Design and Construction of a Virtual Environment
for Japanese Language Instruction

by Howard Rose

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Chapter I
Research Problem

The demand for Japanese language instruction in the United States has dramatically increased over the past decade. In 1986 the U.S. Congress established the STAR program to send satellite Japanese courses into public schools unable to afford their own instructors. The program has grown dramatically nationwide. In 1993 the U.S. Department of Defense declared the lack of Japanese speaking Americans in high technology industries as a potential threat to national security and has responded by naming key universities around the country as centers for Japanese study.

Rapid advances in the power and proliferation of telecommunications and computer technologies have changed the face of educational technology, and necessitated new research into how these technologies can be beneficial to education. This study addresses the efficacy of one emerging technology, virtual reality (VR), to teach Japanese language.

Preliminary work in VR indicates several promising areas for educational applications (Winn & Bricken, 1992; Regian & Shebilske, 1992; Loftin et al., 1993; Bricken & Byrne, 1993; W. Bricken, 1991; M. Bricken, 1991). Virtual learning environments are self-paced, immersive, and interactive. Students can receive audio and visual instruction while interacting with virtual objects in real time. Virtual environments, or 'worlds', as they are sometimes called, can be programmed to give directed visual and audio feedback in response to student interactions. Many researchers suggest that computer generated environments can potentially enrich learning and enhance retention by putting the learner in an active role, rather than a passive one (Winn & Bricken, 1992; Regian & Shebilske, 1992; Loftin et al., 1993). Yet there are only a handful of empirical studies to date which evaluate the educational efficacy of virtual environments in any knowledge domain. No documentation of empirical research using virtual environments for foreign language learning is currently available. If research is to guide the application of virtual environments to education then it must be capable of answering three questions: (a) Are virtual environments an effective teaching tool? (b) Are virtual environments effective compared to other instructional methods? (c) What is it about virtual environments which makes them effective or not effective for instruction? This project built a world that can be used to answer the first two of these questions. In addition to advancing virtual environment research, this study also has a strong emphasis on solving practical problems faced by both language instructors and learners. Should computer generated environments prove educationally viable, language instructors could use it to enhance what students see and experience within the classroom. Instructional aids such as audio tape, photos and video are currently widely used to enrich the classroom environment. Unfortunately, each of these suffers from practical limitations. For example, none is interactive, open ended, or allows students to create their own learning experience, as VR is capable of doing. Research suggests that language learners perform best when they are actively engaged in the learning process (Krashen, 1982; Asher et al., 1974; Asher, 1966; Kunihara & Asher, 1965). Japanese language learners in the United States face significant challenges in trying to master this unfamiliar, non-European language. Learning Japanese takes nearly three times as long as Romance languages such as French or Spanish (Jordan & Lambert, 1991). Aida (1994) found that the prolonged period required to master Japanese, combined with other challenges such as limited opportunity to converse with native speakers, result in high levels of anxiety and psychological pressure on students. Aida also found a significant correlation between Japanese language students' stress level and their success in Japanese language programs.

Krashen (1982) cites the need for presenting readily comprehensible input to language learners, such as is done in Asher's Total Physical Response (TPR) method. TPR uses full-body, kinesthetic response to help students internalize foreign languages. A virtual environment is capable of presenting audio information supported with visual, and environmental cues to facilitate comprehension. Additionally, the highly physical nature of virtual reality may help reinforce and automate the learning experience in analogous ways to TPR.

In summary, this thesis describes the design of an immersive, virtual environment to test the educational efficacy of the technology to solve practical problems faced by Japanese instructors and students. Specifically this study addresses: (a) problems faced by Japanese language students in building linguistic fluency, and the anxiety associated with learning a foreign language; (b) problems for teachers in presenting a rich, stimulating classroom environment; (c) problems for students and teachers in giving and receiving adequate practice time, correction and attention, especially in distance learning programs; and (e) a need for greater research into the efficacy of virtual environments and computer technologies in education.

Human Interface Technology Laboratory