TASK 1 - Website Evaluation

1. Who are the users the website/websites is/are targeting?

The website that I choose as the website to evaluate is call as Activities for ESL Students. The URL address for this website is http://a4esl.org/

“Thousands of quizzes, tests, exercises and puzzles to help you learn English as a Second Language (ESL)” is the tagline for this website. In other words, this website caters the needs of ESL students of all level of proficiency for the activities in this website range from easy to difficult task through activities such as quizzes, test, exercises and puzzles. The activities are then divided into several topics that cover from daily life experience (such as colors, transportation, vegetables and planets) to English language skills (such as grammar and vocabulary). Though this website does not provide pronunciation exercise, this website does have the links to sites with such activities. It also does have links to Podcast.

Besides that, for novice learner who knows little or do not know English Language at all can also participate in the activities in this website via Bilingual Quizzes. They can choose to participate in the activities in two languages which are English and their mother tongue. In Bilingual Quizzes, students or users are asked to choose which of the words in English is actually described the word in their mother tongue. For example:
1. 'kerang in english is known as:
a) lobster
b) cockles
c) octopus

This (the Bilingual Quizzes) will help the novice learner is able to learn English Language better for they are to identify the words that are use in English with the words used in their mother tongue.

Besides the students, this website does cater the needs of ESL teachers who are in search of interesting activities that suit their students. In addition to that, based on this line “this project of The Internet TESL Journal (iteslj.org) has thousands of contributions by many teachers”, it shows that teachers who had created interesting activities and wanted to share it with the others can do so by posting their creation on this website. This way, it is proven that this website is reliable to be use by anyone who wanted to improve their English Language for the activities in this website are the creation of those who are actually involve with the education system. When an activity is created by someone like the teacher who is directly involved in the education system, the activity is definitely credible enough to be use for the teacher will definitely create activity that is authentic and besides, who knows the students better than the teachers?


2. What sorts of things are the application users expected to do with regards to learning and using (or even manipulating) the content?

Well in order to learn, use and even manipulate the content, students should have the knowledge of English Language’s grammar and vocabulary.



3. What sorts of computer skills are the application users expected to have in order to operate / access /use the application?

“Optimized for Speed & Ease of UseNo Advertising, No Nonessential Images, No CGI, No SSI, No PHP, No ASP, No CFM, Minimal HTML, No Nonsense. Our pages should work even if your browser is not compliant with the newest web standards.”

Based on the extract above which was taken from the website, it shows that there are no disturbing images or disturbances while using this website. This is good because for some websites there are many things that will hinder user from using the website harmoniously such as pop ups. The website will directly link users to the selected activity once user click on the activity. In short, there are no computer skills needed for the user to operate/ access or use the application. Students will receive feedback right away or at least after they have completed all of the questions. To make the activities easier for students or users to answer, hint will be given (all the students or users have to do is just click on the ‘hint’ button).

Besides that, based on the extract above which was taken from the website, it shows that there is no application that users are expected to do with regards to learning and using the content. Despite that, in order to use and to get involve with some of the activities in this website, users’ computer should be equipped with Java and Flash of Version 4 (the newer version of Flash is better).



4. While you are “playing” / “accessing” the website(s), does it remind you of anything you do (or have done) in a classroom, or with a teacher, or with a fellow classmate, or in self-study?

While playing or accessing the website, I found that the games in the website looks just the same as the ‘Hot Potato’ program that we had learnt in class previously. Perhaps, the activities’ contributors use ‘Hot Potato’ to create the activity.



5. What setting will the website(s) best used in: independent study lab with no teacher available, lab associated with a class, a teacher-led class with one or a few computers?

Setting that is best used for this website is independent study lab with no teacher available. Because this website will link the users or students directly to the intended activity, there is no need for teacher to guide the students through the activity anymore.



6. Can you pinpoint some theories of language learning and/or teaching underlying the application?

Based on the activities on the website, the theory of language learning and/ or teaching that underlying the application is definitely the Behavioristic Theory. As stated in the CALL notes on Behavioristic Theory, the characteristics of the theory does fit the activities in the application. In this application, like being said earlier, the activities are divided into several topics from daily life experience (such as colors, transportation, vegetables and planets) to English language skills (such as grammar and vocabulary). Not only that, the activities also divided into 3 categories which are ‘easy’, ‘medium’ and ‘difficult’. This proves that learning in this application is broken into chunks and the learner is drilled to mastery before moving on to the next level.


Besides that, according to Behavioristic Theory drill and practice is the key to success. This program does have that for students will be ask to keep answering the question until the get the answer right. In other words, this application uses the ‘repetition’ method for they believe that if a person keep on doing the same things, that person will gradually became a natural master of that thing.




7. How well are the Vygotsky’s constructivist theory of learning and Garner’s Multiple Intelligence theory applied to the chosen website(s)?

