Development of Technical Reading e-Learning for Foreign Students at Universities of Science and technology

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This study assesses the benefits of a multimedia e-Learning environment in a pre-college language program in engineering education, based on the moodle platform. This prototype e-Learning system (http://moodle.elp.tuat.ac.jp/moodle/login/index.php) is designed to provide attractive course materials for technological literacy education for a wider audience, including first-year students, high school students, and foreign students in pre-college courses. In order to engage a wider range of students, engineering faculty paired up with Japanese language teachers to develop an e-Learning system, creating four modules that include (1) reading materials, (2) narration, (3) video lectures, (4)auto glossary for technical terms, and (5) comprehension activities. In experiments, 22 foreign students and 21 Japanese native students used prototype e-learning contents on LMS Server and answered the questionnaires. Evaluation results indicate that a multimedia e-Learning environment is effective and has the potential to better prepare students for engineering education, especially for advanced learners of Japanese in pre-engineering courses.