Sebait Kata

I CAN DO IT

2012-02-12T15:36:00.001+07:00

O sweet and beautiful Madani

2012-02-05T16:20:00.001+07:00

In the name of Allah do I begin.The Most Merciful, The Most Kind.For it was Allah, who delivered the Best of Creation,To the whole of Mankind.How great is His favour, for us to see.For Truth has arrived, and falsehood will flee.May every blessing be upon thee, O sweet and beautiful Madani.No sweeter man has there ever been.None more honest and serene.Your blessed feet have visited the Arsh.Thou art Allah’s light upon this darkened Farsh.Your sweat is sweeter than the scent of a rose. Upon your honour, do I compose this prose. May every blessing be upon thee, O sweet and beautiful Madani.Aftab Malik

KUNJUNGAN BAPAK BJ HABIBIE ke Kantor Manajemen Garuda Indonesia Garuda City Complex, Bandara Soekarno-Hatta 12 Januari 2012

2012-02-03T09:08:00.001+07:00

Pada usianya 74 tahun, mantan Presiden RI, BJ Habibie secara mendadak mengunjungi fasilitas Garuda Indonesia didampingi oleh putra sulung, Ilham Habibie dan keponakannya( ?), Adri Subono, juragan Java Musikindo.Kunjungan beliau dan rombongan disambut oleh President & CEO, Bapak Emirsyah Satar disertai seluruh Direksi dan para VP serta Area Manager yang sedang berada di Jakarta.Dalam kunjungan ini, diputar video mengenai Garuda Indonesia Experience dan presentasi perjalanan kinerja Garuda Indonesia sejak tahun 2005 hingga tahun 2015 menuju Quantum Leap.Sebagai “balasan” pak Habibie memutarkan video tentang penerbangan perdana N250 di landasan bandara Husein Sastranegara, IPTN Bandung tahun 1995 (tujuh belas tahun yang lalu!).Entah, apa pasalnya dengan memutar video ini?Video N250 bernama Gatotkaca terlihat roll-out kemudian tinggal landas secara mulus di-escort oleh satu pesawat latih dan sebuah pesawat N235. Pesawat N250 jenis Turboprop dan teknologi glass cockpit dengan kapasitas 50 penumpang terus mengudara di angkasa Bandung.Dalam video tsb, tampak para hadirin yang menyaksikan di pelataran parkir, antara lain Presiden RI Bapak Soeharto dan ibu, Wapres RI bapak Soedarmono, para Menteri dan para pejabat teras Indonesia serta para teknisi IPTN. Semua bertepuk tangan dan mengumbar senyum kebanggaan atas keberhasilan kinerja N250. Bapak Presiden kemudian berbincang melalui radio komunikasi dengan pilot N250 yang di udara, terlihat pak Habibie mencoba mendekatkan telinganya di headset yang dipergunakan oleh Presiden Soeharto karena ingin ikut mendengar dengan pilot N250.N250 sang Gatotkaca kembali pangkalan setelah melakukan pendaratan mulus di landasan…. ……… …..Di hadapan kami, BJ Habibie yang berusia 74 tahun menyampaikan cerita yang lebih kurang sbb:“Dik, anda tahu, saya ini lulus SMA tahun 1954!” beliau membuka pembicaraan dengan gayanya yang khas penuh semangat dan memanggil semua hadirin dengan kata “Dik” kemudian secara lancar beliau melanjutkan.“Presiden Soekarno, Bapak Proklamator RI, orator paling unggul, itu sebenarnya memiliki visi yang luar biasa cemerlang! Ia adalah Penyambung Lidah Rakyat! Ia tahu persis sebagai Insinyur Indonesia dengan geografis ribuan pulau, memerlukan penguasaan Teknologi yang berwawasan nasional yakni Teknologi Maritim dan Teknologi Dirgantara. Kala itu, tak ada ITB dan tak ada UI. Para pelajar SMA unggulan berbondong-bondong disekolahkan oleh Presiden Soekarno ke luar negeri untuk menimba ilmu teknologi Maritim dan teknologi dirgantara. Saya adalah rombongan kedua diantara ratusan pelajar SMA yang secara khusus dikirim ke berbagai negara. Pendidikan kami di luar negeri itu bukan pendidikan kursus kilat tapi sekolah bertahun-tahun sambil bekerja praktek. Sejak awal saya hanya tertarik dengan ‘how to build commercial aircraft’ bagi Indonesia. Jadi sebenarnya Pak Soeharto, Presiden RI kedua hanya melanjutkan saja program itu, beliau juga bukan pencetus ide penerapan ‘teknologi’ berwawasan nasional di Indonesia. Lantas kita bangun perusahaan-perusaha an strategis, ada PT PAL dan salah satunya adalah IPTN.Sekarang Dik,anda semua lihat sendiri. N250 itu bukan pesawat asal-asalan dibikin! Pesawat itu sudah terbang tanpa mengalami ‘Dutch Roll’ (istilah penerbangan untuk pesawat yang ‘oleng’) berlebihan, tenologi pesawat itu sangat canggih dan dipersiapkan untuk 30 tahun kedepan, diperlukan waktu 5 tahun untuk melengkapi desain awal, satu-satunya pesawat turboprop di dunia yang mempergunakan teknologi ‘Fly by Wire’ bahkan sampai hari ini. Rakyat dan negara kita ini membutuhkan itu! Pesawat itu sudah terbang 900 jam (saya lupa persisnya 900 atau 1900 jam) dan selangkah lagi masuk program sertifikasi FAA. IPTN membangun khusus pabrik pesawat N250 di Amerika dan Eropa untuk pasar negara-negara itu.Namun, orang Indonesia selalu saja gemar bersikap sinis dan mengejek diri sendiri ‘apa mungkin orang Indonesia bikin pesawat terbang?’Tiba-tiba, Presiden memutuskan agar IPTN ditutup dan begitu pula dengan industri strategis lainnya.Dik tahu, di dunia ini hanya 3 negara yang menutup industri strategisnya, satu Jerman karena trauma dengan Nazi, lalu Cina (?) dan Indonesia.Sekarang, semua tenaga ahli teknologi Indonesia terpaksa diusir dari negeri sendiri dan mereka bertebaran di berbagai negara, khususnya pabrik pesawat di Bazil, Canada, Amerika dan Eropa.Hati siapa yang tidak sakit menyaksikan itu semua?Saya bilang ke Presiden, kasih saya uang 500 juta Dollar dan N250 akan menjadi pesawat yang terhebat yang mengalahkan ATR, Bombardier, Dornier, Embraer dll dan kita tak perlu tergantung dengan negara manapun.Tapi keputusan telah diambil dan para karyawan IPTN yang berjumlah 16 ribu harus mengais rejeki di negeri orang dan gilanya lagi kita yang beli pesawat negara mereka!”Pak Habibie menghela nafasIni pandangan saya mengenai cerita pak Habibie di atas;Sekitar tahun 1995, saya ditugaskan oleh Manager Operasi (JKTOF) kala itu, Capt. Susatyawanto untuk masuk sebagai salah satu anggota tim Airline Working Group di IPTN dalam kaitan produksi pesawat jet sekelas B737 yang dikenal sebagai N2130 (kapasitas 130 penumpang). Saya bersyukur, akhirnya ditunjuk sebagai Co-Chairman Preliminary Flight Deck Design N2130 yang langsung bekerja dibawah kepala proyek N2130 adalah Ilham Habibie. Kala itu N250 sedang uji coba terus-menerus oleh penerbang test pilot (almarhum) Erwin. Saya turut mendesain rancang-bangun kokpit N2130 yang serba canggih berdasarkan pengetahuan teknis saat menerbangkan McDonnel Douglas MD11. Kokpit N2130 akan menjadi mirip MD11 dan merupakan kokpit pesawat pertama di dunia yang mempergunakan LCD pada panel instrumen (bukan CRT sebagaimana kita lihat sekarang yang ada di pesawat B737NG). Sebagian besar fungsi tampilan layar di kokpit juga mempergunakan “track ball atau touch pad” sebagaimana kita lihat di laptop. N2130 juga merupakan pesawat jet single aisle dengan head room yang sangat besar yang memungkinkan penumpang memasuki tempat duduk tanpa perlu membungkukkan badan. Selain high speed sub-sonic, N2130 juga sangat efisien bahan bakar karena mempergunakan winglet, jauh sebelum winglet dipergunakan di beberapa pesawat generasi masa kini.Saya juga pernah menguji coba simulator N250 yang masih prototipe pertama.N2130 narrow body jet engine dan N250 twin turboprop, keduanya sangat handal dan canggih kala itu.bahkan hingga kini.Lamunan saya ini, berkecamuk di dalam kepala manakala pak Habibie bercerita soal N250, saya memiliki kekecewaan yang yang sama dengan beliau, seandainya N2130 benar-benar lahir,kita tak perlu susah-susah membeli B737 atau Airbus 320.Pak Habibie melanjutkan pembicaraannya.“Hal yang sama terjadi pada prototipe pesawat jet twin engines narrow body, itu saya tunjuk Ilham sebagai Kepala Proyek N2130. Ia bukan karena anak Habibie, tapi Ilham ini memang sekolah khusus mengenai manufakturing pesawat terbang, kalau saya sebenarnya hanya ahli dalam bidang metalurgi pesawat terbang. Kalau saja N2130 diteruskan, kita semua tak perlu tergantung dari Boeing dan Airbus untuk membangun jembatan udara di Indonesia”.“Dik, dalam industri apapun kuncinya itu hanya satu QCD,Q itu Quality, Dik, anda harus buat segala sesuatunya berkualitas tinggi dan konsisten *C itu Cost, Dik, tekan harga serendah mungkin agar mampu bersaing dengan produsen sejenis *D itu Delivery, biasakan semua produksi dan outcome berkualitas tinggi dengan biaya paling efisien dan disampaikan tepat waktu! *Itu saja!”Pak Habibie melanjutkan penjelasan tentang QCD sbb:“Kalau saya upamakan, Q itu nilainya 1, C nilainya juga 1 lantas D nilainya 1 pula, jika dijumlah maka menjadi 3. Tapi cara kerja QCD tidak begitu Dik. organisasi itu bekerja saling sinergi sehingga yang namanya QCD itu bisa menjadi 300 atau 3000 atau bahkan 30.000 sangat tergantung bagaimana anda semua mengerjakannya, bekerjanya harus pakai hati DikTiba-tiba, pak Habibie seperti merenung sejenak mengingat-ingat sesuatu“Dik, saya ini memulai segala sesuatunya dari bawah, sampai saya ditunjuk menjadi Wakil Dirut perusahaan terkemuka di Jerman dan akhirnya menjadi Presiden RI, itu semua bukan kejadian tiba-tiba. Selama 48 tahun saya tidak pernah dipisahkan dengan Ainun, ibu Ainun istri saya. Ia ikuti kemana saja saya pergi dengan penuh kasih sayang dan rasa sabar. Dik, kalian barangkali sudah biasa hidup terpisah dengan istri, you pergi dinas dan istri di rumah, tapi tidak dengan saya. Gini ya,saya mau kasih informasi. Saya ini baru tahu bahwa ibu Ainun mengidap kanker hanya 3 hari sebelumnya, tak pernah ada tanda-tanda dan tak pernah ada keluhan keluar dari ibu.”Pak Habibie menghela nafas panjang dan tampak sekali ia sangat emosional serta mengalami luka hati yang mendalam, seisi ruangan hening dan turut serta larut dalam emosi kepedihan pak Habibie, apalagi aku tanpa terasa air mata mulai menggenang.Dengan suara bergetar dan setengah terisak pak Habibie melanjutkan.“Dik, kalian tau,2 minggu setelah ditinggalkan ibu. Suatu hari, saya pakai piyama tanpa alas kaki dan berjalan mondar-mandir di ruang keluarga sendirian sambil memanggil-manggil nama ibu., Ainun.. Ainun… Ainun… ..saya mencari ibu di semua sudut rumah.Para dokter yang melihat perkembangan saya sepeninggal ibu berpendapat ‘Habibie bisa mati dalam waktu 3 bulan jika terus begini.’ mereka bilang ‘Kita (para dokter) harus tolong Habibie’.Para Dokter dari Jerman dan Indonesia berkumpul lalu saya diberinya 3 pilihan;1. Pertama, saya harus dirawat, diberi obat khusus sampai saya dapat mandiri meneruskan hidup. Artinya saya ini gila dan harus dirawat di Rumah Sakit Jiwa!2. Opsi kedua, para dokter akan mengunjungi saya di rumah, saya harus berkonsultasi terus-menerus dengan mereka dan saya harus mengkonsumsi obat khusus. Sama saja, artinya saya sudah gila dan harus diawasi terus.3. Opsi ketiga, saya disuruh mereka untuk menuliskan apa saja mengenai Ainun, anggaplah saya bercerita dengan Ainun seolah ibu masih hidup.Saya pilih opsi yang ketiga.Tiba-tiba, pak Habibie seperti teringat sesuatu (kita yang biasa mendengarkan beliau juga pasti maklum bahwa gaya bicara pak Habibie seperti meloncat kesana-kemari dan kadang terputus karena proses berpikir beliau sepertinya lebih cepat dibandingkan kecepatan berbicara dalam menyampaikan sesuatu). ia melanjutkan pembicaraannya;“Dik, hari ini persis 600 hari saya ditinggal Ainun. dan hari ini persis 597 hari Garuda Indonesia menjemput dan memulangkan ibu Ainun dari Jerman ke tanah air Indonesia.Saya tidak mau menyampaikan ucapan terima kasih melalui surat. Saya menunggu hari baik, berminggu-minggu dan berbulan-bulan untuk mencari momen yang tepat guna menyampaikan isi hati saya. Hari ini didampingi anak saya Ilham dan keponakan saya, Adri maka saya, Habibie atas nama seluruh keluarga besar Habibie mengucapkan terima kasih sebesar-besarnya, kalian, Garuda Indonesia telah mengirimkan sebuah Boeing B747-400 untuk menjemput kami di Jerman dan memulangkan ibu Ainun ke tanah air bahkan memakamkannya di Taman Makam Pahlawan. Sungguh suatu kehormatan besar bagi kami sekeluarga. Sekali lagi, saya mengucapkan terima kasih atas bantuan Garuda Indonesia”Seluruh hadirin terhenyak dan saya tak kuasa lagi membendung air mata.Setelah jeda beberapa waktu, pak Habibie melanjutkan pembicaraannya;“Dik, sebegitu banyak ungkapan isi hati kepada Ainun, lalu beberapa kerabat menyarankan agar semua tulisan saya dibukukan saja, dan saya menyetujui.Buku itu sebenarnya bercerita tentang jalinan kasih antara dua anak manusia. Tak ada unsur kesukuan, agama, atau ras tertentu. Isi buku ini sangat universal, dengan muatan budaya nasional Indonesia. Sekarang buku ini atas permintaan banyak orang telah diterjemahkan ke beberapa bahasa, antara lain Inggris, Arab, Jepang….. (saya lupa persisnya, namun pak Habibie menyebut 4 atau 5 bahasa asing).Sayangnya buku ini hanya dijual di satu toko buku (pak Habibie menyebut nama satu toko buku besar), sudah dicetak 75.000 eksemplar dan langsung habis. Banyak orang yang ingin membaca buku ini tapi tak tahu dimana belinya.Beberapa orang di daerah di luar kota besar di Indonesia juga mengeluhkan dimana bisa beli buku ini di kota mereka.Dik, asal you tahu, semua uang hasil penjualan buku ini tak satu rupiahpun untuk memperkaya Habibie atau keluarga Habibie. Semua uang hasil penjualan buku ini dimasukkan ke rekening Yayasan yang dibentuk oleh saya dan ibu Ainun untuk menyantuni orang cacat, salah satunya adalah para penyandang tuna netra. Kasihan mereka ini sesungguhnya bisa bekerja dengan nyaman jika bisa melihat.Saya berikan diskon 30% bagi pembeli buku yang jumlah besar bahkan saya tambahkan lagi diskon 10% bagi mereka karena saya tahu, mereka membeli banyak buku pasti untuk dijual kembali ke yang lain.Sekali lagi, buku ini kisah kasih universal anak manusia dari sejak tidak punya apa-apa sampai menjadi Presiden Republik Indonesia dan Ibu Negara. Isinya sangat inspiratif.”(pada kesempatan ini pak Habibie meminta sesuatu dari Garuda Indonesia namun tidak saya tuliskan di sini mengingat hal ini masalah kedinasan).Saya menuliskan kembali pertemuan pak BJ Habibie dengan jajaran Garuda Indonesia karena banyak kisah inspiratif dari obrolan tersebut yang barangkali berguna bagi siapapun yang tidak sempat menghadiri pertemuan tsb. Sekaligus mohon maaf jika ada kekurangan penulisan disana-sini karena tulisan ini disusun berdasarkan ingatan tanpa catatan maupun rekaman apapun.Jakarta, 12 Januari 2012Salam,Capt. Novianto HerupratomoSumber :Milist ilmy

I Believe

2012-01-11T06:54:00.000+07:00

Terasa sekali betapa Allah memudahkan setiap langkah ini.Seharusnya saya malu meminta.Mengingat semua hal yang telah saya lakukan.Namun saya hanya bisa meminta kepadaNya.Tiada ke siapa yang lain.Karena saya percaya semua atas kuasaNya.ya, PERCAYA.Dan sekarang mencoba mensyukuri atas semua yang telah di berikan.Dengan melakukan yang terbaik.Hanya itu yang bisa saya lakukan.*saat pemilihan tempat PL dimudahkan, tak lain karenaNya

Danbo

2012-01-09T14:56:00.001+07:00

Berawal iseng-iseng liat picture d Hpnya Rais, eh ketemu picture boneka kecil kardus. Pas awal ngeliat langsung suka, coz kecil en imut. Ternyata dan ternyata namanya Danbo, figure yang berasal dari Jepang..wah Jepang lagi..;)Danbo adalah kependekan dari danboard yang berasal dari kata Danboru yang artinya kardus. Figure ini terdapat dalam manga Yotsuba yang di tulis Azuma Kiyohiko. Ceritanya salah satu tokoh manga menggunakan baju yang terbuat dari kardus yang kemudian menginspirasi hadirnya boneka Danbo.Ukuran boneka ini bisa tergolong kecil 7 cm dan 13 cm. Berkat kecanggihan teknologi, Danbo dapat bergerak sendiri dengan luwesnya sehingga untuk mendapatkan boneka ini harus mengeluarkan biaya Rp 500.000 per bijiny.wuihh...Kalau search d google, akan banyak sekali di temukan danbo dengan berbagai ekspresi dan dengan latar yang menarik...ini beberapa di antaranya..

Ketika Mencintai Sastra

2012-01-06T12:38:00.000+07:00

Musim liburan ini wisma sepi. Semuanya pada pulkam en saya pun jadi bingung mau ngapain di Padang. Akhirnya sedari tadi pagi sibuk ber-internet ria, ke sana ke mari mengunjungi rumah maya orang-orang yang saya kenal.Perjalanan pagi ini mengingatkan lagi kenapa saya dulu bikin blog?hmm...pertanyaan awalnya kenapa saya ingin menulis.Awalnya adalah ketertarikan saya dengan sesuatu yang berbau sastra atau fiksi ( berbedakah??rasanya tidak) seperti cerpen, novel, kadang puisi-sebenarnya saya tidak terlalu menyukai puisi, hanya puisi yang di tulis orang tertentu saja.Semenjak SD saya sudah tertarik dengan cerpen-cerpen yang ada di majalah Bobo, MTsN baru berkenalan dengan Annida dan ketika SMA saya baru punya keinginan untuk bisa menulis cerpen. Di tambah lagi di kelas rata-rata orang sastra semua, anak-anak S3I-sanggar sastra sekolah indonesia kalau tidak salah. Yang hampir menerbitkan satu cerpen di setiap minggunya dan itu jelas membuat saya iri.Apa yang menarik dari cerpen, novel dan sejenisnya? Saya sendiri juga belum mengetahui secara pasti kenapa saya suka. Tapi ketika saya membacanya dan menikmati setiap kata-katanya saya merasakan kepuasan tersendiri. Menikmati alur cerita yang di buat,mencoba untuk meng-imajinasikannya,seakan-akan saya menjadi bagian dalam cerita tersebut. Tak jarang setelah membaca nya ada sesuatu yang membuat saya tergerak untuk melakukan sesuatu. Itu kehebatan sastra bagi saya. Misalnya saja setelah saya baca novel ayat-ayat cinta tergerakkan untuk membuat rencana hidup. Novelnya Andrea Hirata memotivasi saya untuk memberikan yang terbaik buat ayah saya-baca Sang Pemimpi. Dan juga ada sebuah cerpen yang membuat saya cukup menyadari hakekat tarbiyah, judulnya Tarbiyah KTP, sebuah cerpen yang di muat di Annida sayangnya saya lupa edisi berapa. Menjadi tersentak ketika membacanya,sebuah tarbiyah yang timpang. Sastra berbicara dengan kata-kata yang mengena pada perasaan yang membacanya, mungkin karena itu saya menyukainya. Dan kemudian saya harus berjuang keras ketika di tugaskan membaca buku-buku tebal yang menjadi bacaan wajib kader.Buku seperti Siroh Nabawiyah, Siroh Sahabiyah, Ikhwanul Muslimin membuat saya menikmatinya karena jenisnya biografi. Tapi kalau buku non fiksi lainnya benar-benar harus memaksakan diri untuk bisa menamatkannya.Nah ketika menulis, saya pun tidak bisa lepas dari menulis sesuatu yang fiksi. Saya tidak bisa menulis serius seperti kebanyakan orang. Saya lebih suka menulis dengan gaya bercerita. Dan suatu hari saya ingin menjadi bagian orang-orang yang menginspirasi orang lain dengan menulis. Menulis sesuatu yang bisa menggerakkan. Niat awal bikin blog ini memang untuk tempat bercerita bagi saya. Bercerita perjalanan hidup dengan harapan yang membacanya bisa mengambil hikmah.Ga ada kepikiran untuk menuliskan sesuatu yang 'cukup serius'di sini..:)( karena emg ga bisa). Dan mungkin ke depan blog ini bakal di isi dengan cerita-cerita yang saya temui di luar sana..:)*semoga intinya tersampaikan hehe...

Penghormatan bagi pemilik semangat tinggi

2012-01-03T19:43:00.000+07:00

Dr Aidh bin Abdullah Al-Qarni-

Penghormatan bagi pemilik semangat tinggi. Mereka bagian suci dari manusia. Mereka kelompok mulia dan terhormat. Ruh mereka terbang ke sudut-sudut yang tinggi. Mereka ada dalam tangga-tangga abadi. Barangsiapa yang ingin ketinggian, semua yang memberatkan akan menjadi ringan. Nash-nash wahyu menyerumu. Bersegeralah jangan abai. Bersegeralah jangan berdiam. Umayyah bin Khalaf, ketika ia duduk bersama orang yang tidak berangkat berjihad, ia tahu dirinya merugi. Saat Bilal bin Rabah mendengarkan “Hayya alal falaah”, mari capai kemenangan, ia pun segera bangkit dan menjadi tokoh pengukir kemenangan.

Tuntutlah selalu ketnggian. Musa alaihissalam dahulu dikhususkan oleh Allah dengan Al Kalam (kemampuan berbicara kepada Allah). Musa alaihissalam berkata, “Rabbi arinii anzur ilaik” Tuhanku, berikan aku kesempatan untuk melihat-Mu. Kemuliaan tak datang tiba-tiba, tapi ia merupakan hasil jerih payah. Ketika Hud hud membawa surat kepada Bilqis, maka namanya tercantum dalam surat An-Naml. Seekor semut selamat dari injakan pasukan Sulaiman, dengan jerih payah dan kesabaran. Lalu, engkau ingin kemuliaan tanpa keseriusan? Engkau ingin mencapai ketinggian, namun tidur di malam-malam. Engkau ingin surga, namun meremehkan sunnah.

Rasulullah shalallahu’alaihiwasallam berdiri shalat hingga kakinya bengkak. Dimasukkannya batu di sela perutnya untuk menahan lapar. Berdarah kakinya oleh lemparan batu. Terjun langsung ke berbagai peperangan. Abu Bakar namanya diseru di pintu-pintu surga, karena hatinya terikat dengan Tuhannya setiap detiknya. Perkataannya selalu untuk agamanya. Tindakannya selalu dalam rangka agamanya. Tindakan-tindakannya selalu dalam rangka menebar hidayah. Kebenaran ditegakkannya. Harta diinfaqkannya di jalan Allah. Ia berhijrah dan meninggalkan keluarganya. Umar bin Khatthab mengenakan pakaian yang sobek. Ia berteriak sakit saat mengingat kematian. Lalu ia sangat berhati-hati menjalani agamanya. Ia berlaku adil, jujur dan begitu serius. Ia meminta Allah agar diberikan rizki mati syahid. Allah pun merizqikannya mati syahid, di masjid.

Wahai yang terbelenggu oleh nyanyian, keluarlah dari kerengkeng mimpi. Bersihkanlah debu kekotoran dari tubuhmu. Tinggalkanlah yang menghalangimu. Semua yang menempuh perjalanan akan sampai pada tujuan. Apakah engkau lupa pada ayat-ayat Allah? Mengapakah engkau tunda shalat? APakah engkau buang usiamu dengan kesia-siaan? Lalu engkau ingin masuk surga?

Demi Allah, semut kenyang mendapatkan makanan setelah ia serius mencari makanan. Singa akan berjuang keras, jatuh bangun, untuk menerkam mangsanya. Anak panah takkan pernah bisa mencapai sasarannya bila tetap di dalam sarungnya. Pedang takkan bisa memotong apapun sampai ia menjadi lebih tajam daripada pisau. Burung membangun sendiri tempat tinggalnya. Laba-laba, begitu teliti membangun sarangnya. Kadal menggali lubang-lubang untuk bersembunyi. Rayap membangun rumahnya dengan menggerogoti kayu. Engkau mempunyai kesempatan, Rasulullah bersabda “Peliharalah apa yang berguna bagimu.” Itu karena yang bermanfaat itu akan meninggikanmu. “Seorang mukmin kuat lebih baik dan lebih dicintai Allah daripada Mukmin yang lemah.” Karena kekuatan bisa berguna untuk membangun istana megah, dan meraih kemuliaan dan ketinggian.

Pemilik semangat akan berlomba mendahului orang lain, mencapai ketinggian. “Wassabiquuna saabiquun, ulaaikal muqarrabuun.” Dan orang-orang yang lebih dahulu, merekalah orang-orang yang dekat (kepada Allah). Karena mereka terlatih melakukan keshalihan dan terbukti melakukan ketaatan. Matahari berputar. Bulan berjalan. Sedangkan engkau tidur tidak sadar. Engkau makan dan minum, bermain dan melakukan dosa.

Sebagian muhadditsin buta matanya karena terlalu banyak membaca. Tak ada lelah, tak ada kebosanan, sampai tercapainya tujuan. Imam Ahmad bin Hambal berjalan kaki dari Baghdad ke Shan’a. Tapi engkau sudah lelah ketika menghafal do’a. Salah seorang ulama shalih menempuh perjalanan selama satu bulan hanya untuk memperoleh satu hadits. Agar ia tahu bagaimana kemuliaan yang abadi itu. Andai bukan karena berat dan dahsyatnya ujian, tidaklah Imam Ahmad disebut Imam as Sunnah. Kekasaran bisa membawa pada kemuliaan. Ibnu Taimiyah dipenjara, lalu ia menjadi tokoh ulama yang langka di zamannya. Ketahuilah bahwa air yang mengenang dan diam itu air yang rusak. Karena ia tidak mengalir, tidak berjalan dan tidak mempunyai tantangan. Jika air sudah mengalir, ia akan memberikan manfaat untuk memenuhi kebutuhan makhluk hidup.

Letakkan kakimu di bintang yang tinggi,

Miliki semangat paling tinggi di bintang tertinggi.

Wahai orang yang banyak tidur, apa manfaat tidurmu? Kelak engkau akan membayar mahal karena tidurmu. Allah memerintahkan kita untuk beramal, dan memperhatikan apa yang sudah kita kerjakan. Allah subhanahu wata’ala berfirman, “Dan orang-orang yang berjihad dijalan Kami, akan kutunjukkan mereka jalan-jalan Kami.” Ketahuilah, hidup ini adalah aqidah dan jihad, kesabaran dan kekasaran, perjuangan dan pegorbanan, kebaktian dan kemenangan. Tak ada tempat dalam hidup ini bagi orang-orang yang malas. Tak ada ruang di kendaraan dunia bagi orang yang lemah.

Lihatlah orang kafir yang begitu tekun bekerja. Setiap hari mereka berusaha keras. Mereka membuat mobil di atas bumi. Mereka menemukan pesawat terbang untuk terbang ke langit. Mereka membuat kulkas untuk makananmu. Mereka membuat tempat untuk menyimpan airmu. Sementara engkau tidak bekerja apa-apa, kecuali makan dan minum, bersenda gurau dan bermain.

Engkau cepat bosan, dan Malaikat tidak pernah bosan. Engkau cepat putus asa dalam beramal sedangkan Malaikat tidak pernah putus asa. Lalu dengan apa engkau akan masuk syurga? Apakah engkau tertikam senjata dijalan Allah? Apakah engkau tersiksa karena mendunkung sunnah? Bersihkanlah debu-debu malas dari dirimu wahai orang malas. Bilal sang pemilik semangat tinggi itu telah mengumandangkan adzan di telingamu, apakah engkau mendengarnya? Orang yang menyeru kebaikan telah memanggilmu, mengapa engkau tidak bersegera memenuhi panggilannya?

Mulailah berburu pahala sejak pagi hari. Bacalah Al-Qur’an dan berdzikirlah. Bacalah do’a dan bersyukurlah. Karena pagi hari adalah saat bertolaknya burung-burung dari sarangnya. Dan jangan lupa, sabda Rasulullah shalallahu ‘alaihi wasallam, “Keberkahan Allah untuk ummatku ada pada pagi harinya”.

copas dr milist ilmy UNP

Membayangkan esok

2011-12-23T21:30:00.000+07:00

Sebenarnya malam ini deadline LPJ, tapi karena lagi mumet saya pun beralih ke blog yang sudah minta untuk di isi.

Tema kita kali ini ga jauh-jauh dari apa yang sedang menjadi tugas saya, ini tugas yang seharusnya sudah terselesaikan jauh-jauh hari tapi entah kenapa sampai malam ini belum juga selesai ( padahal besok sudah harus di presentasikan hiks..T_T), LPJ of course.
Membayangkan besok LPJ sudah membuat saya deg-degan tingkat tinggi. Takut LPJ di tolak, pastinya. Terbayangkan juga ADK yang bakal mengkritisi LPJ kami habis-habisan.Rasanya bagaimana supaya besok cepat berlalu.

Itu baru LPJ di dunia nurul. Bagaimana LPJ nanti di hadapan Allah ya? Di hadapan manusia saja saya sudah sedemikian deg-degannya. Bagaimana besok di akherat? Masih sanggup berdirikah untuk mempertanggung jawabkannya?

“Tiap-tiap diri bertanggung jawab atas apa yang telah diperbuatnya.”
Surat Al Mudatstsir ayat 38

LMCPI & LMKPI

2011-12-21T21:36:00.003+07:00

IKUTILAH LOMBA MENULIS CERITA PENDEK ISLAMI (LMCPI) XI
DAN LOMBA MENGGAMBAR KOMIK PENDEK ISLAMI (LMKPI)
ANNIDA-ONLINE

Persyaratan Umum:
1. Tema LMCPI XI dan LMKPI 2011: IMPIAN
2. Naskah/ komik yang diperlombakan bersifat original, bukan jiplakan, dan belum pernah dipublikasikan sebelumnya di media manapun (cetak maupun elektronik)
3. Peserta dari seluruh kalangan: Pelajar, mahasiswa, umum, dalam dan luar negeri. Peserta boleh per orangan atau kelompok (maksimal 3 orang)
4. Tiap peserta lomba wajib menyertakan bukti transfer pembelian paket e-book Antologi 15 Cerpen Pilihan Annida 2011 dan Komik Senyum Nida. Satu bukti transfer dapat digunakan untuk mengirim beberapa naskah LMCPI dan LMKPI (tidak dibatasi), namun hanya untuk satu peserta atau satu kelompok yang sama. (Tata cara pembelian e-book lihat selengkapnya di bawah persyaratan lomba!)
5. Bukti transfer pembelian e-book di-scan dan dikirim ke email panitialomba.annida@gmail.com, setelah itu peserta akan mendapatkan PASSWORD yang harus dicantumkan pada naskah/komik yang dilombakan.
6. Dalam rangka menyemarakkan semangat Go Green. Karya lomba hanya diterima secara online (bukan pos) melalui web www.annida-online.com.
7. Cerpen/ Komik yang dilombakan bernilai kebaikan universal (islami), tidak porno, tidak menyinggung SARA.
8. Naskah cerpen/ komik menggunakan bahasa Indonesia, bukan bahasa asing, bahasa alay atau bahasa SMS.
9. Pengumuman pemenang pada akhir Februari 2012 di annida-online.com
10. Hadiah LMCPI dan LMKPI masing-masing sebagai berikut:
Juara 1: 1 Juta + Piagam penghargaan + Bingkisan
Juara 2: 750 ribu + Piagam penghargaan + Bingkisan
Juara 3: 500 ribu + Piagam penghargaan + Bingkisan

* Syarat Khusus LMCPI:
1. Judul Bebas, menarik, dicantumkan di awal naskah
2. Menuliskan PASSWORD di bawah judul naskah (Password diperoleh setelah mengirim bukti transfer pembelian e-book Antologi 15 Cerpen Pilihan Annida 2011 dan Komik Senyum Nida).
3. Syarat teknis: Naskah diketik rapi. Kertas A4. Font Times New Roman 12pt. spasi 1,5. Panjang 5-10 hlm.

* Syarat Khusus LMKPI:

1. Gaya gambar bebas: Gaya komik Indonesia, manga Jepang, Amerika, dll.
2. Panjang komik minimal 1 halaman. Maksimal 2 halaman.
3. Menuliskan PASSWORD di bawah judul naskah (Password diperoleh setelah mengirim bukti transfer pembelian e-book Antologi 15 Cerpen Pilihan Annida 2011 dan Komik Senyum Nida).
4. Komik di-scan dan dikirim secara online melalui web annida-online.com
5. Komik boleh buatan tangan asli maupun komputer. Boleh berwarna maupun B/W

TATA CARA PEMBELIAN PAKET E-BOOK
"ANTOLOGI 15 CERPEN PILIHAN ANNIDA ONLINE 2011" & "KOMIK SENYUM NIDA"

1. Mentransfer Rp. 50.000,- untuk pembelian paket e-book ke Bank Syariah Mandiri (BSM) atas nama Yayasan Insan Media Peduli 0390-10-77-88
2. Bukti transfer di-scan dan formulir pendaftaran dikirim ke email panitialomba.annida@gmail.com
3. Konfirmasi melalui SMS ke 0838-99-6474-39 dengan format SMS: Ebook--alamat email pentransfer. Contoh: Ebook--lalala@gmail.com
3. Keterangan tata cara mengupload cerpen & komik,E-book dan PASSWORD dan Username untuk login mengupload berkas lomba peserta lomba akan dikirim ke alamat email yang diberikan.
4. Tanya jawab lomba bisa dilakukan melalui email: panitialomba.annida@gmail.com
5. Pemesanan ebook dan pengiriman naskah lomba dimulai pada awal Oktober- Januari 2012. Deadline naskah lomba: 16 Januari 2012

http://www.annida-online.com/daftarlmcpi.html

Selamat Ulang Tahun Kota Biruku

2011-12-18T00:03:00.001+07:00

Hari udah menunjukkan pukul 22.30. Travel yang ku tompangi baru saja memasuki Payakumbuh hendak mengantarkan salah satu penumpangnya ke arah Talang. Pas melewati kantor DPR, banyak karangan bunga ucapan selamat. Baru nyadar hari ini Payakumbuh Milad. Langsung liat HP, ternyata sekarang tanggal 17.

Ucapannya

" Selamat Ulang Tahun Payakumbuh ke 41", moga ke depannya lebih baik lagi^^

Mush'ab bin 'Umair

2011-12-14T14:50:00.000+07:00

Mush’ab bin umair adalah duta islam pertama kaum muslimin yang di utus rasulullah ke madinah. Sebelum masuknya beliau ke dalam islam beliau adalah pemuda tampan yang hidup dalam kesenangan. Namun demi islam, beliau rela untuk meninggalkan kesenangan tersebut. Ketika beliau memeluk islam, ibu nya adalah orang yang paling menentang hal tersebut. Bahkan ibunya mengeluarkan statement bahwa jika mush’ab tidak meninggalkan islam maka jangan menganggapnya sebagai ibu lagi. Begitulah umair yang rela meninggalkan hal itu semua demi keyakinannya atas islam.

Mush’ab bin umair adalah orang yang di pilih rasul dalam mengemban tugas menyiarkan islam di madinah. Tidak hanya kepada penduduk madinah yang telah berbaiat tapi juga kepada penduduk madinah lainnya dalam rangka dakwah islam dan juga mempersiapkan madinah untuk menyambut hijrahnya rasul. Dengan sepenuh hati umair menjalankan tugas ini sehingga bertambahlah orang-orang yang meyakini Allah sebagai tuhan mereka.

Perjuangan mush’ab bin umair tidak dapat di katakan tanpa rintangan. Bahkan pernah suatu ketika salah seorang pimpinan suku kabilah abdul asyhal menodong mush’ab dengan lembingnya seraya menyuruh mush’ab untuk segera meninggalkan madinah. Namun mush’ab menanggapi hal tersebut dengan tenang, ia meminta pimpinan tersebut yang bernama usaid untuk duduk dan mau mendengarkan mush’ab menjelaskan tentang islam. Dan setelah itu berubahlah sikap usaid yang awalnya menentang menjadi salah seorang yang menerima islam. Keislaman usaid ini sangat berpengaruh kepada kabilah yang lainnya sehingga berbondong-bondonglah masyarakat madinah untuk menyatakan keislamannya kepada mush’ab bin umair. Keberhasilan mush’ab bin umair sangat berarti terutama dalam hijrahnya rasulullah ke madinah yang mana kala itu madinah telah terkondisikan oleh mushab bin umair.

Masa-masa terakhir mushab bin umair sangatlah khusnul khotimah. Beliau adalah salah seorang sahabat yang berkesempatan untuk gugur dalam perang uhud. Di masa-masa terakhirnya berjuang mush’ab tiada hentinya menghibur hatinya dengan kalimat “ muhammad hanyalah seorang rasul dan sebelumnya telah di dahului oleh beberapa rasul”. Kalimat ini kemudian di abadikan allah sebagai salah satu wahyuNya yang selalu di baca umat muslim.

Source : 60 karakter sahabat nabi.

Kehidupan Normal

2011-12-09T09:45:00.001+07:00

“Ingin punya kehidupan normal” celutukan ini pernah keluar dari mulut seorang akhwat. Akhwat yang lain pun menimpali “ kehidupan normal seperti apa?”. Semua pun jadi bingung kehidupan normal yang seperti apa ya?. Apakah kehidupan normal seperti orang lain. Bangun pagi, sholat, mandi, kuliah, pulang, istirahat,belajar lalu tidur. Mungkin.

“Kenapa ingin kehidupan normal?” tanya akhwat itu lagi. Karena mungkin selama ini merasa hidupnya ga normal. Bangun pagi, mandi langsung pergi rapat (kadang bahkan tak sempat makan), kuliah, nanti siang rapat lagi, sorenya ngisi mentoring, malamnya di sibukkan dengan tugas dan hal-hal rumahan lainnya yang juga minta untuk segera di selesaikan.

Hmm...memang tidak normal untuk orang-orang normal. Jadi ingat kata-kata senior dulu kita adalah orang-orang luar biasa yang dipilih allah untuk memikirkan orang lain dimana orang lain itu belum tentu memikirkan kita. Itulah kehidupan orang-orang luar biasa. Tak ada waktu yang bisa di gunakan untuk sekadar bermenung memikirkan hal yang tidak-tidak, tidak ada waktu untuk pergi kesana kemari tanpa sebab, karena semuanya sudah terjadwal, pagi kuliah, siang rapat, sore tastqif.Lalu kehidupan normal yang seperti apa lagi yang kita inginkan?

Inilah kehidupan orang-orang yang di belajarkan untuk berfikir besar. Kehidupannya memang tidak normal karena kehidupannya adalah kehidupan yang luar biasa.

'Abasa

2011-12-06T10:21:00.003+07:00

Dia (Muhammad) bermuka masam dan berpaling karena telah datang seorang buta kepadanya. Tahukah kamu barangkali ia ingin membersihkan dirinya (dari dosa), atau dia (ingin) mendapatkan pengajaran, lalu pengajaran itu memberi manfaat kepadanya. Adapun orang yang merasa dirinya serba cukup, maka kamu melayaninya. Padahal tidak ada (celaan) atasmu kalau dia tidak membersihkan diri (beriman). (Surat ‘Abasa 1-7)

Akan tiba masa

2011-12-05T23:07:00.003+07:00

Beberapa hari ini jadi sering merenung tentang usia. Dan salah satu faktor penyebabnya adalah nenek saya. Sedikit bercerita tentang nenek, beliau berusia lebih kurang 85 tahun, dulunya beliau adalah seorang guru agama di sebuah SD. Saat sekarang ini bisa di katakan beliaulah yang sering menyebabkan saya berfikir tentang usia yang di berikan Allah SWT.

