Volume 24 Issue 3
Winter 2017

Learning Learning
LD SIG 2017 GRANT AWARDEE REPORTS

Takeaways and Practical Applications from JALTCALL 2017
JALTCALL 2017 0
Daniel G. C. Hougham
Hiroshima University

G. C.

T

he JALTCALL 2017 conference washeld at Matsuyama University in June,and I was fortunate enough to have had
the opportunity to attend numerous
presentations there, two of which stood out tome as being of particular relevance andimportance to learner development: (a) aninteractive poster presentation titled Online testing
for learner feedback and development by Blair Barr &Brett Milliner (of Tamagawa University) as partof the LD SIG Forum, and (b) a show-and-tellpresentation titled Building and learning together
with Quizlet by Blair Barr (of Tamagawa
University). This reflective report will focus onwhat the main takeaways from these twopresentations were for me, from a learnerdevelopment perspective, and how I havealready been able to make use of them, and planon making further use of them to encouragelearner development in my university teachingin the near future.
Learner development via online testing &timely feedback
As its title suggests, Online testing for learner
feedback and development by Barr and Milliner
looked at how online testing can be beneficial
for learners by providing them with helpful andtimely feedback. Sharing their numerous
experiences with viewing and interacting with
online test results, the presenters reported on
the results of a survey of their students’(N=190) impressions of doing online tests withimmediate feedback. The survey was conducted

TAKEAWAYS JALTCALL 2017

after students had completed several computerassisted language tests either via Blackboard
Learn or Google Forms, as well as M-Reader
quizzes. The findings provided some fascinating
answers to some very interesting questions
includingwhat
theadvantages
anddisadvantages of online tests/homework arecompared to the advantages and disadvantagesof paper-based tests/homework.
One of the main points I took away from thediscussion was that students clearly recognize
and appreciate the benefits of online testing,including convenience, ease/quickness ofcompletion as well as the immediacy of
feedback. Another takeaway for me was thatmany students responded that online tests are
not without some disadvantages, especially theirdependency on internet connectedness and thepossibility of submission or input errors.
Student responses also indicated that many ofthem see some advantages of doing paperbased tests/homework, particularly the positiveeffect that writing down their answers directly
has on memory. Respondents also mentionedthat paper-based tests have disadvantages suchas time commitment, greater requirement ofeffort, and inconvenience.
What was of particular note was that a large
majority (76%) of their students preferred doing
tests and homework online (with feedback),with an equal number indicating that they havetaken computer-assisted language tests again forrevision or self-study purposes. In other words,

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Learning Learning
most of the students expressed a preference foronline tests over paper-based tests, and many ofthem found online tests beneficial enough to dothem again. For me, what stood out was that theuse of online tests can be an effective andefficient way not only for teachers to manage
assessment, homework, and other classroomtasks, but also, more importantly, for learners toreceive and reflect on the timely feedback.
Learning quickly from their mistakes, students
are better able to become self-directed andautonomous learners.
Encouraged by these insightful and promising
results, as well as the helpful related informationthat Milliner and Barr (2017) have recently
published, I am glad to report that I have since
been able to conduct some online tests andVolume 24 Issue 3
Winter 2017quizzes using some of the methods they
introduced, namely Google Forms and Google
Sheets with the add-on applications Flubaroo
and FormCreator, with much success andpositive student feedback. After several weeks
of doing weekly vocabulary quizzes via Google
Forms, I anonymously surveyed in the spring of
this year two classes of English majors (N = 45)
at a private university regarding the extent towhich they agree with the statement: “I like theGoogle Forms system which lets me know my score andanswers by email soon after doing each online vocabularyquiz” (Google Forms Vocabulary()2). Students
responded using a Likert-style scale from 1
strongly disagree to 4 strongly agree.

Figure 1. Student feedback about online testing (vocabulary quizzes) (N=45)
Figure 1 shows that a very large majority (84%)
of my students agreed or strongly agreed thatthey like the online testing system that was used
to conduct quizzes and provide immediate
feedback.

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In addition, after conducting various online
listening tests via Google Forms in the springsemester, I surveyed 3 classes of non-English
majors (N=94) at a prefectural university with asimilar question. Using a Likert-style scale from1 strongly disagree to 4 strongly agree, students were
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Learning Learning
asked to what extent they agree with thestatement: “I like the Google Forms system which lets
me know my score and answers by email soon after doing

Volume 24 Issue 3
Winter 2017
an online listening test” (Google Forms
2)

Figure 2. Student feedback about online testing (listening tests) (N=94)
Figure 2 shows that the vast majority (97%) ofstudents (N=94) agreed or strongly agreed thatthey like the online testing system that was used
to conduct listening tests and provide timely
feedback on those tests by email.
One of the reasons why the students and I
strongly like this system is that we have beenable to gain immediate insights into their scoresand vocabulary development. Figure 3 shows anexample of a summary of “insights” (Google
uses the term “insights” here to mean test
results) that was automatically and instantly
generated by Google Forms after the students
had completed their online quizzes.
I was able to display this summary on theoverhead projector so students could see
information such as the average score, median,

