1 Introduction
1.1 Research Background
Nowadays, there are a growing number of educators starting to design and delivercourses built around computer/Web technologies. This maybe a result of recognizing thatadapting CALL encourages critical thinking and problem solving, collaboration andcommunication, global awareness and information literacy, the so-called”21-st century skills”(Buchem & Hamelmann, 2011, p. 4; Rotherham & Willingham, 2010, p. 17; Dohn, 2009).The origin of Computer Assisted Language learning (which then were still callede-learning ) can be traced back to the works of Suppes and Bitzer in the 1960s. Suppespredicted that one day all the students would be able to use computers as their personal tutor.With the revolution of technology, his foresight came true two decades later. In the 1980s, theterm Computer Assisted Language Learning was established in the field of TESOL. (Chapelle,2001). It is defined as “Learners learning language in any context with, through, and aroundcomputer technologies” (Egbergt, 2005).Today, CALL stands for not just a few mechanical “drill and kill” soft wares, theabundance of online learning websites, the virtual leaning videos, the social networking siteswhich made communication among learners from all over the world possible and even themobile applications. Computer is no longer the only terminal with the wildly use of phonesand tables, as some works suggested, we are now in a post-CALL ear where CALL is movingtowards Mobile Assisted Language Use (MALU) (Jarvis, Achilleos, 2013)The discipline of CALL has also shaped tremendously from a simple reflection ofbehaviorism, of audiolingualism towards social constructivism. Social constructivism ineducation is when leaners are encouraged to interact and participate in learning to construct,transfer and share knowledge effectively. According to a series of study about learneffectiveness conducted by the US National Research Council, SNSs was found to effectivelyassist language learning by creating a learner-centered environment where collaborative ishighly encouraged. Better outcome could be achieved, especially when there was constantcommunication among the peers and between tutor and learners.
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1.2 Significance and Purpose of the Study
Current global innovations taking place affect our lives in many ways. Technology inparticular continues to develop tools such as smart phones, tables, websites. These affect theway we live and learn. In response, educational institutions especially the universities, have amission to ensure that its undergraduates match the on‐going technological advancements bybeing talented, creative and confident. This study of using SNS Tumblr in a university firstyear level ESL class aims to produce independent, self‐directed, team‐oriented, innovativebut socially responsible, nationally and internationally marketable and competitive graduates(Indiana State University Learning and teaching policy, 2008). Its mission is also to extendaccess to higher education by utilising information and communication technologies, withinthe framework of life‐long and open learning. To that end, the goal of this ESL class is tooffer compulsory and elective communication and academic literacy skills courses to firstyear students to provide key competencies for academic and professional life. In view of theabove, this study aims to investigate perceptions of Indiana State University students’ on theuse of Tumblr.
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2 Literature Review
2.1 Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL)
The origins of Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) or Learning as currentlypracticed in education stem from the insightful work of Suppes (1964) and Bitzer (1962).They have clearly situated the use of technology with a broader educational agenda (Suppes,1964,1966,1986). In the 1960s, when the high cost of technology was thought to prevent itsuptake as an educational tool, Suppes foresaw the potential for wider applications ofcomputers in education. He argued that:In the future it would be possible for all students to have access to the service of a personal tutor in thesame way that ancient royals were once served by individual tutors, but that this time the tutors would be inthe form of a computer.(Suppes, 1964; 1966)Even with Suppes foundation work on computer assisted learning, it was the creation ofPLATO (Blitzer, 1962), a time shared computer system which could be used to develop anddeliver computer-based education, truly gave the teachers and students a real taste ofe-learning. Two decades later, the World Wide Web came on the scene, leading to the truerevolution in the field of CALL. The history of e-learning is best summed up as:Opportunities multiply as they are seized.” (Sun Tzu, 410bc)
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2.2 Social Constructivism