Saya cukup sering memperhatikan beliau karena saya adalah cucu perempuan beliau yang tinggal serumah, jadi kalau misalnya nenek perlu bantuan maka sayalah yang sering di suruh Ibu. Usia beliau yang cukup lanjut tentu saja mempengaruhi daya tahannya. Ketika berjalan contohnya, sekarang beliau tidak bisa lagi berjalan seperti kita, langkah perlangkah, mesti pelan-pelan. Kadang kalau berjalan cukup jauh, maka beliau akan sesak nafas. Ini bagian yang sering membuat saya kasihan.

Pernah suatu ketika saya perhatikan lekat-lekat wajah dan tangan beliau. Tidak ada lagi kulit yang kencang, yang ada hanyalah keriput tanda menua. Terasa sekali kulit yang mulai tak berdaging ketika saya memijit beliau. Dan saat itu saya berfikir, suatu saat saya akan seperti beliau. Tubuh yang lemah, kulit yang keriput, jalan yang tertaih. Ya, suatu saat jika Allah berkehendak saya akan sampai pada masa itu.

Mencoba merenungi waktu

Mengingat perjanan yang telah di tempuh

Adakah ia berjejak

Ketika tiba masanya

Maka tiadalah guna

Karena ayah punya cara sendiri mencintai kita

2011-11-28T17:44:00.001+07:00

Tidak pernah di duga dan tak pernah di sangka ternyata ayah punya cara sendiri dalam mencintai kita. Dulu ketika masih MTsN-SMA , aku sering merasa bahwa semua keinginanku jarang yang di penuhi. Ketika teman-teman bisa mengikuti perkemahan pramuka, aku justru dilarang pergi. Ketika teman-teman bisa pergi ke Padang atau Bukittinggi tanpa kawalan orangtua, aku justru harus berbesar hati untuk tidak pergi. Ketika teman-teman bisa mengikuti jurit malam terap pramuka, aku tidak di perbolehkan . Ketika mereka tidak di marahi karena pulang sudah hampir magrib aku justru di marahi. Seringkali aku menangis ketika semua itu terjadi, kenapa mereka diperbolehkan orang tuanya , kenapa aku tidak?.Seringkali kali kata-kata itu keluar dari mulutku ketika aku ingin mengikuti sesuatu namun tidak di izinkan ayahku, dan jawabannya jika aku anak ayahku maka aku harus mematuhinya jika tidak silahkan ikuti mereka. Tak ayal lagi air mata ini pun mengalir ketika itu. Aku tidak bisa saja pergi karena aku tau bahwa pergi tanpa ridho ayahku berarti pergi tanpa ridho Allah, dan ketika itu aku tak berani untuk membantah lagi. Semua nya ku simpan di hati sehingga membuat mata ini tak berhenti menangis. Ketika usiaku mulai bertambah, barulah kusadari bahwa semua itu bentuk cinta ayahku kepadaku. Beliau tidak ingin anak perempuannya sakit, tidak ingin anak perempuannya luka, tidak ingin anak perempuan di ganggu orang. Kadang aku tak menyadari semua itu sehingga menganggapnya sebagai penjara. Tapi ketika ku kuliah di Padang aku merindukan itu. Ayahku memang tak pernah mengungkapkan rasa cinta nya secara jelas sehingga kadang aku tak tau. Tapi ku yakin bahwa sebenarnya itulah cara ayah mencintaiku.

_Saat-saat merindukannya, Semoga Allah senantiasa menjaganya kita ketika penjagaan kita tidak sampai kepada beliau_

2011-11-22T14:07:00.001+07:00

Pertanyaan yang akhir-akhir ini yang sering bertandang ke telingaku sebagai mahasiswa tingkat 4 adalah “ udah nulis ya?”.Nulis apa buk? Kalau nulis cerpen sih udah hihi, tapi tentu saja bukan ‘nulis’ itu yang di maksud ibu-ibu tersebut. Apalagi kalau bukan SKRIPSI. Wah...judulnya saja belum kutemukan, jangankan judul, sampai saat ini pun masih bingung mau nulis skripsi atau makalah.Kata sebagian orang nulis skripsi berarti harus siap tamat lebih dari 4 tahun, beda ma makalah yang kalau kita rajin insyaallah 4 tahun tembus. Skripsi yang tamat 4 tahun emang langka banget kalau di jur bahasa inggris. Saking langkanya tahun ini cuma sekitar 4 orang anak bahasa inggris bp 2007 yang berhasil di wisuda. Selain itu, nulis skripsi juga harus banyak bersabar, masalah bimbingan, penelitian yang harus di ulang, pokok nya complicated makanya kata dosen ku nulis skripsi ku itu lebih challenging.Kalo makalah kayaknya lebih sedikit mudah dari skripsi. Kemungkinan tamat 4 tahunnya lebih besar dari nulis skripsi. Tapi kalau mau lanjut s2 bagusnya nulis skripsi. Ada juga yang bilang kalo nulis skripsi itu lebih ‘keren’ di bandingkan nulis makalah. Jiaaa...jadi bingung...Padahal menurutku menulis apapun itu tetap sama, sama-sama susah . Susah tapi pasti bisa.Untuk saat ini mencoba berdiskusi dengan orang-orang yang berkafaah di bidangny semoga mendapatkan pencerahan. Apapun nanti yang akan ku tulis, -skripsi atau makalah-, semoga itu yang terbaik.

Moga Bunda Disayang Allah

2011-11-21T16:50:00.001+07:00

Habis baca novelnya Tere liye ' Moga Bunda Disayang Allah'. Terilhami dari Hellen Keller yang juga sudah ada filmnya ' The Miracle Worker'. Awal baca novel ini, masih biasa-biasa saja, pas di sepertiganya baru 'ngeh' rasanya pernah nonton film yang alur ceritanya kayak gini deh. Tambah penasaran dan ternyata emang benar, novel ini terinspirasi dari Hellen Keller The Miracle Worker. Tentu saja novel ini versi Tere Liye.Walaupun sudah tau berujung kemana, tetap saja membuatku penasaran dan bertekad segera menamatkannya. Dan ternyata benar, novel setebal 306 halaman ini memang beda. Mengharukan dan memberikan harapan. Perjuangan Karang agar Melati mengenal kehidupan di dunia ini. Terbayangkan anak berumur 6 tahun, buta dan tuli? Tentu ia sangat tersiksa. Yang ia tau hanya Gelap, sunyi, hitam, kosong. Perlahan namun pasti Karang bertekad untuk membantu Melati.Catatan kecil dari novel ini :^ di ingatkan kembali bahwa di luar sana banyak anak-anak yang kurang beruntung, tidak punya orang tua tidak sekolah. ( Jadi ceritanya karang adalah anak jalanan yang di jadikan anak angkat oleh seorang suami istri yang mempunyai rumah singgah. Disanalah awal kehidupan Karang mencintai anak-anak dan juga mewarisi jiwa ayah angkatnya untuk mendirikan rumah singgah sehingga mempunyai berbagai cabang. Bagian yang paling kerennya ketika Karang berhasil mebuat anak-anak termotivasi, berani bermimpi dan berusaha.. :)^ mungkin di suatu waktu kita pernah lelah akan suatu kondisi dan terkadang tak jarang putus asa pun menghampiri, dan membiarkan semua yang terjadi.Begitu juga dengan Bunda Melati, rasa lelah fisik menghadapi Melati yang sangat 'aktif', bertahun-tahun berdo'a namun tak kunjung ada jawaban sehingga kemudian ia mempertanyakan batas kesabaran karena ia merasa sampai di sinilah batas kesabarannya. Dan ternyata semuanya hanyalah masalah waktu. Menunggu keajaiban Tuhan datang.

8 days to 1433 H

2011-11-19T08:55:00.001+07:00

Insyaallah 8 hari lagi memasuki 1433 Hijriyah. Berbagai agenda pun di angkatkan dalam menyemarakkan Muharram karena kondisinya kadang kita terlupa akan moment- moment penting islam. Pesan salah satu ustadz ketika sibuk dengan agenda, ruhiyah jangan terlupakan. Niat hati ingin mengadakan perubahan di moment ini namun karena kesibukan agenda yang terjadi malah sebaliknya. Dan satu yang penting kembali memuhasabi diri akan perjalan yang sudah-sudah agar menjadi lebih baik.

Little thing of Japan

2011-11-09T11:54:00.000+07:00

bingung mau nulis apa. hehe....akhir-akhir ini jadi keseringan nonton film jepang. Tanya kenapa? Karena salah seorang teman saya maniak banget ma film Jepang. Apa yang menarik dari film Jepang? Pertanyaan itu pernah saya lontarkan padanya. Dan jawabannya " Film Jepang itu tidak seperti film kebanyakan. Mereka membuat film karena memang ada sesuatu nilai yang ingin mereka sampaikan." Bagi teman saya kata-kata yang ada di film Jepang adalah kata-kata mutiara ( saya sepakat dalam hal ini, ada beberapa film yang saya tonton dan percakapan dialog mereka benar-benar menginspirasi). Selain itu lagu-lagunya juga bagus ( tidak seperti lagu percintaan indonesia pastinya). Ingat pas kejadian tsunami di jepang? cara mereka menghadapinya sangat berbeda dengan kita. mereka memutar lagu-lagu semangat dan terus memotivasi rakyatnya untuk terus berjuang. Kata-kata Ganbarru ( perjuangan sampai titik darah terakhir ) benar-benar "keren".conclusion..(wah, tulisan ini parah) jepang keren. baik itu dalam hal prinsip hidup, dalam perfilman pun mereka mencoba untuk tetap menginspirasi.ganbarru for writing..:)

Mendaki Gunung

2011-09-19T23:18:00.000+07:00

" Sebuah negara tidak akan pernah kekurangan seorang pemimpin apabila anak mudanya sering berpetualang di hutan, gunung dan lautan" ( Quatation from Sir Henry Dunant)Quatation ini benar-benar keren. Bukan pemuda namanya kalau ga pernah mendaki gunung atau berpetualang, apalagi seorang pemuda muslim. Karena selain mengenal alam, ujiannya seorang pemimpin ada pada saat mengambil keputusan pada injury time. Dulu salah seorang uni ku pernah bercerita tentang dahsyatnya ketika dia dan teman-temannya mendaki gunung. Bagian yang paling mengesankan bagi uni tersebut pas sholat malam di tengah hutan bertemankan tasbih rerumputan dan pohon. Bahkan yang subhannallahnya lagi, ada salah seorang temannya yang mendapatkan hidayah malam itu. Ceritanya, malam itu dia ikutan sholat en dia benar-benar merasakan bahwa manusia itu ga ada apa-apanya. Sejak saat itu beliau berubah jadi lebih baik, sholatnya juga jadi semakin rajin.Back to quatation. Sebenarnya kutipan ituku ambil dari sebuah novel. Menceritakan persahabatan anak muda yang sama gilanya en bagian intinya adalah saat mereka mendaki Gunung Mahameru. Pendeskripsian tempatnya bikin kita mengimajinasikan kalau kita benar-benar di sana. Ranu Kumbolo, yang di katakan Surganya Mahameru, kayaknya ga bisa di deskripsikan dengan kata-kata ( pengen ngeliat langsung..T_T). Pokoknya pas baca novel itu rasanya kita di kasih tau, ini lo yang bakal kita temukan saat mendaki, ini lo yang boleh, ini yang enggak.Honestly, Quatation ini membuatku kembali bersemangat merealisasikan mimpiku.

Catt Ramadhan kedua ku

2011-08-03T12:36:00.001+07:00

Menapaki hari Ramadhan kedua, ada sedikit catatan ketika menunaikan sholat berjamah di mesjid. Entah kenapa jemaah ibuk2 di mesjid dekat rumah ku selalu mengelak untuk sholat di saff depan, terlebih pas tarawih. bahkan saat sholat ada saff yang masih kosong. belum lagi jarak antar makmumnya yang menurutku agak berjarak. Jadi tidak tenang sholatnya. Memang sih aku pernah dengar kalau saff perempua itu lebih baik di belakang, seperti Mesjid Takwa Muhammadiyah Padang, yang saff perempuannya sangat jauh dari saff laki2. Tapi kalau itu di terapkan di tempatku kayaknya agak susah coz mesjidnya ga sebesar di Mesjid Takwa. Kayaknya harus cari cara sendiri supaya pas sholat jamaah ga ada yang bolong en ga berjarak.

Let's Pray

2011-07-29T11:17:00.000+07:00

Do’a yang di ajarkan Nabi Muhammad SAW kepada cucunya Hasan bin Ali

“ Ya Allah berilah aku hidayah termasuk pada orang yang Engkau beri hidayah, dan berilah aku keselamatan, dan orang yang Engkau anugerahi keselamatan dan perbaikilah urusanku, termasuk dalam orang yang Engkau perbaiki urusannya, dan berkahilah aku pada apa yang Engkau anugerahkan padaku, dan hindarkan aku dari kejahatan apa yang Engkau putuskan, sungguh Engkaulah yang memutuskan dan bukan diputuskan, dan sungguh tidak akan hina orang yang Engkau tolong serta tidak akan mulia orang yang memusuhi-Mu, Maha Berkah Engkau dan Maha Tinggi, tiada tempat berlindung dari-Mu kecuali kepada diri-Mu.

Ya Allah, Perangilah orang-orang kafir yang menghalangi dari jalan-Mu dan mendustakan para Rasul-Mu an tidak beriman dengan janji-Mu. Cerai beraikan persatuan mereka, lemparkan rasa takut pada hati mereka, dan lemparkan adzab-Mu atas mereka wahai Illah yang haq.

Ya Allah, Hanya kepada-Mu kami menyembah dan hanya untuk -Mu kami sholat dan sujud. Hanya kepada-Mu kami menuju dan menyegerakan langkah kami. Kami mengharap rahmat-Mu wahai Tuhan kami dan kami takut adzab-Mu yang sangat. Sesungguhnya adzab-Mu akan mengenai orang yang memusuhi -Mu”.

taken from Sabili

at the end

2011-06-25T15:19:00.001+07:00

banyak yang tak terduga di akhir semester ini

matkul yang benar2 menguras tenaga namun berakhir bahagia

teman kelas yang nikah, hehe....

berakhir bahagia itu selalu menyenangkan...

benarlah kata orang habis gelap pasti terangkan datang

setelah bersusah payah, ternyata ada akhir yang bahagia

my lovely class, my lovely lecturer, my lovely friends.....

Happy ending...:)

....

2011-06-17T16:46:00.000+07:00

karena senyummu

membuatku meyakini bahwa

semua penat, lelah ku tak akan sia-sia

teruslah berjuang

Summer in Korea

2011-06-14T21:33:00.000+07:00

Ramadhan

2011-06-08T10:26:00.002+07:00

Jiaa...ramadhan is coming. Bulan pengampunan, bulan penuh rahmat.
Rindu sekali rasanya melihat dimana-mana orang baca alquran. Kalo sekarang jarang lihat ADK baca Al-Quran di mushala, ntar Ramadhan dengungan bacaan Al-Quran akan terdengar di mushla. Ga hanya di mushala, di wisma, di rumah. Rindu juga akan malam-malam Ramadhan. Tarawih di Muslimin. Bacaan imamnya yang sangat menyentuh hati ( yang kadang bisa membuat jama’ah menitikkan air mata), subhanallah. Rindu sekali....Malam malam di mana semua orang berupaya untuk melakukan ibadah terbaiknya. Sholat tahajud yang jika di bulan-bulan biasa sangat jarang, maka di bulan Ramadhan sangat rugi rasanya jika melewatkan satu malam tanpa tahajud.

Rindu juga dengan buka bareng sama ortu, ibu yang biasanya bikin kolak, rindu buka bareng sama akhwat coz ramadhan-ramadhan sebelumnya akhwat berkreasi full untuk membuat pabukoan, bukankah menyediakan pabukoan terbaik utk orang yang berpuasa juga akan mendapatkan pahala yang sama dengan yang puasa??.
Allahumma bariklana fi rajab wa sya’ban wa baligna ramadhan. 2 bulan ini menjadi persiapan untuk Ramadhan. Persiapan fisik bisa mengagendakan bekam sebelum Ramadhan ini dan juga cek gigi. Persiapan ruh, memperbanyak bacaan al-quran dari biasanya, sholat sunnah dan juga puasa yang di tingkatkan. Jika sebelumnya hanya hari senin atau kamis, maka sekarang di usahakan agar senin kamis terpenuhi. Karena ibarat mesin, otomatis ga bisa langsung di jalankan, mesti di panaskan dulu. Persiapan materi juga, dari sekarang dah bikin tabungan biar nanti pas ramadhan bisa ikutan donatur pembagian ta’jil ke masyarakat.

2 bulan ini semestinya di maksimalkan menyambut ramadhan. Membuat targetan-targetan Ramadhan bisa mengingatkan dan memotivasi kita dalam menyambut ramdhan. Agar ramadhan ini tidak berlalu begitu saja, agar Ramdhan kali ini benar-benar menjadi bekal kita untuk sebelas bulan sesudahnya. Agar dosa-dosa kita yang sebegitu banyaknya di ampuni Allah, karena percayalah jika kita benar-benar melakukan semuanya dengan mengharapkan ridha Allah maka Allah akan bersamamu.

Unlimited process

2011-06-01T08:30:00.001+07:00

Sepertinya tema 2 hari belakangan ini adalah sabar. Kemaren pas kuliah Dasar-dasar filsafat membahas tentang artikel cara-cara orang tua merusak anak ( ada 19 cara merusak anak ckck...salah satunya membiarkan anak menonton TV). Dan point penting dalam diskusi kemaren adalah bagaimana orang tua bisa bersabar tanpa batas dalam mendidik anak. Bagaimana seorang ibu bisa bersabar dalam menjawab pertanyaan anak, membimbing anak langkah demi langkah ketika belajar berjalan.Kadang itu yang kurang di kalangan orang tua ( seperti sudah jadi orang tua saja..wkwk...). Ada orang tua yang tidak sabar menghadapi anaknya sehingga keluarlah kata-kata yang...it's not supposed to be said.

Pagi ini juga berbicara tentang sabar, tapi konteksnya beda. Sabar menghadapi adik-adik mentoring. Menghadapi adik-adik mentee sepertinya memang butuh kesabaran ekstra. Dan kalo di pikir-pikir di situ mungkin letak ujiannya..Jadi ingat akhwat yang bela-belain mencari bahan mentoring sampai tengah malam eh ternyata besok adiknya berhalangan semua. Sabar...kata yang tepat pada saat itu.
Banyak lagi sebenarnya hal-hal yang membutuhkan kesabaran. Menghadapi dosen, teman, adik-adik, tugas....

Makanya sabar itu unlimited process.

Special dress for ELTM

2011-05-19T15:07:00.000+07:00

Hari kamis hari di mana kelasku menggunakan pakaian yang beda dari biasanya. Letak bedanya? Kalau hari biasanya ada teman-teman yang pakai baju kekecilan atau celana jeans yang membentuk, maka hari Kamis ini anak kelas bakalan pakai baju kurung. Why? Karena itu adalah persyaratan untuk mata kuliah ku yang satu ini. ELTM, English Language Teaching Media. Pada mata kuliah ini kami akan praktek mengajar dengan memanfaatkan media yang ada baik itu modern maupun tradisional. Jadi harus berpakaian 'guru' yaitu baju kurung.
Kadang aku berfikir kalau setiap hari pakai baju kurung pasti keren. tapi setidaknya awal yang bagus untuk membiasakan baju kurung.

Jalan Cinta Para Pejuang

2011-05-11T21:51:00.001+07:00

' Jadikan cintaku padaMu ya Allah berhenti di titik ketaatan. Meloncati rasa suka dan tak suka, karena aku tahu, mentaatiMu dalam hal yang tak kusukai adalah kepayahan, perjuangan dan gelimang pahala. Karena seringkali ketidaksukaanku hanyalah bagian dari ketidak tahuanku '

Ketika mendapatkan SMS ini pada awalnya, aku tidak terlalu respect coz awalnya aku berfikir sms tausiyah yang sama dengan yang lainnya. Namun hingga pada suatu saat aku harus memutuskan untuk menghapus beberapa sms di inboxku karena sudah penuh, maka ku tersentak ketika ku sampai di sms tausiyah ini.

Ada do'a dalam sms ini. Do'a agar cinta kita hanya ketaatan pada Allah. Do'a untuk tetap menguatkan diri karena taat itu tidak mudah. Karena taat bukanlah melakukan apa yang kita sukai. Melainkan melakukan hal yang tidak kita sukai. Disitulah ujian ketaatan.

_syukron kepada uni ku yang senantiasa mengingatkan_

Go Abroad

2011-05-04T10:15:00.000+07:00

Hari ini kembali merajut mimpi setelah mendengar cerita Kak Rahma yang baru saja mengikuti seminar Australia Award di Basko Hotel. Kembali memotivasiku untuk memperjuangkan mimpiku mengambil S2 di australia. Ada beberapa hal yang harus kulakukan agar mimpiku tercapai :

1. Kembali luruskan niat. Apa tujuan kita melanjutkan study S2 di australia? Apakah murni untuk mencari ilmu supaya bisa membangun negeri ini? Atau hanya sekadar “ kerenan” belaka “oh saya kul S2 di luar negeri lo..”. luruskan niat bahwa melanjutkan S2 semata ingin mendapatkan sesuatu untuk perubahan, mencari ilmu yang lebih di sana. Berdiskusilah dengan orang-orang saleh untuk mendapatkan niat yang lurus, lillahita’ala.

2. Persiapkan diri untuk persyaratan. Setelah berdiskusi tadi ada syarat-syarat yang harus di penuhi supaya bisa mendapatkan beasiswa S2 ke australia
- IPK minimal 2,9 ( harus menargetkan yang tertinggi, IPK 3,5, biar nanti kalau ada yang mendaftar 10 orang maka kita bukan kandidat terakhir yang memiliki IPK 2,9, sehingga tereliminasi karena IP pas-pasan )
- TOEFL minimal 500. Ini bisa di kejar dengan mulai mengikuti test TOEFL dari sekarang. Kalau di BB biayanya Rp 50.000. dan yang di akui itu ada di UNAND dan satu lagi ITE dekat Sari Anggrek
- Melengkapi persyaratan surat-menyurat seperti akte kelahiran, KTP, Pasport, Ijazah yang di legalisir basah.
- Mempersiapkan tulisan essay kenapa kita ingin kuliah di Australia, apa jurusan yang kita inginkan, apa motivasi kita, dan apa yang ingin kita dapatkan kelak setelah selesai S2 di sana.
- Mempersiapkan diri untuk wawancara. Kata Kak Rahma syarat pertama adalah kelengkapan syarat administrasi. Ketika satu saja file administrasi kita tidak lengkap, maka kita langsung di depak. Jika file kita lengkap semuanya, maka yang di lihat kemudian adalah essay kita. Setelah lulus di seleksi administrasi maka test selanjutnya adalah test wawancara. Pada test wawancara ini ada beberapa hal yang harus kita perhatikan, misalnya si penguji akan menanyakan siapa kita, apa yang bisa kita banggakan dari diri kita, apa prestasi kita ( ini pertanyaan paling sulit buat saya..hehe..:)). Kata Kak Dina ( senior di wisma ) sebenarnya inti dari wawancara lebih pada personal kita. Bagaimana kita masuk, duduk, menjawab pertanyaan, komunikasi kita, kenyakinan kita pada diri sendiri. Sepertinya lebih pada karakter kita, Who am I?
- Kemudian setelah wawancara dan di nyatakan lulus maka kita akan di berikan pelatihan selama 6 – 12 minggu untuk mempersiapkan diri sebelum ke australia. Tujuannya bisa jadi untuk melatih bahasa inggris kita dan persiapan ujian IELTS ( ternyata ada ujian IELTS yang skornya tergantung pada universitas apa yang akan kita tuju).
- Kebanyakan anak pendidikan akan mengambil education sebagai pilihannya. Nanti selama pelatihan akan ada konsultasi untuk lebih mengarahkan lebih lanjut lagi.
- Biasanya pembukaan test administrasi sudah di mulai bulan April- Juni, jadi bersiap-siap lah. Insyaallah di buka setiap tahunnya.

Mengetahui apa yang akan kita dapatkan bisa jadi motivasi juga untuk meraih mimpi kita, tapi jangan jadikan ini motivasi utama
- Kita bakal di biayai full selama skul di sana.
- Kita akan kuliah selama 4 semester tanpa memikirkan darimana datangnya uang untuk biaya hidup coz selama 1x 2 minggu uang tersebut akan datang ke kita..:)
- Bakal dapat penginapan yang di lengkapi fasilitas2 yang di butuhkan
- Pengalaman so pasti..

Wah, jadi semangat lagi untuk menggapai mimpi. Satu lagi yang menambah semangatku kata-kata Jangan Pernah Menyerah, karena ada loh orang yang sudah 10 kali mencoba yang ke sepuluh baru di terima. So ganbatte...
oh ya link nya..www.studyinaustralia.gov.au

Japan's food

2011-04-12T17:06:00.003+07:00

Berbicara makanan, maka tiba-tiba ku ingat akan masakan jepang.
Searching pun di lakukan...foto-fotonya menggiurkan hehe...

salah satunya ekkado...

cara bikinnya
Bahan A:
175 gr udang jari
75 gr daging dada ayam, cincang
20 bt telur puyuh, rebus, kupas
kembang tahu yg tipis
¼ st soda kue
benang kasur u/ mengikat

Bahan B:
½ st garam halus
½ st vetcin (optional)
3 sm tepung aci/ tapioca
¼ st merica bubuk
½ st minyak wijen
2 kecap asin/ fish sauce cap matahari (kemasan kaleng)
1 st gula pasir
25 cc putih telur
2 sm lemak ayam (optional)

Cara membuat:
1. Kupas udang dan buang kotorannya lalu diberi soda kue dan dibiarkan sebentar
2. Kemudian udang di lap sd kering (spy kenyal) kemudian dicincang,
3. Campur udang dg garam, merica, minyak wijen, kecap asin, gula dan 1 sm aci, aduk rata
4. Tambahkan ayam cincang, 2 sm aci , aduk tambahkan minyak ayam (dr lemak
ayam yg dipanaskan) terkahir masukan putih telur. Aduk rata
5. Ambil kembang tahu yg telah diredam dg air dingin, potong berukuran 10 x 10 cm. Isi dengan adonan udang dan diberi 1 bt tlr puyuh tebus, ikat bag atasnya dg
benang kasur
6. Kukus kira2 15 menit.
7. Pada saat akan disajikan goreng terlebih dahulu , baru lepaskan benangnya

SAMBEL EKKADO
Bahan:
5 sm saus tomat
2 sm cabe giling/ sambel cap jempol
3 sm mayonnaise
2 sm air jeruk nipis
2 sm gula pasir
½ st garam halus

Cara membuat:
Aduk semua bahan jadi satu

jadi pengen bikin ini....:)
d filter ya bahan dasarnya...

Technorati Tags: RESEP EKKADO(MASAKAN JEPANG)
source :http://resepmasakanindonesia.idcc.info/resep-ekkadomasakan-jepang.htm

Masalah Hati

2011-04-10T21:09:00.000+07:00

Hari ini bicara tentang ikhlas.

Dalam teorinya sangat mudah untuk mengatakan bahwa sesuatu itu di kerjakan hanya untuk mengharapkan ridho Allah. Namun yang susah itu aplikasinya. Ketika kita berinfak misalnya, awalnya mungkin kita telah meniatkan bahwa kita berinfak hanya untuk mengharapkan ridho Allah. Ketika kotak infak telah di pergilirkan pikiran kita masih berkutat dengan infak tadi, kira-kira tadi ada akhwat yang lihat tidak ya? Uang saya tinggal berapa ya? Masih cukup untuk pulang tidak?. Semua itu bermain di benak kita. Apa artinya?. Kita masih belum ikhlas dalam berinfak. Karena sejatinya jika kita ikhlas, maka setelah uang kita berikan tidak ada lagi ingatan kita pada infak tersebut. Tidak ada lagi perasaan apapun, pokoknya “plong”. Analoginya ikhlas itu sama dengan BAB. Masuk, proses dan keluar. Tidak ada lagi yang di ingat-ingat setelah itu.

Ikhlas berarti kita berbicara masalah hati. Tidak ada seorang pun yang bisa memastikan apakah orang tersebut ikhlas atau tidak. Hanya Allah lah yang tau. Sebenarnya beda antara ikhlas, riya dan syirik itu amat tipis. Jika kita tidak jadi melakukan sesuatu karena takut di nilai riya, maka itulah riya yang sebenarnya. Lain halnya jika kita melakukan sesuatu dengan niat ingin di puji orang, maka jatuhnya pada syirik. Dan ikhlas adalah ketika kita melakukan sesuatu hanya mengharapkan ridho Allah.
Ketika kita beribadah, bermuamalah, semua itu di lakukan lillahi ta’ala. Bukan karena kita aktivis, bukan karena kita kader sehingga kita harus melakukan semua itu. Bukan pula karena tuntutan syuro, karena amanah dan bukan pula karena tuntutan karir.

Dalam kisah sahabat, Khalid bin Walid, adalah salah satu contoh bagaimana memaknai ikhlas itu sendiri. Ketika ia di turunkan dari amanahnya sebagai panglima perang pada masa Kalifah Umar bin Khatab itu tidak membuat semangatnya turun dalam perang. Ia tetap berperang dengan totalitas sebagaimana ketika ia masih panglima, sehingga menimbulkan pertanyaan di kalangan sahabatnya, kenapa ia masih bisa memberikan pengorbanan seperti itu walaupun ia bukan panglima lagi. Khalid pun menjawab “ saya berjuang karena Allah bukan karena Kalifah Umar “
Wallahu’alam

Sastra itu emang keren

2011-04-06T09:51:00.000+07:00

Berada di jurusan pendidikan hanya dapat mempelajari sedikit tentang sastra. kalau tidak salah hitung hanya 4 SKS selama kuliah (lagian ngapain juga anak pendidikan belajar sastra??)
Tapi bagiku belajar sastra itu sangat asyik dan banyak hal lain yang bisa kita ketahui dari sastra. Tentang bagaimana suatu negara, kita bisa melihat dari karya sastranya. Tentang masyarakatnya, budayanya, sistem negaranya, banyak sekali yang bisa kita ketahui lo...(kata temanku dari sepakbola kita juga bisa mengungkap rahasia suatu negara)

Royal tea, salah satunya. puisi ini kupelajari sewaktu di tahun 2. kalau lihat judulnya pasti bakalan nyangka kalau puisi ini berhubungan sama minuman. Tapi ternyata puisi ini kritikan lo dari penulisnya kepada pihak kerajaan. Puisi ini kalau tidak salah juga d hidden kan dari peredaran...

Wallahu'alam

Sebelum Terlena - hijjaz

2011-03-25T22:29:00.001+07:00

Nasyid yang ku dengar waktu MTsn namun terus menginspirasi hingga kini

Sebelum mata terlena
Di buaian malam gelita
Tafakurku di pembaringan
Mengenangkan nasib diri

Yang kerdil lemah dan bersalut dosa
Mampukah ku mengharungi titian sirat nanti
Membawa dosa yang menggunung tinggi
Terkapai ku mencari limpahan hidayahMu

Agar terlerai kesangsian hati ini
Sekadar air mata tak mampu
Membasuhi dosa ini

Sebelum mata terlena
Dengarlah rintihan hati ini
Tuhan beratnya dosaku
Tak daya kupikul sendiri

Hanyalah rahmat dan kasih sayangmu
Yang dapat meringankan hulurkan maghfirahmu
Andainya esok bukan milikku lagi
Dan mata pun ku tak pasti akan terbuka lagi

Sebelum berangkat pergi ke daerah sana
Lepaskan beban ini
Yang mencengkam jiwa dan ragaku

Selimuti diriku
Dengan sutra kasih sayangmu
Agar lena nanti kumimpikan
Syurga yang indah abadi

Pabila ku terjaga
Dapat lagi kurasai
Betapa harumnya
Wangian syurga firdausi.. Oh Ilahi

Di sepertiga malam
Sujudku menghambakan diri
Akan kuteruskan pengabdianku padamu

Sianok

2011-02-28T22:48:00.002+07:00

Moment pulang kampung memang moment yang di tunggu-tunggu. Selain melepaskan taragak dengan keluarga dan sanak famili, moment ini juga menjadi pelepas taragak dengan makanan-makanan Payakumbuh. Di antaranya aneka bubur. Selama tinggal di Padang belum kutemukan tempat orang menjual bubur yang seenak Payakumbuh. Walaupun ada, rasanya itu sangat beda jauh dengan bubur di Payakumbuh. Tempat menjual bubur yang tergolong enak di lidahku adalah di Sianok, dekat toko Wan Susila Baru di pasa dakek ( masih ini g ya nama pasarnya, lupa). Wuih, buburnya di sana itu benar2 enak. Ada bubur putih, bubur kacang padi, bubur hitam, ada lagi yang namanya kampiun. Ada sekitar 5/6 macam bubur di sana. Rasanya itu benar2 pas, santannya, gulanya, hmmm...enak. Yang jadi bubur favoritku, bubur kacang padi en bubur putih. Harganya pun relatif murah untuk satu porsi cukup 4.000 rupiah. Bagusnya kalau membeli bubur itu sekitar jam 6 atau jam 7 karena masih panas. Tapi walaupun ke sana sekitar jam 10 insyaallah bubur nya masih ada. Jadi jangan takut kehabisan.
= coretan kecil ketika libur semester, jadi pengen libur lagi=

Wisma ku

2011-02-24T15:21:00.002+07:00

Jika di tanya tempat pertama yang ku singgahi ketika tiba di padang maka jawabannya adalah wisma. Bagiku wisma itu ngangenin. Rasanya ada saja yang menarik-narik ku untuk kembali ke padang jika aku pulang kampung. Bagi sebagian orang mungkin saja wisma adalah sekadar tempat tidur, tempat makan, tempat mandi....namun bagiku wisma lebih dari itu. Tidak ada satupun tempat kos yang mampu menggantikan wisma ku. Jika di lihat betapa banyak tempat kos yang menurut ku lumayan nyaman untuk ditempati. Tapi setelah berada di sana sekitar 1 hari, aku merasakan tidak ada yang lebih baik dari wisma ku. aku rindu saudara-saudaraku, menikmati jalan-jalan kecil menuju ke wismaku, menikmati tidur siang di wisma, menantikan masakan akhwat...semuanya tidak akan kudapatkan di luar sana. Bersyukur sekali rasanya aku telah di kenalkan dengan tarbiyah ini. Ini adalah jalanku, jalan yang takkan mampu di bayar, tak bisa tergantikan. Saudara-saudara ku adalah harta yang sangat berarti bagiku. Bersama berjuang, ada tawa, tangis, suka dan duka. Walaupun kadang ada hal-hal yang menyandung namun itu tak menjadi apa-apa karena rasa cinta kepada saudara karena Allah lebih besar dari itu semua. Ingin rasanya aku berteriak mengatakan pada dunia bahwa jalan ini adalah jalan yang engkau inginkan, jalan ini begitu indah dengan berbagai persoalan yang ada. Bukankah permasalahan itulah yang membuat hidup itu menjadi indah?akankah ku temui rumah dan saudara yang seperti ini di luar sana?
Pertemuan insan manusia di jalan Allah adalah anugrah terindah yang di berikan pada setiap manusia. Tidakkah mereka mengerti? Wisma, akhwat, dakwah hmmm........dinamika hidup yang membuatku merasakan bahwa hidup ini sangat indah. Terlebih hidup dalam tarbiyah...:)

sebiru hari ini....

2011-02-13T07:26:00.001+07:00

Alhamdulillah, di anugrahi kesempatan bersama adik2 sanlat weekend yasbi. adik2 yang semangat membuatku teringat masa2 awal sma dulu...ha...kangen kembali ke masa sma...
tapi yang terpenting di pagi biru ini ada semangat untuk terus melakukan perubahan sekecil apapun itu ...
ganbatte....

Anugrah Terindah di Senja Ini

2011-01-20T18:33:00.001+07:00

Wah ...syukur tak terhingga pada hari ini. Alhamdulillah.....wasyukurilah....
Di saat-saat terakhir yang penuh tekanan, bayangan-bayangan suram masa depan (lebay..) pertolongan Allah datang. Deadline tugas yang seharusnya di kumpul hari ini pukul 6, alhamdulillah di izinkan kumpul besok pagi jam 10 paling lama. Mungkin bagi sebagian orang ini adalah hal yang biasa. Namun bagi diriku dan teman-temanku ini adalah anugrah terindah pada tanggal 20 januari ini. Wajah yang sedari tadi berkerut di depan laptop berubah seketika dengan senyum dan wajah yang lega. Wah....thanks tak terhingga kepada Ibuk Susi yang telah memberi waktu tenggang untuk tugas ini....
and of course,ini tak lain tak bukan adalah campur tangan Sang Maha Sutradara....

Miracle of giving a fool

2011-01-14T13:00:00.002+07:00

Have you ever watched miracle of giving a fool? it' a nice story about love and friendship. watch it..

MIRACLE OF GIVING FOOL
Sung Ryong is an autis man who lives with Ji In, his sister. In fact, Ji In hates him. He sells toast everyday near to Ji In’s school to earn money. Because of his autism, he always sees the good side of live, he doesn’t care what has happened, he always smiles, that is why his friends love him and need his smile. They know that smile cure everything.
Min Hyok is his best friend since he was at elementary school; Min Hyok loves him so much. He has another friend named Ji Ho, Ji Ho loves him too.
One night, Sung Ryong was waiting for his sister. He waited for his sister near to his toast baker. A sound shocked him and then he put his hand accidentally on his baker, his hand was injured. His lovely friend, Ji Ho cured his injure and wrapped his hand with the bandage.
Then he looked for Ji In and he found she was sick, she needs a kidney donator. The one who took her to the hospital and took care of her at that time was Sung Ryong. For that she realized her brother loves her very much more then she thought. She said, “How did you take such a good care of me. Thank you.’ Since that time, they love each other.
At the same time, Min Hyok fought with a gangster, his hand was injured too. The leader of that gangster was angry with him and he wanted to do revenge.
The day after, the gangster leader called his staff and asked them to kill Min Hyok. However, the staff didn’t know who Min Hyok is; one of them asked to the leader, “how can we find Min Hyok?’ The leader answered, ‘just find a man who has bandage on his hand’.
The staff did the leader instruction immediately; he found a man with bandage and killed him. Unfortunately, the one who they killed is Sung Ryong, he is not Min Hyok. Sung Ryong died in his smile.

Ibroh

2011-01-11T15:14:00.003+07:00

Ibroh itu ada di mana saja, kapan saja dan dari siapa saja. Itu adalah bagaimana kita memandang sesuatu. Dipuji orang, minta kita untuk senantiasa bersyukur. Di kritik orang, tanda kita harus terus memperbaiki diri. Sakit, bagaimana kita bisa untuk terus melakukan yang bermanfaat dan mendekatkan diri pada Allah.
Kadangkala kita mungkin terlupa untuk mengambil ibroh sehingga yang ada mungkin gerutuan kita, penyesalan dan hal lain yang tentu saja tidak dapat kita ubah lagi. Bagiku, sedikit berfikir atas apa yang terjadi adalah lebih baik daripada melakukan itu semua. Berfikir tentang apa maksud ini semua akan membuat apa yang telah terjadi akan lebih berarti. Mungkin hal tersebut adalah sesuatu yang tidak menyenangkan bagi kita. Tapi ketahuilah ketika kita berfikir sejenak dan berusaha untuk mengetahui apa yang terjadi itu akan membuat kita memaknai setiap kejadiaan yang ada.
Pelajaran itu merupakan hal yang sangat berarti dari kehidupan kita. Taukah kau bahwa bahagia ada dalam diri?. Ya, menerima semua keadaan yang terjadi pada diri kita akan membuat kita lebih bahagia. Namun tentu saja hal tersebut tidaklah mudah. Ada jiwa besar, ada keikhlasan, dan ada perjuangan. Hmm….taukah kau bahwa hal itu sangat indah..tersenyumlah sejenak ketika kau mendapatkan hal yang tidak kau sangka-sangka dan kemudian berhentilah sejenak untuk merenunginya, dan kau akan mendapatkan kehidupan yang lebih baik.

Grammar Frameworks In Intelligent CALL

2011-01-03T11:46:00.000+07:00

Clive Matthews,
University of East Anglia, Norwich, England

Abstract:
Most recent work in ICALL has tended to focus on syntactic structure. Clearly the grammar formalism chosen for such systems is of some importance. However, as this paper argues, little consideration seems to have been paid to such matters beyond the question of computational efficiency. Following previous work, the paper further argues for choosing a formalism that potentially meshes with work in SLA. Of all the main grammar formalisms being developed, GB theory, with its emphasis on Universal Grammar, has had the most impact on SLA research. Recent advances in "principle based" parsing now make possible the integration of such work into ICALL.

