Teachers Perceptions of the Use of Technology in Teaching Language - Article Example

?[Your full March 12, Teachers’ Perceptions of the use of Technology in Teaching Language Abstract The modern era has introduced the implementation of technology in many areas of life especially the education sector. Language learning has been facilitated significantly with the use of technology. This paper seeks to identify what teachers think about their competencies regarding integrating technology in teaching languages; what barriers they perceive while accomplishing this; what kind of expectation they have with their students in learning languages from technological perspective; and, what kind of technological tools do the teachers perceive as easy to implement and use while teaching languages. First an introduction has been given as to what contribution has technology made in education and especially the teaching of language. Then, teachers’ competencies and barriers to the integration of technology have been discussed. After that, various technological tools and concept are discussed like CALL and ICT, which the teachers can make use of to facilitate their language teaching process. The report is summarized in a concluding paragraph and MLA referencing style has been used properly. Introduction Since the advent of sophisticated technological means, the educators have been trying to modify the instructional process with the help of technology. According to Baker, early 1960’s brought with it “new curricula, instructional models, and approaches to individualization” (3) of instruction but the drawback with these instructional schemes was their poor management. An ideal classroom environment is so dynamic in which each student presents his own understanding and is comfortable with his own set of instructional materials. Thus, the teacher needs to organize instructional schemes in such a way that all students with their unique calibers are equally attended to. Teachers started feeling the necessity of incorporating information and communication technology in teaching language. According to Kaka, “Technology (internet) in another side can be the most effective way to increase the student’s knowledge.” Teacher Perception, Competencies and Barriers Kong and Kwok studied teacher perception of the use of information technology in teaching languages in a school in Hong Kong and examined this perception under four domains that included “teacher perception of their computer training, computer facilities and assistance available, their confidence and comfortability in using computer in daily lessons, and their perception of their roles in using IT in classrooms.” Their survey results supported the idea that teacher perception had a positive effect in the usage if teacher-centered technological approaches in the teaching process. They also found that the teachers and the school administration worked in a collaborative environment for the implementation and usage of IT in classrooms especially in language learning. Another similar research has been conducted by Ismail, Ghaleb and Almekhlafi (37) who studied teacher perception teaching Arabic and English languages in schools in UAE. They also found that teachers’ support and willingness to incorporate technology in their teaching languages is very important to obtain positive outcomes. They discussed the benefits of the usage of IT both for the teachers and the students and found from their qualitative and quantitative research that teacher perception should be considered seriously for better implementation of technological tools in classrooms. Hence, as Woodrow (qtd. in Ismail, Ghaleb and Almakhlefi 37) asserts, “teachers are seen to be active agents in the process of changes and implementation of new ideas as their beliefs and attitudes may support or impede the success of any educational reform such as the utilization of an innovative technology program.” Technological advances have greatly facilitated the language learning. The teachers today can use many technological tools to equip themselves while teaching languages to their students. Mansor asserts that the technological advances have greatly benefitted the learning of English language for students. However, it still has to go a long way as, according to what Ismail, Ghaleb and Almakhlefi found in their research, teachers were still reluctant to use technological facilities in teaching languages like Arabic. Yaratan and Kural (161) studied the implementation of instructional technology in teaching English language in North Cyprus schools. They conducted the survey among 80 teachers and concluded that although teachers were willing to use technology in teaching language, still the rate was low because there were not enough technological means to employ nor there was enough time. However, they found that the teachers who were using technology perceived that technological tools helped them in enabling the students get control over the language and strengthening their vocabulary by providing them with interactive softwares. Yaratan and Kural (161) state that foreign-language teaching has seen many rapid changes since the advent of technology because the students can now share a more communicative and collaborative environment in learning instruction. Especially, in foreign-language teaching, the communicative settings were facilitated with translation softwares. But with this change, teachers were also needed to equip themselves with related knowledge and expertise so that they were able to integrate instructional technology in teaching both the native and the foreign languages. Hence, it is a big challenge for teachers to come at par with the modern technological world by putting in time and effort to learn the use of technological tools and be able to face the barriers that come with the technological advancement like the need for equipment, trainers, and hardware and software experts. There has been a considerable research on teachers’ competencies in using technology in teaching language and the findings imply that the more the teachers’ enthusiasm, skill and competency, the more is the level of integration of technology in classrooms. Cameron (43) discusses that “teacher beliefs and attitudes towards educational innovation and the resulting impact of these factors on