Creating Communities: The L2 Self and ICT in an EFL Classroom

Abstract

Developing communicative skills in English where it is a foreign language is a frustrating challenge for the L2 learner. Information and communication technologies (ICT) offer the possibility for L2 students to develop those skills collaboratively. The purpose of this article is to share the idea of building a student-centered community online where the students use the Internet as a creative space to develop their L2 identities. In this project, a first-year university class at a Japanese women's college used blogging as a space to develop and communicate their learning experience in English. A second class used video screen capture software to record a news report and then share their imagined L2 identities with the first class via the blog. By the end of term it was revealed that the learners' positive response to this project could be an instrumental approach to developing autonomous L2 communities beyond the classroom.The continuing significance of English as a common tongue for global communication is well documented (Kirkpatrick, 2007(Kirkpatrick, , 2011Ryan, 2006Ryan, , 2009Seidlhofer, 2004). Although the number of native speakers of English is declining, by 2050 half the world is expected to be using English to some extent (Graddol, 2003;Johnson, 2009). This prediction is due in large part to the continuing dominant role that English plays in the areas of science and technology, international / local business, and global communications. With the push towards globalization, the need for communicating in English has influenced many national educational policies to develop teaching methods to address that need.A pedagogical approach to teaching English to non-native speakers in an EFL (English as a Foreign Language) environment is challenging. Unlike the ESL (English as a Second Language) setting, the EFL environment outside the classroom does not easily reinforce nor support the development of the necessary language skills required for effective communication. Access to the target-language community is either not readily accessible or may be financially unattainable. The development of Web 2.0 technologies, along with growing access to the Internet, is bridging that gap. Preparation for communication via the Internet requires important pedagogical considerations. This project will show how the use of Information and communication technology (ICT) tools can be balanced with a theoretical framework that considers the following: imagined communities, the L2 self-motivational system, and ICT in education.

Indonesian Students’ Listening Attitudes

“…Finally, out of class listening activities are possible because every student has a smart phone to practice listening at any time and place they feel comfortable. Shafeeq (2011) and Ferreira (2013) found that the use of CALL and gadgets is more workable with non gifted students. Therefore, promoting the students to be autonomous learners through listening is needed.…”