U

Uhlíøová, L. (1994). E-mail as a new subvariety of medium and its effects upon the message. In S. Mejrková & P. FrantiÐek (Eds.), The Syntax of Sentence and Text: A Festschrift for FrantiÐek DaneÐ. (pp. 273-282). Philadelphia: John Benjamins.

Subject: CMC; Discourse Analysis.

Uhlíøová examines the "textual properties of a corpus of computer-mediated messages" to "show the effects of the computer as a new technological medium upon the message". The corpus of messages studied is comprised of over one hundred messages written by two correspondents in Prague to various recipients, and approximately fifty messages which these same two correspondents received.

Uhlíøová outlines the "contexts of situations" in which e-mail is used. These include the following:

1. common subject matters.... common activity in [a] field; a cooperation [etc];

2. more or less private issues;

3. secondary messages...e.g. a proposal for an official wording of an agreement or of a project, a curriculum vitae, a list of e-mail names;

4. messages about the technology of e-mailing.

Also included in the article are descriptions of the mix of spoken and written language features in e-mail.

Uhlíøová concludes that e-mail "contributes significantly to the development of language use offering new writing strategies...in the frame of new constraints and requirements of the medium". This is because "although written in its substance, e-mail messages are in some respects no less interactive than speech", and this "blurs" the categories of writing and speaking. Not only does the "capability of e-mail to widen the possibilities of language use" affect the content of messages sent, but may eventually lead to the creation of new registers.

V

Vasu, M. (1990). Computer NetWorks: telecommunications, education, research, and the global classroom. International Journal of Social Education, 5, 36-45.

Subject: Education; Online Resources.

Vasu's article deals with computer NetWorks as "resources for enhancing teaching and research". He explains various types of information services available to teachers and researchers, and describes some of the technical aspects of information resource access. Vasu sees the computer as instrumental in future increases in "personal and organizational productivity".

Vaverek, K., & Saunders, C. (1993). Computerspeak: message content and perceived appropriateness in an educational setting. Journal of Educational Technology Systems, 22, 123 139.

Subject: CMC; Education.

Vaverek and Saunders explore the effect of CMC on communication behaviors, specifically focusing on the relationship between message content and paradigm development. By paradigm development they mean the degree to which an academic discipline contains "tacit understandings of important and relevant areas of study within the discipline, its philosophical underpinnings, research findings, and preferred methodologies. The paradigm represents a 'constellation of beliefs, values, techniques, and so on shared by the members of a given community'". The physical sciences tend to have high paradigm development. The social sciences tend to have low paradigm development. Vaverek and Saunders present the following four hypostheses:

1. "There is significantly more socioemotional activity within messages in courses in disciplines with a low level of paradigm development than in courses with a high level".

2. "There is significantly more task activity within messages in courses in disciplines with a high level of paradigm development than in courses in disciplines with a low level".

3. "Over time, there will be an increase in both the socioemotional content and task content within messages for courses in disciplines with both low and high levels of paradigm development. Except, the task content within messages for courses with high levels of paradigm development will not increase".

4. "Courses in disciplines with a high level of paradigm development will be rated significantly more appropriate for C[M]C than courses with a low level".

The results of Vaverek and Saunder's study showed that "paradigmatic development affects [socioemotional content]. . . but not in the manner predicted. In hypothesis 1, the effect was the opposite of that predicted. Task content was not affected at all (hypothesis 2), nor was there any change in socioemotional or task content over time (hypothesis 3). In hypothesis 4, the effects were significant, but as with hypothesis 1, in the opposite direction from that predicted.

Vaverek and Saunders explain this by pointing out that although highly developed paradigms have more clearly defined meanings and methods, students who are just learning these meanings and methods are not familiar enough with them to use them effectively. Consequently, the less clearly defined meanings and methods of less developed paradigms constitute a more appropriate content for CMC-delivered instruction.

Velayo, R. (1994). Supplementary classroom instruction via computer conferencing. Educational Technology, 34, 20-26.

Subject: Classroom Dynamics; CMC.

Velayo's article sets forth the theoretical framework of a "social-cognitive view of learning in a conferencing environment that is . . .'classroom-specific' and 'student-centered'". It includes CMC as a "major instructional method" with the teacher in the role of "an active agent in the conference who monitors student learning and motivation and (re)structures the conference to enhance its use as a learning tool". This framework "operates on the premise that the outcome of a student's academic performance is influenced more by the direction and degree of the student's self-regulated learning (i.e., student engagement and commitment to the learning task) than by any other single factor". The success of CMC within this paradigm depends upon the teacher's ability "to teach and motivate the students regarding its use, purpose, and to convey to students the advantages of having the conference as an integral part of the learning".

Velayo also presents a series of recommendations for CMC instruction within the paradigm, including computer training for the students, considerations of student acceptance of CMC, task implementation, and other issues including CMC system software, individual student characteristics, and such class characteristics as class size, leadership, and group cohesion.


National Foreign Language Resource Center Homepage

Language