VOICE BLOG: AN EXPLORATORY STUDY OF LANGUAGE LEARNING

Abstract

This study uses voice blogs as a platform for an extensive study of language learners' speaking skills. To triangulate the findings, the study collected data by surveying the learners' blogging processes, investigating learning strategies, and conducting retrospective interviews. The results revealed that students (a) developed a series of blogging stages, including conceptualizing, brainstorming, articulation, monitoring, and evaluating, and used a wide variety of strategies to cope with blogging-related difficulties, and (b) perceived blogging as a means of learning, self-presentation, information exchange, and social networking. Findings suggest that blogs can constitute a dynamic forum that fosters extensive practice, learning motivation, authorship, and development of learning strategies.