E-Learning, MOOCs and Foreign Languages: Research, Studies and Experiences

Publisher: UniorPress

Series: Miscellaneus

Pages: 187

Languages: Italian; English.

NBN: http://nbn.depositolegale.it/urn:nbn:it:unina-25092

Abstract: This book is the result of the University of Naples “L’Orientale”’s cooperation
with MOVE-ME – MOocs for uniVErsity students on the Move in Europe
(movemeproject.eu), an Erasmus Plus project whose partners are the
Università per Stranieri di Siena (Italy), the National University of Ireland
(NUI Galway) , the Open University (United Kingdom), the FENICE - FEderazione
Nazionale Insegnanti – Centro di iniziativa per l’Europa (Italy), the
“Diophantos” Computer Technology Institute & Press (Greece), and the Institutul
de Ştiinţe ale Educaţiei (Romania).
The first international congress of this project was held on 20-21 October
2016 at the Open University Milton Keynes campus, and its title was
MOOCs, Informal Language Learning and Mobility. Subsequently prof. Giampiero
de Cristofaro from the FENICE suggested that “L’Orientale” should
host the project’s second international conference. This institution appreciated
the chance of cooperating with such a group of important European universities
and research centres on distance learning and MOOCs and, particularly,
on their scope and prospects in the field of teaching foreign languages.
Indeed, the latter is a field in which this institution has developed a very
high profile over the last two hundred years, while in relation to the former,

“L’Orientale” has launched a rich and diversified package of experimental
courses during the last few years. It was thus been to organise together the
second international congress of the MOVEME project on 13-14 October
2017. The event was a considerable success, with more than 100 registered
participants who came from several European countries (Belgium, Bulgaria,
Cyprus, Denmark, France, Ireland, Italy, the United Kingdom, Kosovo, Malta,
Norway, the Netherlands, Portugal, Rumania, Russia, Spain, and Switzerland)
as well as from outside Europe (Algeria, Australia, China, Thailand
and Turkey). There were more than 46 presentations, with contributions by
keynote speakers during three plenary sessions and by other researchers in
several groups of parallel sessions held in three different rooms. Among the
topics that were discussed the following should be mentioned:
1) MOOCs,
2) e-earning solutions for language teaching and learning,
3) CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning),
4) mobile-assisted language teaching and learning,
5) informal language learning and technologies.
Unfortunately, for several reasons it has not been possible to publish
them all, and the Scientific Committee eventually selected the 17 contributions
that are included in this volume. Some of them discuss highly relevant
theoretical issues, while other ones analyse different experiences and experiments
in this constantly expanding field. This area of research impacts on a
significant portion of language teaching activities in higher education, in regards
to both students preparing for their future working life, and more mature
learners engaging in lifelong learning and relying on higher education
institutions in order to keep up with the rapid pace of change in their jobs
and occupations.
Finally, we are happy to see such an important volume published by this
institution. We are grateful to the MOVEME project, and to the people who
came to Naples for this congress. We are particularly grateful to the Scientific
Committee, to the two editors, and to the technical and administrative
staff who made it possible to publish this volume