British Council - Essay Example

A CALL Evaluation Report: British Council: LearnEnglish (http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/). Student’s Name College A CALL Evaluation Report: British Council: LearnEnglish 1. Introduction In point of fact, LearnEnglish is an online website that offers students and individuals free learning of the English language for the purposes of improving their both their written and spoken English. The website possesses half a million learners, in excess of two thousand teachers, more than eighty centres of teaching within forty nine nations and the course which is ideal for everybody. The teachers within the website offer all learners the skills and confidence that are required for communicating effectively in English. This is attributed by the fact that, the site has more than seventy years of teaching English language and therefore, the teachers are capable of helping learners attain their goals. The LearnEnglish website has a lot of listening activities together with video content within listen and watch. In addition, the website also has IELTS exam materials of practice, materials regarding Business & Work and Grammar section. Moreover, the website has writing for an aim, for those who desire improving their academic writing. The first screen shot for the learners on the website is on grammar and vocabulary. In fact, the website is made in a manner that is effective for easy handling of users. Also, the website poses some issues to both the teachers and students which include computer literacy, internet connectivity, and technological issues among others. 2. Description As a matter of fact, LearnEnglish website is a website that teaches for free individuals and students who desire learning English language for the purposes of improving their both written and spoken English (British Council: LearnEnglish, 2015). The website possesses half a million learners, in excess of two thousand teachers, more than eighty centres of teaching within forty nine nations and the course which is ideal for everybody. The teachers within the website offer all learners the skills and confidence that are required for communicating effectively in English. This is attributed by the fact that, the site has more than seventy years of teaching English language and therefore, the teachers are capable of helping learners attain their goals. Equally important, the website possesses a number of screen shots that are of invaluable help to the English language learners. As such, the website has a lot of listening activities together with video content within listen and watch. In addition, the website also has IELTS exam materials of practice, materials regarding Business & Work and Grammar section. Moreover, the website has writing for an aim, for those who desire improving their academic writing (British Council, 2015). The first screen shot for the learners on the website is on grammar and vocabulary. First on the Grammar and vocabulary, there is the English grammar section where the learner is capable of using the English Grammar in the same way like a book. In this case, the learner is capable of reading the different contents of grammar that comprise of pronouns, possessives, quantifiers and determiners, nouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbials, sentence, phrase and clause (English Grammar, 2015). Additionally, within this section, the learner is capable of searching for a particular grammar area which he/she have interest in, for example, utilising the website search, it is possible to find nouns, adverbs as well as utilising the A to Z of the content among others. Secondly on the grammar and vocabulary screen shot, turn to be the quick grammar section. Within this reference, there are brief descriptions of 48 of the extra grammar common areas, each having an activity that assists learners in learning. The common grammar areas comprise of articles, adjectives, both uncountable and countable nouns, future plans and conditionals among others. Third on the grammar and vocabulary are grammar exercises. Within this section, the website offers a number of exercises that learners are capable of practicing. Importantly, in case there are difficulties detected when practising, learners are provided with links for following for the purposes of obtaining assistance. Lastly within the grammar and vocabulary, the website provides vocabulary games. Within this section, the website offers learners multiple English vocabulary areas like, spelloween, wordshake and verb machine among others (British Council: LearnEnglish, 2015). The other screen shot availed by the LearnEnglish website is writing. Within this section, writing for an aim is provided for assisting academic writing learners in writing coursework in English for their studies. In this case, the section comprise of thorough information regarding kinds of writing as well as the writing aims, interactive, video and audio exercises and instances of effective assignments from various disciplines (Bailey, 2006). The other screen shot within the LearnEnglish website turn to be business & work. Within business and work, learners are capable of finding materials intended for assisting them to attain their professional objectives through developing their English skills. In addition, the website offers various articles and podcasts on various professional and business topics, all going along with grammar practice activities for helping them improve their place of work English. Moreover, learners can also find various series of videos which covers the recruiting process. Within the business & work, the first section is professionals’ podcasts that assists learners in improving their English for their career within their places of work, and encircles a huge number of work themes and businesses. The podcasts