Implementing focus on form in Skype-based instruction: a case study

Abstract

The last decades have witnessed increasing use of synchronous computer-mediated communication, of which Skype, a VoIP software, is a representative. Due to its integrating visual communication with written communication in real time, Skype could arguably be considered as a good candidate for implementing a type of language teaching which relies heavily on the communication of meaning but at the same time fosters the development of grammatical and lexical knowledge through what Long and Robinson have defined as focus on form, namely “an occasional shift of attention to linguistic code features […] triggered by perceived problems with comprehension or production” (1998). The research is a case study aiming at investigating the effectiveness of focus on form in Skype-based teaching on a subject learning Italian as a foreign language. Such effectiveness is interpreted both in terms of acquisition of the forms brought into focus (intake) and in terms of proficiency in the foreign language; moreover, the pedagogical implications of the use of a VoIP setting for language teaching are also a matter of investigation. The subject was administered 20 Skype sessions (10 oral sessions through videoconferencing and 10 written sessions through Skype written chat) over a 5-week period. The instruction was carried out through tasks aiming at fostering the learner’s spoken and written use of the most problematic forms, which were previously identified through a pre-assessment conversation. After the instructional period, knowledge of the forms emerged as LREs - language-related episodes, according to Williams (2001) – was tested through two post-tests, which were taken as a source for drawing conclusions alongside with other materials such as a teacher’s diary and various field notes. The results showed some differences between the acquisition of grammatical forms and the acquisition of lexical forms, in that lexicon was recovered with more difficulty by the learner. Some slight improvement in proficiency was also registered. Although some hypotheses on possible ways of improving language teaching on a VoIP platform are provided, the limited scope of this case study necessarily calls for further research in the field of Skype-based instruction.