Week 2 Presentation- Introduction to CAI and CALL

Week 2 presentation was about Introduction to CAI and CALL. It was presented by myself and Hanimarlia. We presented on the brief history of CALL, what is CAI and CALL and also the types of CALL programs. By the end of the presentation, we showed our classmates some websites of CALL activities. Many of them are interesting language activities suited for young children.

I am glad that we have finished our presentation early in the weeks. Though I think we both gave adequate information regarding our topic, I feel I could have done better in terms of providing clearer examples.

Reading up on the history of CALL and what it is has been eye-opening in terms of the use of computer in language learning. It is important to know what CAI and CALL is. CAI refers to tutorial, drill and practice, or simulation activities. It is a form of instruction presented on a computer. Meanwhile, there are many definitions of CALL but it is easier to quote Levy (1997) who stated that CALL is “the search for and study of applications of the computer in language teaching and learning”.

After doing some reading, I found that CALL is important for student-centered learning. I like that students are able to learn at their own pace and will not be able to move up another level until they have mastered the current level they are on. CALL programs are also great for drill and practice because sometimes, it is necessary to have students repeat certain activities so that a particular skill is effectively attained.

There are many CALL activities that I found on the Internet, and a lot of them are interesting and are possible to use for Malaysian students. They are fun and interactive. There are many types of CALL programs available on the Internet for free such as multiple-choice & true/false quizzes, gap-filling exercise/cloze, matching, crossword puzzles and writing & word-processing, among others.

I think I’m going to try some of these programs on my little brother. I’m curious as to how he will react to this type of learning.