educational practice” hold significant importance on the teachers’ willingness or resistance to the integration of technology in teaching language. Research suggests that teacher’s requirements, beliefs, attitudes, behaviors, and experiences make him decide whether he wants to use technology or not. Another important factor that affects teachers’ attitude is the “societal and political valuing of computers” (Carey, qtd. in Cameron 43). Then there are other cultural and economic factors that affect teachers’ perception. For example, in the culture where collaborative work is encouraged, then it is not possible to employ individualized usage of computers thus restricting the teachers to incorporate technology in classrooms. Hence, positive and liberal attitude is required on teachers’ part. Lack of computer knowledge and competency is another main factor that restricts teachers to use technology (Nora and Vasu). Senior teachers are especially not trained in computer usage and they are also not willing enough to undergo computer training sessions. Thus, a negative attitude has been adopted by many teachers thus putting great barriers in language teaching in the modern era. Also, researchers have found that teachers do not have enough time to prepare for materials that they can put up on the computers for the students. They either have not enough competencies or enough time to prepare for slide shows, power point presentations and websites through which they can support the language teaching. Putting too much burden on the teachers can also demotivate them from preparing effective lessons on computers because teachers generally do not prefer using such technological tools that take much time in preparing lessons. Although many schools have labs and computers to assist language learning, yet the computers may not be updated or labs may not be regarded as suitable enough for the teaching of a language. These were some of the man barriers that teachers face when they want to or are made to integrate technology in their classrooms to assist teaching language. Technological Tools for Language Teaching Networked multimedia computing and the use of information and communication technology (ICT) in the classrooms have greatly facilitated the teaching of languages. Here, it is important to define the term ‘instructional technology’ and CALL. Instructional Technology Instructional technology refers to the usage of all sorts of communication media and devices to facilitate the teaching process (Rao 8). The Commission on Instructional Technology (qtd. in Gagne 11) defines it in two ways: first, it is the set of communication devices that can be used for instructional reasons and may include television, computers, projectors, multimedia, audio and video conferencing, and the internet; second, “it is a systematic way of designing, carrying out, and evaluating the total process of learning and teaching” (Gagne 11). Researchers suggest that teachers’ role is significantly important in bringing the idea of electronic instructional technology to life and they have to be excited enough about the technological innovations that can be integrated into the teaching of language. The use of instructional technology in teaching language, according to Yataran and Kural (164), is not a new process as “It dates back to the times at which blackboard was used as the one and only technological tool supplementing language instruction.” They further state that blackboard was replaced with overhead projectors and overhead transparencies with the passage of time. Besides these, language teachers also started making use of visual aids like flashcards, wall charts, magnet boards and newspapers to facilitate their teaching grammar and translations. These methods were then interfered by the advent of newer and more sophisticated technologies like the audio-tape which was a basic constituent of the audio-lingual method where emphasis was more on repetitive drills in the language to be taught. The tape recorder became one of the most important language teaching aids for the teacher. Besides these, phonographs and radio broadcasts were also used in audio-based instructions. In 1960s and 1970s, teachers started using television and other visual aids to bring innovation to language teaching. Herron, Morris and Secules conducted a research comparing students who used visual aids while learning and those who did not, and found that those who used videotapes performed better than the others who only used text-based instructions. Still the teachers felt that more communicative approaches should be introduced in teaching language and the students should be made to face real-life situations. This could only be facilitated with the integration of computer technology in the classrooms which offered the most sophisticated tools and techniques that provided a shared collaborative environment to the students where they worked together to learn the language. Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) Language teachers today are more and more getting inclined toward the usage of computer assisted language learning or computer technology in their classrooms. In this section, we shall explain how computers are used in language teaching and what do language teachers perceive regarding the usage of computer technology. Phases of CALL. The development that has been seen in CALL can be categorized into three phases: behavioristic CALL; communicative CALL; and, integrative CALL. Behavioristic CALL was based on the behaviorist theories of learning that were implemented in 1960s and 1970s. It focused more on drill and practice by emphasizing the importance of repetitive drills in the language. According to Taylor, the computer was considered as the tutor or a means by which the student could get his instructions from. Thus, various CALL tutorials were programmed and run on mainframe computers, for example the PLATO system which ran on PLATO hardware. However, the behavioristic CALL was rejected later both by the theoretical and pedagogical perspectives and due to the introduction of micocomputer. Communicative CALL was introduced in 1970s and was based on communicative approaches. This phase focused more on the usage of forms and grammar implicitly, and motivated the students to produce original utterances of