A mobile-device-supported peer-assisted learning system for collaborative early EFL reading.

Collaborative learning methods which emphasize peer interaction have been widely applied to increase the intensity and effectiveness of EFL reading programs. However, simply grouping students heterogeneously and assigning them group goals does not guarantee that effective collaborative learning will ensue. The present research includes two studies. In Study One, the weaknesses of collaborative learning in a traditional EFL setting were observed. Then, in Study Two, a mobile-device-supported peer-assisted learning (MPAL) system was developed for the purpose of addressing the identified weaknesses. Two classes of twenty-six third grade students participated in the present research to examine the unique contribution of MPAL to collaborative EFL reading activities. The collaborative behavior of elementary EFL learners was videotaped and analyzed. Detailed analysis of the videotaped behavior indicated that MPAL helped improve collaboration in elementary school level EFL learners and promotes their reading motivation.

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INTRODUCTION

Due to increased globalization and internationalization in recent decades, English has become the lingua franca of the world due to its widespread use in academia, business, commerce, and technology (Spolsky & Shohamy, 1999). As a result, study of the English language has increased worldwide. In Taiwan, formal English as a foreign language/English as a second language (henceforth referred to simply as EFL) instruction begins at the elementary school level. However, because of the limited opportunities for exposure to English, Hirvela (2004) highlighted the importance of providing reading materials to second language (L2) learners so that they can learn the rhetoric and writing styles of the language through reading. Moreover, there is a growing recognition that reading provides important opportunities for L2 development (Day & Bamford, 1998). Reading is especially important for learners of EFL in an educational setting with limited L2 resources (Gehard, 1996). Therefore, the teaching of English reading is receiving increasing attention from EFL teachers and researchers.

To achieve the reading goals set for elementary learners, intensive intervention programs have been viewed as an effective approach (Clay, 1993; Foorman & Torgesen, 2001; Hiebert, Colt, Catto, & Gury, 1992; Slavin, Madden, Karweit, Dolan, & Wasik, 1992; Taylor, Frye, Short, & Shearer, 1992). Further, collaborative learning that includes groups working together and peer assistants has been widely used in English reading programs to create the necessary intensity and strong support for learning. Numerous studies have confirmed the positive educational effects of collaborative learning on the instruction of English reading. Collaborative learning (or peer-assisted learning) can improve the cognitive activity of students (Hartup, 1992) and their reading outcomes (Greenwood, 1996; Ghaith, 2003; Slavin, 1988). Collaborative learning can also increase motivation and satisfaction (Ushioda, 1996), as well as the enthusiasm of students through the achievement of goals as a group (Nichols & Miller, 1994).

Although the effectiveness of collaborative learning in EFL reading has been clearly demonstrated, a collaborative learning environment in an EFL classroom in Asia may differ markedly from one in the West. Other pedagogical challenges (such as the diversity of students' reading ability, social and economic differences, class size, time constraints, and available resources) become problematic when EFL teachers try to adopt collaborative methods for reading instruction in traditional EFL classes (Curtis, 1998; Lan, Chang, & Sung, 2004; Reed, 2002).

Mobile technology is currently a feasible approach to overcoming many of the obstacles in current methods of EFL reading instruction. Standing on the shoulders of the giant, CALL (Computer Assisted Language Learning, e.g., Barker & Torgesen, 1995; Mioduser, Tur-Kaspa, & Leitner, 2000; Speziale & La-France, 1992; Sung, Huang, & Chang, under review), mobile assisted language learning (MALL) has the capability of providing EFL learners with the same opportunities for independent and targeted reading practice and immediate corrective feedback as CALL. In recent years, many studies have explored new methods of language learning made possible by the unique features of MALL, including portability, social interactivity, context sensitivity, connectivity, individuality, and immediacy (Attewell & Webster, 2004; Chinnery, 2006; Klopfer, Squire, & Jenkins, 2002; Soloway et al., 2001).

