Synchronous VC with young EFL learners: Whyte & Cutrim Schmid, AILA 2017

AILA World Congress, 27 July 2017, Rio de Janeiro
Synchronous video communication with young EFL learners:
A multimodal analysis of task negotiation
Shona Whyte
Université Côte d’Azur, Nice, France 
Euline Cutrim Schmid
University of Education Schwäbisch-Gmünd, Germany
B9 Educational technology & language learning wp.me/p28EmH-Nk

AILA 2017 wp.me/p28EmH-Nk
Interactive Teaching in Languages with Technology
B: Language teaching and
learning
9: Educational technology &
language learning
http://itilt2.eu
wp.me/p28EmH-Nk
2

Workshop audience & objectives
❖ language teachers using
classroom technologies
❖ teacher educators
involved in technology
training
❖ researchers working in L2
interaction and CMC
3
❖ technical & pedagogical
factors
❖ searchable collections of
practice examples for
teacher education
❖ methodology for analysis
of multimodal interactions

Workshop outline
4
Technical and
pedagogical
considerations
2
Researching
learner interaction
in classroom CMC
3
Further examples
of video communication
4
Background to video
communication project
1

1. Background itilt.eu
❖ Interactive Technologies in Language Teaching (iTILT)
❖ EU lifelong learning project 2011-13: website for IWB in
language teaching
❖ IWB: multimodal learning (audio-visual input/output,
tactile/kinesthetic dimensions)
❖ different countries, languages, educational levels, L2
proﬁciency
❖ examples of teaching practice
5

French primary class learning English
❖ topic: classroom supplies
❖ objective: vocabulary
recognition
❖ teaching materials: page in
IWB ﬁle with images and
embedded audio recorded by
teacher
❖ activity: name image, then play
audio to check
9

… limited interactional opportunities
❖ one learner at IWB in front of whole class
❖ technical rather than pedagogical interactivity
❖ pedagogical exercises rather than tasks
11
lower
levels of
interactivity
basic IWB tools
and features
involving
single learner at IWB
reactive
(gratuitous)
interactivity

Rationale for iTILT 2
❖ iTILT-based research showed that many participating teachers
tended to restrict themselves to a relatively limited palette of
tools and features to meet modest teaching objectives (Whyte et
al., 2014; Whyte & Alexander, 2014, Whyte, 2015)
❖ iTILT partners saw a need less for technical support in integrating
new technologies but rather for increased pedagogical assistance
in designing and implementing learning activities
❖ AND Future Source ﬁgures indicate an increasing presence of
tablet devices and other types of mobile technology in the
educational sector.
12

iTILT 2: a new question
How can we support teachers in exploiting affordances of
technologies with more impact on classroom interaction?
❖ authentic communicative situation
❖ synchronous oral communication
❖ task-based approach
❖ visual support for listening and speaking
❖ pair/small group learner-learner interaction
13

Collentine, 2009
“Doughty and Long (2003)—and similarly Lafford
and Lafford (2005)—argue for the avoidance of
highly open-ended CMC tasks such as scavenger
hunts and even guided SCMC discussions,
recommending instead to follow task-based
language teaching (TBLT) design principles in
which meaning is primary; there is a relationship
to the real world; task completion has some
priority; and the assessment of task performance is
in terms of task outcome” (Skehan, 1996)”
14

iTILT and ITILT 2
❖ iTILT
❖ Focuses on the use of
interactive whiteboards
❖ Open-access website (http://
itilt.eu), a searchable
repository of training materials
(manual, sample materials)
❖ 267 classroom illustrations
(video clips, participant
comments)
15
❖ iTILT 2: http://itilt2.eu
❖ Focuses on a wider range of
interactive technologies: iPads,
tablet PCs, video
communication
❖ Stronger emphasis on pedagogy
❖ Extension of the existing website
to include over 100 new video
clips and associated resources

ERASMUS+ project (2014-17)
website with video
examples of task-
based language
teaching with
various technologies

Development of the project
TBLT
Training
Data
Collection
Website

20 teachers, 25 tasks, over 100 clips
5 languages
English
French
German
Turkish
Welsh
3 educational levels
primary
secondary
university
Belgium
France
Germany
Netherlands
Turkey
UK
6 countries
tablets
smartphones
video
3 technologieshttp://itilt2.eu

2. Technology & pedagogy
21
Technical and
pedagogical
considerations
2
Background to video
1

Synchronous video communication
❖ two primary classes in France
and Germany (English as a
lingua franca)
❖ IWB linked to computer and
projector (SMART board and
software)
22

Synchronous video communication
❖ French classroom: table-top
interactive display (SMART
Podium)
❖ Bridgit (proprietary videolink
with screensharing)
❖ webcam and microphone
23

Task 1: Identity Card
❖ Aim: introductions
❖ Task: the hearer drags and drops
elements on the IWB page to
make an ID card for the speaker
❖ Post-task: learners pool
knowledge to identify pupils in
class photo
❖ Watch German pupil respond to
French speaker
24

AILA 2017 wp.me/p28EmH-Nk26
Research
protocol

Participants: Teachers
27

Participants: Learners
28

Task 2: Funny animals
❖ Aim: describe a “funny animal”
using body parts (head, body
and legs) of ten different
animals
❖ Task: the speaker describes
their drawing of a funny
animal and the hearer drags
and drops body parts to
construct the animal.
❖ Check: learners show their
drawing via webcam for
conﬁrmation.
29

