Language Learner Behaviour in a Virtual Environment

(Reflection on reading week 5)

The paper reports a study of the behaviour of language learners communicating via a chatroom.
The author believes and proofs from her study that people behave differently when communicating online compared to a face-to-face situation. Some shy and passive learners in the classroom became more outgoing in the chatroom, while some very active or popular learners in the classroom became neglected in the chatroom.

I think learners generally feel more comfortable to chat online because the chatroom in the study is a text one, not a voice or video one. When poeple only deal with the words, they do not need to care about the voice quality such as volume and intonation, and also their body language such as facial expressions and gesture. But I think the behavourial difference would be very little if the nature of the online communication is closer to a face-to-face chat, say, using a mic or web camera.