitable and interesting. These are some of the excerpts on the text:

About the texts, some are easy, some difficult. Some questions are easy to
understand some questions difficult.

For me it is quite interesting because there are a lot of things that I didnt really
know before and I know it when I read the SMS. I get more information plus
English vocabulary. I think the questions are okay, some I can answer, some I
cannot.

I think some are easy, some difficult and I like most of the passages because they
are interesting. The questions are okay.

Potential for Collaborative Work

Issues raised in the text and the exercise itself could be the basis for collaborative work among
the students. This seemed to be the case with many of the students. A majority of the students
(62.9%) said that they discussed the questions they received via SMS with their friends/
classmates who received the same SMS. Five students (14.3%) commented that they shared
some of the SMSes received with their friends who did not get the SMS but did not discuss in
detail the questions with them. The following are some of the excerpts from the interviews:

I dont share with my friends who didnt get the SMS. I only discussed with
friends who received the SMS and I also refer to dictionary if I dont understand.
I didnt ask my teacher.
(Student 4)

83

Sometimes I shared with my friends who didnt get the SMS.But I only discussed
the questions with my friends who got the SMS. We looked at the questions
together and see whether out answer is right or not. I dont talk to my teacher
about the SMS.
(Student 5)

Yes, I did discuss some of the questions with my friends who didnt get the SMS. I
talked to my class mates who got the same SMS and I did ask my language
teacher how to use the vocabulary in writing.
(Student 6)

Yes, I talked to them (friends who didnt get the SMS) about the SMS. I also
discussed with my friends who got the SMS to get the answer and I use dictionary
if I dont know some words. I dont discuss with my language teacher. I only
discuss with my friends.
(Student 10)

I shared with friends who didnt get. I copied in a book and showed to friends
who didnt get. I discussed with friends who received the same messages, but I
didnt share with my language teacher.
(Student 22)

I shared with my friends who didnt get the SMS. I just showed them the questions
in my hand phone. I discussed the questions with my friends who got the SMS,
how they got the answer but I dont talk to my teacher about the SMS.
(Student 35)

Performance in the SMS Activities

The researchers did not have the means to check whether the students managed to answer the
questions posed or not. The onus was on the students themselves to check whether they got the
answer right. When asked how many times they got the answer right, only 22.9% managed to do
so. A greater percentage (42.9%) obtained between 70% to 80%, whilst 43.3% got 60%-70% of
them right. Students responses to this question are given below:

About 70% I think. A lot, I think the activity helped me to improve my reading
comprehension. Yes, Im really interested to get involved in activity like this.
(Student 12)


84

I think about 70% to 80% I got correct answers. I think the activity has helped me
a lot to improve my English but I still think classroom learning is important but
its good to have both. I dont mind being involved in another activity like this.
(Student 14)

About 85% I think. It helps me to improve my reading comprehension especially
vocabulary and I dont mind getting involved in the future
(Student 29)

When asked whether they felt that they had improved in their reading comprehension, all of them
said they did. They also said that they would participate if similar activities are conducted in the
future.

Cost incurred

What the students did not know was that the activity incurred cost. Around RM11,500.00 was
spent on paying for the EMS. This is quite costly for a Centre to bear. Although the activity is
useful, cost is an important issue.

Based on the students responses in the interviews and the emails received, it can be concluded
that the use of mobile technology in language learning specifically the SMS reading activities
was generally accepted positively by a majority of these students. They felt that their language
skills such as reading comprehension, vocabulary, grammar, speaking, and writing improved due
to the exposure to the SMS reading activities.

Romero-Ghiretti et al. (2007) stresses the importance of integrating interesting reading activities
to enhance students reading comprehension skills. Landers (2002) claim that Mlearning can
make learning interesting is applicable in this study. The SMSes gave students access to the
reading materials ubiqutously (Goh & Kinshuk, 2006).

The qualitative analysis of data reveals that there were three major problems in the study. The
first problem was the incompatibility of telecommunication service. Students who subscribed to
other telecommunication providers received their messages later than those who subscribed to
the same provider as the Centre. The second problem was the different rates imposed by the
telecommunication provider. The Centre had to pay more for messages that were sent to students
who subscribed to other telecommunication providers. The third issue was the limitation on the

85
number of characters that could be sent per message. One message could only contain 130
characters (including spaces). As the problems mentioned were mostly technical issues, future
SMS reading activities need to consider all these issues before embarking on such an innovation.

However, the findings also highlighted some of the problems faced by the students. These
problems included the time they received the SMSes, and the inconsistency and order of the
messages received. Students felt the time they received the SMSes was not suitable and
suggested other times which they thought were more conducive for learning. They also
commented that if the inconsistency and order of the messages received could be resolved,
learning would be more effective. Researchers on mobile learning have in fact stated that
students might encounter some difficulties during the implementation of MLearning (Muyinda,
2007; Barbosa & Geyer, 2005; Sharma & Kitchens, 2004).

The study shows that the SMS can yet be another resource for teaching. The easy access to
mobile facilities can be exploited to enhance learning. Although the students had access to other
reading materials, the materials provided were tailor-made to their needs and hence more
relevant to their course. The study serves to support the contention that the use of short message
services can facilitate learning anywhere, anytime.


86
REFERENCES

Barbosa, D. N. F. & Geyer, C. F. R. (2005). Pervasive personal pedagogical agent: a mobile
agent shall always be with a learner. Proceedings of the IADIS International Conference
Mobile Learning, Malta p. 282-285.

Brantmeier, C. (2005). Non-linguistic variables in advanced second language reading: learners
self-assessment and enjoyment. Foreign Language Annals, 38, 4, 494-504.

Brown, C. L. (2007). Supporting English language learners in content-reading. Reading
Improvement, 44, 1, 32-39.

Camiciottoli, B. C. (2001). Extensive reading in English: Habits and attitudes of a group of
Italian university EL students. Journal of Research in Reading, 24(2), 135-153.

Constantino, R., Lee, S.Y, Cho, K.S & Krashen, S. (1997). Free voluntary reading as a predictor
of TOEFL scores. Applied Language Learning, 8, 111-118.

Goh, T. & Kinshuk. (2006). Getting ready for mobile learning-adaptation perspective. Journal of
Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia, 15, 2, 175-198.
Kaur, S. & Thiyagarajah, R. (1999). The English Reading Habits of ELLS Students in
University Science Malaysia. Sixth International Literacy and Education research
Network Conference on Learning, Penang, Malaysia.

Landers, P. (2002). Mobile learning in action. From e-learning to m-learning. Retrieved July 14,
2009, from http://learning.ericsson.net/mlearning2/project_one/mobile_learning.html

Librero, F., Ramos, A. J., Ranga, A. I., Trinona, J. & Lambert, D. (2007). Uses of the cell phone
for education in the Philippines and Mongolia. Distance Education, 28, 2, 231-244.

Macalister, J. (2008). Integrating extensive reading into an English for academic purposes
program. The Reading Matrix, 8, 1, 23-34.

Moore, R. A. (1992). Critical thinking ability and measures of language proficiency: a
quantitative study on the X152 seminar for Malaysians. Unpublished research. Indiana
University.

Muyinda, P. B. (2007). MLearning: pedagogical, technical and organisational hypes and
realities. Retrieved June 19, 2009, from

87
www.emeraldinsight.com/1065-0741.htm

Pikkert, J.J.J & Foster,L. (1996). Critical thinking skills among third year
Indonesian English students. RELC Journal, 27,2, 56-64

RAND Reading Study Group. (2001). Reading for understanding: toward a R & D program in
reading comprehension. Retrieved July 2, 2009, from
http://www.RAND.org/multi/achievementforall/reading/readreport.html

Romero-Ghiretti, G., White, V., Berg, B., Quintana, R. D., Grayson, B. L. & Weng, M. (2007).
Research and theory driven insights: ten suggestions for L2 reading instruction. The
Reading Matrix, 7, 3, 44-54. Retrieved May 29, 2009, from www.readingmatrix.com

Sharma, S. K. & Kitchens, F. L. (2004). Web services architecture for M-Learning. Electronic
Journal of E-Learning, 2, 2. Retrieved July 22, 2009, from
http://www.ejel.org/toc.htm

Tanaka, H. & Stapleton, P. (2007). Increasing reading input in Japanese high school EFL
classrooms: an empirical study exploring the efficacy of extensive reading. The Reading
Matrix, 7,1, 115-131.


88

CHAPTER 7

ARABIC LANGUAGE LEARNERS FONT PREFERENCES

NURKHAMIMI BIN ZAINUDDIN
NURAIHAN MAT DAUD

The aim of this study is to analyse font type, font size and line length preferred by
Arabic language learners when reading on-screen. Studies done on other
languages, especially those using Roman scripts, have shown that font size and
type affect ease of reading. In this study, Arabic language learners were asked to
identify e-books that were easy to read. A majority of them found 14-point font
size Simplified Arabic easy to read. However, Arial Unicode was more attractive
than the other fonts. Results also indicated that most of them preferred to read
texts on full-screen.
Keywords: Arabic language learning, font type, font size, line length.

INTRODUCTION

The screen is fast becoming a ubiquitous feature of life. Yet, like reading texts on paper, reading
on screen has its problem. Glare, font size, and font type are among the problems that are
associated with the use of computers. Bernard et al. (2002) studied adult preference for font type
and size by measuring their reading efficiency, reading time, legibility of font type, attractiveness
of text, and font preference, and found that 12-point Times New Roman and Arial font types
were read faster than other fonts and sizes that were tested. Apart from that, Arial and Courier
font types were considered the most legible fonts. It was also noticed that Arial font type with
12-point size was the preferred font when it is an online text.

