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our country is definitely a wise indication, suitable to the altering global state of affairs. English not
being a native language poses a number of challenges to its learners in India.
On the contrary, the primary purpose of fun-oriented simulations is to be both motivational
and entertaining. Instruction in a particular subject is not the primary concern in fun-oriented
simulations. This type of computer simulation tends to motivate users to get interested in the
simulation itself. Entertainment is the goal. As a result, both user and computer share equal
opportunities to receive instructions from and respond to each other. Furthermore, the user has
multiple choices for taking control. Fewer restrictions are imposed. The user's move could lead to
another multiplicity of choices and the prompting of an unexpected response from the computer.
However, the two categories of computer simulations are not mutually exclusive of each other.
Rather, they would be better regarded as the two ends of a continuum. All computer simulation
activities fall somewhere in between. In other words, it is very possible that a computer simulation
possesses both instruction-oriented and fun-oriented features. The instructor did not instruct and
guide the English conversation practice in a classroom merely equipped with only desks, chairs, and
a large blackboard. Instead, the course was carried out in a multimedia computer language
laboratory. There are fifty six Pentium class desktops in the laboratory. They are all networked.
Two computers are set for instructor use only.
The multimedia laboratory has some features that traditional language laboratory cannot
compete. First, a traditional language laboratory does not have the function of video on demand.
Students can choose an English teaching program they are interested in and learn on their pace of
learning. The English learning program will just serve the student's desired goal of learning. In one
sense, students easily get the individual attention from the computer. Second, the function of a
multimedia laboratory is multiple. It can not only assume the role of a traditional language
laboratory, but also offer teachers more powerful teaching tools with the aid of modern computer
technology. The data was obtained through teacher classroom observation and a group interview of
five randomly selected students. The purpose of the interview session tended to further understand
the student's attitudes toward the CLT approach and the multimedia laboratory. The students,
including three male students and two female students, were randomly selected. The interview
session lasted about twenty minutes in a question and answer manner and the contents of the
interview were noted down. Before the group interview, the five students were briefed about the
nature of the interview. The multimedia laboratory shares some features with the traditional audio-
lingual language laboratory. The teacher can broadcast the teaching materials by playing audio
tapes, video-tapes, or CDs. Students practice with each other in pairs by themselves. The instructor
assigns a pair of students as the model group.
The study presents two types of communication in the multimedia laboratory from the
perspective of the CLT teaching. First, the CLT teaching in the multimedia laboratory presents a
large impact on the student-teacher communication. The student-teacher communication seemed to
be blocked to some extent by the layout of the multimedia lab. Physically, the multimedia
laboratory is larger than the traditional classroom. The physical distance enlarged the psychological
distance. It has the tendency that the two-way communication between the teacher and the students
turned to be the one-way teacher to student communication. Second, the student-computer
communication is relatively new to students. For most of the students, it was the first time for them
to take so much time "talking" to a computer. Here we need to clarify the concept of
communication with a computer. Instead, students need to learn another communication system.
The computers communicate by means of graphic presentation, sound effect, and animated
characters. Students have to learn how to communicate with the computer so that they know what
move they should make next.
Next, the layouts of the traditional classroom and the multimedia laboratory look similar. The
seats and computers are all arranged in a matrix. One important difference is that the teacher can
easily reach students by walking in the aisle between two columns of seats and initiate the
communication. Students can also easily rearrange the seats for the communicative activities in the
classroom. It does not happen that way in a multimedia laboratory. All computers are fixed on the
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floor in the same matrix as the seat arrangement in a traditional classroom. All of sudden the teacher
has the difficulty reaching students. A multimedia laboratory is far larger than a traditional
classroom. Thus, the teacher needs to talk to students through the broadcasting system. The
"intimacy" between the student and the teacher is gone. All students can see is a teacher hiding
behind the control console.
Also, the communicative activities are different. In a traditional classroom, the teacher
provides the topic-specific situation for students to make use of language as much as they can.
Since the traditional classroom is far from any similarities to the real life situation, the teacher has
to tell students to use their imagination and place themselves in that situation. Nevertheless, the
multimedia laboratory offers the opportunity for students to visualize the situation. The computer
software creates a virtual world that is very similar to the real world. It is a world that you can see.
The role of teachers and students apparently change. The teacher assumes the role of coach or
director. He or she orchestrates the flow of communication for the whole class. However, the
teacher must realize that to some extent a teacher has been shared with the computer. In this study,
the computer software is not designed for teaching. Therefore, the intervention of computer in a
teacher's teaching is not very obvious yet. In case that learning-oriented computer software is used
in a multimedia laboratory, teachers have to be aware that students no longer depend on the only
source of knowledge. The computer software will "teach" students the knowledge that teachers are
supposed to teach. As a result, a teacher must transform his role from a coach or a director under the
communicative framework to a coordinator. The teacher coordinates the flow of communication
between the teacher and the student as well as between the student and the computer.
On the other hand, students should elevate their learning motivation and independence on
learning. Students' higher motivation is reflected by the interest of participation. When the
communicative task requires the student and his partner to complete the town building task on the
computer, the negotiation is initiated. Although they might not necessarily speak English when they
negotiate about the town building, some students felt the need to communicate in English. Also,
they felt that they could set the pace of learning. They did not have to finish the town building in
one hour. Rather, they would discuss with the partner and built the town according to their pace of
learning.
First, the choice of appropriate computer software that fits into the setting of a multimedia
laboratory is one of the keys to success. As discussed above, the setting of a multimedia laboratory
is different from a traditional classroom. Computer software is not used at all in a traditional
classroom. Textbooks and audio-tapes are the main teaching sources. They are still very helpful
teaching tools in a multimedia lab. However, the medium of teaching ought to go along with the
computers. The other dimension that should be taken into consideration is that the teaching tool is
also different in a multimedia laboratory. Chalks and blackboard are obsolete. The computer is the
most appropriate teaching tool in a multimedia laboratory. Accordingly, using computer software in
a multimedia laboratory should be fun and interactive.
Second, orientation is import. The problems come from two aspects. One is the computer
software itself. One extra job that students have to do is to learn how to manipulate the computer
software. For the first few weeks, students have to become familiar with the manipulation of the
computer software so that they can begin to make use of the software. Teachers should be aware of
the possible frustration resulting from the unfamiliarity of computer software. The student's
difficulties in the manipulation of the software usually undermine the students' interest in the class.
The computer software is completely new to students. Consequently, negative interactions between
students and the computer proved to be very frustrating for most students. They must experiment
playing with it. However, the teacher assistance will help them smooth out the difficulty and they
will be very glad to engage in all communicative activities based on the computer software.
The significance of the language laboratory has been much felt in the domain of
communication. We live in a multilingual and multicultural world, which is being shrunk to the
size of a village by the advancement of science and technology. The language laboratory exists to
help one to use technology effectively to communicate. It is not merely for learning a single
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