As a Lecturer in German at the Open University's School of Languages and Applied Linguistics, I have been designing courses and developing materials for language learning at a distance for over 20 years. I have a background in Applied Linguistics and second language pedagogy and a keen interest in all aspects of second language development. I am particuarly interested in how learners can develop their interactive competence in online environments.
Before joining the Open Unviersity I taught German language and culture to students from beginner to postgraduate level at Mid-Kent College of Higher and Further Education.
I have researched student use of online environments for language learning and have recently lead on the development of a suit of German-language MOOCs with an employment focus. As part of my doctoral studies, I have been investigating the potential of vicarious participation in recorded online tutorials for second language development.
I enjoy curriculum development and have extensive experience in course design and developing multimedia language learning materials for distance learners. I am especially interested in developing students' cultural awareness and interactive competence in German. I have developed learning materials related to diverse topic areas including geography, education, stereotypes and film. Recently, I have been working on an EU-funded Massive Open Online Course with a 'German for work' focus.
I have contributed to teaching at the OU in the following roles:
Organization/management/assessment:
Open University module production and presentation:
Understanding vicarious participation in online language learning (2020)
Pleines, Christine
Distance Education, 41(4) (pp. 453-471)
Fostering Student Interaction and Engagement in a Virtual Learning Environment: An Investigation into Activity Design and Implementation (2013-09)
Hampel, Regine and Pleines, Christine
The CALICO Journal, 30(3) (pp. 342-370)
Languages Open Resources Online (LORO): fostering a culture of collaboration and sharing (2011-03)
Comas-Quinn, Anna; Beaven, Mary; Pleines, Christine; Pulker, Helene and de los Arcos, Beatriz
The EuroCALL Review(18)
Glaube und Gesellschaft (2006-05)
Stickler, Ursula and Pleines, Christine
In: Duensing, Annette and Baumann, Uwe eds. Developing Writing Skills in German (pp. 127-144)
ISBN : 0-415-39746-4 | Publisher : Routledge | Published : London
Language learning and language learners (2005-07-21)
Lewis, Timothy; Pleines, Christine and Hurd, Stella
In: Hurd, Stella and Murphy, Linda eds. Success with languages. Routledge Study Guides (pp. 1-20)
ISBN : 415368367 | Publisher : Routledge | Published : London, UK
Developing competence in the language (2): Writing and speaking skills (2005-07)
Adinolfi, Lina; Pleines, Christine; Harper, Felicity; Beaven, Tita; Smith, Pete; Hassan, Xaviere; Adams, Helga and Nicolson, Margaret
In: Success wtih Languages. Routledge Study Guides (pp. 110-139)
ISBN : 978-0-415-36836-0 | Publisher : Routledge | Published : Abingdon, UK
Learners as teachers? An evaluation of peer interaction and correction in a German language MOOC (2019)
Clifford, Elisabeth; Pleines, Christine; Thomas, Hilary and Winchester, Susanne
In : EUROCALL 2019 - CALL and complexity (28-31 Aug 2019, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium) (pp. 88-93)
Learning Through Vicarious Participation in Online Language Tutorials (2020-06-06)
Pleines, Christine
edd thesis The Open University
Tookit "Moving your Language Teaching Online"
von Lindeiner-Stráský, Karina; Pulker, Hélène; Barkanyi, Zsuzsanna; Pleines, Christine and Vialleton, Elodie
Open Learn Create