Chaparro (2006) compared the fonts used in previous editions of Windows with new fonts
created for Windows Vista. They found that the fonts used in Windows Vista such as Cambria
and Constantia were more legible than the traditional Times New Roman. In a study conducted
by Moret-Tatay and Pereal (2011) comparison was made between words written using serif and
sans serif fonts, and found that sans serif was the preferred choice for on-screen texts.

89
Colour is another factor that could affect ease of reading. Humar, Gradisar and Turk (2008)
investigated the impact of color combinations on the legibility of a Web page presented on a
calibrated cathode ray tube display. The analysis shows that colour combinations did affect
identification of characters. The results were better for colours with greatest luminance contrast
when the backgrounds were dark. Where the length of text was concerned, Dyson (2004) and
McPherson et al. (2003) found that adults preferred to read medium line length with
approximately 65 to 75 characters-per-length.

With regard to non-English texts, studies have shown that users have their preferences where
font size and type are concerned. Based on their study on Korean speakers, Kong et al. (2011)
concluded that letter size and font type helped in improving the legibility of characters written in
Korean language. Ziefles (2010) found that users navigation performance increased with an
increase in font size. Based on their study, Hemayssi et al. (2005) reported that bold fonts, bright
colors and clear icons helped to make Arabic scripts more legible. However, studies on font type
and size for Arabic are scarce. This study aims to investigate the font size and type that is
preferred by Arabic language learners.

PROBLEM STATEMENT

More reading is being done online especially by the younger generation and an increasing
number of institutions is providing electronic supplementary materials to enhance the reading
process (Hemayssi et. al. 2005). Without a proper guideline, e-learning education will fail the
designer, the instructor and the learner (Dyson, 2004). Since ease of reading can be affected by
factors other than content of the text, there is a need to investigate how some of these problems
can be overcome. This study is thus conducted to see how factors relating to the font used affect
ease of reading especially texts written in Arabic.

RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

The objectives of this study are to:

(i) examine Arabic learners ease of on-screen reading based on selected font and font
size;
(ii) investigate the font and font size preferred by Arabic learners;
(iii) analyse the screen line length preferred by Arabic learners when reading texts on
computer screen.


90
METHODOLOGY

The study was conducted at the Centre for Foundation Studies, International Islamic University
Malaysia. The study was conducted on pre-university students who were following the Arabic
language proficiency course at the Centre. Since most of the students had never taken Arabic as a
subject before joining the Centre, a number of initiatives were taken to enhance their Arabic
language proficiency including the use of computers in learning and teaching. In order to
optimise the use of the technology, it is thus necessary to know which font is preferred by
students when reading is done on screen.

Participants

A total of 40 Arabic language learners at the intermediate level participated in the study. The
students were asked to read ten three-page e-stories under the supervision of an Arabic language
instructor. They were between eighteen and nineteen years old. All of them used computers at
home and had read e-books.

The Arabic learners were asked to read e-stories which were written using Arial Unicode MS,
Courier New, Microsoft Sans Serif, Simplified Arabic, and Traditional Arabic fonts respectively.
For each font, the students were asked to read a story that was written in two different sizes. Font
sizes 12 and 14 were used in this study. (See Appendix One for the samples of the e-stories).
Half an hour was spent on each e-story. Table 1 shows the different font types and sizes used in
the experiment.

Table 1: Font types and sizes studied
Font type 12-point size 14-point size
Arial Unicode
MS

Courier New

Microsoft Sans
Serif

Simplified
Arabic

Traditional
Arabic


91
The text was displayed in the center of the screen. A black coloured font was used on a white
background. A stopwatch was used to record the time participants took to read the paragraphs.
The number of incorrectly pronounced words was also noted.

Questionnaire survey

A six-item questionnaire survey was distributed to all the participants after reading the e-books.
This was to ascertain their preferences with regard to font type and size used. The six items are
as follows:

1. Which font type was easy to read?
2. Which font size was easy to read?
3. Which was the most attractive font type when 12-point font size was used?
4. Which was the most attractive font type when 14-point font size was used?
5. Which screen line length allowed faster reading?
6. How much time did you spend reading each word in the e-story?

Participants were asked to read a simple sentence with all font type and size combinations on a
single page. They were then asked to select the font type and size that they preferred.
Participants were also asked to choose the most comfortable screen line length while reading.
Scripts written in the same font type and size (e.g. Simplified Arabic with size 14-point) were
presented to the participant using different line lengths; 1/3 screen line length, 2/3 screen line
length, and full screen line length. The participants were asked to rate their reading comfort and
satisfaction level among the three different screen line lengths.

RESULTS

Ease of reading

The e-books came in 5 different fonts. Out of 40 students, 19 (48%) found Simplified Arabic
font as the easiest to read while Microsoft Sans Serif as the most difficult to read (3%). The
results are given in Figure 1 below:

92

Figure 1: Ease of reading font type preferences

Further analysis was done to investigate which font size helps ease reading. The results show that
there is a big difference between font size 12-point and font size 14-point. 93 % of the students
claimed that the 14-point font was easier to read. Only 7% said that 12-point font was easier to
read. This is expected considering the fact that the bigger the font size, the easier it is to read.
The results also revealed that Simplified Arabic with 14-point font size was considered the
easiest to read.

Preferred font and font size

The finding of the study indicates that 42% of the participants considered Arial Unicode MS as
the most attractive font type (Figure 2) while Microsoft Sans Serif was found to be the least
attractive. This study shows that a font that was easy to read (Simplified Arabic) was not
necessarily the most attractive. The study also found that the font that was most difficult to read
(Microsoft Sans Serif) was considered the least attractive. It may be safe to assume that for this
population the font that was difficult to read was also the least attractive.

Figure 2: Font attractiveness preference

93
Line Length

According to Figure 3 a majority of the students (60%) preferred full screen line length. This was
based on the students self-timing of their speed of reading when they were given texts with
different screen line length. It was found that on average it took them 1.1 second per word when
the text was presented on a full screen. When one-third of the screen was used the average
reading rate was 1.2 second per word whilst 1.3 second was spent on texts presented on 2/3
screen line length.

Figure 3: The percentage of the preferred screen line length

Interviews with the participants who preferred the full screen line length revealed that they also
liked having more information on one line. On the other hand, those who liked the 1/3 screen
line length indicated that the short line length helped them to read faster. According to them, it
required less eye movement and the paragraph seemed neat and clear.

DISCUSSION

Bernard et al (2002) found that 12-point Times New Roman and Arial fonts were faster to read.
However, in this study students found 14-point Simplified Arabic easier to read. This could be
related to the scripts used. The nature of Arabic script is different from the Roman script. Thus a
bigger size may be needed to ease reading especially among those who are not really proficient
in the language.

Where the font type is concerned, it is noticed that the type preferred differs from one study to
another. In this study, it was Simplifed Arabic, in Chaparros (2006) it was Cambria and
Constantia, whereas in Moret-Tatay and Pereals (2011) Sans Serif was preferred to Serif. Times
New Roman and Arial were the preferred fonts in Bernard et al.s (2002) study.

94
CONCLUSION

The study shows that users have different preferences with regard to font type, size and medium
used. In this study, the Arabic learners preferred 14-point Simplified Arabic font. This
information can be used when developing online materials for Arabic learners to help in their
learning process.


95
REFERENCES

Bababekova, Y., Rosenfield, M., Hue, J.E., Huang, R.R. (2011) Font size and viewing distance
of handheld smart phones, Geometry and Vision Science, 88 (7), 795-797.
Bernard, M.L.; Lida, B.; Riley, S.; Hackler, T.; & Janzen, K. (2002). A comparison of popular
online fonts: Which size and type is best?. Usability News. 4.4.
Bernard, M.L.; Melissa, M.; Talissa, F. & Jan,M. (2001). Which Fonts do Children Prefer to
Read Online?. Usability News. 3.1.
Chaparro, B.; Dawn Shaikh; A. & Chaparro, A. (2006). Examining the Legibility of Two New
ClearType Fonts. Usability News. 8.1
Dyson, M.C. (2004). How physical text layout affects reading from screen. Behaviour &
Information Technology, 23(6), 377393.
Hemayssi, H.; Sanchez, E.; Moll, R. & Field, C. (2005). Designing an Arabic user experience:
methods and techniques to bridge cultures. In Proceedings of the Conference on Designing
for User Experiences DUX05 2005. 71
Humar, I., Gradisar, M. & Turk, T (2008) The impact of color combinations on the legibility of a
Web page text presented on CRT displays, International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics,
38 (11-12), 885-899.
Kong, Y.K., Lee, I., Jung, M.C., Song, Y.W. (2011) The effects of age, viewing distance, display
type, font type, colour contrast and number of syllable on the legibility of Korean
characters, Ergonomics, 54 (5), 453-465.
McPherson, M.A.; Nunes, J.M. & Zafeiriou, G. (2003) New Tutoring Skills for Online Learning:
Are e-Tutors adequately prepared for e-learning delivery? In Proceedings of EDEN 2003
The Quality Dialogue; Integrating Quality Cultures in Flexible, Distance and e-learning,
15-18 June 2003, Rhodes, Greece, 347-350.
Moret-Tatay, C. & Pereal, M. (2011) Do serifs provide an advantage in the recognition of written
words? Journal of Cognitive Psychology, 23 (5), 619-624.


