The influence of an online virtual situated environment on a Chinese learning community

This study used an online virtual environment to create and develop a Chinese learning community. The purposes of research were (1) to enhance the Chinese learners’ oral Chinese communication skills and (2) to change the community members’ Chinese speaking and teaching behavior. This is an action research. The research tried to create a community in a virtual environment. The research results showed that (1) a virtual community can enhance learner’s Chinese competence, and (2) future Chinese teachers’ instructional and leading skills can be developed in a virtual community situation.


Introduction
Learning Chinese atmosphere has been blooming.One reason is that Chinese population still remains the world's largest group, another is that the Chinese economic has developed and grown in the world trade (Graddol, 2004).Graddol (2004) has forecasted that by 2050, Chinese will become the world's largest and most important language.As more people want to learn Chinese, Chinese instructions has bloomed and developed.Current Chinese instructions follows three major types, they are: Chinese language school, private Chinese school, and clam school.
It is difficult for Chinese as a second language learner to access the Chinese resource in non-Chinese speaking countries.These learners cannot find the opportunities to interact with others, and do not have many chances to revise and adjust their Chinese speaking (Xin, 2001).
If we can put Chinese learning materials in a distance learning environments, Chinese learners will be able to find learning recourses in non-Chinese speaking countries.However, other challenges may arise.One such problem is that it is difficult to provide learning community and real life experiences within a distance learning environment.For example, many students cannot find classmates and peers, and learners may have trouble applying their learning into real life situations.Many distance learning environments have been developed, and many of them are in a virtual environment.According to many studies (Au, 2008;Ruberg, Cummings, Piecka, Ruckman, & Seward, 2011), virtual environments can provide a learning community and virtual experiences.However, many communities in virtual environment are related to personal interests, such as music, sports, and so on (Johnson, Corazzini, & Shaw, 2011).There are few language learning communities.If we can implement this community idea into language learning, we may be able to provide a learning community and real life experiences in a distance learning environment.
The researchers assume that distance and virtual learning environment can provide the needs for Chinese learning's market.If appropriate language is inputted into a situation, language acquisition can occur (Krashen, 1985).The researchers assume that language acquisition can be natural and innate, and that learning may occur in a situational context.Therefore, the research followed situated learning theory to provide an open, epistemic and scaffolding learning community in a virtual environment.The objectives of this study were as follows: (1) To observe whether the community helped the Chinese learners enhance their oral Chinese communication skills.
(2) To observe changes in the community members' Chinese speaking and teaching behaviors.

The theoretical framework
According to the study objectives, two theoretical frameworks were followed: language acquisition and situated learning.

Language acquisition
In order to define "language acquisition", we need to clarify the differences between "learning" and "acquisition".According to Brown (1973), "learning" happens when students have awareness, whereas "acquisition" is an unconsciousness and autonomous process.Language acquisition happens when people acquire language in an unconsciousness and automatic process (Brown, 1973).
There are several different theories of language acquisition (Table 1).

Table 1
Different belief on Language acquisition Theory Belief on language acquisition Behaviourism Language can be acquired by stimuli, reinforcement, and operation (Skinner, 1945).

Cognitivism
Language acquisition goes through the meaningful inquisition process.Learners would revise their intrinsic language until their oral presentation can fit the external environment (Piaget, 1926).

Humanism
Language acquisition is entirely innate.Language learning is the potential of human development; it is a spontaneous progress (Chomsky, 1993).

Social constructionism
Society itself provides the language experience; the society can scaffold learners' language and thought (Xie, 2001).
According the statement above, many scholars believe that language acquisition is an innate and social process (Chomsky, 1993;Xin, 2001).Language acquisition is like the concept of i+1.If appropriate language is inputted into a situation, language acquisition can occur (Krashen, 1985).The researchers assume that language acquisition can be natural and innate, and that learning may occur in a situational context.Therefore, the study would need to follow situated learning theory.

