Liza Funke

EDU 528

INTRODUCTION• Our students are technology-oriented

• Second language acquisition is social in nature

• MOOs are technological, social language tools

• Constructivism

• Lev Vygotsky’s Theory of Social Development

• Stephen Krashen’s Theory of Second Language Acquisition

• These components support the use of MOOs in second language learning

• Socially interacting in a MOO promotes second language acquisition

• MOOS are descendents of MUDs: Multi-User Domain (Dungeon or Dimension)

• MUDs were popular in the 1990s in the form of multi-player video games.

• All players, recognized on the MUD as characters, were able to be in the virtual space at the same time interacting with one another and the environment around them via textual descriptions. Players interacted with each other and the surroundings by typing commands that resemble a natural language, usually English (www.wikipedia.org/wiki/MUDs/).

What are MOOs?How They Differ From MUDs

A distinguishing feature of a MOO is that:

Its users can perform object-oriented programming within the server, ultimately expanding and changing how the server behaves to everyone. Examples of such changes include authoring new rooms and objects, creating new objects for others to use, and changing the way the MOO interface operates. (www.wikipedia.org/wiki/MUDs/).

That is, users not only interact with thevirtual environment, but can take ownership in

building it as well.

What are MOOs? How They Differ From MUDs

(continued)

• MUDs are used more for entertainment purposes, i.e. video games, and have a task to complete by the end.

• MOOs are used more for educational purposes and are intended for continuous communication.

http://www.umsl.edu/~moosproj/mundo.html

Through MOOs, continuous authentic language is provided to second language learners by native speakers of the target language, who are also first-hand informants

about its culture and society.

“Native speech is ‘perfect’ ” Stephen Krashen, linguist, 1996

Syracuse presentation(Turbee, 1996)

• Reflection on prior knowledge

• Constructivism: learning is the result of an intrinsic drive to comprehend the environment around us.

• Each of us generates our own “rules” and “mental models”, which we use to make sense of our experiences. Learning, therefore, is simply the process of adjusting ourmental models to accommodate new experiences (http://www.funderstanding.com/constructivism.cfm)

• MOOs enables learners to reshape language mental models as they are exposed to authentic native speech

• Opportunity for reflection on prior language experiences

Theory of Social DevelopmentLev Vygotsky

• He proposed that social interaction profoundly influences cognitive development.

• We continually build on our knowledge from birth until death through socially interacting

with one another.

“ Vygotsky described it as the distance between the actual development level as determined by independent problem-solving under adult guidance or in collaboration with more capable peers” (Riddle, 1999, p.1)

(ZPD)

Constructivism, Social DevelopmentTheory and MOOs

Mental models are reshaped to include meaningful language learning experiences that

result from collaboration with peers and educators (facilitators).

In the zone of proximal development:

•When the educator acts as both facilitator and peer duringcollaboration, learning takes place for both parties.

(Ornberg, 2003, p.9)

Five hypotheses:

• The Acquisition-Learning hypothesis• The Monitor hypothesis• The Natural Order hypothesis• The Input hypothesis• The Affective Filter hypothesis

Krashen, an expert linguist and professor emeritus at the University of Southern California,

is known for his widely excepted theory

Two Systems of Language:

1. Acquired system – Subconscious language

• Similar to first language acquisition in children• Requires meaningful, natural communication• Concerned with meaning, not grammatical forms

2. Learned System – Conscious language

• Developed as a result of formal language instruction in settings such as classrooms• Concerned with correct grammatical structure

• The subconscious acquired system is used to initiate communication• The conscious learned system “monitors”, or edits, what is being said

The Monitor is effective when:

1. The learner has time to sort through the learned system for grammar rules2. The learner is actively thinking about correct forms3. The learner can recall the rules needed to make the corrections

(Schutz, 2005)

• Second Language follows a “natural order”

• Language is acquired in a series of stages based on grammatical structures (Natural Order Hypothesis)

• New language is acquired when learners are exposed to comprehensible input • Comprehensible input is language that originates one stage ahead of a learner’s current position in the natural order: i + 1

• Negative variables (anxiety, lack of motivation, etc.) may affect the learners’ attitude toward the target language

•These variables raise a “filter” that deters or prevents comprehensible input from reaching the student.

• Minimal negative variables = Maximum i +1 opportunity

• Learners use the acquired system to initiate discourse on the MOO in an authentic language environment. (Acquired-Learned)

• The learned system monitor “edits” this language. (Acquired-Learned/Monitor)

• When MOOs are at an appropriate level for one’s current stage in the natural order, they allow for the learner to intercept authentic i+ 1 (feedback). (Natural Order/Comprehensible Input)

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• Lowering the affective filter allows more comprehensible input to reach the learner. (Affective Filter)

• Peers (native speakers) and facilitator

provide i+ 1 (feedback) which becomes

part of the acquired system.

(Comprehensible Input/Acquired-Learned)

• The anonymity of the MOOs lowers the affective filter. (Affective Filter)

(Ornberg, 2003, p.9)

• Learners make sense of the MOO’s virtual linguistic environment by way of reflection and reshaping their mental language models (Constructivism)

• While on a MOO, learners work collaboratively to understand new language and create the virtual world. (Constructivism/Social Development Theory)

• In the ZPD , acquired language is activated to initiate social interaction.Learned language is used to monitor when necessary (MOOs providejust enough time). (Social Development Theory/Second Language Acquisition Theory “SLA”) • Simultaneously, peers, both native speakers and facilitators, provide feedback and guidance, or comprehensible input, to language learners. (Social Development Theory/SLA)

(Continued)

• This leads to further reshaping of mental language models as acquisition takes place (SLA/Constructivism)

• MOOs are anonymous. This lowers the affective filter and encourages participation in collaboration.(SLA/Social Development Theory) • This provides a greater chance for comprehensible input (feedback ) to reach the learners which leads to greater acquisition (mental models). (SLA/Constructivism)

• In reality, second languages cannot always be learned in the natural environments where they exist.

• MOOs provide learners with authentic language through a synchronous connection to native speakers.

• MOOs provide an avenue for second language learners to acquire the target language through real-time social interactionwith native speakers without leaving the classroom.