Message-ID: <88A532A156EAD411A6EC00D0B7471BC3057A03D3@email.albany.edu>
From: Carla Meskill <CMeskill@uamail.albany.edu>
To: "'txie@csulb.edu'" <txie@csulb.edu>
Subject: MERLOT Review of Conversatonal Mandarin Chinese Online
Date: Thu, 8 Nov 2001 16:00:17 -0500 
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Status: RO

November 8, 2001

Dear Dr. Xie,

Thank you for your willingness to participate in the MERLOT project and the
peer review of your materials. Below is the first draft of the review. We
had two reviewers who have expertise in the relevant discipline apply the
MERLOT-World Languages criteria. The report contains: (1) a description of
the special features of your site; and (2) an evaluation of the quality of
the content, potential effectiveness as a teaching-learning tool, and ease
of use of your materials. 

We hope this format is useful for you and the faculty who will be searching
MERLOT looking for materials like your own. We also hope this information is
useful to you. As presented in the initial invitation letter, the next steps
in the peer review process are:

·	You are welcome to provide feedback to the review team.
·	If you are satisfied with the review, the report will be posted on
the MERLOT website along with a pointer to your material. You have the
option of not having the review posted.
·	At your request, letters will be sent to you and two others you
designate acknowledging the quality of your work.
.

Thank you again. We look forward to further collaborations and participation
in MERLOT.

Sincerely,

Carla Meskill & Laura Franklin
World Languages Discipline Team Co-leaders

---
MERLOT WORLD LANGUAGES PEER REVIEW

Name of Module: Conversational Mandarin Chinese Online
URL: http://philo.ucdavis.edu/CHINESE/ccol.htm
Type of Material: Tutorial

OVERVIEW

The contents of this module are useful in assisting beginning-intermediate
learners of Chinese to improve their skills in listening, speaking, reading,
and character recognition/writing. There is animation of character writing
by stroke order. There is also scoring in listening and reading exercises.
Traditional Chinese characters can be viewed through NJWIN or AsianBridge,
and an audio player is needed to listen to sound. 

QUALITY OF CONTENT
Rating: 4

FEATURES OF EXCELLENCE
The purpose is clear, and there is an adequate amount of material.
Characters collocate with pinyin. There are fifteen units in total. Units
consist of Part I (Listen and Learn), Part II (New Sentence Modules), and
Part III (Practice Makes Perfect). 

FEATURES OF CONCERNS/RECOMMENDATIONS
The contents of the units would be more consistent if the additional parts
on listening and reading exercises and character writing in Units Eleven and
Fifteen were listed in separate categories.

POTENTIAL EFFECTIVENESS AS A TEACHING-LEARNING TOOL
Rating: 4

FEATURES OF EXCELLENCE
This module is a useful resource to supplement classroom
instruction/activities. It can also be used for homework assignments.
Instruction on how to read Chinese characters on the web is clear. The
listening, reading, and translation exercises are engaging.

FEATURES OF CONCERNS/RECOMMENDATIONS
Feedback on pronunciation would enhance the usefulness of these activities.

EASE OF USE (TECHNICAL)
Rating: 4

FEATURES OF EXCELLENCE
Links are consistently placed on each page for easy navigation. The main
page is visually appealing.

FEATURES OF CONCERNS/RECOMMENDATIONS
The pages within the units are all white with black print. Pictures relevant
to the listening and reading materials would be helpful in engaging users.