include issues like, biotechnology, CVs writing advice, and workplace’s motivation among others. The other section within the business & work turn to be - you are hired videos (British Council: LearnEnglish, 2015). Within this section, various videos are provided by the LearnEnglish website on the various processes of work. Some of the videos include giving either bad or good news to the employees, attending an interview by a potential candidate, discussion of applications made by applicants and making a decision on the format of the interview, effective ways of calling candidates while offering them the interview process details, and the common mistakes that are made by candidates during interviews. In all those scenarios, all those videos are meant for improving the learners’ both written and spoken language. The other section within the business & work is business magazine. In this section, the website offers a variety of articles that assist learners in becoming better professionals through offering them the language that they require at the workplace. As a matter of fact, the website offers various articles that include relationship-building, blog, complaining, and skills among others. First, in the relationship-building article, learners are capable of learning the meaning of the term together with what is done by a qualified relationship-builder. Second, within the complaining article, the learner is capable of learning the disadvantages and advantages of various complaining ways with a number of valuable tips on the manner of successful complaining, whether within speaking or writing to someone’s boss at the workplace (British Council: LearnEnglish, 2015). Third on the blog article, learners are capable of reading some people’s claims that within ten years newspapers would no longer subsist and that all people would be reading blogs rather than newspapers. In addition to this, learners are also capable of making out whether blogs turn to be a welcome addition to conventional media or if the blogging turn to be a fashion that is passing. Fourth on the skills article, learners are capable of knowing the competencies and their importance these days. Additionally, learners are capable of knowing the manner of using competencies within human resources together with the way persons can utilise them to their benefit. The other screen shot in the LearnEnglish web is (International English Language Testing System) IELTS. Within the IELTS section, learners are capable of finding advice together with practice materials for assisting them prepare for speaking, listening, reading as well as writing modules of the test of IELTS. In fact, what is found within the IELTS section comprises of IELTS interview proficiency, mock papers and tips. First, within the IELTS interview proficiency, learners are capable of preparing for the IELTS test of the speaking section after watching various interview skills videos offered on the LearnEnglish website. In the IELTS mock papers, the LearnEnglish website offers practice activities that are beneficial for the IELTS test listening section. Lastly, in the IELTS tips, the LearnEnglish website provides a range of videos of learners from various parts of earth offering tips and views regarding the IELTS test. 3. Evaluation As a matter of fact, the LearnEnglish website is engineered in a manner that is easy to be handled by any willing learner of the English language. Having a quick glance at the website tells someone that it is an educational website. This can be proved by the various sections that are available on the website, like, user login, writing, grammar & vocabulary, help, search, navigation, apps, listen and watch, construct new account, and IELTS among others (British Council, 2015). As such, the LearnEnglish website has both pedagogical and technical aspects as described in this report. 3.1. Pedagogical Aspects In point of fact, pedagogical aspects that comprise of writing, IELTS, and grammar & vocabulary among others are the ones that are used by the learners in studying what the LearnEnglish website offers. The aspects comprise of the detailed content that is invaluable to the learners. Importantly, the pedagogical aspects are configured in a logical manner that makes it easy for the learners to begin with the introduction and proceed to the next steps that are designed for the free online English learning course (Lawrence & Tavakol, 2007). As a matter of fact, the pedagogical aspects assist learners in gaining an understanding of English, thus helping them in taking their exams easily in English language, speaking and reading fluently in English language understanding well in the English language and writing correctly for various purposes apart from academic (British Council: LearnEnglish, 2015). On the other hand, the pedagogical aspects comprise of both weaknesses and strengths. The first strength of the pedagogical aspects is that the LearnEnglish website offers various videos on various aspects. In fact, by making use of the videos, the learners become capable of understanding more than by reading only. This can be attributed by the fact that words and pictures augment the level of understanding (Davenport, Yaron, Klahr & Koedinger, 2010). In addition to this, learners can play back the video where they did not understand clearly in comparison to when being taught in class by a teacher. Through rewinding, learners are capable of reminding themselves what was being said and, therefore engrave the necessary points within their minds. The other strength of the pedagogical aspects is that the sections are neatly arranged on the website making it easy for the learners to access the available content. In this case, it only requires a learner to place a cursor on the selected section and click it to open what is being sought for. The other strength