Table 2
Perspectives of situated learning

Perspectives
Related terms Specialized situations have distinctive quality and the instability; therefore, the instructors or educational workers need to make decision in the practical situation (Schön, 1987).
Knowing in action, reflection in action, reflection on action, and reflective practicum (Schön, 1987).
Knowledge cannot occur alone without any situation.If the knowledge is not related to the situation, the knowledge itself would become obscure and lacking details or specifics (Suchmon, 1987).
Learning can go through situation to be practical and reflective, but it is more important to have the community in the situation (Lave & Wenger, 1991).
According to the statements, situated learning theory follows two learning principles.First, knowledge comes with situation.Second, learning can occur through interaction.We assume that learning can occur in a situated and community content.Therefore, we want to develop a virtual Chinese learning community in Second Life to help these learners learn Chinese.

Research questions
In order to clarify our purposes of the researches, here are the research questions: (1) Can we use a virtual environment to enhance Chinese learners' communication skills?
(2) Can we use a virtual environment to provide community-communication?

Research design
According to the research questions, we would address the research in two ways of students' needs.One is students' communication skills; another students' virtual experiences.How can we develop a Chinese community to help students enhance their communication and virtual experiences?

Participants
Chinese learning community created for this study included two groups: a core members group and a peripheral members group.There were total of five core members and four peripheral members.
The core members were future Chinese teachers in Taiwan and most were the universities students who studying Chinese language education.The researcher was also a core member, and she is a doctoral student in curriculum and instruction, and she has certificates of Chinese teacher in Taiwan.
The peripheral members were Chinese learners.These learners came from different countries including, Japan, America, and Canada.All of these Chinese learners were volunteers to join the class.Before all the peripheral members joined the community, we had tested their Chinese level, students' Chinese levels were considered as basic to intermediate level (Test materials followed TOP: http://www.sc-top.org.tw/).

Instruments
The community used two technical tools for communication: Facebook and Second Life.The Facebook was used asynchronous communication, and Second Life was used for synchronous and situational-based communication.Each week, all the community had two hour synchronous meeting on Second Life.All of the conversation and communication used Chinese.

Research methodology
This research's methodology used action research.The process of action research contains four steps: planning, action, observation, and reflection (Corey, 1953).Corey in the book of Action research to improve school practices (1953) developed principles of action research: (1) A researcher needs to find the questions or problems in the situation setting.
(2) After finding the problems or questions, a researcher needs to design the research questions based on the researchers' assumptions. (3) The researcher needs to record all the participants' actions in order to judge if the study achieved the assumptions. (4) The researcher can find the questions or problem to plan next stages.
(5) All of the processes can be circulated and reviewed.

Research procedure
The instructional procedures were circulated into four steps: planning, observation, action, and refection.

Plan
According to all of planning, the researcher tried to plan the research in three ways.
(1) Finding members to join the Chinese learning community.
(2) Training core members to lead the conversation in a community.
(3) Training all the members to be familiar with Second Life and Facebook.
In order to plan the research, the researchers had interviewed with several professors of Chinese departments in California, USA.The issue of the interview was trying to find a way to develop a Chinese learning community.
In order to solve this problem, these professors had promised and invited their students to join our Chinese learning community, and many of these students had also invited their friends to join.All of the learners were volunteers.
The researcher also invited some university students who study Chinese language education in Taiwan, and the researcher had train these students to be community-core members.The community core members' job was to lead the conversation in a community.
After the community had been developed, the researcher planed a workshop to train all the students to use Second Life and Facebook.

Observation
All conversation in the community was recorded and reviewed, and all of behaviours were described in behaviour pattern form (Table 3 & 4).
After every meeting, all the core members discussed about today's observation.Each discussion covered three issues: (1) What do you think about today's conversation?(2) Is there anything to be improved?(3) Do you have any suggestions to other core members?Therefore, observation had followed in two ways: (1) Recording all of conversation and finding out students' behaviours patterns.
(2) Finding ways to improve the conversation.

