A Multimodal Learning Experience for the “Reshaping” of Language Education: a Professional Development Programme for Language Teachers

7/26/2019 A Multimodal Learning Experience for the “Reshaping” of Language Education: a Professional Development Programme for Language Teachers

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A multimodal learning

experience for the “reshaping”of language education: a

professional development

programme for languageteachers

Cecilia Goria

University of Nottingham, UK

7th - ICT for Language Learning

Florence 2014 1/27



Overview of this presentation

Presentation of the empirical contextMultimodality

“Reshaping”

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Structure of the MA in DTLT

• University calendar

• Entirely online

• 2 years part-time• Supported by Moodle

• Introductory module + 2 modules per

semester + dissertation• Target audience

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Design: Toohey’s (1999) typology:

Approaches:1. traditional

2. cognitive/constructivist

3. experiential

4. performance-based5. socially-critical

Criteria:

view of knowledge, process of learning, goals and howthey are expressed, choice and organization of content,purpose of assessment and methods, resources andinfrastructure, teacher and learner roles.

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Design of the MA in DTLTThe cognitive approach - influenced by the

theory of social constructivism (Piaget 1926;Vygotsky 1978). It:

• promotes the personal construction ofknowledge

• Sharing and collaborating

• focuses on the depth of content rather

than quantity• uses real-world resources for problem

identification and solving

• provides resources for independentinvestigation

• Involves self and peer assessment

The teacher's role is to elicit and facilitate levels of analysis, which the learners wouldnot have reached on their own.

Learner’s contribution, participation,

ownership of learning

The experiential approach promotes:

• personally relevant learning

• mutual teacher-student respect,

collaboration, support and openness

The teacher's role is to:

• assist planning• facilitate group-work

• offer guidance while students determine

their own learning goals

• be involved in the planning of the unit

Learner’s experience, ownership of learning

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Multimodality (1)

Multimodality is the practice of representing the content

knowledge in different modes, typically verbal (printed, spoken

words) and non-verbal (illustrations, photos, videos, and

animation) (Moreno & Mayer 2007)

Multimodality poses a challenge to the long-held and still widely

dominant notion that ‘language’ is that resource for making

meaning which makes possible the ‘expression’ of all thoughts,

experiences, feelings, values, attitudes. (Kress 2013:132)

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Multimodality (2)

Multimodality entails not only accessing information in different

formats but also establishing interactivity between these

representations (Guichon & McLornan 2008)

An interactive multimodal learning environment is one in

which, during the learning, the learner is able to interact with

the presented content, e.g. play/pause/forward while watching

a narrated animation; click on hyperlink to get additional

information (Moreno & Mayer 2007)

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Multimodality and Multimediality

Modes vs. Media

Modes: ways of representing information, semiotic

channels (words, sound, images, animation, color)

Media: “tools and material resources” (books, radio,

television, computer, paint brush and canvas, humanvoice).

The mode of writing is affected differently by theaffordances and limitations of the media: book vs.

screen/online.

(Lauer 2009:227)

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Why Multimodality?

Learning

• Fosters construction of knowledge (Moreno &

Meyer 2007) & collaboration

• Leads to the personal making of meaning (GuntherKress – YouTube)

• Enhances motivation, engagement and assists

comprehension and retention (Sankey et al. 2010)

to support our learners’ learning:

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Why Multimodality?

Language Learning

• Association of images and text in L2 enhances

comprehension of authentic text (Guichon & McLornan 2008)

• Combination of modes such as animation and narration (use

of more than one sense) for providing a variety of contexts forthe development of all the components of communicative

competence (cognitive and social processes) (Gilakjani et al.

2011:1325)

• Multimodal interfaces with focus on gaze (tracking), bodylanguage, gesture, in addition to speech (Price 2013)

to benefit our learners’ learners (language)

learning 10/27



Why Multimodality?

Diversified experience

To provide our students with a diversified learning

experience in order to improve their ability to deal

with their diverse professional contexts (our

learners’ language learners).

• digital literacy

• access to technology

• body of students

• institutional limitations11/10



Multimodality within the MA in

DTLT

Multimodality - digital technologies intensify

multimodal possibilities

Multimodal semiotic experience – meaning

making through different representations of

content

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Multimodality and MA in DTLT

2) The programme encourages students to make

meaning through different representations of

content, e.g. SmallWorlds

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3) The programme encourages students to share

different representations of content, e.g. use of

Popplets to share notes & the structure of their

assignments

written + visual (links between Popplets)

http://popplet.com/app/#/home

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http://popplet.com/app/





Popplet

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4) The programme requires that students construct

knowledge by producing different representations of

content, e.g. videos for the “Second Language

Acquisition” module:

spoken + image + animation

http://screencast-o-matic.com/watch/c2fYFanuRM

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5) Multimodal literacies in the repositioning fromlearners to teachers. Multimodality for the next

generations of language learners.

a) spoken + animation & text + imagehttp://livingenglish.pbworks.com/w/page/78722915/Living%20English%20

Week%202#/

b) written + animationhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mT9rzEoxMLk#t=44

c) spoken + graphics + imagehttp://lowerfivefrenchjeb.wikispaces.com/L%27imparfait+and+how+to+for

m+it

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http://livingenglish.pbworks.com/w/page/78722915/Living%20English%20Week%202


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mT9rzEoxMLk

http://lowerfivefrenchjeb.wikispaces.com/L'imparfait+and+how+to+form+it













a) Spoken + Animation

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Text + Image



b) Written + Animation

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c) Spoken +

Graphic + Image

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End of the first year:

Success, Challenge and theUnexpected

• Success: multimodality to “reshape” learning

• Challenge: multimodality as a tool to cater

for diverse professional contexts

• The Unexpected: multimodality as catalyst to

increase “nearness” in the DL context:

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the Unexpected

• Students exchanged tech tips – mainly in theForum

• Self-organised to meet outside contact hours

to sort out tech issues• Took the lead during the online tutorials

Increased sense of responsibilitytowards peers

Provided confidence to the less tech

confident23/27



Future studies

• Will look for ways to measure learning and

engagement

• Will assess the relation between a

multimodal training and the implementation

of multimodality in the professional context

• Will focus further on the role of

multimodality in strengthening the

community of enquiry

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Thank you25/27



Bibliography

Gilakjani A. et al. (2011) The Effect of Multimodal Learning Models on LanguageTeaching and Learning. Theory and Practice in language Studies, 1, 10, pp. 1321-

1327.

Guichon N. & McLornan S. (2008) The effects of multimodality on L2 learners:

Implications for CALL resource design. System 36, pp. 85-93

Kress, G. What is multimodality? Available on YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nt5wPIhhDDU

Moreno R. & Mayer R. (2007) Interactive Multimodal Learning Environments.

Edicational Psychology Review , 19, pp. 309-326

Piaget, J. (1926) The language and thought of the child . New York: Harcourt, Brace,

Jovanovich.

Price K. (2013) Multimodal interfaces: Blending gaze, gesture, movement and

speech to overcome the limitations of keyboard, mouse & touchscreen. WorldCALL,

10-13 July 2013, Glasgow.

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Bibliography

Sankey M. et al. (2010) Engaging students through multimodal learningenvironments: The journey continues. Proceedings ascilite Sydney 2010.

Toohey, S. (1999). Beliefs, values and ideologies in course design. In Designing

courses for higher education. Buckingham, SRHE and OUP, pp. 44-69.

Vygotsky, L. S. (1978) Mind in society . Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

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A Multimodal Learning Experience for the “Reshaping” of Language Education: a Professional Development Programme for Language Teachers