Research suggests that MALL has excellent potential for providing students with rich, real time, collaborative and conversational experiences both in and outside the classroom. However, the focus of MALL is mostly on speaking (Kukulska-Hulme, 2005), vocabulary (Thornton & Houser, 2005), phrases (Thornton & Houser, 2005; Morita, 2003), and grammar (Sung, Huang, & Chang, 2006), rather than early reading skills. Furthermore, most subjects in recent studies of MALL have been college students. Few studies have investigated how mobile technology benefits the reading skills of elementary students. The subjects of studies by Zurita and Nussbaum (2004) (6- and 7-year old children) and Soloway and his colleagues (2001) (k-12 students) are exceptions, but the learning objective in these studies was not specifically English reading skills. Further, although the most widely used hand-held devices (e.g., cellular phones, personal digital assistants, and mp3 players such as iPods) have a good reputation in MALL research, their small screens have been frustrating (Carlson, 2002).

Considering the limited number of MALL studies focusing on early EFL reading skill training, and fewer studies using elementary EFL learners as participants, the purpose of this research was to investigate how mobile technology benefits collaboration in elementary EFL learners. Rather than measuring specific learning gains, this research focuses on the weaknesses of collaborative learning in traditional EFL reading activities and how these weaknesses could be overcome by using mobile technology. To achieve this objective, two studies were conducted. In the first study, collaborative learning behavior was observed in elementary EFL students to clarify deficiencies in traditional reading activities. In the second study, for the purpose of enhancing collaboration in elementary EFL learners, we first developed a mobile-device-supported peer-assisted learning (MPAL) system based on the results of Study One. In addition to the characteristic of mobility, the MPAL was implemented on Tablet PCs under the considerations of its bigger screen size, compared with the hand-held devices mentioned above, as well as the easy input equipment (stylus) that Tablet PCs could provide. The efficacy of MPAL in overcoming the perceived limitations of traditional collaborative learning was then assessed.

STUDY ONE: COLLABORATIVE EFL READING ACTIVITIES WITHOUT TECHNOLOGICAL SUPPORT

To develop a mobile-device-supported reading system that can enhance collaborative learning in EFL students, learners were first observed in class during traditional reading activities. All student activities were videotaped and analyzed by two observers. The analysis was intended to identify deficiencies in collaborative reading in traditional EFL settings, as well as the opportune moment to introduce mobile technology in EFL learners' collaborative reading activities.

Methods

Design

The first study was conducted during the first semester of the school year using a quasi-experimental design. Two classes of third grade students using identical materials participated in this study. One class (experimental group) learned reading using the collaborative learning approach, and the other class (control group) learned reading by individual learning and whole class activities led by the EFL instructor. All reading activities were videotaped for subsequent analysis by two observers who were instructed to record and analyze all collaborative behavior and interactive discourse observed in the experimental group.

Participants

The subjects in Study One included 52 third grade students (two classes of 26 students, 14 males and 12 females in each class) from an elementary school in Taipei, Taiwan. One class was randomly chosen as the experimental group and the other as the control group. All enrolled subjects were considered beginning-level learners, although they had received two years of EFL instruction in elementary school. According to the Taipei Municipal Education Department's standards for the elementary school English curriculum, all third-grade students must learn all letters in the English alphabet, 30 words, and 20 sentences of basic daily conversation and classroom English.

The students were divided into heterogeneous reading groups based on their level of English achievement in the second grade. Grade A students were classified as high reading ability, those at grade B or C were classified as medium reading ability, and those at grade D or Fail were classified as low reading ability. As a result, the experimental group had 6 high-ability, 11 medium-ability, and 9 low-ability students; the control group had 7 high-ability, 10 medium-ability, and 9 low-ability students. Students with more advanced English ability (referred to as "group leaders") were grouped with two or three students with lower ability (medium- and low-ability students) which resulted in both classes having seven reading groups (each consisted of five groups with four members and two groups with three members).

Instruments