This
page is the official homepage of WorldCALL, the worldwide professional association
for teachers and educators interested in
Computer Assisted Language Learning.
Aims and objectives
WorldCALL aims to enhance computer-assisted language teaching and learning in the global community by bringing educators from around the world together. As an international association WorldCALL:
An International and computer literate audience
To date, WorldCALL has held two major international conferences. The first conference was held in 1998 and was hosted by the University of Melbourne, Australia; and the second was held in 2003 in Banff, Canada.
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WorldCALL
1998: CALL to Creativity
Melbourne, Australia http://www.fredriley.org.uk/call/events/worldcall98.htm |
These events attracted participants from over 50 countries speaking many of the world's languages, from those widely spoken such as French, Mandarin Chinese and English to those less widely represented such as Hebrew, Xhosa, and Gamilaraay. As a result, sponsors have exposure to an international audience of researchers, teachers and leaders who are highly computer literate and aware of the social and cultural impact of computer technology and the internet. As such they are ambassadors for new technologies and computer applications both within and outside the traditional learning arenas.
Equity and Access - WorldCALL scholarships program
In 2008, WorldCALL will continue its scholarships programme to enable postgraduate students and junior academics to attend the 2008 conference. The scholarships programme, first introduced in 1998, is a positive way in which WorldCALL brings the experiences of language professionals to colleagues working in developing nations. The exchange of ideas and experiences also promotes the development of international, informal human networks that bridge the gap between technologically advanced countries and those underserved in the areas of technology and CALL.
Role of technology promoting a genuinely global perspective
As the world-wide organisation that is concerned with CALL in all of its manifestations technology enhanced language learning, network-based language learning, and information and communication technologies for language learning, WorldCALL is ideally placed to highlight the benefits of new technologies. It plays a leading role in providing a forum for: discussing the application of state-of-the-art technologies for language learning, developing the virtual classroom, supplying professional training and development for teachers and, significantly, giving developing countries, through sponsorship, the opportunity to project their culture worldwide and to become involved in the application of new technologies in language learning.
WorldCALL 2008: Fukuoka, Japan
WorldCALL 2008 will be held in Fukuoka, located in southern Japan in the Kyushu-Okinawa area/province. The conference theme is: CALL Bridges the World. The conference will take place over four days, 5-8 august, 2008. The conference organisers, the Japanese Association for Language Education and Technology (LET) (http://www.j-let.org/en/) have extensive experience in conference management and are committed to sponsoring four keynote speakers from Europe, North America, Oceania and Japan. Panel discussions, conference papers and poster sessions and workshops will form the core of activities for WorldCALL 2008. International conditions permitting, LET is confident that it will attract 500 attendees from around the world. A CD-publication of the conference proceedings will be produced following the conclusion of the conference. Sponsors will have the opportunity to include their logos in the above materials. Additional promotion opportunities will also be available. Please visit the conference website for further information: http://www.j-let.org/~wcf/modules/tinyd0/
Organisational background
WorldCALL is the worldwide professional association for teachers and educators interested in Computer Assisted Language Learning. Members of WorldCALL are drawn from established, professional affiliated associations working in the areas of CALL throughout the world. The current members of WorldCALL are:
EUROCALL (European Association for Computer Assisted Language Learning) (Europe-wide) (http://www.eurocall-languages.org)
CALICO (Computer Assisted Language Instruction consortium) (USA based) (http://www.calico.org)
IALLT (International Association for Language Learning Technology) (USA based) (http://www.iallt.org)
LET (formerly LLA) (Japan Association for Language Education and Technology) (http://www.j-let.org);
CERCLES (Confédération Européenne des Centres de Langues de l'Enseignement Supérieur) (http://www.cercles.org)
CCAQLL/CELAO (Canadian Association for Computer Assisted Language Learning)
ATELL (Australian Association for Technology Enhanced Language Learning) (http://www.atell.org)
Contact details
For further information
on WorldCALL, please contact:
Professor Mike
Levy
Griffith University, Australia
E-mail: Michael.Levy@griffith.edu.au
Graham Davies has resigned from the WorldCALL 2008 Planning Committee, due to health reasons.
Those of you who attended the WorldCALL 2003 conference in Banff may recall that a plenary meeting was held at the end of the conference to discuss the future of WorldCALL. It was decided at the meeting that WorldCALL should make efforts to set itself up as an official organisation along the lines of EUROCALL, CALICO and IALLT, which - among other things - would make it easier to organise future conferences and, above all, to attract funding. Graham Davies, who headed the WorldCALL 2003 Steering Committee, agreed to chair a committee whose task would be to draft a constitution for WorldCALL and to present it to the public. The committee was set up in October 2004, consisting of Graham Davies (Chair), Mike Levy, Peter Liddell, Sue Otto, Claire Bradin-Siskin and Vera Menezes.
Formal approval of the constitution will take place at the WorldCALL 2008 Conference and then elections will be held for WorldCALL officers, i.e. President, Vice-President and members of the Executive Committee. We have addressed these issues in the draft constitution. Feedback on the draft constitution is welcomed: Draft WorldCALL Constitution (downloadable MS Word DOC file).
It was agreed that, first and foremost, WorldCALL - like EUROCALL and CALICO - needed to identify an administrative headquarters and an Executive Director. WorldCALL's headquarters is now located at Griffith University, Australia, and Mike Levy is the Executive Director.
This
website is graciously sponsored by the Polytechnic University of Valencia, Spain.
Special thanks are due to Ana Gimeno-Sanz.
The
WorldCALL logo is an adaptation by Siān Davies of MDM Creative,
based upon the original WorldCALL 98 logo, which was designed for the University
of Melbourne.
