Search

This chapter looks at a critical thinking and academic writing skills course designed for Japanese learners of English. The study presents two sets of data from the 87 participants who have taken part in the course since its inception in 2008. The first data set is concerned with actual writing samples from multiple drafts of a medium-sized research project carried out by the student participants. The second data set results from a self-assessment survey given to the learners both at the beginning and end of the 15-week course described in this chapter. Further, results from a satisfaction survey given to learners at the end of the course are presented. The chapter concludes with some pedagogical implications for both Japanese and other Asian EFL learners and how the methods used in the course described within can be replicated elsewhere.

This chapter introduces the concept of Mobile 2.0, a mobile version of Web 2.0, and its application to language learning. The chapter addresses the following questions: What is Mobile 2.0? How is it relevant to the concept of Web 2.0? Is Mobile 2.0 ready for language learning analogous to that of Web 2.0? How is the efficacy of m-learning using Mobile 2.0 technology compared to PC Web 2.0? If Mobile 2.0 is appropriate for language learning, then how does one go about setting up a Mobile 2.0 site? Is Mobile 2.0 leading to a transformation of mLearning? Are there any limitations in using Mobile 2.0 for language learning? Finally, is Mobile 3.0 already emerging for learning? These issues will be discussed, and the relevant data will be presented to support the claims made in this chapter. Furthermore, specific examples of Mobile 2.0 and the empirical data of specific uses of mobile phones for educational purposes, especially for language learning in Japan, will be delineated. This chapter suggests that knowledge of Mobile 2.0 will strengthen and reinforce language teaching and allow students to learn more ubiquitously, more effectively, and in a way that is more at ease with their learning styles.