Reading Prompt #4

LEVY – Ch. 2. Design
RICHARDSON Ch. 5. RSS: The New Killer App for Educators

Comment on one or two issues raised by Levy and Stockwell CALL educators must think about when it comes to the design of CALL products. Then, comment on what types of RSS feeds you might be interested in using with students or following yourself.

For me, what stands out most about Levy’s chapter on CALL product design, is the concept of integration. He describes this from several perspectives; the integration of CALL activities into the curriculum, the learner’s interaction with CALL technologies, and the incorporation of CALL into learning institutions as a whole.

I think Levy gives a very effective explanation of a healthy relationship between CALL activities and the teaching curriculum. Paraphrasing Levy, he states that there should be enough flexibility in a curriculum for CALL activities to be successfully integrated, but not be so loosely structured that one loses sight of the curricular goals and objectives (p29). That makes sense to me, especially since I’ve experienced a rather unsuccessful attempt at using software with ESL students. Without any structure or goals to frame the use of that technology, it lost much of its ineffectiveness.

That brings me to the perspective of the learner; I agree with Levy that it’s important for CALL designers to have as much information as possible about their target users and that learners' needs will be best met if their input is incorporated into the design process. I relate to this from other contexts in that my professional background is primarily in non-profit and social service environments. When working in the “field”, it was not uncommon to be asked to implement a certain practice or meet a specific goal, which looked very promising on paper, but turned out be absolutely unrealistic in “real life”. Therefore, I think the user’s input should not be underestimated.

Lastly, in order to successfully integrate CALL materials into teaching institutions, it’s important for designers to be mindful of the policies and technological provisions/support in place. Institutions will undoubtedly place limitations on CALL designs, as most organizations are motivated by the same factors: cost saving, centralization, and consolidation of technical expertise (p33). Thus, CALL designs will need to fit within these given parameters. As an educator, one also has to be aware of the institution’s technological provisions to support classroom goals and objectives.

I enjoyed reading Richardson’s chapter on RSS as I find it an intriguing and seemingly useful tool. In my excitement, I promptly subscribed to a wealth of RSS feeds, but I have yet to figure out a system for sifting though the mass amounts of data that has now amassed in my Reader. I’m following feeds on CALL, ESL and refugee resettlement programs, newspapers (including a few Dutch ones), linguistics, bilingualism, and SLA. Although it involves some growing pains, I’m grateful to learn about these technological tools at the onset of my graduate studies. I think RSS, in particular, will help me with research and staying abreast of new developments in the field of linguistics and ESL. As I get more comfortable with these tools, it will be easier to integrate them into an ESL classroom and share them with students.