96

APPENDIX ONE

Figure 1: Sample page using 12-point


97

Figure 2: Sample page using 14-point


98

CHAPTER 8

YOUNG LEARNERS USE OF ICT FACILITIES AND THE
DEVELOPMENT OF THEIR LANGUAGE SKILLS

NURAIHAN MAT DAUD

This paper discusses the ICT facilities that can be used by young learners to
develop their language proficiency. A longitudinal study on a child shows that
PowerPoint can be an interesting tool to develop various aspects of writing. The
older children preferred sites which were more interactive. The real audience
made these sites a suitable medium for developing their communication skills. The
study shows that there is an improvement in their language skills with time. The
Internet was found to be a suitable tool for developing their communication skills.
The analysis also shows that the relationship between having a computer at home
and access to the Internet, and students performance in the English language at
school was statistically significant.
Keywords: young learners, PowerPoint, language proficiency, communication
skills

INTRODUCTION

There are many factors that can affect the rate of learning. The quality of early education has
been identified as important in fostering young children's school readiness and success (Castro,
2011). At school, among the attributes that are found to be significant in learning are students
attentiveness in the classroom, the homework given (Sahinkaras, 2011) and the strategies
employed in the classroom (Huang, 2011; Cunningham and Redmond, 2008). However, learning
is not limited to activities that take place in the classroom. Factors such as home environment
and peer group influence can also affect learning. Thus this study is conducted to investigate
whether childrens use of technology outside the classroom has an impact on the development of
their language skills.

Studies have shown that the various technological tools can help in the learning process (e.g.
Warschauer, 1998; Ho, 2004; Nuraihan & Zamnah, 2004). In a quasi-experimental study

99
conducted by Verdugo and Belmonte (2007) in six state schools in Madrid, it was found that
Internet-based technology could improve students listening comprehension in English. Agudo,
Sanchoz and Rico (2006) argue that Adaptive Hypermedia Systems can be used to adapt and
personalise content to children's needs and abilities. Many similar devices have been developed
to help in the learning process.

One example where the technology can be integrated is in the teaching of writing skills. In-class
writing alone may not be enough to produce competent writers. Childrens life experiences can
affect how and what they write (Lu, 2000). Haneda and Wells (2000) emphasise the importance
of social interaction with other more competent members of the society to develop childrens
writing skills. The Internet can be utilised to provide an authentic environment to the writers
(Warschauer & Healey, 1998). With children of today, this experience includes the use of web
2.0 technologies in their daily lives. Purposeful activities with peers and competent members of
the society can be facilitated by these technologies. Such an experience helps to expose students
to the appropriate rhetorical styles of writing (Matsuda et al., 2003). The strength lies in the
possibility of obtaining feedback from the readers. White and Arndts (1991) model highlight
the importance of feedback in the process writing model. According to Keh (1990), feedback
can be in the form of comments, questions and suggestions to the writers to help them improve
their drafts.

PROBLEM STATEMENT

Although there are many facilities provided by the computer and communication technology,
very little research has been done on how they can be used to develop young learners language
skills. This study attempts to examine how students use of these tools can help in developing
their language skills.

RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

The main objective of the study is to investigate whether the use of computers can help improve
young learners language proficiency. The study also examines the contribution of computers in
enhancing young learners writing ability.

RESEARCH APPROACH

In this research, both cross-sectional and longitudinal approaches were adopted. The researcher
acted as a participant observer in this study. Two girls (S1 and S2) writing activities were
observed to examine their language development. The younger girl (S1) was observed for four

100
years whilst the teenager (S2) was observed for a year. Documents that consisted of samples of
their written works were collected and analysed. A questionnaire survey was developed out of
the qualitative study. Questionnaire surveys were then distributed to three selected schools in the
Klang Valley. A total of 201 students took part in the survey.

Participants

One of the girls was six at the beginning of this study, and the other was sixteen. They came
from two different families. Malay was the language used in both homes. Both had easy access
to the Internet. S1 went to a private school whilst S2 went to a public school.

S1s writing activities were observed for four years. The observation revealed that S1 did not
really like to read her school textbooks neither did she like the drill and practice exercises that
her teacher expected her to do. Her hobby was reading story books and doing crossword
puzzles. At home she was given the freedom to do whatever she liked (with regard to computer
usage) as long as she did her homework.

When her learning style was tested using Perceptual Learning Style Preference Questionnaire
(Reid, 1997), it was found that she was a tactile/kinesthetic learner. This means that she learnt
best by doing. She was also a naturalist, which means that she enjoyed being outdoor. Animals
and other living beings would excite her. The family bought her a laptop that she shared with
her elder sister. Most of the time she used it to play games such as chess and solitaire. She also
used it to do her school assignments.

S2 was sixteen when she was observed for this study. She was among the better students in her
school. Malay was the language used at home. None of her family members were proficient in
English. The family of S2 bought a laptop for her personal use. She was free to access the
Internet from her room. Her parents did not check what she surfed on the Internet. At home, she
spent most of her time in her room studying and revising her work. She obtained an A for
English in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia examination (equivalent to the GCE Ordinary Level
Examination). This examination was taken when she was seventeen.

Survey respondents

A total of 201 students took part in the questionnaire survey. 164 of them were in secondary
schools and 37 in a primary school. Out of these, 96 were females and 105 were males. 199 of
the students in this study had a computer at home. Those who did not possess a computer used
the computers in public places such as cybercafes, the school and also the library.


101
FINDINGS

Results of Qualitative Study

Document analysis of the written works of the two young learners revealed that their works
improved with time. Various means were used by them in writing. PowerPoint, Word and
various social networking facilities were used by the two girls. Their written works (graphics
used) were also more sophisticated as they knew more about the software or the facilities that
they were using.

At the beginning of the study, S1 was six years old. Essay writing was yet to be taught at school
then. The study, however, shows that a child this age could express herself in writing given a
conducive environment. Extracts of her work are given in Figures 1 and 2:

Figure 1: S1s Written Work When She Was Six

Since S1 was still struggling with her keyboarding skills, she was encouraged to use the capital
letters only. It was noticed that the writing was based on the pictures that she had.

RUMAH AUNTI NITA
SAYA DI RUMAH AUNTIE NITA.DIRUMAH AUNTI
NITA SAYA BERMAIN DENGAN
ANAKNYA.NAMA ANAK NYA SAYA TIDAK
INGAT.AUNTIE NITA MASAK SEDAP.. RUGI
TAK MAKAN.

102
Figure 2: S1s Written Work When She Was Nine (written using PowerPoint)
Cerita: saya/ Faizahhilang
Padasuatuhari ,sayamerajuk. Lepasitu, ummi sayadankakaksaya
tinggal kansaya. Sebabstokinsayatebal sebabdekat M addinah sejuk.
Semasaitu, sayadi M ovenpickdi takM addinah. Lepasitu, ummi
sayatunggusayadekat tingkat zero. Sayapun pergi ketingkat zero.
U mmi sayatak nampak sebab ummi sayatakpakai cerminmata. U mmi
sayasuruhkakaksayapergi tingkat sebelaskenapaummi sayasuruhpergi
tikat sebelassebabsaya,kakaksayadanummi sayaduduktingkat itu
.sambungdekat sebelastengok-tengokFaizahtakada.Sebabkenapa
faizahtakadasebabFaizahadadi tingkat zero. Lepasitu Faizah tak
nampakummi . Faizahteruspergi M asji Nabawi untuk sembahyang
zohor sayalupanaknakbagi tahuhari ini eh? Terlupalahsorry eh?
SambungM asjid Nabawi untuk sembahyangzohor.Sayamasuk
masjid sayasembahyangtahyatul masjid.Lepasitu, baru sembahyang
zohor . M asanak senbahyangzohor ketahyatui masjid saya

The writing resembles her spoken language but the message was clear. It was observed that it
was not only the story that she was concerned with but also the colour, font and design of the
background of her story. She edited her works focusing on content. As she grew older she wrote
more, and relied less on pictures when writing.

S2 used different social Web 2.0 technologies facilities to serve different purposes. Facilities
that allow for two-way communication interest her more than software such as Word and Power-
Point. Malay was the main language used on her Friendster site. She chose Fairies and
Vampires to communicate in English (see Figure 3). This site exposed her to spoken English (in
writing). In order to improve her writing she chose Blogspot (see Figure 4).


103
Figure 3: Extract from S2s Fairies and Vampires Site

S2 used pseudonyms in Fairies and Vampires so that other users would not realise that she was
not a native speaker of English. This gave her the opportunity to use the language in an
authentic environment since the others were presumably native speakers of English.

Figure 4: Extract from S2s blog


104
Nobody in S2s family was highly proficient in English but she was determined to master the
language. She used different social networks to serve this purpose. The blog was for her to
improve her writing, and her blog, Fairies and Vampires, and Facebook were to improve her
English communication skills.

Results of qualitative study

A questionnaire was developed based on the qualitative study. Questions include ownership of
computers, access to the technology, language results obtained in the National level
examinations and the Internet facilities and generic software used by the students in the study.

Their English results in the national level Primary School Assessment and Lower Secondary
Assessment Examination were used to indicate their level of English proficiency. A cross-
tabulation of their results with ownership of a computer at home and access to the Internet shows
that those who had access to ICT facilities did better in their English paper. When independent
sample T-tests were conducted between English results and having computers at home, it was
found that the relationship was highly significant. The Mann-Whitney U value was 8771.5
(p<0.05). Similar result was found when a t-test was conducted between their English results and
access to the Internet (Mann-Whitney value= 9126.00, p<0.05). The relationship between using
these facilities to communicate and their English results was also found to be highly significant
(Mann-Whitney value=10151.5, p<0.05).

Of the 177 students who took the Lower Secondary Assessment Examination, 65 obtained an A,
56 a B, 43 a C, 10 a D and 3 an E. Table 1 presents a cross-tabulation between their English
results and their Internet activities.