of the pedagogical aspect turns to be that learners are capable of learning at their own pace. As such, this makes learners to fully comprehend what they are learning at their convenient moments. On the other hand, pedagogical aspects comprise of weaknesses. The first weakness of pedagogical aspects is that people with no knowledge of English would find difficulties in accessing the English course contents. This can be attributed by the fact that they would not be capable of clicking the correct course content since they would be always guessing. The other weakness is that the pedagogical aspects are only designed for people who are computer literate. In this scenario, illiterate people are incapable of even starting the computer and accessing the LearnEnglish website. The other weakness of pedagogical aspects is that they contain several tabs making it difficult for the beginner to make decision of where to begin learning. The other weakness of pedagogical aspects is that there is no immediate question and answer between the learner and the teacher (Trujilo, 2009). For instance, when watching the video and a question arises, the question can only be asked through the comments section, looking at the frequently asked questions or contacting the teachers of the LearnEnglish website where there might be no response or it might take long. 3.2. Technical Aspects As a matter of fact, the technical aspects assist learners in easily accessing LearnEnglish website. Through the technical aspects users become capable of being recognised as the current learners by the teachers and, therefore receive the necessary help and support. In addition, the technical aspects assist users to share with other learners what they have leant and also make the necessary comments (British Council: LearnEnglish, 2015). The first strength of technical aspects is that users are capable of obtaining the necessary help when they require it. In this case, users just click on the help icon and they ask whatever question they have in mind. The users receive response either immediately or after some time. The other strength of the technical aspects is that after forgetting one’s password, it is possible to request another one. As such, a user does not require starting afresh as a new user after losing the logging in password. The other strength is that users can search everything that they think of in the LearnEnglish web through keying in the right terms in the search tab. In this case, after pressing enter or search, the desired results surface instantly. On the other hand, the first weakness of the technical aspects is that they require some knowledge on the use computers. As such, computer illiterate persons cannot benefit from the online learning of the English language. The other weakness is that only selected phones can support the LearnEnglish apps (British Council: LearnEnglish, 2015). As such, persons with phones that do not download the apps cannot access the free online LearnEnglish course. On the other hand, one of the main issues in using the website is that users require having some knowledge of the use of computers. Computer literate persons are at high chances of benefitting more from the LearnEnglish website. The other issue is that it requires using the internet in using the website that costs money. As such, people without money cannot access the free services offered by the LearnEnglish website. The other issue is that it requires having a computer or a phone that supports the LearnEnglish apps. In this scenario, people not having either a computer or a phone cannot access the free LearnEnglish website whatever willing they might be. On the other hand, the website can be improved to increase efficiency. The first suggestion through which the LearnEnglish website can be improved is by offering the live chat. In this case, users can ask whatever question they have and get immediate feedback. The other way the website can be improved is through providing learning lessons using the YouTube. In this case, users can get more interested in learning while seeing. The other suggestion of improving the website is utilising a CND (content delivery network) for instance, CloudFlare for the purposes of hastening the time of load and experience for the users (Hunt, 2011). The other suggestion of improving the website is showcasing one major call to the action. This involves deciding precisely what the visitors are expected to do the moment they hit the website (Hunt, 2011). In this case, visitors would be naturally guided via the lead, thus LearnEnglish would experience an increased, steadier rate of conversion. The other suggestion for improving the website would be utilising high-quality content (Roesler, 2014). As such, high quality content would get shared more, therefore drastically increasing the message dissemination. 4. Integration As a matter of fact, the LearnEnglish website has various issues for the teachers and students. The first issue for the teachers is the questions that are asked by students who do not clearly understand English. In this case, teachers are faced with a lot of difficulty trying to think what the learners are asking. In some instances, teachers might not answer the required question by the learner as a result of the learner asking a certain question inappropriately. The other issue faced by the teachers is the huge number of questions asked by the learners. In this case, since there number of teachers is small than the number of learners, sometimes the teachers get overwhelmed by the number of questions making them not to answer some questions. The other major issue for the teachers is that some students take longer than expected time to complete their course making the teachers to have difficult times in handling additional learners as they enrol. The other challenge for teachers