Applying New Technological Developments to CALL for Arabic
Steve Cushion, Dominique Hémard · Computer Assisted Language Learning · 2002
Teachers and researchers trying to produce CALL software in languages that use the non-Latin alphabets have a long history of seeing their work disappear into a series of nonsensical characters or black squares. This problem is particularly true of web-based material because there are so many unknown factors associated with the operating system of a distant user. This paper will describe how recent technological developments have provided the possibility of overcoming these technical problems in conjunction with the Java programming language and the Unicode character numbering system. This approach has enabled the conversion of previously developed software, which produced web-based CALL material in the Latin alphabet, to produce similar material in Arabic. The system does not rely on the restructuring of the host computer's operating system and enables teachers of Arabic to produce their own interactive CALL material in a form that will be easily accessible to their students.