development and evaluation of english listening study...

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CALICO Journal, 29(1) Yamada,Kitamura,Shimada,Utashiro,Shigeta,Yamaguchietal.

CALICO Journal, 29(1),p-pxx-xx. ©2011CALICO Journal

Development and Evaluation of English Listening Study Materials for Business People Who Use Mobile Devices: A Case Study

Masanori YaMada

Kanazawa University

satoshi KitaMura

The University of Tokyo

noriKo shiMada

The Japan Foundation

taKafuMi utashiro

Tokyo Institute of Technology

KatsusuKe shigeta


etsuji YaMaguchi

University of Miyazaki

richard harrison

Kobe University

Yuhei YaMauchi

jun naKahara


ABSTRACTThisstudyaimstoverifytheeffectivenessofEnglishlanguagematerialsusingmobiledevicesforbusinesspeopleintermsoftheeffectonmotivation,overalllearningperfor-mance,andpracticalperformanceinrealbusinesssituations.WecomparedtheuseofmaterialsdevelopedfrombusinessEnglishforasalesdepartmentinacompanyenvi-ronment,usingtwocohortsoflearners,onefromthesalesdivisionandtheotherfromotherdivisionsinthecompany.Theresultsshowedthatthematerialswereeffectivefortheenhancementofmotivationinbothgroupsofemployees.Moreover,thetestscoresinoveralllearningperformanceforbothcohortsincreasedafterlearningwiththemate-rials.However,thelearnersinsalespositionsrecognizedtheeffectivenessoftheoutputactivities(e.g.,speaking)morethanthatofnonsalespersonnelbecauseofthedirectapplicabilityofthelearningmaterialstotheirbusinessneeds.

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CALICO Journal, 29(1) MobileEnglishListeningMaterials:ACaseStudy

KEYWORDSMobile Learning,EnglishEducation, Listening,Authenticity,CorporateEducation,English forSpecificPurposes(ESP)

INTRODUCTIONBackgroundGiven recent economic and social globalization, interest in practical proficiency in foreignlanguagesisincreasingdaybyday.ForEnglish,alanguageusedworldwide,thefocusisnowontheabilitytousethelanguageinrealcommunicationasapracticalEnglishskillaswellasthemasteryofknowledge-basedgrammarandvocabulary.Intherealmofbusiness,thereisatrendtocultivateEnglishcommunicationabilitiesthatproveusefulinnegotiatingandotherbusiness situations. This trend is spreading in non-English speaking countries (Nickerson,2005).

However,evenforstudentsgraduatingfromuniversitiesorcolleges,mostcompaniestreattheimprovementofemployees’Englishskillsasanimportanttopic,asdohighereducationinstitutions.MoreandmorenewlyhiredpeoplearebeingtestedtoobjectivelyassesstheirEnglishability(e.g.,theTestofEnglishforInternationalCommunication[TOEIC]),eitheratthetimeoftheofferofemploymentoratthepointofjoiningthecompany.Inaddition,the“GlobalStrategy”releasedbytheCouncilonEconomicandFiscalPolicyinMay2006clearlystatestheaimtodoublethenumberofpeoplewhocanhandlebusinesscommunicationinEnglish by 2010 in order to achieve stronger international competitiveness in human re-sources(CouncilonEconomicandFiscalPolicy,2006).However,thetheaverageTOEICscorefornewemployeesinthefiscalyear2006was466,asignificantdifferencefromscoreof730(LevelB)requiredforoverseasdeployment(TOEICSteeringCommittee,2006).

Manyeducationalinstitutionsofferinstructiononpracticalcommunication,includinglisteningcomprehensionandpronunciation,inadditiontoinstructioningeneralEnglishontopicssuchsuchasgrammar,vocabulary,andreading.Mostworkerswhoareemployedbycompaniesandotherorganizationsmustbeabletouseaforeignlanguageinthecontextofperformingtheircorporateresponsibilities.Learningmaterialsshouldbedesignedtoenableemployeestoreachthisgoal.However,inconventionalEnglishcourses,studymaterialshavefocusedonlanguagelearningthatareisolatedfrombusinessoperations(Naitohetal.,2006).Infact,asurveyconductedbyKoike(2007)on7,354corporateemployeesrevealedthatwhencom-municatingwithaforeigneronthetopicoftheirspecialty,morethanhalfcouldnotcompletelyunderstandwhattheotherwassayingand35%oftheemployeescouldunderstandlessthan40%.Listeningcomprehensionisacknowledgedasaproblembytheemployeesthemselves,whorecognizetheneedtoacquirepracticalEnglishskillsthatcanbeappliedtotheirownwork(Koike,2007).

Inthisstudy,targetingworkersemployedbycompanies,wedevelopedandevaluatedstudymaterialsthatservethepurposeofimprovingtheirlisteningskillsintheexecutionoftheirbusinessprocedures.

Design of English Listening Materials for Specific PurposesGiventheabove,thedevelopmentofspecializedEnglishlisteningmaterialsforthepurposeofimprovingemployees’abilitiesinEnglish-relatedcorporateoperations,thebasicquestioncanbestatedas“Whattopicshouldbelistenedtoandhow?”

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Theanswertothefirstpartofthequestion,“Whattopicshouldbelistenedto,”involveswhatislearnersarefrequentlyexposedtointheirdailylives.Forinstance,ifthelearnersareuni-versitystudents,thesubjectwouldbewhatisheardinclasses,clubs,andpart-timejobs.Foremployees,itwouldbetheworktheydointheircompanies.Clearly,materialsneedtobedesignedforEnglishforspecificpurposes(ESP)(Gilmore,2007).

Forthesecondpartofthequestion,“howshoulditbelistenedto,”itisinsufficienttosimplygive learnersthematerialsto listentoasaudio information.Listeningcomprehensioninaforeign language isdifficult toacquire for learners,andthematerials themselvesmustbedesignedsuchthattheystructurethewayinwhichthematerialsaretobepresentedandstudied(Field,1998;Bastukmen,2006).

English for Specific Business PurposesPracticalEnglishabilitymeanstheabilitytoachievegoalsthroughtheuseofEnglishinrela-tiontothespecificpurposeoroccasionforusingEnglish(Hutchinson&Waters,1987;Dudley-Evans&St. John,1996).English forbusinesspurposes(EBP) focusesonEnglish learningmaterialsforbusinesspurposes,oftenintheformofemployees’self-developmentinareassuchasMBApreparationandhasgainedattentionincompaniesinrecentyears.AmongEBPmaterials,materialsthatdevelopEnglishabilitybasedontheuseofknowledgeorskillsinacertainlineofworkinthebusinessoperationsarecategorizedasmaterialsforEnglishforspe-cificbusinesspurposes(ESBP)(Dudley-Evans&St.John,1996).Althoughnamed“specific,”therangeofspecificbusinesspurposesisbroad.Forinstance,theEnglishnecessaryforthegeneralbusinessoperationsofacompanycanbecalledESBP,andtheEnglishnecessaryfortheoperationsofacertaindivisioninacompanycanalsobecalledESBP.Therefore,amoredetailedconsiderationisneededforthedevelopmentofeffectiveESBPmaterials.Inconsider-ingsuchdetails,thefocusshouldbeontherelationshipbetweentheauthenticityofmaterialsandthelearningneedsofthelearner.