is disruptive environments that hinder successful execution of the online program. In this case, some faculty members or administrators who turn to be not comfortable with functioning with technology or change or have the sensation that, online programs are incapable of providing quality education frequently hinder the implementation process. Such people embody a huge issue within an online program as they hinder its success. On the other hand, students are also faced with issues. The first issue with the students is equity and technology accessibility (Bach, Haynes, & Smith, 2007). In this scenario from the administrative perspective, some students are incapable of affording the technology which is employed by the institution. As such, such students end up not utilising the LearningEnglish website. In addition, the internet accessibility in some countries poses a huge price to students. In this case, online time of students turn to be limited by the internet’s access amount they are capable of affording making them not to fully benefit from the free online LearnEnglish program. The other major issue is computer literacy. In fact, a number of students do not know how to operate computers effectively making it difficult for them to benefit from the LearnEnglish free website. The other major issue is the technology limitations (Bach, Haynes, & Smith, 2007). In this scenario, there are sometimes when the breakdowns happens on the system for instance, crashing of servers that hosts programs cutting all students off from learning. Additionally, the connectivity of the internet sometimes fails making the students not to access the website. Moreover, sometimes personal computers possess various problems that limit access of the website by the students. Importantly, the LearnEnglish website can be used in an English language lesson at the University. In this instance, the website can be used in the English language, grammar & vocabulary section where they would be learning adjective (non-gradable/gradable). The students would be asked to put cursor on the grammar & vocabulary and click on the quick grammar. After clicking the quick grammar, the quick grammar reference would appear. The students would be asked to click the section on adjectives (non-gradable/gradable) (British Council: LearnEnglish, 2015). After clicking the adjectives section, a page explaining both the gradable and non-gradable adjectives would appear. For example, gradable adjectives portray that something is capable of possessing varying degrees like, frightened and cold, while non-gradable adjectives portray never possess varying degrees like, wooden and married among others. The professor would take the students through each and every bit of the adjectives’ web page and ask them to ask any questions that they might be having. Additionally, students would also be asked to make any comments they would be having. 5. Conclusion In point of fact, LearnEnglish is an online website that offers students and individuals free learning of the English language for the purposes of improving their both their written and spoken English. Additionally, the website has multiple students across the globe. Moreover, the website has many teachers who assist learners wherever they are on earth through the internet. The website has various sections that users explore for the purposes of gaining the available knowledge of English language. In addition, the LearnEnglish website has a lot of listening activities together with video content within listen and watch. Moreover, the website also has IELTS exam materials of practice, materials regarding business & work and grammar section. Having a quick glance at the website tells someone that it is an educational website which can be proved by the various sections that are available on the website, like, user login, writing, grammar & vocabulary, help, search, navigation, apps, listen and watch, construct new account, and IELTS among others. As such, the LearnEnglish website has both pedagogical and technical aspects. As a matter of fact, using the LearnEnglish website is coupled by some issues like, computer literacy, and internet connectivity among others. Importantly, the LearnEnglish website can be incorporated in an English lesson in a university. Total Number of Words 3416 References Bailey, S. (2006). Academic Writing: A Handbook for International Students. London Routledge. Lawrence, D., & Tavakol, S. (2007). Balanced Website Design: Optimising Aesthetics, Usability and Purpose. London: Springer. Lynch, P, J., & Horton, S. (2008). Web Style Guide: Basic Design Principles for Creating Web Sites. New York (N.Y): Yale University Press. Davenport, J, L., Yaron, D., Klahr, D., & Koedinger, K. (2010). When do Diagrams Enhance Learning? A framework for Designing Relevant Representations. Retrieved 28 May 2015 from https://oli.cmu.edu/wp-oli/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Davenport_2008_Framework_For_Designing_Relevant_Representations.pdf Trujilo, H, A. (2009). Benefits and Challenges for the Online Learner. Retrieved 28 May 2015 from http://www.ponce.inter.edu/cai/Comite-investigacion/Estudiantes-Invitados/Benefits_Challenges_Online_Learner.pdf Hunt, B. (2011). Covert! : Designing Web Sites to Increase Traffic and Conversion. Indianapolis, Ind.: Wiley Pub. Roesler, P. (2014). 5 Easy Ways to Improve Your Website. Retrieved 28 May 2015 from http://www.inc.com/peter-roesler/5-easy-ways-to-improve-your-website.html Bach, S., Haynes, P., Smith, J, L. (2007). Online Learning and Teaching in Higher Education. Berkshire: Open University Press. (2015). British Council: LearnEnglish. Retrieved 28 May 2015 from http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/ (2015). English Grammar. Retrieved 28 May 2015 from http://englishstandarts.blogspot.com/p/contents.html Read More

