It is a widespread and strongly supported assumption in the educational arena that the integration of technology into language classrooms can lead to improved teaching and learning with a positive impact on language learners’ proficiency level. The current situation with the COVID-19 pandemic has provided language teachers with great many potential opportunities to implement online applications and instruments to develop learners’ language proficiency. In contrast to the previous norms of EFL classrooms, where technology integration used to be an important albeit a subsidiary component, the current COVID-19 state has put online teaching on the foreground as it is purely a techno-led teaching scenario. However, with the integration of technology-based learning strategies, challenges faced by EFL teachers have also increased. The current study aims to study technology-integrated classrooms and address the challenges before EFL teachers in Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 pandemic. To have a clear instrument development of data and research findings, the Exploratory Sequential Mixed Method Design was selected by the researcher after using a blend of questionnaires and online interview techniques. For data collection, 50 language instructors at the English Language Institute (King Abdulaziz University) participated in the research. Due to the pandemic control lockdown state, these teachers were teaching an online Module from March-May 2020. The research design was focused on obtaining data based on two aspects: 1. Investigating the positive impact of technology integration in online EFL classrooms during the COVID-19 pandemic. 2. Addressing the challenges faced by the teachers in techno-led online classes during the COVID-19 era. The research findings indicated that despite having access to various techno-led applications and techniques including the blackboard ultra, podcasting, vodcasting etc., still there were many challenges faced by Saudi language instructors. The most common challenges included, but were not limited to, the inability to have access to the modern equipment, interrupted or weak internet connection, learners’ low motivation level and attention deficit. Despite these issues, however, many language instructors reported a positive inclination towards the use of technology in EFL online classes. The findings of the study shed light on the productive use of techno-led online EFL classrooms, focusing on strategic skill-based learning taking place and establishing a strong virtual link between the instructors and learners. Furthermore, the results of this study would help policymakers, trainers, EFL teachers and professional development experts with the current aspects of COVID-19 and the pending issues determining technology integration in EFL online classrooms, thus enabling them to make better-informed decisions.
Classroom anxiety is a recurrent phenomenon for language learners. There are various factors that cause language anxiety, the most common of which include learners' excessive self-consciousness and self-awareness concerning their oral reproduction and performance and their peculiar, and quite often misplaced and mistaken, views and beliefs regarding different approaches. Other potential reasons for this problem could include the fear, and the consequent deterrence occasioned thereof, of encountering difficulties in language learning, specifically learners' individual problems regarding the culture of the target language and the varying social statuses of speakers. The most important fear is, perhaps, the deterrent fear of causing damage to one's self-identity. Therefore, while needing to paying special attention to language learners' anxiety reactions, language teachers have a crucial role in helping their students achieve the expected performance goals in the target language. Another factor that could potentially lead to language anxiety is simply the poor command of the target language. This problem could be attributed to linguistic barriers and obstacles language learners encounter in learning and using the target language. In the current study, using a qualitative, semi-structured interview and the focus-group discussion technique, the researcher aims to investigate the factors that contribute to language anxiety among Arab language learners. It focuses on learners both within the classroom setting and without, i.e. in the social context, and recommends a number of approaches to manage and overcome this problem.
Communication skills and techniques EFL (English as a Foreign Language). Contribution/Originality: This is one of very few studies that has investigated multiple aspects of ICT training of language teachers in order to change their perceptions regarding ICT integration in language learning processes and opens gateways for innovative ideas and new research in this field.
Classroom anxiety is a recurrent phenomenon for language learners. There are various factors that cause language anxiety, the most common of which include learners’ excessive self-consciousness and self-awareness concerning their oral reproduction and performance and their peculiar, and quite often misplaced and mistaken, views and beliefs regarding different approaches. Other potential reasons for this problem could include the fear, and the consequent deterrence occasioned thereof, of encountering difficulties in language learning, specifically learners’ individual problems regarding the culture of the target language and the varying social statuses of speakers. The most important fear is, perhaps, the deterrent fear of causing damage to one’s self-identity. Therefore, while needing to paying special attention to language learners’ anxiety reactions, language teachers have a crucial role in helping their students achieve the expected performance goals in the target language. Another factor that could potentially lead to language anxiety is simply the poor command of the target language. This problem could be attributed to linguistic barriers and obstacles language learners encounter in learning and using the target language. In the current study, using a qualitative, semi-structured interview and the focus-group discussion technique, the researcher aims to investigate the factors that contribute to language anxiety among Arab language learners. It focuses on learners both within the classroom setting and without, i.e. in the social context, and recommends a number of approaches to manage and overcome this problem.
The said study focuses on the importance of effective use of psychological techniques in classroom management in Arab context. Pragmatic studies have established the effects of change in behavior on learning abilities of the students. This study scrutinizes the enhancement in investigation to confirm cognitive enhancement and stimulus among learners as it is significant so as to keep the discipline and boost the acquisition context in the class. The notion of the cognitive manner has dignity of uniqueness and inevitability in bringing about prime changes in the academic performance as well as behavior of the students. Psychological techniques have an impact on the course of academic performance of a student and determine the path of success in order to gain desired results. For this study several psychological techniques were focused that can effectively be applied in the class controlling. This research also focused on the mapping out of the relationship between learning and discipline. The researcher observed two classrooms at the English Language institute (women’s main campus) having same instructors for two modules. This study describes the lethal effects of bitter behavior with the learners who produce a context where students’ behavior turns aggressive and learning abilities get negatively affected. Though, this is imperative and of integral importance to evaluates the efficacy of cognitive procedures in class controlling and order. Further, the cognitive requirements of the learners should be observed so as to gauge the correct measures taken to enhance the learning process. Involving peer checking at this level to observe and get more reliable and valid result is also a great scenario.
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