FROM CALL TO MALL: TRACING THE EVOLUTION OF MOBILE BASED VOCABULARY INSTRUCTION IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING
Keywords:
CALL, MALL, vocabulary instruction, mobile-assisted language learning, English language teaching, literature reviewAbstract
The use of technology in second language vocabulary instruction has moved
through several distinct paradigms over the past six decades, from early computer
assisted drills to today’s mobile applications capable of delivering personalized,
spaced, and context-aware vocabulary practice. This review traces that trajectory,
situating the historical phases of computer-assisted language learning (CALL)
identified by Warschauer (1996) and reconceptualized by Bax (2003) alongside the
emergence of mobile-assisted language learning (MALL) as a distinct field with its
own theoretical concerns around mobility, personalization, and the blurring of formal
and informal learning contexts (Kukulska-Hulme, 2009; Kukulska-Hulme & Shield,
2008). Particular attention is given to vocabulary instruction specifically, an area
where the shift from desktop-based CALL to mobile-based MALL has been both
theoretically significant and empirically mixed, given early findings that mobile
platforms did not consistently outperform desktop computers for vocabulary tasks
(Stockwell, 2007, 2010). The review concludes by identifying persistent gaps in the
literature, including the need for more classroom-based, non-Western, and secondary
level research on mobile vocabulary instruction, and reflects on where the field appears
to be heading as applications mature beyond simple digitized flashcards.
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