INTRODUCTION
The theme of this conference is "bridges.' Bridges help to reduce the boundaries between disciplines and this is something I have been recently advocating as necessary with reference to Intelligent CALL (ICALL) (Matthews, 1992a). It is a topic that I want to pursue in a little more detail in this paper. The connections I most want to explore are three-fold: between linguistic theory and ICALL, between Second Language Acquisition theory (SLA) and ICALL and, finally, between linguistic theory and SLA (Figure 1).
0x01 graphic
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The claim is that the link-, between these disciplines allow each to inform the other, so that findings and advances in one area will provide insights and gains in the others. It is only in this way that we can hope to enhance the effectiveness of CALL (intelligent or otherwise). Unfortunately, the indicated ties frequently exist more in theory than practice; this is why the lines have been dotted in the diagram. As becomes apparent later, these often weak dependencies will only allow a few tentative conclusions in the overall thrust of our argument.
We start by justifying the connections. ICALL can be roughly characterized as the attempt to use techniques from Artificial Intelligence (Al) within CALL. The claim is that the resulting systems will have the ability to respond flexibly to the users of the software so that not only will they be able to handle any input-including, crucially, the unexpected — they will also be able to tailor their interactions to the individual.
The obvious Al research areas from which ICALL should be able to draw the most insight are Natural Language Processing (NLP) and Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITS). Indeed, it is usual to conceive of an ICALL system in terms of the classical ITS architecture pictured below.
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The Expert module contains the knowledge that is to be tutored, the Student module consists of a model of what the student knows regarding that domain (plus any other relevant details such as learning preferences) and the Tutor module determines what should be taught and how.
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In this paper, our interest is in characterizing the Expert module and, in particular, an Expert module concerned with grammatical form.1 Consequently, it is the NLP side of ICALL that is most relevant to our cause rather than the peculiar ITS concerns of student modeling and tutoring strategies.
It is for this reason that we have drawn the link between ICALL and linguistic theory in the diagram since it would seem to be a truism that NLP will have close links with linguistic theory. That is, one would expect linguists to develop particular grammar frameworks (GFs) and descriptions of various languages using these GFs which the computational linguist then simply implements. However, this is a relationship that is sometimes more honored in the breach than in the observance; hence, the dotted line in the diagram. Usually the problem is that linguists do not work within a sufficiently precise formal framework as required for a computational implementation. This, however, is becoming less so and we will adopt the assumption that, since our ICALL system is going to need a GF in which to couch its grammatical descriptions, linguistic theory is a reasonable place to start the search.
Turning to the link between ICALL and SLA, I have argued previously that there is a stronger commitment to "going AI" than simply the importation of a set of clever programming techniques into CALL (Matthews, 1992a). That is, the majority view of Al sees it as an attempt to understand the (psychological) mechanisms underlying human intelligent behavior. To assess its achievements in this undertaking, AI must ally itself to those other disciplines which take human intelligence as the focus of their enquiry. These fields range, amongst others, from philosophy and linguistics to (cognitive) psychology and anthropology via visual perception and neuroscience. In brief, this "cognitive science" view of ICALI, requires that it be informed by theories of psychology and, in particular, theories of SLA. As we shall have cause to remark later, there are various shortcomings in much SLA research which precludes such a beneficial relationship- again, this is why the line is dotted. However, that work which is relevant in SLA should provide a keen stimulus to ICALL.
The final connection, between linguistic theory and SLA, is based upon the (sometimes controversial) assumption that SLA, just like NLP, should be informed by linguistic theory. Of course, we are not claiming that linguistic theory will account for the full range of facts that constitute SLA; clearly, other social and psychological factors are involved. However, linguistic theory does play the crucial r6le of being able to describe
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(within this limited domain) what is acquired and, given a suitably articulated theory, some indications as to how this might be achieved.
It is this complex network of connections and concerns that makes ICALL such a potentially rich area of study. As Alan Bailin notes:
[ICALL is] part of an important endeavor. [It] constitute[s] an experimental scientific investigation of [second] language teaching and learning... [which]...explicitly or implicitly make[s] general claims about the components of language teaching and learning. [Bailin, 1991]
Note that this passage clearly (and correctly) implies that bridges provide access between disciplines from both directions.
The underlying assumption of much of the above is that the only direction of influence within this net is all towards ICALL. However, we have also suggested that this effect, in many cases, is rather weak But, once the connections have been noted and the nature of the bridges, it becomes quite possible to look for the influence also flowing in the other direction. Indeed, it should be expected.
What GF would one choose to characterize the (grammatical) Expert domain of an ICALL system? Here our main interest is in discussing some of the criteria that should be applied in making this decision. As this section has suggested, at least some of these criteria should revolve around considerations having to do with linguistic and SLA theory.
In order to be able to make the discussion more concrete, we will compare and contrast two frameworks, Definite Clause Grammars (DCGS: Pereira and Warren, 1980) and the current version of Chomsky's transformational grammar known either as Government and Binding (GB) theory Or, increasingly, Principles and Parameters Theory (PPT: Chomsky, 1986). These GFs have, in part, been chosen because of their very different approaches to characterizing a language. It turns out that these differences also have interesting computational properties.
It is probably not an exaggeration to say that DCGs (and closely related frameworks) are currently the favored GF in ICALL. PPT, to the best of my knowledge, has not so far been used in ICALL.2 The burden of this paper is to argue that, all things considered, there are considerable arguments in favor of adopting PPT as a GF for ICALL.
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CRITERIA OF ADEQUACY
It may prove useful to start with a brief survey of (some of) the main GFs that have so far been utilized in ICALL:
(1) Various Augmented Phrase Structure frameworks (including DCGS) as used, for example, by Chen and Barry (1989), Schwind (1990), Labrie and Singh (1991), and Sanders (1991). Also included are systems embedded under PATR-114ike environments such as Levin, et al. (1991) and Chanier, et al. (1992).
(2) Augmented Transitions Networks (ATNS) used by Weischedel, et al. (1978). Handke (1992) uses a Cascaded ATN variant.
(3) Lexical Functional Grammar (LFG) used by Feuerman, et al. (1987).
(4) Systemic Grammar used by Fum, et al. (1992).
(5) Tree Adjoining Grammar (TAG) used by Abeillé (1992).
(6) Incremental Procedural Grammar (IPG) used by Pijls, et al. (1987).
(7) Word Grammar used by Zähner (1991).
(8) Preference Semantics used by Wilks and Farwell (1992).3
Even the above list does not include some of the frameworks enjoying considerable support in recent linguistic theory; for instance, Categorical Grammar, Generalized Phrase Structure Grammar (GPSG), and Head-driven Phrase Structure Grammar (HPSG) to mention just a few.
What criteria should be applied when deciding on a GF for ICALL?4 Amongst a number that come to mind, we choose to highlight the following:
Computational effectiveness
Since the GF is to be incorporated within a computer system, it should be capable of an efficient computational implementation. This imposes various conditions.
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For example, the GF should be associated with a grammar formalism in which the framework is to be formulated. It is usually assumed that this formalism, itself, should have a clear syntax and semantics so that we know whether we have accurately expressed the relevant parts of the GF (Pereira and Shieber, 1984). This has shown to be the case with the formalism used for DCGs but has frequently been doubted with respect to the notation used within PPT. It is certainly true that there is a plethora of different notational forms used in expressing PPT within the linguistic literature. However, recent interest in principle-based parsers has had to address this problem and more precise formalisms are now being used — for example, Ed Stabler has formulated the whole of Chomsky's (1986a) 13arriers framework using First Order Logic (Stabler, 1992).
A second computational requirement is that the GF be associated with well-defined and efficient parsing algorithms. Here, until recently, DCGs held the advantage over transformationally-based grammars. The reason is that the DCG formalism can be run almost directly as Prolog code. Given that there are now efficient Prolog compilers, DCGs can be compiled into impressively fast parsers. Equally, DCGs may also be associated with a whole range of different parsing strategies apart from the top-down, depth first, left-to-right strategy that "comes for free" when running the grammar directly as a Prolog program.
The early history of transformational parsing, on the other hand, is not so impressive. Although various systems were developed in the mid 1960's based upon the early versions Of transformational grammar, these tended to be highly inefficient due to their highly non-deterministic procedures and produced a large number of spurious analyses before finally finding a genuine candidate. Indeed, it is often reported that the MITRE system (Zwicky, et al., 1965) took 36 minutes to analyze an 11 word sentence. Matters have greatly improve d since then. For example, Marcus's PARSIFAL parser was the first of a new generation Of transformationally-based systems (Marcus, 1980). Adopting a deterministic procedure — via lookahead — PARSIFAL was respectably efficient. More recent systems based upon PPT perform with even greater efficiency and will be discussed in more detail below.
Accordingly, it is rather difficult to choose between our two exemplar GFs based on the criteria of this section. We return to other aspects of this question in the section "Rule- vs. Principle-based Parsing."
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Linguistic perspicuity
GFs play two main roles within our disciplines. Their first, and most important, contribution is descriptive; they provide the tools with which to analyze the grammatical structures of language.
However, different GFs (and formalisms) tend to focus on or highlight different sets of linguistic phenomena and the decision to choose one framework over another might be made because one rather than the other facilitates the description of a particular phenomenon that we deem to be important.
As an example of this point consider the following. When introducing DCGs the first exemplar rule is often something like:
s -- > np(Num), vp(Num).
The focus of attention here is on how this rule (in combination with others) determines subject-verb agreement. That is, the term Num is a variable which is intended to stand for the number of an item. Because the same variable is used with both np and vp, the rule ensures that the value — whatever it is; singular or plural — of the subject NP is the same as that of the verb which heads the VP.
Such agreement properties are easy to express in DCGS. It is no accident, then, that those researchers who have chosen DCGS, and their like, as their ICALL GF tend to focus on agreement facts within the language.
Now compare the DCG account of subject-verb agreement with that in PPT. This involves the mysterious "Rule R" which associates agreement features generated under the 1-node with the (lexical) verb at the level of PF. This (morphological) rule will determine that, say, like + singular is realized as likes. The I-node is also co-indexed with the subject NP as part of specifier-head agreement. Accordingly, both NP and verb get associated with the same agreement features although via different mechanisms.
As this description makes clear, subject-verb agreement receives a more complex analysis within PPT when compared with a DCG. Accordingly, if all one were interested in was agreement properties of a language then a DCG would, ceteris paribus, be the obvious choice of GF. Of course, the overall decision is unlikely to be based upon such a simple example and there are other areas where DCGs are not so perspicuous and where PPT has an advantage. In the long term, choosing a GF is a matter Of trading
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disadvantages against advantages with respect to the particular features that interest the researcher.
Little consideration seems to have been paid to the question of the descriptive adequacy of the various GFs within SLA. In part, this is due to the already remarked upon weak links that tend to bind SLA theory to linguistic theory. Surveying the literature, by far the most consistent adherence has been to the various species of transformational grammar including PPT. However, even when some version of PPT is adopted, the reason has more often to do with concerns relating to the acquisitional claims associated with PPT — notably questions to do with innateness — than with the descriptive adequacy of the framework.
ICALL cannot neglect such issues. Unfortunately, the impression is that many researchers adopt a framework such as a DCG simply because it is an easily implementable theory and then shoe-horn their analyses into the required form. Hence the emphasis on different types of agreement error, even though this does not seem to loom large in discussions of student errors within SLA. We might make two comments on this situation. First that even if SLA cannot always supply particular GF-solutions to the questions of ICALL, it can help to constrain particular GF-answers developed solely within ICALL. Second, here is a dear area where the general informational flow is quite likely to be from ICALL towards SLA.
Acquisitional perspicuity
Besides the descriptive role of GFs, their other contribution is explanatory; they aim to provide justifications regarding actual linguistic acquisition and development. Surprisingly, however, the influence of linguistic theory on both First Language Acquisition (FLA) as well as SLA has been Surprisingly small. There was a flurry of activity for about a decade starting in the mid 1960's which was heavily influenced by the then major (indeed, probably only) GF, transformational grammar. Soon after this pioneering work, disenchantment set in amongst both FLA and SLA researchers with linguistic theory so that for the next decade little acquisitions] work was informed by theoretical syntax. In the last few years, however, there has been a resurgence of interest in some of the new GFs. Pre-eminent amongst these has been the new incarnation of transformational grammar, PPT. There is now quite a large and rapidly expanding body of interesting work using PPT within FLA (see Atkinson, 1992, for a detailed survey) and SLA (see White, 1989, for an overview).
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There are two aspects to the influence of PPT on such research. The first is acquisitional. Here the main claim is that FLA is mediated by innate Structures. It is the question of whether such mechanisms are still available to the second language learner which has most exercised the SLA community. The second aspect is developmental with a number of researchers beginning to use the PPT framework to account for actual maturational sequences observed in FLA (see, for example, Hyams, 1986, and Radford, 1990). This has not been investigated with the same vigor within SLA (although see du Plessis, et al. [1987] for some suggestive work relating to German).
Accounting for developmental sequences may well be an important consideration as far as the student and tutoring modules are concerned in the rest of the ICALL architecture.5 Again, we might make the same observation as at the end of the last section and note that the informational flow is quite likely to be from ICALL to SLA theory.
It might be thought that, given the drift of the last few pages, we are now in a position of being able to justify the already stated conclusion of this paper, namely that there are Strong reasons for using PPT as a GF for ICALL. However, we adopt a far more tentative position. Certainly, given a commitment to bridges as argued for and given the state Of Current research, there are strong reasons why PPT should be accorded careful consideration as a GF for ICALL. However this conclusion is drawn almost by default; other GFs just have not been applied with the same vigor. Adopting PPT on such grounds, then, would be premature.
The choice, therefore, between DCGs and PPT is not that clear when considering the second and third criteria above. However, there are some interesting factors which emerge when reconsidering the two GFs from the computational aspect. The arguments to follow are presented in terms of the properties of rule-base d vs. principle-based grammars. A DCG is an example of the former and PPT, as the name suggests, of the latter. Before turning to these arguments we first need to distinguish between the two types of framework.
RULE- VS. PRINCIPLE-BASED FRAMEWORKS
It is easiest to see the distinction between the two types of approach by thinking in terms of particular grammatical constructions. Usually, the comparison involves constructions such as active and passives. However, the same properties can be seen by considering something as simple as VP structure.
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Rule-based frameworks work by defining specific rules for specific constructions; in our case this means a separate VP rule. A principle-based approach, on the other hand, sees a particular construction as resulting from the interaction of a number of simple, but relatively abstract, syntactic principles. As such, there is no one principle which solely defines the various properties of a VP. Diagrammatically we have:
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We now flesh out this abstract description a little. Consider how a VP such as the bracketed example below would be described in the two approaches:
The Danes [like Maastricht]
With a DCG the basic structure would be handled by the simple rule:
vp --> v, np.
which induces the following tree (with relevant lexical items):
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As we see, one rule, one structure. The description of the same structure in terms of a principle-based theory, initially, looks far more complicated. Here we need to describe some of the modules and their principles that make up PPT.
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First, X-bar theory. This can be thought of as describing the basic tree structures that are allowed in natural languages. Roughly it says that trees take the form head-argument or argument-head (assuming there to be an argument). For example, this module will license, amongst many others, the following (simplified) trees:
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The first tree is an example where the verb (the head) does not take any arguments. The other two trees represent possible structures where the verb takes a single NP argument to the right or left respectively.
The part of the theory which determines whether a verb appears with an argument or not is known as Theta theory (-theory). -theory relates to questions of who did what to whom. So, a verb such as like involves someone doing the liking and something being liked. These are the -roles of the verb. The main principle of -theory, the  Criterion, (partially) states that each -role should be associated with a syntactic argument (which in this case means an NP). That is why an NP must appear in the VP headed by like in order to receive the verb's (internal)  -role.
-theory, however, does not determine that the NP must follow the verb.6 This is accounted for in terms of Case theory. The main principle of Case theory states that all overt (i.e. pronounced) NPs must be assigned Case by a Case assignor (either Tense, V or P). Case is assigned under government — the assignor must govern the assignee — but it is also assumed that the assignment is directional. In particular, English is a language where the verb's Case is assigned rightwards. Accordingly, the only permissible tree which satisfies all the principles is that shown in Figure 4.
The other tree allowed by the combination of X-bar and -theory is ruled out by Case theory since the NP, which requires Case in order to escape the Case Filter, is in the wrong position to be assigned Case.
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This might seem like great deal of intellectual baggage to account for a simple construction — especially when compared with the DCG account — and would be so if it were not for the fact that the same principles are used to account for other constructions. Consider, for example, the complex NP:
The enemy's destruction of the city
With a DCG this will require the addition of a new rule, say:
np --> np_poss, n, pp.
With PPT there is no need for additional machinery. The X-bar theory will determine the various possible tree structures for this string. This will be much as before except that "NP" will replace "VP." -theory determines that because destruction has two -roles to assign — just like the associated verb destroy — two NPs are required. Finally, Case theory requires these NPs are to be assigned Case. Since nouns are not Case assignors, we account for the presence of the Case assigning possessive's' and the preposition of. What looks like a cumbersome theory when considering a single structure starts to take on a more compact aspect when its coverage is expanded.
RULE- VS. PRINCIPLE-BASED PARSING7
The examples in the last section give some idea of the difference in approach between the two types of theory. We now turn to some of their computational consequences when implemented as parsers. We choose to examine those that have especial significance for ICALL.
Grammar Size
Rule-based frameworks require a large number of rules to describe a language. This is not usually apparent when looking at prototype systems since they only cover a highly restricted portion of the language. However, those systems with a wide syntactic coverage of English use literally hundreds if not thousands of rules. Matters are even worse for languages such as Japanese with a freer word order than English. In such languages the same basic construction may require a number of different rules to describe each of the various permissible permutations due to the variable word Order. This significantly increases the size of the rule set.
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There is an obvious consequence for ICALL. As has been frequently pointed out, various learner errors appear to be due to transfer from the native language. One approach to handling such interference errors is by parsing the informed input with a combination of both the native and target language grammars (see Schuster, 1986, for an example within a highly restricted domain). But if this entails a complete system having a full grammar for, say, Japanese as well as English, the rule base will be astronomical in size.
Clearly, just discovering and writing such a large number of rules is problematic. However, there is also a computational problem since the parsing algorithms associated with rule-based systems run as a function of grammar size; the larger the grammar, the slower the performance.8 The consequence is that as grammars become more complete they will become less efficient when incorporated as parsers.
Solutions to this problem might be found with specially devised algorithms or dedicated hardware. Alternatively, one could move towards a principle-based system where the many different combinations of the same set of a dozen or so principles (with parametric variation) can encode the same information as many thousands of rules. Of course, here there is a promissory note that there are efficient parsing algorithms which can make use of such a grammar.
Grammar Specificity
Not only are rule-based frameworks construction specific, they are also language specific. Each grammar is tailored to describe a specific language and, because of their nature, does not Provide any easy way of stating connections between languages. Take as a simple example the different Word order of English and Japanese. As we have already seen, English complements follow the verb; however, in Japanese they precede it:
gave a book to Shunsuke
Shunsuke ni hon o age-ta
Shunsuke book give-past
For rule-based grammars such differences have to be accounted for by stating separate rules which are rather different in form:
English: vp -- > v, np, pp.
Japanese: vp -- > np, np, v.
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Clearly, on such an analysis it is hard to capture the fact that these two rules are actually describing the same construction in the two languages. The root of the problem here is the rule-based approach's emphasis on defining string sets. Because the English and Japanese strings — lexical items aside — are very different, so are the rules.
Principle-based theories, on the other hand, try to abstract out a set of deeper and more explanatory (universal) principles which underlie such constructions. The same principles apply in all languages. It is the notion of parametric variation which accounts for the differences between languages. In the example under consideration, the assumption is that the relevant module is Case theory. We have already noted that the Case Filter requires that all lexical NPs must have Case. This principle applies to both English and Japanese. The difference lies in how Case is assigned within the two languages. Here the crucial factor is the direction of the assignment. The assumption is that in English, Case is assigned to the right — this is why NP complements follow the verb in order to pass the Case Filter. In Japanese, Case-assignment is to the left so NP complements must precede the verb.
The idea, then, is to describe cross-linguistic variation in terms of a set of common principles but associated with parametric variation. Rather than write a completely new grammar for each language, as the rule-based approach has to, a principle-based parser simply has to determine the particular parameter settings for each language (plus its lexicon). The result is that languages are seen as related rather than unconnected objects. Clearly, as far as ICALL is concerned this is a preferable conclusion to the position that no languages have anything in common apart from being the result of string concatenation. It opens up, for example, the possibility of being able to give principled accounts of language transfer.
Ungrammaticality
Any natural NLP system will encounter ill-formed input from time to time and a robust system should be able to handle such cases. The main differences with ICALL are that (a) ill-formed examples are likely to be more common because of the nature of the users, (b) certain recovery strategies such as asking the user to try again are unlikely to result in any improvement, (c) the ill-formedness is likely to be of a higher degree and (d) some pedagogic response will, on occasion, be required.
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Parsing ill-formed input is problematic for a rule-based system. This relates back to the previously noted emphasis within such approaches on the description of a distinguished string set defined over the words of the language. Once this set of well-formed strings — i.e. sentences — has been defined the job of the theory is over. Accordingly, ill-formed strings are "beyond the pale" of the theory and to handle them within a parser utilizing such a theory requires some additional machinery.
A standard solution to this problem is to introduce more rules designed specifically to handle ill-formedness. This is a familiar approach in ICALL. Of course, it has the drawback of increasing the size of the rule set with the attendant efficiency problems noted in the first section. It is also a problematic exercise in writing enough rules to handle all possible ill-formed input. Finally, there is also the problem in that simply producing a rule to allow through an HI-formed example does not provide an explanation for that failure.
An alternative way of handling ill-formed input in a rule-based approach is by constraint relaxation. Take subject-verb agreement. Suppose a sentence fails to satisfy the well-formedness constraint that both the subject NP and verb heading the VP agree in number. The designer of the parser may specify that this particular constraint may be relaxed (with a record of the error being made). This was what the "failable" predicates of Weischedel, et al.'s (1978) German tutor were meant to achieve. Which predicates were to count as "failable" was left entirely at the discretion of the designer and, as such, provided no principled theory as to why certain predicates were failable and others not.
Constraint relaxation approximates a principle-based parsing approach but on a less systematic footing. If the emphasis in rule-based approaches is on defining string sets, the emphasis within PPT is on defining the underlying abstract principles which underpin the language. As such, any string may be considered with an eye as to how many of these principles (and which) it satisfies. Theoretically it does not matter whether all the principles are satisfied since the emphasis is not on sentences per se but on the principles. Of course, we can define a sentence as a string that satisfies all the principles but this is a derivative notion. In terms of ungrammaticality, the more principles that a string violates, the more ill-formed it is. But even if a string fails a number of principles at least some structure will be assigned. So, taking the ill-formed string:
John a book to the librarian gave
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A parser will, at least, be able to assign it an X-bar structure. The problem has to do with Case theory and the already mentioned direction of Case assignment; since it is rightwards, the NP does not get assigned Case in violation of the Case Filter. Of course, it is quite easy to recover from this violation simply be assuming the alternative parameter setting of Case assignment being to the left.
Other principle violations can lead to far greater problems. This is, in part, due to the links between the various modules of the theory. For example, Case theory is defined relative to X-bar structure (the relevant structural notion being that of government). Accordingly, if a string cannot be assigned an X-bar structure there will also be Case theory violations. This would account for the extreme ungrammaticality of "word salad' strings such as:
the a to book librarian gave John
Such relationships between the modules of the theory also provide, in principle, a theory as to why certain violations seem to result in greater processing difficulties than others.
CURRENT IMPLEMENTATIONS OF PRINCIPLE-BASED PARSERS
This nexus of considerations indicates the potential of principle-based parsing for ICALL. Of course, they are of little worth if workable parsers cannot be developed.
Work has been proceeding for some time on implementing principle-based parsers. Wehrli's work on the parsing of French is an early example (Wehrli, 1983). In addition, a certain amount of research has attempted to combine insights from PPT within the Logic Grammar paradigm (see, for example, Stabler, 1987). There is even some work on Connectionist implementations (Rager and Berg, 1992).
The work with the highest Profile, however, has been emanating (mainly) from the AI lab at MIT under the leadership of Robert Berwick. Of especial interest here are the parsing system PO-PARSER (Principle-Ordering Parser) (Fong and Berwick, 1991, and Fong, 1991), and the machine translation system UNITRAN (Universal Translator: Dorr, 1990 and 1991). Kazman (not of MIT) has also produced interesting work relating to FLA (Kazman,1991). Using a parser called CPP (Constrained Parallel Parser) he has shown that by resetting various (adult) parameters all the sentences of two chosen
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children between the ages of 24 and 29 months can be successfully parsed. Further, as the children age the parser with the child's initial settings fails on an increasing number of sentences whilst the adult settings produce increasingly successful parses.
Each of the above examples has been implemented and in the face of what seem like substantial architectural and computational design problems. That is, although it is reasonably easy to see how the various principles fit together conceptually within PPT, this does not tell us how a principle-based parser should proceed in constructing a parse. In fact, it might be thought that such parsers will encounter the same problems of non-determinism as the archaic TTG-based parsers mentioned earlier. Indeed, overgeneration is the major problem for such parsers.
The fault lies in the nature of the set of principles, each of which only contributes a small part to the overall effect of a structure. In terms of parsing, each principle will not constrain the final sentence structure to any great degree; it is the principles in combination which gives the theory its force rather than any one individual axiom. Consequently, each of the generator principles — such as X-bar theory — may license many thousands of structures, each consistent with the input string. Even applying the filtering principles — such as Case and -theory — to such sets will still often result in large numbers of postulated structures.
Of course, such overgeneration will lead to problems of slow parsing. In order to overcome this, various control regimes are imposed upon the principles. One possibility involves different orderings on the application of the principles. Fong has shown that certain sequences produce parses orders-of-magnitude faster than others. Indeed, Fong's PO-PARSER also allows dynamic principle ordering so that the parser can change its sequencing depending on the sentence type being parsed; this typically also increases the speed of the parse.
An alternative control Strategy is to co-routine the principles, interleaving one with the other. For example, the parser might start building a piece of Structure based on X-bar theory, then break off to check this partial structure against Case and 0-theory, and then return to its structure building.
Other questions of some import relate to which particular levels of the grammatical theory are to be computed. For example, some of Johnson's parsers work without constructing either D- or S-Structure (Johnson, 1991).
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Experimenting along these lines, principle-based parsers have now been built which run at least as efficiently as large rule-based systems, producing parses within a few seconds. One can only imagine that future research will lead to even further gains.
CONCLUSION
The ostensible theme of this paper has been the choice between two contrasting GFs as potential components of an ICALL system. As such, we have seen that there are a number of reasons converging on the choice of PPT. However, the deeper thesis has revolved around the nature of the proposed criteria. As an interdisciplinary exercise ICALL must be sensitive to criteria pertaining to related fields. In the particular case, the choice of GF has stemmed from considerations relating to linguistic theory and SLA as well as the more obvious concerns of computational efficiency. A more complete discussion might well branch out into more general questions of psycholinguistics and cognition. The central claim is that this wide-angle view should equally be applied to any aspect of ICALL — indeed, to CALL in general — whether it be other aspects of the knowledge domain Or questions relating to the student and tutoring modules. Returning to the metaphor of the conference, the bridges linking ICALL to other disciplines are to be seen as furnishing essential supply lines of information rather than some kind of optional tourist attraction. The richness and complexity of the resultant theories will raise questions of the utmost difficulty but that is as it should be since it reflects the nature of second language learning.
NOTES
1 The majority of work in ICALI, has concentrated on the grammatical domain with error correction being the main tutoring strategy. Such work appears to sit uneasily with the communicative methodologies that currently hold sway in pedagogical theory. Accordingly, ICALL has occasionally been dismissed as being irrelevant to learning needs. This claim misses various points. For example, any complete ICALL system should be able to detect and correct errors — just as any human teacher can do. Error detection can tell us much about the current state of knowledge of the language learner. Armed with such information, the human teacher may respond in various ways; for instance, choose to ignore it, offer overt correction, ask another question which may focus the learner on the problem area or decide to move to another topic area more in keeping with the learner's current ability. Current systems are weak partly in the range of errors that they can detect and also in the (lack of) flexibility with which they can
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respond. The claim is, then, that error detection and correction is a valid part of any complete ICALL system but that because of the limitations of current knowledge it appears to be the sole objective. Similar remarks can be made with regards to grammatical form; any system must be able to handle grammatical form, even for communicative purposes, since it is a crucial determinant of both semantic and pragmatic structure. Current ICALL concerns should, then, be seen as developing subsystems that will eventually take their (perhaps limited, with respect to, tutoring) part within the ultimate ICALL system.
2 At the conference I claimed that the only (passing) reference to its potential use within ICALL seemed to be Ghemri, 1991. It came as a (pleasant) surprise to find the very next presentation by Melissa Holland described work using PPT developed at the U.S. Army Research Institute Alexandria.
3 This last example is something of a maverick approach since it is based on the assumption that the mapping from text to semantic structure can be achieved without the mediation of a syntactic component.
4 Note that we are not claiming that the various grammar frameworks under consideration should, directly, form the basis of instruction. It is true, for example, that Fum, et al. (1992) and Pijls, et al. (1987) have chosen systemic grammar and IPG, respectively, because they believe that they provide a suitable pedagogic as well as linguistic/computational grammar. However, it seems quite clear that PPT does not fulfill this role (nor, for that matter do DCGs). If PPT is to form the grammatical base of an ICALL system, we will have to assume that there is an intervening pedagogic grammar which mediates between the computational/linguistic grammar and the user (see Chanier, et al., 1992, for some discussion):
Computational -> Pedagogic -> User
Grammar Grammar
Clearly, there are considerable problems in determining the link between the computational and pedagogic grammars.
5 We remain neutral on this point since if the various principles of PPT are (innately) still available for SLA then an ICALL system may be able to simply ignore them. See Cook, 1989, for some discussion.
6 This is not true if -role assignment is directional.
7 The presentation closely follows the proselytizing papers of Berwick (1991) and Berwick and Fong (1990).
8 For example, the Earley algorithm for context-free languages can quadruple its parsing time when the grammar is doubled.
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REFERENCES
Abeillé, A. (1992)."A Lexicalized Tree Adjoining Grammar for French and its Relevance to Language Teaching," M. Swartz and M. Yazdani (Eds.), 65- 87.
Atkinson, M. (1992). Children's Syntax: An Introduction to Principles and Parameters Theory. Basil Blackwell: Oxford.
Bailin, A. (1991). "ICALI Research Investigations in Teaching and Learning," CALICO Journal, 9, 5-8.
Berwick, R. (1991). "Principle-based Parsing," P. Sells, S. Shieber and T. Wasow (Eds.): Foundational Issues in Natural Language Processing. Bradford Books, MIT Press: Cambridge, Mass., 115-226
______. (1991a). "Principles of Principle-based Parsing," R. Berwick, S. Abney and C. Tenny (Eds.), 1-37.
______, S. Abney and C. Tenny (Eds.) (1991). Principle-based Parsing: Computation and Psycholinguistics. Kluwer: Dordrecht.
______, and S. Fong (1990). "Principle-based Parsing: Natural Language Processing for the 1990's," P. Winston and S. Shellard (Eds.). 287-325.
Catt, M. and G. Hirst (1990). "An Intelligent CALI System for Grammatical Error Analysis," Computer Assisted Language Learning, 3, 3-26.
Chanier, D., M. Pengelly, M. Twidale and J. Self (1992). "Conceptual Modeling in Error Analysis in Computer-assisted Language Learning Systems," M. Swartz and M. Yazdani (Eds.), 125-150.
Chen, L. and L. Barry (1989). "XTRA-TE: Using Natural Language Processing Software to Develop an ITS for Language Learning," Fourth International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Education, 54-70.
Chomsky, N. (1986). Knowledge of Language: Its Nature, Origin, and Use. Praeger: New York.
______. (1986a). Barriers. MIT Press: Cambridge, Mass.
Cook, V. (1989). "Universal Grammar Theory and the Classroom," System, 17, 169-181
Dorr, B. (1990). "Machine Translation: A Principle-based Approach," P. Winston and S. Shellard (Eds.). 327-361.
______. (1991). "Principle-based Parsing for Machine Translation," R. Berwick, S. Abney and C. Tenny (Eds.), 153-183.
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du Plessis, J., D. Solin, L. Travis and L. White (1987). " UG of not UG, That is the Question: A Reply to Clahsen and Muysken," Second Language Research, 3, 56-75.
Feuerman, K., C. Marshall, D. Newman and M. Rypa (1987). "The CALLE Project," CALICO Journal, 4, 25-34.
Fong, S. (1991). "The Computational Implementation of Principle-based Parsers,' R. Berwick, S. Abney and C. Tenny (Eds.), 65-82.
______, and R. Berwick (1991). "The Computational Implementation of Principle-based Parsers," M. Tomita (Ed.) Current Issues in Parsing Technology. Kluwer: Dordrecht, 9-24.
Fum, D., B. Pani and C. Tasso(1992)."Naive vs. Formal Grammars: A Case for Integration in the Design of a Foreign Language Tutor," M. Swartz and M. Yazdani (Eds.), 51-64.
Ghemri, L. (1991). "Specification and Implementation of a GB Parser," C. Brown and G. Koch (Eds.) Natural Language Understanding and Logic Programming 3. North-Holland: Amsterdam. 11 1-126.
Handke, J. (I 992). "WIZDOM: A Multiple-purpose Language Tutoring System Based on AI Techniques," M. Swartz and M. Yazdani (Eds.), 293-305.

Linguistic Knowledge and Reasoning for Error Diagnosis and Feedback Generation

2011-01-03T11:44:00.000+07:00

RODOLFO DELMONTE
Department of Language Sciences
Università Ca' Foscari - Ca' Garzoni-Moro
Venice, Italy

Abstract:
We present four sets of NLP-based exercises for which error correction and feedback are produced by means of a rich database in which linguistic information is encoded either at the lexical or at the grammatical level. One exercise type "Question-Answering" utilizes linguistic knowledge and inferential processes on the basis of the output generated by GETARUN, a system for text understanding. GETARUN produces a complete parse of a text and a semantic mapping in line with situational semantics in the form of a Discourse Model. Another exercise, Grammcheck, uses a 'robust' version of the parser to produce suitable environments for grammatical error spotting and consequent accurate and precise feedback generation for German. The parser of GETARUN is then presented as an analytical tool for students who study Lexical Functional Grammar (LFG). Finally, exercises on "Essay Evaluation," which are cast into the more general problem of text summarization, are discussed. In this case, the system is used to perform multidocument sentence extraction on the basis of a statistically based Summarizer. This summary is then compared with the student's summary. All applications can be found at our web site, project.cgm.unive.it.

