The use of interactive whiteboards in teaching non-roman scripts

Abstract

This study explores the use of the interactive whiteboards in teaching the non-Latin based orthographies of Hindi, Pashto, Dari, Persian (Farsi), and Hebrew. All these languages use non-roman scripts, and except for Hindi, they are cursive. Thus, letters within words are connected and for beginners the script may look quite complicated, incomprehensible and indecipherable. The shapes of the letters also change depending on if they are placed in word-initial, word-medial or word-final positions, causing additional difficulty for learners. Although the Hindi script is not cursive, it also creates difficulty for learners at beginning levels because it is crucial to know where to start and end the lines for each symbol in the alphabet with utmost precision. Surveys and questionnaires were distributed to seventy-five instructors teaching at the Defense Language Institute (DLI) in Monterey, California. It is found that the interactive whiteboard appears to be a useful pedagogical multi-media tool to teach non-roman scripts.

Keywords:

• interactive whiteboard
• non-roman scripts

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank the participants of my study, the reviewers and Editor of CALL Journal, Professor Dr. Jozef Colpaert, for their suggestions for further improvement of my article, Ms. Caroline Pettel and Ms. Deborah Busch for assisting me in the statistical analysis (many thanks to Ms. Busch for encouraging me to explore interactive whiteboards), and my loving parents, Karabet and Maryam Tozcu for their constant, unwaivering support and encouragement.

Notes

The views, opinions, and or findings contained in this report are those of the author and should not be construed as an official Department of the US Army position, policy, or decision unless designated by other official documentation.