As people all around the world are becoming more easily connected with
advancing technologies, it is no wonder that a number of people are eager to
learn a second or even a third language in order to pursue their interests in
various cultures. To learn these new languages takes time, however, time is
something that not many people have in our fast-paced lives today. As a result,
many are choosing to opt for the method of learning languages through online
lessons rather than in a classroom setting. This is not surprising as people
today, “are increasingly tech savvy and are accessing and learning information
in a manner contrary to traditional top-down teaching methods” (Davies, 2011,
p.14). We will take a look at the possibilities and pitfalls of online language
learning in an attempt to diagnose the true effect of his method of language
acquisition.
Possibilities
There are many possibilities, advantages, and benefits to learning a
language online. There have been positive links from those who have learned a
new language this way, “In terms of learning progress, 85% of students believed that they had
improved in their language learning” (Yang, 2011, p.191). As we get older, we become
more reluctant to try new things for fear of failure or how things we might be
do will be perceived by others. Some fear that when learning a new language,
they will make mistakes and dislike participating in front of their peers.
Learning a language online helps with a student’s confidence because, “students
who were reluctant to speak the foreign language in classroom situations were
active in real-time chats with their classmates in the foreign language”
(Cunningham, 2011, p.33). This is very important when learning French because
your learning will become more profound if you feel more confident. This type
of learning online promotes confidence and it will enable you to not only make
mistakes without fear, but you will also learn from them, which is how someone
learns best.
Another set of benefits that will be found while learning French online
is that, “it is spontaneous; it motivates learners who
develop a sense of community and gain energy from the group; it offers
opportunities for peer feedback” (Murphy, 2009, p.11). Something that is taught
inside a classroom is the sense of community and working together. When
achieved, students learn much more from each other than they do from a teacher.
This is much more likely to happen in an online atmosphere because everyone who
enrols has the same goals as you. This means that there is an eagerness among
the group that is difficult to replicate in a physical classroom. This will
also promote a sense of eagerness and a desire to participate consistently in
order to keep up with others in the program.
Learning
French online also offers the possibility to learn in a way that best suits
your learning style. One such website is www.frenchrevision.co.uk. This
website offers a wide variety of activities that allows the student to learn at
his/her level. Whether you learn best through reading, writing, or listening,
it is the choice of the student to pick which activities best suits their
needs. This will lead to more of an interest in learning and will certainly
affect acquisition of the language because it is found that, “achievement
scores of students in online courses whose learning styles were matched with
particular types of instruction were higher than those of students whose
learning styles were not matched” (Shaw, 2011, p.112).
Online language learning also gives the student the possibility to learn
at their own convenience. “In addition, with the
environment being web based, it facilitates the writing process, allowing users
to write whenever they are inspired” (Bradley, Lindstrom,&
Rystedt, 2010, p.263). This convenience allows the learner to become
more relaxed, which will enable them to fully appreciate and focus on the
language they are learning.
Learning
online gives the learner the chance to discover new technologies which could
help challenge them in a positive way. “Besides enhancing L2 learners’ writing and reading
competencies, blogs can also develop their self-awareness by engaging in
reflective writing, providing the means to propel their learning beyond the
familiar horizon” (Martinez, 2012, p.201). In this example, the use of a blog
might be a new experience for the learning and will also be something that
challenges their thinking and learning. This new challenge will certainly be
beneficial to acquiring a new language by making it more meaningful. The
website http://www.busuu.com/learn-french-online
offers a wide variety of learning tools such as interactive lessons,
opportunities to chat with native speakers in real time, or even record your
speech and have a native speaker review it for you. This new type of technology
discovered by the learner will help motivate them to continue pursuing their
goals in developing fluency in a new language.
Another
benefit to online language learning is the chance to learn French through
association and authenticity. “Multimedia vocabulary learning environments would attempt to help
learners construct connections between the verbal and visual representational
systems , resulting in an increase in vocabulary knowledge and exercising a
positive effect on reading comprehension and the rate of speed for frequent
word recognition” (Kilickaya & Krajka, 2010, p.56). This method of learning will allows students to
retain vocabulary much more easily as they will be able to associate it with
images presented to them. One website which does this very well is www.frenchassistant.com . This
website presents a variety of pictures and scenarios to the students (such as
the seasons) and associates the image with the word in French. This type of
practice will help build a learner’s vocabulary.