KEYWORDS
NLP Techniques, CALL Tools, Cooperative Question-Answering, Summarization
1. INTRODUCTION
The GETARUN program (Delmonte, 1990; Delmonte, Bianchi, & Pianta, 1992; Delmonte & Bianchi, 1998) is a system for text and reference understanding, which is currently being used for summarization and text generation, and has a sophisticated, linguistically based semantic module used to build up a discourse model (DM). Semantic processing is strongly modularized and distributed among a number of different submodules which take care of spatio-temporal reasoning, discourse level anaphora resolution (Delmonte & Bianchi, 1999), and other subsidiary processes like topic hierarchy—which impinges on relevance scoring when creating semantic individuals. The system uses a parser that requires
513
in its deep version a complete lexicon of the domain in which it will perform its analysis. This deep version is used for students of linguistics as an aid in the assessment and control of grammatical principles. It allows for the parsing of grammatical and ungrammatical sentences. The "shallow" version of the parser allows students of German to get detailed information on their grammatical mistakes. We will show how GETARUN is used for different linguistic exercises for learners of different languages. We will concentrate on how GETARUN facilitates the provision of adequate feedback.
1.1 Self-assessment and Feedback
Generally speaking, assessment in self-instructional courses is problematic but of course very important. Within learner-centered self-instruction, or self-directed learning, self-assessment is a necessary part. Decisions about whether to go on to the next item, exercise, or unit; the allocation of time to various skills; or the need for remedial work are all based on feedback from informal and formal assessment. This concept then is central both to learners and to the kind of courseware we wish to build. We consider self-assessment important as an educational goal in its own right, and training learners to use self-assessment is beneficial to learning. In fact, language learners regularly engage in self-assessment as part of their learning. They complete exercises and check, by whatever means available, whether their responses are correct or not.
In this paper, we present an approach to teaching the comprehension of spoken and written texts by facilitating related text production and by providing explanatory feedback. We consider understanding texts, whether oral or written, an important objective of language learning. A system for CALL that is aimed at tutoring and testing students in text understanding should ideally be equipped with a feedback module to provide explanations for mistakes made by the students. However, many systems today provide very limited feedback: an answer is either right or wrong, and no explanation is made available. An additional limitation is that drills for text understanding on the computer are often of one of two types: multiple choice and/or true/false decisions. Drills that permit students to answer questions by producing free text, even short segments, are rare because automatic analysis and feedback are hard to implement for written language. Production tasks constitute a challenge in that the right feedback may be unavailable if students make an unanticipated mistake, one not included in a list of possible mistakes.
What kind of feedback could be given? In their paper, Lyster and Ranta (1997:45) make the following classification of feedback by human tutors:
1. Explicit correction: "the explicit provision of the correct word or part phrase, usually making clear that this is a correction— e.g. you mean …, you should say … ."
2. Recast: "the teacher's reformulation of all or part of the student utterance, minus the error, without making it clear that this is a correction."
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3. Clarification request: "What? What do you mean? (only coded in response to language error)."
4. Metalinguistic feedback: "comments, information or questions regarding the well-formedness of the student's utterance, but without giving the correct form: that's not quite right, is that right?"
5. Elicitation: "getting the student to give the correct form by pausing for her to continue the sentence, or by asking the student to reformulate the utterance."
6. Repetition: "the repetition, in isolation, of the student's utterance, usually with error intonationally marked."
We believe that recast, clarification request, elicitation, and repetition are totally inadequate for feedback generation on a computer. As to explicit correction, perhaps it could be done for grammar drills, but it is certainly much harder in semantically based drills. We assume that only metalinguistic feedback is fully compliant with the current state of human-computer interaction.
In all cases, we want learners to be informed about the error they made, the kind of error they made, and the possible reason why they made it. In addition, they can be directed to carry out some linguistic activity appropriate to help them remedy the problem.
1.2 Our Applications
The applications presented in this paper are all concerned with text comprehension. The first one, Grammcheck, presented in section 2 below, is an application for students of German which prompts them to create sentences for which they are given a sequence of base forms or lemmata. These lemmata are taken from a database of correct and incorrect sentences that constitutes the Linguistic Knowledge Database (LKD). We also use a large lexicon of German where lemmata are fully classified with subcategorization frames and morphological features. Knowledge in this case is resident both in the database and in the grammar contained in the analysis program—a robust parser of German.
The second application uses the same system as Grammcheck for German (see section 3 below). It is called GETARUN. Here we use its complete and deep version. The idea for these activities is to help students understand the relevance of linguistic and extralinguistic information in the grammatical analysis and the representation of sentences of a given language—English in this case. The system uses a top-down, depth-first definite clause grammar (DCG) parser with lookahead and a well-formed substring table (WFST) lookup in case of failure to improve efficiency. It implements the core and periphery grammar rule model accompanying the notion of Universal Grammar. This allows it to be multilingual, that is, it parses with the same grammar and set of parameters for German, English, and Italian. The important feature of the parser is the implementation of parsing strategies to allow for multiple analyses of a single input sentence to be appropriately executed.
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In section 4, we discuss the generation of "Question-Answering" exercises which utilize linguistic knowledge and inferential processes on the basis of the output generated by GETARUN, our system for text understanding. The GETARUN system produces a complete parse of a text and a semantic mapping in line with situational semantics in the form of a discourse model (DM). The DM is used to generate questions and answers based on the text that the system analyzed and that the students had to read. Students are then given feedback on the question and answers they selected.
Finally, in section 5, exercises on "Essay Evaluation," which are cast into the more general problem of text summarization, are discussed. In this case, the system is used to perform multidocument sentence extraction on the basis of a statistically-based Summarizer. This summary is then compared with the student's summary.
2. GRAMMCHECK
The first application is a grammar checker for Italian students of German (and English) (see Delmonte, Chiran, & Bacalu, 2001; Delmonte, 2000a). It is based on the shallow parser of Italian used to produce the syntactic constituency for the National Treebank. The output of the parser is a bracketing of the input tagged word sequence which is then passed to the higher functional processor. This is a Lexical Functional Grammar (LFG)-based c-structure to f-structure mapping algorithm which has three tasks: the first task is to compute features from heads; the second is to compute agreement, and the third is to impose LFG's grammaticality principles of coherence and consistency to insure that the number and type of arguments are constrained by the lexical form of the governing predicate.
The parser uses a recursive transition network (RTN) which has been endowed with a grammar and a lexicon of German of about 8,000 entries. The grammar is written in the usual arc-transition nodes formalism, well known in augmented transition networks (ATN). However, the aim of the RTN is to produce a structured output both for well formed and ill formed grammatical sentences of German. To this end, we allowed the grammar to keep part of the rules of Italian at the appropriate structural level. Grammar checking is not accomplished at the constituent structure building level, but at the function-structure level.
2.1 The Shallow Cascaded Parser
The function of the shallow cascaded parser is to create syntactic structures eligible for grammatical function assignment. This task is made simpler given the fact that the disambiguator associates a net or constituency label with each disambiguated tag. Parsing can then be defined as a bottom-up collection of constituents which contain either the same label or which are contained in or are a member of the same net or higher constituent. No attachment is performed
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in order to avoid being committed to structural decisions which might then reveal themselves to be wrong. We prefer to perform some readjustment operations after structures have been built rather than introducing errors from the start. Readjustment operations are in line with the LFG theoretical framework which assumes that f-structures may be recursively constituted by subsidiary f-structures (i.e., by complements or adjuncts of a governing predicate). So the basic task of the shallow parser is that of building shallow structures for each safely recognizable constituent and then pass this information to the following modules.
The tagset we use for German consists of 85 tags which encore a number of important features for the parser such as transitivity, modality, and auxiliary class for verbs and semantic classes like color, human, and evaluative for nouns. Tags are disambiguated by a statistical and syntactic procedure which is set up for special ambiguity classes. In some cases, we use appropriately organized Finite State Automata. The output of the disambiguator is a partially disambiguated input which is then processed by the shallow cascaded parser (see Figure 1).
Figure 1
GETARUN Shallow Parser Architecture
0x01 graphic
2.2 Syntactic Readjustment Rules
Syntactic structure is derived from shallow structures by a restricted and simple set of two categories of rewriting operations: deletions and restructuring. In building syntactic constituents, we obey the general criteria below:
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1. We accept syntactic structures which belong to either language—German or Italian.
2. Constituency should allow for the recovery of errors in the higher structural layers where functional mapping takes place.
3. The tensed verb is treated in a special manner. If it is sentence final, it belongs to a separate ibar constituent called IBAR2, and it triggers the building of a specific IP clausal constituent called FYESNO in all "aux-to-comp"-like structures and structures subject to inversion. Otherwise, it is treated as in Italian.
2.3 From C-structure To F-structure
Before working at the functional level, we collected 2,500 grammatical mistakes from students' final tests. We decided to keep track of the following grammatical mistakes which are typical for Italian learners of German: lack of agreement NP internally; wrong position of argument clitic pronouns; lack of subject-verb agreement; wrong position of the finite verb in main clauses, subordinated clauses, or coordinated clauses; and wrong case assignment. Example (1) illustrates this process.
(1) Heute willst ich mich eine bunte Krawatte umbinden.
'today want I me a colorful scarf tie'
(today I want to wear a colorful scarf)
cp-[
advp-[adv-[heute]],
vsec-[vmod-[willst],
fvsec-[subj2-[np-[pers-[ich]]],
obj-[np-[clitdat-[mich]]],
obj1-[np-[art-[eine],adj-[bunte],
n-[krawatte]]],
ibar2-[vit-[umbinden]]]
], punct-[.]]1
The parser issues two error messages. The first one regards case assignment: mich is in the accusative whereas dative is required. The second one concerns subject-verb agreement: willst is second person singular whereas the subject ich is first person singular. In order to recognize errors, full morphological and lexical subcategorization information for all words must be available. For instance, the entries for ich, wollen, and umbinden are specified in example (1).
2.4 Sentence Creation and Automatic Evaluation
In order to build exercises automatically, we duplicated all the sentences with mistakes from our database and created the corresponding correct sentences. This procedure allowed us to generate exercises for students by picking at random
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a certain number of sentences, say three or four, from the correct subset and mix them with one or two sentences from the mistakes subset. The task for students could be either to identify the sentences with error(s) or correct the error(s). In either case, their response could be easily checked. Rather than discussing these exercises, we will concentrate on the "Sentence Creation" exercise which requires students to produce a correct sentence from a sequence of input hints consisting of lemmata (uninflected content words). This procedure first selects one of the correct sentences. It then deletes the function words in the sentence and displays the lemma for each content word. The resulting sequence of words is presented to students who are asked to build a correct sentence.
Given the fact that students can produce any sentence using the lemmata provided, we cannot evaluate their responses by a simple pattern-matching operation. The parser has to check for correctness. Figure 2 shows the student window.
Figure 2
Sentence Creation Exercise: Input Window
0x01 graphic
In this window, and the ones shown below, we use English rather than Italian for student instructions to allow English or French students to use the system. We also prompt students not to type upper case letters because the system only uses lowercase letters. After they type in the sentence, they click on the OK button, and the parser produces a complete parse and an evaluation by the Grammar Checker. The output is shown in Figure 3.
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Figure 3
Sentence Creation Exercise: Output Window
0x01 graphic
The system addresses issues for students of German who are enrolled in degree programs in Linguistic Sciences where General Linguistics and other similar courses are required. Students are asked to repeat an exercise after they have checked for mistakes in the feedback window. In the case of a sentence being correctly entered, the system simply confirms the correctness and proposes a new sentence. Whenever students decide to interrupt the exercise, an evaluation is issued for the whole interaction, and the result is shown graphically by turning previous successes and failures into scores and then transforming scores into colored bars: red for mistakes and green for correct sentences. A comment is generated based on the severity of the errors and by relying on the overall score.
3. GETARUN: A PARSER FOR LFG STUDENTS
We have seen how the shallow version of the GETARUN parser is used for the analysis of linguistic errors. Here, the detailed description and disambiguation of sentences in linguistic analysis is the task of the 'deep' version of the parser. The GETARUN program is a web-based multilingual parser which relies mainly on Lexical Functional Grammar (LFG) theory and partly on Chomskian theories and incorporates a number of parsing strategies which allow students to parse ambiguous sentences using the appropriate strategy in order to obtain an adequate grammatical output.
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The underlying idea was that of stimulating students to ascertain and test linguistic hypotheses by themselves by means of a linguistically motivated system architecture. The parser builds c-structure and f-structure and computes anaphoric binding at the sentence level; it also has provisions for quantifier raising and temporal local interpretation. Predicates are provided for all lexical categories, and their description is a lexical form in the sense of LFG (see example in Figure 4).
Figure 4
Web Version of the LFG Parser
0x01 graphic
It is composed both of functional and semantic specifications for each argument of the predicate: semantic selection is operated by means both of thematic role and inherent semantic features or selectional restrictions. Moreover, in order to select adjuncts appropriately at each level of constituency, semantic classes are added to the more traditional syntactic ones. Semantic classes are of two kinds: the first class is related to extensionality versus intensionality and is used mostly to build discourse relations; the second class is meant to capture aspectual restrictions which decide the appropriateness and adequacy of adjuncts so that inappropriate ones are attached at a higher level (see Figure 5).
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Figure 5
Sentence Level Syntactic/Semantic Parser
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However, the most interesting part is how the system behaves in the presence of ungrammatical sentences in which students should be told which grammatical principle has been violated. We used test suites of sentences which had been gathered for that task such as the one advertised by the LINGO-Redwoods initiative (see lingo.stanford.edu). Examples of such sentences are:
1. Who does Mary like John?
2. Who did you mention Bill's belief that you saw?
3. John believes that himself likes Mary.
4. John was believed that is clever.
5. Who did he try to win the race?
The system rejects these sentences as ungrammatical but then, according to whether it has generated a wh-operator or not, activates different feedback strategies. For instance, for examples 1, 4, and 5, the presence of a wh-operator which was unable to bind a variable is interpreted as a syntactic binding violation and in cases 1 and 4 also as a violation of grammatical coherence. In case 2, the NP headed by "belief" does not allow the operator to carry its variable to be bound in the lower sentence. Case 3 is explained because it is impossible to have a reflexive pronoun bound as the subject of a clause. Sentence 4 shows that the sentential complement cannot be interpreted for lack of an expressed lexical subject. These are the linguistic phenomena students can learn more about and understand better when they work with our parser.
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3.1 Parsing Strategies
Another phenomenon which receives some attention in the study of linguistics is ambiguity (see Schubert, 1984; Altman, 1989; Frazier, 1987). Ambiguities arise, for example, if a pronoun in the subclause could have one of two antecedents in the main clause:
(2) The authorities refused permission to the demonstrators because they feared violence.
The authorities refused permission to the demonstrators because they supported the revolution.
The underlying mechanism for ambiguity resolution takes one analysis as the default in case it is grammatical. The other plausible interpretations are obtained by activating one of the available parsing strategies which are linguistically and psychologically grounded (see Delmonte, 2000b, 2000c). These strategies allow us to check in the example above whether there is more than one antecedent for a pronoun. Generally, the strategies are used to re-assess syntactic structures which are prone to ambiguity. With this application, we hope to help students understand syntactic analysis better.
4. QUESTION-ANSWER SEQUENCES FOR LISTENING COMPREHENSION TASKS
We are not using the complete version of the GETARUN parser only for syntactic analysis. The parser also provides the basis for the generation of exercises which follow from text understanding. Text understanding (see Iwanska & Shapiro, 2000; Herzog & Rollinger, 1991; Delmonte, 2002b, 2002c) is a task which constitutes a challenge in that the right feedback may not be available if students provide an incorrect answer which is not included among the list of possible mistakes.
We use question-answer dialogs with listening comprehension tasks. Students hear a text read by the internal text-to-speech module or a previously recorded text. No written version is provided to students. At the end of the listening activity, a certain number of questions appear on the screen, and students are prompted to provide answers to each of them.
Each text given to students is represented in the system in the form of a discourse model (DM) and turned into an appropriate database structure. This structure can then be analyzed by our programs. The system takes as the starting point the feature structures represented as direct acyclic graphs (DAGs) of each input sentence analyzed by the parser. Then, in the semantic analysis, the f-structure is turned into a logical form (i.e. a set of well formed formulas). These formulas are mapped onto semantic representations, that is, predicate-argument structures with a polarity and a couple of indices for spatiotemporal locations (based on situation semantics). The final output is a DM. The sequence of internal processes is shown in Figure 6.
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Figure 6
Discourse Level Semantic Parser
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We shall discuss the system's behavior on the basis of the following short text:
At the Restaurant
John went into a restaurant. There was a table in the corner. The waiter took the order. The atmosphere was warm and friendly. He began to read his book.
In the knowledge representation, we establish a semantic relation that holds between a sentence and an interval in the spirit of interval semantics. We specify what property of an interval is entailed by the input sentence and then compositionally construct a representation of the event from the intervals and their associated properties. The DM provides us with the output of the temporal reasoning algorithm which allows us, together with the spatial location inferential module, to determine when and where entities, their relations, and their properties are situated.
4.1 Queries to the System
We present a Question-Answer module which can be used for well defined domains (see Figure 7).
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Figure 7
Question-Answer on the Web
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The domain in our case coincides with the text the system has just analyzed and transformed into a DM. Below are some of the queries that can be addressed to the system (see Delmonte, 2002a), here generated by the system. The reason why we let the system generate both questions and answers is that we want to prevent the dangers related to the "open dialogue" mode of questions and answers; we work within the much safer "close dialogue" mode. We also want to prevent having to check for appropriate orthography and grammar and to concentrate on text understanding. The queries generated include questions on spatio-temporal locations (see Bianchi & Delmonte, 1996), identity, and activities.
What has John begun ?
Who has begun doing something ?
Where was John before going into the restaurant ?
How was the atmosphere ?
Did the book go into the restaurant ?
Did the waiter read the book ?
Answers are also automatically generated. However, the interesting part of the program is obviously the possibility of recovery from failure in case of wrong inferences. According to the type of query, failure may be recovered and appropriate feedback generated.
In the exercise, students are presented with four questions generated at random. They choose a question and are then given automatically generated answers to choose from (see Figure 8).
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Figure 8
Four Randomly Chosen Questions
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Theoretically, there are three possible errors: wrong answers, inconsistent questions, and inconsistent answers. Wrong answers are produced because there has been some misunderstanding. The problem is how to give cooperative responses in the case of semantic inconsistency. These mistakes may have been made either because students did not fully understand the semantic relations explicitly or implicitly stated in the text. In the case of implicit semantic relations, mistakes can be due to false presuppositions, violations of pragmatic constraints related to the "restaurant" scenery, or simply misconceptions. Feedback is provided after retrieving information related to the wrong answer, and a message consisting of two parts is generated: an explanation of the error in a first sentence and the right answer in the second sentence (see Figure 9).
Figure 9
Feedback Message
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5. EXTRACtING AND SUMMARIZING WITH GETARUN
In this section we shall present the use of GETARUN for the generation of short summaries (see Boguraev & Kennedy, 1997; Mani & Maybury, 2000). The system builds a semantic database of facts describing the entities of the world contained in the text(s) under analysis along with their properties and relations. This is achieved by tagging and shallow-parsing the tokenized text. The text is then transformed into a functional representation at the sentence level. This representation is passed on to the semantic module which is responsible for the creation of predicate-argument structures from verb subcategorization information (mainly derived from the lexicon made available by the University of Pennsylvania) and semantic features associated with each predicate in a big dictionary (derived from WordNet and Corelex). Main arguments are turned into referential expressions to be filtered by the anaphora resolution module which implements a slightly modified version of the centering algorithm. In this way, pronominal and nominal expressions are co-referred to their antecedents. Systems for information extraction rely crucially on the availability of structural counterparts of semantic entities which constitute the pivoting elements of their recognition task. In particular, recognition tasks may be ranked for difficulty along the following lines:
1. named entity recognition,
2. canned template matching, and
3. generalized relevant information extraction and summarization.
Whereas the first two tasks above may be dealt with by resorting to a certain number of heuristics and a good list of named entities of the relevant domain, the third task is solely dependant on the solution of the basic problems of:
1. recognition of clausal structure,
2. recognition of arguments from adjuncts, and
3. recognition of predicate-argument structures.
It is a fact that these three tasks are ineludible prerequisites for any type of summary generation if one wants to summarize texts with unlimited vocabulary. It is a well established fact that shallow parsing does not ensure carrying out these structural tasks smoothly; it does so only with a certain level of approximation. Therefore, we use GETARUN's DM to check and compare semantic representations.
5.1 Using Automatically Generated Summaries for Essay Evaluation
One of the possible implementations of automatically generated summaries could be a task very similar to a multidocument summary generation: students are given a newspaper article which deals with a topic related to current local or international events, and they are told to write a summary on that topic by using information made available in the article. Since the summary has a length limitation which can be expressed in number of words, students will be obliged to
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use some summarization strategy. The task specification will also enable students to use as many words or sentences taken from the text as they deem sufficient to convey the most relevant facts.
Student summaries have been evaluated by comparing automatically generated summaries with ones produced by students. At first, the comparison procedure tries to gauge the relevance of the text from the percentage of shared concepts and from their order of presentation. The GETARUN program produces a DM of the input text and of the student's summary. The comparison is concerned with the semantic similarity between the two texts. Whenever a given concept is expressed with the same linguistic description, it is checked for its semantic interpretation. Semantic roles associated with this linguistic description, causal relations, and further inferential links with other concepts are analyzed in order to ascertain whether students have adequately understood the original text. All semantic relations are recovered from WordNet. According to the rate of overlapping information, a score is issued and then weighted. This produces a suitable means of evaluation.
We show here how the DM generated by GETARUN can be made to apply to the task at hand. The list of facts generated sentence by sentence is merged into a single list in which each entity is assigned a score according to whether it participated as main, secondary, or expected topic in the topic hierarchy. Every entity is listed with a semantic type, a semantic index, a score, and a list of facts. The result is the DM, part of which we show below. (T has been substituted for temporal index to improve readability).
(3) entity(ind,id3,30,facts([
fact(infon5, inst_of, [ind:id3, class:man], 1, univ, univ),
fact(infon6, name, [john, id3], 1, univ, univ),
fact(id5, go, [agent:id3, locat:id4], 1, T, id2),
fact(id8, sit, [actor:id3, locat:id7], 1, T, id2),
fact(id14, take_order, [agent:id13, goal:id3], 1, T, id2),
fact(infon64, poss, [john, id3, id19], 1, id1, id2),
fact(id20, read, [agent:id3, actor:id19], 1, T, id2),
fact(id22, begin, [actor:id3, prop:id20], 1, T, id2)])).
…
fact(infon29, part_of, [restaurant, id10, id4], 1, T, id2)])).
The entity with the highest topicality score is John with semantic identifier id3. Students have to produce a short summary which deals with John by mentioning explicit, and also possibly implicit, relations like the fact that John sat at a table and that he ordered something. In case students mistakenly take the waiter to be the most relevant participant in the story and write about the waiter reading the book we can easily gather that they did not understand the text.
Students can make use of synonyms, hypernyms, hyponyms, meronyms, holonyms, and other relevant semantic relations. However, we would like to
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stress the fact that here we are dealing with second language learners. Cohesion recovery can be accomplished by using one of the following four procedures:
1. pronominalization,
2. passivization with agent deletion,
3. relative clause formation, and
4. coordination and subject deletion.
All four procedures can be checked appropriately by the system. In particular, the system has been used with Italian students of English for Economics whose lexical knowledge is often very limited. As a matter of fact, students are told to use the original text as much as possible and to concentrate on reporting the most important facts and relations. The length of the summary must be less than 100 words. Our experiments with the system have given good results and we intend to make it fully automatic in the near future. At present, all decisions made by the system go through a screening phase during which a human tutor checks the automatically assigned scores.
6. CONCLUSIONS
The four exercises presented above have all gone through the preliminary experimental phase of software robustness testing in which an extended number of "crash" tests have been carried out in order to prevent the system from freezing or the web server from crashing. The results in terms of student reactions have so far demonstrated the validity of the system. The human tutors are currently working on improving and extending the gamut of feedback messages to be produced and presented to users. As to exercises themselves, we find that those bound to parsing performance and lexical information are well suited to their task, in particular because the architecture required is very simple: both parsing and information refer to a limited domain and written production. However, the exercises based on text understanding and summarization have by far larger importance: the first one has spoken input and the second one uses free text as input, even though semantic updating may take place before the system is actually applied to a text chosen by the human tutor. We are thinking of spoken interaction in the text understanding exercise by introducing a talking head who will be in charge of entertaining students with more extended dialogue exchanges. This will require using the automatic speech recognition module, called SLIM, currently available on the main system for self-instructional second language learning (see Delmonte et al., 1996; Delmonte (2000d).
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NOTE
1 Word and constituent tags are to be interpreted as follows: cp = functional constituent where complementizers and interrogative and relative pronouns are taken; advp = adverbial phrase, that is, headed by an adverb—tagged "adv"; vsec = constituent marking the position for verb second or subject inverted structures; vmod = modal verb; fvsec = constituents following verb second; subj2 = constituent for the inverted subject; np= noun phrase; pers = personal pronoun; obj= object; clitdat = dative clitic pronoun; obj1 = another object constituent,that is, "np" or pronominal; art = article; adj = adjective; n = noun; ibar2 = sentence final nonfinite verb; punct = punctuation.
REFERENCES
Altman, G. T. M. (Ed.). (1989). Parsing and interpretation [Special issue]. Language and Cognitive Processes, 4 (3/4).
Bianchi, D., & Delmonte, R. (1996). Temporal logic in sentence and discourse. In Proceedings of Società Italiana di Matematica Applicata e Industriale 1996 (SIMAI'96) (pp. 226-228). Pavia: SIMAI.
Boguraev, B., & Kennedy, C. (1997). Salience-based content characterisation of text documents. In I. Mani & M. Maybury (Eds.), Advances in automatic text summarization (pp. 2-9). Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Delmonte, R. (1990). Semantic parsing with an LFG-based lexicon and conceptual representations. Computers & the Humanities, 24 (5-6), 461-488.
Delmonte, R. (2000a). Shallow parsing and functional structure in Italian corpora. In Proceedings of language resources and evaluation conference (pp. 113-119). Athens: ACL.
Delmonte, R. (2000b). Parsing preferences and linguistic strategies. LDV-Forum - Zeitschrift für Computerlinguistik und Sprachtechnologie, 17 (1, 2), 56-73.
Delmonte, R. (2000c). Parsing with GETARUN. Proceedings of traitement automatique des langues naturelles (TALN 2000), 7e conférence annuel sur le TALN (pp. 133-146). Lausanne: TALN.
Delmonte R. (2000d). SLIM prosodic automatic tools for self-learning instruction, Speech Communication, 30, 145-166.
Delmonte, R. (2002a). Reasoning on mistakes for feedback generation. Workshop on NLP e Web: la Sfida della Multimodalità tra Approcci Simbolici e Approcci Statistici. In Atti Convegno Nazionale Associazione Italiana di Intelligenza Artificiale (AI*IA) (pp. 40-48). Siena: AI*IA.
Delmonte, R. (2002b). From deep to shallow anaphora resolution: What do we lose, what do we gain. In Proceedings of the international symposium of recent advances in natural language processing (RANLP) (pp. 25-34). Alicante: RANLP.

A Computerized Phonetics Instructor: BABEL

2011-01-03T11:42:00.000+07:00

Joaquin Vila
Illinois State University
Lon Pearson
University of Missouri--Rolla

Abstract:
Babel is an expert system able to animate (graphically) and reproduce (acoustically) a text in any language which uses the Latin alphabet. This system has been developed to aid language learners and to help instructors leach the fine nuances of phonemes. Each phoneme has a unique sound and thus requires a precise positioning of the vocal organs which are displayed on the screen in two different projections: a front view and a profile cross view of a human face in synchronization with the output sounds of the speech synthesizer.

KEYWORDS: CALL, expert systems, computer graphics animation, phonetics, speech synthesizer, text-to-speech.
In the hands of teachers and students alike, the Babel language teaching system is an innovative and exciting tool. It has taken advantage of recent developments in computer graphics, speech synthesis, and artificial intelligence to produce a computerized visual and auditory speech model. Teachers can use Babel as an audio-visual and auditory speech model. Teachers can use Babel as an audio-visual aid, and students can use it as a tutorial system to help them learn correct positioning of speech organs.
Babel can be used in the field of education by teachers of Foreign Languages (FL) and English as a Second Language (ESL). Speech pathologists working with children or teaching the hearing impaired will also find it invaluable.
Equally important, Babel is interactive. Students in any of these areas can easily learn how to make Babel speak to them, which will allow them to visualize the way to form speech, showing just how and where certain sounds and speech patterns are pronounced. This comprehension of where to put the tongue or lips, or how wide to open the mouth, is indispensable for the formation of correct speech.
As every teacher of language knows, one of the most critical difficulties that students encounter in learning a foreign language is understanding how to pronounce properly unfamiliar sounds demanded by the FL. Students, especially older ones, have become so accustomed to using only the sounds required by
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their mother tongue, that they often cannot conceive how other sounds are produced. Thus when they attempt the pronunciation of new sounds demanded by other languages, they have trouble both in conceptualizing such new and rare sounds and in producing them. Apart from ingrained habits that are hard for individuals to break, a great amount of the novices difficulty stems from their inability to hear accurately the new sounds of the target language and to be able to discriminate subtle sound differences (phonemes and allophones). They can neither attain the fine tuning required nor see inside the mouth to distinguish the sounds. The unfortunate result is that many students still cannot pronounce such sounds, even after repeated classroom drill. This becomes a critical problem for both the teachers and the students. But with Babel as a teaching aid, the viewer can see the correct places of articulation on the computer screen and can hear words and sentences pronounced correctly by a speech synthesizer.
On the screen, Babel displays two animated projections of the human face: the first graphic is a front view of a face and the second is a traditional phonetician's cutaway side view of the throat and jaw. At the bottom of the screen on a text line, the user types in words to be pronounced. In response to the user's keyboard input Babel also reproduces acoustically the text typed onto the screen. In other words, Babel reacts to the user input by speaking those words typed, and by displaying in screen windows both frontally and laterally (by showing moving lips as well as cross-sectioned speech organs) just how that sound is correctly produced.
The first part of this article presents Babel in general terms; then for those who would like more information regarding artificial intelligence and how Babel operates, the last part of the article will discuss programming concepts and will describe Babel's components: a rule-editor and a rule-interpreter.
Babel began as a graduate computer project and masters thesis in the Institute of Artificial intelligence at the University of Missouri. Spanish is the Natural Language we selected as a model for all the examples and illustrations, because Spanish presented a clear-cut, workable phonology. Also the authors have a solid background in Spanish. Moreover, Babel is also adaptable to English, German, French, and other western languages which use the Latin alphabet. Only the "knowledge base" of the new FL has to be developed using the rule editor to allow the expert system to make a successful phonetic transcription of the new target language.
Human phonetics is complicated but limited at the same time. The number of sounds which human beings are potentially capable to emit using their speech organs is immense. However, each language has a unique pattern of sounds. Tomas Navarro Tomas asserts that: "Some phonemes are of universal extent; others are found only in certain languages. Phonemes of a general character do not appear in the same proportion in all languages. The sound image of a language depends greatly on the proportion it uses the phonemes
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with [sic] and specially on the particular modality it follows within the number of variants that such units permit. In describing the oral shapes of the word, it is difficult to establish precise boundaries between sound and phoneme, between phonetics and phonology. At any rate, the general appearance of sounds, the effects produced by their combinations, and, especially, the role they play in relation to the meaning of words are all part of phonology" (1968, 14).
The Spanish official orthography, though more phonetic than other languages, is not even close to an appropriate representation of its pronunciation. The phonological series of Spanish consists of forty-two phonemes. The number of variants (allophones) that these phonemes assume in the pronunciation of all the countries where this language is spoken is incalculable.
However, knowledge of the frequency of the phonemes in each language was relevant to develop the knowledge base of the Babel expert system. Tomas Navarro Tomas stated that "the rate of frequency of phonemes is an indispensable norm for knowing the composition of each language, for comparing languages, and for indicating the appropriate order in the teaching of pronunciation" (1968, p. 17). It is important that one be careful in generating the rules of pronunciation of the phonemes with high frequency. Navarro Tomas asserts that the vowels a, e, o, and the consonant s represent 40% of the phonetic material used in any Spanish written text. A second category is that formed by n, r, 1, d, t, i. A third category belongs to k (c, q) m, p, b, z, u, and g. And finally the phonemes with less frequency are: rr, f, j, 11, y, n, ch, and the diphthongs and triphthongs of the language. Table I reproduces the proportions established by Navarro Tomas (p. 25-26).
TABLE I
Frequency of Spanish Phonemes
Vowels Diphthongs
a 13.00%

ie

0.86%
e 11.75

ia

0.54
o 8.90

ue

0.52
i 4.76

io

0.32
u 1.92

ua

0.20

ai

0.15

ei

0.15

oi

0.15
40.33%

au

0.09

eu

0.05

iu

0.05

ui

0.05

uo

0.03

ou

0.00
3.16%
5
Voiced Consonants

voiceless

consonants
n 6.94%

s

7.50%
r 5.91

t

4.82
l 5.46

k

4.23
d 5.00

p

3.06
m 3.09

z

2.23
b 2.54

f

0.72
g 1.04

j

0.51
s 1.00

ch

0.30
rr 0.80

ll 0.60

23.37%
y 0.40

n 0.36

33.14%

We chose for the student visual-training model (one of the screen images) a cross-sectioned diagram of the speech organs, because it is the most commonly accepted method of showing positions of speech (points of articulation). But to enhance the side view—to give the user a more life-like, natural image—a frontal view of a face that talks also appears in a window. In this front-view visual aid, graphically animated lips are superimposed on the face of a beautiful woman (see figure 1). The front-face window offers a more holistic view of the speech process, and is of special interest for speech pathologists and those who work with the hearing impaired.
These graphic images produce a lasting impression, and they effect for the student a valuable source for insights as to how lips, tongue, and mouth produce speech sounds.
Artificial Intelligence and Expert Systems
Our own problems in learning and teaching languages made us aware of the need to develop a computerized teaching device. We then set out to research both linguistics and artificial intelligence to discover how computers might be used to solve language learners' problems.
Our research on FL pronunciation problems showed that a solution for teaching purposes could be achieved using an expert system. An expert system is a sophisticated computer program that solves complicated problems using an accumulated knowledge base that has been gleaned from the wisdom of a
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0x01 graphic
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human being who is an expert in that particular field. Expert systems present a favorable framework for phonetic transcription because they allow us to generate text-to-speech rules easily; and, moreover, these rules can then be updated without great effort. When developing the text-to-speech rules, the rule sequence and determination are not evident. So extensive modifications to the rules are necessary. Because conventional computer systems combine data and logic in the program, it is difficult to modify them. An expert system, however, allows users to modify the program smoothly due to its architecture.
We wanted a multi-language tool that could update the pronunciation rules (intelligence) demanded by the language being dealt with at the moment. The system that we devised carried out the necessary phonetic digital screening process by using a rule-interpreter (inference system). The rule-interpreter is a sieve-like algorithmic program that strains and selects through a computer-code matching process the rules to be applied. Next it cues the system which then begins to actually utilize the letter-to-sound rules to any input text. Once we were able to see that the structure of the design works, the next step was to translate text-to-speech auditory signals and synchronize them with the graphic animation images of the two projections of the human face in the previously mentioned windows. We wanted user-friendly software to make it effective and hardware that was affordable to users. The prototype was named Babel after the Biblical profusion of tongues.
The Babel system was designed to run on an IBM Personal Computer (or MS-DOS "compatible") with graphics capabilities. The PC also needs to be equipped with a Votalker IB, which embodies the Votrax SC-02 phoneme synthesizer. The Votalker IB incorporates 64 standard phonemes with the additional capability of producing allophones (variations upon phonemes). We realize the linguistic limitations of such inexpensive equipment.
The speech synthesis model began with the sound spectrograph invented during World War II. A marriage between digital electronics and linguistics, the spectrograph displayed in voiceprints details of uttered vocal patterns by showing sound waves of voice timbres.
Later several text-to-speech systems were developed, as well as other approaches which were created (some embodying large pronunciation dictionaries or linguistic analysis) although many were not practical. One model for Babel was the successful text-to-speech system by rule developed by the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL). Details about the system were published in December, 1976 under the title "Letter-to-Sound rules for Automatic Translation of English Text to Phonetics" (Elovitz [1976]). The NRL system demonstrated the practicality of routine text-to-speech translation. A set of 329 letter-to-sound rules was developed. Actually these rules translate English text into the international phonetic alphabet (IPA), producing correct pronunciations for approximately 90 percent of the words. A second set of rules translates IPA into the phonetic
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coding for a particular commercial speech synthesizer.
The rule structure developed by the NRL team is analogous to that used in creating Babel. However, variations were made to the NRL system in order to generate a flexible rule syntax for Babel that would be capable of including the requirements of diverse languages.
Early in the 1980s Texas Instruments Inc. (TI) developed a powerful text-to-speech system with notable features (Fisher [1983]). However the source rule format of TI's system is a quasi-linguistic generalization of that used by the NRL system. Among all its features the most significant contribution TI made was the introduction of User Defined Symbols (UDS), which will be explained later.
Another facet of innovative graphic devices is the branch of articulatory synthesis. The first articulatory synthesis system was proposed and developed by Coker and Fujimura at the end of the 1960s. A method for generating synthetic speech was devised by them in which synthesizer control signals are derived by rules from phonetic input data through intermediate-step vocal-tract area computations. Phonemes, the basic elements of the input data, are characterized as static, context-independent, ideal, vocal-tract shapes. These are tabulated in the Coker-Fujimura program as sets of parameters for the vocal tract model. This proposal was developed later on a Honeywell DDP-516. However, by current standards it now appears to be an unrefined system.
A Lip-Reader Trainer system was written by Robin L. Hight of St. Louis. This software package converts typed input sentences into a corresponding sequence of lip, teeth and tongue positions on a graphics display (for an Apple 11). The system, which was intended to aid deaf people, only shows the positions of the lips in animation when a text is input to the system in phonetic form. The lip-reader trainer's contribution to Babel's existence is the knowledge that there is only a limited set of lip positions distinct enough to be read clearly by humans. With only nineteen possibilities in English, lip positions are sufficiently unambiguous to the users so that on phoneme can be distinguished from another. Of course, other FLs have some strikingly visible variances, such as the French u.
BABELS'S Architecture
The components of Babel are a rule-editor and a parser-like rule-interpreter (inference system).
A. Rule-Editor
The Rule-editor is the core of the system. With it, letter-to-sound rules can be developed to translate text to speech. The Rule-editor was provided with a very friendly interface to create and update the pronunciation rules of different languages. One accesses the rule-editor only to create and update knowledge.
The Rule-editor is mainly composed of four windows. At the left side of the screen is the WORKING RULE AREA where the rules are defined; in the
9
middle is the MENU AREA where the main menu and edit menu are displayed; at the right is the INFORMATION AREA where the User Defined Symbols are exhibited, the phoneme chart, and the character chart; and finally at the bottom is the INPUT/OUTPUT AREA where information relevant to the knowledge to load or save is supplied as well as all the operations involving User Defined Symbols and other utilities. Figure 2 and Figure 3 show two different states of the Rule-editor where all the windows can be recognized.
1. Rule Syntax: The rule formalism of this system is very similar to that of the NRL system. However variations were made in order to increase the rule's possibilities.
Each rule has the form:
A[B]C=D
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Figure 2. Rule-Editor (Edit Menu)
10
0x01 graphic
Figure 3: Rule-Editor (Main Menu)
The character string B (body rule), occurring with left context A (prefix rule) and right context C (suffix rule), induces the pronunciation D (rule consequence or value).
- D is one or more phonemes, or, in other words, is one or more of the 64 Votrax input symbols. See Table II. Each of these phonemes can be altered through the rule editor to produce allophones by adjusting one of the five speech parameters provided by the Votrax SC-02 synthesizer: duration, inflection, slope, pitch extension, and filter frequency.
TABLE II
Votrax phonemes
Symbol

Votrax

Example

Symbol

Votrax

Example
[]

PA

(pause)

[1]

L

lady
[i]

E

keep, eat

[1]

L1

Louvre
[ ]

E1

become

[1]

LF

call
[e]

Y

marry

[w]

W

want, why
[]

YI

year

[b]

B

big
[a]

AY

made

[d]

D

said
11
[ ]

IE

ear

[g]

KV(HVC)

give
[]

I

mit

[p]

P

part
[e]

A

made

[t]

T

taste
[e]

A1

attainment

[k]

K

kite
[E]

EH

said

[*]

HV

(voiced)
[E]

EH1

enter

[g]

HVC

(g)
[oe]

AE

can

[h]

HF

hand
[oe]

AE1

happy

[*]

HFCT

(k)
[a]

AH

pop

[*]

HN

(m, n, ng)
[a]

AH1

honest

[z]

Z

zip, pays
[o]

AW

lost

[s]

S

sing, city
[o]

O

for

[3]

J

measure
[o]

OU

told

[S]

SCH

ship
[ ]

OO

look

[v]

V

vault
[ ]

IU

you

[f]

F

fat, phone
[ ]

IU1

should

[e]

THV

the, phone
[u]

U

you

[e]

TH

the, lathe
[ ]

U1

unit

[m]

M

man
[e]

UH

under

[n]

N

name
[e]

UH1

common

[n]

NG

long
[e]

UH2

constant

[*]

:A

Marchen
[e]

UH3

what

[*]

:OH

Lowe
[ ]

ER

word

[*]

:U

fun
[r]

R

ring

[*]

:UH

bluhen
[r]

R1

error

[*]

E2

bitte
[r]

R2

Mutter

[*]

LB

bluhen
*Unassigned
- B is the character or character string to be translated. In this case, B can include all the Spanish letters with all the special characters, accents and exceptions. Figure 4 and Figure 5 display the accents and special letters (used in on-English languages) available in the Babel system, and how one can invoke them.
- A and C are the characters, string or special symbols (UDS user defined symbols) representing a class of character strings which denotes categories of sound such as vowels, voiced consonants, etc.
- Blanks are significant as they denote beginnings and ends of words.
- Rule-order is extremely important
- The absence of A or C in a rule means that the corresponding context is irrelevant.
The main difference between Babel and the NRL rule composition is that in Babel the expert is welcome to define his own special symbols (UDS), unlike the NRL system where symbols are already defined and do not facilitate the creation of rules for other languages.
12
0x01 graphic
Figure 4. Special letters available in Babel
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Figure 5: Special accents available in Babel
13
2. UDS (User Defined Symbols): The UDSs are special defined symbols representing a class of character strings which denote categories of sounds such as vowels, consonants, etc. The UDSs were introduced by Fisher [1983] in a text-to-speech development system. However, there are some variations in the process of defining a UDS in this system.
Babel supports two types of UDSS.
SYMBOL = n OR-MORE = (SET)
SYMBOL = n OR-MORE = (SET)
Where SYMBOL (#,$,%,&,*,+,A,: @) equals the number (n) of times an element of the set might appear; and (SET) is a list of character strings separated by commas. Examples of UDS are:
# = 1 OR-MORE = A,E,I,O,U,Y
: = 0 OR MORE=B,C,D,F,G,H,J,K,L,M,N,O,P,Q,R,S,T,V,W,X,Z,
* = 1 OF =B,D,V,G,J,L,M,N,R,W,Z
Figure 6 displays the main menu of the Rule-editor and shows the process of defining a UDS.
A representative rule for English using a UDS (according to the previous UDS's examples) is
#:[e]
which means that an e at the end of a word preceded by # (one or more vowels) and : (zero or more consonants) is silent.
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Figure 6. Rule-Editor (Edit Menu). The process of defining a UDS
14
B. RULE-Interpreter
The rule-interpreter is the pragmatic side of Babel. This subsystem has been designed to animate a human speech model using the stimuli of the input text and screening it through a set of rules which is loaded (knowledge selected) in the expert system.
The general block diagram exhibited in Figure 7 shows the process of the rule-interpreter, which involves the following:
1.Knowledge Selection.
- A welcoming display appears on the screen, requesting that the user choose the knowledge to be loaded. See Figure 8. (The rule-interpreter accepts any knowledge created by the rule-editor).
2. Load Rules.
- The rules bearing the name of the knowledge selected are loaded into the system.
- Next, two projections of the human face (front and profile cross view) are displayed on the screen. See Figure 1.
3. Input Text.
- The user is free to type any text. (The input text is echoed at the bottom of the screen, in the input window).
4. Phonetic Transcription.
-The expert system scans the text and produces a phonetic transcription of it.
- The phonetic transcription process is: "The process of transcribing a spoken word [text] into its phonetic components..." (Votalker IB 1985).
-The phonetic transcription process involves the following
*The input text is scanned from left to right.
*Then the subset of rules pertinent to the single character pointed to at any given time is scanned.
*The rule-interpreter decodes and applies the rules until a rule triggers.
*The value 'D' of the rule triggered (the sequence of phonemes) is then transmitted to a temporary buffer. *The last rule in the scanned subset is always the default pronunciation of 'B' (body rule or character string to be translated).
*The pointer advances as many characters over the source text as the number of characters of 'B' (the body rule). *The scan process is over when all the characters of the source text are exhausted.
-Table III shows how the phrase "le rogue, Enrique" is scanned.
5.Animation of Speech (Image and Sound).
-A succession of pictures showing the vocal speech organs of each phoneme generated by the phonetic transcription are exhibited on the screen at the same time that the sounds are uttered by the synthesizer.
15
0x01 graphic
Figure 7. Rule-interpreter: general block diagram
16
0x01 graphic
17
TABLE III
Phonetic Transcription of a phrase:
Knowledge : IPASP
Input text: le rogue, Enrique.
Rule Structure
A[B]C

D

Pointer position

Rule used

Phonemes buffered
le rogue, Enrique.

[1]

L
le rogue, Enrique.

[e]

Eh EH1
le rogue, Enrique.

[r]

R1
le rogue, Enrique.

[o]

O
le rogue, Enrique.

[gue]

KV HVC EH EH1
le rogue, Enrique.

[,]

PA
le rogue, Enrique.

[ ]

le rogue, Enrique.

[e]

EH EH1
le rogue, Enrique.

[nr]

N R1
le rogue, Enrique.

[i]

E E
le rogue, Enrique.

[qu]

K
le rogue, Enrique.

[e]

EH EH1
le rogue, Enrique.

[.]

