Student Perceptions of Communicative Conditions in the Language Learning Classroom

( Neil Briggs ) 글로벌영어교육학회(구 호남영어교육학회) 2019 Studies in English education Vol.24 No.1

This study investigated the perceptions of Korean university students with respect to the importance of the communicative conditions (CCs) in the communicative language teaching (CLT) classroom environment. It drew upon the theoretical underpinnings of Activity Theory (Engeström, 1987) in order to illuminate the relevance of particular CCs in relation to student participation in communicative activity. Data were collected and analyzed according to a two-phase and mixed-methods design. In the first phase, the 47-item Communicative Language Learning Class Conditions Survey (CLLCCS) was constructed and completed by 158 student participants. The results of the survey were ranked according to the perceived importance of the students. Significant differences among students of various self-reported ability levels and different teacher-led classes were also identified. Based on the initial survey results, the most important CCs were reduced to a list of 11 items from which students provided written explanations for what they perceived to be the three most important items. The results highlight key features of effective CLT-related pedagogical approaches, including, but not limited to, features of teacher support and concerns pertaining to students of varying levels of ability

Speaking Assessment in the Communicative Language Learning Classroom

( Neil Briggs ) 글로벌영어교육학회(구 호남영어교육학회) 2017 Studies in English education Vol.22 No.4

This action research paper explores the assessment procedures of a communicative language learning (CLL) classroom led by a native-English speaking teacher. It seeks to highlight the importance of integrating ongoing, formative assessment procedures to which students become goal-oriented via clear, communicative, and achievable learning objectives. The paper embraces the perspective of sociocultural theory in order to draw attention to the significance of providing students with scaffolding, support, and the creation of a positive social environment in order to achieve those goals. The paper is designed to serve as a counter-script to the commonly-employed, one-away, high-stakes examinations which commonly have little to do with oral language production―instead serving primarily as a means of attaining the institutionalized goal of ensuring the existence of disparities among student grades. This paper seeks to demonstrate that a focus on student learning and the creation of opportunities for all students to experience communicative successes need not be undermined by such institutional goals. It also seeks to emphasize the intimate nature of the relationships between communicative activity, teacher support and scaffolding, and ongoing, formative assessment.

Motivational Value of Mobile-Based Communicative Tasks as Coursebook Supplements

( Neil Briggs ) 한국멀티미디어언어교육학회 2015 멀티미디어 언어교육 Vol.18 No.2

This study explores the perceptions of Korean EFL college students regarding the motivational value of a commonly-used, English-language mobile application as a language learning tool and coursebook supplement. The tasks were designed according to SMART learning pedagogy (MEST, 2011), requiring learners to work collaboratively and to communicate about their findings. The tasks were designed specifically to expand upon the content presented in the coursebook by providing learners with access to authentic content that is highly relevant to their major of study. The motivational value of the mobile application and the coursebook are assessed using Keller``s (1987) ARCS (Attention, Relevance, Confidence, Satisfaction) motivational model. Although the results did not reveal statistically different results between the two learning tools, student comments provide additional insight as to how mobile application based tasks can help to motivate learners who are less motivated by the traditional coursebook materials. The results suggest that the opportunity to explore authentic forms of English which are of personal interest may provide learners with increased levels of interest and confidence in their English abilities. Motivational value aside, the students expressed rather overwhelmingly a desire for coursebook supplementation.

Computer-Mediated Facilitation of Dialogue between Korean College Students and a NEST

( Neil Briggs ) 한국멀티미디어언어교육학회 2016 멀티미디어 언어교육 Vol.19 No.1

This study explores the outcomes and opinions of 27 mixed-proficiency Korean college students with respect to their participation in an ongoing computer-mediated dialogues with their native English speaking teacher (NEST). Informed by the Vygotskyan sociocultural perspective, communication between the teacher and students is considered to be essential in terms of creating an appropriately challenging and engaging pedagogy. However, in the classroom limitations of time and limited proficiency levels among students can make difficult to attend to individual student needs and concerns. After participating in a 15-week computer-mediated student-teacher dialogue (CMSTD), the students in this study are divided into three equal groups based on their overall word production in the written dialogues and labeled accordingly as High Production (HP), Moderate Production (MP), and Low Production (LP). These groupings are used to identify common traits of each group such as oral proficiency and English language learning goals in order to determine potential reasons why students chose to actively engage or avoid participation. The results suggest that the CMSTD helped to provide lower-proficiency students with voice, provided the students with opportunity to co-construct the classroom pedagogy, and helped to ensure that students received meaningful and individualized mediation.

