Evaluation of Learning Material in MERLOT

LangMedia Foreign Language Media Archive

Website: http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=76168

Quality of Content: 
The website presents valid and educationally significant concepts, models, and skills for the discipline. The website is learning about new cultures and languages.
Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching-Learning Tool:
The materials can be used in the explanation and demonstration stage of the learning process. 
Students will be able to:

• improve listening comprehension skills in the language of their choice
• better understand the culture of the country of their choice 
• learn the "body language" of the people of the country of their choice
• identify the differences/similarities of different cultures

The material can be used for visual and auditory learners. Students will be able to see videos, hear audios on the website from a target country and learn about its culture, watch videos of a specific theme (visiting bank, greeting friends or buying a newspaper, ordering food) in that country. Students will also be able to hear different languages of the native speakers which will help to practice their comprehension skills. The media rich presentation of material (videos, descriptions of cultures, audios, pronunciation of words and phrases) will improve student's ability to learn and comprehend language of their choice. The use of the software can easily and readily be integrated into the curriculum. Teachers can show video, audio clips in the classroom or incorporate the material in e-learning classroom. Students can also watch materials at home and materials can be used as part of homework assignments. The teaching-learning goals are very easy to identify. The site is very well organized, teacher/student can easily choose a language of their choice and go to different themes, access video/audio clips and read a brief cultures note in English about the topic of their choice. Learning assignments for using the software can be easily written (by language, theme and topic within the theme).
Ease of Use:
Labels, buttons, text and general layout of the computer interface is consistent and visually distinct. The website is very intuitive and easy to navigate. The material is very well organized. The user cannot easily get lost in the material. The module does not provide feedback about the the system status. The learning material does not require any documentation, technical support and instruction to successfully use the website. The material present information in ways that are familiar for students (videos, pictures, and descriptions). The material does present information in ways that would be attractive to students (video, audio and pictures).