So where did CALL come from after all?

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Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) can be referred to as “the search for and study of applications of the computer in language teaching and learning” (Levy 1997:1). The origins of CALL date back to as early as 1950s, when it emerged as an effort to balance and combine the developments in Pedagogy and Modern Technologies. There are three phases concerning the development of CALL: the behaviouristic, the communicative, and the integrative one. All these are named after the occasionally dominant pedagogical approaches, from which they were influenced.

Through the behaviouristic approach, the computer was seen as means to bomb learners with material. The computer would also later provide feedback and response to the learners’ action.
Gradually, though, the communicative approach developed. Within it, the use of language itself, instead of grammar teaching, was emphasized. Learning was now seen as process of knowledge discovery and CALL was no exception to that. The computers would help the learners listen, speak, read, type or write texts or dialogues in the target language.
This slowly led to a new approach to learning as well as CALL, which was the integrative one. This approached encouraged pupils to learn how to seek tools and opportunities to ‘learn how to learn’ instead of expecting a teacher or a school to implant the subject matter as in the traditional teaching style (Warschauer & Healey, 1998).

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So, after all this development, nowadays a series of CALL software has been developed. Teachers use this software as it provides a wide range of language activities -with action and feedback- based on the learners’ experience, with fascinating elements that make it attractive. Moreover this material can be accessed at any time by the learner at home or school, giving significant flexibility this way.

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All types of Information and Communication Technologies can be integrated within CALL. In other words, the Internet, many software and hardware can assist language teaching and learning, depending on how the teacher will use them. The aim now is to focus on what is called as ‘electronic literacy’, which is the state where the learner is able not only to learn through ICT but also to be able to seek and evaluate electronic learning resources at any case for any issue.

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Parallel to that there is the ambition for the “intelligent CALL”, which will be able to fully replace the teacher and human beings. Despite the impressive progress seen in this area, the “intelligent CALL” is still long way before it is actually implemented. The reason for that is that even though technology has been improved dramatically and assists a lot the teacher and learner, it is still up to humans to use it effectively, if it is to be beneficial for teaching and learning (Warschauer & Healey, 1998).

(FROM: http://www.unil.ch/webdav/site/eurocall/users/siteadmin/public/cdl_photo4.jpg)

Levy, M. (1997). Computer-assisted language learning: context and conceptualization. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Warschauer, M. & Healey, D. (1998). Computers and language learning: An overview. Language Teaching, 31, 57-71.