the language. It creates such an environment in which the target language is made to sound natural. Several communicative programs were designed which were based on non-drill practice and focused on text reconstruction. Integrative CALL was introduced with the advent of the most modern technological tools like multimedia and the internet. With the help of multimedia, language teachers can now access various graphics, audio and visual aids, on a single machine. Hypermedia links together various multimedia devices and creates an interactive environment for the learner. It helps in linking audio and visual aids thus enabling the learner to perceive both the sound and the image at the same time. Teachers can enable the student to read, write, speak and listen, all together in one activity. With the help of internet, language learners are now able to connect with distant speakers of the target language using video conferencing thus enhancing their experience with the language while sitting in their classrooms. Language learners can also communicate with each other through the internet which is both convenient and cost-effective. Teachers can share short messages or long files and documents with their students at any time thus giving an integrative touch to using technology in teaching language. Snyder (20) states that communication and information technologies (CITs) can be used by language teachers “to promote confidence and fluency in target languages, and to offer access to rich stores of resources and ideas relevant to language learning and language education.” CITs constitute information technologies and computer mediated communication technologies (CMMTs) and they have become a part and parcel of language teaching. Nor and Vasu conducted their research on teacher perception on CALL lessons. They studied the problems teachers were facing while they conducted CALL lessons and also identified their perceptions on the effectiveness of those lessons. They conducted their survey on 16 teachers in Johor Bahru schools. The main problems the findings implied were that the teachers’ attitudes did not welcome the use of technology in language teaching. Also, there were not enough facilities that the teachers could use in implementation of technology. They, however, concluded that the teachers’ perception about CALL lessons was positive as the teachers suggested that the CALL lessons helped them attracting their students’ attention toward the lessons and enhancing language acquisition. Conclusion To sum up, teachers are getting more and more aware of that technology should be an important part of the language teaching because it provides great resources for learning and teaching processes. Children can be made well equipped with up-to-date information while being able to conduct their own research, do analysis, make decisions, share ideas and views, and learn to be creative and initiative using technological tools in their language learning. They can use “basic skill-and-drill computer softwares, spelling and grammar checks, thesauruses, and the like, for their capacity to improve fluency and accuracy in target languages” (Snyder 20). Teachers can use technological resources to teach more efficiently with good outcome. Technology is becoming inevitable in the educational and personal lives of students thanks to great advantages it offers. CALL suggests that computers can very effectively be used in teaching language. Computers can serve as tutors that provide an interactive method of language learning. However, how teachers perceive their contribution in the integration of technology in teaching language is very important as teachers as considered as keys to the language learning. Teachers need to get proper training and equipment so as to facilitate their teaching. They will have to spend their time and effort in first learning themselves how to use the technological tools and then enabling the students get benefit from these tools. The modern technology is providing a lot of sophisticated tools and communicative approaches which language teachers can use to enable the students interact with the speakers of the language around the globe, thus widening the teaching perspective and improving the teaching prospect. Works Cited Baker, Frank B. “Introduction to CMI.” Computer Managed Instruction: Theory and Practice. USA: Educational Technology, 1978. Cameron, Keith. “Defining Belief Systems.” Call and the Challenge of Change: Research and Practice. UK: Intellect Books, 2001. Gagne, Robert Mills. “Instructional Technology: A History.” Instructional Technology: Foundations. USA: Routledge, 1987. Herron, Carol A., Morris, Matthew, and Teresa Secules. “A Comparison Study of the Effects of Video-based versus Text-based Instruction in the Foreign Language Classroom.” The French Review, 68.5 (1995): 775-795. Ismail, Sadiq Abdulwahid Ahmad, Ghalib, Abdurrahman, and Mohamed Hatem Al-Mekhlafi. “Teachers’ Perceptions of the use of Technology in Teaching Languages in United Arab Emirates’ Schools.” International Journal for Research in Education 27 (2010): 37-56. Kaka, Saverinus. “The Role of ICT in Education Sector.” Very Kaka’s Community. N.p., 2008. Web. 13 Mar 2011. . Kong, Stephen Ping Wah, and Percy Lai Yin Kwok. “Teacher Perception of the Use of Information Technology in Teaching: A School Case in Hong Kong.” ACM Digital Library. ACM Inc., 2005. Web. 13 Mar 2011. . Mansor, Noraien. “Collaborative Learning via Email Discussion: Strategies for ESL Writing Classroom.” The Internet ESL Journal 13.3(2007). Nor, Faizah Binti Mohd. And Sumitha Malar Vasu. Teachers’ Perceptions Of Lessons Using Computer Assisted Language Learning. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Mar 2011. . Rao, V.K. “Instructional Technology: Definition and Meaning.” Instructional Technology. India: APH Publishing, 2008. Snyder, Ilana. “The Wired World of Scond-Language Education.” Page to Screen: Taking Literacy into the Electronic Era. USA: Routledge, 1998. Taylor, Robert. The Computer in the School: Tutor, Tool, Tutee. New York: Teachers College Press, 1980. Yaratan, Husyein, and Ceyda Kural. “Middle School English Language Teachers’ Perception of Instructional Technology Implementation in North Cyprus.” The Turkish Online Journal of Educational Technology 9.2 (2010): 161-174. Read More