Abstract:

For the past ten years, the authors have developed and carried out an English e-learning program called “Intensive English Training on the Web (IETW)” for their university students studying English as a foreign language. Under the program, students are given intensive practice in English reading, listening, and grammar for eight to ten weeks. Practice exercises are presented on web browsers through a computer network. All the study records are stored on a file server, and the Learning Management System (LMS), specially designed for this program, allows teachers to monitor, track, and assess the students’ study progress and performance. Based on these data, teachers give necessary advice and guidance to each student. Also, TOEIC (Test of English for International Communication) tests are administered before and after the program to measure improvement of students’ English proficiency.
This presentation reports on the study the authors conducted in 2008 to investigate the relationship between the participants’ TOEIC score gains and their study time and workload (i.e., the percentage of the practice exercises they have done) on the program.
The main results of the study were as follows:
1. The average TOEIC score gain for all the participants (n=380) was only 37.3 points.
2. When the authors picked up the hardworking participants who worked on the program for more than 20 hours per semester and completed more than 80% of the provided practice exercises, their TOEIC score gain was 69.5 points, much higher than the overall average.
3. Such hardworking participants, however, accounted for only 25.8% (n=98) of the total.
These results indicated that while the program proved very effective in improving the participants’ TOEIC scores when it was worked on diligently, the number of the participants who worked hard on the program and achieved large gains was very small. One of the future challenges for the authors is to look for ways to change unmotivated or less motivated students into motivated ones.

Keywords:

E-Learning, learning English as a foreign language, TOEIC score gains, study time, study workload.