CONNECTED LANGUAGE CLASSES

In a language classroom in Japan, as in many language classrooms with monolingual speakers, it is usually the case that the students communicate in their mother tongue. The need to use the target language is always difficult to impress upon these learners.
Using common internet technology, teachers can give these students a chance to communicate with speakers of the target language, and there are many teachers that would like to take advantage of these opportunities. However, there are few that actually succeed in doing so.
The promise of CALL (Computer Assisted Language Learning) is that computers are infinitely patient teachers. Computers can make various language points available at any time, can test some language skills, and can hold limited conversations with language learners. However, in order to have meaningful communication, a student really needs a human to converse with. In spite of all the technology, there is still no replacement for a human in language teaching.
Modern language teachers may continue to teach using familiar non-tech methodologies, or they may try using existing technologies to try to connect students with other students for human to human interaction. This presentation is about an attempt at the latter.
This presentation is about a successful exchange of ideas, culture and most importantly, language in a meaningful transmission of communication between two universities. It will outline many of the problems teachers often face, and suggestions for overcoming these difficulties. A language teacher attending this presentation may find some very helpful advice, and also some much-needed assistance in using online technology that is both commonly available, and harder to find.