| Title: | Giving a voice to Moodle |
|---|---|
| Principal Applicant: | Françoise Blin |
| School or Unit: | SALIS |
| Amount requested: | € 12,598 |
Minako O'Hagan, SALIS, minako.ohagan@dcu.ie Christine Appel, SALIS, christine.appel@dcu.ie John McKenna, School of Computing, john.mckenna@computing.dcu.ie Margaret Farren, Educational Studies, margaret.farren@dcu.ie Seamus Fox, OSCAIL, seamus.fox@dcu.ie
This project aims firstly to investigate and to test the integration of voice communication tools (synchronous and asynchronous) and text-to-speech engines within Moodle and secondly to design some pedagogical applications of these tools in the areas of foreign language learning, on-line translation and interpretation training and teacher education training. It is also envisaged that the integration of voice communication tools and text-to-speech engines would eventually benefit students with learning disabilities (e.g. dyslexia)and students engaged in open and distance learning programmes. The implementation and evaluation of these integrated tools will take place during next academic year. While commercial products are available on the market, we will seek to investigate the possibility of using freely available technologies and to cooperate with developers of these technologies. In particular, the GONG Project team (Hong Kong University of Science and Technology: http://www.cs.ust.hk/gong/ ) has expressed interest in collaborating with DCU in the future, should suitable funding opportunities arise.
Project URL (if applicable):
Is the project related to the DCU strategic initiative to create an institution-wide Virtual Learning Environment using Moodle?
yes
What is the strategic context for this project? Detail the connections with the DCU Strategic Plan, "Leading Change". If the project is related to previous initiatives (ODTL supported or otherwise), please provide hyperlinks (URLs) to relevant reports or other documentation. (Max. 150 words.)
Relation to Moodle: Moodle already offers a wide range of synchronous and asynchronous modules that present opportunities for developing innovative pedagogical applications in a broad range of disciplines. These modules, however, involve text-based technologies only. The integration of text-to-speech engines in different languages (e.g. English, French, German, Irish, Japanese and Spanish) would allow lecturers to add sound to their moodle courses, which could be enabled at students' discretion. The integration of voice communication (i.e. voice boards and chats) would greatly enhance the communication and collaborative tools already available in Moodle. Commercial developers are already selling products that can be integrated within commercial VLEs (see for instance the Wimba products which are being increasingly used by institutions having deployed WebCT or Blackboard, http://www.wimba.com/ ). The deployment of Moodle as an institution-wide VLE should ensure that the platform is maintained to state-of -the art standards and of benefit to all areas, including language related disciplines. Strategic Context: Web-based voice technologies are now ubiquitous (see for instance the increasing popularity of MSN Messenger in the domestic market) and at the core of many Research & Development projects worldwide. The educational technology community is not last in trying to harness these technologies. A number of institutions are already piloting pedagogical applications making use of web-based voice technologies, whether in blended or distance learning environments (see for instance the use of audio-graphics conferencing tools at Open University Department of Modern Languages, or the decision by the CNED, France, to integrate Wimba in their platform for distance learning to mention but a few). Also, the integration of voice communication technologies into Moodle and the associated pedagogical applications will build on the work carried out by Christine Appel in E-mail Tandem Learning - see http://www.tandem.dcu.ie/ http://webpages.dcu.ie/~appelc/ http://odtl.dcu.ie/tlf/1999-2000/ref49/ This project would enable DCU to join the leaders in educational technology worldwide by not only researching and developing a state-of-the art VLE but also by engaging in innovative educational research, development and practice.
Please outline how the project will be implemented. (Max. 300 words.)
