Virtual Learning Communities In Language Teaching

A virtual learning community composed by experts, scholars and new learners is a place where learners are likely to use the medium of the Internet to learn interactively. Owing to the characteristic of interactive study in a virtual learning community, learners are able to go through the course of obtaining knowledge by cooperation. While exploring new things and interact with others in this virtual learning atmosphere, learners are required to master not only what they have learned, but also the way of how to learn the knowledge.In the meantime, learners should also lay emphasis on the ability to apply the acquired knowledge and the ability to cooperate with others.As to the virtual learning community, many researchers at home and abroad have carried out this research from different aspects and have got many significant outcomes. In my research here, I , on the base of the "Big Chinese Community"—a virtual learning community whose special activities haven't fully completed, observe and study the function, model and strategy of its application to practical Chinese teaching.My research has dug out the potential function for virtual learning community; provided the basic procedures and strategies for constructing the forum-like virtual learning community; clarified the basic but latest theories for the application to teaching in such a community; put forward some basic models utilized in Chinese teaching; described the participation and activities of teachers and students in the process of teaching and learning and introduced related strategies.