Virtual Slovak: insight into learning Slovak in an e-learning environment

Abstract

T his paper offers insight into learning Slovak in an e-learning environment. The need to reach distance-learners of Slovak led to the implementation of a web-based course on Slovak language and culture in [2008][2009][2010]. The pedagogical basis of the course, called Virtual Slovak, is the socioconstructivist approach to teaching and learning, in which the focus is on the development of learners' communicative competence. This teaching experiment led to a study in which the focus was on learners' beliefs and experiences regarding learning Slovak in an e-learning environment. The results showed that this particular learning environment had a positive impact on the development of learners' agency. This impact was demonstrated by an evident increase in motivation and language learning awareness as well as in a conscious approach to learning. At the centre of this investigation is the evaluation of the e-learning environment, especially its appropriateness at the beginners' level for the acquisition of a less commonly taught language, as well as of the teacher's role in the learning process. Furthermore, the results revealed that learners' attitudes towards learning in technologyenhanced learning environments pose challenges to the instruction of less commonly taught languages. Even though current digital technology offers multiple opportunities for the integration of new media modes into learning activities, the choice of relevant media for the learning context and learners' competences seems to remain one of the teacher's main responsibilities.Keywords: e-learning, learning environment, Slovak, less commonly taught languages, LCTL, communicative competence.1. Language Centre, University of Jyväskylä, Finland; anna.kyppo@jyu.fi How to cite this chapter: Kyppö, A. (2015). Virtual Slovak: insight into learning Slovak in an e-learning environment. In J. Jalkanen, E. Jokinen, & P. Taalas (Eds), Voices of pedagogical development -Expanding, enhancing and exploring higher education language learning (pp. 57-84). Dublin: Research-publishing.net. doi:10.14705/rpnet.2015.000287 Chapter 4 58 1. Context of the studyThis study offers insight into learning Slovak in an e-learning environment. One of the challenges for teaching in the last decade or so has been the design of new learning environments for language learning and the efficient employment of versatile ICT 2 -enhanced approaches and resources. The development of new course content and learner training modules, as well as of collaborative practices between teachers and students within distance learning programmes focusing on the efficiency and multimodality of learning materials, generated the idea of a new learning environment designed specifically for learning Slovak. The Slovak e-learning course Virtual Slovak was designed and piloted in [2008][2009][2010]. The pedagogical basis of the course is the socioconstructivist approach to teaching and learning. The main focus is on the development of learners' communicative competence, which is perceived as the...

Social and Institutional Factors Affecting Language Learning Activities

“…This may be because the distance course that Enkin (2017) evaluated was taught asynchronously and so the students had little contact with the teacher, while the distance courses at RSU differed from campus courses only in that the synchronous seminars were held online in a video conferencing platform. Similarly, Kyppö's (2014) conclusion that "not all language skills may be acquired at an equal level without contact classes" (p. 145) does not apply to the RSU context, which has as many contact classes as an equivalent campus course.…”

“…Forty-four percent of respondents in Wilsey's ( 2013) study stated that they were using the online platform because it was the only available tuition-free way for them to learn the language, while 20% stated that the online platform was convenient and 10% said that the platform was a supplement to other forms of study. Kyppö (2014) concluded that "a less commonly taught language (in this case Slovak) may be learned in a new language learning environment as any other language. However, not all language skills may be acquired at an equal level without contact classes" (p. 145).…”

“…As is shown in the empirical material, while the online classroom is a relevant context for the study's subjects, it is only one aspect of a personal learning environment (PLE) that can be viewed as the sum of contextual factors contributing to the language learning process. In an article described in greater detail in Section 3 below, Kyppö (2014) discusses the importance of PLEs for learners of LCTLs:…”