Vygotsky’s constructivist theory of learning suggests that children learn languages better when they are interacting or socializing with other people. Though it is stated earlier that this application does not offer the help in pronunciation, it does provide students with samples of sentences that is suitable to be use in real daily life situations. One might say that by using the application students do not learn to socialize with others. That is not totally true for the students are actually socialize with other people because students will learn on how to use certain sentences correctly based on what other people will usually use in their normal daily life (or at least with the computer itself).

The second element in the Vygotsky’s theory is the zone of proximal development (ZPD). Vygotsky believed that any pedagogy creates learning processes that lead to development and this sequence results in zones of proximal development. It's the concept that a child accomplishes a task that he or she cannot do alone, with the help from a more skilled person in this case the child receive the help from the application itself whereby the child will be given hints if the cannot answer the question and the application will keep asking the child to answer the question until he or she gets it right.

Multiple intelligences is an educational theory, first developed by Howard Gardner, that describes an array of different kinds of "intelligences" exhibited by human beings. Gardner suggests that each individual manifests varying levels of these different intelligences, and thus each person has a unique "cognitive profile." The theory was first laid out in Gardner's 1983 book, Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences, and has been further refined in subsequent years.
The theory was proposed in the context of debates about the concept of intelligence, and whether methods which claim to measure intelligence (or aspects thereof) are truly scientific. Gardner's theory argues that intelligence, as it is traditionally defined, does not adequately encompass the wide variety of abilities humans display. In his conception, a child who masters the multiplication table easily is not necessarily more intelligent overall than a child who struggles to do so. The second child may be stronger in another kind of intelligence, and therefore may best learn the given material through a different approach, may excel in a field outside of mathematics, or may even be looking through the multiplication learning process at a fundamentally deeper level that hides a potentially higher mathematical intelligence than in the one who memorizes the concept easily. The theory suggests that, rather than relying on a uniform curriculum, schools should offer "individual-centered education", with curriculum tailored to the needs of each child (this includes working to help students develop the intelligences in which they are weaker).
Gardner originally identified seven core intelligences: linguistic, logical-mathematical, spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal and intrapersonal. In 1999 he added an eighth, the naturalistic intelligence, and indicated that investigation continues on whether there is an existential intelligence. For this application, the intelligent that is use is the linguistic intelligent. Linguistic intelligence has to do with words, spoken or written. According to Wikipedia, “People with verbal-linguistic intelligence display a facility with words and languages. They are typically good at reading, writing, telling stories and memorizing words, dates, discussion and debate. They are also frequently skilled at explaining, teaching and oration or persuasive speaking. Those with verbal-linguistic intelligence learn foreign languages very easily as they have high verbal memory and recall, and an ability to understand and manipulate syntax and structure”
Based on the statement from Wikipedia above, it is proven that this application intended to brush up students’ linguistic intelligences for this application provide exercises that help students in mastering English as second language.


8. In 1980s and early 1990s, there was a major debate on ‘whether the computer was “master” of or “slave” to the learning process (Higgins and Johns, 1984). In relation to your evaluation – is the computer a replacement for teachers, or merely an obedient servant to students?

Computer is definitely an ‘obedient servant’ and human being are its master. It is because students can control the computer. When they feel like they do not want to continue with the activity, the can just get out of it and computer can not force them to continue. Though computer will help human in deciding or choosing the links that they wanted by giving some alternatives, it is human who will decide where he wanted to be link to. The computer just follow human’s instruction and bring them to the link that they prefer.

Besides that, it is human be it the teacher or the student who have to install all the needed or extra software when using certain application. Computer cannot do it on its own. Luckily for this application, no extra devices need to be install.



9. Would you like to use the website(s) yourself in your future work? Yes or no (Give reasons).

Yes, definitely I will use the website myself in my future work (if I become a teacher). There are a few reasons for this which are:

i. It is easy to be use especially for dummies or an IT illiterate person like me.
ii. The activities available are authentic and suitable to be use by students of all level of proficiency.
iii. The activities presented are in interesting form (games from crossword puzzles, fill in gap and multiple choices questions)
iv. It gives broad variation of suitable activities to be use in classroom with students.



10. Suggestions / Recommendation?

I suggest that teachers in Malaysia will use this application when teaching the students in classroom and benefits from it. Not only that, teachers or anyone interested in creating exercises for ESL students can also contribute with the exercises so that more and more students will benefit from it.

Life by: Charlotte Bronte

LIFE, believe, is not a dream

So dark as sages say;

Oft a little morning rain

Foretells a pleasant day.

Sometimes there are clouds of gloom,

But these are transient all;

If the shower will make the roses bloom,

O why lament its fall ?

Rapidly, merrily,

Life's sunny hours flit by,

Gratefully, cheerily,

Enjoy them as they fly !

What though Death at times steps in

And calls our Best away ?

What though sorrow seems to win,

O'er hope, a heavy sway ?

Yet hope again elastic springs,

Unconquered, though she fell;

Still buoyant are her golden wings,

Still strong to bear us well.

Manfully, fearlessly,

The day of trial bear,

For gloriously, victoriously,

Can courage quell despair !