Student-Constructed Web Pages for Intercultural Understanding

The Internet is a resource that allows English as a Second Language (ESL) students to communicate meaningfully in English. One way to combine the Internet with teaching English is to give students a group or individual assignment to make their own Web pages. As they complete these assignments, they can develop skills in searching out resources on the Internet, gathering information, reading in English, selecting and classifying information, writing in English, organizing information, describing resources, presenting information in an appropriate manner, audience analysis, communicating with other group members, and writing HTML. One Japanese university has organized cultural Web page projects for ESL students. This paper describes the advantages and disadvantages of such assignments. Advantages include using English to communicate and learning to present and organize information effectively. Disadvantages include difficulty due to lack of experience with the Web and difficulty finding useful Web resources. The paper also reviews several student Web projects and explains how to conduct such an assignment. It concludes by listing relevant Web pages. (SM) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. Student-Constructed Web Pages for Intercultural Understanding U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Office of Educational Research and Improvement EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION irt CENTER (ERIC) This document has been reproduced as received from the person or organization originating it. Minor changes have been made to improve reproduction quality. Points of view or opinions stated in this document do not necessarily represent official OERI position or policy. Kenji Kitao S. Kathleen Kitao Doshisha University Doshisha Women’s College Introduction PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) Students in countries where English is a foreign language often do not have opportunities to use English for communication. The Internet is one resource that can allow students to communicate meaningfully in English. With greater access to computers both at school and at home, this teaching tool has become more widely available in recent years. One way to combine the Internet with teaching English is to give students a group or 71individual assignment to make their own web pages. Students can make pages about a subject 4.1 that they are interested in, a subject related to their major, hobby, or something they would like to learn about. As students carry out these assignments, among the skills they can develop are searching resources on the Internet, gathering information, reading English, selecting information and classifying it, writing in English, organizing information, describing or explaining resources, presenting information in the way that readers can understand easily, audience analysis, communicating with other group members or readers using e-mail, and writing HTML. It is possible to include many different kinds of communication in English, so a web page project can generate a great many language activities in English, and students will both use and be exposed to English in the context of working on at task of interest to them. We have organized cultural web page making projects for English language students, and they have enjoyed them as well as studying English by making web projects. In this paper, we will explain the advantages and disadvantages of such assignments. We will review some web projects that are already on the web and explain how this assignment can be done. Advantages and Disadvantages of Web Projects Depending on the exact conditions of the assignment, web projects can have a variety of advantages and disadvantages. Advantages Possibly the most important advantage of student-made web pages is that they make it possible for students to use English as a form of communication. In EFL settings, students mainly use English in class for the teacher to evaluate. They generally do not read in English 1 2 BEST COPY AVAILABLE beyond what they are assigned to read for a course. They do not often have an opportunity to read about subjects of their own choice or to use English as a form of communication. A web page assignment can involve doing research both on and off the Internet, writing material for the web pages, reading and answering responses to the web pages sent in by readers. These involve communicating in English in meaningful ways. When making web pages that might be read by anyone, students need to be aware of their audience. They need to analyze what their audience may or may not know about the subject. For example, in making a web page explaining Japanese culture to non-Japanese, writers need to consider how to explain aspects of Japanese culture in English to a general reader who may have little or no knowledge of Japanese culture in a way that is understandable. If it involves research, a web page assignment exposes students to available resources on the Internet, giving them an idea of what sorts of resources are available, and helps students learn how to use search engines and links pages effectively. Students need to gather resources, read them, and select and organize information, all in English. Student-made web pages can be done on a wide variety of subjects, depending on the interests of the students and their level of proficiency. For English language students, subjects related to cultures of various countries and to enhancing international understanding are particularly appropriate. Students can do web pages with information about English-speaking countries, which will also help them learn about the cultures of English-speaking countries. They can also do web pages about Japan, in order to learn to explain Japanese culture to English speakers. Through this project, students can experience communication in English, and they can learn how to present and organize information effectively. In the case of group projects, students can learn through the comments their piers make and cooperation with them. Disadvantages Students may vary in the amount of experience they have in the use of computers, e-mail, browsers, etc. Some students will have had little experience and will need a great deal of help. In addition, most students will not have had experience making HTML files. For some students, lack of these computer skills will make this project difficult. In addition to giving students help with computer skills, one possible solution is to form project groups with students who have both high and low computer skills. Using search engines effectively is not easy, and students are likely to have difficulty finding useful web resources. They may need guidance from the teacher on using search engines and finding useful links pages or other web resources, if these are necessary for the