The present study adopted a sequential explanatory mixed-methods approach to explore the impact of e-tandem on English as a foreign language (EFL) learners' speaking skills (i.e. speaking fluency and coherence, lexicon, grammatical range and accuracy, and pronunciation) and willingness to communicate (WTC). To this end, two classes at a language…

Grammatical information, embedded at the word level, makes the acquisition of morphologically rich languages quite complex as well as the language exercise generation process for teachers. This study introduces a new gamification approach for complex morphology learning and aims to analyze the students' perceptions towards it. In this approach,…

Intelligent personal assistants (IPAs) are a valuable tool in language learning because they provide opportunities for authentic interaction. However, their effectiveness, compared with that of human interlocutors, in facilitating second and foreign language interaction has not been explored. Therefore, this study investigated the effect of IPAs…

Mobile-assisted language learning (MALL), which provides access to learning without the constraints of place and time, is worthy of exploration for pedagogical purposes. Given the use of gaming applications and social media as potential instructional methods for MALL, this study investigated the effect of these two methods, along with traditional…

Although social networking apps and dictation-based automatic speech recognition (ASR) are now widely available in mobile phones, relatively little is known about whether and how these technological affordances can contribute to EFL pronunciation learning. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of feedback from peers and/or…

This study investigated student perceptions and opinions on an English Oral Presentation Application (EOPA), a mobile learning application designed to assist English learners develop oral presentations and online collaboration skills. This study was part of a Design Based Research (DBR) project which incorporated an adapted Technology Acceptance…

VR technology allows learners to access simulated, immersive and interactive virtual environments to perform authentic learning activities. In particular, VR has emerged as a valuable tool for L2 learning. However, VR research has tended to pay more attention to desktop-based VR than to VR via mobile-rendered HMDs, leaving the potentials of VR…

This article reports the study of a novel way of raising tertiary-level students' native cultural awareness (NCA) via an informal mobile learning community. Through two cycles of action research at a teacher-education university in East China, the study drew upon the Community of Practice (CoP) theory to form a synchronous English chat group.…

Game-based learning activities that facilitate students' listening and speaking skills were designed in this study. To participate in learning activities, students in the control group used traditional methods, while students in the experimental group used a mobile system. In our study, we looked into the feasibility of mobile game-based learning…