"Brave New Digital Classroom" deftly interweaves results of pedagogical research and descriptions of the most successful computer-assisted language learning (CALL) projects to explore how technology can best be employed in the foreign-language curriculum to assist the second language acquisition process. Directed to all language teachers - whether at the school or the postsecondary level, with or without prior experience - this book focuses on how to use new technologies effectively. Blake urges teachers to move beyond a simple functional competence of knowing how to use the tools toward first a critical competence - realizing what the various tools are good for - and ultimately a rhetorical competence of knowing how the tools will help transform the learning environment.This book examines the effective use of a range of technologies, from Internet sites through computer-mediated communication such as synchronous chatting and blogs, to distance learning. At the end of each chapter questions and activities demonstrate the interactionist, learner-centered pedagogy Blake espouses. An invaluable reference for experienced researchers and CALL developers as well as those of limited experience, "Brave New Digital Classroom" is also ideal for graduate level courses on second language pedagogy. It will also be of interest to department chairs and administrators seeking to develop and evaluate their own CALL programs.

Table of Contents

Foreword by Dorothy M. ChunPreface 1. SLA, Language Teaching, and Technology: An Overview 2. Web Pages in Service of L2 Learning 3. CALL and Its Evaluation 4. Computer Mediated Communication (CMC) 5. Distance Learning for Languages: Does It Measure Up? 6. Putting It All Together Appendix to Chapter 5 Glossary References Index

About the Author

Robert J. Blake is director of the UC Consortium for Language Learning and Teaching and professor of Spanish and classics, University of California, Davis.

Prizes

"An eminently useful, well-written, and most informative little book. Based on sound SLA research, it offers a reasoned use of various computer technologies to enhance and enrich the language learning experience. A must for any methods course at the college level." -- Claire Kramsch, University of California, Berkeley "A very important contribution to the field of technology and foreign language learning. It is able to synthesize abstract theoretical issues into understandable language while also addressing practical issues of the implementation of technology into a foreign language curriculum. Specialists in this field, especially those teaching graduate seminars on this topic, will welcome this book." -- Barbara A. Lafford, Arizona State University "Destined to become a classic reference for anyone venturing into the field of distance language learning. For all of the others who have gained their experience in a field in which the L2 acquisition process has been studied mostly in the face-to-face classroom environment, Blake challenges our assumptions and directs our attention to the potential of new interactional environments for the processing and acquisition of the L2." -- Rafael Salaberry, University of Texas at Austin

Reviews

" Brave New Digital Classroom serves many purposes and can be used within multiple levels of instruction, making it one of the best buys on the market... [An] indispensable tool within the CALL environment and will prove to be an essential resource for present and future FL educators." -- Modern Language Journal "A concise, well-written, and accessible book that will appeal to language teachers, educators, and researchers who are interested in learning more about CALL research and best practices in the FL classroom. The organization and presentation of the content and the breadth of the discussion in this book reflect Blake's insightful and thorough concerns about the different aspects of technology-enhanced FL curricula." -- Language Learning & Technology "This small but highly resourceful book is the first of its kind to offer a comprehensive summary of technologies developed to assist language learning, with an emphasis on foreign language classrooms." -- Issues in Applied Linguistics "This is an easy introduction to sound practice in application of computer technology in language instruction." -- eLanguage.net