Table 1: Cross-tabulation between English Results and Social Network Used
English
results
Social Network Sites
E-mail Blog MySpace Facebook
A 45 15 29 38
B 32 7 32 23
C 14 2 29 7
D 3 1 5 -
E 1 1 2 -
Total 95 26 97 68


105
Table 1 shows that students with better results used the social network more than others, with the
A scorers as the most active users of these social networks.

Table 2 presents a cross-tabulation between students Lower Secondary Assessment Examination
results and their use of the generic software:

Table 2: Cross-tabulation between English Results and Generic Software Used
English
Results
Generic Software Used
Word PowerPoint Excel
A 55 19 5
B 41 17 -
C 30 10 -
D 5 2 -
E 3 1 -
Total 134 49 5

The figures in Table 2 reflect similarity in results with those in Table 1 in that the better
performers were those who used the various technological facilities on the computer.


The findings in this study are in line with similar studies in this field. As in Verdugo and
Belmontes (2007) study, the students improved in their language performance with greater use
of the ICT facilities. In this study, students who had access or who used the various
technological tools performed better in their English examination. As pointed out by Haneda and
Wells (2000), the social interaction network provides the opportunity for the users to
communicate with other speakers of the language. The immediate feedback helped in the
learning process (Keh, 1990). Thus it can be concluded that the use of the appropriate
technological tools can complement formal language learning. This points to the need for a
greater integration of technology into language teaching.


106
REFERENCES

Agudo, J. Enrique, Sanchez, H. and Rico, Mercedes (2006) Adaptive learning for very young
learners, in Wade, V., Ashman, H. and Smyth, D. (eds.) Adaptive Hypermedia and
Adapative Web-Based Systems, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 4018, 393-397.
Castro, Dina C., Paez, Mariela M., Dickinson, David K., Frede, Ellen (2011). Promoting
language and literacy in young dual language learners, Child Development Perspectives,
5 (1), 15-21.
Cunningham, Ann and Redmond, Mary Lynn (2008) Instructional design and early language
learning: Cognition, creativity and technology, Hispania-A Journal Devoted to the
Teaching of Spanish and Portuguese, 91 (2), 435-445.
Franco, Claudio de Paiva. (2008) .Using wiki-based peer-correction to develop writing skills of
Brazilian EFL learners. Novitas-Royal, 2 (1), 49-59.

Haneda & Wells (2000) Writing in knowledge-building communities, Research in the Teaching
of English 34, (3), pp. 430457.

Ho, Wai-Chung, 2004. Use of information technology and music learning in the search for
quality education. British Journal of Educational Technology, 35 (1): 57-87.
Huang, Kuei-Min. (2011). Motivating lessons: A classroom-oriented investigation of the effects
of content-based instruction on EFL young learners motivated behaviours and classroom
verbal interaction, SYSTEM, 39 (2), 186-201.
Keh, C. L. (1990) Feedback in the writing process: A model and methods for implementation,
ELT Journal, 44: 294-304.
Lu, M. Y. (2000). Writing development. ERIC Clearinghouse.
Matsuda, P. K., Canagarajah, A. S., Harklau, L., Hyland, K., & Warschauer, M. (2003).
Changing currents in second language writing research: A colloquium. Journal of Second
Language Writing, 12(2), 151-179
Nuraihan Mat Daud and Zamnah Husin (2004) Developing critical thinking skills in computer-
aided extended reading classes, British Journal of Educational Technology, Vol. 35(4),
pp. 477-487.
Pelletier, Janette .(2008) . The Role of Parents, Families and Caregivers in Young Childrens
Literacy Development: A Review of Programs and Research. (PDF document) Retrieved
from www.oise.utoronto.ca/ICS/resources/NSELPelletier08.pdf

Sahinkarakas, Sehnaz (2011) Young students success and failure attributions, Social Behaviour
and Personality, 39 (7), 879-885.

107
Verdugo, Dolores Ramirez, Belmonte, Isabel Alonso (2007) Using digital stories to
improve listening comprehension with Spanish young learners of English,
Language Learning & Technology, 11 (1), 87-101.
Warschauer, Mark. (1998) Interaction, negotiation and computer-mediated learning in
Educational Technology. In Language Learning: Theoretical reflection and practical
applications, Ed., V. Darleguy, A. Ding and M. Svensson. Lyon, France: National
Institute of Applied Science, Centre of Language Resources, p.125-136.
White, R., Arndt, V. (1991) Process Writing. London: Longman.


108

CHAPTER 9

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEARNING STYLE AND WRITING
PERFORMANCE OF YOUNG LEARNERS IN POWERPOINT ASSISTED
CLASSES

NURAIHAN MAT DAUD
RADZITA RADZI

This paper discusses the correlation between young learners writing
performance and their learning styles when PowerPoint was used to teach writing
skills. This study focuses on the sensory learning styles which comprises visual,
auditory, kinesthetic and tactile learning styles (perceptual learning style). Reids
(1995) Perceptual Learning Style Preferences questionnaire was used to
ascertain the students learning styles and a correlation analysis between their
learning styles and writing performance was run. The analysis shows that there
is no statistically significant difference between the writing performance of the
young learners in computer-assisted class and the traditional class. Their
learning styles did not have a significant influence on their language
performance.
Keywords: Learning style, writing performance, young learners, PowerPoint,
English proficiency

INTRODUCTION

General practice has shown that in the early years of writing experience it is important that
young learners are given flexibility and freedom to express themselves in writing. In this way
they are stimulated to express the flow of their thoughts creatively, without having to think of the
language form which is often a contributory factor to writing blocks and difficulties in the later
years. Teachers of writing often focus on form rather than function in writing and set all the
parameters on when, what and how to write. These were found to be among the factors that
contribute to the difficulties learners would face later in writing (Scardamila, 1981).


109
In developing writing skills, one of the major factors to consider is the learners learning styles.
Learning styles refer to an individuals natural, habitual, and preferred way(s) of absorbing,
processing and retaining new information and skills (Reid, 1995). Alfonseca et al. (2006), point
out that teachers awareness of their learners' learning styles can help in deciding which approach
to use in writing.

Young learners may have different learning styles and teachers may want to use a variety of
ways to teach writing to make their classes more effective. Teaching aids may need to be used to
cater to the different learning styles. Technology may be integrated into the writing class for this
reason. The introduction of computer into the classroom which allows rich media experience,
may help to make the lesson more interesting to learners with certain learning styles (Davies &
Hewer, 2001). One of the software that can be used for this purpose is the PowerPoint.

Since its introduction as a presentation tool, the PowerPoint has seen significant improvements in
its functions. It now has many of the functions that are available on a word processor. Unlike the
word processor, PowerPoint has ready-made presentation templates and features such as
graphics, pictures, animations, sound and slide transitions. Such features may make it a more
interesting software to use in developing writing skills especially to the young learners.

The flexible nature of the PowerPoint software has been highlighted as one of its prime
advantages over traditional learning materials. Steur (1992) claimed that two principal features
of such software were the ability to produce a non-linear organisation of information and the
ability of the user to interact with and under certain circumstances, modify the form of materials
to be learned.

Ghillebaert (1999), in her research, has shown that the use of computerassisted language
learning technology using various software has proven beneficial to students of varying learning
styles. One of the software is the PowerPoint. In her study on annotated L2 reading using
technology, she claimed that the visual medium of the computer met the needs of the visual
learner. The clicking that is an integral part of computer use, allowed tactile learners to function
in their preferred learning style while the recordings proved beneficial to auditory learners.

PowerPoint features may also suit learners with different styles of learning. The fact that
PowerPoint allows easy insertion of graphics, pictures, animations and sound other than merely
words, can motivate learners with different learning styles in developing their writing skills.
Studies on how this software can be used in the teaching of writing skills are, however, scarce.
This study will therefore, focus on how learners learning styles affect writing skills development
when PowerPoint is used as a teaching tool.

110
RESEARCH SETTING

English has long been established as a second language in Malaysia. The government has taken
several initiatives to ensure that the Malaysian students acquire adequate command of English.
As early years of education are most critical in the long process of this acquisition, the
educational establishment has taken an effort to enhance the methods of teaching English to the
young learners. Particular attention in this regard has been paid to the lower primary learners, as
the knowledge acquired at that level would later constitute the foundation for the rest of their
education experience (MOE, 2000).

It is in line with this aspiration of the government that effort has been taken to enhance teaching
and learning by integrating technology into the curriculum. One of them is to equip all schools,
especially primary schools, with adequate computer facilities. Non-governmental agencies, such
as Intel Malaysia Berhad, Time Telekom and MIMOS are involved in the integration of
information communication technology in teaching and learning. Training is, in selected school,
given parallel to both, teachers and learners, by these agencies. It is also the government policy
to encourage teachers and learners to keep abreast with the latest technology.

The current English writing curriculum for lower primary school learners in Malaysia, however,
does not focus on the use of multimedia, specifically Power Point, in enhancing learners writing
skills. Teachers are encouraged to use the teaching courseware provided by the Curriculum
Development Center (CDC) of the Ministry of Education in classrooms for teaching purposes.
As for the young learners, there has been no mention of computer-assisted language learning in
the curriculum specification. Besides that, learners are expected to develop their writing skills at
the word, phrase and sentence levels. They are also given guided writing exercises and taught to
write simple descriptions with guidance (for example using pictures). The focus is normally on
accuracy and form rather than on function (MOE, 2000). This kind of early experience according
to Boice (1997), could be among the factors that contribute to writing blocks.

PROBLEM STATEMENT

In many writing classes, lower primary school learners are usually guided by teachers. The
teacher normally decides on the topic to be written and how it should be written. More attention
is given to spelling, grammar and accurate sentence structure rather than function of the language
(Scardamila, 1981). It is common that the teacher decides on the topic. The learners are not
given freedom to write about what they are interested in. This study is thus conducted to examine
whether PowerPoint can enhance writing skill development in young learners.


