Online Chinese Course Page: A Playground for the Web Generation

Frances Yufen Lee Mehta

Cornell University

In the present digital era, with learners being computer-savvy, traditional classroom experience alone is not sufficient and should be extended to the cyber space. To empower students to become life-long language learners and team players, teachers need to design scenarios and situations where students of diverse learning styles and strategies are comfortable to take an active and tolerant approach such as sharing, guessing, critiquing, risk-taking, etc. among their peers. This presentation examines Course Page, using online technology to engage students in dynamic communication via interaction, cooperation, reflection and self-assessment, all the elements that are characteristic of committed life-long learners. Participants will learn how to solicit and monitor discussions, examine the outcome and evaluation of the language playground model, and thus be able to create their own.

This presentation will explore methods to maximize the effectiveness of learning and teaching of Chinese by first briefly reviewing SLA theories on efficacy of affective domain and learner’s autonomy. The participants will then examine a course page designed with pragmatics and pedagogy that successfully engage students in rigorous and meaningful discussions in Chinese on a multitude of topics. The process and outcome of using this interface will be discussed.