Task 3: Supermarket
30

Supermarket
❖ Aim: learners roleplay a
shopping trip in the other
country
❖ Task: The hearer plays the
shop assistant and the speakers
play customers. The shop
assistant drags and drops
products to the shopping cart
and the customers then pay.
❖ Post-task: teachers review
saved IWB pages with each
class
31

Task 4: Breakfast time
32

Breakfast time
❖ Aim: request breakfast from a
host
❖ Task: The speaker requests
breakfast items which the
hearer places on the breakfast
table.
❖ Post-task: teachers review
saved IWB pages with each
class for additional discussion
33

(Task 5 My lunchbox)
❖ Some German pupils showed their lunch boxes and described their
contents via the webcam just before the breakfast time session.
34

Research
protocol

3. Researching learner interaction
36
Technical and
pedagogical
considerations
2
Researching
learner interaction
in classroom CMC
3
Background to video
1

teacher perceptions
Enhanced self-conﬁdence in pupils’ ability
to comprehend and use the target language
37
Instead of just introducing themselves in a dumb way  
and the others responding by introducing themselves, the IWB was the element
that showed that they had understood. In other words it was an evaluation in a
way. ‘I have understood what you told me.'
They won self-assuredness in their own possibilities and
skills though the visible feedback on the IWB
The children could actively use the previously learned  
vocabulary or structures, and the activities provided space for  
openness and differentiation

pedagogical interpretation
❖ teachers considered VC tasks more authentic and
interactive than traditional activities
❖ development towards less teacher intervention and
enhanced learner autonomy
❖ desire for even greater learner-centredness
❖ challenge: the balance between adequate linguistic and
emotional support and space for learners to create
38

a closer look
❖ not just learner language, also embodied action
❖ physical interactions (IWB, camera, video feed,
classmates, teacher)
❖ orchestration of interaction in complex classroom CMC
environment
39

CMC analysis in classroom contexts
1. ﬁlming
a) ethical considerations
b) observer’s paradox
c) image and sound
2. editing
a) editing image and sound
b) converting/extracting video and audio
c) sharing large ﬁles
3. annotating
a) software: EXMARaLDA, Transana
b) ELAN
c) recent CMC research in CALL
40

complex interactions
❖ recording: class ﬁlms from each side of exchange (FR & DE)
❖ interactions:
❖ French learner(s), teacher, researcher
❖ German learner(s), teacher, researcher(s)
❖ French-German learners
❖ transcription:
❖ English, French & German speech (speaker and hearer)
❖ manipulation of IWB screen (actor and viewer)
❖ other physical movement (gesture, gaze, posture)
41

Annotating
46
ELAN
❖ Max Planck Institut open source freeware
❖ access video (play, slow, stop)
❖ annotate on timeline (transcribe speech, code gestures)
❖ create separate tiers for speciﬁc types of annotation
❖ view annotations in table form

2 media ﬁles: 1 video, 1 audio
view image and wave form

3 tiers
1. language (speaker)
2. screen movement
3. gesture (speaker)
grid
1. list of annotations
2. start/end time
3. duration

affordances and challenges
❖ learner tailors contributions
speciﬁcally to task
requirements (I’m a boy)
❖ teacher provides rapid and
effective orientation to visual
affordances
❖ learner aligns speech and gaze
very closely with screen
movement
52

integrating two sides of interaction
❖ funny animal task
❖ German learner using
IWB to create animal
(left)
❖ French learners
describing animal
(right)
53

side-by-side view
5 tiers

affordances and challenges
❖ distractions due to technical
interface and hors-champ
❖ German class reaction to
coincidence in boys’ names
❖ who is in charge?
❖ German hearer controls IWB
❖ French speaker has speaking
rights
❖ external manipulation of IWB
by German teacher (time lag)
58

other research
❖ technical problems such as lag and impossibility of
mutual gaze “can make conversational experience less
natural and possibly less comfortable” (Kern, 2014)
❖ semiotic perspectives (Guichon & Wigham, 2016) -
champ, contre-champ, hors-champ
❖ methodological issues in CALL-CMC (Chanier &
Wigham, Cohen & Guichon, in Caws & Hamel (eds),
2016)
59

some findings
❖ complex classroom CMC environment (video communication with
screensharing)
❖ ﬁne-grained multimodal analysis shows different reactions:
❖ great autonomy and ease in integrating various sources of information
for some learners
❖ for others, loss of focus and purpose faced with too many competing
channels
❖ role of teacher in scaffolding learners to support interaction
❖ differences between F2F interaction and CMC (lag, mutual gaze)
❖ multimodal analysis allows insight into how learners negotiate tasks
60

4. Further examples
61
Technical and
pedagogical
considerations
2
Researching
learner interaction
in classroom CMC
3
Further examples
of video communication
4
Background to video
1

Synchronous video communication with young EFL learners:
A multimodal analysis of task negotiation
Shona Whyte
whyte@unice.fr 
Euline Cutrim Schmid
euline.cutrim.schmid@ph-
gmuend.de
63
http://itilt2.eu

Synchronous VC with young EFL learners: Whyte & Cutrim Schmid, AILA 2017

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Synchronous VC with young EFL learners: Whyte & Cutrim Schmid, AILA 2017