The Digital Ecologies of Korean College Students: An Exploration of Digital Self-Directed Learning

Briggs. Neil,Sherman. Brandon 영상영어교육학회 2018 영상영어교육 (STEM journal) Vol.19 No.1

The wealth of readily available online digital English language learning resources presents vast opportunities for students to engage in self-directed language learning. The extent to which such resources are known to students, however, let alone how they are being utilized, typically remains largely unknown to teachers. In order to design a curriculum that maximizes student learning opportunities by guiding them towards online digital resources that afford self-directed learning, it is essential for teachers to first develop an intimate understanding of the students’ relationships with such resources. This may include awareness, patterns of use, and the variables that constrain them from using the resources more extensively. To accomplish this objective, the Self-Directed Digital Study Instrument (SDDSI) was developed and implemented to survey 197 Korean college students. While the results of this study are indicative of a reality in which digital resources are being underused, they also point towards an area of great potential for pedagogical change in Korean postsecondary English learning education. In contrast to the traditional pedagogical model, the results suggest that self-directed learning or even self-determined learning models, facilitated via various digital resources, can present students with opportunities for more deeply engaging, individualized, and self-directed approaches to language learning.

A Critical Review of Foreign Language Anxiety Studies from the Korean Post-Secondary Context

Neil Briggs 한국외국어교육학회 2017 Foreign languages education Vol.24 No.4

This study analyzes the results of ten foreign language anxiety (FLA) research papers from the Korean post-secondary EFL context. Its aim is to identify some of the methodological limitations that persist in such research in an effort to influence the epistemological perspectives and methodological approaches of future studies. A comprehensive summary of the FLA-associated factors, variables, and pedagogical implications reported in the respective research papers is presented. Discussions include a critical analysis of the traditional cognitivist approach to FLA research, addressing issues associated with attempts to isolate and objectively quantify the cognitive states of the students. Highlighted is the argument that, when the socio-cultural dimension of language learning is adequately accounted for, many of the underlying assumptions inherent to traditional FLA research become inescapably problematic. The study concludes by emphasizing the need to adopt holistic, interpretive, and social constructivist research perspectives through which the dynamic and ever-changing nature of human activity can be more fully accounted for, and by which the pedagogical implications remain deeply entwined with, rather than detached from, the context in which the language learning activity takes place.

Analysis of the Collaborative Reflection Processes of Two University Instructors.

YunJin Kim,Neil Briggs 한국외국어교육학회 2019 Foreign languages education Vol.26 No.1

This study explores how the shared reflections of two university instructors influenced their approaches and perspectives of English language teaching. The primary source of data was derived from the two teachers’ e-mail mediated, collaborative reflective journals and two dialogical interviews served as a secondary data source. A qualitative, narrative inquiry approach was employed to gather data in a direct and in-depth way. The data were selectively coded to investigate the teacher’s reported beliefs, behaviors, and interactions as well as how they relate to the process of professional development. The findings indicate that the process of sharing and reflecting upon their pedagogical philosophy and strategies supported their ongoing efforts to develop professionally. Moreover, this study addresses the notion that more attention should be paid towards improving reflective teaching among teachers as a means of enhancing professional development.

Language Learners as Digital Bricoleurs: Exploring Independent Learning in Individual Digital Ecologies

Sherman, Brandon,Briggs, Neil 영상영어교육학회 2020 영상영어교육 (STEM journal) Vol.21 No.4

Though there is a wealth of digital resources available for independent computer-assisted language learning, language teachers may find mixed success in supporting learners in using it. Teachers need to understand their learners and how educational information-communication technology and the target language are integrated in their lives. We present the concepts of digital ecology and digital bricolage. Building on a prior survey study on English learner technology use at a Korean college, this qualitative case study explores ways that four Korean college students integrated technology and English into their lives. Drawing on a priori and emergent themes from interviews, we explore students’ digital ecologies and their processes of digital bricolage. We found that types of technology use varied across these cases, suggesting the value of digital ecologies for thinking about student technology use. Further, variations of technology use across the cases suggest that learners draw selectively from their available digital ecologies based on their perceptions of what it means to learn English and their personal priorities. We propose a framework for understanding language learner digital bricolage based on formality and instrumentality. This framework is of value to researchers and teachers who want to support students in digitally mediated self-directed language learning.