Secondly on the grammar and vocabulary screen shot, turn to be the quick grammar section. Within this reference, there are brief descriptions of 48 of the extra grammar common areas, each having an activity that assists learners in learning. The common grammar areas comprise of articles, adjectives, both uncountable and countable nouns, future plans and conditionals among others. Third on the grammar and vocabulary are grammar exercises. Within this section, the website offers a number of exercises that learners are capable of practicing.

Importantly, in case there are difficulties detected when practising, learners are provided with links for following for the purposes of obtaining assistance. Lastly within the grammar and vocabulary, the website provides vocabulary games. Within this section, the website offers learners multiple English vocabulary areas like, spelloween, wordshake and verb machine among others (British Council: LearnEnglish, 2015). The other screen shot availed by the LearnEnglish website is writing. Within this section, writing for an aim is provided for assisting academic writing learners in writing coursework in English for their studies.

In this case, the section comprise of thorough information regarding kinds of writing as well as the writing aims, interactive, video and audio exercises and instances of effective assignments from various disciplines (Bailey, 2006). The other screen shot within the LearnEnglish website turn to be business & work. Within business and work, learners are capable of finding materials intended for assisting them to attain their professional objectives through developing their English skills.

In addition, the website offers various articles and podcasts on various professional and business topics, all going along with grammar practice activities for helping them improve their place of work English. Moreover, learners can also find various series of videos which covers the recruiting process. Within the business & work, the first section is professionals’ podcasts that assists learners in improving their English for their career within their places of work, and encircles a huge number of work themes and businesses.

The podcasts include issues like, biotechnology, CVs writing advice, and workplace’s motivation among others. The other section within the business & work turn to be - you are hired videos (British Council: LearnEnglish, 2015). Within this section, various videos are provided by the LearnEnglish website on the various processes of work. Some of the videos include giving either bad or good news to the employees, attending an interview by a potential candidate, discussion of applications made by applicants and making a decision on the format of the interview, effective ways of calling candidates while offering them the interview process details, and the common mistakes that are made by candidates during interviews.

In all those scenarios, all those videos are meant for improving the learners’ both written and spoken language. The other section within the business & work is business magazine. In this section, the website offers a variety of articles that assist learners in becoming better professionals through offering them the language that they require at the workplace. As a matter of fact, the website offers various articles that include relationship-building, blog, complaining, and skills among others.

First, in the relationship-building article, learners are capable of learning the meaning of the term together with what is done by a qualified relationship-builder. Second, within the complaining article, the learner is capable of learning the disadvantages and advantages of various complaining ways with a number of valuable tips on the manner of successful complaining, whether within speaking or writing to someone’s boss at the workplace (British Council: LearnEnglish, 2015). Third on the blog article, learners are capable of reading some people’s claims that within ten years newspapers would no longer subsist and that all people would be reading blogs rather than newspapers.

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