APLNG/CMLIT/FR/GER/SPAN 589

Technology, Mediation, and Second Language Acquisition:
Research and Praxis

Spring Term, 2009, Tuesdays, 6-9pm; Class meetings: IST 210
Steve Thorne (sthorne@psu.edu) (Office: 304A Sparks Bldg, University Park, PA)

Department of Applied Linguistics; The Pennsylvania State University

Course Website = http://language.la.psu.edu/~thorne/tifle2009/

Syllabus | Course Blog | Course Wiki | CMC Activity Library | Chat Tool

CMLIT/FR/GER/SPAN 589: This graduate level survey course examines the roles, functions, and possibilities of technology use in both everyday life and second language education contexts. Course activities include critical discussion of established as well as emerging Internet communication, information, and composition tools. We will also consider research on, and exploratory uses of, synthetic immersive environments and massively multiplayer online games. Course readings will include technology-related research drawing from second language acquisition, sociocultural and activity theory, linguistics, cultural studies, and educational theories of development. Participants will be expected to exit the course with a broad knowledge of educational uses of technology and will have the opportunity, through a variety of course activities, to focus on specific empirical, theoretical, and/or pedagogical contexts that relate to their academic and professional specializations.

Course Objectives:

• To grapple with the principle issues, concepts, and theories associated with technology use in language education.
• To understand a diversity of educational contexts through the reading and discussion of research and case studies.
• To investigate the relationships linking communication technology to changing forms and uses of language.
• To produce critical scholarship, pedagogies, and/or applied materials relating to language educational uses of information and communication technologies.

Class meetings will include:

• Presentations/Lecturettes by the instructor
• Discussion of readings
• Group and individual presentations
• Iconoclastic critiques
• The use of internet communication and information tools
• Inter-class (with graduate students in languages and applied linguistics at University of New Mexico, University of Arizona) discussion and collaboration
  

Your obligations and responsibilities:

1. To participate in on-line and class discussions (invaluable, but marked at 10%): These will include whole-class interaction and periodic uses of new/emerging technologies (blogs, wikis, synchronous CMC, gaming and virtual environments).
2. As a class, we will develop a collaborative reflection/analysis blog throughout the semester (10%): As part of an inter-university collaboration (University of New Mexico, University of Arizona, Penn State University), you will write a short summary or outline of 5 articles (or issues we cover in class) and will post these to a shared course blog. Please include 3 (or more) critical questions or issues that could generate in- and inter-class discussion.
   
3. To act as a discussion catalyst (10%): In teams of 2-3, groups will take responsibility for initiating in-class discussion by presenting a brief overview of the day's readings and critical questions. You will likely want to utilize a written version of these presentations as your contributions to the course blog (see #2 above).
   
4. Consider the following:
   • Teaching With Technology Certificate: The Teaching With Technology Certificate will appear on your official Penn State transcript and indicates proficiency in the application of technology to educational contexts. See the the TwT website, frequently asked questions page,and requirements, for more information.
5. Technology-integrated class activity project (30%): This project has one mandatory and two optional phases.
   
   1. Phase One (mandatory): Technology activity description: All students will design a technology-integrated unit of instruction for a second/foreign language course of your choice. The activity description should include discussion of the class and/or institutional context, students, and relevant course content. The main discussion should then include:
   •    unit content
   •    rationale for choice of unit theme
   •    means used to conceptualize the content, including any heuristic
   •    unit goals & objectives—these should parallel TESOL or ACTFL standards
   •    organization of content, including overview grid or other representation
   •    student assessment measures
   •    evaluation of unit
   
   2. Phase Two (optional): Activity implementation: You will collaborate in groups of 3-4 (perhaps grouped by common instructional language or technology) and actually test the activity in a classroom context. The unit could include the web, chat, blogs, wikis, podcasts, online gaming or virtual environments (e.g., Second Life) or other technologies. The purpose of this phase of the project is for you to become familiar with the processes involved in developing, implementing, and evaluating a technology-integrated second/foreign language instructional unit. The final product (credited to you, of course), with possible adaptations and edits, will become a publicly available resource hosted on the Center for Advanced Language Proficiency Education and Research (CALPER) at the Computer-mediated Activity Library. either as separate activities or as an integrated project. There are 3 parts to the project: a project description, activity descriptions, and a case study.Your unit should include at least 3 technology-based activities (or be a single project using 3 different technologies). Each activity description should be of an identical format, with information on the activity type, language, topic, tool, group size, description, objectives (again using TESOL or ACTFL standards), teacher instructions, student objectives, variations, and resources.
   
   3. Phase Three (optional): Case study: For the case study, video record the implementation of the activity in a class you or colleagues are currently teaching. See the CALPER CMC Activity library for examples: http://calper.la.psu.edu/cmc/index.php. You can participate in the production of a 5-minute video describing the implementation (using iMovie or a similar program).
   
   
   
6. Final project and presentation (40%): Examples of a final project are term paper, original research paper, review of the literature paper, formal report on in-class uses of a technology or a technology related initiative (e.g., the 2nd and 3rd stages of #5 (above)). The goal of the Final Project should be relevant to your interest and academic/professional development. For all large projects, an outline, key questions, and literature review/bibliography will be due in late March (2009). Oral presentations of Final Projects will occur during the mini-conference we will convene over the 2 class sessions. Final paper due on the last class day in April, 2009.

Evaluation and Grading: You will be responsible for putting together the assignments that include the above items. At the end of the term, please provide a cover letter that explains where your work is (e.g., on a wiki, website, attached document).

Ethical Code: The internet (and world, for that matter) is full of information that you will want to utilize in your written work. Please do so as freely as you like, but do use proper citation protocols (otherwise, one falls into plagiarism, which will result in a failing grade). Collaborative work in encouraged -- If you would like to co-develop a project with a classmate, please do so. 

Texts and Study Materials: Readings are available on the web (linked directly off the 589 on-line syllabus).

• The ability to access readings via the Internet (web)
• Potentially somewhere to print out readings
• A flashdrive or other portable harddrive with 512 meg storage or greater