Reference should be made to the following:
The project will be carried out in two phases (i.e. a "technological" phase followed by a "pedagogical" one) between March and December 2004. For Phase I (March - August 2004), one graduate or Intra student will be employed under the direct supervision of John McKenna. One challenge that will have to be met concerns the interoperability of voice communication tools(e.g. Gong and Wimba, and Moodle). The student employed will first focus on implementing a voice-based system that will run on an existing School of Computing server, with subsequent investigation on how best to integrate the system with Moodle. This step-by-step design will minimise the possibility of not having a complete working system at the end of the schedule. Stability of any implementation will be a priority, and we envisage extensive testing to occupy much of the work schedule. Free TTS (text-to-speech) systems (e.g. see http://tcts.fpms.ac.be/synthesis/mbrola.html ) for a number of languages will also be integrated into Moodle language learning environments. While the "pedagogical" team (e.g. FB, MOH, CA, MF) will work alongside the "technical" team to ensure that the adopted technologies will enhance the pedagogical applications of MOODLE, the full design, implementation and evaluation of pedagogical applications can only take place once the voice technologies are deemed stable enough for use by staff and students. During Phase II (August - December 2004), these technologies will then be integrated as tools to support the task-based pedagogy that is being increasingly adopted by SALIS language staff. As learning a foreign language involves engaging in both oral and written communication, particular attention will be given to the design of tasks that include web-based voice technology and to methodologies enhancing the individual and collective reflection part of the action-reflection cycles that are core to the task-based approach to learning in general and to language learning in particular. Provided that appropriate tasks are designed, Computer Mediated Communication, and in particular asynchronous CMC, is particularly suitable to the development of metacognitive cognitive skills, language awareness and development (see for instance publications by Appel, Blin, Fox, etc.). Initially, pedagogical applications will be developed for language learning and translation studies (inc. online dubbing, subtitling and interpreting).
Please outline what impact you anticipate for the project, and how this will be evaluated. (Max. 150 words.)
Reference should be made to the following:
The move from a text-based only learning environment to one that allows both written and spoken communication will enable staff and students to engage in multimodal learning activities on-line. Over the last few years, the ever-decreasing language staff levels have eroded opportunities for spoken interaction, which is absolutely necessary for second language acquisition. On-line asynchronous oral interaction will enhance opportunities for oral work outside face-to-face classes. The integration of text-to-speech engines will enhance the quality of language input by making more salient the relationship between orthography and sound. In the longer term, it is expected that voice technologies will enhance the learning experience of distance learners and will enable the provision of distance web-based language learning courses. As learner feedback and reflection are an integral part of a task-based approach to learning, these improvements will be evaluated through, inter alia, a qualitative analysis of students reflective accounts.
The TLF is a University designated fund. Therefore, it is very important that the deployment of the fund be open and transparent and that, as far as possible, it provides benefits to the wider University community. The Office of the Dean of Teaching and Learning co-ordinates a variety of activities through which the outcomes of TLF awards can be publicised and disseminated. Recipients of awards are expected to co-operate with such activities, including honouring the obligation to submit one or more reports which will be made available via the ODTL website.
Please indicate here any additional plans or suggestions you have for disseminating the outcomes from this specific project. Also comment on the longer-term sustainability of the intervention, explaining how any future costs that may be involved in maintaining its benefits will be borne. (Max. 150 words.)
Data collected during the design, implementation and evaluation phase, along with the way the chosen voice technologies have been integrating with Moodle, will be analysed and presented at conferences and in journal articles. The work carried out, its pedagogical applications and preliminary results will also be presented at DCU seminars or workshops. Should the project be successful, it is hoped that colleagues within the university will be willing to make use of voice technology. Funding will be sought, from internal or external sources, to organise and deliver training workshops. Furthermore, the integration of voice technologies into the learning environment will inform and be informed by the research conducted by the applicants.
Please provide a detailed breakdown of the budgeted costs of the proposed project.
You should also address the following issues:
We plan on employing a high calibre graduate/Intra student for 6 months (26 weeks including holiday allowance) at a rate of €12.50 per hour for 35 hours per week. This gives us a cost of: €12.5 * 35 * 1.1075 * 26 = €12,598 where 1.1075 factor represents employer PRSI payments. We feel that €12.50 per hour is a competitive rate that will attract a highly skilled student, who will need little or no training, so that their time on the project will me most productive. We project that the 26 weeks (including allowance for contingency factors) will be used as follows: 12 weeks: voice communication tools development and integration to Moodle 8 weeks: TTS system integration to Moodle 4 weeks: Documentation 2 weeks: holidays We do not envisage any equipment costs, as all the software to be used will be freeware and/or open source. Current School budget constraints necessitate that funding for projects of this nature be acquired outside Schools. The ODTL fund is an ideal source to target for this cross-School interdisciplinary project, which be of benefit across the university. The time of the applicants' supervision and input to the project will be the Schools' input to the project.
If there are other brief points which do not fit under any of the previous headings but which you wish to highlight, please enter them here.
Before fully implementing the use of voice communication in existing DCU modules, it is absolutely imperative that the technologies deployed are robust and stable. The employment of an INTRA student with excellent programming and interpersonal skills will ensure that the interface between technological and pedagogical applications is of the highest standards.
Finally, if you have any comments (critical or otherwise) on this application form, or any other aspects of this TLF scheme, please provide them here.
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