김경옥 Kyung Ok Kim , 박선호 Seon Ho Park

DOI: Vol.18(No.1) 11-32, 2015

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of process-based writing utilizing mobile SNS on elementary students’ English writing ability and each effect on their affective domains. It was attempted to prove the effectiveness of learning to write through the use of mobile SNS software by exchanging feedbacks between students or between a teacher and a student during the process-oriented writing. The research was carried out with one class of sixth graders (a total of 28 students) from an elementary school in Incheon. English writing tests, students’ writings, questionnaires, in-depth interviews, teacher’s journals and students’ journals were employed for the research. Results are as follows: First, process-based writing activities through mobile SNS had a positive influence on the students’ English writing abilities. They were especially effective for the middle and high level students. Second, the process-based writing activities on mobile SNS also had a positive influence on students’ affective domains. Positive attitudes were found in their interest and participation and tended to reduce their anxieties in English writing. Lastly, learners of process-based writing activities exchanged feedbacks such as mutual understanding, sympathy, and compliments through the peers’ and teacher’s feedbacks. Based on the findings from the research, some practical suggestions are made for the future studies.

mobile, SNS, process-based writing, elementary English education

김세현 Se Hyeon Kim , 김혜영 He Young Kim

DOI: Vol.18(No.1) 33-58, 2015

English divide is getting more aggravated in Korean English class notwithstanding the longitudinal nation-wide effort for differentiated education. Use of a digital textbook in English class has been considered as a solution which reduces those problems and fosters learner-centered learning. However, there has not been enough investigation of learners’ needs in designing digital textbooks. Therefore, this study intends to investigate English learning needs of low achieving high school students and to provide some implications for a more effective digital textbook design. This study, first, conducted a survey with 89 high school students asking their learning, perception and scaffolding needs in English class. Second, this study qualitatively gathered the data from five low proficient students who were asked to use a digital English textbook in the regular class for four weeks. The participants utilized the digital textbook with no difficulty according to their purposes in varied ways. The data analysis reveals that the students perceived the digital textbook as an assisting tool, not a main textbook, and their perceptions were mostly positive. Some technological challenges and students’ resistance have also emerged, which should be overcome for the continued use.

digital textbooks, textbook design, needs analysis, scaffolding types, differentiated education, mobile learning, qualitative case study

김재은 Jae Eun Kim , 최인철 Inn Chull Choi

DOI: Vol.18(No.1) 59-92, 2015

As the difficulty level of EBS prep books designed for College Scholastic Ability Tests (CSAT) has recently been hotly debated, a new version of CSAT (Engish) has been proposed by the government to reflect the nature of criterion-referenced test. At this juncture, the present study is intended to investigate the extent to which the overall difficulty level of EBS-CSAT prep books appropriately reflects the National Curriculum. In order to achieve this goal, the study conducts a corpus-based analysis of the linguistic difficulty among High School English Textbooks, EBS-CSAT prep books and CSAT (collected from 2010 to 2013). Overall, the results revealed that the linguistic difficulty levels of EBS-CSAT prep books (which are similar to CSAT in many respects) are much higher than those of High School Textbooks in terms of vocabulary, syntactic complexity, coherence, and readability. In order to normalize the level of difficulty, EBS prep books are to be developed through more rigorous procedures that abide by the National Curriculum. Finally, employing an item-pool system based on textbooks is proposed as a viable approach to the aforementioned EBS-CSAT issue.

College Scholastic Ability Test, CSAT, EBS prep books, corpus, readability indices, Lexile, Coh-Metrix

신동광 Dong Kwang Shin , 박용효 Yong Hyo Park , 박태준 Tae Joon Park , 임수연 Su Yon Yim

DOI: Vol.18(No.1) 93-114, 2015

The present study aims at developing an automated scoring program for assessing Korean students’ English speaking ability. Building on the prototype English speaking automated scoring program developed in 2012, this study had the following three goals in mind: First, the performance of the prototype speaking automated scoring program needs to be improved by enhancing the recognition rate of the speech recognition system embedded in the automated scoring program. Second, the algorithm of the automated scoring program needs to be improved by refining the existing pool of scoring features. Third, the performance of the modified automated scoring program needs to be validated in order to explore the possibility of applying the program to the classroom. For this, two different types of algorithms, called the Maximum Entropy (ME) and Multiple Regression (MR), were used to apply the scoring features and analyze the performances of scoring models. The results showed that MR is slightly more efficient and reliable compared with ME. The automated scoring program still has a long way to go, but it certainly has a place in speaking assessments especially when considering its potential for not only an assessment tool but also a learning tool for students.

automated scoring program, English speaking test, scoring features, speech recognition program

유도형 Do Hyung Ryu

DOI: Vol.18(No.1) 115-137, 2015

Although theorists have defined learner autonomy in a variety of ways, it is important to realize that the concept of learner autonomy can rarely be captured in the real world classroom. The existing concepts have not considered aspects of language development and the role of the teacher in their definitions. In this study, learner autonomy is defined as the state of a learner’s control in promoting language development, based on output-based classroom procedures facilitated by a teacher. The purpose of this study is to determine the applicability of using film-media actively in the classroom, with the help of teachers using drama techniques, promoting learner autonomy. A case study of five low-level students was carried out with six in-depth observation periods, in-depth interviews and a grammar test. The results showed that drama techniques using films provided by the teacher helped learners to become actively involved in their own learning, to take control of learning independently and to experience the ownership of learning. In addition, these findings suggest that the feasibility of learner autonomy within the classroom can open the possibility of ultimate autonomy for learners in the long term.

learner autonomy, film media, drama techniques