PA PA
*Each phoneme requires a particular representation of the speech organs. Thus, Babel system has a specific image (of the vocal speech organs) for almost all the 64 Votrax phonemes. See table IV, where the numbers appearing in the columns Front (mouth) and Profile (tongue) are related to Figure 9 and Figure 10 respectively.
TABLE IV
Relationships between Votrax phonemes and Vocal Tract Images
Votrax

Front

Profile

Votrax

Front

Profile
PA

1

1

L

12

12
E

6

10

L1

12

12
E1

10

10

LF

12

12
Y

6

10

W

12

18
YI

6

6

B

3

13
AY

10

10

D

5

12
IE

6

10

K

8

8
I

10

10

P

3

13
A

10

10

T

5

12
A1

9

6

K

4

4
18
EH

10

10

HV

*

*
EH1

10

10

HVC

8

8
AE

4

2

HF

9

9
AE1

4

2

HFCT(k)

4

4
AH

2

2

HN

*

*
AH1

2

2

Z

17

18
AW

14

9

S

17

18
O

14

9

J

16

16
OU

14

9

SCH

16

16
OO

18

4

V

7

17
IU

18

4

F

7

17
IU1

18

4

THV

17

18
U

18

4

TH

17

18
U1

18

4

M

3

13
UH

2

2

N

5

12
UH1

2

2

NG

11

4
UH2

2

2

:A

*

*
UH3

2

2

:OH

*

*
ER

13

15

:U

*

*
R

13

15

:UH

*

*
R1

13

15

E2

*

*
R2

13

15

LB

*

*
In a few words this program translates text-to-speech by interpreting and applying the letter-to-sound rules (of the knowledge selected) to any input text. Once scanned, the system generates in the synthesizer a smooth bass voice in conjunction with two visual projections of the human face (exhibiting the speech organs), which depict the desirable position of the organs of speech articulation to produce the phonemes determined by the text.
C. Computer Graphics
Two methods were used to create the images for the windows: (1) the vocal tract was drawn graphically, pixel by pixel on the screen using a utility program developed exclusively for this purpose; and (2) several other images were digitized with a Digital VAX 11780 computer and a Gould DeAnza IP 8400 image processor.
Operation and Evaluation
There are two ways to interact with the system:
1.Through the rule-editor to create and update pronunciation rules.
2.Through the rule-interpreter to get speech animation of any input text.
A. Rule-Editor
The creation of the rules is the most important and delicate interaction with the system. In face, the success of the expert system rests entirely on accuracy of the rules. Therefore, it is necessary to invest considerable time with the Rule-editor before satisfactory performance can be achieved.
19
0x01 graphic
Figure 9. Set of Front-of-Mouth positions available in Babel system.
20
0x01 graphic
Figure 10. Set of Tongue Positions shown in profile available in Babel system.
21
0x01 graphic
Figure 10. Set of Tongue Positions shown in profile available in Babel system.
22
* Rule Development:
Spanish maintains a fairly good one to one relationship between letters and sounds. Taking advantage of this fact and following the words of Adelstein [1973] and Navarro [1967], the creation of the first draft of rules was feasible. Appendix A is a complete user's manual of the Rule-editor which explains the features of each window as well as how to create and update rules.
The creation of the rules was over as soon as the spoken output of the expert system was understandable and pleasing. However, in several cases due to the limited set of phonemes provided by the synthesizer it was not possible to generate or improve the sounds of some phonemes. For example, the nasal voiced consonants n and ii are currently causing problems in the pronunciation of some words. The phoneme n is provided by the synthesizer but the ii is not. Moreover n is usually confused with the consonant 1. The synthesizer pronounces both n and I as a voiced alveolar, but in human speech an I is a lateral and n is a nasal. It seems that the synthesizer failed to distinguish in its production between sounds with similar points of articulation (but different timbres), especially in allowing the hearer to differentiate between nasal sounds and non-nasal sounds.
At present, there are a set of 68 letter-to-sound rules that translate Spanish text into speech. The name of the knowledge where such rules are preserved is IPASP. The current output of the system can be improved with more exhaustive rules. However, polishing the rules is a task that might take time yet one would be undoubtedly regarded with more pleasing outputs.
B. Rule-Interpreter
The rule-interpreter is designed to animate a human speech model given a knowledge (set of rules) and any input text. The first and only query of the rule-interpreter is the name of the knowledge to be used. Once the knowledge is loaded the user is welcome to type a limited size text that may include any character defined by the rules. The computer will repeat the speech animation as many times as the user keeps pressing any key but . If is pressed, the input window will be erased and the user may type again. When pressing the key Fl after the text has been input, the expert system slows down the animation process in order to let the student appreciate in detail (phoneme by phoneme) the phonetic transcription of the input text. By toggling the Fl key again the expert system returns to its normal animation speed.
Results and Conclusions
Some of the students who have used the Babel system have commented that while interacting with the system, they realized for the first time what was going on inside of their mouth, where their tongue was in the speech process. And they felt it was very easy to use. As stated, some of the applications of Babel might be in the areas of phonetic course training, speech pathology, file-text-
23
readers, bilingual transcription, showing progressive stages in the process of articulation, and FL instruction. Babel has proved to be a flexible and valuable tool in teaching language pronunciation, offering potential users standardization of knowledge via expert systems.
The fact that the students can see what they hear originates in them an awareness of the speech process. Furthermore, if the students with the guidance of an expert learn to imitate properly the outputs of the Babel system, they will surely undergo a unique learning experience.
References
Adelstein, Miriam. La Ensenanza del Espanol Como Idioma Extranjero: de la teoria a la practica. Madrid, Spain: Playor, S.a. 1973. p. 29-81.
Bassnett-McGuire, Susan. Translation Studies. New York: Methuen & Co., 1980, p. 13.
Bernstein, J., Pisoni, D.B. "Unlimited Text-to-Speech System: Description and Evaluation of a Microprocessor Based Device." IEEE-ICASSP, 1980 p. 576-579.
Bolinger, D.L., Bowen, J.D., Brady, A.M., Haden, E.F., Potson, L., Sacks, N. Modern Spanish a Project of the Modern Language Association. New York: Harcourt, Brace and company. 1960, p. 3-4.
Bowen, J.D., Stockwell, R.P. Patterns of Spanish Pronunciation a Drillbook. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. 1960, p.1.
Carlson, R., Granstrom, B., Hunnicutt, S. "A Multi-Language Text-to-Speech Module." IEEE-ECASSP, 1982 p. 1604-1607.
Carlson, R., Granstrom, B., Hunnicutt, S. "Bliss Communication with speech or Text Output," IEEE-ICASSP, 1982 p. 747-750.
Cater, John P. Electronically speaking: Computer Speech Generation. Indianapolis: Howard W. Sams & Co. 1983, p. 74.
Diringer, David. The Alphabet a key to the history of mankind. New York: Funk & Wagnalls, 1968, Volume 1, p. 12.
Elovitz, H.S., Johnson, R., McHugh, A. and Shore, J.L. "Letter-to-Sound Rules for Automatic Translation of English Text to Phonetics," IEEE Transactions on Acoustic Speech and Signal Processing. December 1976 p. 446-459.
Encyclopedia Britannica. "Phonetics." Chicago: William Benton, 1966, Volume 17 p. 897-900.
Fisher, William M. "Text-to-Speech Development System," IEEE-ICASSP, 1983 p. 1344-1347.
Flanagan, James L. "Voices of Men and Machines" Speech Synthesis (Reprinted from JASA, 1972, p. 1375). Pennsylvania: Dowden, Hutchinson & Ross, Inc. 2973, p. 9.
Klatt, Dennis H. "The Klattalk Text-to-Speech Conversion System," IEEE-ICASSP 1982 p. 1589-1592.
Navarro, Tomas. Manual de la Pronunciacion Espanola. New York: Hafner Publishing Company, 1967 p. 13-145.
Navarro, Tomas. Studies in Spanish Phonology. Miami: University of Miami Press. 1968, p. 14, 17, 25-26.
Olabe, J.C., Santos, A., Marinez, R., Munoz, E., Martinez, M., Quilis, A., and Bernstein, J. "Real Time Text to Speech Conversion System for Spanish," IEEE-ICASSP, 1984 p. 2.101-2.10.3.
Resnick, Melvyn C. Introduccion a la historia de la lengua espanola. Washington, D.C. Georgetown University Press. 1981, p. 1.
Santos, J.M., Nombela, J.R. "Text-to-Speech Conversion in Spanish a Complete Rule-Based Synthesis System," IEEE-ICASSP, 1982 p. 1593-1596.
Seleskovitch, Danica. Interpreting for International Conferences. Washington, D.C. 1978, p. 1.
Steiner, George. After Babel. New York: Oxford University Press, 1975, p. xi.
Votalker IB Speech Synthesizer. (A Manual). Votrax, Inc. Artic Technologies: 1985, p. 4-3 to 4-14.
Winston, Patrick Henry. Artificial Intelligence. Massachusetts: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company. 1984, p. 164.

Face-to-face and Computer-mediated Peer Review in EFL Writing

2011-01-03T11:38:00.000+07:00

Mei-ching Ho
The Arizona State University
Sandra J. Savignon
The Pennsylvania State University

Abstract:
This paper examines the use of face-to-face peer review (FFPR) and computer-mediated peer review (CMPR) in an Asian English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) academic writing context. The participants were 33 English majors from a university of science and technology in Taiwan, a new type of school offering 2-year associate degree programs in foreign language studies. Our study contributes to the research on foreign-language-writing collaboration for Chinese learners in two important ways. First, many investigations of FFPR have looked at Chinese learners either in English as a second language (ESL) settings or at 4-year universities. Few have considered Chinese learners at 2-year colleges in EFL contexts. Second, there has been very little documentation of CMPR using annotation features in common word processing software in either ESL or EFL settings (Honeycutt, 2001). This study investigates the attitudes of 2-year college students in Taiwan toward the use of FFPR and CMPR in composition classes. Pedagogical implications are also drawn.

KEYWORDS
Face-to-face Peer Review, Computer-mediated Peer Review, Second Language Writing, EFL Learners.
INTRODUCTION
Writing instruction in English as a second language (ESL) has seen considerable change following the influence of the process approach in the 1980s (Leki, 1992; Raimes, 1991; Reid, 1993; Zamel, 1987). This approach emphasizes writing as a process in which prewriting, multiple drafting, and revising are considered important in helping learners develop their skills. During multiple drafting, peer review is often used to afford learners experience in expression, interpretation, and negotiation of meaning. Such engagement in authentic communicative events offers an optimal opportunity for language learning (Savignon, 1983, 1997). Teachers
0x01 graphic
269
typically ask learners to bring drafts of their writing to class where they then work in groups of two to four to read and comment on one another's writing. This exchange of feedback helps writers to clarify and give form to their meaning in subsequent drafts.
There are several variations of peer review (Grabe & Kaplan, 1996; Zhu, 1994). Learners can read one another's papers silently or aloud. Partners can be assigned by the teacher or chosen by learners themselves. In some settings, teachers provide a peer review worksheet with guidelines as to what to look for while reviewing another's text (e.g., content, organization, and coherence). Learners are encouraged to comment not only on the strengths of the text but on its weaknesses as well. The practice of peer review is seen to offer advantages for learners in a variety of ways. Peer response groups may raise learners' audience awareness, foster collaboration, help learners develop a sense of discourse community, offer ideas and strategies for revision, and, most important, "expose learners to a variety of writing styles" (Grabe & Kaplan, 1996, p. 386; see also Nelson & Murphy, 1993; Spear, 1987).
Peer review has become a common activity for learners of different writing proficiency levels in many first language (L1) and ESL contexts (Grabe & Kaplan, 1996; Nelson & Murphy, 1993; Villamil & Guerrero, 1996). However, very little is known about the use of process-focused peer review activities in EFL contexts. This is especially true for Asian contexts in which teacher-centered classrooms are the norm. In Taiwan, for example, along with relatively large class sizes, teacher-centered grammar-based instruction remains widespread (Wang, 2000). If appropriate and effective classroom practice is to be implemented, further exploration is needed of learners' attitudes toward learner-centered and communication-based activities such as peer review.
The goal of peer review is to foster an atmosphere of reciprocal teaching between learners. The theoretical basis for the use of peer review in the development of writing skills, both in L1 and second language (L2) development, can be traced to (a) the notion of reciprocal teaching/scaffolding (Donato, 1994; Nystrand, 1986; Spear, 1987) and (b) the communicative approach to language teaching (CLT) (Elbow, 1981; Savignon, 1983, 1997, 2002). Second language writing pedagogy has felt the influence of both perspectives (Grabe & Kaplan, 1996; Reid, 1993). Communication, spoken and written alike, is the central focus of CLT and involves "a continuous process of expression, interpretation, and negotiation of meaning." (Savignon, 1997, p. 14; 2002, p. 1). The nature of peer review activities highlights this process. The basic insight of reciprocal teaching/scaffolding in the development of writing skills is that learners learn from one another by giving and receiving advice on the content, organization, and language use of their writing.
Computer-mediated peer review (CMPR) is a recent innovation in writing instruction. Along with the increasing availability of networked computers, computer-mediated communication (CMC) has gained importance in language teaching, especially in the teaching of composition. This study takes into consideration therefore both FFPR and CMPR.
270
LITERATURE REVIEW
Peer Review in Language Learning
Numerous reports on the use of peer review in both L1 and ESL settings have explored aspects of peer review activities. These include learners' reactions and negotiation patterns, teachers' roles in peer review training, the effects of peer response on learners' writing, and learners' attitudes and affective benefits (Berg, 1999; Mangelsdorf, 1992; Mendonca & Johnson, 1994; Nelson & Murphy, 1993; Paulus, 1999; Villamil & Guerrero, 1996; Zhang, 1995). However, the findings are generally inconclusive. While some studies report the positive effects of peer review (Berg, 1999; Mendonca & Johnson, 1994), others show contrary findings (Carson & Nelson, 1996, 1998; Zhang, 1995).
Mendonca and Johnson (1994) investigated peer negotiation in an ESL writing class at a major university in the northern United States. To examine the negotiation patterns of graduate student learners of English working in pairs, they analyzed audio-taped peer review sessions and learners' written drafts. In addition, posttask interviews were conducted to solicit learners' perceptions toward the usefulness of the peer review dyads. Five types of peer review negotiations were identified: asking questions, giving explanations, making restatements, offering suggestions, and correcting grammar. The analysis showed that during peer review learners focused on both local and global issues of their writing and that after negotiation they appeared to have a better understanding of its strengths and weaknesses. More important, learners developed audience awareness through peer review activities. The authors concluded that the learners in this study found peer review to be beneficial. In addition, peer review was found to "enhance students' communicative power by encouraging learners to express and negotiate their ideas" (1994, pp. 765-766).
Berg (1999) examined the effect of peer responses from ESL learners who received peer review training on revision types and writing quality. The results showed that revised drafts from trained peer response groups contained more macrolevel changes such as changes in the content and meanings. Learners who had received training achieved higher scores on their second drafts than did those who did not. These findings suggest that peer review used with guidance can help ESL learners to improve their writing.
Other studies have similarly shown peer review to positively influence ESL learners' writing (Mangelsdorf, 1992; Nelson & Murphy, 1992; Stanley, 1992). However, other studies have challenged those findings. Zhang (1995), for example, explored the "affective advantage" of peer feedback in ESL writing classes, advantage in terms of being more writer supportive and less text appropriating than using other means (Clifford, 1981; Elbow, 1973; Purves, 1984). To determine whether L2 learners felt such affective advantages, Zhang reexamined the use of peer review in ESL classrooms. The participants in this study were 81 ESL learners from one private college and one state university in the western United States. All learners were exposed to teacher-, peer-, and "self-directed" feedback types (1995, p. 214). ESL learners were found to "unequivocally" have a strong
271
preference for teacher feedback as opposed to peer feedback, with learner-centered self-feedback the least popular option. Zhang concluded that the use of peer review in ESL classrooms should be carefully examined by teachers since the affective advantage of peer feedback that has been found in L1 settings does not necessarily apply to ESL learners. Zhang also advised teachers to take learners' cultural backgrounds into consideration when adopting the use of peer response groups in class.
Several reasons have been suggested for ESL learners' seemingly unfavorable attitudes toward peer review and the failure of peer feedback in L2 settings to guide learners toward effective revision. First, since learners have to give comments on their peer's writing during peer review, some students might not feel comfortable doing so face-to-face (Spear, 1987). Second, since they are still developing their own writing proficiency, ESL learners may not trust their peers' response (Paulus, 1999). This might explain why some studies have found that ESL learners prefer teacher feedback to peer response. It may also be the case that peer review is experienced as a threat to the learners' concept of positive face or their positive self-esteem (Brown & Levinson, 1987; Scollon & Scollon, 2000), and that they therefore may tend to avoid it.
Eighty-six percent of the participants in the Zhang (1995) study described above were from Asian backgrounds. The suggestion has been made therefore that the findings may have particular significance for teachers of Asian ESL or EFL learners. Because of what is sometimes claimed to be a relatively higher value placed on group over individual achievement in Asian culture, speculation has been made that Asian learners may feel especially uncomfortable commenting on one another's writing They would therefore potentially have unfavorable attitudes toward peer review. Accordingly, Carson and Nelson (1996) proposed that learners from what they term "collectivist" cultures, including Taiwan and the People's Republic of China (PRC) "are more concerned with effects of their actions to others" (p. 1); learners from Western countries, on the other hand, are seen to value individualism and "function more often for the benefit of the individual writer than for the benefit of the group" (p. 2).
It may well be the case that individualism is advantageous when learners doing peer review are expected to state their own ideas and opinions. If so, to the extent that a group of learners may be said to share identifiable attributes,their different cultural backgrounds may need to be taken into account in judging reactions to peer review activities and feedback. In a subsequent study, Carson and Nelson (1998) looked specifically at cross-cultural issues in peer group interaction. Participants included three speakers of Chinese and eight speakers of Spanish from an advanced ESL writing class at a large US urban university. They found that both Spanish and Chinese learners valued the teacher's comments over those of their peers and preferred feedback "that identified problems in their drafts" (p.113). However, learners from different cultural backgrounds were seen to have very different types of interactions as well as views on peer review activities. During peer review sessions, Chinese ESL learners "frequently refrained from speaking because of their reluctance to criticize their peers, disagree with their
272
peers, and claim authority as readers" (p. 127). While the Spanish learners' interactions were "task oriented," the Chinese focused on "maintain[ing] group harmony" (p.127). In other words, Carson and Nelson found the Spanish learners to be more active in pointing out the problems in their peers' writing for revision. The Chinese learners on the other hand tended not to criticize others' work and not to disagree with them. Accordingly, they concluded that peer response groups in a classroom in which the majority of learners are from what they considered to be "collectivist" cultures may not be as effective as those in a setting where learners are from cultures that value individualism.
Computer-assisted Language Learning
The trend toward computer-assisted language learning (CALL) and computer-mediated communication (CMC) in language learning have influenced the teaching of writing in both L1 and L2 settings. More and more writing teachers have started conducting classes in networked computer labs or incorporating writing activities that engage learners with the use of computers (Warschauer, 1996). Computer-mediated peer review (CMPR), for instance, is one of the activities used to enhance learners' L2 writing. With networked computers, learners can do peer reviews online anywhere at anytime. Learners exchange drafts and feedback via email and communicate with one another through the use of interactive software programs. Not only can CMPR offer flexibility for both teachers and learners, it may also reduce psychological pressure on learners who do not like to give feedback in face-to-face situations. Depending on the kind of software used, CMPR could be used synchronously during regular class time or asynchronously at the convenience of the learners (see DiGiovanni & Nagaswami, 2001; Savignon & Roithmeier, 2004).
To date, several studies have been conducted to examine CMPR in L1 and ESL writing classes in which researchers assert the advantages of CMPR. (Brown, Nielson, & Sullivan, 1998; Dean, 2001; DiGiovanni & Nagaswami, 2001; Skinner & Austin, 1999). Among them is an increase in learner motivation due to the new medium of expression. Colomb and Simutis (1996), Kelm (1992), Kern (1995), and Warschauer (1996) have all reported that the use of computers increases learners' motivation in second or foreign language writing.
Skinner and Austin (1999) conducted research on synchronous computer-mediated peer conferencing. Computer conferencing, designed as a prewriting activity, involved 22 reportedly East Asian ESL learners using synchronous chat to communicate in groups on assigned topics. They found that by using online conferencing, learners formed a virtual community for communication. This not only offered a new means of communication but also helped learners reduce their anxiety in speaking and writing in a second language. Kern (1995) similarly reported the motivational benefits of computer use in foreign language learning, including increased learner expression, reduced "anxiety related to oral communication," and creation of "a collaborative spirit among learners" (p. 461). Of considerable significance, learners in this study who were often unwilling to participate in
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face-to-face discussion interacted more "actively" with peers during computer conferencing sessions (p. 470).
Huang (1998) also suggested that FL writing teachers incorporate computer-mediated (CM) activities such as CMPR into their classrooms in order to create "variety in classroom activities" and to "provide a non-stress environment for learners who are shy or overly concerned about their oral language proficiency" (p.2). DiGiovanni and Nagaswami's (2001) research on synchronous CMPR in ESL writing classes at a community college in the US led to similar recommendations. They compared the face-to-face and online interactions of 52 ESL learners and analyzed those interactions by adapting the negotiation categories presented in Mendonca and Johnson (1994). For their online interactions, learners in this study used Norton Textra Connect,1 a software program for split screen electronic communication. A split screen protocol features character-by-character transmission rather than whole message transmission, allowing learners to view drafts 'letter by letter' as they are being produced in one window while simultaneously producing feedback to the writer in another window on the computer screen. DiGiovanni and Nagaswami found that more than half of the participants who used the split screen protocol felt that CMPR was more comfortable and interesting than FFPR and, important, felt that they did better reviewing online.
Although research shows CMPR may have positive effects on learner motivation, it is worth noting that CMC is very different from face-to-face communication and could generate different types of interactions which might affect the effectiveness and quality of feedback. As noted above, CMPR may be conducted synchronously (for example, chat, ICQ, MUDs, etc.) or asynchronously (email, listserv discussion list, etc.), depending on the software used. The medium used for communication could affect language and language use in terms of style, coherence, etiquette, message length, and other features (Herring, 2002a).
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
This study examines the use of face-to-face and asynchronous computer-mediated peer review in academic writing classes at a university of science and technology (UST) in Taiwan offering 2-year associate degree programs in intensive language study.2 In recent years, the number of learners enrolled in this new type of school has increased dramatically. The goal of the study reported here was to investigate the perceptions and attitudes of learners in this particular setting toward FFPR and CMPR and to determine whether CMPR as used in this study might be a good supplement to FFPR in writing classes. The specific research questions are the following:
1. How do learners in a UST react to face-to-face and computer-mediated peer review?
1.1 Do learners in a UST feel they benefit from doing face-to-face peer review?
1.2 Do learners in a UST have generally favorable attitudes toward computer-mediated peer review?
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2. What are the learners' perceptions concerning the annotation features of CMPR used in this study?
METHOD
Setting and Participants
The participants were 37 English majors, 12 males and 25 females, at a national university of science and technology in Taiwan who comprised two intact classes in academic writing taught by two different teachers in the spring 2002. Learners who enroll in this kind of program have heterogeneous English learning backgrounds, but, to be admitted to the program, all must pass a nationally standardized entrance exam which evaluates their English proficiency. Therefore, although learners' English learning backgrounds may differ, the learners in this study had attained a similar level of language study. While most traditional English departments at universities in Taiwan focus on English literature, the English department in this particular setting emphasizes the teaching of English for practical use. The primary objective of the program is to prepare learners for working in an environment in which English is the primary means of communication. There are three major tracks in the program: business and technical English, English interpretation and translation, and English language teaching. Advanced Writing I, II, III, and IV are required courses for students in all three tracks. Each level requires one semester to complete and has different themes in different tracks. The department incorporated peer review activities as one of the assignments for all levels of the writing courses.
Of the total of 37 participants, 18 were from a senior writing class (IV) taught by an English native speaker, and 19 were from a junior writing class (II) taught by a nonnative speaker of English with a Master's degree in TESOL from an American university. Although the focus of instruction for the two classes differed somewhat, both teachers used peer review to enhance learners' writing skills. In the senior writing class, students learned academic writing skills, including paraphrasing, quoting, and synthesizing outside sources. The students were required to complete two research papers during the semester. The teacher in the junior class structured the class based on instruction in different writing modes or genres (e.g., comparison and contrast, definition, classification, and argumentation). The students in this class were required to write short essays on assigned or self-selected topics.
Procedure
The researchers first sought approval for doing this study from the chair of the English department at the UST. They then informed instructors of junior or senior academic writing classes via email of the purpose of this research. Two instructors in the department were willing to help by seeking volunteers in their classes. Neither instructor had ever used computer-mediated peer review in their instruction and were interested in trying it for a semester. During regular class hours, the teachers told the EFL learners of the purpose of the study, requesting voluntary
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participation. All of the learners in both classes agreed to participate and were assured that their expression of personal preferences for any type of peer review mode in the survey would in no way affect their grades.
Face-to-face peer review
Since both instructors had had learners do face-to-face peer review (FFPR) before the time this study was conducted, the researchers interviewed both instructors via email to better understand the overall context and how FFPR sessions had been conducted. In both classes, learners were required to write three drafts for each writing assignment. Most often, teachers asked learners to bring in their first draft and paired learners for the exchange and review of each other's drafts. In reviewing the first two drafts, learners were asked to focus on global features of their peer's text (e.g., content, organization, and coherence). Afterwards, the learners themselves checked the local features of their own text before submitting a final draft. In the junior class, learners selected their own partner. However, the teacher encouraged learners to work with a different person for each peer review session during the semester. Learners in the senior class, on the other hand, were assigned to a partner. According to the instructor, learners' ability level was the most important criterion for selecting a partner for each learner. As Instructor two (T2)3said,
I pair them by ability level. Sometimes good with good, poor with poor, but usually good with poor, or good with mediocre ability. Rarely good with good, because there aren't enough good ability students to go around, but then again it isn't fair to always put someone who has good writing ability with someone who isn't as good. It's hard. I will also consider their personalities and their gender to some degree-making sure they can get along and the males won't dominate the females-but their ability level is always the first consideration.
Even though both classes had experience with peer review dyads in which learners focused on the global issues of writing, the procedures for conducting peer review sessions were somewhat different. In the senior writing class, due to time constraints and the length of written assignments, most peer review sessions were conducted by learners outside of class. The learners reviewed an assigned peer's draft by following the instructions on the peer review worksheet provided by the teacher. In addition to pointing out the strengths and the weaknesses of their peer's writing, learners were required to give suggestions for revision. To track the activity and to facilitate learners' future revision, the instructor also required learners to provide written feedback, which was typically reviewed by the instructor before being given to the peer. In the junior writing class, since most written assignments were no more than two to three pages long, learners conducted all peer review sessions in class. The teacher also provided peer review guidelines (worksheets) and expected learners to give written feedback.
Initial email correspondence with the instructors suggested that they had similar concepts of face-to-face peer review activity. The following excerpts from the
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email exchanges between the researchers and the two instructors are indicative of the teachers' rationale:
peer review helps learners to realize some common errors which might happen to their classmates and to themselves as well. Also, by correcting others' papers, learners will have better ideas about essay organization … . Learners learn to trust their peers' correction, instead of relying heavily on teachers' feedback. (QUE01/T1)
I want them to internalize the peer review process so they can use it with their own papers when no peer is available … when it [peer review dyad] works out right because when a learner has the right peer feedback at the right time a breakthrough in improving his/her writing can occur. (T2)
Computer-mediated peer review
Since none of the learners had had prior experience with computer-mediated peer review (CMPR), researchers cooperated with instructors to set up the activity. In the senior class, most regular class hours were used for one-on-one teacher-learner conferences in the instructor's office; learners did not typically work together in class. Therefore, the instructor suggested having learners do CMPR outside of the class as an assignment. Since CMPR in this study involved only email and simple annotation features in common word-processing programs, learners could easily complete their tasks asynchronously at home or in the computer lab at school. To guide them initially, the instructor asked learners to email their drafts as an attachment and provide their feedback directly on their peer's computer draft using "Track Changes" in Word as shown in the examples below. Learners then emailed the draft with feedback to the peer. In the junior-level class, the teacher agreed to adopt CMPR during regular class sessions, scheduling them in a networked computer lab. The procedures of CMPR were the same as those used in the senior class. Both classes adopted CMPR during the second half of the semester. During CMPR, the learners read the drafts and typed the feedback on the computer. There was no exchange of printouts or paper-based feedback.
The major feature of "Track Changes" is to document every change made in a text, including questions, comments, insertions, and deletions. By using "Track Changes," learners were able to insert feedback adjacent to a problematic sentence or paragraph. These changes automatically appeared in a different font color along with a text box. As can be seen in the following examples, feedback can be interwoven in the texts or shown in text boxes in the margin. (Colored font has been replaced here with italics). Depending on the version of Word, the feedback may appear in a different place. For example, in Word XP, the comments and deleted words are highlighted in a small textbox in the margin.
Example 1
In 2001, according to the estimate of the economic prosperity center of National Statistics Bureau, the average income of each rural farmer in 2000 is two thousand four hundred and thirty four renminbi. In addition, provinces like Qui-Zhou,
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Xi-Cang, Gan-Su, Quing-Hai, Yun-Nan, Some readers might not know where the places are, please add more information to make it clearer to your readers. the average income is lower; especially in Qui-Zhou province, the average farmer's earning is only one thousand one hundred and thirty six renminbi.
Example 2
(It would be better to start with your T.S. , and also reveal your main idea first, so reader can probably know what you gonna talk about in your paper, and continue to read it) Many elementary schools' English teachers in Taiwan face a serious problem: students do not like to read. A survey (investigating Taiwan's children's reading interests) conducted by Lin shows children's favorite extracurricular activities are: watching TV (73.4%), playing games / chatting (63.1%), reading informal readers (49.5%), and playing video games (49.3%).
Example 3
Teachers should take reading picture books as an interest, rather than a purpose of test, otherwise will eliminate students' reading motivation. Arousing children's desire of reading will prepare them to read more in their lifelong time. (could you explain more why teachers "should" take reading picture books as…) Seems like you don't have a strong conclusion. You can add one or two more sentences restated about "picture book"(which is your main idea) and the three characteristics to conclude the paragraph and this paper.
p.s. the information and examples in the paper are very good. I suggest you can add more examples and explain how the three characteristics work together when you extend this paper from 5 to 8 pages.
Example 4
Teachers can go through the cover page and the first page first without revealing the points and the outcome of the story. Then students will become very curious to find out what is happening next and start to read (2001). You can add one more sentence to conclude (summarize) this paragraph. Ex, "so the first characteristics of picture book, "picture", can…..The second characteristic that picture books functions to arouse children's interest is the 'pattern'. You can explain what "pattern" means here first. To give an easy and clear explanation will make readers understand what you say in this paragraph. Picture books are patterned with repeated phrases, rhythms, and refrains that can appeal students to start reading.
Example 5
In this character of this story, Guloong is a painstaking, intelligent, responsible and paying deep love for his lover and family. Therefore, there is a special holiday is called "Qixi" (0x01 graphic)to commemorate their love. Does Qixi relate to this topic? According to these three descriptions, "Cowboy" could be commented with different meanings because different countries, culture or nations. 0x01 graphic Cowboy
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0x01 graphic
0x01 graphic Suggestion: 1. There's no exact relation between the English word "Cowboy" and the Chinese expression 0x01 graphic. 2. Therefore, I suggest that you focus only on the Chinese one. 3. Try to give definition for its original meaning, then relate to its current usage.
Data Collection and Analysis
To investigate the EFL learners' perceptions of both FFPR and CMPR, a questionnaire was developed that included three parts: a biographical section, 30 items using a 5-point Likert scale (5 indicating strongly agree and 1 strongly disagree), and 5 open-ended questions. The biographical section asked for learners' previous major and English learning experience. The 30 Likert-scale items were designed to measure learners' attitudes toward both peer review modes as well as specific features of CMPR, including "Track Changes," and "reading drafts and offering feedback on the computer."
The two EFL instructors distributed the questionnaires to the participants together with an informed consent form. All 37 participants remained anonymous. Since both instructors allowed learners to fill out the questionnaire during the regular class hours or teacher-student writing conferences, there was a 100% return rate. However, four questionnaires had incomplete responses and were excluded from data analysis.
The 30 Likert-scale items were tested for reliability coefficients (Cronbach's alpha). Responses to the 30 items were then coded and imported into SPSS for descriptive statistics analysis. For the purpose of analysis, responses to items that were phrased negatively were transposed. To determine whether learners' answers to an item significantly differed from the mid-point of the scale (3), all responses were submitted a one-sample t test with the hypothetical mean score of 3 and a confidence interval of 95%.
In addition to the Likert-scale items, five open-ended questions were developed. The purpose of these questions was to elicit reasons for an expressed preference for a certain peer review mode that may not have been captured by the Likert-scale items as well as to identify the benefits and problems learners experienced. Learners' responses to each open-ended question were read, major topics identified, and similar topics or opinions grouped together to form categories. The first four open-ended questions were designed to elicit detailed information about the problems and benefits learners experienced during both FFPR and CMPR. In the final question, three ways of doing peer review (i.e., FFPR, CMPR, and a combination of the two) were juxtaposed. In their responses, learners were directed to indicate their preference and give reasons for it. The rationale for including the option of a combination of the two peer review modes was to better understand learners' perceptions of how peer review activities should be conducted. In this study, CMPR was based mostly on written communication; few verbal exchanges were involved. Ong (1977) convincingly argued that a person's visual and vocal senses complement each other to foster superior intellectual development. To promote such an advantage, Schultz (2000) suggested that "the verbal characteristics"
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of FFPR such as oral discussion and "the visual characteristics" of CMPR such as typed comments be used in combination to benefit foreign language learners the most (p. 141). Given that the learners in this study had already experienced both FFPR and CMPR, the option of "the combination of the two modes" was included. In the discussion that follows, learners' responses to the open-ended questions are organized according to the advantages and disadvantages of both FFPR and CMPR.
RESULTS
The reliability coefficients for the 30 Likert-scale items are presented in Table 1. According to Sax (1989), a reliability coefficient of more than .6 is required for a self-designed text or survey. The CMPR and features (including Track Changes, font color, and spelling and grammar checks) of CMPR scales achieved alphas of .69 and .71, respectively. The alpha for the FFPR scale was a less than satisfactory .50. The FFPR was the scale with the fewest number of items. The coefficient could perhaps have been improved if the number of items in this scale had been increased (Henning, 1987).
0x01 graphic
Cronbach's alpha for the total of 30 items = 0.80
Learners' Perceptions of Peer Review
The descriptive statistics in Table 2 show learners had favorable attitudes toward face-to-face peer review (M = 3.95,SD = 0.41, t = 13.29, p < 0.01). Items 1, 9, and 25 had a mean score higher than 4, indicating a high agreement among learners. More than 82% of learners agreed that peer review helped them improve their writing and should be used in writing classes. In addition, as many as 92% of the learners agreed that they benefited from reviewing their peer's writing. This last finding may reflect what Grabe and Kaplan (1996), Reid (1993), and Spear (1987) have argued, namely, that peer review can boost learners' confidence as a second language writer because they can see other learners also make mistakes and struggle with the writing.
As Table 3 shows, when asked if they liked to do computer-mediated peer review, learners did not express very strong agreement (M = 3.52, SD = 0.41, t = 7.25, p < 0.01). The mean score (3.12) of item 24 was not significant. Although as many as 67% of the learners liked to use "Track Changes" when providing feedback on the document (Item 26: M =3.81, SD = 0.76), only 46% said they wanted
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to continue doing CMPR in the writing class. The same percentage of learners (46%) chose not to agree or disagree (Item 11: M = 3.33, SD = 0.77). Overall, learners had less favorable attitudes toward CMPR than toward FFPR.
0x01 graphic
*p < .01
0x01 graphic
*p <.01, **p < 0.05
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Learners' Reaction to Features of CMPR
The features of CMPR examined in this study include: exchanging drafts via email, Track Changes, font colors, spelling and grammar checks, the nature of typed feedback on the drafts, and reading drafts on the computer. Thirteen items were designed to investigate what features learners found helpful when doing CMPR and what features they found difficult to use (see Table 4).
0x01 graphic
*p < 0.01, **p < 0.05
Table 4 shows most learners felt that "Track Changes" was very convenient for giving feedback (Item 17: M = 3.94,SD = .65, t = 8.19, p <.01) and that exchanging drafts via email was efficient (Item 29: M = 4, SD = .93, t = 6.14, p < .01). In addition, learners generally think the spelling and grammar checks are useful, and typing feedback right after/next to problematic sentences and paragraphs is helpful and easy to read. However, when asked if reading drafts on the computer is difficult, most learners chose to remain neutral (Item 8: M = 3.15, SD = 1.09, t = -0.79, not significant).
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Responses to Open-ended Questions
Face-to-face peer review
The major advantage learners associated with FFPR was that they were able to talk with peers during the review session, which enabled them to seek clarification and negotiate meanings to avoid misunderstanding. Most learners found that this not only eased the peer review process but that it also made the peer review more effective because many found speaking more efficient than writing. One learner wrote, "I can discuss my problems with my peers in detail. Through this face-to-face process, I always get useful suggestions from my peer." In addition, some learners mentioned that when encountering complicated ideas or disagreement, they liked to discuss in their native language. A senior learner wrote, "My partners and I can directly point out each other's weak points in our writings. Oral feedback is more efficient to me than written feedback. When I felt it's difficult to talk in English. We preferred to speak Chinese … ."
Learners also reported several problems in these sessions. They often did not have enough time to read and comment on each other's writing. They typically rushed through a review without fully explaining the problems they found or the questions they had. Some also found it difficult to come up with specific suggestions in a limited time. One learner wrote, "I could not immediately provide a suggestion to the problem of my partner's paper … if time is limited, could not explain all the problems I found in the limited time." In addition, many learners felt uncomfortable pointing out their peer's problems face to face. Some indicated that they would avoid identifying problems in other's writing and try to encourage their peers in order to maintain a harmonious relationship. Sometimes, instead of specifically pointing out problems, they would suggest adding more details: "while I do face-to-face peer review, I wouldn't really criticize my peer's writing. I would rather encourage him/her to get more detailed information. This attitude would sometimes harm the writing progress of my peer. In short, the Chinese people's attitude-harmony might hinder writers from progress."
Computer-mediated peer review
Learners reported two major advantages of CMPR. First, CMPR offered more flexibility than FFPR. Many indicated that since they and their partner did not need to be logged on to the computer at the same time, they could read and comment when convenient and at their own pace. Learners were able to take time to reflect on their ideas and rehearse responses to their partner. The use of "Track Changes" also made the reviewing process easier. Learners could edit and revise their feedback easily, and most learners found typing more convenient than handwriting. One learner wrote: "I think the benefits are as follows: it's easy to change any points I think not appropriate. It's easy to add whatever I want to express. It's clear to see my point to my peer's paper." It seems that being able to edit feedback on the computer was a real benefit for learners since typed feedback could be changed anytime before being forwarded to the author.
In addition, most learners reported that they felt more comfortable and less
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pressure giving feedback on the computer. In CMPR, they did not have to face their peers, and, consequently, many seemed to worry less about their peers' reactions. One learner wrote, "We can say what we want and express our thoughts directly." Another stated, "while giving feedback [on the computer], I feel free to say anything I wanted to say without worrying about my peer's reaction."
CMPR is not without disadvantages. As explained above, the opportunity for oral discussion was considered a major benefit of FFPR. Accordingly, the lack of verbal communication in CMPR was seen to be one of its drawbacks. One learner stated, "Some problems you face [during peer review] may be very complicated and you cannot explain very clearly [without talking to your peers]." Other problems cited relate to the use of email. A number of learners complained about the uncertainty of email transactions. A leaner from the senior class wrote, "my peer once mistyped my email address, and of course, I did not get my feedback;" another commented, "The mail might be lost while sending it to my partner, and it could be due to mail to the wrong address … ."
The time delay in email also presented a problem for some. Some learners reported that their peers took advantage of this and failed to provide timely feedback: "my partners have excuses to give my feedback late" and "I waited a long time for the feedback but no one sent anything to me." In addition, some learners found reading drafts on the computer uncomfortable: "difficult to read drafts on the screen. Feel my eyes with fatigue," and "it was too hard to read things from the computer screen directly. My eyes would be extremely sore … ."
In response to the final open-ended question, 24 out of the total 33 (72%) said they preferred a combination of face-to-face and computer-mediated peer review. They felt that the two review modes could be used to complement each other. Of those learners who favored a combination of both peer review modes, many suggested that CMPR should be followed by face-to-face discussion. By so doing, they would be able to comment on each other's drafts on the computer at their own convenience and also have a chance to negotiate meanings and ask questions about the feedback they received. One junior learner wrote, "I prefer a combination of the two because I can read the feedback from CMPR first and then ask my peer about some questions in my paper face-to-face." Another stated, "A combination would be great. Doing online peer review first, then discuss [with peers] face-to-face. While doing FFPR, we could talk in our native tongue. This would make the whole communication process easier and clearer."
DISCUSSION
Responses to the Likert-scale items suggested that although learners accepted both peer review modes, they had more favorable attitudes toward FFPR than CMPR. There was strong agreement with statements such as "Face-to-face peer review (FFPR) helps me improve my writing," "I benefit from reviewing the writing of my classmates," and "I think peer review should be used in writing classes;" whereas statements on CMPR such as "I like to do CMPR" and "I want to continue doing CMPR in writing classes" showed only moderate agreement. Responses
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to open-ended questions suggested some of the reasons for learners' preference for one mode over the other. Being able to discuss with peers was the most generally acknowledged benefit of FFPR. In contrast, lack of oral discussion was the most common drawback mentioned for CMPR. Although the learners found CMPR to offer several advantages such as flexibility in scheduling for review and a new means for editing feedback in the document, learners still considered oral discussion during peer review sessions to be critical. Given that peer review is a highly interactive activity in which learners constantly interpret and negotiate the meanings of one another's writing, speaking appears a more efficient mode and one that in many instances can prevent misunderstanding. In FFPR, learners not only provided written feedback, but they also had chances to clarify ideas and exchange opinions with peers. On the other hand, in CMPR, learners had to rely only on feedback on the document itself, something they considered a serious drawback.
These findings should not be interpreted to mean that CMPR is not useful and should not be used in writing classes. Many special features such as "Track Changes" and "spelling and grammar checks" were found to be helpful and convenient. Moreover, many learners indicated that they preferred typing instead of writing while providing feedback. This finding is contrary to that of Huang (1998) who found typing skill to be an obstacle in CMPR for Chinese learners. These learners at a university of science and technology even found typing to be more efficient and convenient than handwriting.
Although learners' attitudes were more favorable toward FFPR than toward CMPR, many found it somewhat stressful to review others' work face to face. They were afraid that in pointing out their peer's problems they might hurt the other's feelings or even damage their friendship. Some said that they would not critique and identify problems directly in order to maintain a friendly relationship. These findings corroborate those of Carson and Nelson (1996, 1998) that Chinese learners often avoid discussing problems and disagreeing with peers in order to maintain harmony. However, more research is needed to know whether this is a uniquely Chinese trait or whether learners from Western cultures behave in the same way. The second author of this research report has gathered substantial anecdotal evidence of peer pressure to maintain harmony and consensus among 18- to 20-year-old university students in the US, whether in full class, small group, or one-on-one discussion of each other's writing. In addition, it should be noted that proper training is important before having learners do peer review. Teachers should explain the purpose of peer review and let learners know that their responsibility is to offer honest feedback in an effort to help their peers. In this way, learners may feel less pressure while pointing out problems in their peers' writing.
The fact that most learners in this study found FFPR helpful suggests that a concern for harmony did not prevent the activity from being productive. Most learners had positive attitudes toward peer review in general and acknowledged its value in helping them to revise subsequent drafts. Many suggested that they would like to do CMPR first and then have face-to-face discussion with a peer. By
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doing so, they could read and comment on each other's draft at their own pace and also have a chance to ask questions and clarify ideas. They saw a combination of the two modes as a way to make peer review activities more efficient and effective.
Several pedagogical implications can be drawn for EFL writing instructors in Taiwan, especially for those teaching at universities of science and technology. CMPR should not be used alone in the writing class due to its main limitation: lack of oral communication. Since peer review is a highly interactive activity, oral discussion is more efficient than written communication. Its advantage is clear even if such discussion should take place in the learners' L1. However, in light of comments from the learners as to their preference for speaking Chinese in class—a finding that appears to reflect a more general tendency of Taiwanese learners to favor the use of Chinese in English classes (Wang, 2002)—classroom research is needed to understand the reasons for and the extent of Chinese language use and to identify ways in which more advanced-level learners, in particular, can be encouraged to speak English. Teachers might consider combining both FFPR and CMPR to make peer review sessions more productive. For example, since time constraints are an issue common to many classes, teachers could have learners do CMPR outside of classroom and then allow time for face-to-face sessions during regular class hours.
This study is not without limitations. First, all the participants were from the same national university of science and technology. The small sample size does not allow generalizations to EFL learners in universities throughout Taiwan. Research with a larger sample drawn from different universities is needed to confirm our findings. Second, learners' responses elicited from a questionnaire with Likert-type items and open-ended questions may or may not be as accurate or complete as those gathered by means of in-depth face-to-face interviews. Third, since the participants were recruited from two classes taught by different teachers, there is a possibility that learners' perceptions of both FFPR and CMPR were influenced by the instructional objectives and styles of their teacher.
Future research on peer review in EFL settings could well examine how learners' perceptions toward both face-to-face and computer-mediated peer review are affected by such variables as teaching style, assignment types, learners' age, and English learning experience. In order to reap the benefits of a process approach to writing, can they learn to focus on the global features of a text, things like content, organization, and coherence, as well as on the more familiar sentence-level grammatical structure? In addition, since the findings of the present study suggest that both FFPR and CMPR are best used together, future research could investigate the advantages of various combinations of the two modes. Given the communicative nature of peer review, by documenting learner interactions in both face-to-face and computer-mediated sessions, future research could also explore how students negotiate meaning.
The present study yields encouraging results. It shows peer review to be a highly communicative language activity that can be used successfully in an EFL context in Taiwan. The learners in this study not only had favorable attitudes toward the
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experience, they found peer review helped them with their writing. These findings do not support the suggestion that peer review may not work well for learners with a Chinese cultural background (Carson & Nelson 1996; 1998). Moreover, research findings related to learners in ESL contexts might not be an accurate representation of peer review in EFL contexts. Although the learners in this study reported experiencing pressure in pointing out problems in one another's writing, the advantages offered by peer review activity in general seemed to outweigh the drawbacks. Peer review appears to be a means of increasing learner communication in writing classes, offering ideas and strategies for revision, and promoting a sense of discourse community (Grabe & Kaplan, 1996; Nelson & Murphy, 1992; Spear, 1987). Most important, peer review may reduce learners' apprehension of writing in a foreign language and increase their confidence as EFL writers.
NOTES
1 The Norton Textra Connect software supports file sharing, discussion, editing of word-processed documents inside learners' word processor. It has both real-time and asynchronous discussion features, private messaging, and group talk.
2 These 2-year programs follow a 5-year junior college program (a combination of high school and the first 2 years of college). A detailed description of these 2-year programs and of their English language goals is provided in the discussion of the research design that follows. The appendix to this article outlines the formal education system in Taiwan.
3 Email exchanges between the researchers and the teachers are identified by teacher.
REFERENCES
Berg, E. C. (1999). The effects of trained peer response on ESL students' revision types and writing quality. Journal of Second Language Writing, 8 (3), 215-241.
Brown, P., & Levinson, P. (1987). Politeness: Some universals of language usage. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Brown, C. E., Nielson, N. L., & Sullivan, D. (1998). Computer-mediated peer review of student papers. Journal of Education of Business, 74 (2), 117-121.
Carson, J. G., & Nelson, G. L. (1996). Chinese students' perceptions of ESL peer response group interaction. Journal of Second Language Writing, 5 (1), 1-19.
Carson, J. G., & Nelson, G. L. (1998). ESL students' perceptions of effectiveness in peer response groups. Journal of Second Language Writing, 7 (2), 113-131.
Clifford, J. (1981). Composing in stages: Effects of feedback on revision. Research in the Teaching of English, 15 (1), 37-53.
Colomb, G. C., & Simutis, J. A. (1996). Visible conversation and academic inquiry: CMC in a culturally diverse classroom. In S. Herring (Ed.), Computer-mediated communication: Linguistic, social and cross-cultural perspectives (pp. 203-222). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins.
Dean, C. W. (2001). Layering literacies: Computers and peer response in the 21st century. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, The University of New Hampshire.
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DiGiovanni, E., & Nagaswami, G. (2001). Online peer review: An alternative to face-to-face? ELT Journal, 55 (3), 263-272.
Donato, R. (1994). Collective scaffolding in second language learning. In J. P. Lantolf & G. Appel (Eds.), Vygotskian approaches to second language research (pp. 33-56). Norwood, NJ: Ablex.
Elbow, P. (1973). The pedagogy of the bamboozled. Soundings, 56 (2), 247-258.
Elbow, P. (1981). Writing with power. New York: Oxford University Press.
Grabe, W., & Kaplan, R. B. (1996). Theory & practice of writing. London and New York: Longman.
Henning, G. (1987). A guide to language testing. New York: Newbury.
Herring, S. C. (2002a). Communication in electronic environment: Computer-