Action
After the planning and observation, the community had changed and developed.There are total of two stages in action.Each stage was discussed and developed by the core members.There were two stages: a lecturing stage and a questioning stage.
(1) Lecturing stages: core members used a lot of lecturing in conversation.
(2) Questioning stages: core members used questions to lead the members to join the conversation.
After several meeting including lecturing stages, core member decided that lecturing did not provide a good way to converse, As a result, the core members agreed to change the leading action into questioning.

Reflection
All of the actions stages were discussed and reviewed by the core members.The refection happened in every meeting.After meeting, core members were gathered together to discuss about today's conversation.If there were any suggestion, the core members would changed their action in next meeting.
All of the stages are shown as Fig. 1.

Data collection
This research video recorded all the conversation in the Second Life.Each week, the researcher would review and calculate the frequency of behaviour patterns (Table 3 and  4).B20: Peripheral members can answer the question to describe their or others' experience.
B21: Peripheral members can answer the question to describe phenomenon.

B22:
Peripheral members can answer the question which needs them to describe thought.
B23: If peripheral members don't understand the question, they will show they don't understand B24: If peripheral members don't understand the question, they will find the problem and ask again.
B25: If peripheral members don't understand the question, they won't tell others until core members found out.
B27: Peripheral members will share information initiatively.
B28: Peripheral members will share their thoughts initiatively.
B29: Peripheral members will share their experiences initiatively.

Research results
According to the behavior patterns' frequency, the research have found that different behaviors and reactions happened in different stages.The table 5 had shown the different stages' reactions.3. Core members did not show much sentences when introducing themselves to the community.
(My name is OOO).

Observation Action Reflection
Lecturing stages 1.Core members shared the virtual setting on related topic, and they used lecture to interact in the community.
2. Peripheral members did not have much chance to interact in the community.
(Core members: The story of Chinese New year is related to…).
(Core members: It is a building from Greece culture, it has….).
3. Peripheral members used private message to tell the community leader their difficulties to communicate in the community (I think it is too hard….).
4. The community leader decided to have a community meeting and discussed the way of interaction.
(In the meeting, leader asked "Do you think it is interested in this community's interaction?"one of core members answered: "No."The leader reflected "Why do you think it is not interested?"core member: "Because the topic is not related to our life, and also we talk too much").
5. After the meeting, the community all agreed to use life-related questions to interact.
Please see Figure 2 for Lecturing stages conditions. 1

Conclusion
Situated learning theory believes that knowledge cannot occur alone without any situation.If the knowledge is not related to the situation, the knowledge itself would become obscure and lacking details or specifics (Suchmon, 1987).
The research followed Lave and Wenger's (1991) situated learning and develop an open, epistemic and scaffolding community space.According to Lave and Wenger's theory, the following perspectives were emphasized in the community: (1) Situated context include knowledge.Learners can participate the activity in the situation, and they will be able to acquire the knowledge.
(2) Learning should focus on a self automatic inquiry.
(3) Learning can start with peripheral participation.
(4) Learning can go through communication.Situation should provide rich language characterization, and learners can follow multiple communication formats to extend their learning opportunities.
According to this research, research questions had been answered.
(1) Can we use virtual environment to enhance Chinese learners' communication skills?
According to this research, a virtual environment can enhance communication behaviours.Students in the action stages showed that language behaviours' frequencies had been developed and grew.Therefore, we can say a virtual environment can enhance Chinese learners' communication skills.
(2) Can we use virtual environment to provide community-communication?
According to this research, the Chinese learning community had been developed and worked well; therefore, we can assume that virtual environment can provide community-communication.
Learning a second language requires many aspects, and a virtual environment can help Chinese learners and future Chinese instructors to create a community to practice speaking and teaching.Within this study, all of the community members were able to grow and develop.The group members improved their methods of communications, and the communications helped the group members improve their speaking skills.
In the future, we wish to keep developing the community.If more members can join this community, we may help more learners to learn Chinese in the virtual environment.

Fig. 2
Fig. 2 and 3 showed the different stages in lecturing and questions stages in Chinese learning community.

Table 3
Behaviours' patterns for Core members