Looking at the possibilities for

Looking at the possibilities for a language learner managed progress tracking system.

My own experience as an adult learner of Japanese has shown me the need for a means to unify the numerous resources that I have used. I have taken at least a dozen different Japanese language classes from Texas, to Los Angeles, to Tokyo and back to Texas. I have collected dozens of Japanese language books, flash cards, tapes, CDs, videos, DVDs, software, and use numerous online resources. I am currently teaching a continuing education class for total beginners at our University.

I would like to see a system that allows learners to track their progress in studying a language, that would be portable, and that they could take with them regardless of when and where they study, whether they are taking a formal class or are studying independently. A database that could store and index what a student knows in various domains of a language: vocabulary, grammar, phonetics, idioms, culture, etc.

I would like to generate discussion of the feasibility of a language learner self-tracking program and what it might consist of. Many of these features exist within a single program or project but a means to communicate this information among various programs and projects would be useful. The use of software that evaluates, quizzes, and tutors and can generate a report in a standard format, perhaps based on XML, and input into a language learners self-tracking program could be beneficial.

The indexing of resources to show what they contain in the various domains of a language would be useful in helping a student select material of the appropriate level to continue making progress. Another area of potential is to generate study material individualized for a particular student. Vocabulary lists, grammar exercises, or audio files (MP3 or other) can be used to generate online or printed flash cards for a specific learner, or to create a customized audio CD or MP3 files. The creation of customized quizzes for a specific learner based on their current knowledge and to use the output of such quizzes to update their database serves two purposes, to track the student's progress and to provide a guide to new study material. Customized XML data files can be used to communicate between quiz programs and the learner's database. The development of the Semantic Web as outlined by the creator of the World Wide Web, Tim Berners Lee will aid in accessing and using contextualized online information for language learners. The ability to compare a student's level and guide them to material for preparing to meet the ACTFL guidelines or to take a test such as the Japanese Language Proficiency Test could be simplified with an individual learner's database.

The focus of this discussion is to generate a brainstorming session by all interested persons on how such a system could be created and used, what features in might contains and how it could work with existing language learning resources.

Online Resources:

Keiko Schneider's Bookmarks

http://www.sabotenweb.com/bookmarks/

Jim Breen's Japanese page

http://www.csse.monash.edu.au/~jwb/japanese.html

ACTFL

http://members.aol.com/sokogakuen/actfl.html

Semantic Web - Tim Berners Lee
http://www.semanticweb.org/index_old.htm