Towards the design of iCALL tools for beginner Mandarin Chinese learners in Ireland

Abstract

The teaching of spoken Chinese in the context of post-primary education in Ireland faces several complexities. Learners of Mandarin Chinese as a Foreign Language (CFL), including both Irish and heritage learners, have demonstrated difficulty in learning spoken Chinese. This exploratory research is part of a larger project which aims to develop appropriate ad hoc intelligent Computer-Assisted Language Learning (iCALL) solutions by providing visualised instruction and a gamified feedback system for Mandarin tone acquisition, and using a spoken dialogue system to create a simulated virtual environment for practising spoken Chinese. This paper presents a qualitative needs analysis, in the form of semi- structured interviews, which has been conducted with 12 CFL teachers with various linguistic and sociocultural backgrounds. It aims to investigate learners’ difficulty in learning spoken Chinese and teachers’ willingness to implement technology in CFL curricula.