Automatic linguistic knowledge acquisition for web-based translation and language learning

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Werner Winiwarter
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Knowledge Acquisition ◽  
Linguistic Knowledge ◽  
Web Based

The Distinction between Linguistic and Conceptual Semantics in Medical Terminology and its Implication for NLP-Based Knowledge Acquisition

1998 ◽  
Vol 37 (04/05) ◽  
pp. 327-333 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Buekens ◽  
G. De Moor ◽  
A. Waagmeester ◽  
W. Ceusters
Keyword(s):  
Natural Language ◽  
Knowledge Acquisition ◽  
Natural Language Understanding ◽  
Knowledge Bases ◽  
Linguistic Knowledge ◽  
Medical Terminology ◽  
Language Understanding ◽  
Conceptual Semantics

AbstractNatural language understanding systems have to exploit various kinds of knowledge in order to represent the meaning behind texts. Getting this knowledge in place is often such a huge enterprise that it is tempting to look for systems that can discover such knowledge automatically. We describe how the distinction between conceptual and linguistic semantics may assist in reaching this objective, provided that distinguishing between them is not done too rigorously. We present several examples to support this view and argue that in a multilingual environment, linguistic ontologies should be designed as interfaces between domain conceptualizations and linguistic knowledge bases.

LEVERAGE: Reciprocal peer tutoring over broadband networks

ReCALL ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 133-142 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Wong ◽  
Agnès Fauverge
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Peer Tutoring ◽  
Computer Network ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Application Sharing ◽  
Quality Video ◽  
Reciprocal Peer Tutoring ◽  
Set Up ◽  
High Quality Video ◽  
Experimental Use

This paper reports on the experimental use of a broadband computer network hypermedia environment for language learning (French, English and Spanish). Using Web-based resources, students engage in a collaborative task over a network which offers high quality video-conferencing, application sharing and access to authentic multimedia resources. One of the main aims was to establish the practicalities of providing learners of languages with opportunities to engage in reciprocal peer tutoring. After outlining the pedagogical assumptions, and describing the set-up of the network-based learning environment, the trials are analysed, and the effectiveness of network-based language learning in supporting collaborative learning is discussed.

scholarly journals Can Google Translate Rewire Your L2 English Processing?

Digital ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 66-85
Author(s):  
Natália Resende ◽  
Andy Way
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Cognitive Processing ◽  
Vocabulary Learning ◽  
Brazilian Portuguese ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Syntactic Priming ◽  
Web Based ◽  
English Syntax

In this article, we address the question of whether exposure to the translated output of MT systems could result in changes in the cognitive processing of English as a second language (L2 English). To answer this question, we first conducted a survey with 90 Brazilian Portuguese L2 English speakers with the aim of understanding how and for what purposes they use web-based MT systems. To investigate whether MT systems are capable of influencing L2 English cognitive processing, we carried out a syntactic priming experiment with 32 Brazilian Portuguese speakers. We wanted to test whether speakers re-use in their subsequent speech in English the same syntactic alternative previously seen in the MT output, when using the popular Google Translate system to translate sentences from Portuguese into English. The results of the survey show that Brazilian Portuguese L2 English speakers use Google Translate as a tool supporting their speech in English as well as a source of English vocabulary learning. The results of the syntactic priming experiment show that exposure to an English syntactic alternative through GT can lead to the re-use of the same syntactic alternative in subsequent speech even if it is not the speaker’s preferred syntactic alternative in English. These findings suggest that GT is being used as a tool for language learning purposes and so is indeed capable of rewiring the processing of L2 English syntax.

Investigating Chinese University Students’ Enjoyment in a Web-Based Language Learning Environment: Validation of the Online Foreign Language Enjoyment Scale

2021 ◽  
pp. 003151252110417
Author(s):  
Xin Wang ◽  
Yang Wang ◽  
Yizhi Yang ◽  
Lu Wang
Keyword(s):  
Factor Analysis ◽  
Learning Environment ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
First Language ◽  
Pedagogical Practices ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Chinese University ◽  
Confirmatory Factor

The revolution in web-based technologies has enriched pedagogical practices and motivated scholars to address learners’ positive and negative emotions in the web-based language learning environment. In this study, we first examined the psychometric properties of the Foreign Language Enjoyment Scale (FLES) and then developed the Online Foreign Language Enjoyment Scale (OFLES). We adopted a mixed-method approach using a sample of 383 first language Chinese EFL undergraduates. In stage one of the research, exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis supported an 11-item and 4-factor OFLES structure with an ideal model fit. The four sub-domains of the new enjoyment construct were OFLES- Teacher, Private, Interaction, and Competence. The Teacher domain accounted for most variance. In stage two, the qualitative analyses of feedback on an open-ended question concerning enjoyable episodes from 56 of the 383 participants revealed various sources of enjoyment for Chinese university EFL learners attending online English courses. Our findings contribute to an emerging wave of research examining the cross-contextual application of the FLES and provide important pedagogical implications for L2 practitioners and researchers. We discuss suggestions for future research.

