WebCT
for the Language Teacher
語学教師のためのWebCT (ウェブ・コース・ツール)
a bilingual presentation at Ritsumeikan University
on 16 November 2001
立命館大学 琵琶湖草津キャンパスの研究会・京都キャンパスへの通信
by Steve McCarty (香川短期大学教授 スティーブ・マッカーティ)
和英ウェブ・ツアー
parts of this Web tour are in Japanese
Enter North American WebCT Faculty Training
Courses, Student Interface:
計算機基礎数理 (学習者として入る) / インタラクティブ基礎英作文 (デザイナーとして)
Prerequisite skills. Today
educators need Web design skills, an understanding of HTML tags,
source files, meta-data, uploading and directory structures.
Educators also need instructional design principles, to apply
originally Western Web-based tools and learning theories to East
Asian students who are more "teacher-dependent."
Cross-cultural issues. Teachers' and students' roles
and expectations differ across cultures. Western assumptions
about the active learner and student-centered education cannot
be taken for granted in a non-Western culture. Cooperative approaches
appeal to learners East and West, but manifest in very different
ways. In any case, very explicit directions are needed for learners
to navigate each step in an online course.
Stages in adopting new educational technologies / the need
for hands-on training. Educational institutions need to be
prepared for a transformative technology like WebCT. Even in
some major North American universities there has been active
resistance to Web-based education. In a country like Japan it
would probably take the form of passive resistance, such as not
attending voluntary meetings or doing the minimum required. There
can be resistance precisely because new skills are needed. The
image of sensei has been one who has mastered a field,
whereas now lifelong education is needed most of all by educators.
But faculty attitudes can turn positive with intensive hands-on
training that shows teachers and students that the new educational
technologies are empowering.
Instructional Designer and Virtual University. Besides
computer support staff, faculty members can get started online
more quickly by having an instructional designer in the department
to put their content online and design an optimum environment
for communicative learning. Private universities in Japan can
be more flexible about this need than public universities. The
Instructional Designer also provides training for faculty members
to become independent users of a platform like WebCT. Instruction
in Japan and elsewhere until now has been mostly a flow that
is soon lost, whereas online courses build up an ever-growing
stock of learning experiences and resources. Courses can be augmented
by online activities at first, then become mostly online, augmented
by in-person training and certification examinations. What it
leads to ultimately is the global virtual university where instructors
and lifelong learners can each be anywhere in the world.
English or Japanese version of WebCT? If one has to
be selected because of the expense, native speakers of other
languages will have more difficulty mastering the many functions
that make the expense worthwhile. A fleet of high-performance
vehicles (WebCT) is not needed to go to a convenience store (posting
just information such as a syllabus on the Web). Native users
of Japanese would prefer the Japanese language interface even
for courses in English. Native users of English and most of Japan's
potential customers for distance education based in Asia and
elsewhere need the English interface, even for courses in Japanese.
(Ritsumeikan's Asia-Pacific University in Oita should provide
an incentive for Web-based global outreach). It is usually the
bilinguals who have to accomodate the monolinguals, although
the goal of bilingualism should apply to teachers as well as
students of a foreign language. In Japan it would be best to
use both Japanese and English versions of WebCT. Until that is
possible, native speakers of Japanese and English should work
closely together and receive bilingual training. The WebCT program
source files are nearly identical, so designers and students
using the WebCT interface in their second language can use the
manuals and online help files available in their native language.
See the reference sites below or e-mail
the presenter for further information.
30 WebCT tools and the Good
Teaching Practices they support have been charted by a colleague
in Vancouver (link below). Tools are also matched with learning
styles they appeal to, and concrete uses of the tools are suggested.
The idea is for lessons to be driven by pedagogical principles
and learning goals rather than by technology and other non-educational
factors.
Three of the important WebCT tools for
communication demonstrated on this tour. The chat function
(and interactive whiteboard for drawing) are synchronous (real-time),
whereas the bulletin board for threaded discussions, the calendar
& other tools are asynchronous.
Balance of self-study and communicative activities needed
in online classes. Learners especially in Japan dislike feeling
isolated, and there is already a stereotype like that about online
education. Homework such as CALL (links below) is valuable to
prepare learners to communicate, then interactive activities need
to be scheduled every week. With such a balance, the computer
can take learners out of their isolation and widen their circle
socially as well as intellectually. Besides the WebCT communication
tools, there could be e-mail circles of classmates, techniical
help available such as by telephone, and adding m-learning to
e-learning by utilizing Internet-enabled mobile phones.
Restricted Web for courses and open Web for resources.
The several WebCT English and Japanese version sites entered during
this presentation are password-protected, but below are links
to reference Websites, in Japanese, English and bilingual, that
are available on the open Web for self-study and professional
development.
WebCT-related Reference Sites 参考する関連のウェブサイト
「WebCT
- World Wide Web コースツール」 梶田先生／名古屋大学
Introductory WebCT Japanese localization site at Nagoya University
WebCT
ホームページ 梶田先生／名古屋大学
「コース表示」にクリックし、国内のコース・インフォメーション・ページが閲覧できる
WebCT Japanese course information pages can be viewed without
passwords
インタラクティブ基礎英作文コース (和英) スティーブ マッカーティ
Interactive Basic English Composition Course Information Page
WebCT.Com
WebCT's Home Page in North America
CALL Links コンピュータ利用外国語学習
Homepage of Ritsumeikan Prof. Kazunori
Nozawa (英和)
知人である野澤教授の紹介でこのプレゼンテーションをするようになりました
和英翻訳添削システム Intelligent CALL tutoring system online
最新のバージョンやオーサリングについては、徳田博士へ問い合わせてください
Web tour by
Steve McCarty
Professor, Kagawa Junior College,
Japan
President, World Association
for Online Education
Homepage in English | Japanese / Site
Map | Mirror
Site
Online
Publications: Bilingualism and
Japanology Intersection
(an Asian Studies WWW Virtual Library 4-star site, 1997/2001)
香川短期大学教授、世界オンライン教育学会（米国認定のNPO）会長、
グローバル大学（UNESCO認定のNGO）アジア太平洋機構等のネット上
のボランティア活動を行っている。ボストン生まれ、ハワイ大学大学院
文学修士（アジア・日本学の専門）取得。「バイリンガリズムと日本学」
という著作目録とリンク集は、☆☆☆☆（アジア学にとても役立つ）と
Asian Studies WWW Virtual Library に評価されています。
e-mail iモード: surf.to/imode 12 November 2001