Developing Interaction Via CMC: A Case Study of Chinese Students Discourse On Bulletin Board System

JIANG Yaoyi Beijing Forestry University

Overview1. Why are they reticent?2. Why CMC may help?3. How do they interact in CMC?4. Reticence or Active interaction? And why?

1. Why are we silent?

1.1 Cultural Attributes

FaceModestyTeachers Hierarchy

1.2 Teaching Process in ChinaLarge amount of information to be conveyedLimited class hours Big classTeacher-centred

1.3 Non-Authentic tasksin a traditional EFL classroom: The questions and activities purposeless and non-authentic

1.4 Anxiety about English LanguageThe Chinese students feel embarrassed to volunteers for fear of making mistakes.They are nervous if the teacher asks a question that they do not know.They feel uneasy if they fail to express themselves or if they feel that their classmates English is better.(Liu, 1989)

1.5 Expectations of Good Students(N=135) (partly quoted from Cortazzi and Jin, 1996: 189)

2. Why CMC may help?CMC may give a voice to students who are usually silent in traditional classrooms (Colomb and Simutis, 1996:208) and may lead to more student-initiated interaction (Gonzlez-Buena, 1998)

2.1 Technical ConveniencesIncrease the richness and diversity of informationFlexibility of time and spaceInformation conveyed over long distanceText-based

2.2 Collaboration

Key features of online learning are cooperation and collaboration (Salmon, 1998)voluntary contribution

2.3 Social dynamicsSocial factors

Li (2000): The tasks with audiences---active interactionThe tasks without audiences--- less interaction

2.4 Task AuthenticityCMC tasks:more conversational and informalgoal-oriented with communicative purposeassist the development of individuation. E.g. :-) , :-(

2.5 Lower Anxiety

Anonymity --- Less face-threatening & safer writing environment than a classroom Text-base --- permanent record for revisionTime-independent CMC --- more time to organize the discourse

2.6 EqualityCMC: a means to share the teachers authority (Colomb and Simutis, 1996: 211)

Face & ModestyAnonymityTechnical ConveniencesEqualitySocial dynamicsTask Authenticity

Voluntary contribution

Lower Anxiety

A Chinese EFL classroomA CMC EFL environmentHypotheses

3. MethodologyMedium: A BBS named English Online (EO for short)Voluntary and anonymous participation Question & Answer time on every Wednesday afternoon

2003-11-31 04:25 PM TONGUE TWISTER I'd drive five miles on Friday night to see a fight that I like. You know I know that you know. I know that you know that I know. A fat man sat on a black cat and the black cat was squashed flat, for the man was mad. Farmer Barnes goes to market in a car, and drives many a hard bargain buying and selling calves. To run and play under the sun is fun. When your work is done, come out in the sun and have some fun. The interface of message page of EO

Period: Ten weeks from Oct 21 to Dec 30, 2003Subject: Students (around 5000) in NEUSoft Institute of Information TechnologyResearch question: How do the Chinese students make interaction in a CMC EFL learning environment? If reticence is found, why?

4. Active interaction or reticence?Data: a. everyday discourse was recorded and coded. b. 11 students, including 3 non-participants, were interviewed

4.1 Active Interaction topic messages:153 976 messages responding messages: 823

Student-initiated: 112Teacher- initiated: 41

Level of InteractionModel 1: S TModel 2: S S T Model 3: S T S Model 4: S S T S SModel 5: S SModel 6: S/T (topic 1) S (topic 2)

Focus of CommunicationProportion of different category of EO messages

Chart1

351

591

31

3

9

351

591

31

3

Sheet1

WeekSocial communicationEFL learningBBs bulidingOff-topic messageSum

Sum

1739019

219515075

3638340150

4757440153

59282039

6457200117

7356610102

8455753110

93810810147

1015490064

351591313976

Figure2

Social communicationEFL learningBBs bulidingOff-topic message

351591313

Figure2

0

0

0

0

Figure3

WeekSocial communicationEFL learning

173

21951

36383

47574

5928

64572

73566

84557

938108

101549

Figure3

00

00

00

00

00

00

00

00

00

00

Social communication

EFL learning

Number of EFL dialogues and social conversations in ten weeks

3

316

5124

8367

7479

2811

7245

6636

5750

10839

4914

Reflective dialogue

Social Conversation

Sheet2

WeekReflective dialogueSocial ConversationOff-topic

1316

25124

38367

47479

528111

67245

76636

857503

910839

104914

5913814

Sheet2

00

00

00

00

00

00

00

00

00

00

Reflective dialogue

Social Conversation

Sheet1

WeekSocial communicationEFL learningBBs bulidingOff-topic messageSum

Sum

1739019

219515075

3638340150

4757440153

59282039

6457200117

7356610102

8455753110

93810810147

1015490064

351591313976

Figure2

Social communicationEFL learningBBs bulidingOff-topic message

351591313

Figure2

0

0

0

0

Figure3

WeekSocial communicationEFL learning

173

21951

36383

47574

5928

64572

73566

84557

938108

101549

Figure3

00

00

00

00

00

00

00

00

00

00

Social communication

EFL learning

4.2 ReticenceTotal number of students: around 5000 Total number of students that registered on EO: 1134

Total number of hits: 9078 Total number of messages: 976

5. Reasons for reticence on EO1) Anxiety and Face problem still exist.2) Unsatisfactory writing feedback3) Learners need4) Quality of English language 5) Lost in the learner-centred EO6) Teachers role. a. changeable Q&A time b. late feedback c. limited coverage of content

6. New findingsThe use of images was helpful to express feelings more directly, in particular for those who are shy and dont say much in real life.EO has shorten the distance and develop the friendship between the teachers and the studentsSuper Pie is regarded as a figure of authorityKeeping silent on EO is selfish

7. ImplicationsFeedback: timely and help; in more detailsMore authentic learning materialMore instruction given to participantsSchooling managementAll the learners needQuality of target language