From age and gender to identity in technology-mediated language learning

While there has been considerable interest in age and gender issues in language learning, there are far fewer studies that explore these issues in the context of technology-mediated learning environments. In this chapter, we describe key theoretical perspectives on age and gender that inform research and practice, noting implications for the use of technologies in language learning. Scholarship on language learning more broadly suggests that the significance of age and gender is mediated by a number of other individual, situational, social and cultural factors. We argue that understanding how learner identities, including but not limited to age and gender, are constructed and enacted in particular contexts can be useful in designing and implementing technology-mediated language learning in education. The chapter concludes with questions and implications for research and practice, with an emphasis on understanding the role of learner identities in technology-mediated language learning from a holistic perspective.