Facing the Triple Challenge: You Can�t Do It Alone

2011-01-03T11:34:00.000+07:00

Stephen C. Ehrmann,
Annenberg/CPB Projects

Abstract:
CALICO '95 Annual Symposium Keynote Address
Middlebury College, Middlebury, Vermont

One summer vacation when I was 13, my family spent six weeks driving from Pittsburgh to the Seattle World's Fair, then to San Francisco, and then eastward toward home. If you had to spend six weeks confined in a car with your 10 year old brother, your parents would probably invent things for you to do, too. Our assignment was to look for license plates, marking down each different state we saw. We spotted 49 states in those six weeks in the summer of 1962, even Hawaii. The only plate we didn't see was Vermont. That was 33 years ago. I saw a Vermont license plate today and I feel complete. I am an outsider and I'm glad to be here.
LEADING THE WAY: TECHNOLOGY FOR FOREIGN LANGUAGE LEARNING
I feel much the same way about the teaching of foreign languages: an outsider and glad to be here. I am returning a favor because, on at least four occasions, uses of technology in foreign languages have advanced my own understanding of how to make higher learning and little higher and extend it a little more widely.
The first instance helped to ignite my interest in video and optical media. That was back in 1978 when my organization, the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), decided to support Brigham Young University's development of Montevidisco (and Joe Clark's BioSci videodisc in biology). As you know, “Montevidisco” placed the student vicariously into a conversation in a foreign language and into the country where that language was spoken. Montevidisco and BioSci (an archive of biology images and stills), demonstrated two educationally significant uses for randomly accessed images and motion footage.
A second key event in my enlightenment took place at a working meeting on foreign language software at MIT, early in 1987, a couple of years after I moved from FIPSE to the Annenberg/CPB Project. I had convened leaders of Annenberg/CPB's four foreign
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language/culture projects, none of whom had yet completed a finished product at that time: the MIT Athena Language Learning Project on new models for using artificial intelligence and multimedia in studying languages generally; the University of Iowa's PICS tape and disc collection of video from several foreign countries, the Perseus CD-ROM project on classical Greece and Greek, and a telecourse, “French in Action,” then being developed by Yale, Wellesley, and WGBH-Boston.
Midway through the meeting Pierre Capretz of Yale and Barry Lydgate of Wellesley were scheduled to show some rough cut footage from their video. I'd never seen any of “French in Action” before. I was already jealous though. “French in Action” was funded for several times the amount being put into the projects I worked with! I darkly suspected it to be a boondoggle, wasting money by shooting its video on location in France. “Why don't they film in Boston or Washington and just pretend it's Paris, like producers do all the time in movies and TV?” I wondered.
Then we sat down in this MIT classroom at student desks and Pierre and Barry turned on the VCR. That was when the revelation hit me:
1. I suddenly realized that, as I'd prepared to watch the tape, I had unconsciously reassumed the attitude that I'd had long ago when I was in ninth grade studying German: “I'm a student. I'll watch closely, do what I'm told, and hope to get an A.”
2. I had never been conscious of that student frame of mind when I was in school or college, but I became aware of it instantly that day at MIT because, as the Louvre appeared before me on screen, I had to change that attitude. France is real! I instantly knew that going to France was an option for me, and that that was why I might actually choose to learn French. In fact, “French in Action” would never let me forget why I was studying. Put aside for the moment all of the other virtues of that wonderful package of materials: construction of language, vicarious immersion in the culture, the compelling teaching methods. I would be engaged in my studies, and every minute of video would help maintain that engagement.1
Some years earlier Alexander Astin and his colleagues on a Federal panel had argue that engagement and time on task were the key determinants of learning (Study Group on...1984). But it wasn't until I was sitting at that student desk that I truly understood the importance of intrinsic engagement as a capability of software. I do not mean the kind of extrinsic engagement that happens when CAI says, `Great! Right answer!' Good software confronts the learner in a visceral, continuous way with his or her ultimate reasons for learning; if those reasons are valid, that person has virtually no choice but to pour vital intention and energy into the tasks of learning.
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A third pivotal development in my thinking about technology and higher learning occurred in the late 1980s when I visited the University of Arizona Spanish Department to meet with the class of Professor Karen Smith. Her fourth year students were not using a language laboratory; instead they were writing email to each other in Spanish on a CoSy computer conferencing system. There were different topics to write about—a movie that they had just seen, an assignment that was coming up. Students could also write to each other in private. One student was working through some existential angst while other students in the class tried to counsel him, all in Spanish. In another strand of email conversation, students were organizing a party to be held in a nearby town. All these students were graded for their work in the public conferences, but only for their fluency in expressing thoughts, not for grammar or spelling.
Karen and her colleague let me spend some time alone with their students that day. I have never, before or since, met a group of students as wildly enthusiastic about a use of technology. One after another, they told me, “We've never used Spanish until now!” (Note that intrinsic engagement here, too.) It was clear that they were constructing a sense of Spanish and of being part of a community where Spanish was spoken. They liked it a lot.
They also repeatedly praised the accessibility of this mode of learning:
1. Accessible in space and time: Although they learned how to use the system in a computer lab during scheduled class hours, they could also participate in these asynchronous conferences from anywhere and at any time. The students' time was valuable and daytime is not always the best time to take part in class.
2. Accessible learning process: Students also loved the three way accessibility of
a) being able to speak at a pace that was their own,
b) being able to listen more slowly (since they were reading others' comments and could reread them, consult reference books, and so on), and
c) not having to worry about their accents.
One of the striking things about Smith's findings (1990) is that oral performance had improved, relative to a control group using a language laboratory. The students using CoSy had a chance to work out habits of discourse at a slow speed. Later, when they were tested orally at a high speed, all they needed to worry about was accent and speed. In contrast the students in the control group were also having to worry about framing what they were going to say.
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A more subtle yet equally significant aspect of Smith's work was that she was not relying on “curricular courseware,” i.e., software and hardware especially designed for instruction in Spanish. In contrast, computer conferencing software is an example of “worldware,” hardware and software that was designed for purposes other than instruction but that is used for instruction. (Morris, et al. 1994). Personal computers are worldware. So are computer conferencing systems and the kind of video that PICS obtains from broadcast television programs in foreign countries. Surprisingly, worldware is the most common form of technology used in education. That is not what many of us expected of computers and video as we began to dream of revolution in the 1960s, `70s, and `80s. Instead we predicted that in education technology would be mainly used as a complement to, or substitute for, lectures and textbooks: direct instruction. Computers and video, it was proclaimed, would provide instruction that was higher quality, more individualized, more self-paced. Worldware, in contrast, is ordinarily used for three other, complementary supports for learning: 1) to provide tools and resources needed for “learning by doing,” 2) to support time-delayed (asynchronous) exchange, and 3) to support real-time (synchronous) conversation. It can be used for direct instruction, too (e.g., presentation software).
Worldware has some important advantages over curricular courseware, one of which is that it is long-lived: features are usually added but not subtracted; competitors can often run one another's files; competitors have most of the same functions; when one competitor disappears, other packages continue to support the same functions.
In contrast, in many fields, revolutionary curricular courseware has been available just long enough to tantalize faculty, but has then quickly disappeared, rendered obsolete by changes in operating systems and interfaces. Faculty who had fully embraced that “revolutionary” software a few years earlier, building their courses on it, could no longer use their syllabi, assignments and tests. Faced with the prospect of starting over with new, unfamiliar software, some faculty members stopped using computers. Other prescient instructors had already foreseen this “bait and switch” and had refused to get involved in the first place.
Worldware is different. Imagine that you, like Karen Smith, had started using computer conferencing for instruction in the late 1980s. Each year since then you could have incrementally improved your assignments.
My fourth instructive experience came courtesy of the New Jersey institute of Technology. Roxanne Hiltz was using the EIES computer conferencing system to support experimental versions of a number of courses, and then comparing student grades in the experimental groups with grades of students in control sections taught by traditional methods. One of her many interesting findings was that students for whom English was a second language got average grades in the experimental sections but
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below average grades in the traditional sections. The non-native speakers compensated for their language deficiencies by taking more time to interpret what the faculty member and other students were saying, and investing more time to compose a reply. Using this added investment of time, those non-native speakers were able to achieve at normal levels (Hiltz 1988). In other words, people who had previously been regarded perhaps as marginal, nontraditional students suddenly looked like “real” learners. Voila, access!
We can learn at least one other lesson from these four stories: every field is teaching its students a new language—helping its students enter a new community of discourse—and thus every discipline can potentially look to CALICO members as leaders and sources of powerful instructional ideas.
THE FIRST CHALLENGE: ACCESSIBILITY
If you are indeed the leaders, where should you be leading your institutions?
Some people look first at technology and ask “What can this new technology do best? That's the direction we should go.” I suspect you've learned that that is often a sterile question. Instead why not ask, “What changes in the organization of teaching and learning are so important that we cannot afford to implement them? And what uses of old and new technology2 are needed to implement those improvements?”
Is it not true that your departments, and the institutions of which they are a part, face a triple challenge to their survival? Challenges to extend access and make it more equitable? Challenges to provide more adequate and diverse learning outcomes for graduates? Challenges to control spiraling costs?
The first challenge means providing sufficient access to learning for everyone. In your case, I think it should mean providing foreign language instruction for everyone who has adequate preparation, motivation, and time. That's amuch larger group of people than our institutions have historically been able to serve. We are not serving many of these potential students because our own institutions are not giving them an equal opportunity to study.
Imagine a college where the doorways are 5'81/2” high (which, coincidentally, is my height; I'm told that Frank Lloyd Wright once observed that anyone over this height is a weed.) There would soon be in this college two populations of learners: normal learners and weeds—excuse me, non-traditional learners. Normal learners are—normal. Non-traditional learners can be recognized by their nasty, repeated head injuries. Normal students, of course, do better in foreign language learning than those head-injured “weeds.”
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Some faculty members are comfortable with that situation: merit rises to the top. Nor are these faculty members prejudiced against weeds; each semester a few nontraditional students complete their courses and, occasionally, one or two even get an A.
Other faculty reject this laissez faire policy. The college should spend some extra money on these nontraditional learners, they argue, to give them special tutoring, nursing services, and fresh bandages in the classroom. Perhaps the college could get a Federal grant to help pay for these remedial services.
Of course there is a third expensive, time-consuming course of action: raising all the doorways a couple of feet. The most difficult thing would be for educators to understand the possibility and what it implies. “Change the nature of doors?!” many staff members and alumni would exclaim. “But all the best institutions have short, narrow doorways; they're selective! And why should we spend that money for those people who are not really our students?”
“Not really our students...” Why not? Tall people are no different from normal learners except insofar as the institution has defined them as weeds, and hindered their learning, by having low doorways. Unfortunately institutional doorways have been low for so long that even the “weeds” themselves have accepted their disadvantage as a fact of nature. Many people over 5'81/2” do not even apply because they know they are ill-suited for a college education.
Enough of that little conceit about weeds. We know that our colleges and universities impose “low doorways,” restricting access for many types of quite able, motivated learners: adults with day jobs, adults with handicaps, students whose learning styles are different from the norm, adults who live a long distance from the institutions that offer the kinds of specialized language programs that they most need, students who are much younger or much older than the norm. These people are defined by the structures and practices of our universities as weeds. Similarly, these potential students find university education a Procrustean bed.
As costs rise and our society faces tougher international competition, many legislators, alumni and members of the public are no longer ready to accept the waste of this much potential talent. And institutions that find clever ways to raise their doorways are likely to be rewarded with a relatively larger income and more public support.
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THE SECOND AND THIRD CHALLENGES: APPROPRIATE OUTCOMES AND SPIRALING COSTS
The second challenge is to foster the right kinds of learning outcomes for our graduates, i.e., those who complete a course of study. How satisfied are you with how your graduates use what they've learned from you? Do your graduates tend to move into, and function in, a foreign culture, for example? When they get there are they good learners? In this country do they tend to use their skills to read that country's literature, see its films, follow its current events? Do you even have information about what happens to your students once they leave your institution? Without such information how can you be comfortable teaching what you teach, and how you teach? Ifevery institution is not teaching well or not teaching the right things, no institution is penalized; the students are penalized and so are the people paying for the education, of course, but no one realizes that because there are no better alternatives offered. If, on the other hand, a few institutions (or corporations) begin doing a more efficient, effective job of equipping people to function in, and fully appreciate, a foreign culture, those providers are likely to thrive at the expense of their competitors. It is safer not to change if everyone else is doing poorly, but it is perilous, too. I like the perils of leadership better.
The third challenge is also more familiar to your than to me: spiraling costs. The price of higher education has been increasing far faster than the cost of living, much faster even than the spiraling cost of health care. Can our institutions provide good quality outcomes and equitable access if costs continue to increase so quickly? If you think we are not providing adequate accessibility and quality now, just wait. As costs per student go up (and assuming we do not make fundamental changes in our educational strategy), accessibility, outcomes, or both will suffer further declines.
ACCESS, OUTCOMES, AND COSTS: A TRIPLE CHALLENGE AND AN ENVELOPE OF POSSIBILITIES
Outcomes, accessibility, and costs are linked because library books, language labs, faculty, and other educational resources are costly, are sometimes limited in quantity, and often cannot be readily shared among very large numbers of people. The words of a gifted teacher can be broadcast to huge numbers of people through a text or a video, but that teacher can converse with only a relatively small number of people, for example. Thus an educational decision maker with a fixed income has three unattractive choices:
1. concentrate the academic resources for the few (in the attempt to assure appropriate outcomes for each of them) or
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2. spread the resources thinly among many learners (in the attempt to assure equitable accessibility for all of them) or
3. spend more time raising money (and perhaps altering the institution's mission in the process) in an attempt to improve both outcomes and accessibility.
Accessibility-outcomes-costs are a three way trade-off. That's why we call these three demands the “Triple Challenge.” They are linked.
Institutions have a large, but not unlimited, set of options for meeting the Triple Challenge. For any given level of institutional income, you could plot (very approximately) how institutions make this tradeoff (see Figure 1). Some institutions seek access even at the expense of quality (the institutions that are low and to the right), or strive for the highest quality even at the price of exclusivity (the institutions high and to the lift in the Figure). The most efficient programs will push themselves to that limit—the curve in the Figure—achieving one of a number of optimum mixes of good outcomes and enrollments. The less efficient programs will do less well in one or both of those areas. (Remember that, for the purposes of making the drawing simple, all these institutions are spending the same amount per student; we could create a similarly, three dimensional picture, showing an envelop of quality-access-cost choices.)
That image of education pushing up against an immovable frontier of possibilities is both true and untrue, both leading and misleading.
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Figure 1. The Envelope. For a given cost per student, colleges “AC,” “BC,” “CC,” and “DC” are all on the edge of envelope, i.e., they're doing the best possible job at achieving their chosen mix of equitable accessibility and quality outcomes. In contrast, college “EC” is doing less well; it is spending the same amount of money but ranks fourth in both accessibility and quality of outcomes.
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One important way in which it is misleading is that institutions cannot stand still. Resources that a few year ago would have produced an adequate program for instruction in French (when only books were used) might today be judged inadequate (when an emphasis on cultural insight, oral and listening skills have made language laboratories, video, and computers virtually de rigueur). Think of this as a Knowledge Explosion phenomenon; we need to teach more in order to keep pace. Secondly, as economist William J. Baumol observed many years ago, salaries are forced to increase in industries with low productivity in order to keep staff from moving to industries with higher rates of productivity increase that can use those increases to pay higher salaries (Bowen 1980, 32). It takes even more faculty and staff to produce a degree than some years ago; in that sense productivity is falling. So educational costs rise, and tuition and fees must be increased to pay for these higher salaries. But we cannot raise tuition as much as we'd like to, thanks to other demands on that same public money. So the combination of increasing educational needs and rising educational costs tends to push our frontier of quality-access possibilities down and to the left in Figure 2. That's the first way in which my image of an immovable frontier of possibility is misleading.
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Figure 2. Both rising costs and the constant increase in what needs to be taught and learned tend to push the curve down and to the left, i.e., a given amount of money purchases less adequate access and outcomes each year.
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Figure 3. One way to counteract the trend depicted in Figure 2 is to improve the organization of teaching and learning, ordinarily accomplished through the use of technology. Previous technologies employed for this purpose range from the printed word and auditorium style classrooms to language laboratories and paperback books. Each has had the effect of enabling an affordable yet better education for each of a larger number of learners.
The second, even more important way in which the image of the immovable envelope is misleading is that it ignores technology (see Figure 3). Traditional education once consisted of Socrates and his students in the grove of academe (or, to put it in a slightly more modern simile for an excellent education, Mark Hopkins on one end of a pine log and a student on the other: the American contribution to a classical education was to chop down the tree). An excellent teacher can do many things in a one-to-one relationship with a student (and no other support for learning): there is a significant envelope of possibilities. But the model is limited. For example, when the student is any distance from the instructor, learning may well stop. However, over the millennia educators have expanded that envelope of possibilities by exploiting the technologies of reading and writing (borrowed from commerce and religion), auditoria (borrowed from theaters), science laboratories (borrowed from industry), and the like. Today you CALICO members are continuing that trend in the ways you are applying computers, video, and telecommunications to the problems of expanding the educational envelope of possibilities. As the knowledge explosion and Baumol's “law” shrink the envelope, you are pushing back to enrich education each of a larger number of students. Doing nothing is not an alternative and never has been.
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CREATING AN EDUCATIONAL STRATEGY THAT CAN EXPAND THE ENVELOPE
Suppose we do want to think systematically about reorganizing teaching and learning—improving our educational strategy in order to respond to the Triple Challenge of accessibility, outcomes, and costs. What sorts of strategic change are likely to work?
First I should suggest that we focus on coherent change in a large fraction of the student's academic program, not change that is limited to isolated assignments or courses (Ehrmann 1995). It is the rare student who can take one semester of a foreign language and go out and live successfully in a foreign country. Nor can one do much to expand accessibility or control costs by improving only a single course, still less by improving only a single assignment. I realize this may be a controversial ground rule, since our “control systems” in colleges — our instructors — do tend to make changes that make sense to them as individuals, often one assignment at a time. But if those changes do not cumulate to help students develop complex, valuable competences, then their value is open to question.
The second ground rule is to limit our discussion to uses of technologies that can be crucial, sine qua non, in changing the organization of teaching and learning. New methods and new technology are both expensive, both difficult to adopt, both risky. So, if the technology does not enable major improvements in educational strategy, why bother with it?
Meeting those first two criteria requires a third ground rule: develop a stable, pervasive technological platform that can support stable, pervasive improvement in the organization of teaching and learning. By “stable” I mean software that is long-lived and that grows by adding features and capabilities. This harks back to our discussion of worldware earlier. We need to rely primarily on software and hardware that faculty and students can use in course after course, with growing sophistication and power.
So here are the three criteria we've suggested for selecting a new educational strategy for teaching foreign language. If we want an educational strategy that can expand the envelope of possibilities for outcomes, accessibility, and education per dollar, we must:
1) create coherent, pervasive change in the organization of teaching and learning in ways that respond successfully to the Triple Challenge;
2) use computers, video and telecommunications in a crucial supporting role (or not at all); and
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3) use those crucial technologies in a pervasive, coherent way to support those pervasive, coherent changes in teaching and learning.
What kind of improved educational strategy could meet these exacting criteria?
AN EMERGING, WIDELY-IMPLEMENTED EDUCATIONAL STRATEGY
In the remainder of this essay, I'm going to suggest that many quite different disciplines (including yours) and many quite different kinds of institutions are using quite similar technologies to make quite similar changes in their educational strategies in order to respond to the Triple Challenge. The details of this emergent strategic change were developed by a project I have been leading called “Flashlight.” The Flashlight Project's aim is to help departments and institutions monitor their own responses to the Triple Challenge, focusing on the roles played by computers, video, and telecommunications. Flashlight is developing evaluation procedures: survey items, interview guides, spreadsheets for cost analysis, and exemplary pieces of research.
The elements of this common strategy are appearing at (and were described by faculty-administrator teams3 from) the Maricopa Community Colleges, Washington State University, Rochester Institute of Technology, Indiana University—Purdue University at Indianapolis (IUPUI)< and the Education Network of Maine. Those five institutions and systems are quite diverse: big and small, two-year and four-year, private and public, research-oriented and teaching oriented institutions, institutions that offer only distance learning, institutions that offer instruction mainly on campus. Yet all five are implementing quite similar changes in education strategy using the similar technologies in order to respond to the same challenges.
Here are a few of the features of this emerging common strategy4:
• a greater fraction of the student's learning is powered by work on complex, real world problems using real (or realistic) tools and resources (e.g., authentic video from other countries);
• more collaborative learning;
• more support of remote conversation and exchange so that it matters less where the people and resources are physically or what their physical abilities are;
• faculty spending more time coaching, less time in presentation.
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Educators at our five institutions (and others) are making these changes in strategy in order to educate graduates who are more capable of applying what they've learned, better at working in teams, better at using information technology to exercise their skills after graduation (e.g., using computers to write, using the Internet to communicate), and better at learning how to learn. Those are the hoped-for responses to the “outcomes” Challenge. On the access front, these educators hope for a larger and more diverse student body composed of learners who spend more time on task and waste less time (e.g., in commuting, standing in lines) and who persist from enrollment to graduation.
The third horn of the Triple Challenge dilemma is controlling spiraling costs—increasing education per dollar. Where does cost control come from? Our teams saw several possible sources. One of the most likely is that an increase in retention rates could cut costs per graduate. Second, if a large number of linked learners study more of the time at home or work, then net capital and operating costs may be less because of a reduced need for physical facilities on a campus.
FACULTY MEMBERS CANNOT IMPLEMENT THE STRATEGY AND RESPOND TO THE TRIPLE CHALLENGE ALONE
Can the strategy I've described be implemented if faculty only work as they traditionally have done: alone or occasionally in small committees of colleagues from the same department? I doubt it. I believe faculty will need to form coalitions with others, inside and outside of their own institutions.
Why do we need coalitions? I can think of at least seven purposes that cannot be accomplished any other way:
1. Creating institutional support and pressure for students to learn to take more responsibility for their own learning;
2. Developing the capability to study the proper goals for academic programs;
3. Creating systems to keep better track of costs;
4. Sharing information and insights with other institutions about changing strategies of education, field by field;
5. Sharing the burdens of developing and supporting new instructional materials;
6. Developing better techniques for evaluating changing educational strategies and their outcomes, and sharing data; and
7. Creating infrastructure that supports healthy educational exchanges between distant learners and distant providers of educational services.
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The first three of these purposes can be implemented by coalitions internal to your institution; the latter four require coalitions with other institutions and organizations in this country and/or abroad.
Internal Coalitions for Rethinking Courses of Study
The internal coalitions are needed to foster student responsibility for learning, to support studies of the goals of our academic programs, and to support studies of changing costs.
Student Responsibility for Learning
Increasing student responsibility for learning is a long term trend, by the way. Ever since Socrates and Mark Hopkins, virtually every new technology has empowered students to study more and better while reducing their dependence on a primary mentor: the written word, the printing press, the laboratory, the campus, the paperback book, the photocopier, the language laboratory... That trend toward greater power and greater distance (with all its threats and promises) needs to continue.
Training students to take more responsibility for their own learning has never happened by itself; each step was taken when we invented a way to make it happen, were rewarded for that by our students and funders (enrollment, enthusiasm, and support increased outside), and the invention spread. You cannot make such progress by small, unrelated, incoherent changes, as we have already observed. If eight faculty members cater to student desires to be led step by step (“tell me exactly what's going to be on the test!”) while only two try to buck that tide and help students see education as their own responsibility,5 what do you think will happen? Foreign language faculty members cannot do this on their own! Without coherent institutional support for this change in student behavior, we'll see little progress.
What Should be Taught and Learned?
Some years ago, when I was with FIPSE, one of our projects supported a major curriculum reform at the University of Montana Law School. A new Dean named Jack Mudd began the process by polling every lawyer and judge in Montana. Jack asked them what they thought of fifteen or twenty of the competences of the new graduates of the Law School. Those lawyers and judges had strong opinions, some positive, some quite negative (e.g., that the graduate's trial skills were poor). The problem was that Montana had been following a pattern set by other states where young, green lawyers typically first join big law firms and get a whole second round of training (analogous to a medical residency). In contrast, in a rural state like Montana, many graduates hung out their own shingles or joined small law firms. They were not adequately prepared.
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Jack was able to use those “employer reactions” to guide and power his program for change, e.g. redesigning the whole curriculum to improve students' trial skills. This is an example of what I mean by “studying the goals of an academic program.”
Here's a second example of a study to decide what a program should teach. In the early 1980s, FIPSE received a proposal from the American Management Association. The AMA cited studies that show that there is no relationship between the grades of MBA students and what they are able to do later on.6 The AMA proposal went on to say that, on the other hand, there is research on the competences that do distinguish superior managers (Boyatzis 1982). It is not irrelevant to the argument of this essay that the most important of these organizational competences is the ability to create and work with coalitions. The AMA proposed a master's of management program whose curriculum (quite different from that of a typical MBA) would teach the competences needed by superlative managers.
Such studies are not rocket science but they are harder than they look, and they can be time-consuming. It would take an unusual foreign language program that could do one on its own. More typically one would need to work with a university unit or consultant.
Activity Based Costing
I could talk about a number of other coalitions within your institution—for instructional and faculty development, for example, or for technology support— but in our limited time together I'd like to mention just one: activity-based costing.
It is amazing how little we know about what our educational programs cost and why. Some educators look at any effort to study costs as a threat. I suggest that instead we look at costs from the point of view of those who have to pay the bills: students, taxpayers (most of whom are not well off) and alumni who are making gifts to us in the faith that we will spend the money well.
Typical university costing schemes lump many items as “overhead.” That suggests that they have no consequence, and are probably wasteful. Activity-based costing, in contrast, tries to associate each “indirect” cost with one or more activities and their outcomes (Brimson 1991). An activity based costing study find that one course may generate far more per-student costs than is apparent on the surface, because it generates a hidden chain of indirect costs. Because these chains of costs are hidden, we cannot ordinarily ask whether there are ways to control them. I am not for a moment suggesting that we run only inexpensive course. But if we get a better fix on how costs are created, we are one step closer to getting better results for the time and money that
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we do spend. If technology is to save us money (or, at the least, not bankrupt us), we need to know what things cost.
Obviously your department cannot implement activity based costing on its own; too many of your costs are tied to activities outside the department, where you serve others or others serve you. Activity based costing ordinarily needs to be an institutional commitment.
External Coalitions
Let me suggest just four types of coalitions with people or organizations outside your university: to share instructional ideas and experience, to develop materials, to develop evaluation tools, and to develop infrastructure. Again, this list is meant to be suggestive, not exhaustive.
Rethinking Courses of Study: National Faculty Networks
We educators advance as communities of inquiry, groping forward together through the dark. We help each other and advance, or else we fail to advance.
In the past, helping each other move forward has not been easy. Travel to workshops and long distance phone calls to pioneering colleagues around the country are expensive. Communication via journal publication can take years, if the journal will publish your case experience or instructional materials review at all. It was easier (and, perversely, more rewarded) to assume that you were unique and try to reinvent the wheel than to find and learn from colleagues. Many square wheels were reinvented this way.
The Internet and its World Wide Web bring some rays of sunshine into this darkness. They make it possible for faculty to exchange insights into new means of teaching in an orderly and speedy fashion. The Annenberg/CPB Project has recently funded six projects (none of them, unfortunately, in foreign languages) to create national networks for rethinking courses and courses of study in different fields. These projects are doing research on programs around the country that are taking advantage of technology to deal with the Triple Challenge, are analyzing that experience, and are making it widely available through imaginative Web sites, workshops, videos, awards programs, and other means.7 Our funding in this arena is complete for the time being. We hope that these projects can serve as models for other disciplines and other funders for how to use the Internet, train-the-trainer workshops, and other techniques to foster national and international sharing of experience.
Materials Development
Earlier I mentioned our study of computer software that had proven to be not only valuable but also viable (Morris, et al. 1994). I said that curricular courseware was rarely viable and that it thus had had little impact on curriculum because it had not survived
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long enough to make a difference. That was a generalization made from a study that covered many disciplines, looking mainly at software developed in the 1980s. I do not really know if these lessons are true in your field, or what the lessons of your field are for the desirability and methods of creating courseware that will be widely used. I do not know if the field is changing in the late 1990s.
My first suggestion, therefore, is that you do your own study of “valuable viable software” in your own field and discover what lessons the past suggests for the future. The Morris book includes some suggestions for how to conduct such a study.
My second suggestion is that, having done such a study, you use its findings to help decide whether to emphasize the development of curricular software and, if so, how your institutions might work together to get that job done. What role, if any, should grants play? What role, if any, should publishers play? Should the software be simple and almost disposable? Should it be object-oriented and extensible? The better you understand the way that the economics and politics of your field have affected past courseware, the better positioned you will be to develop valuable viable software for the future.
Evaluation, Outcomes and Accreditation
It is difficult to change strategy if you cannot see what you are doing. But that's the situation facing virtually every university and department. A faculty member can see what goes on in a classroom. A student knows what he or she is doing. An employer can see how well a given graduate is performing. A college may know what it costs to install and maintain internal and external networking. But who knows whether that networking has provided significant assistance for increasing collaborative learning or using resources from off-campus? And if those improvements have occurred, who knows whether they are helping graduates to do better in life? We are used to such ignorance, yet, without such information, it is difficult to sustain or steer efforts to create change.
The Flashlight Project, mentioned earlier in this essay, is creating survey items, interview guides, cost analysis guidelines and other measures to help educational institutions monitor whether and how their educational strategies are changing, whether and how technology is playing a role in such change, and whether and how the institutions are able as a result to respond to the Triple Challenge. In the 1995-96 academic year our draft instruments are being tested by a coalition of five diverse institutions with whom we and our contractors have previously worked to plan the project. We hope to release the instruments for wider use in the fall of 1996.8
Infrastructure for Integrated Access
Foreign language programs, especially programs in lesser taught languages, need to operate in the context of a national and international infrastructure that helps mate
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distant instructors, distant students, and distant academic resources (e.g., resources in the country under study). Very little of the appropriate infrastructure exists as yet. We need to:
• Help distant learners find distant providers that offer the particular language and teaching approach that they need, while helping distant providers find enough students (at minimum) to keep their faculty busy.
• Provide learners with access to computers and networks, especially learners who are economically disadvantaged. Many states have begun to support internetworking. I am particularly impressed with states like Maine, which puts points of access in high schools, and West Virginia, which has used public libraries. They have shown that they care about providing equal opportunity for education.
• Help foreign language programs find the resources and conversational partners they need in the country that they are studying. One class in one year might find five pen pals in Russia and some good stuff on the Internet. But that solution does not necessarily “scale up” to national proportions. To assure wide spread, long term access to resources requires organization. What would it take to make it easier for hundreds of thousands of students in other countries to study Russia and Russian? To help a million Asians study ESL and the United States? Perhaps ESL study in other countries can be made a true partner of foreign language study here, despite the distance and the differing number of learners. All this is far easier said than done, but aren't we going to have to do something like that, and soon?
• Proctoring for exams and other services. When working adults are using multiple educational providers, in sequence or simultaneously (as they do),should there not be someway of coordinating basic functions such as proctoring for exams, technology training, counseling and other functions that are universally needed?
• Consumer protection. When providers can reach in from far away, learners are less able to rely upon local word of mouth to decide which provider to use. The questions of who, if anyone, can protect consumers is an important and difficult question.
Creating Coalitions: TLTR and NLII
As one faculty member, how can you help to create or take part in such coalitions. There are (at least) two organizations that are trying to make that process easier.
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The American Association of Higher Education has a program called “Teaching Learning Technology Roundtables” (TLTR). The TLTR program is helping colleges and universities across the country to organize their own internal roundtables. A roundtable is usually led by the Provost or someone from that office and includes faculty members (both technology pioneers and those who are not necessarily hot for every new technology that comes down the pike) and the deans and directors of the offices that provide technology services (academic computing, libraries, bookstore, distance learning). This internal think tank becomes a hub for thinking more strategically about educational strategy and the use of technology to support it. A roundtable would be a great platform for organizing the three internal coalitions I have described.9
For the four external partnerships, one venue to check out is the National Learning Infrastructure Initiative (NLII) sponsored by Educom. NLII member institutions can submit “Requests for Partners” to one another in order to organize multi-institution initiatives. The NLII includes not only colleges and universities but also government agencies, publishers and other organizations interested in the systematic improvement of our educational uses of information technologies.10
WHO WILL TAKE THE LEAD?
Who should take the lead? I agreed to come and give this keynote as a partial repayment of the debt I owe to this field for all I have learned from you in the past. I wanted to show you that you already are leaders. Should you wait until someone knocks on your door and says, “Come join our coalition?” I don't think so. When it comes to changing the way we teach foreign languages and helping our institutions meet their Triple Challenge, I think the leaders are in this room.
REFERENCES
Boyatzis, Richard (1982). The Competent Manager. New York: John Wiley and Sons.
Bowen, Howard R. (1980). The Costs of Higher Education: How Much Do Colleges and Universities Spend per Student and How Much Should They Spend? San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Brimson, James A. (1991). Activity Accoounting. An Activity-Based Costing Approach. New York: John Wiley and Sons.
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Cohen, Peter (1984). “College Grades and Adult Achievement: A Research Synthesis.” Research in Higher Education 20, 3, 281-293.
Ehrmann, Stephen C., (1985). “Asking the Right Questions: What Does Research Tell Us About Technology and Higher Learning?” Change. The Magazine of Higher Learning 27, 2 (March/April), 20-27.
Hiltz, Starr Roxanne (1988). “Learning in a Virtual Classroom” (Executive Summary and two volumes), Research Report #25 and 26, Computerized Conferencing and Communications Center. New Jersey Institute of Technology.
Morris, Paul, Stephen C. Ehrmann, Randi Goldsmith, Kevin Howat, and Vijay Kumar (1994). Valuable, Viable Software in Education: Cases and Analysis. New York: Primis Division of McGraw-Hill.
Pascarella, Ernest T., and Patrick T. Terenzini (1991). How College Affects Students. Insights from Twenty Years of Research. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Smith, Karen L. (1990). “Collaborative and Interactive Writing for Increasing Communication Skills,” Hispania 73, 1, 77-87.
Study Group on the Conditions of Excellence in Higher Education (1984). Involvement in Learning: Realizing the Potential of American Higher Education. Washington, DC: National Institute of Education.
NOTES
1 For more information on “French in Action,” see the Annenberg/CPB Project's web site athttp://www.learner.org/educ_home.html
2 I use the term “technology” to denote all the means of teaching and learning, and what we know about using those means. Chalk is an educational technology, along with what we know about how to use it.
3 This process was assisted by one of our contractors, the Western Cooperative for Educational Telecommunications. The model we developed at that time, with support from the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), is now being used by the Western Cooperative and our second contractor, IUPUI, to develop the Flashlight suite of evaluation procedures.
4 This common strategy is described in detail in the first Flashlight Report on the World Wide Web (http://www.learner.org/ed_strat/eval/evalflash). For this and other Web citations in this essay, if you do not have Web access contact me at our offices and I'll send you hard copy.
5 As indicated above in the description of the strategy, this does not mean that the faculty member ceases working. It does mean a change in faculty role, away from being the center of attention and toward being more of a coach, creator of learning situations, and, occasionally, developer of materials. It also implies, as I'm arguing in this section, that the faculty spends more time working in teams, and less time working alone.
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6 That happens to be true generally. There is only a minuscule relationship between a student's cumulative undergraduate GPA and any measure of that student's success in later life: salary, chance of winning a Nobel Prize, whatever (Cohen 1984; Pascarella and Terenzini 1991).
7 The quickest way to find out about them is on the Web; check out http://www.learner.org/ed_strat/ed_courses.
8 Much more information about Flashlight is available at our Web site: http://www.learner.org/ed_strat/eval/evalflash
9 To learn more about TLTRs, check out their Web site (http://www.ido.gmu.edu/aahe/Welcome.html) or contact Steven W. Gilbert at AAHE (Gilbert@Clark.net and 202-293-6440x54).
10 Information on the NLII can be found on the Web at http://www.educom.edu/program/nlii/index.html or by sending e-mail to its leader, Educom Vice President Carol Twigg at Twigg@Educom.edu.

