Alex Ding, University of Nottingham

One of the often claimed advantages of on-line learning is that it encourages and enables effective collaborative learning. This paper examines the claims for collaborative on-line learning through exploring attempts to set up and manage on-line environments for Pre-Sessional and In-Sessional students at the University of Nottingham. Whilst these initiatives have met with some success, the main focus of this paper is to discuss the reasons why these environments do not always facilitate effective collaboration in an EAP context. The reasons are discussed under 3 headings:

• Student attitudes to collaboration and community
• Pedagogical tasks
• Design and technical issues

Having discussed the main stumbling blocks to on-line collaboration, the paper concludes with examples of how 1 am attempting to address this issue through the development of an experimental virtual self-access centre.

Harriet Edwards, Royal College of Art

As EAP Co-ordinator at the Royal College of Art (from October 2001), I began with more or less a tabula rasa. The MADD (`matters around art and design dissertations') project was instigated for several reasons: to produce relevant, up-to-date materials, to familiarise myself with student writings (the content of which was the subject of the BALEAP conference talk in Southampton 2003), and to reach as broad a number of the community as possible through a medium that would be familiar and accessible. The focus of this talk is very much on processes, briefly on how material was adapted to suit the student community, but primarily on the following:

• The original proposal and evolution away from it
• The nature of the research process (heuristic at least in part)
• Issues of time management
• Skills gained
• Insights about students' research processes, and therefore teaching implications
• Collaboration with subject specific staff

It is hoped that the issues will be relevant to others involved in, or embarking on, similar projects, and will invite discussion relevant to EAP generally, not specifically to Art and Design.

Andy Gillett, University of Hertfordshire

We have had a fully functioning VLE at the University of Hertfordshire for almost one year now. It is quite extensive and we have been put under a lot of pressure to use it. There are therefore many examples of good use to be seen across the whole university. What seems to be lacking though is a good overview of how the VLE can be used in a principled way to support learning. Some colleagues and I have therefore attempted to come up with a model that will help people to do this. I would like to present our latest version of this model. I think it will be valuable for anyone trying to integrate on-line learning/teaching into any course or programme.
Report

Andy Gillett, University of Hertfordshire

I think this workshop will be most useful for people who have thought about but not tried to use interactive exercises as part of an on-line EAP course. It might also be useful for people who want to discuss the reasons for using, or not using, this type of exercise. I will therefore start by giving a quick demonstration of some cheap, easily available and easy to use programs that can produce these exercises. I hope we will then divide into small groups and each group will take one or two exercise types and try to think of how they can be used, bearing in mind what I said in the morning, for EAP We will then feed back to each other.
Report

Sandy McIntosh, University of Alberta

The presentation will provide a solution to the problem of limited resources for the development of on-line courses. In the English Language Program at the University of Alberta, developers found that a rush to production produced a final product that needed to be improved after it was implemented. The plan that has been formulated for the development of on-line courseware assumes that time and resources are constrained. The solution to the problem includes several evaluation and revision processes for course material.

The on-line EAP courses at the University of Alberta that are presented as examples are the on-line components of a classroom-based EAP program. Students complete several units of grammar exercises and write a number of academic essays on-line to supplement classroom-based instruction. Assignments are submitted to the instructor on-line and corrections and comments are returned by E-mail_. or are posted in a class discussion forum.

During the development process, the course components are pilot tested with actual students and instructors. After implementation students complete an end-of-term evaluation form to identify elements of course design that could be improved further. Instructors also give comments from their experience. Data from the pilot tests and evaluations has led to significant improvements in usability, with a minimal expenditure of resources. Pilot testing is a one-time exercise scheduled before full implementation, but the continuous improvement process can continue for the life of the course offerings. Over time the evaluation component, both pilot testing and end-of-term evaluations, expanded from a support activity to one that dominates the research and development process.

Eddy Moran, University of Newcastle

This presentation reports the findings of an experiment on the relationship between (a) L2 learners' beliefs about the nature of L2 learning and inductive-deductive learning preferences in a hypertext CALL program designed to teach vocabulary and (b) prior knowledge of target vocabulary and inductive-deductive learning preferences in this program. Effort invested, gauged by time spent per screen, was also measured. A sample of 10 overseas students completed a questionnaire on beliefs and did one unit of work (14 vocabulary items) in the program. All subject interaction with the program was logged. Analysis found significant correlations between belief in the importance of grammar, accuracy and developing fluency and effort invested, a bell-shaped curve in effort invested according to prior knowledge of the target vocabulary, and a surprising consistency both across and within subjects in variation of preferences by level of prior knowledge. These results suggest, firstly, that prior knowledge is more important than beliefs about learning in determining learners' decisions at the task level. Secondly, within the constraints imposed by the hypertext, qualitative analysis of the logged data suggested that subjects behaved autonomously, adapting learning methodologies to varying levels of prior knowledge of the target vocabulary.

John Wrigglesworth, University of Portsmouth

The presentation looks at curriculum issues surrounding the use of virtual learning environments (VLEs) in EAP. It focuses on the setting up of a WebCT component for a fifteen week foundation course at the University of Portsmouth. The course designer faced the problem of inadequate allocation of time to EAP during the course and looked to VLEs as a possible solution. Rather than place an entire course on-line, the decision was taken to select activities which were amenable to computer based modes of delivery and to integrate them into the course. The pedagogical rationale for these decisions is discussed along with activities from each of the four skill areas: process writing; listening to academic lectures; academic reading; and oral presentations. The paper summarizes the methods available for evaluating the success of the activities and concludes that they provide a useful way of increasing language learning input to students, but are extremely demanding on lecturer time.