Negotiation for Meaning Routines in Audio SCMC Interactions: An Expanded Framework

Negotiation for meaning, in response to instances of non-understanding, plays an important role in SLA. Meaning negotiation routines in face-to-face classroom interactions have been identified by Varonis and Gass. Smith expands the model to adapt it to text chat CMC environments. In the past decade, synchronous audio CMC has become commonly used for online language teaching, but its affordances are different from text chat CMC. Therefore, it is necessary to examine what meaning negotiation routines are in language learners’ oral interactions in this new online learning environment. In this study, participants were invited to complete two information gap tasks in which target lexical items were embedded to elicit learners’ negotiation for meaning and then they participated in a stimulated recall interview. Based on the analysis of students’ oral interactions in synchronous audio CMC, the authors propose two new possible stages in negotiation for meaning routines and demonstrate how different modes of communication can affect language learning online

Alternative Sewing Machine Control

The introduction of 'A' level Craft, Design and Technology examinations emphasising a much wider area of study than the traditional material based craft examinations has brought the problem of choosing projects which fulfil the requirements of the examination and are sufficiently stimulating for the 'A' level student to maintain interest in what must be an in-depth study. A well organised 'A' level C.D.T. course should include working through practical problems involving research, synthesis, practical construction, testing and evaluation, and probably most important a critical appraisal of what has been achieved. The very nature of any project must be intellectually demanding and draw on other skills and knowledge. The recent Design Council report 'Design Education at Secondary Level' emphasises the value of these skills by saying - 'In design, examinations must also test their aptitudes and abilities in applying their knowledge including skills of analysis and synthesis in the one hand and flair and imagination on the other'. The essence of any good design project at 'A' level must be that it has:-(a) a realistic element of research within the constraints of an 'A' level course,(b) provide new learning experience for the student including craft skills,(c) sufficient scope for original thinking,(d) be capable of producing a variety of valid solutions,(e) the solution must enable the student to demonstrate his/her ability as a craftsman,(f) produce a final solution which can be tested and evaluated in a positive way.All are unknowns until the project is underway.This account of David Parkins 'Alternative Sewing Machine Controller' project demonstrates how the project developed and serves to illustrate how its designer overcame the 'unknowns' and brought the project to a satisfactory conclusion. It also illustrates that even though we try to break down the design process into units such as design brief, analysis of the problem and research, very often the solving of one problem can create another requiring further research and development. An important factor proved to be that as the project proceeded David always had his aim clearly defined so ultimately he produced a good solution to the problem

Bit by Bit versus computer control

Change provides excitement of new challenges for the design and technology teaching profession. New technology, materials and resources provide our profession with the stimulus for change, therefore at Sheffield Hallam University we provide students with the opportunities to evaluate and compare new products with the focus of using them in their teaching. The implementation of the new GCSE design and technology syllabuses has recently provided a further impetus to this work of research and evaluation for the design and technology student teacher. This article is about teaching one aspect of the new Systems and Control GCSE syllabuses using either conventional computer control, already established in many schools, or the more recently introduced Technology Enhancement Programme's (TEP) Bit by Bit controller. Examples of projects developed for Key Stage 4 teaching are used to illustrate how the work progressed together with extracts from the students' evaluations and their conclusions

Human Factors in the Design of Virtual Reality Instruction

The objective of this project was to identify measurable factors that contribute to the quality and effectiveness of training and education in a virtual reality environment. The second objective was to develop a VR application using the Oculus Rift head mounted display and hand controllers to present high resolution 360° video with cumulative multi-choice challenges to create a mental state of flow, immersion, and a suspension of disbelief. Finally, this document represents a guideline on how to produce virtual reality education and training content with a real-world example of the process from research, design, production and use