I’d like to do the final essay on “Online language courses in the digital age”

I’m drawn towards this topic because I’d like to investigate online courses a bit closer and I’d like to see how they fit in with the ideas of cyborg pedagogy and multimodality which we’ve been discussing in this course.

I’m thinking of using a wiki to present the essay, so I can link up to webpages or screenshots which I’m referring to. This would also make it easier to explain terms by hyperlinking.

I’d be focussing on two particular language courses and the central question I’d be asking would be “How do these online languages courses fit in with cyborg pedagogy and demands for multimodality?”

My structure could be as follows:

1. The digital age: What does this mean? (Notion of cyborgs, multimodality)

2. How has pedagogy changed? (Notion of cyborg pedagogy, increased multimodality in learning materials)

3. The cyborg pedagogy, multimodality and language learning.

4. Examples of two online language courses with particular focus on multimodality and cyborg pedagogy.
a) visual aids
b) audio aids
c) speaking cues
d) writing cues
e) presentation of grammar
f) building a community
g) the uncanny

5. Summary: Strengths and weaknesses of these two online language courses. How can they be utilized best?

I’d be really pleased to receive comments about these ideas.