111
RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

This study was undertaken to investigate how young learners perform when PowerPoint is used.
A secondary objective is to find out whether learners with visual learning style perform better
than other learning styles when PowerPoint is used in teaching writing.

The specific objectives of the study are to investigate the correlation between young learners
writing performance with:

a. visual learning style
b. kinesthetic learning style
c. auditory learning style
d. tactile learning style

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

Specifically, this study seeks to answer the following questions:

1. Is there a correlation between young learners writing performance with visual learning
style when PowerPoint is used?
2. Is there a correlation between young learners writing performance with kinesthetic
learning style when PowerPoint is used?
3. Is there a correlation between young learners writing performance with auditory learning
4. Is there a correlation between young learners writing performance with tactile learning
5. Do young learners with visual learning style perform better than those with other learning
styles in writing when PowerPoint is used?

LITERATURE REVIEW

In the 70s, Bandler (1979) coined the term neuro-linguistic programming to define learning
styles which refer to the use of primary senses or sensory channels such as seeing, hearing,
touching, smelling to process information. Kolb (1976) defines learning styles as the way we
process information, and Dunn, Dunn & Price (1975) included perceptual and physiological
aspects of learning styles in their definition. Another proponent of learning styles, Reid (1995)
states that there are three main categories of learning styles namely, cognitive learning styles,
sensory learning styles and affective/temperament learning styles.

112
For the purpose of this study, the focus is narrowed down to sensory learning styles. According
to Felder (1996), the sensory dimension would indicate whether the learners are sensing learners,
who process information through their senses, or intuitive learners who process information
through their memory, reflection, and imagination. Sensory or perceptual learning style has to do
with the physical environment in which one learns, and involves using senses such as seeing
(visual), hearing (auditory), and doing (kinesthetic and tactile) in order to perceive data. This is
confirmed by Gregorc (1995) and Sarasin (1998).

Sensory learning styles

Visual learning is a learning style where ideas, concepts, data and other information are
associated with images and techniques (Al-Tamimi et al., 2009). Visual learners learn better
when they are given visual representations of subject matters, such as diagrams, graphic
organisers, concept maps and idea maps, plots, illustrations and real objects. These are some of
the representations used in visual learning to enhance thinking and learning skills. Woods (1989)
earlier purported that most people can recall between thirty and thirty-five percent of what they
see, and this may stem from the approximately 1.2 million neurons that connect the eye to the
brain.

As for the auditory learners, they learn better through listening. Auditory learners learn
effectively when they hear what is being delivered in order to understand and may have
difficulty with instructions that are written. They also use their listening and repeating skills to
sort information that is sent to them (Bulent, 2010). In writing, auditory learners need to read
aloud and talk about the assignment with their teachers before they get started. When organising
ideas, auditory learners prefer to have organised discussions with peers and they often ask
themselves questions on what and how to write (Learning Styles and the Writing Process,
2011).

Kinesthetic learning is a learning style which learners learn by carrying out a physical activity,
rather than by listening to a lecture or merely watching a demonstration. Kinesthetic learner is
also commonly known as a "do-er" (Bulent, 2010). In other words, kinesthetic learning is when
someone learns things from doing. As for tactile learners, they learn better when they are
engaged in hands-on activities. In addition, they also have very high hand-eye coordination and
very quick receptors. When gathering information for writing, both kinesthetic and tactile
learners prefer to write down ideas and information. Besides that, they need to take frequent
breaks and plan some physical activities such as go on a short walk and squeeze a rubber ball at
the drafting stage (Learning Styles and the Writing Process, 2011).


113
A number of studies have been carried out to investigate learners perceptual learning styles. One
such study was conducted by Dunn and Dunn (1979), who found that only 20-30% of school age
children appear to be auditory learners, 40% are visual, and that the remaining 30-40% are
tactile/kinesthetic, visual/tactile, or some other combinations of learners.

Price et al. (1980, quoted in Reid, 1987) in their research found that very young children are
prevailingly tactile/kinesthetic, and there is a gradual development of visual strengths through
the elementary grades. Only when they are in their fifth or sixth grade can most youngsters learn
and retain information through the auditory sense. Carbo (1983) investigated the perceptual
styles of readers and found that good readers prefer to learn through their visual and auditory
senses, while poor readers have a stronger preference for tactile and kinesthetic learning.

Hall and Moseley (2005) carried out an overview of learning-style models, and discovered that if
learning styles are fixed, teachers could teach more easily according to the learners preferred
learning style. In a more recent research, Ong et al. (2006) conducted a study to determine the
learning style preferences and English proficiency of Cohort 3 students of a B. Ed. (TESL)
Foundation Course in Malaysia. The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of learning
style preferences on the learners written English Proficiency using the Reids Learning Style
Preference Questionnaire as an instrument. The findings revealed that the major Learning Style
Preferences of the learners is kinesthetic. This means that most of the students learnt best through
hands-on and involvement in classroom experiences. The pedagogical approach adopted was
found to be positively correlated with the students performance in the writing test.

However, in Renous (2007) research on Perceptual Learning Styles (visual, auditory and
combination of kinesthetic & tactile) and student success in an introductory university-level
French course, it was found that there was no significant advantage to preferring one learning
style to another with respect to success (achievement) in a French language course.

Writing

Writing involves a diversity of actions such as planning, editing and re-writing (Flower and
Hayes, 1999). In everyday usage, Prior (2004) claimed that writing signifies two distinct acts,
inscription and composing, and these are treated as one. He further added that writing is a
process of inscribing text onto or into some medium.

Writing is difficult to learn not only to second language learners but also to native speakers.
Sparks and Ganschow (1993) claimed that native speakers may also have deficits in either the
phonological, semantic or syntactical systems in their native language which affect learners
listening, speaking, reading and writing skills. Gomez et al. (1996) reported that in non-ESL

114
classrooms, focus has been given on actual writing to replace drill and practice of sub-skills in
writing to avoid writing blocks among the native learners.

Reports produced by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP, USA) revealed
that many students in the United States did not write well. The study found that the majority of
forth, eighth, and twelfth grade students had only partial mastery of the writing skills at their
respective grade levels (Persky, Daane, & Jin, 2003).

The findings of research on writing show that cases of writing failure can be minimised if
students especially young learners, experience effective writing instruction right from the
beginning (Graham and Haris, 2002). According to Zamel (1985: 86) another reason that
contributes to writing difficulties among students is that ESL teachers in particular
overwhelmingly view themselves as language teachers rather than writing teachers. Hence,
their students compositions are only seen as products to be judged solely for the assignment of
grades.

As noted above, in writing, as well as in other academic areas, there are skills and strategic
processes that students must master in order to achieve competence (Scardamalia & Bereiter,
1986). Exposing learners to these skills at a young age may help to make them effective writers
later in life.

Computers in the Teaching of Writing

A decade ago, many schools computer programmes focus on teaching students about computer
hardware, and training them to use basic applications such as the word processors, spreadsheets
and PowerPoint. This approach to computer use in education is acceptable as long as it is just the
first step in enabling students to use computers to enhance all other areas of learning (Rusten,
and Hudson, H.E., 2002).

However, in recent years, the role of computer has shifted from being a subject of learning to
being an important instrument of learning. Researchers and practitioners now realise the
important role that computers play in learning and teaching English as a second or foreign
language and therefore, look for effective ways to integrate them into English language teaching
(AbuSeileek, 2006).

Regardless of the writing medium, all good writing involves an authoring cycle that begins with
thinking about the topic, making prewriting notes, writing an initial draft, revising and editing.
For these purposes, computers can be used in the writing process (Mustafa, 2006)


115
METHODOLOGY

In this study, the students were observed as they wrote using PowerPoint software. Their
learning styles were measured using Reids (1995) Perceptual Learning Style Preferences
questionnaire. It consists of 20 items, which range from strongly agree to strongly disagree (5
scales altogether) and each scale is given a specific score. The items are divided into four
categories, that are auditory, visual, tactile and kinesthetic. The total score of each category
determines their major perceptual learning styles preferences.

The instrument used to measure the pupils writing skill is the Rating Band used by the
Examination Syndicate, Ministry of Education Malaysia. This is to ensure that the research
conducted is in line with the standard practice in evaluating students writing skills in the
Malaysian schools. The instrument consists of four bands namely, excellent, credit, achievement
and low achievement (MOE, 2008). The total mark given is 15. The marks range from low
achievement level 1 to 4, achievement level 5 to 8, credit from 9 to 12 and finally, excellent from
13 to 15.

Participants in the Study

There were a total of thirty-four participants in this study: 12 boys and 22 girls. They were all
nine years old, and were in Year Three. At this age the learners were expected to write at word,
phrase, sentence and paragraph level. Besides that, they were also expected to be able to
construct simple and compound sentences with and without guidance. They were also expected
to be able to use punctuations meaningfully and write short messages, instructions as well as
descriptions (MOE, 2004).

The subjects learning styles were assessed using the Perceptual Learning Style Preference
Questionnaire by Reid (1997). The study found that nineteen of the learners had visual learning
style which made up 55.8 % of the total population. Eighteen of them (52.9%) had auditory
learning style. Twenty-seven of the learners (79.4%) had kinesthetic learning style. The study
also showed that the number of learners with tactile learning style was the highest, that is,
twenty-nine. They made up 85.3% of the learners. The figure, however, did not mean that each
learner had only one learning style. There were overlaps in their inclination. There were learners
who possessed all four major learning styles. Ten of them (29.4%) had visual, auditory,
kinesthetic and tactile learning styles. Nine of the learners (26.4%) had three of the major
learning styles and eleven of them (32.4%) had two major learning styles. Only four learners
(11.8%) had only on learning style.


