Design Processes in CALL: Integrating Theory, Research and Evaluation

In the literature on design in CALL so far, the emphasis has tended to be on providing principles or guidelines for the potential developer (see Davies, Hickman & Hewer 1994; Gordan, 1994; Hémard 1997; Lynch & Horton 1997). Hémard (1997) provides a valuable, recent and detailed set of design criteria for authoring hypermedia language learning applications that is aimed at the computer literate language specialist. Well-conceived sets of principles or guidelines are eminently practical and of immediate utility and, when used appropriately, have the potential to play an ‘intricate’ and ‘inseparable’ part in the design process (Hémard, 1998). They are important because they provide a mechanism and a support for dealing with a complex process through which a multitude of interdependent decisions have to be made.