Language Lab Review

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*  What is Language Lab ?

                 A language laboratory is a dedicated space for foreign language learning where students access audio or audio-visual materials. They allow a teacher to listen to and manage student audio, which is delivered to individual students through headsets or in isolated 'sound booths.' Language labs were common in schools and universities in the United States in the two decades following World War II. They have now largely been replaced by self access language learning centers, which may be called 'language labs.'

* History of Language Lab  :-

              
              The first recorded language lab was established at the University of Grenoble in 1908. Frank Chalfant brought the concept to the United States, establishing a 'phonetics lab' at Washington State University in 1911 or 1912. These early language labs used phonographs to deliver audio, and were not yet divided into individual booths .
             In the 1940s, linguists at the University of Michigan developed the behaviorist audio-lingual method of foreign language learning. This method relied on repeated listening and speaking drills. This method increased in popularity in the United States and Canada into the 1950s and 1960s^. Language labs were well-suited to the audio-lingual method. By 1958, there were over 300 language labs in the US, with the majority in colleges and universities.
             In 1958, the National Defense Education Act authorized federal financial assistance for American secondary school foreign language programs. This led to the rapid creation of new language labs. By the mid-1960s, there were an estimated 10,000 secondary-level and 4,000 post-secondary language labs in the United States. Once NDEA funding ended in 1969, the number of traditional language laboratories declined rapidly. Usage of the audio-lingual method also declined following Noam Chomsky's criticism of behaviorist models of language learning.
             From the 1950s to the 1990s, most used tape-based systems. Current language labs generally contain multimedia PCs.

*  Advantages of Language Lab :-

Using a language lab has many benefits:

 Gets into deeper side of language

This application gets into deeper side of language rather than covering its outer layer, which are mostly seen in the year old teaching practices. The practical sessions provide the chance for understanding the clear concept regarding right pronunciation, different accent and other aspects of language learning too.

The language lab is available in many standards

The language lab is available in many standards which can be used for teaching the people in different sectors. Some of the training programmes are included at junior, senior school level, private, public and also for the people at corporate sectors. The language lab does provide additional assistance like producing documents, editing, creating documents for teaching, students’ reference etc.

Language labs allow for diversity in the classroom

Language laboratories provide teacher attention to students, especially in the case of schools with different levels because as interactive courses, language labs are tailored to the individual needs of students. On the other hand, thanks to monitoring and evaluation in real time, the teacher knows exactly what course objectives pose major difficulties for the student time and can reinforce the class accordingly.

A language lab is  practical

Language labs provide practice in an entertaining and interactive way to acquire the 4 main language skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Students learn more comprehensively through a language lab.

Students learn much faster in the language lab

Language labs’ interactive courses help students learn much faster than in a regular classroom setting. The methodology of the classroom language network uses a progressive model to promote natural learning, where students learn the different concepts of language in an intuitive way.

The teacher takes on a more important role in the language lab

The language lab  it provides supplementary materials that only facilitate the role of the instructor rather than compete with it. The teacher can then focus on the important parts of the course rather than waste time explaining everything. The structure of the language lab courses also facilitate the work teacher puts in when preparing lessons and allows them to prepare them in less time and with a greater volume of interactive resources.

Labs foster communication in the classroom

Language labs also encourage communication student-teacher as well as student-student with activities and exercises essential to oral communication and the understanding of the language. The labs include tools for creating groups, host conversations via chat, promote messages on the board, access to a community of students who are also studying the same language, etc. Since language learning in laboratories can be done privately and at their own pace, students who are shy or quite slow in learning the language, become more confident.

Learning the language without a time constraint.

It gives different and rare experience for the user to hear the English Language distinctly and precisely. While using the language lab the students get the advantage of listening and learning the language without a time constraint.

Assess and improve the speech in English through the self help features.

Another advantage of the language lab is that it helps one to assess and improve the speech in English through the self help features. These features include model pronunciation of words, also the students can use it in record and playback mode that counterpart the user in self assessment. The best part of the laboratory is that it gives the users the freedom to learn the language according to their convenience without an instructor.

Allows learners to pronounce certain words correctly

It allows learners to pronounce certain words correctly. Small details like accent, stress and blending of words can also be corrected. Kids and adults suffering from speech disorders can also use the laboratory to minimize the problems. Not only primary students can learn from this laboratory. It is also designed for junior and senior executives who wish to improve their speaking proficiency.

Auditory Oriented:

The direct sound transmission gives step by step guidance from the teacher to the heads of the students with crystal clear clarity.  The Lab software is more attention enthralling for the students, where they are engaged with individual systems.

Comprehensive quickly:

The Lab increases the pace of comprehension as students coaching is purely based on the level of study. The Lab regulates the language through the different thoughts created in the mind of the students.

Effective learning, Focus Veracity: By using text, audio and video can easily be integrated with  actuality in every day situations. The lab provides to learn the foreign language practice in a focused setting that eliminates the feelings of self-consciousness.

Have the self evaluation:

The students can do a periodical self evaluation to measure the progress as well as evaluate his/her language with that of the expert. The students can record their own voice and play back the recordings, interact with the each other and the teacher, and store the results. The automated learning environment removes one’s fear and creates a happy learning situation. Learn the need: The lab fulfills the need of the learner that is learning the language skills in an effective way .

Listening skills are primary in becoming fluent.

Even Level II language labs (the simplest type of system) help develop listening skills, allowing the students to focus on the spoken word and therefore enhancing their ability to repeat and understand the spoken language.

Provide Individualistic Learning

The ability of each student to speak at the same time and yet be audibly isolated from each other allows efficient use of time and a higher degree of practice and learning. All of the students can practice simultaneously (rather than one at a time) thus increasing the student’s actual practice and fluency.

Disadvantages of Language Laboratory

Although of the various advantages of the language laboratory, it has also a few disadvantages or let us say difficulties, which are related to the high cost, it needs skilled instructors, and it makes unsuccessful instruction in some cases.

• The language lab requires a high cost to be built in the university and to be kept on going. It is very expensive to set up the language lab and country like India there is no lab syllabus and usually language classes are conducted as theory.  Furthermore, it needs more money for resource management.
• The language lab would not let the English teaching-learning process be effective if there are some troubles with the technology of it. Worse even, it becomes useless when the electricity is off.
• The language laboratory needs an qualified teacher to be able to activate all the technology provided in it. Universities, or more precisely, faculties of
• English has to employ technicians who would keep the equipment in the language laboratory always in a high-quality conditions.
• These days student does not have enough patience to listen to pronunciation and practice them so the recording of pronunciation is useless.
• As the teacher listens to students randomly the response can be unorganized and ineffective as there are many students to attend to.
• The teacher should be well trained in executing the language lab effectively. Given the nature of teaching, a language teacher may need an assistant in taking care of the technological part while teacher attends to the instructional components.
• As technology changes rapidly, there should be a provision for upgrade in the medium of instructions, which can be burden for school in terms of finances.