Pitfalls
Although learning French online might have
many possibilities, there are also some pitfalls that potential students should
know about before deciding on this method of education. “Most language learning sites do not use the Internet
to its full potential, and the pedagogical approach is reduced to just
answering structural exercises such as multiple choice questions, true or false
items, and fill in the blanks” (Kartal & Uzun, 2010,
p.92). With a simple Google
search for websites on how to learn French, this is very true. It is easy to
find simple sites that offer potential students no motivation, no feedback, no
real foundation for learning French. The website http://fog.ccsf.cc.ca.us/~creitan/grammar.htm
does exactly this. It only contains very basic fill in the blanks, etc. which
will not attract any serious student looking to learn French.
Another pitfall that could get in the way
of learning French would be a website that is lacking in direction and poorly
organized. “Furthermore, poor web page design may
disturb their online reading process, and some content and linked web sites can
pose difficulties for readers at certain levels” (Kim
& Park, 2011, p.2157). The website http://www.bonjour.com which contains good
content is not very well organized. A first time visitor of the site could be
distracted by all of the ads and invaluable text present. This could deter a
potential learner of French from the site and deter their interest in learning.
There are some language learning websites which are set up much like a
textbook and focus solely on grammar. “Some programs strongly oriented toward the communicative
approach still relegate practically all student work on grammar to
outside-of-class activities, referring learners to textbook explanations and
assigning form-based drill and practice” (Garrett, 2009, p.730). The following website http://french.about.com/od/beggram
does exactly this. You read definitions and explanations, much like in a
textbook, and you work on grammar skills. Although this is important, it cannot
be the basis of French language acquisition. Students will not build the needed
foundation and retention of the language this way.
Students
also need to be aware of their own dedication to learning a new language as, “users do not ‘read’ the computer screen, but instead
‘scan’... 79% of the subjects scanned any new page they came across
and only 16% read word by word” (Kong, 2009, p.33). In cases like these, it is in the best interest of the
learner if there is a teacher to mediate all knowledge learning, that way they
will not simply jump around web pages and miss important information for their
learning.
Before
committing to learning French online, potential students need to weight the
possibilities and pitfalls associated with this type of learning. As each
individual is different, they have different needs which should be addressed
when searching for a program that works best for them. It is only when this is
achieved that the student will have a positive experience and build a solid
foundation for learning a second language.
References
Bradley, L., Lindstrom, B., & Rystedt, H. (2010).
Rationalities of Collaboration for Language
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Cunningham, U. (2011). Liminality and Disinhibition in Online
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27-39.
Davies, R. (2011). Second-Language Acquisition and the Information
Age: How Social Software
has Created a New Mode of
Learning. TESL Canada Journal, 28(2),
11-19.
Garrett, N. (2009). Computer-Assisted Language Learning Trends and
Issues Revisited:
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719-740.
Kartal, E, & Uzun, L. (2010). The Internet, Language Learning,
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Constructing Online Foreign
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Kim, D., & Park, H. (2011). Reading-Strategy use by English as
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Kilickaya, F., & Krajka, J. (2010). Comparative Usefulness of
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Kong, K., (2009). A Comparison of the Linguistic and Interactional
Features of Language
Learning Websites and
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Martinez, C. (2012). Developing Metacognition at a Distance: Sharing
Students’ Learning
Strategies on a Reflective
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Learning, 25(2), 199-212.
Murphy, E. (2009). Online Synchronous Communication in the
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Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology, 35(3),
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Shaw, R. (2011). A Study of the Relationships Among
Learning Styles, Participation Types, and
Performance
in Programming Language Learning Supported by Online Forums. Computers & Education, 58(1),
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Yang, Y. (2011). Engaging Students in an Online
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French Language Learning Websites