116
ANALYSIS OF RESULTS

Learning Styles Reliability Results

The Cronbachs Alpha reliability coefficient of the whole scale was 0.51. The Cronbachs Alpha
for each scale is given in Table 1 below:

Table 1: Cronbachs Alpha Reliability Coefficient of Each Learning Style
Number Major Learning Style Cronbach Alpha
1. Visual 0.63
2. Kinesthetic 0.55
3. Auditory 0.48
4. Tactile 0.25

Table 1 shows that the Cronbachs Alpha score for visual was 0.63. This indicates that the scale
has internal consistency. The Cronbachs Alpha for kinesthetic scale was 0.55 and for auditory
and tactile, it was low at 0.48 and 0.25 respectively. The small sample size may have lead to
sampling error. According to Trochim (2005) and Mahesh (2009), sampling error can be related
to sample size; the smaller the sample size, the greater the sampling error.

Price et al. (1980, quoted in Reid, 1987) argued that the two scales, kinesthetic and tactile
learning styles, are actually measuring the same trait and need to be categorized under the same
category since they both share more or less similar characteristics. When this is done in this
study, it was found that the Cronbachs Alpha reliability coefficient was 0.67, which shows that
the new scale had a rather high internal consistency. Such recategorization was also discussed by
Felder (1996) in the discussion on sensory or perceptional learning style. Since the combination
of the two gives a more reliable result, the kinesthetic and tactile learning styles will be treated as
one in the discussion of results in this study.

Inter-rater reliability

Inter-rater reliability is used to assess the degree to which different raters or observers give
consistent estimates of the same phenomenon (Mahesh, 2005). In this case, since two raters
were involved in evaluating the learners writing composition, it is important to establish the
correlation between the two. The Pearson Product Moment Correlation (r) was used to find the
correlation and the result shows a significant correlation level at 0.979 when the total marks of

117
the written composition were assessed by the two raters, based on the UPSR writing band
descriptors, were compared.

Correlation between Writing Performance and Visual Learning Styles

Based on the analysis, using Pearson Product Moment Correlation ( r ), it was found that there
was no correlation between visual learning style and learners writing performance. There was
no statistically significant difference between the result of the students writing performance
when the computer was used (r -0.52) and when the traditional method was adopted (r -0.9). In
addition, the findings did not show that young learners with visual learning style performed
better in writing than those with other learning styles when PowerPoint was used (Table 2).

Table 2: Correlation between Writing Performance and Learning Styles

However, based on observation, learners with visual learning style tended to maneuver with the
slides provided for essay writing. They tended to experiment with some of the PowerPoint
features such as wordart, graphics, colours and background layout of the slides. Writing activity
took second place, and the focus was more on visual representations.

It was observed that one of the learners, who possessed visual, kinesthetic and tactile learning
styles, was excited when writing was taught in the computer laboratory. He was attentive, and he
looked forward to the writing class. However, when the traditional method of writing was
adopted, he did not complete the assigned task and was always restless in the class.

Three visual learners were interviewed, and the interviews revealed that they preferred visual
aids in helping them to write their essays in English. According to them, they knew how to carry
out the writing task using PowerPoint even without teacher supervision and they preferred to be
taught in this way. They did not like to be taught writing using the traditional method.

Learning Styles Writing Performance
in Computer Lab ( r )
Writing Performance
in Classroom ( r )
Visual -0.52 -0.19
Auditory -0.08 0.19
Kinesthetic & Tactile 0.28 0.25

118
Correlation between Writing Performance and Kinesthetic and Tactile Learning Styles

The data shows that all tactile learners also possessed kinesthetic learning style except for two.
There was a correlation between the two learning styles. The Pearson Product Moment
Correlation (r) was 0.68. This finding strongly supports the work of Reid (1997) on perceptual
learning styles who suggested that kinesthetic and tactile learning styles were under the same
category. The analysis also reflects that there was no statistically significant difference in the
writing performance of the kinesthetic & tactile learners between computer-assisted class (r
0.28) and the traditional method of teaching (r 0.25) (see Table 2).

It was observed that the kinesthetic and tactile learners lacked focus when sitting in front of the
computer. One interesting finding from the observation was that kinesthetic learners who did not
possess auditory learning style were difficult to manage in the classroom. They liked to move
around in the computer laboratory and hardly followed teacher instructions. The same was also
observed in the traditional classroom. They were rather restless in the class except those who
possessed kinesthetic learning style with a combination of visual and auditory styles.

Based on the interviews conducted on the six kinesthetic and tactile learners, it made no
difference to them whether teaching was done in the traditional way or when the computer was
used in the classroom. However, the tactile learners who were also visual learners preferred to
develop their writing skills using PowerPoint since it gave them the opportunity to experience
hands-on activities while writing. To them, writing essays using PowerPoint was fun and less
stressful.

Correlation between Writing Performance and Auditory Learning

The study revealed that there was no statistically significant difference between the auditory
learners results of writing performance in the computer aided class (r -0.08) and the traditional
class (r 0.19) (see Table 2). It was observed that the auditory learners were very attentive when
instructions were given on how to write the essay using PowerPoint. Brainstorming session was
very useful to them before they started writing. While writing the essay, they tried to include
graphics and sound. The pupils seemed to be indifferent to the method used in teaching writing.


119
DISCUSSION
Findings from this research indicated that the majority of the learners possessed kinesthetic and
tactile learning styles. This was followed by visual and auditory learners. Ten learners possessed
all the four learning styles.

When interviewed, the visual learners preferred to have visual aids such as graphics, idea maps,
and illustrations in helping them to write essays. These findings supported the study by Al-
Tamimi et al. (2009), that visual learners learn better when they are given visual representations
of the subject matter. According to Woods (1989), these are some of the representations used in
visual learning to enhance thinking and learning skills.

Kinesthetic and tactile learners were active in the class. They seemed to prefer action-oriented
activities. This is in line with the study conducted by Bulent (2010), who found that kinesthetic
learners might learn language skills better from doing.

CONCLUSION

There are unanswered questions on how young learners with different learning style best develop
their writing skills. One way of conceptualising differences in learners is by categorising them
according to their learning style characteristics. A strong interest in developing writing skills of
young learners with different learning styles by using Power Point motivated this study. The
results showed no statistically significant correlation between young learners writing
performance and their learning styles when PowerPoint was used. Learners with visual learning
style did not perform better in writing than those with other learning styles, when PowerPoint
was used as a teaching aid.


120
REFERENCES
AbuSeileek, A.F. (2006). The use of word processor for teaching writing to EFL learners in King
Saud University. J. King Saud Univ., 19 (2), 1-15.
Alfonseca, et al. (2006). The impact of learning styles on student grouping for collaborative
learning: A case study. User Model User-Adap Inter, 16 (3-4), 377-401.
Al-Tamimi, A., & Shuib, M. (2009). Investigating the learning styles preferences of ESL
learners: The case of English majors in Universiti Sains Malaysia. Malaysian Journal of
ELT Research, 5, 56-107.
Bandler, Richard. (1979). Frogs and Prince: Neuro linguistic programming. Utah: Real People
Press.
Boice, Robert. (January 1997). Writing blocks and tacit knowledge. The Journal of Higher
Education, 64 (1), 19-54.
Bulent, Duagi T. (2001). Augmented reality application for the educational system. Unpublished
MA dissertation, University Politehnica, Bucharest.
Dunn, R., Dunn, K., & Price, G.E. (1975). The learning style inventory. Lawrence, KS: Price
Systems.
Felder, R. (1996). Matters of style. ASEE Prism, 6 (4), 18-23
Flower, L.S., & Hayes, J.R. (1981). A cognitive process theory of writing. College Composition
and Communication, 32(4), 365-387.
Ghillebaert, Franoise. (1999). Teaching reading skills through technology: King, an annotated
version with libra software. Language Learning Technologies: Hardware and Software
Issues on the Advent of a New Millennium, 1-26.
Gomez, Jr., Richard, P., Rafael, L., & Gomez, L. (1996). Process versus product writing with
limited English proficient students. The Bilingual Research Journal, 20 (2), 209-233.

121
Graham, S., & Harris, K.R. (2002). Prevention and intervention for struggling writers. In M.
Shinn, H. Walker, & G. Stone (eds.), Interventions for academic and behavior problems
II: Preventive and remedial approaches. Bethesda, MD: NASP.
Gregorc, A.F. (1995). An adults guide to style. (2
nd
edn.). Columbia CT: Gregorc Associates,
Inc.
Hall, E., & D. Moseley. (2005). Is there a role for learning styles in personalized education and
training. International Journal of Lifelong Education, 24 (3), 243-255.
Kementerian Pelajaran Malaysia. (2000). Sukatan pelajaran bahasa Inggeris [English Lnguage
Syllabus]. Kuala Lumpur: Author.
Kementerian Pelajaran Malaysia. (2004). Huraian sukatan pelajaran bahasa Inggeris Tahun 4, 5
& 6 [English language scheme of work Year 4, 5 &6]. Kuala Lumpur: Author.
Kolb, D.A. (1976). Learning style inventory: Technical manual. Boston, MA: McBer.
Learning styles and the writing process. (n.d.). Retrieved January 12, 2011.
www.salt.arizona.edu/tutoringfiles/handouts/LearningStylesandtheWritingProcess.pdf.
Mahesh, K. (2009). Research methodology and statistical techniques. New Delhi: Shree
Publishers & Distributors.
Mustafa, U. (2006). The role of computers in writing process. The Turkish Online Journal of
Educational Technology, 5 (4), 59-64.
Ong, A., Rajendram, S., & Yusof, M. (2006). Learning style preferences and English proficiency
among cohort 3 students in IPBA. Retrieved May 10, 2009.
http://apps.emoe.gov.my/ipba/ResearchPaper/stdntseminar/pg23to36.pdf.
Persky, H., Daane, M., & Jin, Y. (2003). The Nations report card: Writing. Washington, DC:
U.S. Department of Education.
Prior, Paul. (2004). Tracing process: How texts come into being. What writing does and how it
does it: An introduction to analyzing texts and textual practices. Charles Bazerman and
David Russell. Eds. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associate.