The Authenticity of Materials and the Relationship Between Materials and LearnersAuthenticityisoneofthecentralfactorsfordesigninglearningmaterialsinESBP.Ellis(2003)advocatesthatthedegreetowhichthematerialsreflecttheactivitiesinthesocietydeter-minestheauthenticityinforeignlanguageeducation.Muranoi(2006)statesthattheuseoflanguageinthematerialsasspokenandwritteninlanguageusagesituationsinthesocietyisanimportantelementinenhancingauthenticityinforeignlanguageeducation.

Previousresearch(e.g.,Field,1998;Herron,Morris,Secules,&Curtis,1995)hasshownthatauthenticityinforeignlanguageeducationimprovesstudents’acquisitionofforeignlanguageskills.Inaddition,theuseoflearners’backgroundknowledgetohelpthemtoprocessinfor-mationfromauthenticmaterialsissuggestedtohaveabeneficialeffect.especiallyforlisten-ingcomprehension(Anderson&Lynch,1988).Comprehensionproceedsasacombinationofbottom-upprocessingandtop-downprocessing.Inbottom-upprocessing,comprehensionisbuiltupfromsmallerlinguisticunits(e.g.,phonemes,words,etc.)tolargerunits(e.g.,claus-es,sentences,paragraphs,andpassage).Intop-downprocessing,comprehensionproceedsfrompredictionandinferencesbasedontheknowledgeofthelistenerandthegeneralcontextofthepassage.Theuseofalearningmethodthattakesadvantageoftheuseofbackgroundknowledge in top-downprocessingenhances learners’acquisitionof languageskills (Field,1998).Herronetal.(1995)demonstratedtheeffectivenessoftheuseoftop-downprocessingofauthenticFrenchmaterialsasevidencedintheincreaseinlisteningandwritingonposttestsattheendoftheproject.

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However,itmustbereiteratedthattheaboveresearchwasconductedintheframeworkofacademic institutions.Inacademic institutions,scenes fromeveryday lifecanbeassumedtorepresentthesituationsinwhichthelanguagetobelearnedwillbeused.Whenconsider-ingmaterialsforemployeesofacompany,notonlytheauthenticitybutalsotherelationshipbetweenthecontentofthematerials(e.g.,story)andthelearnersmustbeconsidered(Mu-ranoi,2006).

Withregardtothisrelationship,Breen(1985)focusedonauthenticityfromthelearner’sper-spectivetodeterminethedegreetowhichmaterialsreflectthelearner’sextantknowledge,interest,andcuriosity.Schmidt-Rinehart(1994)examinedtheeffectofthelearner’saffinitywiththelisteningcontentandwhetherthateffectvarieswithlearners’levelofproficiencyinthelanguage.ListeningmaterialsinwhichSpanishspeakerstalkedaboutSpanish-speakinguniversitieswasusedtorepresentmaterialscloselyrelatedtolearners,andasectionfromanovelofwhichstudentshadnopriorknowledgewasusedtorepresentlisteningmaterialswithlittlerelationtolearners.Beforeandafterthelisteningmaterialswerepresentedtostudents,the recall rateofvocabularyandexpressions in thematerialswascompared. Irrespectiveofstudents’proficiencylevel,therecallrateforthelisteningmaterialscloselyrelatedtothestudentswashigher.Inasimilarvein,Dörnyei(2001)proposedanalyzingtheneedsofthelearnersandprovidingcontent thatactivatesbackgroundknowledgeasawaytoenhancetheirlearningmotivation.

However,manyconventionalbusinessEnglishmaterialsdescribesituationsthatdifferfromtheoperationalactivitiesoflearners(Naitohetal.,2006).ThisgapbetweenmaterialsandlearnerscanleadtowhatBransford,Brown,andCocking(1998)call“inactiveknowledge”andthuswouldnotbelikelytocontributetotheimprovementofpracticalbusinessEnglishability.

Methods for Teaching Listening ComprehensionTheotherimportantelementtobeconsideredindevelopingspecializedEnglishmaterialsforbusiness employee is themethod of teaching listening comprehension. Listening compre-hension,as readingcomprehension, isnotsimplyameaning-receptionprocessbut ratheraprocessthatactivelyestablishesmeaningandthatisaidedbythepreexistingknowledgeofthelistener(Long,1990;Rost,2001).Asdescribedabove,comprehensionproceedsasacombinationoftop-downandbottom-upprocessing.Ateachingmethodthatmakeslearn-ersawareofbothprocessesintheformoflisteningcomprehensionstrategyhasbeenwidelydiscussed (e.g.,Mendelsohn, 1994;Numan, 2002; Yokoyama, 2005).Mendelsohn (1994)andField(1998)proposedacoursedesigninwhichstrategiesusedbyefficientlistenersaretheinstructionalcoreofthecourseandrecommendedteachingstudentstoconsciouslyusetop-downprocessingtothemaximumextentpossibleandtousebottom-upprocessingtocompensatefordeficiencieswhennecessary.Prelisteningadvanceorganizersplayanimpor-tantroleinpromotingtop-downprocessingtopromotetheuseofthelearner’spreexistingknowledge.Learnerstoshouldlistenwithawarenessofpurpose,andquestionsneedtobegiventostudentsbeforelisteningsothattheycanusestrategiesappropriatetothatpurpose.Inaddition,inordertomaketheexperiencesimilartoreal-lifecommunicativeevents,itisimportanttohavepostlisteningactivitiesinaresponsetowhatlearnersheardinsteadofsim-plylisteningtoapassage.

Yokoyama(2005)alsorecommendedfocusingonprocessandreportedontheeffectsofsev-enprocess-supportingstrategies:(a)listeningwiththepurposeinmind,(b)listeningwhilepredicting,(c)respondingtowhatwasheardandunderstood,(d)guessthemeaningofthepartsthatwerenotunderstood,(e)verifyingtheresultsofpredictionandguessing,(f)ask-

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ingaboutthepartsthatwerenotunderstood,and(g)monitoringtheirowncomprehension.Theefficacyofinstructionusingthesestrategiesisincreasedbytheuseofhighlyauthenticmaterials(Bacon,1992).

