The purpose of this study was to investigate the benefits and challenges using laptop computers (hereafter referred to as laptops) inside and outside higher education classrooms. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected from 156 university students (54 males, 102 females) enrolled in either education or communication studies. Benefits of…

In this paper, we will present and discuss data from a research project called MIRACLE, in which high school students learned about energy and energy transformation in a technology-rich learning environment. This learning environment spanned across a classroom, a science center, and an online platform specially designed to support coherence across…

This paper reports on an investigation of the use of Facebook as a tool to mediate learning amongst distance learners at Makerere University, a dual-mode institution offering both conventional and distance learning programs. While conventional courses take 17 weeks in a semester, the distance learners come in for two residential sessions, each…

Recent progress in the discipline of computer applications such as the advent of web-based communication, afforded by the Web 2.0, has paved the way for novel applications in language learning, namely, social networking. Social networking has challenged the area of Computer Mediated Communication (CMC) to expand its research palette in order to…

There is extensive research evidencing the value of developing early oral literacy skills within sociocultural experiences. However there is a lack of research examining first-grade students engaged in dialogic learning using Internet communication technology. The purpose of this study was to analyze the collaborative peer-talk process of…

Previous task repetition studies have primarily focused on how task repetition characteristics affect the complexity, accuracy, and fluency in L2 oral production with little attention to L2 written production. The main purpose of the study reported in this paper was to examine the effects of task repetition versus procedural repetition on the…

The United Nations' declaration on climate change education in December 2014 has sparked a renewal of policies and programs initiated during the "Decade of Education for Sustainable Development" (DESD, 2005-2014), aimed at promoting awareness, understanding, and civic action for environmental sustainability within learning communities…

Increasingly, school teachers are expected to be able to teach about and across cultures, as well as teach in digitally enriched classrooms. Teacher educators are expected to prepare their teaching students for such challenges. One university designed the eTutor online environment to enhance and support the development of pre-service teachers'…

In this article, we address how the design of educational scenarios can support teachers' adoption of both technology and open-ended projects indorsing creativity and innovation. We do that by describing how groups of teachers develop digital learning environments supporting using a combination of GeoGebra and Google sites. Both teachers and…

The theme for this year's annual Graduate Student Conference of the College of Languages, Linguistics and Literature (LLL) was "In a Word," which captured a basic component that runs through the College of LLL since words are essential to the work students do in each of the departments that form the College. The conference opened with a…

The potential for computer-supported learning in educational contexts has opened up the possibilities for learners to interact in informal contexts outside the classroom. The context of the present research is a young American individual's vlog on YouTube sharing his experiences as a learner of French. This paper focuses on the potential use of…

This study aims to extend a previous work on the role of peer facilitation of asynchronous online discussions. Specifically, in this paper I report three cases that examine students' preference for peer or instructor facilitation of online discussion forums, as well as their respective reasons for it. These three cases involved the following…

For many people, mobile phones are a part of modern life. Although the purpose of this technology revolves around language and communication, its application to language learning still appears to be underutilized. This is changing, as the widespread use of this handheld technology offers numerous opportunities to use functions that are ideal for…

This research explores the ability of grade 2 students to engage in productive discussion about the state of their knowledge building using group-level feedback tools to support their metadiscourse. Two aspects of knowledge work were common to the comparison and experimental classes: "Knowledge Building talk" (KB talk) involving…

In modern language (ML) distance learning programmes, teachers and students use online tools to facilitate, reinforce and support independent learning. This makes it essential for teachers to develop pedagogical expertise in using online communication tools to perform their role. Teachers frequently raise questions of how best to support the needs…