Website Review

http://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish

Introduction
BBC Learning English is a British website and a part of BBC World Service. The website
offers a wide variety of videos, audios, texts, quizzes, vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation
activities free of charge for adult English Language Learners (ELLs). The website consists of
two parts: Courses and Features.
Courses is subdivided into three proficiency levels - low-intermediate, intermediate and
upper-intermediate. Each level (except for upper-intermediate, which stops in unit 11 and seems
to be under construction) consists of 30 units, which are, in turn, subdivided into 5 sessions,
containing 3 to 5 activities each. The main focus of these units is listening and reading
comprehension as well as the teaching of vocabulary and grammar. Courses also offers two
additional features: English My Way and Shakespeare Speaks. The former focuses on helping
learners create study groups and provides them with tips on how to develop metacognitive skills
and socio-pragmatic knowledge (e.g., English for Survival) about English in the UK through
videos, quizzes and audios.The latter is a weekly series that uses William Shakespeares stories
as the main topic for additional listening/ reading comprehension practice and the teaching of
vocabulary and grammar points. Most of these multimedia resources are a bit scripted, but not
too oversimplified; that is, they provide ELLs with elaborated input in order to make it
comprehensible (Krashens Input Hypothesis) and thus are in alignment with Doughtys MP3
(2000b, 2001b, as cited in Doughty & Long, 2003). English My Way provides learners with
tools so that they can take a more active role in cooperative and collaborative learning, which
seems to fulfill MP9s criterion (Dought, 2000b, 2001b, as cited in Doughty & Long, 2003) and
it also leads them onto the path of autonomous learning.
Features offers 7 different sections (i.e., News Report, The English We Speak, Lingo
Hack, 6 Minute English, Pronunciation, Drama and Words in the News) whose main focus is to
use current news stories from BBC World Service for listening comprehension and vocabulary
building. It is our impression that these authentic up-to-date topics are very useful and thus
meaningful for adult learners who have the need to follow the latest world news stories. With the
exception of News Report (which includes audios of 20-second-long genuine BBC news
reports), the language in these sections are not the same as that in BBC news stories; it is,
instead, elaborated so that input becomes comprehensible - aligning with Doughtys MP3 and
Krashens Input Hypothesis. Some of the activities in Features are also available in Courses
and integrated as part of its units and sessions.
Overall, the site is pretty easy to navigate. In Courses, users can clearly see in which
unit they are - as well as how many units they still need to complete - by following the Unit
Selector, a ruler-like progressive scale. To some extent, the website offers learners individualized

instruction since they can take their own time to complete each activity, session, unit and level.
This feature not only fosters autonomous learning, but it also respects the learners internal
syllabus, and thus complies with Doughtys MP10 and MP8. However, the website does not
strive to reach a broader scope of English learning proficiency levels, offering activities solely
geared towards intermediate students. Another positive aspect of BBC Learning English is that,
unlike most free English learning websites, there are no external advertisements to pollute its
layout and overload users working memory capacities. Yet, users might experience cognitive
overloads in most of the audio, video and reading activities. We now turn to an analysis of such
types of activities.

Audio Activities
The majority of the listening activities starts with a small introductory text to help
contextualize the story to learners and help them activate their background schemata and topdown processing strategies. A picture portraying the general idea of the audio is also included to
set the scene to listeners and activate top-down processing. Bottom-up processing clues are also
provided by means of a list of glossed words taken from the audio, which is found right below
the picture and audio tool. According to Bacon (1992, as in Robin, 2011), intermediate students
make use of both top-down and bottom-up processing strategies, depending on their level of
familiarity with the listening topic. Therefore, this dual feature of the audio activity allows for
individualized instruction and adaptivity, and it is thus in alignment with Doughtys MP10
(2000b, 2001b, as cited in Doughty & Long, 2003). The vocabulary list seems to respect the
principle of chunk learning (Doughtys MP5) and segmenting (Mayer, 2008) as no more than
8 words are presented at a time. However, the website does not take advantage of the
multimedia (Mayer, 2008) principle to introduce concrete nouns; that is, instead of presenting
pictures to help the learner associate meaning with form; it solely relies on words and definitions.
In some of the audio activities, a link to the transcript is provided and it is at the learners
discretion to click on it to follow the transcript and/or when to do it (Doughtys MP10 individualized instruction) In others, the transcript is provided right below the audio file. Studies
(e.g., Baltova, 1999, as cited in Robin, 2011) have shown that transcripts increase immediate
comprehension and recall, both of content and vocabulary (p.99) and serve as motivators for
learners (e.g., Chun, 1999, as cited in Robin, 2011).
An aspect to be improved is the lack of malleability of the control panel of the audio files.
Robin (2011) highlights the current possibility of controlling the speed delivery of audio/video
files in order to cater to learners individual needs. BBC English Learning does not allow users to
decrease the speed of the audio (conserving it to a natural level, of course) to facilitate
comprehension. Neither does it allow learners to increase the speed in case they wish to start
challenging their listening ability. Another weakness is that the audio panel does not permit the
user to rewind or fast forward the file in order to focus on a particular part. Furthermore, it does
not show the audio remaining time so that the learner has an overall idea of how long the audio