122
Reid, J. (1987). The learning style preferences of ESL students. TESOL Quarterly. 21 (1), 87-
111.
Reid, J. (1995). Learning styles in the ESL/EFL classroom. University of Wyoming: Heinle &
Heinle Publishers.
Renou, J. (2007). A study of perceptual learning styles and achievement in a university-level
foreign language course. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Universidad de Puerto Rico,
Mayagez.
Rusten, E. & H. Hudson. (2002). Infrastructure: Hardware, Networking, Software, and
Connectivity. In Haddad, W. & A. Drexler (eds). Technologies for Education: Potentials,
Parameters, and Prospects. Washington DC: Academy for Educational Development and
Paris: UNESCO
Scardamalia, M. (1981). How children cope with the cognitive demands of writing. In C.F.
Frederiksen & J.F. Dominic (eds.), Writing: Process, development and communication
(pp 81-103). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Earlbaum Associate.
Sparks, R., & Ganschow L. (1995). Searching for the cognitive locus of foreign language
learning difficulties: Linking first and second language learning. Modern Language
Journal, 77, 289-302.
Sarasin, L.C. (1998). Learning style perspectives: Impact in the classroom. Madison: Publishing,
Steuer, J. (1992). Defining virtual reality: Dimensions determining telepresence Journal of
Communication, 42, 73-93.
Trochim, M.K. (2005). Research methods: The concise knowledge base. United States of
America: Atomic Dog Publishing.
Woods, D.R. (1989). Developing students problem-solving skills. Journal of College Science
Teaching, 10 (1), 108-110.
Zamel, V. (1985). Responding to student writing. TESOL Quarterly, 19 (1), 79-101.


123

CHAPTER 10

FACTORS AFFECTING THE TEACHING OF WRITING USING WIKI

NURAIHAN MAT DAUD
NUR SHIDRAH MAT DAUD
ZAILIN SHAH YUSOFF

Studies have shown that wiki can be an effective tool for teaching writing.
Students written assignments can be posted on wiki sites, and feedback can be
given to the students by anybody and at anytime on the web. Observations were
made on teachers teaching at three different universities where wiki was used.
The problems that they experienced were noted. The problems encountered
include teacher resistance, teaching time, network robustness, lack of access to
teaching labs, students attitude, students language ability and lack of peers
commitment. The study shows that going through each essay was time-consuming
especially when one had to deal with a large number of students. Peer review was
not a good option when the partner was not proficient in the language. Access to
the facility for teaching and for individual work was difficult to arrange.
Feedback from others was difficult to get especially when it was meant for a
language class. It was also observed that not all students were keen on using wiki
to write.
Keywords: Wiki, Peer editing, Writing, Feedback

INTRODUCTION

Technological inventions make it possible for teachers to practice new ways of teaching. The
adoption of new practices in an organisation could either be initiated by individuals in the
organization or by the management of the organisation (Becher & Maclure, 1978). Individuals
may adopt it based on their needs. However, many may not see the need to adopt a new
approach since there is no urgency for them to do so. There are those who felt that technological
approaches are not necessary since the traditional approach could produce the same results. On
the other hand, its adoption can be encouraged if the management shows interest in the
innovation.

124
Getting teachers to adopt a certain innovation takes a lot of effort. Providing courses may not be
enough to change their practice. It is noticed that initial courses may only create awareness but
not participation. To get more teachers to participate there is a need to inform teachers the
strengths of the innovation. Teachers need also be warned of the potential problems, and are to
be guided in dealing with these problems. Only then a justified decision to adopt technology in
the classroom can be made.

Wiki

Web 2.0 applications like blog and wiki are seen as the second generation Web which offer
powerful opportunities for online collaboration for both language professionals and learners
(Godwin-Jones, 2003, p. 12). Wiki, in particular, is an editable, web-based free authoring tool
which allows users to create a fully editable website (Boulos, Maramba, & Wheeler, 2006).
Visitors to the website can easily read, and edit or modify content, structure or design of the
website directly on the page, often without the need for registration (Augar, Raitman, & Zhou,
2004; Tonkin, 2005; Boulos et al, 2006; Wang & Turner, 2004; Charles & Ranmi, 2007).

Wiki can be easily used for writing instruction especially for process and collaborative writing
activities (Arnetta, 2007). The software makes the writing process visible. What has been edited
can be viewed on screen. It provides a platform for instructors to monitor students writing
development and to give feedback at any stage of their writing process (Carr, Morrison, Cox, &
Deacon, 2007, p. 280). In addition, a group of students can work together on a writing task,
editing and building on each others work. A student can also work with the instructor one-on-
one receiving feedback and revising the written work without having to meet face-to-face. The
tool also allows those browsing the wiki site to take a dual role of reader and writer (LeLoup &
Ponterio, 2006). Thus, this tool can free students and teachers of the rigid time-constraints of the
classroom, and facilitates meaningful creation of knowledge online (Lamb, 2004). The facilities
available on wiki make it a feasible tool for teaching writing. It can be used to monitor students
writing progress. The students do not have to meet their teachers face-to-face. Instead, wiki can
be used to provide support and feedback to students written work without the constraints of time
and place as compared to face-to-face consultations (Godwin-Jones, 2003).

Wiki is a mind tool (Jonassen, 2000) which creates socially rich environment that encourages
the construction of knowledge in an authentic environment. It creates a hub for student-centred
learning activities because users define for themselves how their processes and groups will
develop when using the tool (Lamb, 2004, p.38). Apart from that, wiki requires active rather than
passive participation from its users in terms of content modification (Richardson, 2006). It
demands open-minded and innovative teachers and students because wiki is unsuited for lessons
where the truth comes from the teacher. Wiki can only become established within institutions

125
with an appropriate culture of learning (Honegger, 2005, p.115). Healey (2002) maintains that
the implementation of any computer technology requires a supportive teaching and learning
environment. Teachers have to take a backseat and facilitate students as they apply the language
learnt through the use of computer technology to complete their tasks. Wiki extends this with
the inclusion of an expanded audience. Thus teachers role should shift from being the purveyor
of knowledge to one who plans appropriate activities using technology which encourages
students independent learning.

PROBLEM STATEMENT

Studies have been done mainly to look into the effectiveness of a certain innovation. Among the
studies done on wiki include looking at the effectiveness of feedback given via wiki (Zailin,
2010), using wikispaces to support collaborative writing (Chang & Schallert, 2005; Nuraihan &
Nor Shidrah, 2008), student attitudes towards group work via wiki (Elgort, Smith, & Toland.,
2008) and the impact of wiki on the writer-reader relationship (Chen, Cannon, Gabrio, Leifer,
Toye, & Bailey, 2005; Kuteeva, 2010). Studies on problems in its use is, however, scarce. This
paper thus highlights the possible problems in using wiki as a teaching aid in writing classes.
The realisation of these problems may help the management to find ways of overcoming them.

Student and Teacher Computer Literacy

The use of this technology assumes that both teacher and students are computer literate. It would
be an uphill task if either one is not. A teacher who is still grappling with the use of the
technology may appear to be incompetent in the eyes of the students. He/she would need to be
trained on how to use and troubleshoot wiki before it can be used effectively in the classroom.

On the other hand, it can be difficult to focus on the language activity if the students are
struggling with the keyboard or in accessing the web or using wiki. In the researchers classes,
students who were computer savvy tended to be less intimidated by wiki. They were able to
explore the tool on their own and teach other students what they knew. However, it was noticed
that students who were not were rather nervous about writing using wiki.

Cost-effectiveness

The use of wiki is not cost-effective in that human resources can be expensive where time
management is concerned. Unlike the traditional pen and paper approach, teachers who plan to
use wiki will need to take certain steps to ensure that it runs smoothly. First, they would need to
learn to use wiki. The teachers would need to have the know-how before they can handle the
class confidently.

126
The researchers in this study had conducted several workshops on using wiki for in-service
teachers, and it was noticed that many were interested in the tool. They could see that it would
be good for reviewing and editing purposes. But the thought that they would have to read
students works on the screen made the majority shied away from integrating it in their
classroom. Managing a large class in a computer lab was also another factor that discouraged
teachers from adopting a wiki in their writing class. Some teachers also felt that they had
inadequate knowledge of the tool to help troubleshoot any problems that may arise during class.
Furthermore, as a wiki is an evolving tool teachers have to keep up-to-date with the new
facilities, widgets or interface introduced. Teachers may find this intimidating especially if they
are not computer savvy. Finally, if the use of wiki is to be implemented at any institution, there is
the added cost of 24 hours wireless connection for students to access their wiki outside class
hours.

Teaching Schedule

Where access to the language lab is limited, teachers would have to make prior arrangements to
ensure that the lab is available for their classes. In situations where there were many classes
competing for the same lab, such an arrangement can be difficult to make. On a wireless campus
where Internet access is available 24 hours, this problem can be overcome if students bring their
own notebook and the like to class. However, wireless connection may not be strong or stable
throughout campus and this could pose a problem to the class schedule. In addition some
institutions may block access to certain websites or Internet in general at certain times of the day.
Scheduling the class according to availability of access may dampen enthusiasm to use the tool.