TAKEAWAYS JALTCALL 2017

and range as well as a bar chart showing how
many students scored how many points.
Another good thing about this system is that,with the add-on app Flubaroo, I was able to see
at a glance more in-depth information, including
whether any questions were low scoring andwhich, if any, students were struggling. Flubaroo
also enabled me to privately share individual
feedback with each student by email in a timely
manner, after grading them manually. Morerecently, I have also learned how to use
Flubaroo’s “Autograde” feature, which not only
automatically grades each test or quiz, but also
automatically sends each student’s test score to
their individual email inboxes as soon as they
have submitted their answers, thus further
streamlining the feedback process. “Autograde”
is an advanced feature which requires a few
extra set-up steps prior to each implementation,
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Learning Learning
but it makes it possible for students to receive
their scores very soon after submission and see
which, if any, of their responses were incorrect,
thus creating the opportunity for them to very
quickly learn from their mistakes.
Based on these encouraging and promising
results, in the near future, I plan to continue
using these methods and tools for online
testing, designing, and implementing a wider

Volume 24 Issue 3
Winter 2017variety of quiz and test question types, toencourage students to deepen their vocabularyknowledge by becoming familiar with more
examples of use. Also, I aim to increase thequality and quantity of feedback to students, byproviding them with personalized reports suchas those described in Unser-Schutz (2017).

Figure 3. Screenshot of a summary of “insights” generated by Google Forms
It is well worth noting here that Google offers
free online, self-paced, guided courses aimed at
growing the practical technological skills thatteachers can use in the classroom. I recently
completed the Google Certified Educator Level 1
certification and, through doing so, gained
know-how and a working command of some of
the best strategies for integrating Google tools,
such as Google Forms and Sheets, in theclassroom. Milliner’s (2016) helpful article
introduced me to Google’s free, online training
for the classroom, and I wholeheartedly
recommend that language teachers who want toimprove their computer- and mobile-assisted
language learning/teaching skills consider taking
full advantage of what Google offers. One of

TAKEAWAYS JALTCALL 2017

the most helpful and enjoyable things about thiscourse is that, at the end of each short lesson,
there is a short quiz that serves to self-check
whether you have understood the main pointsof the lesson. After answering each quiz
question, you can immediately get feedback byclicking a button to check your answer and see
whether it was correct or not. If it was notcorrect, you can immediately try again and makesure you get the correct answer. It is also
noteworthy that, fortunately, Google has madethis free, online training available not only inEnglish, but also in many other languages, suchas Chinese, Japanese, and Spanish, thus making
it widely accessible to educators worldwide. To

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Learning Learning
learn
more
about
it,
go
https://edutrainingcenter.withgoogle.com

to:In addition to Google tools, some other online
and mobile learning tools have been steadily
gaining popularity in classrooms. One such toolthat has seen consistent success and growth
worldwide is called Quizlet. This has greatly
impacted my own development as a learner ofJapanese, helping me to achieve greater successon my Japanese Language Proficiency Tests(level N3 and N2). The instant feedback
provided by the customizable self-test feature in
Quizlet’s mobile app has been particularly usefulin enabling me to develop as a self-regulated
learner. Moreover, recent studies have foundthat Quizlet can help students improve theirlanguage test scores (e.g., Milliner, 2013; Barr,
2016), and that the in-class team-based Quizlet
Live game can create very high levels of
excitement and positive feelings among learners
who feel that it helps them actively learn
vocabulary in an enjoyable way (Wolff, 2016;
Hougham, 2017). Let us now turn to how
Quizlet can be useful for learner development in
the classroom.
Building and learning together with Quizlet
Building and learning together with Quizlet by Blair
Barr presented several of Quizlet’s features forclassroom use, one of which was Flashcards.
Barr showed that Quizlet can be used for Q&A,
with the Flashcards function being an excellent
way to display discussion questions and sample
answers. He explained that this helps because
you can include a picture with the question andyou can flip the card to reveal sample answers
when necessary. Additionally, you can change
partners, shuffle the deck, and redo thediscussions to recycle language.
Another key feature Barr presented was the inclass team-based learning game called Quizlet
Live, which involves learners working together