Basedonthesefindings,thecurrentstudycombinesYokoyama’s(2005)methodofteach-ing listeningcomprehensionstrategieswiththethreestagesofprelistening, listening,andpostlisteninganddescribesthedesignofEnglishlisteningmaterialsthatfocusontop-downprocessing,bottom-upprocessing,andmonitoring.

Mobile Learning Devices and Second Language LearningToday,mobiledevicessuchascellphonesandPDAsareverycommonlyusedinJapan.Theiruseisnotlimitedtocallingandemailing,butalsoincludeswebbrowsing,camera,andTVfunctionality;theyareutilizedbroadlyasamultipurposetool.Cellularphones,inparticular,havearateofhouseholdownershipof85%(JapanWhitePaperonInformationandCommu-nications,2006),whichis17%morethantheforpersonalcomputers,demonstratingtheirimportanceasavitaltoolindailylife.

Mobiledevicesallowforinformationcollectionandcommunicationregardlessoftimeorplace.Thisanytime/anywhereconveniencealsoappliestoeducation;learnerscannowstudyatanytimeandatanyplaceoutsidetheclassroom(Chinnery,2006;Naismith,Lonsdale,Vavoula,&Sharples,2004).Mobiletechnologycanbeamajoreducationaltoolthatcancoverabroadrangeofuses,fromcomplementingcomputer-basedorface-to-facematerialstoactingasaprimarylearningtoolintegratedwithothermaterialswhichcanthenincreaselearners’fre-quencyofstudying(Roschelle,2003).PriceandRogers(2004)suggestedthatmobiledevicescanbeeffectiveaslearningdevicesbypromotinginteractionwiththerealworldbecauseoftheirfrequentuseindailylife.

Thesefeatureshavegeneratedgrowinginterestintheuseofmobiledevicesinforeignlan-guagelearning.Krashen(1985)arguedthattheamountofinputinaclassroomsettingwasinsufficient for foreign languageacquisition, suggesting thenecessityof learners selectingadditionalforeignlanguageinputontheirown.ParticularlyinsettingssuchasJapanwherelearnershavefewopportunitiestouseforeignlanguagesoutsidetheclassroom,mobilede-vicescanbeeffectiveinprovidingadditionallearningopportunities.

ThorntonandHouser(2005)conductedcomparativeresearchconcerningtheeffectofmobiledevicesonforeign language learning.Theydistributedvocabularystudymaterialsthroughmobilephoneemailtolearnersintheexperimentalgroupandevaluatedlearningtimeandstudentpreferencesintheexperimentalgroupcomparedtothoseinthecontrolgroup,whichusedpaper-basedmaterials.Theyfoundthatlearnersintheexperimentalgroupspentmoretimestudyingthanthelearnersinthecontrolgroupandsuggestedthatmobilephoneswerepreferabletopersonalcomputersforforeignlanguagestudy.

LevyandKennedy(2005)alsosuggestedapositiveeffectofmobilephonesonlearningper-formanceinastudyusingSMSforItalianvocabularyacquisition.Intheirproject,anSMSsystemrepeatedlysentquestionstostudentsthataskedabouttheusageandmeaningofvocabularyitems,andlearnersrepliedtothesemessageswiththeiranswers.Theresultsoftheirresearchsuggestedthatlearnersseemedtobesatisfiedwiththissystemandthatthesystempromotedcontinuedlearningoutofclass.

InJapanesecompanies,theapproachtoEnglishlanguagelearningforemployeeshaschangedfromcorporatetrainingtoindividualemployees’ownself-development(TOEICSteeringCom-

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mittee,2006).However,despitethefactthat90%ofemployeesfeeltheneedforself-devel-opment,nomorethan50%ofthemactuallyengagedinthiskindoflearning,manyfindingit“impossibletofindthetimeforself-development(toobusy)”(EconomicPlanningAgencyofJapan,2000).Thisimpliesthatthebarrierpreventingbusyemployeesfromcommittingtoself-developmentisnoteasilyeliminated.Consideringthisbackground,thestudydescribedheredevelopedavideosystemthatcanbeusedonmobiledevices—NarikiriEnglish!‘ActinEnglish’—forcontinuouslearning,makinguseofthefreetimebetweenbusinessoperations(e.g.,commutingtoworkortravelingtomeetaclient).

Purpose of this StudyIncooperationwithasteelcompanywhoseemployeesarethesubjectsofthisstudy,ESBPmaterialscloselyrelatedtotheneedsofsalespersonnelemployedatthatcompanywerede-velopedandtheireffectivenessevaluated.Thecriteriaforevaluationincluded

1. theeffectonimprovingtheEnglishlisteningabilityofemployeeswhousedtheESBPmaterials,

2. the effect on improving the English listening ability of employeeswhoseworkwascloselyassociatedwiththecontentoftheESBPmaterials,and

3. theeffectonthebusinessoperationsofemployeeswhoseworkwascloselyassociatedwiththecontentoftheESBPmaterials.

Forcriteria1and2,weanalyzedthesubject’sscoresonEnglishlisteningtestsgivenintheprelisteningandpostlisteningstages.Forcriterion3,weconductedasurveyontheeffective-nessofthematerialsforbusinessoperations2monthsaftertheproject.Furthermore,wecomparedtheemployeeswhohavecloserelationstothecontentoftheESBPmaterialsandthosewhodonot,thatis,salespersonnelandnonsalespersonnelforcriteria2and3.

SYSTEMANDESBPMATERIALSDEVELOPMENTConsideration of the Content of the ESBP MaterialsTheNarikiriEnglish!materialswedevelopedforthisstudyaimstoimprovetheemployees’Englishlisteningabilitynecessaryforperformingtheirbusinessduties.Thecontentconsistedofscenes,2minutesinlength,ofdailyworksituationslikelytobeencounteredbyemployees.Thedevelopmentofthestorylineandthecreationoflearningmaterialscreationwerecon-ductedinajointeffortwiththeoperationalmanagerandaHumanResourcesrepresentativeofthecompany.ThestorydepictedthesalespracticesinvolvedinexportinganddistributingproductstoatransportaircraftmanufacturerinThailand—anactualbusinessoperationofthecompany(seeTable1).

