CALL Site Evaluation

1. GENERAL DESCRIPTION

Web Resource: Heinle’s Newbury House Dictionary of American English

Designed as ‘The All-in-One Essential Tool for English Language Learning’, it contains over 40,000 entries. A vocabulary building tool/on-line dictionary resource, it has simple, clear definitions with sample sentences and idioms. The Home page has a ‘Look up a word’ box which appears at the top of every page. The other pages are: Help, About the Dictionary, Suggest-a-Word, Pronunciation Guide, and Activities. The material focuses on helping ELLs build their vocabulary. All language levels can use the ‘Look up a word’ box; however, some of the other activities may be too challenging for beginners. The Suggest-a-Word page promotes user-to-publisher collaboration. If a word is missing it can be submitted with the online template provided, which includes its definitions, sample sentences, cultural notes, and any synonyms. The Activities page consists of crossword puzzles, quizzes, and an activity guide of twenty-two topic-based lessons, with true/false, multiple choices, and fill in the blank exercises. Answer keys to all the activities are provided.

2. EVALUATION

Technological Features: While there are not any delays in starting up or using the program, not all activities can be completed online: In the Activities Page, when opening any of the World Web Crosswords or Challenge Crosswords an ‘Error reading crossword file’ message appears. They can only be printed even though the Help page says they can be done online or printed. The twenty-two topic-based lessons cannot be completed online, either. The authors’ reference to having the hard copy of the book available for these lessons makes this part of the online program dependent on an external resource, and a bit cumbersome. The program has an easy user interface and a simple, clean format. It’s easy to navigate between the pages as they are always visible on the left side of the site. Another design drawback, when typing a word in the ‘Look up a word’ box it must be spelled correctly, which could pose a problem for language learners. While there is not any sound, graphics, or video, intelligent response handling occurs efficiently. Students can view their results after a quiz and can also e-mail the results to their instructor. With a computer and an internet connection, this program can be used inside or outside of the classroom.

Activities (Procedure): All the activities are sufficiently designed. With the primary activity being the dictionary feature, learners can search word meanings and usage to facilitate their language learning. With the range of activities, there’s flexibility in individual, pair, or group work assignments—promoting collaboration. Between the crosswords, quizzes, and the twenty-two topic-based lessons all in the Activities Guide, instructors have a variety of ways to have their students learn and apply vocabulary in fun ways. The nature of the content lends itself to the linguistic focus features of pronunciation, spelling, morphology, syntax, and semantics, depending on which activity in the program is being performed. All the language skills can be used with this resource, especially reading and writing. A relevant sociolinguistic aspect exists particularly with the twenty-two topic-based lessons. For example, Lesson 12, Let’s Go, is about going places; Lesson 17, Quick Assets, centers on personal finances. This resource can supplement or complement a curriculum. For example, if a reading activity has unfamiliar words, learners can research them with this resource. Or if the curriculum lesson is about personal finance targeting verb tense, Lesson 17, Quick Assets can be used to complement it.

If you are teaching how to use a dictionary, this resource could be a lesson in itself. Dictionary usage is presented in a ‘Guide to Skills and Strategies’ near the end of the Activity Guide.

Teacher Fit: In the realm of vocabulary acquisition, this learner-centered online tool is designed to achieve such. Research skills are utilized to acquire word meanings, uses, grammar, and pronunciation. Cognitive development is further enhanced through the activities, sample sentences, and idioms. Currency of today’s lexicon was evident. For example, the word server was explained with a note that more and more today it is used in place of waiter and waitress. Where computers are available, this tool would fit into any course curriculum. It can be used as a warm-up activity, pre-/post-reading activity, or as an activity on its own. Its value to the language learning classroom is vocabulary acquisition and context usage. Reinforcing learned vocabulary along with supplemental lessons and activities are available.

Learner Fit (Design): Learners at all levels of proficiency can use the dictionary word search feature. The other features are more suited to intermediate and advanced level learners. It’s an efficient reference tool for vocabulary and grammar building. Online quizzes are scored when completed. Errors are noted and feedback is provided as the questions are repeated with their correct explanatory answers. The Activity Guide Answer Key also provides corrective feedback. The topic-based crossword puzzles are recall and comprehension activities. Clicking on the ‘Solution’ link of each page provides an answer key. The instructor has flexibility with this program. For example, learners can do a crossword puzzle before or after they’ve been exposed to the topic-based words in it. They can be completed individually or in pairs. The same flexibility can be applied to the Quizzes and the lessons in the Activity Guide. The instructor can use a set of recently researched words as a quiz for recall purposes—perhaps using the word in a sentence or giving the meaning and part of speech.

3. SUMMARY

It’s a good reference tool for vocabulary acquisition/building. The Activities page needs some tweaking to allow an online/offline option—as the Help page indicates. Also, spelling can be difficult when learning L2 vocabulary; therefore, the ‘Look up a word’ box needs to be modified to allow misspellings, in the same way Google does when you type in a word or phrase.

I experimented with the entire program, including taking some of the quizzes. I answered correctly and incorrectly to obtain program feedback. Aside from my recommended improvements, I would use this program and recommend others use it also. It’s an electronic method for vocabulary research. If learners are not comfortable with computers, this is a simple and easy web resource to improve their confidence with such. It is a useful tool for ELLs.


4. PRODUCER DETAILS

http://nhd.heinle.com/Home.aspx