TAKEAWAYS JALTCALL 2017using their mobile or other devices in a race tocorrectly match a Quizlet set’s terms anddefinitions. Barr described several ways to getlearners involved in the development of Quizlet
flashcard sets to help deepen their learning,support the learning of their peers, and reap theinteractive benefits such as the motivational
excitement that Quizlet Live generates. In
particular, he showed how to collaboratively
create, edit, and interact with class sets that canthen be used together as a group. It is possible
to make Quizlet sets visible and editable bycertain classes, so that only members of certainclasses can use and edit certain sets. I am glad tosay that I have since tried out this technique, toextend a language-focused learning activity in acourse book, asking each of my students towork with a partner and add one English
adjective together with its Japanese translation
to a Quizlet set in class. We enjoyedcollaboratively creating a set together as a wholeclass, practicing the set together using
Flashcards mode, and then playing a few roundsof team-based Quizlet Live, so much so that I
certainly plan on using this technique again in
the future. Once students become familiar withthe procedure of adding items to a shared set, I
plan to ask them to do so for homework so that
we can make the most of our class time
together.
Encouraging learners to get involved in thecollaborative creation of word cards that can beused with Quizlet Live nurtures their motivationand interest. It also introduces them to Quizlet’s
most useful features including “Auto-define”
and “Add image.” “Auto-define” facilitates thecreation of word cards by enabling students touse definitions that have already been added byother Quizlet users, while “Add image” enables
them to add an image from the millions available
in Quizlet’s image gallery. From a learnerdevelopment perspective, the main takeaway
from Barr’s presentation was that the advantagesof Quizlet Live can be harnessed as a way to
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Learning Learning
train students to become familiar with Quizlet’s
useful flashcard creation and self-regulated
learning capabilities, in hopes that students will
gain know-how to make use of Quizlet to takemore control of their language learning
independently.
There is however a need for attention toaccuracy. Some recent classroom research (e.g.,
Wright, 2017) has found that, although students
can create Quizlet sets within a reasonableamount of time, the accuracy of the sets theycreate may well be an issue that needs to beattended to by spending some class time onerror-correction.
Concluding reflections and suggestions for
future research
The online testing and online/mobile learning
tools described in this report have great
potential for facilitating learner development,
and the presentations and results that have been
discussed are very encouraging. I feel muchencouraged to make further use of these tools in
my classes, and I plan to continue to do so, witha view to exploring the impact that they canhave, especially from the learner’s perspective.
There is a particular need for collaborative
research between teachers that explores online
testing with Google Forms, and learner training
with Quizlet. Building and learning together
with Quizlet has great potential for encouraging
learners to develop and make use of a very
useful learning tool they have at their disposal,
especially with the ingeniously designed mobile
app in their smartphones. I encourage you toattend a JALTCALL conference in the futureand learn more about how Google and otherdigital tools such as Quizlet can be used tofacilitate learner development.

Acknowledgement
My sincerest appreciation goes to the Learner
Development SIG for awarding me the
JALTCALL 2017 Conference Grant andmaking my unforgettable journey to Matsuyama
University possible. I am deeply grateful for
their support. I would also like to offer myspecial thanks to Arnold Arao and Yoko Sakurai
for their constructive comments andsuggestions on earlier drafts of this report, andto Philip Head and Andy Barfield for their
meticulous help with proofreading.
References
Barr, B. (2016). Checking the effectiveness of
Quizlet as a tool for vocabulary learning. The
Center for ELF Journal, 2(1), 36-48. Retrieved
from
http://www.tamagawa.ac.jp/celf/research/p
df/celf_journal_final2-1.pdf
Hougham, D. C. G. (in review). Active learning(and real fun!) through Quizlet.
Milliner, B. (2013). Using online flash-card
software to raise business students’ TOEIC
scores. Annual report of JACET-SIG on ESP,
15, 52-60. Retrieved fromhttps://www.researchgate.net/publication/2
83332447_Using_online_flashcard_software_to_raise_business_students%
27_TOEIC_scores
Milliner, B. (2016). The Google Educator
accreditation process for language teachers.
The Language Teacher, 40(3), 22-24. Retrieved
from http://jaltpublications.org/node/27/articles/5164google-educator-accreditation-processlanguage-teachers
Milliner, B. & Barr, B. (2017). Computerassisted language tests for the English
classroom: Blackboard® Tests and Google
Forms. The Center for ELF Journal, 3(1), 67-79.
Retrieved fromhttp://libds.tamagawa.ac.jp/dspace/handle/
11078/474
Unser-Schutz, G. (2017). Increasing feedback
for students with personalized reports and

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Google Forms. In P. Clements, A. Krause, &H. Brown (Eds.), Transformation in language
education. Tokyo: JALT. Retrieved fromhttp://jaltpublications.org/node/4/articles/6072increasing-feedback-students-personalizedreports-and-google-forms
Wolff, G. (2016). Quizlet Live: The classroom
game now taking the world by storm. The
Language Teacher, 40(6), 25-27. Retrieved fromhttp://jaltpublications.org/node/27/articles/5528-

quizlet-live-classroom-game-now-takingworld-storm
Wright, B. A. (2017). Transforming vocabulary
learning with Quizlet. In P. Clements, A.
Krause, & H. Brown (Eds.), Transformation inlanguage education. Tokyo: JALT. Retrieved
from http://jaltpublications.org/node/4/articles/6075transforming-vocabulary-learning-quizlet

Daniel Hougham teaches at Hiroshima University, where he is a Visiting Lecturer. Originally, from
Vancouver, Canada, he has taught English in Japan for 10 years and earned his MA in
TEFL/TESL from the University of Birmingham. His research interests include extensive reading andlearner development through computer/mobile-assisted language learning.
Author correspondence: d.hougham@gmail.com

JALTCALL 2018
The JALTCALL SIG’s 25th Anniversary Conference“New Directions in Educational Technology”
8-10 June 2018
Meijo University, Nagoya, Nagoya Dome-Mae Campus
Call for Proposals deadline: 31 January 2018
For more information <conference2018.jaltcall.org>

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