scholarly journals Computer-Assisted Language Learning and the Revolution in Computational Linguistics

2003 ◽  
Vol 17 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pius Ten Hacken
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Computational Linguistics ◽  
General Problem ◽  
Computer Assisted ◽  
Computer Assisted Language Learning ◽  
Historical Survey ◽  
Language Understanding ◽  
Long Period ◽  
State Of Affairs ◽  
The Revolution

For a long period, Computational Linguistics (CL) and Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) have developed almost entirely independently of each other. A brief historical survey shows that the main reason for this state of affairs was the long preoccupation in CL with the general problem of Natural Language Understanding (NLU). As a consequence, much effort was directed to fields such as Machine Translation (MT), which were perceived as incorporating and testing NLU. CALL does not fit this model very well so that it was hardly considered worth pursuing in CL. In the 1990s the realization that products could not live up to expectations, even in the domain of MT, led to a crisis. After this crisis the dominant approach to CL has become much more problem-oriented. From this perspective, many of the earlier differences disadvantaging CALL with respect to MT have now disappeared. Therefore the revolution in CL offers promising perspectives for CALL.

scholarly journals Joining the blocks together – an NLP pipeline for CALL development

2019 ◽  
pp. 397-401
Author(s):  
Monica Ward
Keyword(s):  
Natural Language Processing ◽  
Natural Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Computational Linguistics ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Learning Process ◽  
Computer Assisted ◽  
Computer Assisted Language Learning ◽  
Tools And Techniques ◽  
Intelligent Computer

Intelligent Computer-Assisted Language Learning (ICALL) involves using tools and techniques from computational linguistics and Natural Language Processing (NLP) in the language learning process. It is an inherently complex endeavour and is multi-, inter-, and trans-disciplinary in nature. Often these tools and techniques are designed for tasks and purposes other than language learning, and this makes their adaptation and use in the CALL domain difficult. It can be even more challenging for Less-Resourced Languages (LRLs) for CALL researchers to adapt or incorporate NLP into CALL artefacts. This paper reports on how two existing NLP resources for Irish, a morphological analyser and a parser, were used to develop an app for Irish. The app, Irish Word Bricks (IWB), was adapted from an existing CALL app – Word Bricks (Mozgovoy & Efimov, 2013). Without this ‘joining the blocks together’ approach, the development of the IWB app would certainly have taken longer, may not have been as efficient or effective, and may not even have been accomplished at all.

Natural Language Processing in Computer-Assisted Language Learning

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Nerbonne
Keyword(s):  
Natural Language Processing ◽  
Natural Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Computational Linguistics ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Large Field ◽  
Computer Assisted ◽  
Computer Assisted Language Learning ◽  
Natural Languages ◽  
User Input

This article examines the application of natural language processing to computer-assisted language learning (CALL) including the history of work in this field over the last thirtyfive years and focuses on current developments and opportunities. It always refers to programs designed to help people learn foreign languages. CALL is a large field — much larger than computational linguistics. This article outlines the areas of CALL to which computational linguistics (CL) can be applied. CL programs process natural languages such as English and Spanish, and the techniques are therefore often referred to as natural language processing (NLP). NLP is enlisted in several ways in CALL to provide lemmatized access to corpora for advanced learners seeking subtleties unavailable in grammars and dictionaries. It also provides morphological analysis and subsequent dictionary access for words unknown to readers and to parse user input and diagnose morphological and syntactic errors.

The promise of NLP and speech processing technologies in language assessment

2010 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 301-315 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carol A. Chapelle ◽  
Yoo-Ree Chung
Keyword(s):  
Speech Recognition ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Computational Linguistics ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Speech Processing ◽  
Language Assessment ◽  
Computer Assisted ◽  
Computer Assisted Language Learning ◽  
Processing Technologies ◽  
Item Types

Advances in natural language processing (NLP) and automatic speech recognition and processing technologies offer new opportunities for language testing. Despite their potential uses on a range of language test item types, relatively little work has been done in this area, and it is therefore not well understood by test developers, researchers or users in language assessment. This paper introduces NLP for language assessment as an area of inquiry and practice by describing the historical roots coming from computational linguistics, statistical NLP, speech recognition and processing technologies, language assessment, and computer-assisted language learning. It outlines uses of NLP and speech recognition and processing technologies in language assessment through illustrations of current testing projects, and identifies areas in need of further development.

Using Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) materials in English as Second Language (ESL) classrooms: perspectives of teachers and students in United Arab Emirates

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ramia DIRAR SHEHADEH MUSMAR
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
United Arab Emirates ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
English Language ◽  
Learning Technologies ◽  
Student Diversity ◽  
Computer Assisted ◽  
Computer Assisted Language Learning ◽  
Learning And Teaching

Integrating scaffolding-learning technologies has been recognized for its potential to create intellectual and engaging classroom interactions. In the United Arab Emirates, having language teachers employ computers as a medium of new pedagogical instrument for teaching second languages generated the idea of Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) as a medium of an innovative pedagogical instrument for facilitating and scaffolding language learning, with an aspiration that it will lead to improved English language attainment and better assessment results. This study aims at investigating the perspectives of students and teachers on the advantageous and disadvantageous impacts of CALL on learning and teaching English as a second language in one public school in the emirate of Abu Dhabi. The results show that CALL has a facilitating role in L2 classroom and that using CALL activities is advantageous in reducing English learning tension, boosting motivation, catering for student diversity, promoting self-directed language learning and scaffolding while learning English. The results additionally report that numerous aspects like time constraints, teachers’ unsatisfactory computer skills, insufficient computer facilities, and inflexible school courses undesirably affect the implementation of CALL in English classrooms. It is recommended that further studies should be undertaken to investigate the actual effect of CALL on students’ language proficiency. 

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