Let's Set the Scene "This is superior work," wrote a professor on a student"s paper. It was excellent when Saint Thomas Aquinas wrote it just as it is today. Saint Thomas gets an A. You get an F. 1 Just Reflect on This Position? The past five years haven"t been easy. Ned"s studies have been intensive. He"ll be glad to ditch that part-time job which has left him with little sleep, practically no energy and poor concentration that has dogged him through his law lectures for years. Without that night job Ned would never have made it through, but the money covered the cost of his studies. Ned wonders what it will be like to enjoy social occasions again free from that nagging thought of study. He has used every available minute to complete those "damned assignments" and the never-ending readings that seem to have always been part of his law degree. It certainly hasn"t been easy for him. On top of all of his problems, living away from home has created stressors that he had not experienced beforelike living in student quarters, managing a pile of washing (when did he ever last iron something?), eating regularly and just being himself. Just surviving has taken all of his wits and available "living skills." Thank God that Ned"s final examinations are only weeks away. He reflects on the possibilities-Ned Smith, BA, LLB, DipGradLawPrac-Legal Practitioner. It all sounds very nice to him. Lining-up in the queue to collect his final 24-hour "take-home exam" Ned"s stomach aches as he ponders whether he has prepared adequately. Finally, he collects his paper and as he scans the questions a wry smile comes to his face. He recognises a question that was part of his preparatory studies. "Oh dear" he mutters, "the remainder of the paper involves those time consuming and complex questionsthe ones that I

istance learning has been around for ages. From the moment you decide you would like to continue your education, the Internet can provide access to detailed information about the many institutions and distance-learning courses currently available to you worldwideinformation about the teachers, deadlines, grants and fees. A course web site might include a syllabus, a summary of lessons, notes, links to helpful sites and related research, projects done by students, model assignments and a long list of etceteras considered impractical under the more traditional system. The interactivity of the Web allows for spontaneous feedback and rapid change, without the hassle of endless photocopying.

Public reporting burden for the collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Washington Headquarters Services, Directorate for Information Operations and Reports, 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington VA 22202-4302. Respondents should be aware that notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person shall be subject to a penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information if it does not display a currently valid OMB control number.

Knowledge of medical-related terminology and communication skills are essential for multinational partners participating in a wide variety of missions - combat, stabilization, humanitarian support and natural disaster relief. In case of injures and sickness they need to know basic medical terminology in English to evaluate the situation, arrange for MEDEVAC or coordinate health services. Although the First aid and MEDEVAC topics are included into many language training programs, participants are unable to use health-related vocabulary in challenging situations due to the lack of language practice and limited training time. The purpose of the study was to identify specific needs of the multinational partners in medical terminology, explore a range of technology-enhanced language learning strategies for vocabulary extension and refreshing, and suggest a framework for medical terminology assistance based on mobile learning. The study started with needs analysis to reveal specific language gaps and challenges in use of common medical terminology that may be addressed by individual mobile learning. It was intended to identify typical communication situations and vocabulary that should be addressed. Native and non-native English speakers from 14 NATO and partner countries (officers and civilians) who had participated in stability operations and other missions around the world were interviewed and answered questionnaire. Additionally, 5 instructors who teach medical and health-related English to future mission participants were interviewed. As a result, three main areas of vocabulary were identified: parts of body, injuries and other health issues (feelings, symptoms), and medical assets/devices used for first aid and healthcare prescriptions. Most typical communication situations were related to car accidents, MEDEVAC calls, taking a person to the hospital, and writing a report about the accident. To identify the best way of exploiting mobile learning for language assistance to the multinational partners we focused on clarifying differences between e-learning and m-learning and identifying specific features of m-learning that may be beneficial and even unique in supporting terminology acquisition for the multinational audience. Early research in m-learning emphasized limitations of the mobile devices, such as size of the display, reduced input, small memory, abridged or specific OS version, and lack of standards, which positioned m-learning as a specific case of e-learning. However, rapid evolution of mobile technologies, their recent features, including efficient and reliable tactile display, automated adjustment of the resolution and the like, put m-learning on an equal footing with e-learning. Moreover, as distribution of mobile devices significantly exceeds the number of personal computers, and “digital native” generation uses these devices extensively not only for communication but also for accessing information on the web, mobile access to e-learning content may increase several times in the near future. M-learning is perceived to be more flexible, more personalized, more interactive, and more engaging. Due to smaller portions of content and shorter learning session times, m-learning becomes a natural activity during transfer or waiting periods. Moreover, continuous use of the personal mobile device appeals to personalization of learning content through contextual and learning history relevancy. Integrating learning, communication, information exchange and assistance, mobile device became a natural enhancer/extender of the individuals’ capabilities. Extensive study of the literature on vocabulary learning strategies and their computer-based implementation suggested a range of learning activities useful for vocabulary acquisition. However, not all of them promise to be efficient in this specific case, as they do not address individual difficulties and initial vocabulary, short intervals of time that may be devoted to learning, limited attention to language learning due to other priorities, lack of translation to mother language. Moreover, most of the widely used vocabulary extension activities are reading-based, whereas video and audio samples are not properly tagged for share and reuse in vocabulary refreshing. Game-based and context-driven vocabulary acquisition strategies raise learning motivation but their efficiency comparing to memorization-based approach has not been measured. In the final part of the study, requirements to the mobile learning environment for medical terminology support are formulated and examples of language learning activities for mobile devices are described.

Knowledge of medical-related terminology and communication skills are essential for multinational partners participating in a wide variety of missions-combat, stabilization, humanitarian support and natural disaster relief. In case of injures and sickness they need to know basic medical terminology in English to evaluate the situation, arrange for MEDEVAC or coordinate health services. Although the First aid and MEDEVAC topics are included into many language training programs, participants are unable to use health-related vocabulary in challenging situations due to the lack of language practice and limited training time.