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Table1StoryLineofSalesPracticeswithThaiCompany(3-weeksequence)Episode Content 1. WelcometoThailand:detailsaboutpresentdayThailandandthecoilcentercompany’s

currentoperation 2. OverviewofThaicoilcenter:explanationoftheprocessingcapabilityofthecoilcenter 3. Presentationofyourcompany:explanationofyourcompany’sprofiletothepersonnelof

thecoilcenter 4. Discussionofbusinessconditions:detailsabouttherecentstateofthesteelindustry 5. Inventory:descriptionoftheinventoryofeachcompany 6. Theprocessingcapacityofthecoilcenter:descriptionofthesteelprocessingcapacityof

thecoilcenter 7. Lunchtime:descriptionoftheoverallbusinessconditionsinThailand 8. Informationaboutcompetitors’activities:descriptionofyourcompany’scompetitors 9. Talkwithacustomer:greetingstoyourcompany’scustomerandtheintroductionofsales 10. Explanationofcurrentmarketconditions:presentationonthecurrentstateofthe

internationalsteelmarket 11. Lunchtime:discussionoftherestructuringofsteelindustrythatyourcompanyisfacing 12. Listeningtotherequestsofthecustomer:discussionofthedetailsofyourcustomer’s

request 13. Negotiationofprice:discussionofthecustomer’srequestforpricecuts 14. Explanationofthehighqualityofyourcompany’sproducts:Presentationonthe

advantagesofyourcompany’sproducts 15. Lunchtime:discussionofthebusinesscircumstancesinThailand,Thaibusinessstyle,etc.

Thegoalsforeachscenewerebasedonconsiderationofthecommunicativeroleoflisteners,whetherthesituationrequiresonlythecomprehensionoftheinformationpresentedorsomekindofovertresponse.Oneoftheimportantelementsindevelopinglearners’listeningcom-prehensionskillsisensuringthattheyawareofthesituationinwhichthelanguagestructurestheyarelearningaretobeused(Eastman,1991),somethingoftenoverlookedintheconven-tionaldesignoflisteningmaterials(Field,2008).

Structure of the Listening MaterialsAsmentionedabove,thematerialsusedinthisstudyfollowa3-stagestructureofprelisten-ing, listening, and postlistening. The prelistening stage, designed to activate backgroundknowledge,engagelearnersinpreparatoryactivitiesforefficientlisteningstudyby,forexam-ple,checkingtheirbackgroundknowledgeintheformofaquizandlookingupthemeaningofimportantvocabularyitemsincludedinthelisteningpassage.Inthelisteningstage,exercisesareprovidedtohelplearnersunderstandthemainideaofthepassageandimportantdetailssuchasnumbers.Inthepostlisteningstage,exercisesthatdealwiththeprocessingofinfor-mationarepresented,includingquestionsthataskforthecorrectorderofvocabularyitemsinasentencethatrelatestokeypointsinthepassage.Otherexercisesarealsopresentedwhichfocusonthescriptofthepassageandinwhichlearnersareexpectedtoreflectbackonthematerialswhilelisteningtothepassage.ThestructureofthematerialsandthepurposeofeachpartofthematerialsareshowninTable2.

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Table2StructureoftheListeningComprehensionMaterialsStructureofMaterials Goalofeachstage Strategysupported

Topdown

Bottomup

Monitoring

Prelistening 1 Today’sgoal Tounderstandthepurposeoflisteningandtheroleofthelistener

●

2 Doyouknow? Toactivatebackgroundknowledgetoaidinpredictingwhatisgoingtobesaid

●

3 Today’skeywords

Tounderstandtheminimumkeywordsrequiredforunderstandingthepassage

● □

Listening 4 Triallistening Tolistenoncebeforestartingtheexercisesforself-evaluation

●

5 Roughlistening Tounderstandthemainideabylisteningtotheentirepassage

● □

6 Catchlistening Tounderstandthewordsandphrasesnecessaryforcomprehension

● □

7 Thoroughlistening

Tounderstanddetailsaccurately ● □

Postlistening 9 Vocabularystudyreinforcement

Reviewthewordsandphrasesrelatedtothecontentofthepassage

●

10 Today’ssummary

ToorganizewhathasbeenunderstandandtocreatememosinEnglish

●

11 Goodnightlistening

Toself-evaluatebylookingattheEnglishscriptandJapanesetranslation

●

Note.●=primaryuseofstrategyissupported;□=secondaryuseofstrategyissupported

System DevelopmentThedesignoftheuserinterfaceoflearningenvironmentsisofcourseimportant,especiallysowhenconsideringthefactthatuserswillbeJapaneseemployeeswhohavelimitedtimeforself-development.Toselectthemosteffectivedeviceforthisproject,wetookthefollowingrequirementsintoaccount:Thedeviceshouldbeableto

1. present thenecessarymaterials (video,audio,multiple-choicequestions,etc.) for each of the three stages in listening comprehension instruction(prelistening,listening,andpostlistening)andpermitflexibleandeasyde-velopmentofmaterials.

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2. supportcontinuouslearninginshortperiodsoftime(e.g.,whiletraveling)andrecordandsavelearningprogressdata(learninghistoryandstudentscores).

3. toreliablyplayvideoandaudioforlisteningexercisesandenablelearnerinteractionswiththematerials.

Giventheserequirements,weadoptedWillcom,Inc.’ssmartphoneW-ZERO3,whichhas640pxX480pxtouchpaneldisplayandcanfunctioninaclient-serverconfiguration(seeFigure1).

Figure1W-ZERO-3SmartPhone

Theserverside,consistingofawebserverandadatabaseserverdevelopedwithPHPandusinganApachewebserver,performstheloggingandprogressmanagementofthelearners.TheclientsoftwareisdevelopedinAdobeFlashandActionScriptandcanbeusedinawebbrowserwiththeFlashPlayerplug-in.ThearchitectureofthesystemisdisplayedinFigure2.

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Figure2SystemArchitectureofNarikiriEnglish!

Thesystemhassixmajorclientfunctions.

1. Videoplayer Thelisteningmaterialscanbeplayedbythevideoplayerforstudypurpos-

es.Thisfunctionconsistsoftwoparts:oneisthevideoplayer,andtheotherisinstructionandquestionarea.Allfiles,includingvideo(flvformat),im-age,audioandXMLdescribingstructureandtextmaterials,wereinstalledinadvance.

2. Questionpart Thesystemoffersseveraltypesofquestionssuchasputtingwordsinthe

correctorderandmatching.

3. Feedback Learners cansee their scoreat theendof the course (after stage11 in

Table2 above). The feedback functiondisplays four kinds of evaluationsinacobwebchart:understandingthemainidea,listeningcomprehension,understandingdetails,andvocabularyitems.

4. Editing It is easy to editmaterials by controlling the structure ofmaterials and

otherinformationinformationinXML.Thismakesitpossibletocontroltheorderofplayingthevideoandaudio,aswellasquestions,correctandincor-rectanswers,andstudentscores.

Client Server

ClickingHTML file

EmbeddedSWF file

XML

Log

Linking

Video(Flashvideo)

Image

Text(instructions,

questions,answers)

Sendinglogs

Web server(Apache)

MySQL

Logging andprogress

management

Log datamanagement

database

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5. Loggingandlearnerprogressmanagementfunction Trackinglearnerprogressdatainbothmemoryontheclientsideandthe

serversidemakesitpossibleforlearnerstoresumelearningatthepointatwhichtheystoppedinprevioussessions.

