Language Teaching and the Internet

Communicating by Email: Specific Issues

Writing as we Speak

One factor of Listserv postings and email messages (and of Internet communication in general) which should be taken into account here is that often the posts are written in a more conversational and less formal style. The foremost example of this is seen on the English-speaking lists where the existence of "gonna," for "going to;" "wanna," for "want to;" "coulda," for "could have;" and other words written in a form closer to dynamic speech patterns than to formal spelling. In email, users tend to be rather careless with their punctuation and grammar, and even unintentional spelling errors abound.

Of course, giving our students access to authentic conversations with native speakers can enhance motivation and increase the student's chances of reading more. However, one drawback of Internet communication is that it has not been "cleaned up" as it would have for a textbook, and this could lead to confusion.

The mistakes and conversational style in e-mail communication do, however, offer one advantage. Since students can see for themselves that even native speakers make errors, some of them may gain more confidence and become more willing to communicate even knowing that they may make errors of their own. There is a tendency in learning a foreign language to think that all native speakers of a language use it perfectly, when of course this is not true at all. Viewing and later discussing these spelling and grammar errors in Internet writing can lead to a greater understanding of why these errors occur. Such discussions can also help the students to not only feel more comfortable in the language but to obtain a stronger grasp on some of its problems.

Internet communication can bring the old "But my native-speaking friend said" dilemma into the classroom, but with a slightly different twist. Since these messages are in text form, they seem to gain a stronger hold on some students than does spoken conversation. We all know that many people hold the conscious (or subconscious) notion that the written form of language is somehow more pure than the spoken form. Because of this, some students may come to believe that nonstandard forms such as "gonna" are acceptable in general or academic writing. Again, it is very important that the teacher become familiar with the peculiarities inherent to Internet communication, the better to explain apparent contradictions to the students as they come up.

Oddly enough, there is a benefit to the use of these "reduced forms," in that they may increase fluency by familiarizing students with how the words "look."

Netiquette

When you have successfully subscribed to a mailing list, you will usually be sent a message full of helpful information about communicating with the list, retrieving files from the archives (if any), and unsubscribing. Have your students pay particular attention to the directions for communicating with the list. Some lists are set up so that the "Reply" option will send your message to all recipients, while others will send your reply only to the person who posted the message. Since personal messages to an individual are often frowned upon, it is wise to know exactly where your message will go when you send it.

This leads us to a discussion of mailing list Netiquette, the generally accepted rules for Internet communication in this medium. In general, Netiquette means trying to post only those messages which will add to the discussion in a positive manner. While many disagree on the finer points of what constitutes Netiquette, there are a few guidelines that almost everyone agrees on, and these will be helpful for you and your students.

1. Read the list for awhile before you post a message. This way, you can get an idea of what sort of topics are acceptable and what the current topic of discussion is. Read through several messages before replying: someone may have responded in the same way you were planning to.

2. In general, try to use informative subject lines. "RE: Your Mail" doesn't let others know whether they should read your message or not. In fact, some lists (such as TESL-L) will not post your message if the subject line is uninformative or missing.

3. Be polite and respectful of others. Remember, the person on the other end of the e-mail message is also a human being. Try to write to others in the manner in which you'd like to be written to.

4. Try to be aware that many users pay a premium fee of some sort in order to receive Internet e-mail. The more concise and clear your message is, the better it will be received.

5. Remember that checking your messages for clarity and spelling will be appreciated and can save you much embarrassment.

It can take time to become comfortable with the standards of etiquette within the Internet community, but these are the basics. It is not our intention here to make you so afraid of posting the wrong thing that you do not post at all. After all, the input of subscribers is what makes these lists such a tremendous resource. However, you will find that following the above instructions can make your Internet experience more pleasant and less problematic.

Dealing with Flames

Many feel that the greatest advantage to using e-mail and other Internet-mediated communication is its anonymity. There can be something extremely reassuring about the notion that no one can see you, hear you, or make pre-judgements about you. In learning a language, students are often embarrassed about their pronunciation or are afraid of rejection because of their errors. Behind the computer screen, students who may be too shy to speak up in class often become willing to stretch their use of the language in this non-threatening forum. Some teachers have reported that students who hesitate to come see them in person will discuss their studies and questions in more detail through e-mail.

Still, there are those who take advantage of the Internet's anonymity to "flame" or be intentionally offensive to others. If you do have your students subscribe to lists, you may want to discuss flaming in general, along with what to do if you are "flamed."