Issue 6

In the last issue of Teacher Bytes, we looked at synchronous or real-time communication. This time, we turn our attention to asynchronous interaction, or communication that is not live. This category includes bulletin boards, email messages, email discussion groups or listservs and email newsletters like this one.

Email and bulletin board applications can be a useful tool in language learning. A study presented at the 1999 TESOL conference described the use of journals in an online environment. Students were given writing tasks, short in length and based on teacher provided prompts. Learners' responses were distributed to the instructors and their peers through a listserv, an email-based discussion group. From her experiences, the presenter pointed to such interactive journals as an avenue for learners to develop vital skills of prediction, making analogies and drawing conclusions. The process also facilitates full class participation, enabling students who would remain quiet in a traditional classroom environment to play a fuller role. Further benefits include the development of cross-cultural awareness and self-reflection.

Another study in the same year reported on the use of email for authentic communication. A ten-week email exchange program was set up with the aim of improving student confidence in communicative activities and increasing fluency in reading and writing. The participants included American and Japanese students. It was found that the students who took the email exchange program scored significantly higher in TOEFL than those in the control group. Furthermore, Japanese course participants gave positive opinions of the experience. The exchange allowed them a transition period to communicate with native speakers without face-to-face contact, which may sometimes cause anxiety or even embarrassment. Later students could approach native speakers with greater confidence. The program thus allowed the lowering of the affective filter and the use of the target language without the risk of losing face, a key factor in some theory's of second language acquisition.

Email and other asynchronous tools pose some problems for learners. Although parallels have been made between email and oral production, there remain two obvious differences in the area of pragmatics. Firstly, attempts to start an email discourse, especially in the realm of listservs, may be fruitless with no replies. Secondly, discourse often comes to an abrupt end in email interaction when users achieve their aim. There is often no formal closure unlike in oral discourse.


Hale, S. (1999, March). Interactive journalizing in an IEP writing course using a listserv. Paper presented at the TESOL 33rd Annual Convention, New York.

Fotos, S. & Iwabuchi, T. (1999). Using e-mail to build EFL communicative competence. TESOL EFL Newsletter, 19(2), 8-9.

Severinson E. K. (1995). A dialogue perspective on electronic mail: implications for interface design. In H. van Oostendorp (Ed.), Cognitive aspects of electronic text processing. Norwood, NJ: Ablex Publishing.