MALL as a burgeoning subdivision of CALL shaped by Mobile 2.0 user-created and collaborative content¶

Theory · All theories
Evidence · 8 claims (8 for) · 2 studies (2 review), q2 · 0 of 2 report an effect size · 8 claims rest on one study

Description¶

The review frames mobile assisted language learning (MALL) as "a burgeoning subdivision of computer assisted language learning in general", driven by the spread of smartphones and tablets that blur boundaries between classroom and home and between computer and mobile device. It organizes the MALL literature by technology type (SMS, microblogging, ambient intelligence/AR, GPS, tablet computing) and argues the new approach to MALL is co-opted from Web 2.0, whose "essential features ... are user-created and collaborative content", carried into Mobile 2.0. The review uses this framing to select and organize the studies it surveys.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Mobile devices with versatile functionalities capable of language learning, such as 3G/4G smartphones and tablet PCs

Constraints¶

• The review states it is hard to confirm MALL has already been fully utilized in educational contexts and notes a lack of pedagogical framework of MALL

Target Learners¶

• language learners using mobile devices in and out of classroom settings

Target Learning Objectives¶

• second/foreign language learning across vocabulary, speaking and listening, reading and writing, and intercultural competence

Claims¶

• Augmented reality and QR-code mobile systems enable context-aware language learning in designated physical zones [+W]
• GPS-supported mobile language learning outside the classroom lets students integrate classroom knowledge with authentic daily-life needs [+W]
• Microblogging and mobile blogging promote target-language interaction, cultural understanding, and a sense of community among language learners [+W]
• Learners showed positive attitudes toward receiving SMS vocabulary messages, and instant messaging raised intercultural awareness [+W]
• In one 30-student study of high-school English learners (Lu 2008, reported in a review), vocabulary learned by mobile phone showed greater gains than vocabulary learned from print [+W]
• SMS use improved both vocabulary retention and reading comprehension among Iranian EFL learners relative to a control group [+W]
• Tablet-PC-supported peer-assisted learning reduced EFL learners' anxiety and promoted motivation and confidence in collaborative reading [+W]
• Language-learning app design is criticized as basic, replicating earlier technologies with limited instruction and feedback [+W]

Related Theories¶

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Jaeseok Yang. (2013). Mobile Assisted Language Learning: Review of the Recent Applications of Emerging Mobile Technologies. English Language Teaching, 6(7). https://doi.org/10.5539/elt.v6n7p19