Moving from the Logic of the Page to the Logic of the Screen: A Review Research on Multimodal Pedagogy in EFL Classroom Contexts

Abstract

Due to the global proliferation of information technologies and communication channels, today's students are increasingly engaged with multimodal, multimedia along with printed-based literacy practices and are significantly exposed to new information and mass communication on daily basis. As a result, there has been a significant increase in research publications on multimodal-based teaching practices and the impacts of such instructional practices on students' learning. This study attempts to synthesize and critically analyze the existing empirical research on multimodal pedagogy in EFL classroom contexts. The descriptive statistics characterizing the studies reviewed (e.g., the research designs, participant characteristics, settings) were presented along with the qualitative content analysis results containing the emerging themes which sequentially arranged according to its prevalence. The research articles reviewed in this study were based on the following inclusive criteria: (1) peer-reviewed studies, (2) studies concerned with multimodal pedagogy in EFL contexts, and (3) published within the last 6 years. The search for these articles was conducted electronically using search engine databases (e.g., ERIC, Google Scholars) and some reputable journal websites (e.g., tanfonline.com, link.springer.com). Across the corpus of 40 studies, findings revealed that the most preferred study design for multimodal research was case studies conducted in school settings involving both teachers and students as participants. This analytical review also revealed five prevalent themes of findings informing the possibilities and complexities of pedagogical benefits and constraints of multimodal pedagogy. The results of this study could hopefully provide insights on what has been done thus far and showcase implications for research and practice.

Discursive Representations of Digital Artifacts in an EFL Classroom: Analysing Discursive Voices of Pre-Service Teachers of English

“…There is a growing body of recent studies that seek to discover how digital artifacts are used in EFL/ESL instructional contexts (Aloraini, 2018;Cardoso, 2018;García-Pastor, 2020;Irwin, 2019;Kessler, 2013;Kusumaningputri & Widodo, 2018;Kustini et al, 2020;Norton, 2019;Shuang & Zhang, 2020;Thoms et al, 2018). These studies are characterised by several research foci that elucidate the issue of digital artifacts from the vantage points of i) EFL/ESL teachers (Cardoso, 2018;Thoms et al, 2018), ii) EFL/ESL students (Aloraini, 2018;García-Pastor, 2020;Irwin, 2019;Kusumaningputri & Widodo, 2018;Norton, 2019;Shuang & Zhang, 2020), and iii) EFL/ESL researchers (Kessler, 2013;Kustini et al, 2020).…”

“…The research focus that illuminates the issue of digital artifacts from the vantage point of EFL/ESL researchers is present in the studies carried out by Kessler (2013), and Kustini et al (2020), who appear to provide meta-analyses of the current state-of-the-art publications associated with digital artifacts in EFL contexts. In particular, Kessler (2013) explores pedagogical potential afforded by digital technology in general and digital artifacts in particular.…”

“…By emphasising that digital artifacts should be incorporated into EFL instructional settings, Kessler (2013) suggests that the use of digital artifacts by EFL teachers promotes learners' engagement and awareness of the benefits of various forms of literacy, inclusive of digital literacy. In a similar fashion to Kessler (2013), the study by Kustini et al (2020) sets out to provide an overview of digital technology and digital artifacts in conjunction with EFL pedagogy. In particular, Kustini et al (2020) critically interpret empirical research on digital technology and digital artifacts in EFL contexts that was published in peer-reviewed channels within the period from 2014 to 2019.…”

“…In a similar fashion to Kessler (2013), the study by Kustini et al (2020) sets out to provide an overview of digital technology and digital artifacts in conjunction with EFL pedagogy. In particular, Kustini et al (2020) critically interpret empirical research on digital technology and digital artifacts in EFL contexts that was published in peer-reviewed channels within the period from 2014 to 2019. Kustini et al (2020) have identified several research themes that, presumably, characterise the current agenda in investigating digital artifacts in an EFL classroom.…”

“…In particular, Kustini et al (2020) critically interpret empirical research on digital technology and digital artifacts in EFL contexts that was published in peer-reviewed channels within the period from 2014 to 2019. Kustini et al (2020) have identified several research themes that, presumably, characterise the current agenda in investigating digital artifacts in an EFL classroom. These themes are associated with motivation and engagement, improvement of the English language skills, facilitation of critical literacy skills, and challenges posed by digital artifacts to EFL teachers (Kustini et al, 2020).…”