Professor Dongping Zheng provided the talk “Designing a Distributed (Language) Learning Environment by Leveraging VR Technology” on Monday, 9/18, at 4 p.m. during the CIS 720 Seminar series.
Seminar Description: Prof Zheng introduced the design philosophy, process, and principles behind creating a language learning environment using VR technology and other supporting technologies. The focal point of the design is a virtual panda village, catering to bilingual and bicultural learners of English and Chinese. Philosophically, this project portrays language learners as caretakers and professionals with expertise in addressing environmental degradation issues faced by panda villages. Ethically, technology is leveraged to provide a more resourceful environment where learners are equipped to exercise agency. From a design perspective, various technologies are explored, including VR, social media, and print technology, in terms of their potential for facilitating co-play, community and friendship building, perspective-taking, and translanguaging among learners.
Biography: Dongping Zheng is an associate professor in the Department of Second Language Studies at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. Her research, teaching and service can be holistically described as interdisciplinary and multifaceted in cutting edge methodologies and technologies. She studies how to design distributed language learning environments to foster emerging bilinguals to take skilled linguistic action (including pragmatics and mindful action) that has a positive effect in environmental awareness, caring, creativity and bilingual/bicultural development.