6. Learninghistorydata Learninghistorydata(i.e.,inputprovidedbythelearner)ismatchedwith

standardscoresandcorrectanswerssothatappropriatefeedbackcanbepresentedtolearners.

Figure3showsthewaysinformationisdisplayedinthesystem’slearnerinterface.

Figure3LearnerInterfaceandDisplayofInformation

Displays thestage inlearning

Video playcomponent

Video &audio playbuttons

Interactive exercise;display for question and options to chooseas answer

Display for dailylearning progress

Matching exercise;match English words with Japanesemeanings by connecting the dots

Pronunciation checkbutton

Learner score display feedbackfor 4 phases ofunderstanding:

understandingthe main idea,understandingwords & phrases,understandingdetails, andunderstandingvocabulary

Ordering exercise;learners completesentence by putting the wordsin correct order

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METHODParticipants and ProceduresWerecruitedparticipantsfortheprojectthroughtheHumanResourcesrepresentativeofthecompanyaspartof thecompany’semployeeeducationprogram.Becausetheparticipantswererecruitedandwerepermittedusetheirparticipationinthisprojecttosatisfytheirre-quiredcorporatetraining,theywerewellmotivatedlearners.Forty-sevenemployeespartici-patedintheproject,butonly39employees(19salespersonnel,20nonsalespersonnel)wereincludedindataanalysisbecausesomeapplicantswereunabletocompletethetestsintheproject.

At thecompany’s trainingcenter, theparticipantscompleted toapreprojectquestionnaireandtookapreliminarytest.Thenweexplainedhowtousethematerialstotheparticipants.Theparticipantsusedthematerialsontheirowntimefor3weeks.Attheendofthe3weeks,thelearnersagainmetatthetrainingcentertorespondtoapostprojectquestionnaireandtotakeaposttest.Twomonthsaftertheproject,wedistributedanotherquestionnairetothe39participantswhotookthetestsviatheHumanResourcesrepresentative.Thequestion-nairedirectedthe39participantstoanswerquestionsaboutthecontenttheylearnedintheprojectandthedegreetowhichithelpedthemintheirbusinessoperations.Werequestedthatcompletedquestionnairesbereturnedinapproximately2weeks.wereceivedcompletedquestionnairesfrom23employees(11salespersonnel,12nonsalespersonnel).Usingdataobtainedfromtheparticipantsearlyintheproject,wewereabletoidentifythelearnerswithaffinitytothecontentofthematerials(salespersonnel)andthelearnerswithlittleaffinitytothecontentofthematerials(nonsalespersonnel).

Listening TestsTwokindsoflisteningtestswereused:ageneralEnglishlisteningtestandanlisteningtestdesigned specifically for thematerials in the project. Thirty-four listening comprehensionquestionsfromtheGlobalTestofEnglishCommunication(GTEC)implementedbyBenesseCorporationwereusedforthegeneraltest.Thetestdevelopedfortheprojectcontained21questions. Eighteenquestions focusedonmain ideas (maximumscore of 18points), andthreequestionsfocusedondetails(maximumtotalof12points).Thequestionstestedtheemployees’comprehensionoftheEnglishusedinbusinesssituationsthatwerecloselyrelatedtothesituationsusedintheproject,butnotthoseactualsituations.

Effectiveness of the Materials for the Employees’ Business OperationsToexaminewhethertheproject’smaterialswereeffectiveforthelearnersinperformingtheirbusiness operations, two questionnaireswere developed.One questionnairewas adminis-teredimmediatelyaftercompletionoftheprojectandtheother2monthsafterwards.Thequestionnaireadministeredimmediatelyaftertheprojectconsistedofsevenquestionsanddealtwithexpectationsfortheeffectivenessofthematerials,askingwhetherthevocabulary,expressions,andcontentlearnedfromthematerialswouldbepotentiallyusefulinthelearn-ers’businessoperations.Eachquestionwasansweredona5-pointLikertscale(5=Very much agreeand1=Don’t agree at all).Thesecondquestionnaireadministered2monthsafterprojectconsistedofeightquestionsanddealtwiththeperceivedeffectivenessofthematerialsforthebusinessEnglishsituationsthelearnersencounteredintheirbusinessopera-tions.EachquestionwasansweredwithasimpleYesorNo.

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RESULTSLearning EffectsToexaminetheeffectoftheuseofthematerialsforthefirstevaluationcriterion,improvingtheEnglishlisteningabilityoftheemployees,theresultsofthegeneralandspecificpre-andposttestswereanalyzed.Inaddition,thescoresofthesalespersonnelversusnonsalesper-sonnelweresimilarlyanalyzedtoaddresscriteria2and3, improvingtheEnglish listeningabilityofemployeesclosedassociatedwiththecontentofthematerialsandtheeffectofthebusinessoperationsoftheemployeescloselyassociatedwiththecontentofthematerials.Table3summarizestheresultsofallthetests.

Table3ResultsoftheGeneralTestandtheMaterials-SpecificPretestsandPosttests

Generaltest

Sales(n=19) Nonsales(n=20) Ranksumtest(sales-nonsales)M Mdn SD M Mdn SD

GTEC Pretest 123.47 122.00 16.08 128.05 125.50 19.86

z=0.51Posttest 132.84 129.00 19.53 135.70 131.50 20.14Difference 9.37 10.00 13.80 7.65 7.50 11.19

Pre-post Signedranksumtest

z=-2.44* z=-2.71**

Materials-specifictestSales(n=19) Nonsales(n=20) Ranksumtest

(sales-nonsales)

M Mdn SD M Mdn SD

Understandmainidea

Pretest 8.68 9.00 2.58 8.70 8.00 3.29



z=-3.74*** z=-3.93***

Sales(n=19) Nonsales(n=20) Ranksumtest(sales-nonsales)

M Mdn SD M Mdn SD

Understanddetails

Pretest 5.89 4.00 3.09 6.60 8.00 4.16



z=-3.25** z=-1.72

*p<.05;**p<.01;***p<.001

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GenerallisteningtestBoththesalesandnonsalespersonnelscoredhigherontheposttestthanthepretest(salespersonnelz=-2.44,p<.05;nonsalespersonnelz=2.71,p<.01).However,theWilcoxonranksumtestshowsnosignificantdifferencebetweenthetwogroups(z=0.51).

Materials-specificlisteningtestBothsalesandnonsalespersonnelscoredhigherontheposttestthanthepretestforunder-standingthemainidea(salespersonnelz=-3.74,p<.001;nonsalespersonnelz=-3.93,p<.001).Thesalespersonnelscoredhigherontheposttestforunderstandingdetails,butnotthenonsalespersonnel(salespersonnelz=-3.25,p<.01;nonsalespersonnelz=-1.72,n.s.).However,theranksumtestshowsnodifferencebetweenthetwogroupsforunderstand-ingthemainidea(z=0.58)ordetails(z=0.86).

