Online teaching: advantages, obstacles and tools for getting it right

Sustaining Language Skills Development of Pre-Service EFL Teachers despite the COVID-19 Interruption: A Case of Emergency Distance Education

“…They believe that, when they interact verbally in a virtual environment, they feel more comfortable and relaxed due to the removal of those negative feelings. Considering the comfortable atmosphere students have at home, EDE also offers self-paced learning for students and fosters their motivation, which is also supported by the literature [6,58,59]. Additionally, EDE led the participants to use computer/online tools/resources, including various applications and online programs, such as online dictionaries and programs for spelling, pronunciation, and grammar correction.…”

“…It is advantageous since learners have more free time for developing their language skills (e.g., reading the books waiting to be read on their shelves or creating a blog and writing there regularly), which might be signs of learner autonomy and self-thriving. Another advantageous aspect of EDE is related to the properties of distance education platforms that provide access to course materials with temporal and spatial flexibility [6,58]. Through the use of the EDE platforms, pre-service EFL teachers can access the recordings and materials of the courses whenever and wherever they wanted, which demonstrates an advantage mostly for listening skills (22%) but none for speaking.…”

“…Listening: Higher education institutes should select a platform where the online courses can be recorded and listened to whenever and wherever the students want. This flexibility is crucial for listening skills development and is highlighted as one of the advantages of distance education settings [58]. Due to the flexibility of the courses, language teacher training programs conducted virtually in the pandemic appeal to most pre-service teachers because it gives the flexibility and comfort of home in order to manage both their education and family life.…”

Online Citizen Science: A Systematic Review of Effects on Learning and Scientific Literacy

“…Scaffolding can lead to deeper cognitive gains, yet overformalisation, or highly scaffolded conditions (through, for example, the use of response sheets), may restrict the informal participation behaviours that take place in online citizen science settings, including experimentation and questioning (Yoon et al 2013). One of the challenges of online learning is to offer high-quality learning experiences that are comparable to face-to-face or classroom-based education (e.g., Davis, Gough, and Taylor 2019).…”

Distance Education Attitudes (DEAS) During Covid-19 Crisis: Factor Structure, Reliability and Construct Validity of the Brief DEA Scale in Greek-Speaking SEND Teachers

“…In this way, distance learning programs provide the flexibleness for students to decide on their course of learning. In this way, distance learning programs provide the flexibleness for students to decide on their course of learning and there is no time wasted, as students can participate in the learning process from their homes (Davis et al 2019).Additionally, for those who want to improve their professional and academic qualifications without leaving their jobs, distance education is often beneficial, as distance learning can serve both learning and working (de Oliveira et al 2018).…”