will take. Finally, most of the audio files are too long (about 6 minutes), which can cause
cognitive overloads in students working memory, especially when listening to lexico-grammar
explanations (e.g., the use of hyphens - certainly a very complex topic). Unlike 6-minute
vocabulary and grammar audios, the audio files for the drama series are presented in parts (i.e.,
episodes), apparently respecting Mayers (2008) principle of segmenting and following the
findings of other researchers (e.g. Robin, 1987; Berry-Bravo, 1991, as cited in Robin, 2011) who
advocate for the use of shorter narratives, as opposed to full-length ones. Yet, the episodes are
still a bit too long (about 6 minutes) and they might still put a strain on the learners cognitive
load if the topic is not familiar. Having said that, the News Report series (which presents
authentic BBC news reports) is a well-thought-out example of listening input on the website.
The short length of its files (about 20 seconds) compensates for the authenticity and, therefore,
complexity of the language, reducing the learners cognitive load.
The language used in the audios range from conversational to formal style. The 6-minute
English series (explanations of grammar and vocabulary) is scripted as a radio talk show and it
is, thus, in conversational style, following Mayers (2008) principle of personalization. On the
other hand, News Reports preserves the formal style of its genre - which, in this case, is
regarded by us as a positive feature since it keeps language authentic and allows the learner to be
exposed to varying styles in their authentic environments.
Another aspect to be improved is the consistency of post-listening activities to test the
learners comprehension. Most audios are followed by comprehension-testing quizzes, whereas
others only offer the transcript. When quizzes are available, they are self-guided and provide the
learner not only with tips on the correct answer (through a help button) - if necessary -, but also
with positive and negative feedback - fulfilling Doughtys MP7 (2000b, 2001b, as cited in
Doughty & Long, 2003). In some sessions, after the quiz(zes), the learner is given the
opportunity to produce output in the form of written responses that can be emailed to the website
staff. Some of the responses are published and shared with the websites community of learners,
but it is not clear (neither could we find out) if the emailed responses get any feedback from the
experts (i.e., website teachers). Although production seems to have a secondary role on the
website and, although the main unit of analysis seems to be texts (i.e., exercises) and not tasks
(as in the sense of TBLT), these writing activities promote learning by doing (Doughtys MP2,
2000b, 2001b, as cited in Doughty & Long, 2003); yet, to a limited extent.
Video Activities
Like the listening activities, most video activities are preceded by a small text that aims to
introduce the main topic and activate the learners schema and top-down processing. Some of the
videos are followed by questions about learners real-life experiences on the main topic.
Personally, this order does not seem to work at the learners advantage because such questions
have a more effective schema effect if asked before the video is played (and not after it has been
played).

