Preparing language teachers to teach language online: a look at skills, roles, and responsibilities

Figures & data

Figure 1. Skills pyramid (Hampel & Stickler, 2005, p. 317).

Figure 2. Proposed framework for online language teaching skills.

Table 1. Design principles for distance foreign language environments (Lai, Zhao, & Li, 2008, p. 90).

Components	Principles
Course communication	• Provide many opportunities for various forms of interaction with different interlocutors in both written and oral modes
	• Facilitate high-quality interactions with multiple opportunities for negotiation of meaning and cultural understanding
	• Provide clear instructions, course expectations, and technical support
	• Provide quality feedback in a timely manner and encourage peer feedback
	• Mediate interaction through various communication media and use different media for different interaction purposes
Course structure	• Apply task-based instruction to foster a learner-centred learning environment
	• Strive for focus on form and emergent, learner-based linguistic ‘instruction’
	• Vary the course structure to cater to various learning needs and styles
	• Conduct constant formative assessment to construct individualised learning support
	• Incorporate activities that help learners to strengthen their ability to manage their learning
	• Encourage learners to co-construct class resources and the learning environment

Table 2. Criteria for CALL task appropriateness (Chapelle, 2001, p. 55).

Language learning potential	The degree of opportunity present for beneficial focus on form
Meaning focus	The extent to which learners' attention is directed toward the meaning of the language
Learner fit	The amount of opportunity for engagement with language under appropriate conditions given learner characteristics
Authenticity	The degree of correspondence between the learning activity and target language activities of interest to learners out of the classroom
Positive impact	The positive effects of the CALL activity on those who participate in it
Practicality	The adequacy of resources to support the use of the CALL activity

Table 3. Stakeholders in a distance education system and their responsibilities.

Stakeholder	Responsibilities
Student	Self-directing and have learner autonomy
Course developer	Works in a team of specialists including technology, content, media, and instructional design specialists
Site coordinator	Communicates with the teacher, student, and the larger community, organises and manages local circumstances, provides learner support at local site for administrative, technological, and content issues
Tutor	Provides individualised instruction, grade assignments, and monitor student progress
Proctor	Proctors exams and quizzes at local sites
Student support services	Counsellor provides guidance; administrative staff provides routine administrative assistance
Management/administration	Manages policy, planning, staffing, budgets, scheduling, resources, etc
Teacher	Humanises the learning environment, facilitates and encourages interaction, organises and presents information, and provides feedback

Table 4. Functions and scope of learner support services and the overlap in roles.

Functions of learner support	Scope of learner support services	Role as listed in studies
Cognitive	Tutoring	Tutor (Moore & Kearsley, 1996)
	Study groups and centres, actual and virtual	Student support services (Moore & Kearsley, 1996)
	Learning support (including study and exam skills seminars, 1:1 assistance)	Facilitator (Harms et al., 2006)
		Student support services (Moore & Kearsley, 1996)
Affective	Guidance and advisory services (including motivational counselling)	Facilitator (Harms, et al., 2006)
		Student support services (Moore & Kearsley, 1996)
	Residential schools^1	n/a
	Peer contact	Facilitator (Harms et al., 2006)
Systemic	Enquiry and admission services	Facilitator (Harms et al., 2006)
		Student support services (Moore & Kearsley, 1996)
	Course/academic information and guidance	Facilitator (Harms et al., 2006)
		Site coordinator (Moore & Kearsley, 1996)
Note: Residential schools in this context refer to those offered by the Open University, UK. ‘There are now more than 50 Open University courses running a residential school. These last from one day to a full week and are based at universities, hotels, conference and field study centres in the UK and mainland Europe. Language schools run in France, Germany and Spain.’ (Retrieved May 8, 2008 from http://css2.open.ac.uk/resschools/AboutResSchools.aspx)

Table 5. Levels of distance education and their definitions (based on Moore & Kearsley, 1996).

Level	Definition
Distance learning programme	‘Activities carried out in a conventional college, university, school system, or training department whose primary responsibilities include traditional classroom instruction’ (p. 2–3)
Distance learning unit	‘A special and separate unit within a conventional college, university, or school system that is dedicated to distance learning activities’ (p. 3)
Distance learning institution	‘The sole purpose of the institution is distance education [and] all activities are exclusively devoted to distance education’ (p. 3)
Distance learning consortia	‘Two or more distance learning institutions or units who share in either the design or delivery of program, or both’ (p. 4)

Hampel , R. and Stickler , U. 2005 . New skills for new classrooms: Training tutors to teach languages online . Computer Assisted Language Learning , 18 ( 4 ) : 311 – 326 .

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Chapelle , C. 2001 . Computer applications in second language acquisition , Cambridge : Cambridge University Press .

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Moore , M. and Kearsley , G. 1996 . Distance education: A systems view , Belmont : Wadsworth Publishing Company .

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