Laboratory Facilities

It is also a common practice that computer laboratories in higher institutions of education
imposed certain policies concerning the use of labs and access to the web. Certain labs may
choose to use web browsers that are not compatible with the ones that work well with the chosen
wiki. This was experienced in one of the universities in this study where the appropriate browser
had to be installed every time the teacher used wiki in those labs. Prior to that, the teacher had to
seek the permission of the Head of Technical Unit before wiki could be downloaded. Strict ICT
policy could actually discourage teachers from adopting the technology for the extra measures
that they have to take to integrate technology into teaching.

Network Robustness

Network can be an issue in certain institutions especially during peak hours. Internet traffic on
campus may be heavy making it difficult to upload files or edit texts on wiki. Some students had

127
to do this a number of times before the files or texts were successfully published on wiki. The
slow connection might affect both students and teachers motivation.

Revision/Editing Time

Wiki allows users to see when a certain text is revised or edited. Figure 1 below shows the date
and time of day when a work is submitted and edited online.

Figure 1.Time to complete a task

The dates displayed the time when the texts were saved, and the author section listed the users
who made the changes to the text. The student wrote his essay on the 27
th
of February 2008. He
edited it a few minutes later. He improved his essay further a week after that. On the 5
th
of
Marchhe edited his work further. On the 9
th
of March, one of his classmates peer reviewed his
work. The student edited the essay after the peer editing, that is, before the teacher finally
looked at his work on the 6
th
of April the same year. The easy-accessibility of the drafts allows a
teacher to see the progress in the students writing. Wiki makes a good teaching aid for the
process writing approach. However, steps need to be taken to ensure that students have easy
access to the Internet so that a shorter span of time could be taken to improve a particular
assignment.


128
Students Attitude and Motivation

Not all students were keen in using technology to complete their work. Some felt that it was
faster to use pen and paper. This was especially so in cases where language courses were not
among the major components of the course. They tended to be taken lightly, and students would
rather spend more time concentrating on their core courses. In the case of English in Malaysia,
students had taken this subject since they were in Year 1. To some the content might look the
same. In this case, only the way it is delivered might be different from what they were used to at
school.

One of the researchers in this study had also tried to give language support to a few content
courses via wiki. It was noticed that not all students used or responded to the feedback provided
since it came from a language teacher instead of the lecturer who taught the course. The students
were of the opinion that content feedback should be given by the lecturer in-charge of the course
instead of a language teacher. However, the majority of the students liked receiving feedback
from multiple audiences. This increased their audience awareness and motivation to revise their
work.

In cases where students were asked to write collaboratively, wiki served as an excellent platform
for such an exercise. The students felt that completing their group assignment via wiki was a
valuable experience. Nevertheless, they still felt that they would have collaborated better face-to-
face especially during group discussions.

Students Language Ability

Wiki can be an excellent tool for peer editing. However, in cases where the partners are equally
incompetent in the target language, this exercise has proven to be challenging to the teacher. It
was observed that mistakes were wrongly corrected, and corrections were of the lower order
type. In some cases, the students were hesitant in editing because they themselves felt that they
were not proficient enough to edit their friends work. They were reluctant to comment because
they knew that their comments would not be anonymous if they were to log on through their own
wiki account. The page history will indicate who edited the text.


129
Figure 2: Sample of Peers feedback

Figure 2 is a sample of a students work. Words or phrases that are highlighted in red are those
that have been deleted and words/phrases in green are the ones that are inserted. The name of the
editor is written on top of the text. Thus, it would be clear to the reader whether the
editor/reviewer has actually improved or made the essay worse by editing the text.

The sample above also reflects the need for students to be open about publishing their work
online. Not all students were comfortable knowing the fact that other people could read their
work. They felt exposed particularly those who were not proficient in the language.

Commitment of Other Players

Readers other than language teachers and peers can also participate in the editing process. In
English for Specific Purposes or Academic Purposes courses, the relevant lecturers and
professionals can be invited to give their comments on the students work to improve the content
of the paper. Experience in using wikis tells us that this did not take place. The fact is other
people are too busy handling their own course and their work to lend a helping hand to language
students. Some students took the initiative to invite (through the Invite People facility) readers to
review their reports via wiki but very few responded. However, the few professionals who

130
responded actually gave interesting comments on the students wiki. These they used to revise
their work. Another interesting finding was that through Wiki Statistics, it was found that the
visitors to the students wiki site came from other parts of the world. However, they came as
visitors and did not pose any comments.

Wikis Security

Wikis Soft Security (Lamb, 2004), which allows for multiple edits can lead to vandalism
giving the creator of the wiki little or almost no editorial control over what is written on the
site. This frustrated students when what they had written was removed from the page. Even
though the History facility allows the students to revert to the original version it was rather
cumbersome to be doing it over and over again.

The study shows that despite the many success stories of wiki implementation, its use could be
limited by factors such as teacher time, computer literacy, institutional ICT policy, student
language proficiency, student attitude and motivation, and lack of cooperation from other
feedback providers. Realising that these could hinder the integration of wiki in the classroom,
measures can be taken to overcome or reduce the problems. Continuous in-service trainings can
be provided to support those teachers who opt for the use of this facility. Teachers could work
collaboratively (and not just the students) in providing feedback to the students. The cooperation
of the content course teachers would have to be sought in the pursuit to produce graduates who
are proficient in the target language. Arrangement can also be made at the higher level for
stakeholders to respond to students work to make the exercise more meaningful. In short, the
identification of problems make it is easier for the institution to plan its next course of action.

131
REFERENCES

Augar, N., Raitman, R., & Zhou, W. (2004). Teaching and learning online with wikis.
Proceedings of ASCILITE 2004. Retrieved June 12, 2007 from
http://ascilite.org.au/conferences/perth04/procs/augar.html.

Becher, T., & J. S. Maclure. (1978). The politics of curriculum change. London: Hutchinson and
Co. Ltd.

Boulos, M. N. K., Maramba, I., & Wheeler, S. (2006). Wikis, blogs and podcasts: A new
generation of web-based tools for virtual collaborative clinical practice and
education. BioMed Central. Retrieved July 3, 2007 http://www.biomedcentral.com/1472-
6929/6/41.

Carr, T., Morrison, A., Cox, G., & Deacon, A. (2007). Weathering wikis: Net-based learning
meets political science in a South African university. Computers and Composition, 24,
266 284.

Chang, Y. F., & Schallert, D.L. (2005). The design for the collaborative system of English as a
foreign language composition classroom of senior high school students in Taiwan.
Proceedings of the Fifth IEEE Conference on Advanced Learning Technologies (ICALT
05). IEEE Computer Society. Retrieved April 6, 2007 from
http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/Xplore/dynhome.jsp.

Charles, R., & Ranmi, A. (2007). Wild, wild wikis: A way forward. Fifth International
Conference on Creating, Connecting and Collaborating through Computing (C507), The
Computer Society, IEEE. Retrieved April 6, 2007 from
http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/Xplore/dynhome.jsp

Chen, H. L., Cannon, D., Gabrio, J., Leifer, L., Toye, G., & Bailey, T. (2005). Using wikis and
weblogs to support reflective learning in an introductory engineering design course.
Proceedings of the 2005 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference
& Exposition. Retrieved April 6, 2007 from http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/Xplore/dynhome.jsp.

Elgort, I., Smith, A. G., & Toland, J. (2008). Is wiki an effective platform for group course
work? Australasian Journal of Educational Technology (AJET 24), 24 (2), 195 210.
Godwin-Jones, B. (2003).Emerging Technologies. Blogs and wikis: Environments for on-line
collaboration. Language Learning & Technology, 7(2), 12-16.

132
Healey, D. (2002). Learner autonomy with technology: What do language learners need to be
successful? TESOL 2002 CALL-IS Academic Session. Retrieved May 23, 2008 from
http://oregonstate.edu/~healeyd/tesol2002/autonomy.html

Honegger, B. D. (2005). Wikis a rapidly growing phenomenon in the German-speaking
school community. WikiSym 05, October 16 18, San Diego, CA, USA.

Kuteeva, M. (2010). Wikis and academic writing: Changing the writer-reader relationship.
English for Specific Purposes, 30(1), 44-57.

Lamb, B. (2004). Wide open spaces. Wikis ready or not. EDUCAUSE Review, 39(5), 36-48.

Le Loup, J. W., & Ponterio, R. (2006). ON THE NET. Wikipedia: A multilingual treasure trove.
Language Learning & Technology, 10(2), 4-7.

Jonassen, D. (2000). Computers as mindtools for schools: Engaging critical thinking. New
Jersey: Merrrill.

Nuraihan M. D., & Nor Shidrah, M. D. (2008). Wikispaces to support collaborative writing. 30-
31 May 2008, 17 MELTA International Conference, Palace of the Golden Horses,
MINES, Selangor, Malaysia.

Richardson, W. (2006). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms.
Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwing Press.

Tonkin, E. (2005). Making the case for a wiki? ARIADNE, Issue 42, January 2005. Retrieved
December 5, 2007 from http://www.ariadne.ac.uk/issue42/tonkin/intro.html

Wang, Chien-Min & Turner, David. (2004) Extending the wiki paradigms for use in the
classroom, in International Conference on Information Technology: Coding and
Computing (ITCC04), Vol. 1, pp. 255.

Zailin Shah Yusoff. (2010). Evaluating the Impact of Feedback Given Via Wikis on ESL
Students Reports. (Unpublished Doctoral Thesis). International Islamic University
Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur.

Technology and Foreign Language Learning and Teaching

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Technology and Foreign Language Learning and Teaching

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

TECHNOLOGY AND FOREIGN

LANGUAGE LEARNING AND

You might also like