Abstract:

This paper reports on the Test of English for International Communication (TOEIC) scores of the treatment groups with a CAI program in class, their motivations to learn English, and the usage of the better CAI program in class.

Over 50% of my students (n=197) have successfully got 30 points more on the TOEIC scores in 2013 under the treatment with a CAI program, comparing with their pretest scores on the TOEIC a year ago. Some instructors didn’t want to utilize the computer staff, and some instructors try to apply the computer-assisted instruction (CAI). The data have been naturally divided into 2 groups on this thesis, a group with the CAI (the treatment group) or a group without the CAI (the control group). These two groups have been analyzed, and demonstrated how well the CAI in class has worked for several years.

The TOEIC by ETS has been very popular as an English standardized test in the Japanese society. So many Japanese companies have accepted the scores not only for the employees’ promotion, but universities and colleges in Japan also use them as English placement tests to arrange the classes by the students’ scores. Under the circumstances, it is so serious for all graduating students in Japan to take the higher scores of the TOEIC for their better employment. Some researchers and instructors, however, think it is ridiculous that the only TOEIC has been accepted in the Japanese society and it is only a test. Many Japanese college and university students have been motivated and interested in pops, movies and TV programs in English as the data is mentioned in this paper. It is very natural to ask why you don’t use these media to teach English. There are their various motivations to learn English, but most of graduating students in Japan enter into Japanese companies after their graduation, and they have to follow the way the companies wish. Moreover, as English facilitators in Japan, it is more useful and helpful to unify their motivations into the TOEIC, because they definitely need the higher scores before their graduation.

Once their motivations are cultivated and unified under the TOEIC, the better CAI program has been so effective as the data are indicated. Newton A course, a CAI program on the world wide web, has been offered for several years at Nara National College of Technology. If you offered it to your students to study voluntarily, few students would try and very few students would finish all of 22,848 questions. It approximately takes 200-300 hours to complete all questions. As you may know, the program sounds too much, though most of students finished 80% of the contents completely. Therefore their efforts show the effectiveness of this CAI program on a standardized test, the TOEIC. Once the students are highly motivated, they engage in the CAI program with enough quality and quantity. Consequently if you are an instructor or a facilitator to care for your students’ future and success, please cultivate what they need in the society after their graduation, show them the way to survive in their future and let them prepare for their future in your classroom.

This research has been supported with the “Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research” of “Japan Society for the Promotion of Science” (Research Project Number: 24520693).

Keywords:

TESOL, the TOEIC scores of Japanese college students, Computer Assisted Instruction in class.