In the date, while Computer--Assisted Language Learning (CALL) technologies arewidely used in second/foreign language classrooms, an emerging trend in educationworldwide is a movement of the focus from that of teaching to that of learning and from anindividualistic and objectivist view of learning to a social constructivism view (Palinscar,1998; Reigeluth, 1999; Vosniadou, 2001).“Constructivist learning theory” or “constructive learning approach” is defined as thatlearners are self-builders of their learning that occurs through a mental process in a socialcontext or communication setting, and teachers as facilitators generate learning by creatingthe expected environment and / or utilizing the process. In John Dewey’s words,“Constructivism is a theory about learning not teaching” initiated by psychologists.Social constructivism is a theory about how people learn, based on observation andscientific research. According to which, human being construct their knowledge of the outsideworld through “real world” experience and their reflection after that. When encounteringsomething new, they tend to integrate it with their previous experience.The following except from John Dewey underlines that one can learn only when theydeal with a problem and find ways to resolve it. “Only by wrestling with the conditions of theproblem at hand, seeking and finding his own solution [not in isolation but in correspondencewith the teacher and other pupils] does one learn.”( John Dewey, How We Think, 1910 )
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3 Research Methodology....... 15
3.1 The Aim of the Study ....... 15
3.2 Research Questions .......... 15
3.3 Research Setting and Subject Selection ........... 15
3.3.1 Research setting...... 15
3.3.2 Subject Selection .... 16
3.4 Data Collection Methods.......... 16
3.5 Methods of Statistical Analyses ....... 18
3.6 Research Procedures ........ 18
4 An Empirical Study of Using Tumblr.com in a ESL101 Class......... 21
4.1 An Overview of Tumblr........... 21
4.2 Results and Discussion..... 27
5 Conclusion.......... 41
5.1 Major Findings ......... 41
5.2 Implications...... 42
5.3 Limitations and Suggestions .... 43
4 An Empirical Study of Using Tumblr.com in a ESL101 Class in Indiana State University
4.1 An Overview of Tumblr
Tumblr is a micro blogging platform and social networking website founded by DavidKarp and owned by Yahoo! Inc. The service allows users to post multimedia and other contentto a short-form blog. The common post formats can include links, photos, quotes, dialogues,and even videos. Unlike blogs, Tumblr blogging is most likely used to share the one’screations, discoveries, or experiences. Users can follow other users' blogs, as well as maketheir blogs private.[4][5] Much of the website's features are accessed from the "dashboard"interface, where the option to post content and posts of followed blogs appear. As of February7, 2014, Tumblr hosts over 170.2 million blogs.[2] The company's headquarters is in NewYork City. It is easy and free to sign-up, but it takes a little while to "get it." Get to know the tools by:1.Sign up 2.Go to your Dashboard. 3.Click "Explore Tumblr" 4.Click on the Education tagand scroll through and start following and reblogging people's content. 5.Click on a tag like#edtech or #teachers to see what people are sharing. Or go for a ESL materials like# ESL#. Atthe very least you are bound to find some new kinds of content and teaching advice from theeducational community on Tumblr.
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Conclusion
The findings of this study shed light into the students’ use of Tumblr and how theyperceive it as a possible tool for communication in education. Like students in other parts ofthe world, Indiana State University students in this study used Tumblr frequently forsocialising with friends and family members. For instance, more than 80 % of them indicatedthat they used Tumblr every day for at least one hour. Arguably, Tumblr is part of thesestudents’ life. It is therefore incumbent upon lecturers and stakeholders to devise means ofhelping students to utilise Tumblr in a more educational and productive way to take advantageof the ample amount of time they spend using this tool.Tumblr is a possible avenue that can provide the students with authentic and real worldenvironment for them to better understand the target language, culture and easily reach theother English speakers geographically. It is also available to narrow or even fill the culturalgap between the students themselves and their lecturers. Indiana State University studentscome from different cultural, socio‐economic and political backgrounds. In addition, thestructure and policy of the Indiana State University determine employment of foreignlecturers to complement local expertise. As a result, foreign lecturers bring with them culturesand practices foreign to most students. Therefore, Tumblr becomes a convenient culturalmediator between the students and lecturers. First, it creates a common culturally uniformtechnological platform for both students and lecturers. Second, it reduces the culturaldifferences inherent in face‐to‐face verbal and non‐verbal communication.
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Reference (omitted)