Effectiveness on Real-Life OperationsExpectationsofeffectivenessofthematerialsonreal-lifeoperationsTo investigate theexpectedeffectivenessof thehighlyspecificmaterials forsalesperson-nel versusnonsales personnel, aWilcoxon rank sum testwasperformedon the learners’responsestothequestionsonthesurveyadministeredattheendoftheproject.Table4liststheresultsofthisanalysis.

Table4ComparisonofExpectedEffectivenessoftheMaterialsonReal-LifeOperationsbyGroup(Im-mediateSurvey)Question Salespersonnel

(n=18)Nonsalespersonnel

(n=18)Ranksumtest(sales-nonsales)M Mdn SD M Mdn SD

1. DoyouthinktheEnglishexpressionsin“NarikiriEnglish!”wouldbeusefulwhenyouspeakEnglishinyourwork?

4.66 5.00 0.48 4.20 4.00 0.52 z=2.60**

2. DoyouthinktheEnglishexpressionsin“NarikiriEnglish!”wouldbeusedwhenyouspeakEnglishinyourwork?

4.38 5.00 0.97 3.65 4.00 0.93 z=2.68**

3. DoyouthinktheEnglishexpressionsin“NarikiriEnglish!”wouldbeusefulwhenyouwriteEnglishinyourwork?

4.50 5.00 0.61 3.70 4.00 0.73 z=3.20**

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4. DoyouthinktheEnglishexpressionsin“NarikiriEnglish!”wouldbeusedwhenyouwriteEnglishinyourwork?

4.11 4.00 0.96 3.35 3.00 0.81 z=2.66**

5. DoyouthinktheEnglishlisteningpracticein“NarikiriEnglish!”wouldbeusefulinlisteningtoEnglishinyourwork?

4.44 5.00 0.70 3.85 4.00 0.87 z=2.33*

6. DoyouthinktheEnglishlearningwith“NarikiriEnglish!”wouldbeusefulinreadingEnglishinyourwork?

4.22 4.00 0.87 3.75 4.00 0.63 z=2.09*

7. DoyouthinktheEnglishlearningwith“NarikiriEnglish!”wouldbeusefulinEnglishcommunicationinyourwork?

4.50 4.50 0.51 4.05 4.00 0.39 z=2.76**

*p<.05;**p<.01

Perceived effectiveness of the materials real-life operations 2 months after theprojectAX2testwasperformedonthelearners’responsestothequestionsonthesurveyadminis-tered2monthsaftercompletionoftheproject.Table5liststheresultsofthisanalysis.

Table5ComparisonofPerceivedEffectivenessoftheMaterialsonReal-LifeOperationsbyGroup(De-layedSurvey)Question Group Yes No X2

1. DidtheEnglishexpressionsin“NarikiriEnglish!”proveusefulinspeakingEnglishatwork?

Sales 8 4 5.49*Nonsales 2 9

2. WasthereanopportunitytoapplytheEnglishexpressionsyoulearnedin“NarikiriEnglish!”tospeakingEnglishatwork?

Sales 5 7 3.16Nonsales 1 10

3. DidtheEnglishexpressionsin“NarikiriEnglish!”proveusefulinwritingEnglishatwork?


4. WasthereanopportunitytousetheEnglishexpressionsin“NarikiriEnglish!”inwritingEnglishatwork?


5. DidtheEnglishlisteningpracticesin“NarikiriEnglish!”proveusefulinlisteningtoEnglishatwork?


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6. DidtheEnglishexpressionsin“NarikiriEnglish!”proveusefulinreadingEnglishatwork?


7. DidtheEnglishstudywith“NarikiriEnglish”proveusefulinEnglishcommunicationatwork?


8. Wasthereanopportunitytoapplywhatyoulearnedin“NarikiriEnglish!”toEnglishcommunicationatwork?


*p<.05

Significantdifferenceswere found in fourof thequestions:Did theEnglishexpressions in“NarikiriEnglish!”proveusefulinspeakingEnglishatwork?DidtheEnglishexpressionsin“NarikiriEnglish!”proveusefulinreadingEnglishatwork?DidtheEnglishstudywith“NarikiriEnglish”proveusefulinEnglishcommunicationatwork?andWasthereanopportunitytoap-plywhatyoulearnedin“NarikiriEnglish!”toEnglishcommunicationatwork?

DISCUSSIONEffect of the ESBP Materials on the Employees’ Improvement in English Listening Ability ThefirsttwoevaluationcriteriareferredtotheeffectofthematerialsonimprovingtheEnglishlisteningabilitiesof(a)alltheemployeeswhoparticipatedintheprojectand(b)especiallythosewhoseworkwasdirectlyrelatedtothecontentofthematerials(thesalespersonnel).Agenerallisteningtestandamaterials-specificlisteningtestweregivenattheendoftheproj-ecttoinvestigatetheseeffects.Theemployees’scoresonbothposttestsshowedsignificantgainsfromthepretestsonalmostallmeasures.However,analysisdidnotshowanysignifi-cantdifferencesbetweenthegroups(salesvs.nonsales).

Theuseofthehighlyspecificmaterialshadacleareffectontheemployees’listeningabili-ties,butnotontheemployeeswhoseworkwasthemostcloselyrelatedtothecontentofthematerials.Tworeasonsfortheseresultscanbeinferred.First,thenonsalespersonnelcouldhaveimprovedtheirlisteningabilitiesbyacquiringthebackgroundknowledgepresentedintheprelisteningstageofthematerials.Thematerialssupportedbothtop-downprocessingthatincludedtheactivationofbackgroundknowledgeandbottom-upprocessingthatfocusedonindividualEnglishwordsandphrases.Theoriginalpurposeofstep2oftheprelisteningstage(seeTable2above)wastoactivatethebackgroundknowledgeofsalespersonnel,notthatofthenonsalespersonnel.However,thisstepcouldhaveanopportunityforthenonsalespersonneltoacquirenewknowledge,whichinturnmayhavecontributedtotheimprovementoftheirlisteningabilities.Second,employeesinthecompanyareroutinelyreassignedtodif-ferentdivisions.Itispossiblethatthecurrentnonsalespersonnelhadpreviousexperienceinsales.Thispreviousexperiencemayhaveallowedtheseemployeestorecognizetheiraffinitywiththecontentofthematerials.Timedidnotpermittheresearcherstoexplorethisissue.

