Blended Learning in English Language Teaching: Course Design and Implementation
Blended Learning in English Language Teaching: Course Design and Implementation
Blended Learning in English Language Teaching: Course Design and Implementation
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
1<br />
A collaborative onl<strong>in</strong>e read<strong>in</strong>g<br />
<strong>and</strong> research project<br />
Jody Gilbert<br />
Introduction<br />
In general <strong>English</strong> for Academic Purposes (EAP) programmes, the overarch<strong>in</strong>g goal is<br />
to prepare non-native speaker students for the language dem<strong>and</strong>s <strong>and</strong> cross-cultural<br />
challenges of typical undergraduate coursework <strong>in</strong> <strong>English</strong>-medium post-secondary<br />
<strong>in</strong>stitutions. Today, this coursework <strong>in</strong>cludes an expectation that faculty <strong>and</strong> students<br />
will use a variety of technologies to support teach<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> learn<strong>in</strong>g, <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>ternetbased<br />
research sources.<br />
This paper describes the conception <strong>and</strong> implementation of an EAP read<strong>in</strong>g<br />
project designed to help students develop effective onl<strong>in</strong>e read<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> research<br />
skills. In addition to provid<strong>in</strong>g opportunities to practise traditional read<strong>in</strong>g skills<br />
such as skimm<strong>in</strong>g, scann<strong>in</strong>g, <strong>and</strong> critical read<strong>in</strong>g, the project aims to help learners<br />
ga<strong>in</strong> autonomous strategies for evaluat<strong>in</strong>g the credibility of onl<strong>in</strong>e <strong>in</strong>formation.<br />
A student-centred, experiential learn<strong>in</strong>g approach to <strong>in</strong>struction framed the design.<br />
This required students to do most of the project work onl<strong>in</strong>e, <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>volved a blend<br />
of face-to-face activity <strong>in</strong> computer labs along with out-of-class onl<strong>in</strong>e collaboration.<br />
Teach<strong>in</strong>g context<br />
The University of Lethbridge <strong>in</strong> Alberta, Canada, operates a small EAP programme<br />
for undergraduate-bound students who have not yet met the <strong>English</strong> language<br />
proficiency requirement for undergraduate admission. Completion of the Advanced<br />
level of the University’s EAP programme is one option for satisfy<strong>in</strong>g this requirement.<br />
The EAP programme has a modular structure consist<strong>in</strong>g of four courses at three<br />
levels. Each course (Grammar, Read<strong>in</strong>g, Writ<strong>in</strong>g, Communication) is normally taught<br />
by a different <strong>in</strong>structor, for five classroom hours each week. EAP semesters run<br />
three times per year, for 13 weeks, with class sizes generally rang<strong>in</strong>g between ten<br />
<strong>and</strong> 18 students. Historically, the majority of students come from Ch<strong>in</strong>a, Korea,<br />
<strong>and</strong> Japan.<br />
All EAP classrooms have networked computers <strong>and</strong> data projectors. The majority of<br />
students have their own laptop computers with wireless <strong>in</strong>ternet access. There is also<br />
excellent access to computer labs <strong>and</strong> networked computer stations throughout the<br />
campus. Hardware <strong>in</strong> the labs is updated annually, <strong>and</strong> all labs have data projectors<br />
<strong>and</strong> whiteboards. The university supports Moodle as its official onl<strong>in</strong>e course<br />
management system.<br />
A collaborative onl<strong>in</strong>e read<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> research project | 27