Fay Sudweeks

Aim/Purpose
The research investigates the impact of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) on Iranian refugees’ settlement in Australia.

Background
The study identifies the issues of settlement, such as language, cultural and social differences.

Methodology
The Multi-Sited Ethnography (MSE), which is a qualitative methodology, has been used with a thematic analysis drawing on a series of semi-structured interviews with two groups of participants (51 Iranian refugees and 55 people with a role in assisting refugees).

Contribution
The research findings may enable the creation of a model for use by the Aus-tralian Government with Iranian refugees.

Findings
The findings show the vital role ICT play in refugees’ ongoing day-to-day life towards settlement.

Recommendations for Practitioners
The results from this paper could be generalised to other groups of refugees in Australia and also could be used for Iranian refugees in other countries.

Recommendation for Researchers
Researchers may use a similar study for refugees of different backgrounds in Australia and around the world.

Impact on Society
ICT may assist refugees to become less isolated, less marginalized and part of mainstream society.

Future Research
Future research could look into the digital divide between refugees in Australia and main stream Australians.

Aim/Purpose To develop a framework for utilizing Mobile Assisted Language Learning (MALL) to assist non-native English migrant women to acquire English vocabulary in a non-formal learning setting. Background The women in this study migrated to Australia with varied backgrounds including voluntary or forced migration, very low to high levels of their first language (L1), low proficiency in English, and isolated fulltime stay-at-home mothers. Methodology A case study method using semi-structured interviews and observations was used. Six migrant women learners attended a minimum of five non-MALL sessions and three participants continued on and attended a minimum of five MALL sessions. Participants were interviewed pre- and post-sessions. Data were analysed thematically. Contribution The MALL framework is capable of enriching migrant women’s learning experience and vocabulary acquisition. Findings Vocabulary acquisition occurred in women from both non-MALL and MALL environment; however, the MALL environment provided significantly enriched vocabulary learning experience. Future Research A standardised approach to measure the effectiveness of MALL for vocabulary acquisition among migrant women in non-formal setting

With the advent of new media and Web 2.0 technologies, language and discourse have taken on new meaning, and the implications of this evolution on the nature of interpersonal communication must be addressed. Innovative Methods and Technologies for Electronic Discourse Analysis highlights research, applications, frameworks, and theories of online communication to explore recent advances in the manipulation and shaping of meaning in electronic discourse. This essential research collection will appeal to academic, research, and professional audiences engaged in the design, development, and distribution of effective communications technologies in educational, social, and linguistic contexts.

One of the common barriers of resettlement among refugees in Australia is the lack of English language proficiency. Even though there are policies and strategies in place to support resettlement, women refugees are not able to overcome this barrier as quickly as refugee men, due to sociocultural factors and family responsibility, This paper presents the initial data collection stage of a work-in-progress longitudinal case study that investigates how mobile assisted language learning (MALL) can be utilized for vocabulary acquisition of refugee women. First, it discusses the significance of vocabulary acquisition and non-formal learning for these women, and the significance of MALL in this non-formal learning setting. This is then followed by a discussion of the research context: the non-MALL stage is the control group and the MALL stage is where tablets are used as a teaching and learning tool. The MALL stage includes the system that is used to rate participants’ proficiency levels. The paper concludes with a discussion of how the MALL integrated vocabulary lessons are designed, and the potential outcome of the research.

This paper documents the outcomes of a study that focused on identifying what motivates stu-dents to use mobile devices for learning and to engage in m-learning. An outcome of this study was to provide a better understanding of what educators should consider when adapting their course for mobile learners. The research included seven classes from three Australian universi-ties. The students in this study used laptops or tablet PCs, and in three of the classes, these were provided by the university as part of a laptop/tablet program. The findings indicated that mobility was the key motivator for the use of laptops, and the learning tasks that students found to be most motivating involved accessing information, authoring (e.g., writing, blogging, note taking) and communication.

Acquiring and learning English as a new language is a challenge faced by non-English speaking migrant and refugee women when they arrive to settle in Australia. This paper reviews the literature to explore the feasibility of using mobile-assisted language learning (MALL) to enrich and develop these women's language skills. The findings from the literature review indicate that some women prefer non-formal rather than formal learning even though support for language learning is available. This is due to personal and sociocultural factors that affect these women. The literature also indicates that vocabulary skill is a significant branch of language learning in developing proficiency among non-English speakers. MALL suggests potential benefits when applied and supports different areas of language skills development and learning. The literature review also indicates that no research has been undertaken in the context of integrating MALL into migrant and refugee women's language learning within a nonformal learning setting. A research project is proposed to be undertaken in collaboration with a local community centre to explore and answer four research questions that were generated from this literature review.

Earlier studies have found the effectiveness of hypermedia systems as learning tools heavily depend on their compatibility with the cognitive processes by which students perceive, understand and learn from complex information sources. Hence, a learner’s cognitive style plays a significant role in determining how much is learned from a hypermedia learning system. A longitudinal study of Australian and Malaysian students was conducted over two semesters in 2008. Five types of predictor variables were investigated with cognitive style: (i) learning dimensions (nonlinear learning, learner control, multiple tools); (ii) culture dimensions (power distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism/collectivism, masculinity/femininity, long/short term orientation); (iii) evaluation of units; (iv) student demographics; and (v) country in which students studied. This study uses both multiple linear regression and linear mixed effects to model the relationships among the variables. The results from this study support the findings of a cross-sectional study conducted by Lee et al. (2010); in particular, the predictor variables are significant to determine students’ cognitive style.

Recent research (Jonas-Dwyer & Sudweeks, 2007) indicated that when virtual microscopes were introduced to third year health science students as part of their histology and pathology laboratory work, no detrimental effects were found. To investigate the use of virtual microscopes further, an extended study was undertaken with both second and third year health sciences students. In this paper, we report the results of students’ learning approaches and compare the outcomes to identify and evaluate changes in students’ learning approaches when using virtual microscopes rather than optical microscopes.

Recent developments in learning technologies such as hypermedia are becoming widespread and offer significant contributions to improving the delivery of learning and teaching materials. A key factor in the development of hypermedia learning systems is cognitive style (CS) as it relates to users‟ information processing habits, representing individual users‟ typical modes of perceiving, thinking, remembering and problem solving. A total of 97 students from Australian (45) and Malaysian (52) universities participated in a survey. Five types of predictor variables were investigated with the CS: (i) three learning dimensions; (ii) five culture dimensions; (iii) evaluation of units; (iv) demographics of students; and (v) country in which students studied. Both multiple regression models and tree-based regression were used to analyse the direct effect of the five types of predictor variables, and the interactions within each type of predictor variable. When comparing both models, tree-based regression outperformed the generalized linear model in this study. The research findings indicate that unit evaluation is the primary variable to determine students‟ CS. A secondary variable is learning dimension and, among the three dimensions, only nonlinear learning and learner control dimensions have an effect on students‟ CS. The last variable is culture and, among the five culture dimensions, only power distance, long term orientation, and individualism have effects on students‟ CS. Neither demographics nor country have an effect on students‟ CS. These overall findings suggest that traditional unit evaluation, students‟ preference for learning dimensions (such as linear vs non-linear), level of learner control and culture orientation must be taken into consideration in order to enrich students‟ quality of education. This enrichment includes motivating students to acquire subject matter through individualized instruction when designing, developing and delivering educational resources.