Does SCMC really help?

I still remember the other day when we practiced SCMC in class. The task assigned to me and my partners was jigsaw questions. We were supposed to find the differences between two pictures by chatting online. Without nonverbal cues, it took longer time to reach an answer than face-to-face communication. Also, as long as it did not interfere with understanding, noticing did not necessarily lead to negotiation for meaning. So, I was wondering what the point of the jigsaw task was and how the task performance could be evaluated.

If the task was simply designed to generate negotiation for meaning, then it seems to say the completion of the task is not as important as the discourse itself. Therefore, credits will be given to successful negotiations of meaning. The problem here is that it might not be valid for learners who do not have the need.

On the other hand, if the task is aimed to evaluate the quality of task performance, it actually focuses on how well and fast the learners can complete the task. Therefore, it seems that SCMC might not always be a good substitute for face-to-face communication, since it is not as productive as face-to-face communication for jigsaw tasks. If we could finish a task within five minutes by talking face to face, why should we double the time to play with the SCMC.

I do not doubt about the benefits of applying SCMC to certain tasks, but in the mean time I also believe it is necessary to think twice before we take the effort in classroom teaching. Factors need to be considered by the teacher are:

1) What is the objective of the task? What do I want to get from the task?

2) How proficient are the students?

3) What is the time allotment for the task?

4) How effective and efficient the SCMC is to complete the task?

5) How different is the SCMC from face-to-face communication when applied to the task?