Researchers in the United States and China are
exploring how games on mobile phones can be used to teach children the Chinese
language. The results may help promote the idea of mobile phones as learning
devices, especially in rural areas of China.
Computer
scientists from Carnegie Mellon, the University of California, Berkeley, and
the Chinese Academy of Sciences developed two mobile learning games inspired by
traditional Chinese games that emphasize cooperative playing, songs, and
handmade objects. The Chinese language is more complex than most other
languages because it uses 6,000 characters, each corresponding to a syllable or
word. One game, Multimedia Word, has the player recognize and write a Chinese
character correctly, based on hints such as a sketch or photo. A second game,
Drumming Stroke, has a group of players practice writing Chinese characters in
turns; participants must write stroke of the character in the correct order and
then pass the mobile phone to the next player within the beat of a drum.
Initially,
the games were tested with children in Xin'an, China. Later, the testing was
done at a private school in Beijing. In both cases the games showed that
students could improve their knowledge of Chinese characters. ‘We believe that
the cooperative learning encouraged by the games contributed to character
learning,’ said Matthew Kam, assistant professor in Carnegie Mellon's School of
Computer Science's Human-Computer Interaction Institute and project director.
‘The results of our studies suggest that further development of these games
could make inexpensive mobile phones important learning tools, particularly for
children in underdeveloped rural areas.’
Despite
their small screens and low computing power, Kam said, mobile phones could
become a major educational resource as wireless carriers and mobile phone
manufacturers extend sales into ever more rural areas of the globe.
The
use of mobile phone-based games for teaching English literacy has also been investigated
to rural children in India and Kenya.
Question 1: [2,5 POINTS] Indicate whether the following statements are
true or false and write
down which part of the text justifies your answer.
a) One of the games gives the players
clues on how to write the characters.
b) Cooperative learning in itself helps
improve character adquisition.
c) The devices used do not necessarily
have to cost much money.
d) Children outside cities are the ones
who could make the most out of these games.
e) The bigger the screen, the better the
learning of Chinese characters may get.
Question 2: [1,5 POINTS] Find words or phrases in the text that
correspond to the words and
definitions given.
a) to focus on (par.2)
b) orderly (par.2)
c) additional (par.3)
d) gadget (par.3)
e) to broaden, to develop (par.4)
Question 3: [2 POINTS] Choose the most suitable answer (a, b or c)
according to the text.
1. Researchers say that mobile phones could become
important
a) learning tools.
b) entertainment devices
c) means of communication.
2. The learning games have been designed according to
a) Chinese letters.
b) Chinese computers.
c) Chinese games.
3. Chinese is a difficult language because it has
a) complex vowels.
b) so many characters.
c) many letters.
4. The use of mobile phones for the development of
literacy has also been investigated
a) in connection with poverty.
b) in other countries.
c) by the Chinese
Question 4: [4
POINTS] Write a short essay (about 120-150 words) on the following topic:
Education is a key factor in the development of a country. Do you agree?
KEY
Question 1: [2,5 POINTS] Indicate whether the following statements are
true or false and write
down which part of the text justifies your answer.
a)
TRUE “One game, Multimedia Word, has the player recognize and
write a Chinese character correctly, based on hints such as a sketch or photo.”
b) FALSE “ cooperative learning encouraged by the games contributed
to character learning.”
c) TRUE “these games could make inexpensive mobile phones
important learning tools”
d) TRUE “particularly for children in underdeveloped rural areas.”
e) FALSE “ Despite their small screens […] mobile phones could
become a major educational resource”
Question 2: [1,5 POINTS] Find words or phrases in the text that
correspond to the words and definitions
given.
a) (to) emphasize
b) in turns/ in the correct order
c) further
d) tool(s)
e) (to) extend
Question 3: [2 POINTS] Choose the most suitable answer (a, b or c)
according to the text.
1. a) learning tools.
2. c) Chinese games.
3. b) so many characters.
4. b) in other countries.