Unlike the control panel of the audio files, the control panel of the videos offers more
malleability to the learner, who can not only pause, rewind and fast-forward the file for
individualized instruction (Doughtys MP 10), but can also visualize the time counter to keep
track of the part of the video being watched and the remaining time to the end. Yet, just like on
the audio files, speed delivery control is not offered. The transcripts are also available through a
button and it is, once more, at the learners discretion when to look at it (or even to use it as
scaffolding tool for comprehension). Grgurovic and Hegelheimer (2007, as cited in Robin, 2011)
report a preference by L2 learners for captions over transcripts (p. 99). Therefore, the website
could include captions as an add-on, which users would activate at their discretion and according
to their needs.
Most videos are pretty short, ranging from 45 seconds to 2 minutes and thus present
content in learner-paced segments (Mayers segmenting principle, 2008). Videos are used for a
variety of purposes such as grammar explanations, vocabulary teaching, narration of stories (e.g.,
Drama series and Shakespeare Speaks) and news reports. Grammar explanation videos follow
the principle of modality (Mayer, 2008) as grammar explanations are delivered in spoken text.
However, it usually consists of an expert (i.e., a teacher or native speaker) talking about the
grammar in focus with no or little signaling (Mayer, 2008). This format is no different than
filming a teacher talking about a grammar topic in a class. While the language is conversational
(following Mayers personalization principle, 2008), these videos make no use of the
advantages of a multimedia environment. That is, no input enhancement (e.g., grammar schemes
with highlighting of essential material) is provided. The teaching of vocabulary through videos
seem to follow the same patterns. An expert appears on screen and repeats the target words one
by one while the written form is shown at the bottom of the screen. The image of the expert
seems to be of no use for the learners development of form-meaning mappings and it could,
therefore, be substituted with a picture that conveys the meaning of the target word. This small
change would be in alignment with Mayers (2008) multimedia principle (i.e., present words
and pictures rather than words alone). The video would present either the sound or the printed
word so as to keep the learning process coherent (i.e.,reduce extraneous material, Mayer,
2008).
Some videos are followed by comprehension exercises such as quizzes, whereas others
are only followed by the transcripts. Like in post-audio activities, quizzes are self-guided and
provide users with guided hints, through a help button, and negative feedback on incorrect
responses - fulfilling Doughtys MP7 (2000b, 2001b, as cited in Doughty & Long, 2003).
Reading Activities
Articles and other reading texts are usually included in the third (or sometimes second)
session of a unit on the BBC website. They are preceded by an introductory paragraph that helps
students not only to understand what are they going to be reading about, but also allows them to
activate their background knowledge and top-down processing. Within the paragraph, there are
also either opinion questions, questions about the thesis of a reading, or sometimes even

rhetorical questions. After the pre-reading, there are always pictures connected to the topic,
which fosters learning as a multimedia instructional message (Mayer, 2015). The introduction,
together with a couple of pictures, seems not to be too complex to overload learners working
memory. It also fulfils Doughtys MP5 by using design features that facilitate segmenting
(Mayer, 2008).
The style and layout of the readings vary from unit to unit; at times they are subdivided
into parts, sometimes they consist of bullet points that list features of the grammatical aspect of
the unit. These inconsistencies are a bit confusing, as it is difficult to predict the next session.
However, this diversity can be viewed as an advantage if we consider Doughtys MP4; the input
is rich, the sources of the input are varied. Additionally, the readings are in alignment with
Doughtys MP3, which requires elaborate input that does not rely solely on authentic texts
(2000b, 2001b, as cited in Doughty & Long, 2003). These texts are not fully genuine, nor
simplified; they are elaborate texts prepared for pedagogical tasks. Authentic texts would be too
complex for the learner, as well as the format could potentially hinder learners comprehension
(if the reading was presented as a continuous wall of text, instead of being divided into parts).
Another principle from Doughtys table that is present in all texts from BBC is MP6 focus on form (Doughty & Williams, 1998a; Long, 1988, 1991, 1997, 2000a; Long & Robinson,
1998). All texts from this website provide learners with input enhancement; learners attention is
drawn to the target words through visual emphasis (all new or crucial vocabulary is written in
bold) (Doughty & Long, 2003). According to Mayer (2008), the learner must determine which
words are most relevant, which is more manageable if these words are already visually
highlighted. Sometimes we can find a list of essential vocabulary at the end of the reading (e.g.
7 phrasal verbs at the end of Session 3 in Unit 12). Learners are supposed to work out the
meaning of these verbs by finding them in use in the text. Providing such a list is a great way of
scaffolding; learners are able to perform a comprehension check by themselves. Including such
post-reading tasks can be very beneficial; it enables the use of facilitating strategies of scanning
or skimming the texts, which are necessary to complete such self-check activities (Kol &
Schcolnik, 2000, as cited in Chun, 2011).
However, the website could be improved by adding pictures corresponding to the
vocabulary from the text. Chun (2011) mentioned two principles for the design of multimedia
instructional materials; one of them claims that the design of information presentation should be
based on the cognitive processes that this information prompts as well as on how these processes
could be supported by the characteristic of the particular mode (Mayer, 2001, as cited in Chun,
2011). Depicting a particular word can be very beneficial, especially for lower-level learners.
According to Mayer (2008), learners have to go through five different processes in order to fully
grasp the meaning of each vocabulary item: selecting words, selecting images, organizing words,
organizing images and, finally, integrating. Integrating is the crucial process, in which learners
build their connection between verbal and pictorial knowledge and embed it with their prior
knowledge. On the other hand, adding such option poses another issue - the possibility of
overloading learners working memory capacities. The perfect solution to that would be
including pictures of the most significant words (that are already written in bold) and adding a

