Enhancing pupils’ English vocabulary learning mediated by a learner-generated content tool from an ecological perspective

Despite studies on improving young learners’ language learning supported by mobile technologies both inside and outside classroom are increasing, the majority of them have focused on learners’ learning for prescribed tasks. Learners hardly have room to explore how to make use of the affordances of mobile technologies on their own to support their learning.
This paper reports on a case study of examining Grade 4 students’ learning experiences of linking in-class and in real life English vocabulary learning mediated by a mobile learner-generated content (m-LGC) tool from an ecological perspective, taking the vocabulary topic of “food” as an example. Premised on the concept of affordances using an ecological approach, how learners perceived and acted on the affordances of the mobile technologies in their real life to consolidate, apply, review, share and expand the vocabulary learned in class to real life was demonstrated and learners’ vocabulary learning outcomes were presented. Copyright © 2019 University of Antwerp.