Facilitating the Learning Process: An Evaluation of the Use and Benefits of a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE)-enhanced Independent Language-learning Program (ILLP)

2011-01-03T11:16:00.000+07:00

ELENA POLISCA
The University of Manchester

Abstract:
This study describes the use and assesses the benefits of a virtual learning environment (VLE)-enhanced independent language learning program (ILLP), based on the WebCT platform, for three groups of first- and second-year Italian students. It considers the positive outcomes of the program for the students� learning abilities. These outcomes suggest that the program�s online element helps improve the quality of students� independent work, as well as their learning motivation: not only do students seem to develop better language skills, they also acquire and develop precious transferable skills. Similar success has been identified with a pilot VLE scheme used to support prescribed homework activities for first-year students. Findings suggest that VLE-supported group work produces better results than individual, non-VLE-enhanced work. So the VLE has come to assume an irreplaceable pedagogic role within the language courses, producing significantly more positive results than a traditional classroom-based approach.

KEYWORDS
WebCT, Language Learning, Language Skills, Independent Learning, Group Work
INTRODUCTION
This study assesses the factors which enable a virtual learning environment (VLE)-enhanced independent language learning program (ILLP) to have an optimal positive impact on learners' performance on the basis of student experiences within Italian Studies at the University of Manchester. The study is based on the analysis both of oral student feedback obtained through end-of-year interviews and written student feedback obtained through evaluation questionnaires completed by students at the end of the academic year 2004-2005.
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BACKGROUND
Typically, Italian Studies at the University of Manchester has an intake of 40-50 students per year, some 75% of whom have pre-A-level Italian (not necessarily complete beginners and always possessing knowledge of another foreign language to A-level or equivalent), with the vast majority taking Italian in combination with another honors degree subject—usually another language. These pre-A-level students join a beginner's course in Italian (group 1a). The remaining 25% who already have an A-level or equivalent qualification in Italian join an intermediate course (group 1b). In their second year of study, 1a students progress to 2a and 1b students progress to 2b. The program for 2a is similar in many respects to 1b, although not identical.1 The program for 2b is almost exclusively centered on tandem learning, with one staff contact hour per week.2
In 2002, Italian Studies was the first department in the School of Modern Languages at the University of Manchester3to launch an ILLP. The aim of the program was to offer first- and second-year students (groups 1a, 1b, and 2a) the possibility of working independently on their language acquisition in order to help them meet the total of 200 or 400 hours of study required by their core language courses.4 In this respect, the program fostered autonomous learning as conceptualized by Henri Holec (1981), who described autonomy as “the ability to take charge of one's own learning” (p. 3).5 The program was delivered through the online VLE WebCT, which students were required to use to produce a portfolio of activities and to interact with each other (see Figures 1 and 2).
Figure 1
ILLP Opening Page (2002)
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Figure 2
ILLP Features (2002)
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Another fundamental aspect of the ILLP was to help students reflect on their language learning to the extent that they would be able to recognize their weak and strong learning areas and devise a strategy to improve the former, in line with Scharle and Szabó's approach (2000), “when we encourage students to focus on the process of their learning … we help them consciously examine their own contribution to their learning” (p. 7). In these authors' view, this attitude has beneficial effects on the fostering of a responsible attitude towards autonomy. Within the ILLP, students were asked to fill in an initial self-evaluation questionnaire in which they described their experience learning a foreign language at the start of the program and a final evaluation form in which they described the activities they carried out and assessed the general effectiveness of the ILLP at the end of the program. Students were also offered tutorial guidance in the form of two optional one-to-one meetings with their language tutor, one meeting per semester.
Initially, the ILLP was introduced as a pilot scheme and was not fully embedded in the curriculum. The conception of the ILLP as a separate component from the core language course had implications for the uptake of the project on the part of the students. In 2002, in fact, none of the students took part in it, proving the CIEL Language Support Network's statement (2000) that “the most crucial element [for successful independent language learning] is thedegree of integration of independent learning with the language curriculum. If the links are not in place, only the most dedicated of learners will prioritise independent learning in order to take charge of their own future.”
It was therefore recognized that for ILLPs to work, they needed to constitute an integral part of the language courses to which they contributed. Further, to maximize ILLPs' benefits, it was decided to introduce both summative and qualitative assessment with effect from 2003 because it was recognized, again in line with
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CIEL's (2000) findings, that “intrinsic motivation may not be enough to encourage learners to prioritise independent learning activities. An element of formative and summative assessment is [therefore] generally seen as a solution.”
In other respects, however, the program's content remained substantially unchanged in 2003. Students were required to produce a portfolio of work, comprising six activities for each semester: group 1a began compiling their portfolio in the second semester of the academic year, groups 1b and 2a in the first semester. Activities were selected from a menu in which each activity was presented explicitly as a suggested task that students could adapt according to their learning needs (see below for details of activities).6 Although the limited nature of this menu arguably compromised students' independence, it was felt that both the activities and the time frame would provide students (especially groups 1a and 1b) with a starting platform from which they could eventually depart and produce self-directed work. In this respect, the degree to which the students structured their learning independently varied according to their ability and inclination to select which activities they decided to undertake, to adapt them as appropriate, and to manage their time well enough to meet the submission dates for their completed portfolios. These same principles have continued to underpin the program and have contributed to its success.
Improved understanding of the program's potential, on the part of both teaching staff and students, caused the ILLP's popularity to rise dramatically in 2003: in the subsequent two years, student use has neared 80%.7 For group 1a, this success is also partly due to the program having been moved forward in 2004—to begin in the second half of the first semester—as a result of positive feedback from students. Students in group 1a are now able to begin work on their ILLP, and thereby draw maximum benefit from the program, as soon as they have established a minimum amount of confidence in the target language (TL) and in their learning abilities.
THE ONLINE FORMAT
The WebCT platform has proved to be an ideal tool for the delivery of the ILLP, and the entire program is currently managed online. This VLE tool is widely used across the institution to enhance a variety of different courses, and infrastructural support is thus guaranteed. As more advanced versions of WebCT are introduced across the campus, permitting the integration of other interactive tools, the ILLP will be able to develop further. For instance, by integrating the Wimba voice tool, language teachers will be able to enhance the role of speaking and listening tasks within the portfolio.
Whether they are introduced to the ILLP early in their first semester or halfway through it, students are given apractical hands-on introduction to WebCT which explains how the platform works as well as what the ILLP entails. The first reaction to both WebCT and the ILLP is usually mixed since students initially perceive them as elements alien to their previous learning experiences. As they grow accustomed to these elements, however, experience indicates that students develop a keen interest in the VLE-enhanced program because it empowers them
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to intervene actively in the course and to be proactively responsible for their own learning.8
SUGGESTED ONLINE ACTIVITIES
Students are expected both to participate in directed online activities and to complete tasks tailored to their personal needs as learners. It is also essential for students to keep a record of these activities in their portfolio, so that they are able to take stock of their progress in the TL after one year. The suggested activities have been developed according to the four basic language learning skills and are gauged according to the syllabus of each core course. Therefore, some activities suggested in semester 1 would be replaced in semester 2 by activities similar in kind but of increasing difficulty. It is not compulsory for students to carry out all of the suggested activities. Indeed, students often complete two or three activities from the list and subsequently move on to activities which they devise themselves, based on their learning priorities.
Examples of online activities include: asking a grammar question posted on the WebCT forum (to which another student may provide an answer), watching videos and completing associated worksheets, completing grammar exercises distributed via the internet, and reading or listening to news items in different media (see Figures 3 and 4).
Figure 3
Example of Activities for 1a Students
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Figure 4
Example of Activities for 1b and 2a Students
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Students' comments suggest that the online activities act as an incentive to spend more time working on the TL. In fact, the use of the VLE not only enables students to access the program at any time, it also inspires ideas fordevising new and personalized tasks. The ultimate objective of the suggested activities is to provide an ongoing point of reference, according to which students can devise their own activities and gradually acquire an increasing degree of independence.
INITIAL BENEFITS OF THE VLE-ENHANCED ILLP
The avowed aims of the online program are: first, to allow students to consolidate and enhance what they have learned through formal timetabled classes; second, to give students experience in managing their own learning (through managing their own time, identifying their strengths and weaknesses, setting their own targets, and reflecting on their achievements); and, third, to give students confidence in using IT as a learning tool.
The second aim is the most challenging for students. At the beginning of the program, all participating students are asked to complete an initial online self-evaluation sheet in which they estimate their strengths and weaknesses in reading, writing, listening, speaking, grammar, and vocabulary, in Italian or another foreign language as appropriate at this stage (see Figure 5).
This reflective component is crucial to the ILLP because it encourages students to become increasingly aware of their learning needs and, at the same time, fosters their motivation for learning. Students are also encouraged to provide reflective
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comments on the tasks they have carried out, with a particular focus on what they have achieved. Although students' comments in evaluation questionnaires suggest that this reflection is their least favorite component of the ILLP, students who undertake it recognize its long-term benefits, not only over a period of one year but even more effectively over two years, when the ILLP is continued by group 2a students (former 1a students). According to Ushioda (1996, pp. 18-19) “a crucially important motivational dimension is how [students] perceive the experience of learning itself” since intrinsic motivation “is self-sustaining because it generates its own rewards; leads to voluntary persistence at learning; focuses on skill development and mastery; [and] is an expression of personal control and autonomy in the learning process.” The issue of motivation is especially relevant to this reflective part since in the end-of-year ILLP evaluation questionnaires, students are asked to specify, among other things: (a) whether they have benefited from the program and why, (b) whether they would do anything differently if they were to begin the program again, and (c) what they liked most and least about the program's structure and delivery.
Figure 5
Initial Self-evaluation Form for 1a Students
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These questionnaires enable assessment of the extent to which students have fulfilled the program's aims. Answers suggest that students who complete this reflective component have developed and/or enhanced their time management skills. For example, in answering question (b) above, most students in groups 1a and 1b state that they would find more time to do the tasks and spread them more
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evenly across the two semesters. This comment is almost nonexistent for 2a students, who, instead, comment on the type of tasks on which they would focus.
As for students' ability to identify strengths and weaknesses in their language learning, experience with the program suggests that by the end of their second year, ex-beginners (i.e., 2a students) are able to reflect upon their weaknesses and devise an autonomous plan of work to rectify them. Indeed, by the end of their first year, students have developed the ability to assess their learning outcomes and to make plans for their future learning, setting their own targets as they prepare to leave for the summer vacation. This reflective process has proved very fruitful for all three groups of students in their planning of future activities because it encourages them to approach their work with a positive `can-do' mentality, essential to building confidence in the use of the TL. Students' comments indicate that, after one year of ILLP work, they perceive themselves as responsible for their language learning (within a supervised and virtual environment); in fact, they are motivated to continue to work on their portfolios and use WebCT when the academic year has come to an end.
CONTINUED BENEFITS OF VLE-ENHANCED ILLP
At the end of the first and second semester of each year, students are normally invited to discuss their language progress with their language tutor or with the ILLP coordinator in one-to-one meetings or interviews. Three sets of interviews were held at the end of the academic year 2004-05, reflecting the three groups who had been using the ILLP (1a, 1b, and 2a). These were qualitative interviews which focused particularly on the role which the ILLP played in the students' development of language skills. Out of 55 students who completed the ILLP, 22 attended interviews (13 from group 1a, 4 from group 1b, and 5 from group 2a). Figures 6 and 7 show the students' responses to two key questions. “How much did the ILLP help you to improve your language skills?” and “How important was the online format of the ILLP?” It is worth noting that no significant differences were reported among the three groups of students in their answers to these questions.
Figure 6
How much did the ILLP help you to improve your language skills
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Figure 7
How important was the online format of the ILLP?
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Students who regarded the online component as very important, important, or fairly important provided various reasons in support of their views. They stated, for instance, that the online component
1. helped them to stay up-to-date with the program's development, and with deadlines;
2. provided them with clear instructions and had a clear structure;
3. gave them ideas on how to improve specific language skills;
4. allowed them easy and user-friendly access to the suggested materials;
5. encouraged and motivated their learning of the TL;
6. gave them the opportunity to work at home, at weekends, or otherwise when not at university;
7. gave them the opportunity to access materials at any time; and
8. gave them the confidence to ask grammar questions if class time proved insufficient for that purpose.
The importance of the online component cannot be underestimated for the ILLP; 15 out of the 22 students interviewed confirmed that they would have completed fewer tasks without it (only 2 students from 2a, 2 from 1b, and 3 from 1a stated that they would have completed the same amount of work). In the opinion of the students, the online component provided an incentive to work continuously over a long period of time. Most important, in answering question (c) above (what they liked most and least about the ILLP's structure and delivery), the students considered the online component to add an element of fun to the whole program, thereby increasing their motivation.
Clearly, therefore, students who engage in the VLE-enhanced ILLP develop better learning skills than those who do not engage in the program. I shall assess in a later section the extent to which this engagement is reflected in students' marks. On a broader front, the students acquire greater independence and manage their time more effectively, reflecting a long-term development of transferable skills that can be used beyond the ILLP, and indeed beyond the degree program. Even more important, the students realise that learning a language cannot simply
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take place within the classroom environment and are, therefore, more motivated to pursue their learning outside the confines of the formal program. Crucially for their success as language students, they come to recognize that learning is underpinned by enjoyment.
DEVELOPING THE USE OF A VLE-ENHANCED LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
The increasingly encouraging ILLP results were the impetus for a further pilot project in 2004-2005, whereby some of the prescribed homework activities for the first-year beginners course (group 1a) were delivered through the VLE.
Students in this group were introduced to the VLE 4 weeks earlier than had previously been the case and were required to complete a set task in their third week. The objective was to increase students' motivation and to empower them, through online interaction, to communicate in real-life situations by using those few elements of the TL with which they were familiar by this stage. The ILLP had by now developed into a full-fledged website, incorporating information on the core language program (see Figure 8). Students were required to post a message to an online discussion board and introduce themselves in the TL.
Figure 8
Example of Core Language Course Site for Group 1a Beginning in 2004-05
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The students were also required to find another student with whom they had something in common (e.g. the same number of family members, same name, same type of student accommodation) and report on the fact in a subsequent class. This activity was extremely successful because it provided students with an opportunity both to use the TL at a very early learning stage, and to get to know each other at the beginning of their academic career. A similar structure was used
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for an exercise in the second semester in which students discussed their likes and dislikes; this task again met with a generally positive response from students.
As students grew accustomed to WebCT, both through prescribed homework and the ILLP, a final task was devised that had the objective of stimulating discussion and student-led cooperation. These, according to Scharle and Szabó (2000, p.8), are the bases of responsibility and autonomy: “[group work] encourages the learners to rely on each other (and consequently themselves as well) and not only on the teacher. [It] also creates opportunities for feedback from peers: learners will do things to please the group rather than to please the teacher. Finally [it] may help you to get a higher proportion of students actively involved in completing a task.” As part of a summatively assessed homework exercise, students were divided into groups and given the opening lines of a detective story in the TL (see Figure 9).
Figure 9
Example of Detective Story Homework Assignment
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The groups were required to continue the story, and each group's composition was read, evaluated, and finally marked by another group (this mark counting for 40% of the overall mark for the exercise). The task's online format contributed to its success among students since they were able to read other groups' stories as well as checking the summative and formative assessment which they received. Students gained a more acute awareness of their learning abilities; their learning development was challenged in an informal situation which enabled them to benefit from each other's language skills and to consolidate their learning in a
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friendly atmosphere. In light of the encouraging student feedback received, this initiative will be repeated in future years.
THE QUALITY OF THE ONLINE WORK
Completed portfolios were given a percentage mark by language tutors.9 Successful portfolios typically contained a higher number of activities than the number suggested for the groups (a minimum of 8 tasks for group 1a and a minimum of 12 tasks for both 1b and 2a groups) and indicated that clear progress has been made in the areas in which students had originally perceived themselves to be relatively weak. This progress could also be seen when students' initial self-assessment sheets were compared with their final self-assessment forms: in the latter, the majority of students indicated that, through the tasks they carried out, their perceived areas of weakness in the TL improved. This comment was also reiterated during interviews, when students stated that the ILLP played a dominant role both as a learning tool alongside timetabled classes and as an aid to practicing the four skills in the TL when in-class practice time alone proved insufficient.
In this respect, the flexibility of the program gives students the opportunity to work equally on any skill that they wish to develop, although students tend to agree that the language skills which benefited most from the ILLP are reading, writing, grammar, and vocabulary. Although most students seem rather reluctant to undertake activities aimed at improving listening and, especially, speaking skills, it is hoped that this situation will be rectified in the future as appropriate software is introduced.
The content of the completed portfolios suggests that the online format stimulates students to produce more original and personalized work than that which appears in the portfolios of students who opt out of the VLE. The VLE students benefit from maximum exposure to the TL at any time of the day, as opposed to those students who rely heavily on books and/or other paper-based material, which may be accessible only through the library or the language center. Additionally, the greater exposure to the TL permitted in the VLE enables students to use a wider range of vocabulary and more up-to-date language, as—thanks to the flexibility of the Internet—new material is supplied on a daily basis. In WebCT, the option of editing material gives the tutor the possibility of altering the sites according to the developing needs of the learners. In addition, the VLE enables students to understand and master grammatical structures more fully since they can take advantage of both dedicated grammar websites, which allow them to monitor their performance through immediate checks, and the WebCT discussion board, which is proving to be an irreplaceable tool for grammar explanations beyond the classroom context.
The students who create a VLE-enhanced portfolio also seem to be more active and creative in re-elaborating online material because they are more likely to find topics of interest and use them to suit their needs. Experience in fact suggests that students who use the Internet to devise self-directed activities choose topics in which they have an interest, which is often not the case for students whose ILLP is not enhanced by the VLE or the Internet and have therefore to rely on more `static'
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material such as books or other printed resources. The latter group of students tend to be more inclined to work on topics that do not necessarily interest them and, consequently, are less inclined to remember new vocabulary items since they would be unlikely to use them in real-life situations.
The completed portfolio, as seen by the tutor, is therefore an exciting document, showing the student's dedication and enthusiasm for the language and the learning process. Comparisons suggest that students who exploit the VLE take greater advantage of their learning abilities and styles than students who do not make use of this opportunity. This is especially true of weaker students, who, by doing activities which they enjoy, benefit from the opportunity to produce work in a nonthreatening situation. In these cases, by personalizing their work, learners engage proactively with their deficiencies, in contrast to classroom situations in which these deficiencies tend to force them into a passive role. In this respect, the ILLP has proved to be a confidence booster for this cohort of students by helping them to maintain high levels of motivation, as well as giving them a feeling of `ownership' towards the TL that would have probably not been achieved so successfully otherwise. As for stronger students, online delivery often encourages them to deal with material slightly beyond their current abilities. Far from being deterred by difficulties, they are stimulated to rise to new challenges as they engage with original and authentic material that they themselves have chosen.
Overall, it can be seen that the quality of portfolio work exceeds that of wholly teacher-directed work because students capitalize on their strengths and overcome their weaknesses on their own initiative, take charge of their learning, and, crucially, play a dominant role in maintaining self-motivation. In addition, when comparing set coursework with portfolios (especially VLE-enhanced portfolios), it can be seen that the former is approached with a different frame of mind on the part of the students whose efforts are more directed at gaining a mark and, in some cases, pleasing the tutor. On the other hand, portfolios seem to overcome these problems. Although a percentage mark is attached to the work, the same mark is awarded to any student who satisfactorily completes it (100 out of 100); moreover, students have commented that the mark itself becomes less important over the two semesters because of the ongoing and developing nature of the portfolio (overall portfolios are worth only 5% of the final mark for the core language unit), which surpasses the preoccupation attached to completing assessed coursework merely for assessment's sake.
Similar results were achieved by group 1a students' completion of a detective story carried out in the second semester. Although this activity represented the final piece of assessed coursework for the core language course, the cooperative nature of this task helped students to overcome the concern that assessment necessarily entails because they proactively contributed to the exercise and, significantly, enjoyed themselves. Initially, group work provided an environment for exchanging information about the TL (e.g., grammatical structures and lexical items) in order to provide an ending to the story; in this respect, students reported that they benefited from each other's knowledge in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere. This initial exchange continued in the next phase when students were asked to provide
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written summative and formative assessment of another group's composition. The most beneficial element of this pilot project was the identification of mistakes and the suggested corrections in the text being marked that resulted from the on-going cooperation among students (see Figure 10). This process required discussion and agreement within groups, and students confirmed through oral feedback that the discussions led to thought-provoking debates on grammatical topics since students' personal knowledge of the TL was tested in a nonthreatening environment. The students enjoyed the discussions that ensued because everybody felt compelled to make a contribution to the group exercise.
Figure 10
Two Examples of Composition Assessments by Students
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Overall, the success of the detective story activity depended on the level of cooperation among the students and the exposure to the TL in the task itself and on the mark eventually obtained for the work. Students' input contributed 40% to the total mark for this exercise, whereas the tutor's mark counted for 60%. The average mark obtained for the task by each group was 5% higher than that obtained by individual students in similar non-VLE exercises in the same semester. It must be noted that students' input in the assessment process did not significantly impinge on raising the final mark in that they assessed each other on the basis of the guidelines provided by the tutor. The group exercise format also helped to minimize any bias on the part of the students towards their friends because they were more inclined to judge the piece of work fairly rather than judging fellow students individually. The virtual learning environment yet again proved to be a valid and successful learning tool; students' comments focused on the possibility of reading other groups' completed stories as well as their formative assessment, which significantly increased the exposure to the TL, in comparison to previously carried out paper-based activities.
CONCLUDING REMARKS
To sum up, the evidence above indicates that students who follow a VLE-supported ILLP develop both better skills as language learners and more valuable transferable skills than students who do not. To a lesser extent, students who engage in a VLE-enhanced ILLP also seem to progress more in their language acquisition than students who take the ILLP but do not use the VLE.
In particular, students who engage in the VLE-enhanced ILLP fulfil the requirements of learning autonomy/independence as summarized in the CIEL (2000) project. Moving away from dependence on the teacher, independent learners “take responsibility for their own learning and learn to learn; develop key transferable skills (e.g. study, time-management, IT, interpersonal skills, etc.); actively manage their learning, seeking out learning opportunities and using appropriate learning strategies; involve themselves in an iterative process in which they set short and long term learning objectives, [and] reflect on and evaluate progress.”
Moreover, these students produce written work of a quality which would not have been achieved solely within the classroom context. In this respect, the VLE stimulates students to progress further in their language learning and thereby acquires an irreplaceable pedagogic function, imbuing students with enthusiasm not only for the language itself, but also for the technology through which they can practice their skills.
NOTES
1 Program 1a aims to give complete beginners a knowledge of the Italian language comparable to that achieved by students with an A-level in the subject. When progressing to the second year (2a), these students continue to revise basic aspects of the language as well as focusing on those more challenging aspects of which they had only needed a superficial knowledge in the previous year.
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2 Program 2b is part of the institution-wide language program and consists of the production of a directed portfolio of activities upon which 2b students collaborate with students from partner Italian institutions during their Erasmus program at the University of Manchester. For further reading, see Truscott and Morley (2001, 2003).
3 Italian Studies is now one of the constituent discipline areas of the School of Languages, Linguistics and Cultures within the University of Manchester.
4 The core language courses for both groups 1b and 2a are worth 20 credits, whereas the 1a beginners' course is worth 40 credits. According to the University of Manchester's guidelines, it is calculated that a 40 credit course will require 400 hours of study and a 20 credit course will require 200 hours of study in order to be completed successfully. Contact hours (class time), coursework, and independent learning are included within these figures.
5 In this study, the terms `autonomy/autonomous' should be interpreted as synonyms of `independence/independent, as exemplified by Benson and Voller (1997, pp. 1-2).
6 In this study, the terms `tasks' and `activities' are used interchangeably. For ideas on activities on autonomous learning, see Gardner and Miller (1996), Scharle and Szabó (2000), and Page (1996).
7 Although the ILLP is now a compulsory and integral component of the core language course, some students decide not to take it, thereby losing both a valuable mark for the core course unit and an ideal opportunity to learn more about the language studied and their own learning abilities. Students who do not take part in the ILLP receive a mark of 0% at the end of the year, whereas students who have successfully completed the program are awarded a mark of 100%. This figure represents 5% of the final mark for the core language course.
8 For other experiences of VLE-enhanced autonomous learning (and bibliography), see Schwienhorst (2003) and Shield (2002).
9 Portfolios are collected twice a year for all three groups of students. The first collection ensures that students in groups 1a and 1b have understood the underlying philosophy of the program. Similarly, for students in group 2a, this first collection also ensures that all students are working on the program alongside their core language course. The second collection is for the purpose of summative assessment.
REFERENCES
Benson, P., & Voller, P. (1997). Autonomy and independence in language learning. London: Longman.
CIEL Language Support Network. (2000). Integrating independent learning with the curriculum. In The guide to good practice for learning and teaching in languages, linguistics and area studies. LTSN Subject Centre for Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies, University of Southampton. Retrieved January 23, 2006, from http://www.lang.ltsn.ac.uk/resources/goodpractice.aspx?resourceid=1400
Gardner, D., & Miller, L. (Eds.). (1996). Tasks for independent language learning. Alexandria, VA: TESOL.
Holec, H. (1981). Autonomy and foreign language learning. Oxford: Pergamon Press. [Re-print. Original: (1979) Strasbourg: Council of Europe.]
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Page, B. (Ed.). (1996). Letting go—taking hold: A guide to independent language learning by teachers for teachers. London: CILT.
Scharle, A., & Szabó, A. (2000). Learner autonomy. A guide to developing learner responsibility. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Schwienhorst, K. (2003). Neither here nor there? Learner autonomy and intercultural factors in CALL environments. In D. Palfreyman & R. C. Smith (Eds.), Learner autonomy across cultures: Language education perspectives (pp. 164-179). Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Shield, L. (2002). Technology-mediated learning. In The guide to good practice for learning and teaching in languages, lnguistics and area studies.Southampton: LTSN Subject Centre for Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies. Retrieved January 23, 2006, from http://www.lang.ltsn.ac.uk/resources/goodpractice.aspx ?resourceid=416
Truscott, S., & Morley, J. (2001). Setting up a credit-rated tandem scheme: A case study. In M. Mozzon-McPherson & R. Vismans (Eds.), Beyond language teaching, towards language advising (pp. 199-207). London: CILT.
Truscott, S., & Morley, J. (2003). Language learning in tandem. Critical encounters; Scholarly approaches to learning and teaching (pp.149-161). York: LTSN.
Ushioda, E. (1996). Learner autonomy: The role of motivation. Dublin: Authentik.

A Comparison Study of the Effects of a Story-based Video Instructional Package Versus a Text-based Instructional Package in the Intermediate-level Foreign Language Classroom

2011-01-03T11:14:00.001+07:00

CAROL HERRON
HOLLY YORK
Emory University
CATHLEEN CORRIE
Baylor University
STEVEN P. COLE
Research Design Associates

Abstract:
This study compared a story-based video instructional package, with a feature-length film as its focus, to a text-based program. It explored the effectiveness of each approach to enhance the listening and grammar performances of intermediate-level college French students. Twenty-seven students at two institutions participated. A pretest-posttest design assessed long-term gains in listening performance and grammar performance. Results indicated that students significantly improved their listening skills and grammar knowledge when exposed to the story-based video package. For the text-based group, students did not significantly improve in listening, but they significantly improved in grammar. For grammar only, the increase in mean scores for the video-based group was significantly higher than the increase in mean scores for the text-based group. The video-based curriculum used a narrative approach to teach grammar and foster listening. Results support using a film with an engaging storyline and with embedded targeted structures as effective input to enhance linguistic performance.

KEYWORDS
Video, Story-based Approach, Research, Intermediate Level
INTRODUCTION
To enhance foreign language (FL) acquisition, instructors have attempted to make classroom experiences more like those in the real world. In this context, they
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have turned to technological innovations such as authentic videos. Dubreil (2004) argues that video “can be the medium that opens a window to the outside world” (p.128). Authentic videos permit FL learners to listen to and to witness the dynamics of interaction as they observe native speakers in natural settings (Shrum & Glisan, 2000). The use of video to create real-life communicative contexts in the FL classroom to teach language could create a rich learning context similar to when a child receives authentic input from adult speakers. Support for this contention can be found in current L1 usage-based grammatical theories that suggest that children learn language through the processes of intention reading and pattern finding (see Tomasello, 2003 and Larsen-Freeman, 2003 for a discussion of a usage-based theory of language acquisition). That is, children are thought to learn their first language most readily in contexts in which it is easiest to read the adult's communicative intentions and to involve their pattern-finding skills (Tomasello, 2003, p. 195). In the FL classroom setting, the use of episodic video with an engaging and unfolding storyline and embedded target language patterns that captures students' attention could offer such a rich linguistic setting. A story-based video presentation of FL structures can be contrasted with one in which students are formally presented with target language structures through rule explanations and examples not directly related to a contextual presentation text. Whether or not linguistic skills in a FL are best learned using an instructional package revolving around a story-based video to teach language rather than a text-based one in which linguistic structures are presented without direct linkages to the introductory reading selections or listening activities is the topic of this research.
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
Over the last two decades, complete instructional packages that use video rather than a textbook as the primary vehicle for teaching the FL have become available as curriculum choices (e.g., Capretz, 1994; Van Patten, Marks, & Teschner, 1992; Siskin, Willliams-Gascon, & Field, 2003). These complete multimedia-based instructional packages are to be distinguished from video-enriched textbook programs in which the textbook is supplemented with a FL video, often optional, that generally includes interviews, short documentaries, and so forth. The continuance and popularity of video-based instructional packages underscores the need to investigate how these materials affect the teaching of FLs when compared to a book-based approach supplemented by multimedia.
Some research exists on the effects of video-driven materials on FL performance. There are studies on the positive effects of video on students' listening comprehension (Rubin, 1990; Secules, Herron, & Tomasello, 1992) and the effects on listening comprehension of various introductory strategies (Chung, 1999; Herron, 1994; Herron, Cole, York, & Linden, 1998; Herron, Corrie, Cole, & Henderson, 1999; Herron, Hanley, & Cole, 1995). Other studies assess cultural proficiency and the effective use of video in language programs (Hanley, Herron, & Cole, 1995; Herron, Corrie, Cole, & Dubreil, 1999; Herron, Dubreil, Cole, & Corrie, 2000; Herron, Dubreil, Cole, & Corrie, 2002; Herron & Hanley,
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1992; Kitajima & Lyman-Hager, 1998; Martinez-Gibson, 1998). Adair-Hauck, Willingham-McLain, and Youngs (2000) reported the findings of a classroom study in which they assessed the power of a technology-enriched language learning (TELL) program to improve beginning FL students' cultural knowledge. The TELL curriculum included computerized reading and grammar programs, as well as a video component. They reported that the treatment group (with out-of-class multimedia activities) significantly outperformed the control group (with in-class multimedia activities) on both the cultural prequiz and postquiz but that there was no significant difference between the two groups in average cultural gain made over the semester. The use of gain scores in a setting in which the mean on the pretest scores for the experimental group was already significantly greater than the mean on the pretest scores for the control group complicates interpretation of these results.
Even though almost two decades have passed since the publication of the first complete video-based FL program, one finds very few FL experimental classroom studies with a comparison group on the effectiveness of these instructional packages to improve students' FL skills. Two experiments with first-year college French students compared the effects on comprehension skills of teacher-managed videotaped instructional materials to more traditional text-based packages involving a variety of classroom oral and written exercises and drills (Herron, Morris, Secules, & Curtis, 1995; Secules, Herron, & Tomasello, 1992). Both studies revealed that classes that used video-based instruction scored considerably higher in overall listening comprehension than did the classes which used traditional, text-based approaches with no accompanying video. Furthermore, gains in listening comprehension did not come at the expense of other skills, which were shown to be at the same level as the text-based approaches at the end of the studies. These investigators are unaware of experimental studies that compare the effectiveness of a story-based video instructional package versus a text-based one to teach French at the intermediate level.
This paucity of experimental research at the intermediate level may be related to the heterogeneous nature of the student population. York (2005) pointed out that the intermediate-level college language class includes a broad spectrum of abilities and backgrounds complicating the necessity of controlling for these variables in classroom research. Harlow and Muyskens (1994) reminded us that the intermediate courses attract students to the major or discourage them from continuing, making motivation a particular concern. They reported that students at the intermediate level appear very interested in the use of audiovisual authentic documents (e.g., films, videos, and TV shows). They concluded that the intermediate level is a good place to increase the use of technology and to identify appropriate content. Harlow and Muyskens (1994), Martin and Laurie (1993), York (2005), and Dubreil, Herron, and Cole (2004) called for more research on teaching and course content at the intermediate FL level, a request to which the present investigators responded.
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PURPOSE AND SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
Research Questions
We report here a classroom experiment in college intermediate-level French that compared a teacher-managed story-based video instructional package, with a French feature-length film as its focal point, to a text-based program. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of each approach to enhance intermediate-level French students' listening performance and grammar performance. To achieve this goal, we addressed the following research questions:
1. Do intermediate French students' listening and grammar performance improve over the course of the study when exposed to a story-based video curriculum?
2. Do intermediate French students' listening and grammar performance improve over the course of the study when exposed to a text-based curriculum?
3. Will a story-based video curriculum produce greater improvement in listening and grammar performance than a text-based curriculum over the course of the study?
Hypotheses
Because of the lack of classroom research regarding the effectiveness of either curricular package to improve listening and/or grammar skills, it was difficult to formulate hypotheses about the results of the current investigation. With regard to the story-based video curriculum, however, we did begin with certain hypotheses. Questions 1 and 2 dealt with an evaluation of each approach and its effectiveness to develop students' listening and grammar skills over the length of the study. For question 1, whether the story-based video condition would enhance the students' listening and grammar skills, we hypothesized that students would significantly improve in listening performance. This supposition was based on previous findings (Secules et al., 1992; Herron et al., 1995) that beginning students exposed to a narrative video in a video-based curricular package had achieved significantly higher listening proficiency than a group in a text-based approach. We were unable to make a directional hypothesis for the effectiveness of story-based video instruction to teach grammar. Previous research with beginning French students had shown no significant difference in grammar performance between story-based video and text-based instruction (Secules et al., 1992; Herron et al., 1995). The population in the current study, intermediate-level students, presented a higher level of linguistic proficiency than participants in the Secules et al. and Herron et al. research, which could affect long-term linguistic gains.
For question 2, whether the text-based curriculum would enhance the students' listening and grammar skills over the course of the study, we hypothesized that students in the text-based group would not significantly improve in listening performance. However, with respect to grammar, we speculated that for students in the text-based approach there would be a significant increase in grammar performance.
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The listening speculation for the text-based group was based on previous findings (Secules et al., 1992; Herron et al., 1995) that beginning students using a text-based curricular package did not have significantly stronger listening performance than the group in a story-based video approach at the end of the study. The grammar hypothesis for the text-based group was based on our speculation that improved grammar performance would be a result of clear grammar explanations and a multitude of grammatical activities in the text-based curricular package.
Question 3 dealt with significant differences in listening and grammar performance between the story-based video group and the text-based group at the conclusion of the study. We posited that the story-based video curriculum would improve the intermediate-level students' listening and grammar performance significantly more than the text-based curriculum. In addition to offering students significant listening practice, the mystery film at the heart of the story-based video program exposed the learners to presentation materials organized episodically with targeted FL grammar naturally embedded in the program. Along these lines, Adair-Hauck, Donato, and Cumo-Johanssen (2000) advocate a story-based approach to teach grammar. They emphasize that “a story-based language approach stresses natural discourse and encourages learners to comprehend meaningful and longer samples of discourse from the very beginning of the lesson” (p. 151). With the functional significance of the targeted FL structures highlighted in the story, the learner has a framework in which to place new linguistic concepts. In particular, Adair-Hauck et al. (2000) emphasize that a story that is interesting and episodically organized makes for a very effective presentation text prior to a grammar lesson. The oral component of storytelling brings into play listening comprehension, which can be followed by interactive classroom activities such as role-playing and reading-and-writing exercises (Adair-Hauck et al., 2000, p. 154). In support of their theories, Adair-Hauck et al. refer us to Oller (1983) who pointed out that episodic organization also is thought to aid comprehension and retention of the story. In the story-based video package in the current study, each new lesson began with learners viewing a portion of the continuing story in the film. In the book-based curriculum, each chapter began with a cultural reading on different regions of the francophone world. These readings, though linked thematically through their treatment of French culture, were not linked by an unfolding storyline to subsequent chapters. Also in line with the principles of a story-based approach, the explanation of grammar in the video-based package had direct links to the presence of the targeted structures in the introductory video. Each grammar explanation began with a still picture from the film accompanied by a short dialogue from the film which contained the targeted structure. For the text-based approach, grammar points were presented in the second half of the chapter without direct linkages to the introductory reading selections or listening activities. We hypothesized, therefore, that the story-based video package would enhance students' learning of grammar as well as their listening skills significantly more than the book-based approach due to its episodically arranged presentation materials and its direct linkage of grammatical explanations to their presence in the introductory video material.
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METHOD
Participants
Thirty students enrolled in a 15-week, third-semester French course at two medium-sized, private, liberal arts institutions participated in the study during their regular classroom time. Of the 30 students, 3 (10%) did not take the listening and grammar posttests. All analyses were based on the 27 students who took both the pretest and posttest. The study took place during the 2003 fall semester. Two classes of intermediate-level French students were compared: (a) a class using a story-based video curriculum (described below) to learn French (n = 13) and (b) a class (n = 14) using a text-based curriculum (described below) to study French. The story-based video group consisted of third-semester French students enrolled in one section of Intermediate French at one institution. The text-based group consisted of third semester French students enrolled in one section of Intermediate French at the second institution.
In view of the fact that a different teacher taught each approach at each institution, it was important to select instructors with similar characteristics. Both teachers were non-native speakers of French. Each teacher held a Ph.D. in French literature from the same university and had received pedagogical training in FL acquisition at this same university. They were each experienced teaching both elementary- and intermediate-level French with both video-based and text-based methods. Both instructors were principal investigators in this study and therefore knowledgeable about the hypotheses. Possible design confounds related to the use of different teachers were minimized in that salient teacher characteristics were equalized across conditions.
Chi-square analysis revealed no statistically significant difference between groups by gender (p = .12). Of the 13 students in the story-based video group who took both pre- and posttests, 11 were female; and of the 14 students in the text-based group who took both pre- and posttests, 8 were female. A t test for independent samples revealed that there was no significant difference in mean age between the students in the story-based video group (M = 20.23, SD = 3.92) and students in the text-based group (M = 19.71, SD = 0.99), p = .64. Furthermore, there was no significant difference in the number of previous years of formal instruction in French between the video-based group (M = 4.54, SD = 1.51) and the text-based group (M =3.79, SD = 1.48), p = .20.
General Classroom Procedures
For the story-based video group institution, classes met 4 times a week (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday). Each session lasted 50 minutes. For the text-based group institution, classes met 3 times a week (Monday, Wednesday, and Friday). Each session lasted 50 minutes. Since the story-based video group had a higher number of classes per week than the text-based group, the video-based group took the posttests earlier in the semester than the text-based group. In this way, the research design equalized the class time hours of exposure to the French
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instructional packages for both groups. Pretests (listening and grammar) were administered at both schools during the third day of class. Both groups received the posttests (listening and grammar) 40 class days after the first day of class. This research design meant that students in the video-based group took the posttests prior to the full completion of their instructional program, in the middle of lesson 18 of the 22-lesson program.
The instructional program for the story-based video group was Débuts, a two-semester comprehensive package, with its focal point a French film entitled Le Chemin du retour (Siskin et al., 2003). Centered on a young French television journalist who is investigating her grandfather's hidden past, Le Chemin du retour is a 2-hour feature-length film that leads students on a journey throughout parts of the French-speaking world. With Débuts/Chemin du retour, students learn French in the functional context provided by the film. Each lesson begins with a 2- to 3-minute segment of the film. On-screen pre-and postviewing activities help students check their comprehension of that portion of the film. It is important to note that although the film is in French with an all-French cast of characters, comprehension exercises included on the video are usually in English in the earlier episodes.
Print materials in Débuts provide learners with additional activities to comprehend the film segment. Structural and vocabulary exercises in the accompanying book/workbook, the audio CD program, and web-related activities are built around the context of the film. In other words, students learn and review the fundamentals of French language and gain proficiency in French language and culture through each chapter's exposure to the film. Grammar explanations in the printed materials are in English throughout. Linguistic terms are given in French so that in early chapters students are exposed to terms such as “le genre de certains substantifs,” “les verbes avec changement d'orthographe,” and “le complément d'objet direct.” The first 16 of the 22 cultural readings in the printed materials are in English as well.
To complement progress in listening comprehension and grammar, students were responsible for independent completion of the material in the audio program and the coordinated activities in the workbook. Students listened to the audio CD's either in the university Music and Media Library or online by contacting the university's Language Center Online internet site. The workbook assignments, self-corrected by the students, had to be finished and turned in to the instructor the day of the chapter tests. Chapter tests came from the test bank included in the Débuts/Chemin du retour program.
Typically, a lesson would begin with a one-minute “Vous avez vu” `You have seen' clip to refresh students' memory of the previous episode, with a pause for brief questions and answers about the story thus far. This was followed by a short “Vous allez voir” `You are going to see' clip, and students were invited to speculate as to how certain details they saw on the screen might fit into the continuation of the story. The new segment for the lesson was then shown in its entirety, running about 2 to 3 minutes. Immediately following was an on-screen
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multiple-choice comprehension check with appropriate pauses for class answers. The viewing portion ended with a clip from the day's episode containing the grammar point that students had reviewed for the day's class. The small group work that followed provided practice of the grammatical structure through questions and discussion either of characters and subjects from the film or of students' own personal experiences and opinions.
Subsequent viewings of the same video segment did not include the advance organizer or the comprehension questions. On those days, the focus was on the culture and/or vocabulary presented in the film. Typical subjects included the French educational system, World War II France and the intellectual movements springing from it, environmental issues, and the depopulation of la France profonde. The fact that there were characters with ties to Quebec and Algeria paved the way for a discussion of other Francophone countries.
Writing assignments during the semester consisted of four compositions of 100-150 words and two collaborative scripts. The topics for the composition were taken from the online resources accompanying the text. For example, one early composition was a report on a Paris café and another was on rai music. The students worked in small groups to write scripts for the two skits they presented, the first relating to Paris and the second to a Francophone country other than France.
It is important to note that Débuts/Chemin du retour is advertised as a first-year program and, in this study, it was used to teach intermediate-level French. York (2005), an investigator and instructor in the current study, argues that Débuts/Chemin du retour is appropriate to use at the intermediate level. She stresses that the program's goals, the continued development of skills in speaking, listening, reading, writing, and cultural knowledge, with a review of the basic grammar accomplished outside class, are applicable to the intermediate year. She points out that intermediate texts, like those for first-year, are often designed for use over two semesters and contain a wealth of linguistic, cultural, and literary materials. In her teaching experience, she found using these texts has often involved a lot of sifting and paring back to basic structures to help students reacquaint themselves with the familiar and absorb the mass of new material.
York (2005) raises a further challenge of using an intermediate text designed for two semesters when a university's intermediate level has been reduced to only one semester, as at her own institution. At her institution, coverage of the basic grammar in the intermediate text in one semester meant that much had to be left out, causing comprehension difficulties as the semester progressed. In the rush to “cover” the grammar in one semester, York found that the presentation of content suffered greatly, sometimes giving the impression that form was everything and ideas were of little consequence. Attracted by the continuing Chemin du retour video story which supports the precepts of a story-based approach for teaching grammar, York determined that Débuts and its film could be adapted to a one-semester intermediate-level course through the use of appropriate pacing. The use of English in the printed materials for grammar explanations and for some of the cultural readings was also turned into an advantage; students studied the grammar
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and read about the Francophone world outside of class while class time was reserved for “French only” and for application activities. Favorable student and instructor evaluations of the program administered after the Spring 2003 semester supported York's contentions. The reasons listed above led the investigators to adopt Débuts/Chemin du retour as the primary material for the video-based group in the current study.
The text-based curricular package used in the text-based group was Personnages (Oates & Dubois, 2003). This comprehensive textbook, with 10 chapters, is designed to be used in a two-semester intermediate-level course. Students in the current study completed 5 of the 10 lessons in the fall semester. The program features a learner-centered, four skills (listening, speaking, reading, writing) approach with a strong emphasis on oral communication and Francophone culture. Print materials consist of a textbook and workbook. The instructional package has student audio CDs, web activities, and ancillary video segments that accompany the print materials. The video segments, which follow a tourist video format and last approximately 5-minutes each, contain authentic footage filmed in cities and countries of the French-speaking world. The fundamental difference (beside content) between the Personnages tourist video and the Chemin du retour narrative film is that the tourist video supplements the text with enrichment material while the feature film is the vehicle by which students are introduced to all new and review structures. In the Personnages curriculum, students are exposed to new and review linguistic structures primarily through written passages on francophone areas in the textbook.
For the students in the text-based group, each new lesson began with a cultural quiz followed by a magazine-like reading selection on a different French-speaking area of the world (e.g., Paris, the Maghreb, Lyon, Quebec, Tahiti), containing some of the key vocabulary in the chapter. After class discussion of the reading and cultural points, the students listened to the audio program at home in order to complete two dialogues as fill-in-the-blank exercises in the student workbook that featured two speakers carrying on a conversation at normal speed. The instructor would then go over these exercises in class to ensure that the students had filled in the blanks correctly. Following reading and discussion of two additional reading passages that related to both the cultural area and the dialogues, as well as one role-playing exercise, the students prepared the grammar lessons (including workbook exercises) for each chapter, which were introduced in class by the instructor during the course of previous class days, and participated in various oral and written exercises, including role plays, games, and dialogue creation with partners. The instructor also occasionally showed the accompanying video to Personnages as an introduction to the chapters, its nature being primarily that of a travelogue showing video clips of each location with some accompanying dialogue. As the instructor found the videos too long for classroom viewing, she did not use the video for all of the chapters. Students wrote a composition approximately every two weeks, took chapter tests and reading quizzes (on one of each chapter's two to three literary documents) at similar intervals, and performed student-written dialogues as part of a midterm test.
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Testing Procedures: Pretest and Posttest
In order to control for the lack of random assignment of students to classes at the two institutions and the possibility of students' varying degree of knowledge of the language, all students in both conditions took an investigator-developed pretest (listening and grammar) on the 3rd class day. To assess the effect of the instructional packages on students' listening and grammar performance, all students in both conditions took a listening and grammar posttest containing the same multiple-choice items on the 40th class day. For purposes of scoring accuracy, one judge scored all the tests, and a second judge scored 20% of them. The instructors/investigators administered the listening and grammar pretests and posttests in both groups. They informed the students that the test results would not affect their course grade. The instructors read the written directions in English to the participants and then gave them 20 minutes to complete the listening tests and 10 minutes to complete the grammar tests.
The listening test consisted of 14 multiple-choice items about a short series of three scenes selected from an authentic French police TV drama (Advanced French DVD-ROM, Au Coeur De La Loi, 2000) (see listening comprehension test in Appendix A). The scenes on the DVD were shown to each class twice. Before the first viewing, students received a written brief introduction to each scene and multiple-choice questions over each, both in English to avoid the problem of confusing students' listening comprehension with their French reading and writing ability. In the initial viewing, the instructors showed all three scenes without interruption and told students not to answer the items, but simply to watch and try to understand the content of the scenes. In the second viewing, the instructors stopped the DVD after the first scene and gave the students a few moments to respond to the items that corresponded to that scene (items 1-7). The instructors repeated the same sequence for the second and third scenes (items 8-14). Each test item consisted of a stem and five possible answers. Students received 1 point for each correct answer and 0 for each incorrect answer. Students' listening pre- and posttest scores were computed by adding the number of correct responses and dividing by the total number of questions (scoring accuracy for the pretest = 99%; for the posttest = 100%).
The grammar test was a 30-item multiple-choice test in which students had to choose the correct linguistic structure to complete a sentence (see grammar test in Appendix B). All linguistic structures examined on the test were included in the print materials of both curricular packages and covered by the classroom instructors over the course of the study. Students received 1 point for each correct answer and 0 for each incorrect answer. Students' pre- and posttest scores were computed by adding the number of correct responses and dividing by the total number of questions (scoring accuracy for the pretest = 99%; for the posttest = 99%).
RESULTS
Preliminary Analyses
Table 1 lists the mean scores and standard deviations of the students' scores on
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the listening and grammar pre- and posttests in the video-based and text-based groups.
Table 1
Means (and Standard Deviations) of Listening and Grammar Pretest and Posttest Scores by Group