A web-based language learning environment: general architecture

ReCALL ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 11 (S1) ◽  
pp. 31-39
Author(s):  
Pierre-Yves Foucou ◽  
Natalie Kübler
Keyword(s):  
Learning Environment ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Computer Science ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Learning Activities ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
General Architecture ◽  
The Web

In this paper, we present the Web-based CALL environment (or WALL) which is currently being experimented with at the University of Paris 13 in the Computer Science Department of the Institut Universitaire de Technologie. Our environment is being developed to teach computer science (CS) English to CS French-speaking students, and will be extended to other languages for specific purposes such as, for example, English or French for banking, law, economics or medicine, where on-line resources are available.English, and more precisely CS English is, for our students, a necessary tool, and not an object of study. The learning activities must therefore stimulate the students' interest and reflection about language phenomena. Our pedagogical objective, relying on research acquisition (Wokusch 1997) consists in linking various texts together with other documents, such as different types of dictionaries or other types of texts, so that knowledge can be acquired using various appropriate contexts.Language teachers are not supposed to be experts in fields such as computer sciences or economics. We aim at helping them to make use of the authentic documents that are related to the subject area in which they teach English. As shown in Foucou and Kübler (1998) the wide range of resources available on the Web can be processed to obtain corpora, i.e. teaching material. Our Web-based environment therefore provides teachers with a series of tools which enable them to access information about the selected specialist subject, select appropriate specialised texts, produce various types of learning activities and evaluate students' progress.Commonly used textbooks Tor specialised English offer a wide range of learning activities, but they are based on documents that very quickly become obsolete, and that are sometimes widely modified. Moreover, they are not adaptable to the various levels of language of the students. From the students' point of view, working on obsolete texts that are either too easy or too difficult can quickly become demotivating, not to say boring.In the next section, we present the general architecture of the teaching/learning environment; the method of accessing and using it, for teachers as well as for students, is then described. The following section deals with the actual production of exercises and their limits. We conclude and present some possible research directions.

Teaching Pre-Service Teachers to Repurpose and Innovate Using Online and Mobile Technology Applications

2015 ◽  
pp. 46-62
Author(s):  
Gregory Shepherd
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Student Teachers ◽  
Mobile Technology ◽  
Creative Thinking ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
Web Based ◽  
World Languages ◽  
Technology Applications ◽  
Entire Career ◽  
K 12

Integrating the use of Web-based and mobile technology applications into K-12 world languages contexts requires innovative teacher preparation models. This chapter evaluates a multi-step technology integration unit that develops in pre-service teachers the skills necessary to plan and carry out learner-centered communicative instruction. Importantly, this unit also incorporates five skills for disruptive innovators. Pre-service teachers blend pedagogy, technology tools, and content in project-based learning lesson design while practicing creative-thinking skills. As student teachers learn to repurpose mobile applications for the language-learning classroom, they empower articulate digital natives and foster 21st century learning. Given technology's constant growth, teaching integration of specific apps will have limited benefits. On the other hand, teaching how to innovate and repurpose will serve student teachers for their entire career. Results of this study show growth in lesson planning, creativity, and innovation skills.

Enhancing Grammatical Accuracy and Linguistic Fluency

2014 ◽  
pp. 23-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen Zhao
Keyword(s):  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Classroom Practice ◽  
Computer Assisted ◽  
New Paradigm ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Robust Learning ◽  
Grammatical Accuracy ◽  
Linguistic Fluency ◽  
Article Usage

This chapter introduces a new paradigm of Web-based language learning, experimental Computer-Assisted Language Learning (eCALL) and its application in ESL and EFL grammar instruction. eCALL methods provide online training that complements classroom practice, while integrating second language acquisition theories and models. The authors introduce an eCALL tutor that teaches the correct use of the English article system. The authors examined the effectiveness of the tutor in an experimental study with 78 Chinese intermediate-advanced EFL learners. The tutor incorporated Bayesian knowledge tracing and provided individualized and adaptive training of English article usage. Learners' performance was measured by accuracy and response time. The results show that the tutor led to significant learning gains after three hours of tutor training, with gains retained two weeks later. The robust learning effects were documented by a significant improvement in accuracy and fluency of using the article.

A Theoretically Informed Approach to Collaborative Writing in EAP Contexts Using Web-Based Technologies

2018 ◽  
pp. 1-21 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kris Pierre Johnston ◽  
Geoff Lawrence
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Learning Communities ◽  
Collaborative Writing ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Online Collaborative Learning ◽  
Writing Practices ◽  
Curricular Design ◽  
Technological Affordances ◽  
Writing Tools

This chapter examines the need for a theoretically-informed approach to collaborative English for Academic Purpose (EAP) pedagogy and research. It discusses the relevance of online collaborative learning in EAP and the call for a theoretically-informed facilitative framework to guide the use of online collaborative writing tools to sustain learning communities and language learning. It establishes the importance of virtual learning communities as catalysts for online collaboration and discusses the need to examine technological affordances, adopting an ecological perspective to inform curricular design. The chapter examines the relevance of the Community of Inquiry model and its three presences: cognitive, social and teaching, as a theoretical basis to inform a facilitative framework to design online collaborative EAP writing tasks. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the interactions of these three presences, details on how they can inform online EAP collaborative writing practices and the need for future research in this area.

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