Arguing against the common perception of technology as passive, neutral, and universal, this article presents a theoretical analysis of a commonly used and frequently studied technology--Computer Mediated Communication (CMC)--to illustrate how a technology that is often undistinguished in practice and research is indeed active, biased, and…

In this article Lynne Meiring and Nigel Norman focus on the notion of entitlement and the demands this has made on schools and teachers to cater for the needs of a wide range of pupils previously denied an experience of foreign languages. In order to enable all pupils to realise their potential, facilities and strategies have to be reviewed and…

This study investigates how Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) can be effectively used in a teaching practicum course to enhance preservice teachers' learning. We constructed a web-based CMC system and used it in a Teaching Practicum course. Computer science preservice teachers and experienced secondary school computer teachers, who served as…

This text weighs the ethical consequences of a virtual education that posits a learning community based on the free exchange of ideas and the economy of knowledge cultivating the circulation of ideas. It explores the ethical implications of a virtual educational enterprise characterised by exchanges that do not take place face to face but are…

While the internationalisation of higher education has made learner diversity a key consideration in tertiary pedagogical practice, research into the application of computer-mediated technologies in this domain has rarely taken into account culture. This article responds to this gap in the research by comparing "Confucian-heritage" and…

This article proposes a model that integrates the traditionally conflicting objectivist and constructivist approaches to instructional design. I argue that these two approaches are complementary rather than oppositional. I present and analyze two learning programs in order to show how learning events can contain both objectivist and constructivist…

Virtual teams have become an integral part of many organizations because of an increase in corporate restructuring, competition, and globalization. A virtual team is defined as one that conducts its work almost entirely through electronic technology. Virtual team members, who are typically dispersed both geographically and organizationally, rarely…

This presentation describes the methodology used by Dr. Michael Marek of Wayne State College, Nebraska USA, and Dr. Vivian Wu of Chienkuo Technology University, Taiwan, for English language instruction in Taiwan using Internet videoconferencing, and their research findings after three semesters. Initial student reaction was positive. Quantitative…

Web 2.0 has allowed for the development of cyber spaces where any computer user can create their own public pages to share knowledge, feelings and thoughts inviting linguistic interactions with people around the globe. This innovation has caught the attention of language practitioners who wish to experiment with blogging to enhance the teaching…

Context: Founded in 1971 with state funding to increase the number of primary care physicians in rural Minnesota, the Rural Physician Associate Program (RPAP) has graduated 1,175 students. Third-year medical students are assigned to primary care physicians in rural communities for 9 months where they experience the realities of rural practice with…

Teaching today's students requires an integration of learner-centered pedagogy with innovative technological resources. In this article, Blase Scarnati and Paula Garcia describe the redesign of a junior-level music history course guided by learner-centered principles and driven by a fusion of stimulating technology-based learning tools and…

This paper describes a collaborative Internet-based project involving foreign language students and teacher trainees in three different countries. The project involved both online collaboration with international partners and face-to-face classroom activities and was designed not only to facilitate purposeful, authentic language use, but also to…

The focus of this study is to explore the advances that Social Network Analysis (SNA) can bring, in combination with other methods, when studying Networked Learning/Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (NL/CSCL). We present a general overview of how SNA is applied in NL/CSCL research; we then go on to illustrate how this research method can…

This article presents a survey of computer-based tracking in CALL and the uses to which the analysis of tracking data can be put to address questions in CALL in particular and second language acquisition (SLA) in general. Adopting both quantitative and qualitative methods, researchers have found that students often use software in unexpected ways,…

In recent years project-based learning (PBL) incorporating online discussions has gradually been applied to courses that focus on writing projects. Past studies have shown that learners in PBL often face the difficulties of not having in-depth data analysis and peer discussions and how teachers design the rules and methods for online discussions…