EFFECT OF CALL PROGRAMMES ON BS STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC WRITING ACHIEVEMENT

Abstract

Teaching method is an important variable which plays a significant role in language teaching.  The present paper reports the effect of CALL programmes on academic writing achievement of BS students. It was a mixed-method case study with a focus on a two-tailed pair-observation using a quasi experimental research design. Before the study, participants’ existing proficiency in academic writing was measured through a pretest. This proficiency was the result of traditional classroom teaching method. So, participants’ perceptions about the traditional classroom teaching were recorded through an attitude survey. Then, a six-week online CALL intervention (both synchronous and asynchronous) was provided to the population on academic writing. The significant gain was measured through a posttest and perceptions about two teaching methods were recorded with a close-ended questionnaire. Four null hypotheses were formulated and tested using t-statistics at alpha 0.05.  A marked gain was witnessed in participants’ academic writing achievement as a result of CALL programmes. Participants’ perception about both teaching methods also underwent a change in favour of CALL (computer assisted language learning) method. The current study was based on socio-cognitive and interactionist theories of learning.

Keywords:  Educational Technology, Computer Assisted Language Learning, Academic Writing, Web 2.0, Computer Mediated Instruction