Medical terminology is not about simple English vocabulary, but clinical thinking and application. The learning process of medical terminology always seems to be full of frustrations. Whether he/she is a doctor or a medical student, their feelings are usually the same. Difficult to understand, difficult to remember, large in number, and rote memorization are common experiences encountered by learners. How to overcome these difficulties? A better understanding and familiarity with medical terminology will help medical students to make better preparations before entering the hospital. In daily life, people don't need to know as many professional medical terminology words as doctors, but it is still quite beneficial to learn some of the most basic medical terminologies. Learning these medical terms may save one's life when necessary, because it may contribute to a person's health. These medical terminologies can give one a clear idea of which outpatient department of the hospital he/she needs to visit? What kind of specialist doctor to look for? It is also an important help to describe one's problems and situations to the doctor more accurately. In this way, doctors will be able to know more clearly how to treat patients. Knowing medical terminology can also help people engaged in related jobs in the future workplace, such as writing medical articles, translating medical articles, engaging in medical insurance, etc.
Now that smartphones are easy to carry around and can easily be used to customize courses for learners. Obviously, mobile learning has become a common phenomenon. Therefore, learners can study anytime and anywhere, and it becomes more and more convenient to acquire knowledge. Furthermore, Miangah & Nezarat stated that the oral function of mobile learning is very important[1]. Gee used digital games to assist learning[2]. It is generally believed that games can provide a fascinating contextual environment through problem-solving, which can be used as introductory knowledge for active and in-depth learning. Another survey conducted by Taylor has shown that students prefer instant messaging as a communication tool[3]. For these reasons, in this study, an online chat robot that can be installed on mobile phones was designed, which contains some crossword puzzles to help students learn medical terminology.
The Crossword puzzles strategy is an active learning strategy designed to ask students to fill in crossword games prepared by the teacher. According to Kazimoglu, digital games involve providing players with the right solutions to take them to the next level. This motivation has promoted the video game industry[4]. In 2016, global game revenue reached 99.6 billion U.S. dollars, an increase of 8.5% over revenue[5]. The game types include educational games, adventure games, action games, and role-playing games. Atkinson (2003) proposed that “using puzzles” enables language teachers to add color to classroom activities and make them lively by providing challenges and entertainment[6].
Kumar et al. pointed out that online crosswords cannot replace traditional crosswords, but it can offer good and interesting teaching opportunities because it can stimulate students’ interest and stimulate their interest in learning[7]. Bailey et al. proposed that crossword puzzles can create a challenging and competitive atmosphere, and promote student interaction in a friendly and interesting environment[8]. Gaikwad & Tankhiwale said that crosswords can stimulate thoughts, increase vocabulary, and help develop healthy skepticism[9].
Patel & Dave pointed out that students appreciated the crossword puzzles, and it has carried important learning activities out. The rational use of crossword puzzles can simplify the delivery of content and provide opportunities for discussion and review of basic concepts of university study[10]. Nicol proposed a unique application of self-generated crosswords. Students can create these puzzles and bring a copy of the complete crossword to the classroom so that other students can practice and solve it[11]. Bhaskar stated that activities such as the crossword puzzles can help break the tediousness of pedagogy and stimulate students’ active participation and attention in the classroom[12]. Apparently, the crossword puzzle is one of the great tools for memorizing vocabulary and the self-learning tool to promote active learning and thinking.
A chatbot is a software application designed to interact with users by using text or text-to-speech conversion. The design is done in a way that the users think they are talking with people on site. Most chatbots utilize artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms or natural language processors to generate the desired response. Early chatbots used simple pattern matching and string processing techniques to interact with users based on rules and generated models, thereby creating intelligence. Nowadays, with new technologies, more intelligent systems have emerged using models based on complex knowledge.
Chatbots have been successfully used in many computer applications. Winkler and Söllner stated that chatbots are becoming ubiquitous in many fields such as medicine, the product and service industry, and education[13]. Chatbots can be used to conduct auditory or textual conversations; furthermore, the growing body of evidence revealed that chatbots have the potential to change the way students learn and search for information. Especially in large-scale learning scenarios with more than 100 students per lecturer, chatbots are able to solve the problem of individual student support. Hussain published a survey study discussing the classification of chatbots, the design techniques used in early and modern chatbots, and how the two main categories of chatbots handle conversational context[14]. Heller stated that Freudbot can help us understand the interaction records and task execution rate of psychology students in distance learning and the results showed that the amount of both was very high. Heller indicated that chatbot technology became a teaching tool in distance learning and online education[15]. Matsuura and Ishimura proposed a study that chatbot and dialogue demonstration with a humanoid robot in the lecture class. The study showed that in science lectures, the researchers compared the use of chatbots with humanoid robots and found that the visualization using chatbots can help students to understand the lecture smoothly [16]. Also, Nurhayati et al stated that chatbots play an important role in users’ learning. According to these research studies, it’s obvious that chatbots have the potential to improve the learning process and learning outcomes[17].
In order to assist students in learning medical terminology easier and even more interesting, this study intends to propose an amusing method to facilitate students learning medical terminology by using JavaScript, jQuery, and HTML to build a chatbot system with crossword puzzles called Termbot that can be used on LINE platform for students’ practice in anytime. In Taiwan, Line is used by most people including students. LINE is a freeware app for instant communications on electronic devices such as smartphones, ipads, laptops, and personal computers. It’s provided by Line Corporation, a subsidiary of the Korean Internet search engine, Naver Corporation.
The Termbot provides interactive learning opportunity on Line in order to enhance students' learning motivation and memorize English medical terminology by playing the Termbot crossword puzzles. While the learners complete the crossword puzzles, Termbot has already recorded the medical terminology that the learners filled in incorrectly. According to these data, Termbot will classify the learners into several groups. Therefore, the teacher can conduct different remedial teaching base on different types of students who answer incorrectly.