A wide variety of media can be used in learning, including distance learning, such as print, lectures, conference sections, tutors, pictures, video, sound, and computers. Any one instance of distance learning will make choices among these media, perhaps using several.

Multimedia in Learning

1. Interaction. The interactions learners have with each other build interpersonal skills, such as listening, politely interrupting, expressing ideas, raising questions, disagreeing, paraphrasing, negotiating, and asking for help. 2. Interdependence. Learners must depend on one another to accomplish a common objective. Each group member has specific tasks to complete, and successful completion of each member’s tasks results in attaining the overall group objective.

将“Cooperative Learning”融入课堂——浅谈英语素质教育

Observing Interaction: An Introduction to Sequential Analysis, Roger Bakeman, John M. Gottman. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge (1986), ixv, +221. Price £25.00 hardback, £7.95 paperback

Teaching And Researching Reading

Exploring the use of educational technology in primary education

This study investigated the group interactive network of students and the behavioral patterns of knowledge construction in online cooperative translation activities without teacher intervention. Participants in this study consisted of 48 EFL learners from a Chinese university who major in educational technology. The following are determined by combining the methods of social network analysis and lag sequence analysis: (1) The group interactive network generated in this activity was reciprocal and balanced, and high cohesiveness and tight interaction relationship exist among groups. (2) In different cooperation phases, the behavioral sequences of knowledge construction of students presented different characteristics. (3) The behavioral sequences between the high-score groups and low-score groups also showed distinct differences. In addition, this study also revealed certain problems in cooperative translation, such as uneven contribution and unrelated chats. Finally, some implications for specialized English translation instruction, the limitations, and future research plan were presented.

Group interactive network and behavioral patterns in online English-to-Chinese cooperative translation activity

How to trigger and maintain the concentration of learners in their learning activities through mobile devices has become an important issue. Research on learning concentration and information presentation mode can provide new insights into the design and selection of m-learning materials and activities. This study used a quasi-experimental design to investigate the interaction effects of interest and presentation mode on the concentration and achievement of learning conceptual knowledge through mobile phones in the classroom setting. A total of 258 Chinese education majors participated in this study. Through correlation analysis, regression analysis, and ANOVA (one-way, two-way, and three-way), the three following major results were obtained: 1) significant correlations existed between interest and concentration as well as between concentration and achievement, 2) no interaction effects on concentration existed between presentation mode and interest while interest alone had a significant effect on concentration, and 3) interaction effects on learning achievement existed between presentation mode and interest as well as between concentration and presentation mode. The research findings imply that visual presentation (e.g., video) is not always the best choice for m-learning, and the factors of concentration, interest, and presentation modes must be fully taken into consideration when selecting m-learning materials. The limitations and directions for future research were also presented. The interaction effects of interest and presentation mode on concentration and achievement of m-learning were investigated.Significant correlations existed between interest and concentration as well as between concentration and achievement.No interaction effects on concentration existed between presentation mode and interest.Interaction effects were identified between presentation mode and interest on learning achievement.Interaction effects were identified between concentration and presentation mode on learning achievement.

Using mobile phones in college classroom settings

As school networks get more available, reading instruction in a computer classroom has become more and more popular in China. Although information and communication technology (ICT) has brought about some improvements in classroom teaching, it must be admitted that the phenomenon of fast reading with low-level cognitions is threatening school children's reading literacy. In order to address this problem, a collaborative annotation tool called Sharing Unique Reading Feeling (SURF) was developed for creating and sharing annotations. This study explored SURF-based collaborative reading instruction, and investigated the effect of collaborative annotation supported by SURF on primary school students' Chinese reading levels with methods of equal group experiment, interview and comparative analysis. Finally, some suggestions were proposed for the development of instructional annotation tools and the implementation of current reading instruction especially in computer classrooms. Results showed that the collaborative annotation supported by SURF could promote students' reading performance, enhance their Chinese reading levels in primary schools, and it was also helpful to develop the higher-level cognitive abilities such as analyzing, summarizing and evaluating. Practitioner Notes What is already known about this topic Annotation could improve students' reading and writing., Annotation could enhance reading comprehension., Full annotation sharing could improve learning outcome., Reading passages with hypermedia annotations significantly benefited passage comprehension and vocabulary., What this paper adds Collaborative annotation could enhance Chinese reading levels in primary schools of China, and is very helpful in addressing the issue of surface reading in Chinese class., Collaborative annotation is also helpful to develop higher-level cognitive abilities such as analyzing, summarizing and evaluating., Implications for practice and/or policy Collaborative reading assisted by annotation tool should be given profound attention and be applied more generally., Collaboration is rather significant in developing students' reading literacy, but abuse of collaboration will be a waste of time and will not get good effect., Do not lose the dominant role of teachers, because excessive freedom for students will result in failure in achieving teaching objectives., Some competition activities (eg, setting up Reading Stars, giving little and red flowers) should be provided to inspire students to do annotating passionately and seriously., The Ministry of Education in China should actively encourage Chinese teachers in primary and secondary schools to implement annotation reading instruction in computer classrooms., Some wonderful annotation tools just like SURF should be developed and generalized in a larger scope supported by the government. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of collaborative annotation on Chinese reading level in primary schools in China

This paper presents a new model for organizing learning resources: Learning Cell. This model is open, evolving, cohesive, social, and context-aware. By introducing a time dimension into the organization of learning resources, Learning Cell supports the dynamic evolution of learning resources while they are being used. In addition, by introducing a semantic gene (knowledge ontology) into the model, Learning Cell can flexibly describe the internal structure and external relations of learning resources, allowing the evolution of learning resources to occur in an orderly way. Furthermore, by employing a computational model of a social cognition network, Learning Cell enables not only materialized resource sharing but also the sharing of social cognition networks. Finally, by separately deploying resource structures and resource content in the cloud storage model, Learning Cell achieves context awareness of ubiquitous learning (u-learning) resources. Learning Cell represents a resource aggregation model that is different from the learning object model. It makes up for the defects of existing learning technologies in the following areas: the sharing of process information and social cognition networks, the intelligence of resources, and the evolution of content. Learning Cell provides a theoretical framework of u-learning resource organization.

https://www.jstor.org/stable/jeductechsoci.18.2.206

From Learning Object to Learning Cell: A Resource Organization Model for Ubiquitous Learning.

This study investigated the behavioral patterns of students' knowledge construction in online cooperative translation activities. Forty-eight college students participated in the study. Methods of lag sequential analysis and frequency analysis were adopted. Results showed that 1) all behavior stayed within the medium level of knowledge construction, and from which four significant behavioral sequences were identified; 2) distinctions existed between higher- and lower-engagement students with respect to behavioral patterns; and 3) the behaviors of negotiation and knowledge co-construction occurred more frequently and continually in the higher-engagement group. In addition, this study also revealed certain limitations of students' knowledge construction behavior in online cooperative translation environments without teacher guidance, specifically the exorbitant social-emotional interaction and the inactive engagement of some students.

Xianmin Yang

Papers

Group interactive network and behavioral patterns in online English-to-Chinese cooperative translation activity

Using mobile phones in college classroom settings

The effect of collaborative annotation on Chinese reading level in primary schools in China

From Learning Object to Learning Cell: A Resource Organization Model for Ubiquitous Learning.

Behavioral patterns of knowledge construction in online cooperative translation activities