This project redesigns how the oral content is presented in this Italian course. Traditionally, students would listen to audiotaped dialogues spoken in Italian and then complete listening comprehension exercises in the main textbook.

In order to make the interaction between students and the oral language more immediate, the oral content of this course is presented online using technologies such as Blackboard and web pages.

Students are able to access oral content independently outside of class and complete the exercises at their own pace and on their own time. This interactive use of technology reinforces vocabulary, grammar, and listening comprehension.

By opening up the learning environment through the use of the web and Blackboard, students’ participation in the learning process has increased. This approach has made the teaching and learning process more transparent. It has also created opportunities for exchanges of cultural viewpoints and students’ deeper appreciation of the Italian language and culture.

The web has also provided several opportunities to create liaisons between the artificial world of the classroom and the authentic cultural environment of museums, cafes, movie theaters, train stations, and people, which has made learning Italian a more tangible experience and reachable goal for beginning students.

In the process of evaluating my teaching approach and students’ learning styles and cultural background, I have become more sensitive to my students’ needs. In addition to revising the oral component of the course, I am also adding relevant links to cultural sites, cities, artists, films, music, and opera connected to specific units in the textbook.

Ultimately, I would like students to engage in creating their own multimedia projects or activities to contribute to the web environment as resources for learning Italian.

In order to evaluate the effectiveness of the web- and Blackboard-enhanced approach to teaching oral skills, students were given a survey at the beginning of the semester to determine their background with Italian, learning style, and expectations. After being exposed to the new materials created both within the web environment and in Blackboard, students were asked to respond to another brief survey, including the following questions:

• You have used several exercises developed within the Blackboard environment in my course; which ones did you like the most and why?
• So far we have done three online dialogue exercises. Which one in your opinion was most conducive to language learning and addressed your personal learning style most effectively?
• If I were to modify the Blackboard content (quizzes, exercises, dialogues, information), what changes would you suggest? Write up to three suggestions.

The preliminary results of the survey showed that students prefer accessing materials through the Blackboard environment because it provides instructor feedback and allows students to progressively assess their own learning.