Abstract
English language learners (ELLs) face many challenges. Among them are developing the ability to communicate with others and learning the vocabulary that is needed to enable language comprehension and production. The theories of languaging and extended mapping argue producing language and interacting with language supports learning (Carey, Daedalus Winter: 59–68, 2004; Lang Learn Dev 6(3): 184–205, 2010; Swain, Three functions of output in second language learning. In: Cook G, Seidlhofer B (ed) Principles and practice in applied linguistics. Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1995; Languaging, agency, and collaboration in advanced second language proficiency reading reflection. In: Byrnes H (ed) Advanced language learning: the contribution of Halliday and Vygotsky. Continuum, New York, 2006). However, the challenge of supporting ELL communication has received little attention from the educational technology community (Burston, CALICO J 31:103–125, 2014a; Wu, Comput Educ 59:817–827, 2012). The imbalance between the study of learner use of communication support tools and the potential for mobile devices to support ELLs presents an opportunity for research and development. To move this area forward, an adaptive mobile application was developed to support the communication and vocabulary acquisition of ELLs. This adaptive mobile learning tool was developed by iteratively refining upon an existing communication support tool following design-based research practices and the layered evaluation framework (Paramythis et al. User Model User-Adap Inter (UMUAI) 20:383–453, 2010). This framework was employed because it details how to build effective socio-technical systems that employ artificial intelligence to adjust the learning experience to individual users. This chapter describes this design process and the changes that resulted from various evaluations of the mobile tools’ features, functionality, and design. The chapter concludes with a discussion of app elements that should be considered when trying to select and use mobile apps to support student learning.
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Demmans Epp, C. (2019). Developing an Adaptive Mobile Tool to Scaffold the Communication and Vocabulary Acquisition of Language Learners. In: Zhang, Y., Cristol, D. (eds) Handbook of Mobile Teaching and Learning. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-41981-2_92-1
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