Authenticity of Materials: Effects of the ESBP Materials on the Business Operations of Employees Whose Work Was Closely Associated with the Content of the MaterialsAsurveywasconductedimmediatelyaftertheprojectandagain2monthslatertoinvestigatetheeffectonthematerialsonthebusinessoperationsofemployeeswhoseworkwascloselyrelatedtothecontentofthematerials(criterion3).Analysisoftheemployees’responsesto

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thesurveyquestionssuggestedthatemployeesinthesalesdivision,atwhomthemateri-alsweretargeted,hadstrongexpectationsofbeingabletowhattheylearnedintheiractualbusinessoperations.LearnerswhowereexposedtoEnglishlanguagesituationsintheirworkthatcorrespondedcloselytothecontentofthematerialsseemtohavebeenabletousewhattheylearnedinspeaking,reading,writing,andlisteningtoEnglishintheiractualbusinessoperations.

Therearetwopossiblereasonsforthisresult.Onereasonisduetothefactthat listeningprovideseffectiveinputthattransferstotheotherskills(Dunkel,1991;Rubin,1994).DeM-auro(1992)foundacorrelationof.5orhigherbetweenlisteningsectionoftheTOEFLandthescoresontheothersectionsmeasuringdifferentkindsofskills.Thesecondreasonisfoundinthecontextualeffectofthematerials.TheCognitionandTechnologyGroupatVanderbilt(1997) demonstrated that learners who learnedmathematics to develop problem-solvingskillsinsituationsinwhichmathematicswasactuallyusedwereabletotransferwhattheylearnedtoreal-lifesituations.Inthestudydescribedhere,whiletherewasnostatisticallysignificantdifferencebetweenthesalespersonnelandnonsalespersonnelregardingEnglishability,butthesalespersonnelhadhigherexpectationsandputwhattheylearnedtousebet-terthanthenonsalespersonnel.Thefollowingtworesponsesontheopen-endedquestionsinthesecondquestionnaireconfirmedthisfinding.

Internationalcallstoourpilotnumberareoftentransferredtome.Itmaybethe fruit of ‘Narikiri English!’ and subsequent listening practice. I can catchmostofwhatissaidonthephoneandspeakwell.

Ihadanopportunitytodinewithaforeignguest,andduringthecasualtalkrelatingtosteel(e.g.,marketconditionsandhighercostofrawmaterials)IwasabletoarrangeandusewhatIlearned.

CONCLUSIONInthisstudy,thefollowingthreecriteriawereestablishedtoexaminetheeffectsandeffec-tivenessofthematerialsdevelopedforEnglishforspecificbusinesspurposes:

1. theeffectonimprovingtheEnglishlisteningabilityofemployeeswhousedtheESBPmaterials,

2. the effect on improving the English listening ability of employeeswhoseworkwascloselyassociatedwiththecontentoftheESBPmaterials,and

3. theeffectonthebusinessoperationsofemployeeswhoseworkwascloselyassociatedwiththecontentoftheESBPmaterials.

Toexaminethesethreecriteria,wecreatedEnglishlisteningmaterialsthatfocusedonthesalesoperationofasteelcompanyandusedtheminanindependentcorporatetrainingpro-gram.Wecomparedthelearningoutcomesofemployeesinthecompany’ssalesoperationtothoseofemployeesengagedinoperationsotherthansales.Analysisofthedataresultedinfollowingfindings:

1. Asmeasuredbyposttests,learningeffectsduetotheuseofthesematerialswereevidentandequallyeffectiveforallemployees.Therewasnodiffer-encebetweentheemployeesinthesalesandnonsalesgroups.

2. A transfer effectmay have occurred in employeeswhosework situation(i.e.,sales)wascloselyalignedtothecontentofthelearningmaterials.

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Traditionally,secondlanguageacquisitionresearch,particularlyESPresearch,hasexaminedtheEnglishusagesituationoflearners.Itcanbeexpectedthattheuseofmaterialsthatac-cordwith learners’ usagegoalshasaneffect on their learningachievementandaffectivecharacteristics,includingmotivationbecauselearnersareawarethatwhattheyarelearningcorrespondsdirectlytheirreal-lifeneedsandinterests.However,thethemesadoptedinmanylearning learningmaterials,evenwhen thosematerials claim to representspecificEnglishusagesituations,tendtoberelatedtogeneralizedsituations.Forinstance,manymaterialsinprogramsdesignedforEnglishforacademicpurposescovercommunicationinclassesandprocedurestofollowinacademicsettings.Englishmaterialsintendedforbusinesspeopleareinsufficient if thematerialsare limitedtogeneralsituationssuchasmarketingnegotiationandcommunicatingrequests.BusinesspeoplearerequiredtomakefulluseoftheirEnglishinthebusinessoperationsthataredeeplyrootedinspecificcorporateareas.Theauthenticityoflearningmaterials,thatis,thedegreetowhichthelearningmaterialsmatchtheuniquerequirementsinspecificcorporateareashasbeenlargelyunexamined(Field,2008;Gilmore,2007).

Thisstudydoeshavesomelimits.Weundertooktheprojectasacasestudyforwhichwecol-lecteddatafromatotalofapproximately40peopleatasinglecompany.Weneedtocontinuetoextendthiskindofresearchatothercompaniestocorroboratethefindingsofourstudy.Particularlyintheexaminationoftheeffectoftheuseofthematerialsafter2months,wedidnothavetheopportunitytomakedirectobservationsandwerelimitedtoexaminingthepos-sibilityofeffectself-reportedanswerstosurveyquestions.Afutureprojectcouldsolvethisproblembyestablishingaframeworkforjointresearchwithacompanyandusingevaluationmethodstomeasureeffectivenessofthelearningmaterialsintheactualcompanyoperations.

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Yokoyama,N.(2005).Theeffectsofprocess-orientedlisteninginstruction:Ananalysisofcomprehen-sionprocessinaninteractivesetting.Acquisition of Japanese as a Second Language,8,44-63.Translated from Japanese title. ITISCUSTOMARYTOLISTTHETITLEINTHEORIGINALLAN-GUAGEANDTHENTHEENGLISHTRANSLATIONOFTHETITLEINBRACKETS.FOREXAMPLE,Lesevaluationsdesenseignantsengrandsectiondematernellesont-ellesprédictivesdesdifficultiesdelectureencourspréparatoire?[Areteacherratingsinkindergartenpredictiveofreadingdif-ficultiesinfirstgrade?]IFTHEENGLISHVERSIONISTHEDOCUMENTTHATWASUSED,THENTHEJUSTTHETRANSLATIONOFTHETITLECANBELISTED??

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSThisstudywassupportedbyBenesseCorporationascollaborativeresearch,andGrant-in-AidforYoungScientists(B)No.19700629fromtheJapanSocietyforthePromotionofScience(JSPS).

