LLAS Centre for Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies

The LOC tool for EAP teachers: authoring your own online learning materials
Event date: 9 November, 2012
Location: Room 2149, Blg 65, Avenue Campus, University of Southampton

The LOC tool for teachers: authoring your own online learning materials
Event date: 4 July, 2012
Location: Room 2151, Blg 65, Avenue Campus, University of Southampton

The LOC tool for teachers: authoring your own online learning materials
Event date: 19 December, 2011
Location: Room 2151, Blg 65, Avenue Campus, University of Southampton

Online education using communication tools (Manchester, 1 June 07)
Event date: 1 June, 2007
Location: Room 3.59, Williamson Building, University of Manchester

Online education using communication tools (London, 30 May 07)
Event date: 30 May, 2007
Location: Language Lab 2, Sherfield Building, South Kensington Campus, Imperial College London

Speaking across frontiers - promoting the independent use of synchronous voice conferencing by scattered groups of Open University language learners
During the past two years The Open University has opened its synchronous audio-visual conferencing system to language students for use in independent study partnerships. This paper explores the ways in which language students scattered throughout the UK and other European countries have received and are making use of this opportunity to speak to one another and share images independently over the Internet. It also considers the University initiatives required to promote and provide pedagogical support for these independent partnerships.

Promoting less-widely-taught languages. The outreach experience of the Foreign Language Awareness Group for Schools (FLAGS)

In the current downward trend in the uptake of languages, and especially of less-widely-taught languages, FLAGS aims at enthusing sixth-formers with an interest in either Italian, Russian and / or Portuguese through a series of language sessions delivered through the Virtual Learning Environment WebCT. Pupils' progress is aided and monitored by University students, who act as language facilitators on a weekly basis. This paper assesses the outcomes at the end of the first year of FLAGS' life, as well as the challenges met during the project's setting-up period and throughout its duration.

Intercultural communicative competence in telecollaborative foreign language learning
This paper is an introduction of the rationale and research design of an intercultural exchange project between English as Foreign Language learners in Taiwan and Chinese as Foreign Language learners in the UK by using internet-mediated social software tools including instant messengers, wikis and emails. The rationale is based on an intercultural approach to foreign language learning. The detail of the research design including internet tools used, participants, tasks, procedures and the theoretical framework for data analysis will be discussed.

'English for Excellence': An innovative, comprehensive, web-based and tutor-supported programme of study in Academic English
This paper is a presentation of 'English for Excellence' (EfE): a web-based and tutor-supported programme of study in Academic English. The EfE is a project initiative jointly funded by the University of Luton and the Higher Education European Social Fund (HE ESF) programme, under the theme of Widening Participation. The paper discusses the research base of the teaching materials, their content and presentation, followed by interim evaluation results of its beneficiary effects on learners.

Online teaching skills for language tutors

Online teachers need different skills than those normally employed by tutors trained to teach languages in a face-to-face classroom and they also require different skills compared to online teachers of other subjects. Research shows that the medium influences the form of communication and interaction (see e.g. Hutchby 2001). The asynchronicity of communication in written conferencing and the lack of non-verbal clues in audio-conferencing are examples of new challenges for online language tutors.

Technology-mediated learning
Introduction to the use of educational technology in higher education in the UK and beyond. This article provides an overview of the available tools and their effective use. It also mediates three major beliefs about the reasons for employing technology-mediated learning - appropriacy for flexible, distance and open learning, widening participation and cost-effectiveness.