Design Elements and Interaction Strategies for Supporting Positive Change in Immersive, Interactive Technologies

Contents
Introduction…………………………………………………………………….2
Interactive Learning Technologies

Design Elements and Interaction Strategies for Supporting Positive Change in Immersive, Interactive Technologies

Conclusion……………………………………………………………………..27
Bibliography…………………………………………………………………...30

INTRODUCTION
Technology is becoming increasingly more prevalent in our everyday lives. Yet, for all the new hardware and gadgets available, we have only recently seen an increased interest in designers, developers, and researchers deliberately thinking about how these technologies might be used to improve our lives and increase our well-being (Bowman and McMahan, 2007; Roo et al., 2016; Valmaggia et al., 2016; Gaggioli et al., 2017). The Western practice and literature so far has focused primarily on mental health problems and treatments, from a medical or psychiatric lens (Valmaggia et al., 2016) and with a focus on treating symptoms rather prevention. Furthermore, literature focusing on healthy populations and using a preventative medicine point of view is uncommon. Focusing on preventable measures is important because non-communicable diseases cause 70% of deaths globally and about half of all deaths in the US were preventable (Mokdad et al., 2004; WHO, The top 10 causes of death), and the use of preventative healthcare has shown to provide numerous health benefits and increase quality of life dramatically (Cohen et al., 2008; Maciosek et al., 2010). That said, there does appear to be a rise in interest in using technology for positive human functioning and well-being across many different domains. This diversified interest seems to imply promise for future applications of technology for improving positive experiences and health. Yet, a challenge lies in trying to integrate all the existing knowledge across the various domains because, although they are all aiming toward a common goal, they are using different terminology, frameworks, and theoretical lenses to approach the topic. We have created a visualization in an attempt to better understand both the development of these different domains over time and how they interact with each other (see Figure 1), and will elaborate on it below. Approaches to technology that supports positive human functioning and well-being appear to be seeded from three different domains: Psychology, HCI, and Computer Science. We will briefly discuss the history of these approaches, although we recognize that this may not be an exhaustive list because of the highly multidisciplinary nature of this research area.Regarding our context, the International Language Institute (III) at the Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia (UPTC) pays special attention to the development of the communicative competence considering the "needs and interests of the community" (Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia [UPTC], 2009, 2013). In these legal considerations, it is also stated that "pedagogical and technological innovations" are necessary to achieve the language learning goals (UPTC, 2009, p. 1). Therefore, the classes are focused on fostering and developing communicative competence by using technological resources so that learners can be more competent in the target language.
Besides the emphasis this institution is having on the foreign language and the use of technology a survey implemented on students showed that they consider the use of technology very interesting for learning. It is well known that students are very skillful in the use of technological gadgets and online environments, which means an advantage at the time of implementing activities in classes. These points justify this proposal in terms of pertinence and applicability. There is a need to change the learning processes since "traditional methods of teaching do not give enough opportunities to develop oral communicative competences" (Straksiene & Baziukaite, 2009). Thus, I wanted to make an important change in order to lead my classes considering learners' abilities for mastering ICT tools.
In order to guide this study the following research question was stated: What is the result of implementing activities through ICT to foster the development of communicative competence in undergraduate students at the university?
This study followed the principles of an action research approach, which is suitable to reflect on our teaching practices so they can be enriched and strengthened (Burns, 2010, p. 7). In order to have specific direction in the implementation of this project, the general objective was to design and implement activities that foster communicative competence in undergraduate students at the UPTC thought the use of ICT tools.
Some specific objectives were also set in order to have a clear path during the research process. They included the exploration of students' interests and needs in relation to their learning process and the use of ICT and communicative activities, the design and implementation of activities which involve the use of ICT and the communicative competence, and finally a reflective process about the implementation.
The main constructs that support this project are communicative language teaching, communicative competence and ICT in language teaching and learning. In the literature review there is a brief description of these theories.
The findings that emerged from the implementation of this project show that the use of ICT in classes had a positive impact on students' development of communicative competence. Besides, other aspects of language learning were benefited such as their acquisition of vocabulary and their interest to learn and interact in the target language. Some conclusions and pedagogical implications in relation to the use of ICT and language learning are mentioned at the end of this article.
The field of second and foreign language teaching and learning has been an issue of debate for a long time. Various theories and methods of language learning have been introduced. Grammar translation method occupied the field of foreign and second language teaching for many decades and is still of use today. The field has also been dominated by the behaviorist theory and the idea that language is nothing but a social behavior that can be learned as any other behavior through the process of habit formation; and many language drills have been designed for this purpose. Learners may share the same aim of learning a language which is ‘being able to use it effectively’; but which ability is required for that? and how to achieve it? have been questions for both linguists and methodologists!!
With the later trends in language teaching approaches and methodology and the rise of CLT in 1970s, communicative competence has become the main aim for second and foreign language learning. Such competence should be reflected in language syllabi and teachers’ training, teaching and learning methodologies…etc. Many courses have been changed to employ these new trends in teaching to fulfill the learners’ needs in learning a language. In the context of Yemen, the course ‘ Crescent English Course for Yemen’ introduced in 1990s has been designed to achieve students’ communicative competence in English.
Communicative competence means having ‘a competence to communicate’. This competence can be oral, written or even nonverbal. It is an inclusive term that refers to possessing the knowledge of the language as well as the skill to use the language in real life situations for fulfilling communicative needs. Language, according to many researchers, is a means of communication, and it comprises four main skills; vis, listening, speaking, reading and writing. To acquire these language skills, one needs not only to learn grammatical rules but to practice such skills till he gets used to all of them. Whenever s/he acquires the skills of the language and manages to use them effectively and appropriately according to the context in which s/he is involved, we can say that s/he achieves the required level of the communicative competence.
In the following sections, this paper will shed some light on the theoretical background of communicative competence in English. It will try to show what do we mean by communicative competence? What are its main components? And how can we promote it in the context of English as a foreign language?
Interactive Learning Technologies
In 186 countries across the world, the COVID-19 pandemic deprived 1.2 billion children [1] of the traditional school experience. This unexpected upheaval has forced teachers and parents to come up with reasonable, safe, and educational alternatives to brick-and-mortar schools. This is especially challenging for younger kids who can’t learn on their own. Educators are turning to online learning to substitute the classroom experience. The concept of educational technology was gaining popularity even before COVID-19.
Last year, Research and Markets estimated the global online education market could reach $350 billion in 2025 [2] (up from $18.66 billion in 2019). This expected growth is attributed to the positive effects of eLearning technologies. Research suggests that online learning increases information retention by 25-60% [3] compared to conventional classroom settings and minimizes time spent on education by up to 60%.
Online learning tools seemed successful back when their role was just to complement the conventional classroom. However, now they are emerging as the main method of education and there is a very real possibility that distance learning will persist even after the pandemic.
Will online learning in its current shape be sufficient? Or will kids start missing interactions with classmates and face-to-face experiences with the teacher? Can incorporating interactivity into online educational platforms present a solution to these problems?