AUTHORS’BIODATAMasanori Yamada is Associate Professor in the Research Center for Higher Education atKanazawaUniversity,AssociateProfessor in Interfaculty Initiative in Information(iii)Stud-iesattheUniversityofTokyoandVisitingFellowinHumanInnovationResearchCenteratAoyamaGakuinUniversity.Heisengagedinresearchanddevelopmentofcomputer-mediatedcommunication systems andmultimedia language teachingmaterials. Heworked for NTTComwareCorporationwherehewasengagedintheresearchonthetechnologyrelatedtomovingimagesfrom2000to2003.HereceivedhisM.A.andPh.D.inHumanSystemSciencefromTokyoInstituteofTechnologyin2005and2008,respectively.HewasJapanSocietyforthePromotionofScience(JSPS)researchfellowshipforyoungscientistsin2007.

Satoshi Kitamura is Project Assistant Professor (full time) in the Interfaculty Initiative inInformationStudiesatTheUniversityofTokyo.Hisresearchcentersonman’smediausagebehaviorsininterpersonalcommunication.Hehasalsobeenengagedinaprojectwhichin-vestigateshumanbehaviorsobservedintheuseofmassmedia,internet,cellphonesaswellasliveconversations.Heisalsoengagedintheevaluationresearchforeducationalsystemsinthefieldofeducationaltechnology.HeisarecipientoftheResearchAwardoftheJapanSocietyforSocio-InformationStudies.

NorikoShimadaisJapaneseLanguageSpecialistatTheJapanFoundationJapanese-LanguageInstitute,Urawa.Shehasbeenengaged in the researchbasedoneducationalpracticeofJapaneselanguageeducation.Hercurrentresearchareaisdevelopmentofteachingmateri-alsandteachereducationsforlanguagelearning.SheisadoctoralstudentintheInterfacultyInitiative,InformationStudiesGraduateSchoolofInterdisciplinaryInformationStudies,TheUniversityofTokyo.

TakafumiUtashiroisaPh.D.candidateintheDepartmentofHumanSystemScience,Gradu-ateSchoolofDecisionScienceandTechnology,TokyoInstituteofTechnology.HetaughtJapa-neseinTaiwan.Hisresearchinterestsincludecomputer-assistedlanguagelearning,secondlanguage learningandteaching,pragmaticsof language learningandteachingspecially inJapaneseasaforeignlanguage/Japaneseasasecondlanguagecontexts.

KatsusukeShigetaisAssistantProfessor(fulltime)attheUniversityofTokyo.HeisdoingresearchattheCenterforResearchandDevelopmentinHigherEducationandTheUniver-sityofTokyo.HereceivedB.A.,M.S.,andPh.D.inHumanSciencesfromOsakaUniversityin

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2003,2005,and2007,respectively.Hisprimaryfieldiseducationaltechnology,inparticularresearchforsharinglearningmaterialsvianetworks,sharingeducationalinformationusingtheinternetormobiledevices,andinternationaldistancelearningusingvideoconferencing.Hiscurrentresearchfocusestohowtousetechnologyforeducationtoshareandreuseopeneducationalresources.HehasbeenavisitingresearcherattheUniversityofCalifornia,Berke-leyintheUnitedStatesfrom2009.

EtsujiYamaguchiisAssociateProfessor,FacultyofEducationandCulture,UniversityofMi-yazaki.Heisaspecialistinscienceeducationandhasbeenengagedinpracticalresearchintobothteachingandlearningofsciencethatutilizeinformationandcommunicationstechnology.HeisarecipientofEncouragementAwardfromtheSocietyofJapanScienceTeachingandtheJapanSocietyforScienceEducation.HeearnedaPh.D.inscienceeducationfromKobeUniversity.

RichardHarrisonisAssociateProfessorattheInternationalStudentCentre,KobeUniversity.Hehasbeeninvolvedintheuseofmediaandnetworktechnologyforlanguagelearningsince1990,workingatUniversitiesintheUK,Australia,andJapan.Hiscurrentresearchfocusesoninvestigatingtheuseofsocialnetworkingsitesforlanguagelearningusingsocialinteractiontheory.HehasbeenavisitingresearcherworkingonCALLsystemsattheUniversityofTsu-kubain1996andTheUniversityofManchesterin2004,andistheco-authorofabookcalledWebquests(inJapanese)publishedbyReimeiPublishing.

YuheiYamauchiisAssociateProfessorintheInterfacultyInitiativeinInformationStudiesatTheUniversityofTokyo.Hehasbeenengagedinresearchthatiscombinedwithfieldworkwithregardtodesigningeducationalenvironmentsthatmakeuseofinformationtechnology.HeistheauthorofDigital Shakai no Literacy[LiteracyintheDigitalSociety],IwanamiShotenandaco-authorofShakaijin Daigakuin e Iko[FromWorkertoPostgraduate]NHKPublica-tions.HeisalsoarecipientoftheOutstandingYoungResearcherAwardandtheBestResearchPaperAwardfromtheJapanSocietyforEducationalTechnology.

JunNakaharaisAssociateProfessorattheCenterforResearchandDevelopmentinHigherEducationatTheUniversityofTokyo.Hehasbeeninvolvedinresearchontheuseofinforma-tiontechnologyinhighereducation,corporatehuman-resourcedevelopment,anddevelop-mentoflearningsystemsutilizingcellphones.Dr.NakaharawasavisitingresearcherattheMassachusettsInstituteofTechnologyintheUnitedStatesin2004andisarecipientoftheOutstandingYoungResearcherAwardand theBestResearchPaperAward fromtheJapanSocietyforEducationalTechnology.

AUTHORS’ADDRESSESMasanoriYamadaResearchCenterforHigherEducation,KanazawaUniversityKakuma-machi,Kanazawa,Ishikawa,920-1192,JAPANEmail:[email protected]

SatoshiKitamuraTheUniversityofTokyo7-3-1,Hongo,Bunkyo-ku,Tokyo,113-0033,JAPANEmail:[email protected]

NorikoShimadaTheJapanFoundationJapanese-LanguageInstitute,Urawa

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5-6-36Kita-urawa,Urawa-ku,Saitama-shi,Saitama,330-0074,JAPANEmail:[email protected]

TakafumiUtashiroTokyoInstituteofTechnology2-12-1,Ookayama,Meguro-ku,Tokyo,152-8550,JAPANEmail:[email protected]

KatsusukeShigetaTheUniversityofTokyo7-3-1,Hongo,Bunkyo-ku,Tokyo,113-0033,JAPANEmail:[email protected]

EtsujiYamaguchiFacultyofEducationandCulture,UniversityofMiyazaki1-1Gakuen-Kibanadai-Nishi,Miyazaki889-2192,JAPANEmail:[email protected]

RichardHarrisonKobeUniversityInternationalStudentCenter,1-1Rokkodai-cho,Nada-ku,KOBE,Hyogo657-8501,JAPANEmail:[email protected]

YuheiYamauchiJunNakaharaTheUniversityofTokyo7-3-1,Hongo,Bunkyo-ku,Tokyo,113-0033,JAPANEmail:[email protected];[email protected]

development and evaluation of english listening study...

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