hyperlink that includes a picture, which is shown only when we select the word (without
redirecting to that image).
Lastly, after each reading task, learners are able to self-check their comprehension by
completing a short quiz (usually consisting of 5-7 questions). What is interesting, the quizzes
often contain images, which, as mentioned before, could be beneficial during the reading, not
necessarily after it. Learners can choose between 3-4 answers and check if their response is
correct. If yes, they will see short feedback, which includes a praise and which repeats the
content of the question including the correct answer. That repetitiveness could be helpful for
lower-level students, but it is redundant for more proficient students. If the answer is incorrect,
the feedback does not give a straightforward solution; it is more of a clue leading to the correct
option. That aligns with Doughtys MP7, which requires negative feedback (Doughty, 2000b,
2001b).

Conclusion
The BBC Learning English website is a good resource for ESL learners. It contains a vast
number of audio and video items, as well as readings, combined into a coherent set of units and
sessions. It is relatively easy to navigate and it does not have any external advertisements or
other extraneous materials. Most activities consist of pre-reading or listening, the actual task,
and post-reading or listening in the form of a quiz or another comprehension check. The website
contains videos and audios that are based on up-to-date data, which makes it more interesting for
the learner. The resources are suitable for motivated, autonomous learners, who can complete the
sessions and units at their own pace.
We have found almost all of the Language Teaching Methodological Principles for CALL
proposed by Doughty (2000b, 2001b, as cited in Doughty & Long, 2003), except for MP1 and,
partially, MP2. MP1 claims that we should use tasks, not texts, as the unit of analysis. There
were no tasks that needed to be completed anywhere on the website, just quizzes. The second
principle that was not very apparent was MP2; promote learning by doing. Learners do not seem
to have the opportunity to do anything but to listen, read and answer quiz questions - except for
one instance in which users were given the option to email their written responses to the website
staff. The focus of the website seems to be on the development of listening and reading skills,
limiting its scope to comprehension and paying no heed to production. The website could
expand its focus and add opportunities for output production so that the development of speaking
and writing skills was also fostered.
The website has several aspects to be improved. First of all, there are only 3 levels to
choose from, and they are all focused on intermediate students. What about beginners? Or
advanced students looking to expand their vocabulary repertoire? Additionally, the site seems to
be under construction - the most advanced level available (upper-intermediate) does not include
30 units, but merely 11. It seems that developers should be adding new content every Monday,
but they are apparently not able to keep up with the schedule. What we can see is that some of

the activities posted are incomplete (e.g., not every session has a post-task; comprehension
checks are not available for all audio and video activities). Moreover, most of the audio and
video files can cause cognitive overload - they are simply too long and complex. Learners cannot
rewind or see how much each audio file takes - unlike the video files that allow both of these
functions. Such inconsistency is undesirable for such a well-known website. As mentioned
above, reading exercises could benefit from the usage of images to facilitate integrating new
vocabulary items, but that also is not present on the BBC site.
Overall, we think that the website is a good resource for ESL learners - especially for
those looking to develop their English comprehension skills. It has the potential to become a
great self-learning tool, provided that some principled decisions and theoretically-informed
improvements are made. Self-learning websites require constant improving and developing;
therefore, if the creators of BBC Learning English can keep up with the demand, the website can
possibly become one of the most helpful ESL learning tools with free access available on the
Internet.

References
Chun, D. (2011). CALL technologies for L2 reading post Web 2.0. Present and future promises
of CALL: From theory and research to new directions in language teaching, 131-170.
Doughty, C., & Long, M. (2003). Optimal psycholinguistic environments for distance foreign
language learning.
Mayer, R.E. (2008). Class handout
Mayer, R. E. (2014). Cognitive theory of multimedia learning. The Cambridge handbook of
multimedia learning, 43-71.
Robin, R. (2011). Listening comprehension in the age of Web 2.0. Present and future promises of
CALL: From theory and research to new directions in language teaching, 93-130.