Document Type

Article

Publication Date

March 2015

Publication Title

Hispania

Volume

98

Issue Number

1

First Page

61

Last Page

78

DOI

10.1353/hpn.2015.0028

Keywords

classroom language learning/aprendizaje de lenguas en el salón de clase, classroom space design/diseño del espacio de instrucción, instructed SLA/enseñanza de segundas lenguas en contextos formales, language learning context/contexto de aprendizaje de lenguas, teaching with technology/enseñar con tecnología

Disciplines

Curriculum and Instruction | First and Second Language Acquisition

Abstract

Despite myriad changes to language teaching methods over time, university-level classroom spaces have largely remained the same—until now. Recent innovations in classroom space design center on technological advances, include movable furniture and coffee-shop style rooms, and are believed to facilitate language learning in several ways. Specifically, compared to traditional classrooms, innovative spaces are designed in the hope of decreasing pre-task set up, increasing student-centered interaction, and facilitating collaborative work with multiple partners—features believed to be important for classroom learning. However, whether or not such features are present in these innovative spaces, or more so than in traditional classrooms, has yet to be tested empirically. This study set out to compare student interaction and the use of space in traditional and innovative classrooms, examining the presence of the aforementioned features. Data collected from university Spanish language and linguistic courses demonstrate that while some differences in use of space and interaction were observed when lessons in traditional and innovative classrooms were compared, notable differences were only present when the instructor was teaching all sections of a course in an innovative classroom and had adapted his/her lesson plans accordingly. Implications for language teaching, instructed language acquisition, and classroom space design are discussed.

Comments

Copyright © 2015 American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese, Inc. This is the preprint of an article that first appeared in Hispania 98:1 (2015), 61-78. Reprinted with permission by Johns Hopkins University Press.
SJSU users: use the following link to login and access the article via SJSU databases.

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