Using the Web in Elementary French and German Courses

Quantitative and Qualitative Study Results

Authors

  • Anne Green Carnegie Mellon University
  • Bonnie Earnest Youngs Carnegie Mellon University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/cj.v19i1.89-123

Keywords:

Research, web use, Elementary Language Instruction

Abstract

We present here an analysis of both quantitative and qualitative data collected for a study of the impact of World Wide Web use in Elementary French and German courses (first and second semester) in Fall 1998 and Spring 1999. Specifically, the control groups attended class with the instructor four days per week. The treatment groups attended class with the instructor 3 days per week and completed a web activity each week on their own time to "replace" the fourth class meeting. The main research question was: would the treatment group's performance in the areas of reading, writing, listening, speaking and cultural understanding be similar to that of the control group in French and German, over two semesters of first year language study at the university level? We found that there was no pattern of statistically significant differences between the treatment and the control groups in any of these areas.

Author Biographies

  • Anne Green, Carnegie Mellon University

    Anne Green (Ph.D. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) teaches all levels of German at Carnegie Mellon University. She is currently the chair of the American Association of Teachers of German Technology Committee. She is also a member of the Pennsylvania State Modern Language Association Technology Committee and has offered workshops in Web use in the modern language classroom. Her primary interest is in developing Web-based activities and integrating them into the German curriculum at all levels.

  • Bonnie Earnest Youngs, Carnegie Mellon University

    Bonnie Earnest Youngs (Ph.D. University of Pennsylvania) is Senior Lecturer in French and teaches all levels of French at Carnegie Mellon University. In addition, she is an elected member of the Pennsylvania State Modern Language Association (PSMLA), participating in the Advocacy and Conference 2000 Committees, and as former chair and current member of the Technology Committee. She has offered workshops on the integration of technology into the K-16 curriculum. Her recent professional service has been as PSMLA delegate to ACTFL, Carnegie Mellon delegate to the Northeast Conference, exam coordinator for the Western Chapter of the AATF, and reviewer for Foreign Language Annals and the NECTFL Review. Her primary research interests are the pedagogical implementations of technology and their impact on language learning, and the development of alternative-access language learning (AaLL) models, most currently in the form of campus-based technological alternatives to traditional classroom models.

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Published

2013-01-14

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Section

Articles

How to Cite

Green, A., & Youngs, B. (2013). Using the Web in Elementary French and German Courses: Quantitative and Qualitative Study Results. CALICO Journal, 19(1), 89-123. https://doi.org/10.1558/cj.v19i1.89-123

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