Video based

Text based

Pretest

Posttest

Pretest

Posttest
Listening
(highest possible score = 14)

9.62
(1.85)

10.62
(1.94)

9.50
(1.74)

10.21
(1.58)
Grammar
(highest possible score = 30)

15.85
(5.60)

22.08
(4.09)

16.36
(4.68)

19.21
(5.04)
To determine whether the students' scores in the video-based and text-based groups were significantly different before treatment (listening and grammar), t tests for independent samples were conducted. Results of the analyses showed no significant differences between the groups for listening (p = .87) or grammar (p = .80).
Tests of Research Questions
To assess differences in performance over time between the two groups, the investigators employed a 2 (video-based group, text-based group) x 2 (pretest, posttest) repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) for each dependent measure (listening and grammar). For listening, there was a statistically significant main effect for time F(1, 25) = 9.37, p = .005, eta squared = .27. The time x treatment interaction was not statistically significant (p = .61). For grammar, there was a statistically significant main effect for time F(1,25) = 50.79, p = .000, eta squared = .67. There was a statistically significant time x treatment interaction, F(1,25) = 7.00, p = .014, eta squared = .22. To test research questions 1 and 2 directly, a priori contrasts were assessed with t tests. The time x treatment interaction was a direct test of research question 3.
Question 1
For the students exposed to the story-based video curriculum, there was a statistically significant 10.4% increase in listening scores from pretest (M = 9.62, SD = 1.85) to posttest (M = 10.62, SD = 1.94), p = .012. For grammar scores, there was a significant 39.2% increase from pretest (M = 15.85, SD = 5.60) to posttest (M = 22.08, SD = 4.09), p = 000.
Question 2
For students exposed to the text-based curriculum, the 7.5% increase in listening scores from pretest (M = 9.50, SD = 1.74) to posttest (M = 10.21, SD = 1.58) was
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not statistically significant (p = .13). For grammar scores, there was a significant 17.4% increase from pretest (M = 16.36, SD = 4.68) to posttest (M = 19.21, SD = 5.04) p = .003.
Question 3
The time x treatment interaction effect for listening revealed that the 10.4% increase from pretest to posttest for the video-based group was not significantly higher than the 7.5% increase from pretest to posttest for the text-based group. The time x treatment interaction effect for grammar revealed that the 39.2% increase from pretest to posttest for the video-based group was significantly higher than the 17.4% increase from pretest to posttest for the text-based group.
DISCUSSION
Before discussing conclusions, we wish to emphasize that the findings reported here should be interpreted in light of the following limitations. With respect to assessment, we only investigated the effects of the two programs in two skill areas. No measurements were taken for the effects of the approaches on other proficiencies (e.g., reading, speaking, vocabulary, or cultural acquisition). Regarding the choice of video, this research examined only one kind of video (i.e., a narrative video with a continuing storyline). Another video genre (e.g., a documentary) might have produced different results. It must also be emphasized that the video-based materials in the present study were designed for a beginning-level program. After careful evaluation of their appropriateness for more advanced students, the current study used these materials at the intermediate level. The project also took place at two different institutions with a different instructor in each condition. However, the demographic similarities between the students and teachers in each of the treatment groups helped to minimize possible experimental confounds. The finding of no significant differences in pretest performance for listening and grammar proficiency also suggests that students in both conditions were equally matched at the onset of the experiment. Due to the paucity of existing experimental research on the comparison of a story-based video approach to a text-based one, we believe our significant findings still shed light on important curricular decisions. Larger sample sizes should also be included in future research. Keeping the above limitations in mind, we suggest the following conclusions in response to our research questions.
Question 1: Do intermediate French students' listening and grammar performance improve over the course of the study when exposed to a story-based video curriculum?
Results of the present study indicate that intermediate-level college French students do significantly improve their listening skills and grammar knowledge when exposed to a video-based instructional package. At the onset of the semester, students in the story-based video group took a listening pretest and a grammar pretest on structures to which they would be exposed in the presentational video
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and ancillary print materials throughout the semester. At the completion of the study, students in the story-based video group took the same tests (posttests) and scored significantly higher than on the pretests. These findings support the initial hypothesis that the video-based curricular package would enhance listening skills over the course of the semester. These results also support previous findings (Secules et al., 1992; Herron et al., 1995) that beginning French students improved their listening skills significantly when exposed to a video-based curriculum.
At this point it is important to stress that we are not making the claim that the feature-length film was solely responsible for the improvements. The design of the research does not permit a separate evaluation of the film, print materials, audio materials, Internet activities, or teacher techniques. The results suggest, however, that after exposure to a French program that included video as its focal point for listening practice, grammar explanations and exercises, vocabulary acquisition, cultural knowledge, and so on, students significantly improved in both listening and grammar performance.
It is also important to note that the video in question was of a particular nature. First, it was episodically organized, a genre advocated in a story-based approach for learning grammar (Adair-Hauck et al., 2000). In each chapter, the mystery story unfolded more and more, engaging the students' attention and their curiosity to learn “what will happen next?” Within each episode, targeted grammatical structures were embedded and then directly linked to the grammatical explanations in the print materials accompanying the film. This natural occurrence of the targeted grammar in the presentation video and its subsequent highlighting in the following grammatical explanations is also a technique advocated in the story-based approach to teaching grammar. The findings of this project support the assumptions underlying a whole language approach to teaching linguistic structures. They also support the hypothesis underlying the L1 grammar-usage theory of language, that language structure emerges from linguistic input and language use. The kind of contextual and gradual input that allows children to store concrete and meaningful utterances and then to find patterns in these stored utterances might also be provided by exposing FL students to a narrative video-based program. The existence and frequency of embedded examples of the target structure in the video could facilitate FL linguistic performance.
These and previous findings provide support for publishers and instructors to produce and implement complete instructional packages to teach foreign languages built around an engaging story and presented through video technology to enhance first- and second-year FL programs. Even though the production of multimedia packages is very costly and demands considerable amounts of time and creativity, the results for student learning appear to make it a worthwhile endeavor.
Question 2. Do intermediate French students' listening and grammar performance improve over the course of the study when exposed to a text-based curriculum?
Results of the present study indicate that intermediate-level college French
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students do not significantly improve their listening skills when exposed to a text-based instructional package. They do, however, significantly improve their grammar skills. The scores of students in the text-based group on the posttest were significantly higher for grammar but not for listening. These results support our initial hypothesis that the text-based group would experience no significant gains in listening but that they would have significantly improved grammar performance from pretest to posttest.
Listening performance showed only a 7.5% average improvement from pretest to posttest for the students in the text-based approach. In considering explanations for this lack of improvement, it would be difficult to give a specific answer without doing an in-depth analysis of the extent of listening practice provided for in the materials. Since the video that accompanies the text is not required viewing, the instructor only had the option of providing students with this form of additional listening practice. The students' text and workbook included other listening activities that were more essentially connected to the required work in the course. However, taken altogether, it seems that the various listening opportunities in the package did not considerably enhance students' acquisition of listening comprehension.
Students' improvement in grammar performance was probably related to the quantity and quality of grammar activities in the textbook and ancillary materials. Their average improvement of 17.4% from pretest to posttest clearly indicates that they benefited from the program's grammar explanations and activities.
Question 3. Will story-based video curriculum produce greater improvement in listening and grammar performance than a text-based curriculum over the course of the study?
With respect to the distinction between video-based instruction and text-based instruction on the listening and grammar pre-/posttest, the magnitude of the gains in listening performance was different from the magnitude of the gains in grammar performance. The difference in change of scores from pre- to posttests between the two groups was not statistically significant for listening performance, but it was statistically significant for grammar performance. For listening, the increase in mean scores for the story-based video group was not significantly higher than the increase in mean scores for the text-based group. For grammar, the increase in mean scores for the story-based video group was significantly higher than that for the text-based group.
These findings partially support our hypothesis that students in the video-based group would have significantly higher scores for both listening and grammar performances than those in the text-based group. The results of the study suggest that the video-centered approach can facilitate listening. However, that improvement was not a significant improvement over the listening performance with the text-based approach. A possible explanation can be found in a limitation in the research design. In order to equalize classroom exposure to the curricular packages in both conditions, the research design specified that each group be tested after 40 classroom hours. For this reason, students in the video-based group completed
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18 out of 22 lessons. Perhaps, if the video-based group had been allotted the time necessary to finish its instructional program, a larger improvement in listening would have occurred.
Results for grammar indicated that students in the video-based group greatly benefited from its approach even though they did not complete the whole program. The average increase for students in the video-based group was 39%. A possible explanation for the benefits of the video-based program in comparison to those of the text-based program on grammar performance can be related to its story-based approach. Our findings indicate that students do benefit from a direct linkage between introductory materials and subsequent grammar explanations as advocated by a story-based approach to the teaching of grammar. In contrast, the text-based approach in the current study appears to lack such direct linkages.
CONCLUSION
Based on the results of this study, we can affirm that while a text-based instructional program improves intermediate students' FL grammar skills, it appears that a story-based, episodic video-based instructional program not only improves students' grammar skills, but also their listening skills. Furthermore, for grammar performance only, the students in the video-based program had significantly higher scores from pre- to posttests than those in the text-based approach. These findings suggest that grammar explanations with direct links to the introductory presentation material, in this case narrative video, hold promise for improving the grammar performance of intermediate-level FL students. Moreover, writers of FL curricula should take note of the apparent importance of the structure of a video component. While this study affirms that video effectively conveys information to the student, it also suggests the importance of a narrative structure to the video. Further research should explore the various video structures (e.g., storytelling narrative, documentary, news programs, and interviews) to confirm whether narrative, episodic film-based FL programs do indeed provide the strongest base for improving the listening and grammar skills of learners. In addition, future research might explore the effects of these or similar programs on students' development of speaking, reading, and writing skills. One feature that Débuts/Le Chemin du retour and Personnages have in common is a strong cultural content, which was not a focus of the present study. Previous research at the intermediate-level of FL instruction has shown that the use of supplemental videos can have a positive effect on cultural awareness in a textbook-based course (Herron et al., 2002). With today's trend toward content-based instruction, the internationalization of curricula, and the ever increasing number of students opting to include study abroad in their academic program, cross-cultural awareness may be one of the most valuable assets to be gained from FL study. Whether a story-based approach also facilitates learning about a foreign culture at the intermediate level merits further investigation. We encourage researchers to continue our classroom investigations on the kind of input our students receive in instructional materials and their effects on FL learning at all levels.
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REFERENCES
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Capretz, P. J. (1994). French in action (2nd ed.). New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
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Herron, C. (1994). An investigation of the effectiveness of using an advance organizer to introduce video in the foreign language classroom. Modern Language Journal, 78, 190-198.
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Herron, C., Corrie, C., Cole, S. P., & Dubreil, S. (1999). The effectiveness of a video-based curriculum in teaching culture. Modern Language Journal, 83, 518-533.
Herron, C., Corrie, C., Cole, S. P., & Henderson, P. (1999). Do prequestioning techniques facilitate comprehension of French video?, The French Review, 72, 1076-1090.
Herron, C., Dubreil S., Cole, S. P., & Corrie, C. (2000). Using instructional video to teach culture to beginning foreign language students. CALICO Journal, 17, 395-429.
Herron, C., Dubreil, S., Cole, S. P., & Corrie, C. (2002). A classroom investigation: Can video improve intermediate-level foreign language students ability to learn about a foreign culture? Modern Language Journal, 86, 36-53.
Herron, C., & Hanley, J. (1992). Using video to introduce children to a foreign culture. Foreign Language Annals, 25, 419-426.
Herron, C., Hanley, J., & Cole, S. P. (1995). A comparison study of two advance organizers for introducing beginning foreign language students to video. Modern Language Journal, 79, 387-395.
Herron, C., Morris, M., Secules, T., & Curtis, L. (1995). A comparison study of the effects of video-based versus text-based instruction in the foreign language classroom. French Review, 68, 775-795.
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Kitajima, R., & Lyman-Hagar, M. A. (1998). Theory-driven use of digital video in foreign language instruction. CALICO Journal, 16, 37-48.
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On the Performance and Efficiency of Authoring Programs in CALL

2011-01-03T11:11:00.000+07:00

Karl H. Brücher,
European Business School, Oestrich-Winkel, Germany

Abstract:
PCs have become a widespread technical tool in foreign language training (FLT), comparable to language labs or video recorders. Authoring programs enable the creation of learning programs, tailored to the specific needs of a certain group of learners and � of the greatest benefit � they can be made by the teacher.

A typology of authoring programs in CALL with their different features (reconstruction, rearrangement, matching, transformation, multiple choice, vocabulary data bank, simulation) will be presented. Examples from widespread authoring programs demonstrate the teacher's programming effort and various screen presentation methods. An overview of programming possibilities shows the general potential of authoring programs. A catalog of requirements of teaching/learning-software helps to evaluate technical performance and efficiency.

PCs AS REGULAR MEDIA FOR FLT
I would like to start out where John Higgins (1 988) stopped in his article "Hardware and Software" and quote his closing sentence: “In 1985 I attended a Conference on The Use of Computers in Teaching Chemistry. One of my fellow delegates said to me, “In ten years time we'll look bark at this conference and think: 'What a silly title!' It will seem like having a conference on the use of paper in the teaching of chemistry." Both a chemistry-teacher and an FL-teacher (FLT) are in the same situation when it comes to the use of teaching technology. Of course, PCs are not yet standard equipment for FLT as are a cassette- or video-recorder or a language lab; this is a question of funds (paper is cheaper) as well as of the mastery of technology. Like language labs, PCs alone
5
cannot work wonders in the classroom; in their efficiency they are always dependent on good software. This is why I dedicated this article to a programming technique that allows everybody with just some determination to create tailor-made software or CALL exercises.
The use of PCs with their most common programs (word processors, data bases, and spreadsheets) has grown to be a general cultural tool in our developed countries. So, computers must be considered just one very normal component in the whole area of language teaching and learning, the same as books, teachers, other students or the knowledge of the individual learner.
Computer experts can be heard speaking of "microcomputers' instead of PCs; as always, experts are correct. It seems though that the classification “micro-, mini-, mainframe-computer" has become obsolete (Zimmer, 1990). We will use the term "PC," also subsuming non-IBM-compatible, Atari, or Macintosh computers, and so-called "home computers."
A Definition of Authoring Programs in CALL
In authoring programs or authoring systems the teacher writes the different exercises or units him/herself, unlike as in ready-made "dedicated" or "turnkey" programs, where the contents, questions and texts come with the program and cannot be changed. An authoring program usually does not contain any teaching units (except perhaps a few for demonstration). It is a tool that the teacher uses to write the exercise content as easily as with any text processor, and the program takes care of everything else; in effect, the teacher writes a full computer program without having to know anything about programming languages like Quick Basic, Pascal, C, etc., and without worrying about file organization, screen presentation, user guidance and other things that are usually a programmer's job. In short: a good authoring program is a text processor with a built-in computer programmer.
Depending on the authoring programs' intrinsic possibilities the teacher may set or write:
1. Right/wrong messages, certain responses of the program to anticipate correct answers, anticipated mistakes, wrong input;
2. Explanatory texts for the task, specific hints or help, commentaries, distracting answers;
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3. Observance of orthography, capitalization, punctuation, order of tasks, and other parameters that can be modified.
It is obvious that the different authoring programs on the market vary greatly in all these features.
Another important point that has to be considered is that the different types of exercises produced with an authoring program do not essentially differ from traditional types of exercises. Dieter Wolff cautions against high expectations and states:
programs that were conceived without implementing the findings in artificial intelligence research have lost their attractiveness for language teaching, because it soon became apparent that ultimately they merely transformed exercise formats and activities that up to now had been known in traditional language teaching, without the need for applying complex and expensive technologies (Wolff, 1991).
But it seems that with this point of view Wolff neglects the cost/efficiency factor: AI programs and other high-tech products are not yet on the market as cost- and user friendly products. The advantage with cost-friendly authoring programs is that the PC takes over the role of a tutor and thus brings up the interactional teacher-student quota to a maximum of 100 percent. From this would result a high degree of responsibility for a teacher writing an exercise; the precision with which an authoring program exercise is created must of needs be higher than that of a traditional exercise because a correct but not anticipated solution will be rejected by the program and will make students frustrated.
A TYPOLOGY OF AUTHORING PROGRAMS
Udo Jung states: "At the moment, there is no compulsory typology for exercises in CALL” (Jung,1985). I do not believe that there can be anything compulsory in an exercise typology, but there are some general features that almost every CALL program shows; they are — unsurprisingly enough — similar to, or the same as, the typological features of any other exercise type applied in FLT. This is so because CALL exercises are not exercises sui generis (of their own kind), and because the PC is a mere technical tool. Figure 1, "Types of Authoring Programs," gives a general overview of the different types of exercises which can be created with them.
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0x01 graphic
8
There is no single program that can be used to produce all types of exercises; most are confined to 1-3 forms, of which the most common are text reconstruction, gap-producing, and multiple choice programs. Vocabulary banks form another class.
For sole text production a word processing system seems suited better than the small text editors that are integrated into authoring programs. Reproduction and reconstruction may be seen as partly the same or parallel types; I would rather have reconstruction as a type of its own because a text is reconstructed from notes, dictation, etc. Rearranging a text is an exercise that gives very satisfactory results on a PC. For the adventure and maze types I have not yet heard of a true authoring program; existing ones may be rather considered in the "Dungeons & Dragons" category which is fine for a more leisurely approach.
Often, authoring programs have two different modules: a learner and a teacher module. In the first, students do their exercises; in the second, these exercises are produced, or existing ones are edited, the latter usually by the teacher because full learner autonomy is seldom granted.
It is quite evident that there are considerable differences among all programs in performance and presentation. Most important are those differences that result from the program orientation. I feel that there are too many programs that are oriented according to the form of exercise they produce and not to the task they should perform or to the needs of their user. The technical form of an exercise (e.g. a matching or a multiple choice exercise) is determined by the teacher according to their best pedagogical judgement, whereas the student has a solution-oriented approach: they are only mildly interested in the type of exercise, they are more interested in the task, the exercise content, their performance, their growth of knowledge, not whether the computer menu presents a Gap-Master or a Choice-Master. This means that a menu should not, at least not for a first choice, present the exercise or program forms, but user- or content-oriented criteria. From this, an ensuing requirement for authoring programs is away from programs that are able to produce only one specific exercise form, toward those with a greater exercise variety or to programs that can easily be concatenated or integrated into an overall program and menu shell. Of course, this shell should also be "authorable," which means that teachers should be able to decide e.g. on the succession of exercises and be able to write specific help screens.
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THE PROGRAMMING EFFORT
The amount of work in writing an authoring program exercise can differ considerably from program to program. There are two basic rules that lead the way to good results:
1. The authoring teacher must be well informed about the authoring program's range of technical and intrinsic pedagogical facilities and take the time to test them.
2. S/he must do good paper-and-pencil-work prior to using the authoring program (this shows once again that authoring program exercises do not differ from traditional exercises, except for the medium).
Any authoring Program should be user friendly; the prerequisites are:
1. The teacher must not feel overchallenged by the do's and don'ts of the authoring program; there should be no programming language to learn.
2. S/he must find substantial support in the programming techniques and the pedagogical scope of exercises in the handbook, combined with many example exercises- here, as anywhere else "learning by doing" is the thing that does the job.
The following examples do not show the screen content as the student sees it, but they display paradigmatically for three different programs what the teacher has to write, i.e. their programming effort. The program type is the same in Examples 2 and 3.
Example l: TESTMASTER 1.0 (Wida, London/Eurocentres, Zürich)
Exercise type: transformation
How many ways can you write the names of the two former Superpowers?
One has stars and stripes on its flag, the other had a hammer and sickle.
(The) [United States of America\United States\States\USA\US of A]
(The) [USSR\Soviet union\Union of Soviet socialist Republics]
[America\Russia]#There are more elaborate names than this.
(The) CCCP#OK, but you're using English letters as Russian ones.
The question is in line 1; line 2, in brackets, has a hint; the other lines are expected answers. The programming effort consists of putting rounded brackets around optional parts of the answer and squared brackets around obligatory parts; anticipated answers or variants are divided by a backslash\. Commentaries may be but need not be given; they start with the pound sign #.
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Example 2: ILMM 2.2 (G. Narr, Tübingen)
Exercise type: aimed gaps, full words
Bilden Sie die passenden Perfektpartizipien.
1. Die (fördern) //2geförderte1// Kohle wird verladen.
2. Das Feld ist (pflügen) //2gepflügt0// worden.
3. (frieren) //2Gefrorenes2// Wasser nennt man Eis.
4. Ich esse gerne (rösten) //2geröstete1// Erdnüsse.
5. Peter hat Inge schon immer gerne (mögen) //2gemocht0//.
The task description is in line 1; the following lines show five tasks. The expected answer to fit into the gap has to be put in double slashes; the Figures before and after indicate the quantity of letters the program subsumes for missing or incorrect pre- or suffixes in the learner input, so as to react adequately to an incorrect answer with an aimed-at hint. The words in rounded brackets represent prompts to the solution and are shown as such on the screen.
Example 3: CALIS 2.21 (Duke Univ., Durham NC, USA)
Exercise type: aimed gaps, full words
?Question #3: What was the name of the warehouse?
+&[cC] &[eE] &[tT]hurston&| &[tT]hurston&;
&Yes, it was the C. E. Thurston Warehouse.
&C.E. Thurston Warehouse
-;C.E. Thurston Warehouse
&THE CORRECT ANSWER IS: C.E. Thurston Warehouse
-&;Look in the 4th line of text.
&C.E. Thurston Warehouse
&C.E. Thurston Warehouse
CALIS (Computer Assisted Language Instruction System) is one of the oldest CALL, authoring programs (or better authoring languages); being a "Public Domain" program, it is free and can be used without any of the rigid copyright and license conditions which are found elsewhere. At first glance it seems obvious that here much more programming effort is asked for, but a special "Author” program makes the writing of simple exercises as easy as in the two previous examples. So, when this "Author” program is used the intended gap is marked in the text of the exercise by backslashes and "Author” does all the rest. However, any additionally expected answers, except the one in the text, and any commentaries, or reactions to mistakes and hints to a solution have to be written more painstakingly with much browsing in the handbook Nevertheless, this extra work gives extra results; a more open system offers more possibilities but also calls for more work.
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THE SCREEN PRESENTATION
The content of the screen and its presentation is the first and thus the most important link (or, in PC terminology "interface") to the learner (or "user") of an authoring program exercise. Here, in an area of 12 or 14 inches of diameter, are cramped together orientation hints, task instruction, the problem itself, allocated space for learner input, solution and help, procedural information, e.g. how to go on, and the current score.
For screen presentation many professional business programs use internationally accepted standards that should also be applied in authoring programs. This would help frequent PC users who are accustomed to certain operational automatism, e.g. that the Fl-key often gives access to a help facility, or, when writing or editing a text, certain key combinations evoke the same operation; e.g. in MS-Word, key + key makes the cursor move to the beginning of the line. So, it should be understood that authoring programs are oriented in their screen presentation to one of the widely-accepted user-surface standards of software (e.g. SAA, System Architecture Application). This means that the software should always have the same architecture in screen presentation with the same principles, as:
• Pull-down menus (The main menu selections are shown in the top line, they can be enlarged by pulling down more selections.)
• Bottom-line menus (1 or 2 bottom line(s) show the possibilities of moving on in the program or the current status.)
• Pop-up menus or windows.
A mix of these different presentations in the same program is hardly tolerable.
The screen information should be presented to learner and teacher as clearly conceived and frugally arranged as possible, even if one has to do without some possible attractive features or flashy colors. I do not mind the use of colors, inversely written words or graphics (in fact I like them very much), but always in a meaningful dose that supports the pedagogical task. Bernd Rüschoff writes: "it is clear that a screen, overloaded with stimuli, does more harm, and that color-plays, moving words and confusing graphics should be used very cautiously" (Rüschoff, 1986).
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Figures 2 and 3 show two examples of rather differently fashioned screens. Their order is as always in pedagogy: the bad guy is presented first, to be overridden by the gloriously good one.
Figure 2 is a negative example of a screen that has been overloaded with text and color (to be seen on a color monitor only). This screen was created in CALIS, but it has to be made clear that the overload seen in this example was created by an author who used many CALIS-intrinsic possibilities; the more variations an author has at hand to "style" a screen, the more s/he will be tempted to apply, not always for the benefit of all.
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The learner tends to be solution-oriented; this leads to a situation in which the student ignores a lot of information written on the screen and picks out only the content that s/he believes will bring her/him closer to the solution. In an extreme case an overloaded screen misleads and even disorientates the learner so that s/he cannot recognize the actual aim anymore.
So the "pedagogical load" should be displayed on the screen in small doses. How this can be achieved is shown in Figure 3. There we see the screen presentation for the same task from the example for programming efforts in “TESTMASTER," but this time the student's screen is shown. The program uses bottom-line menus. Both Figures 2 and 3 show au available help settings, which also consume their due screen space.
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QUESTION, LEARNER INPUT AND PROGRAMMED RESPONSE
The authoring program's programmer and author should give thoughtful attention to the question, the learner input as an attempt to solve the problem, and the resulting response, at least in those features that the author can influence. As in paper and pencil exercises, frustration, stimulation and motivation are the most important agents for learning success; in CALL they tend to gain even more importance as answers are (normally) given instantaneously.
The following items seem essential:
1. The question, help and commentaries ought to be formulated understandably and interestingly enough for the learner.
2. Approval and disapproval should vary in their form and wording in right or wrong answers; if feasible, this should be done in a way which is graded and adequate to the student's performance.
3. Commentaries on learner input should be given wherever possible and in a reasonable manner. This especially applies to expected incorrect answers because the wrong answer is corrected, the faulty reflection is clarified, and a hint is given of the correct answer.
4. The program should analyze a wrong answer for unintentional wrong input (e.g. misspellings); it should be able to execute a character-match, which checks the letters of the input with the letters of the anticipated answers. More, the authoring program should react adequately to the problem so that an only partially correct answer win not be blandly rejected, but that incorrect/missing/or unnecessary elements are marked and so call for a correction by the student (Fechner, 1991).
The manifold ways to process learner input are sketched out in an authoring program in Figure 4 (Seidel, 1989). The big question of which authoring program to buy is often made obsolete by the counter question of what to do with it. A potential user can only specify in detail what s/he wants to do with an authoring Program if s/he is well-informed about the program's intrinsic features. There is only one way to get out of this heuristic circle: s/he must learn about the general programming techniques of the authoring program in question. Figure 4 shows in a generalized way the idea which authoring programs should be capable of and, secondly, it illustrates the way programmers have to think when they want to process input from the learner.
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It is always "Learner Input' that triggers a new circle of activities, channeled by yes/no-decisions, beginning from "Correct Answer”; from here the necessary branching starts, Evidently not every authoring program has to use all these branches, but there are two minimal cases that have to be accomplished:
1. After an incorrect answer the correct answer is presented on the screen and has to be used as new learner input.
2. Even after an incorrect answer the program branches over to the new question, without any commentary.
Whether these two minimal cases are pedagogically meaningful must be decided in every case in light of the specific aim; in any case, Figure 4 shows all meaningful program branching. So, authoring programs may be judged and evaluated with the help of this flow chart by determining which branching can occur, and, resulting from this, which features are possible and which are not.
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Another feature in authoring programs I would like to deal with briefly is scoring. Many programs have some kind of scoring visible during an exercise, or it can be displayed after the termination of the exercise. There are numerous varieties in their technical design: this ranges from a simple counting of solved/unsolved tasks to an assessment that deducts the help and. additional hints used and goes on to generate a special file that automatically records every attempt to solve the task. The latter offers a good tool for controlling individual learning progress. Furthermore, such a file could serve as a result file of an electronic test if it can be protected from student access.
REQUIREMENTS TO BE MET BY CALLWARE
With all the enthusiasm we language teachers may have for the possibilities CALL programs offer in language learning with technical media, we always should bear in mind that we are using only a very small range of all the CAI (Computer Assisted Instruction), CBT (Computer Based Training) and CAL (Computer Assisted Learning) programs. The relatively small programs we are using in FLT can by no means compete with "big" authoring systems such as PLATO or those used in industry and business, either in power, performance, effectiveness or price (ranging up to more than $10,000) (Zimmer, 1990); these powerful programs offer many more possibilities than can be used in FLT (Brücher, 1991).
The following list presents a more general catalogue, that - with some addenda - completes what has been said with respect to the basic requirements of any software in CALL (Küffner, 1989).
Requirements sine qua non
1. The screen content should always be presented according to the same principle (status lines/pull-down/pop-up menus/SAA standard).
2. Color, graphics and movement should be applied wisely and in a stimulating way.
3. There should be much program branching and no linear procedure of the program.
4. Varied motivating and informative feedback messages to the learner.
5. Students should always have access to a HELP facility.
6. Students should be able to manipulate the flow of the program (abbreviate, deepen).
7. The scoring or analysis report should be made available on request to learner and/or teacher.
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Additional Requirements (depending on machine/program features)
1. Clear definition of operating system, computer type and memory consumption.
2. Short loading time of program from disk; quick responses to learner input.
3. Repetitions should present different exercise material from previous classes
4. Exercises should vary in form, type and wording; student — program — interaction.
5. The program should have some form of adaptation to the individual learner's progress.
6. A program ought to be easily stopped at any moment preferably with its current learner-relevant content saved to disk.
7. At a suitable place the student should find references to further help, other media or reading material.
Other and differently structured catalogues of the assessment of software-efficiency can be found in the literature (Hope, 1985).
CONCLUDING REMARK
It is a truism that authoring programs do not fulfill all the wishes in FLT and, on the other hand, hardly mark a final point or terminus of today's possibilities. Voice cards with their software, interactive video sequences on CD-ROM, and the efforts of programmers in artificial intelligence will make their way into FLT (Manning, 1991). We definitely find ourselves in the information era, but as far as my judgment goes, we are still in one of the first chapters. Concerning FLT the opening paragraphs may have just been written.
Any new developments in this area will filter very slowly into the classrooms because they suffer from a lack of generally accepted standards, high prices, and poor user friendliness, at least at the beginning of their market penetration. But in authoring programs one just has to wait for modified or enlarged versions; they are a practical, useful, and (in general) budget-priced means of enhancing FLT, with all the advantages of individual learning.
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REFERENCES
Citations from German sources have been translated by the author.
A detailed review of leading authoring programs for CALL in FLT (WIDA/ EUROCENTRES) is found in:
Brücher, Karl H. (1991). "Autorenprogramme im Computerunterstützten Fremdsprachenunterricht." Deutschals Fremdsprache, 28, 175-180. Herder-Institut (Ed.) Berlin/München, Langenscheidt.
Fechner, Jürgen (1991). "Eingaben des Lernenden und ihre Verarbeitung in Computerprogrammen für den Fremdsprachenunterricht." Zielsprache Deutsch, 88. München, Hueber.
Higgins, John (1988). "Hardware and Software." Computers in Applied Linguistics and Language Teaching, 27. Jung, Udo O.H. (Hg.) Frankfurt/ Bern, Langenscheidt.
Hope, G. R., H. F. Taylor, and J. Pusack (1985). "Der Einsatz von Computern im Fremdsprachenunterricht." Computergestützter Fremdsprachenunterricht, 60. Langenscheidt-Redaktion (Ed.) Berlin/ München, Langenscheidt.
Jung, Udo O. H. (1985). "Angewandt-Linguistische Aspekte des Einsatzes von Computern in Sprachunterricht." Computergestützter Fremdsprachenunterricht, 86. Langenscheidt-Redaktion (Ed.) Berlin/ München, Langenscheidt.
Küffner, Helmuth (1989). "Gesichtspunkte zur Einteilung und Auswahl vonAutorensystemen." Computerlernen undAutorensysteme,50. Küffner, Helmuth & Seidel, Christoph (Eds.). Stuttgart, Verlag für Angewandte Psychologie.
Research projects in language teaching are described in:
Manning, Patricia (1991). "Methodological Considerations for the Design of CALL Programs." Language Learning with Computers, 93. Hall, Anthony & Baumgartner, Peter (Eds.) WISL, Klagenfurt.
Rüschoff, Bernd (1986). Fremdsprachenunterricht mit computergestützten Materialien, 39. München, Hueber.
IBM-Deutschland (Ed.) (1985). Selbststudium, Herrenberg. Accoriding to: Seidel, Christoph and Lipsmeier, Antonius (Hg.) (1989). Computerunterstütztes Lernen, 124. Stuttgart, Verlag für Angewandte Psychologie.
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Wolff, Dieter (1991). "Unterrichtstechnologie. Bericht über die Sektionsarbeit." Ein Europa - Viele Sprachen. Kongreßbeiträge zur 21. Jahrestagung der Gesellschaft für Angwewandte Linguistik, 245. Mattheier, Klaus J. (Ed.) Frankfurt, Langenscheidt.
Zimmer, Dieter E. (1990). "Das Dingens." Die Elektrifizierung der Sprache, 11. Zürich, Haffmans.
An overview can be found in:
Zimmer, Gerhard (Ed.) (1990). Interaktive Medien für die Aus- und Weiterbildung. Marktübersicht, Analysen, Anwendung. Reihe Multimediales Lernen in der Berufsbildung Bd. 1, Nürnberg, Bildung und Wissen.
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