What I learned from Yifei Wang's thesis: Designing Chatbot Interfaces For Language Learning

I felt a bit hesitant to begin reading this thesis because I barely know what chatbot is. I was imagining something like Siri on my smartphone, which admittedly I don’t even use! However, the author’s presentation of chatbot as an emotionally driven learning experience was surprisingly very clear. I learned quite a bit from this thesis, particularly around how to present ideas in both format and language:

• Organization of paper – It is evident that a thoughtful approach was taken in organizing the paper, from the clear abstract, to a table of contents that logically presents a thought process that is easy to follow for the reader, to appropriate naming conventions for heading and sub-headings. The abstract is less than a page, taking into consideration the spaces between the lines and wide margins. Yet it clearly articulates the purpose, key research methodologies, theories drawn from, and intentions with research findings. The table of contents and titles of sections and sub-sections spoke volumes in how the writer approached her idea from research paradigm to literature, to analysis to conclusion. This approach reminded me of writing I do in my profession, called position papers, where I use the framework of Problem, Analysis, and Recommendation. From a personal perspective, I used to think a thesis was beyond my current learning and understanding, but in fact this approach to writing a thesis is something I am already familiar with. And so, one of my takeaways is to intently and logically design the structure of the paper, be thoughtful about titles as I would when I write a position paper. 

• Personal touch – I really appreciated how the writer added a personal touch to the thesis. Examples include: The writer shared her story as a teacher, the problems she faced with the difficulty of providing feedback on pronunciation, and the optimism she experienced when introducing technology in her class environment. She formally acknowledged people who helped her in conducting her research, which not only shows her gratitude but also highlights how her research findings were formed, which as a novice researcher helps me to understand that writing isn’t a solo process – it takes contributions of many to arrive at the end result. And so, another takeaway is to ask questions, ask people to read your paper, practice humility by taking into consideration one’s criticism, embrace moments where people agree as all of these processes are necessary to conduct meaningful writing. Learning the personal experiences of the presenters over the last couple of weeks alongside reading this thesis has helped form my understanding of how important the personal touch is to research. 

• Preliminary research methods – Aside from the traditional methods noted in the abstract, the author also engaged in what she referred to as pre-research interview. This was a “stop” for me for a couple of reasons. First, as I embark on my research, I wasn’t sure how to approach gaining more insight on my research question. I thought about conducting preliminary interviews, but wasn’t sure if this is appropriate. To see the writer acknowledge this as a part of her research inquiry confirmed to me that informal inquiry is ok! And secondly, documenting this part of the research process in her thesis helped me to recognize that this is in fact relevant research too. Research isn’t static. It’s not just the interviews, or the surveys. It needs to include the process leading up to it too, and needs to be documented as such to get the whole story. So one of my takeaways is that it is to be thoughtful in and take note of the whole research inquiry process, from introspective to preliminary inquiry, and the formal research conducted.