Emergency Remote Teaching During COVID-19: Saudi University Teachers' Perceptions of EFL Classroom Interaction in Synchronous Online Lessons

Year 2022, , 39 - 67, 31.12.2022

Wala Fahad Almijiwl , Müge Satar

https://doi.org/10.52597/buje.1040443

Abstract

COVID-19 caused a shift in language teaching from face-to-face lessons (F2FLs) to synchronous online lessons (SOLs) conducted via videoconferencing systems (VCS). This paper explores teachers’ perceptions about VCS affordances for classroom interaction, their ability to create learning opportunities, and the challenges they faced and suggestions on how to overcome them. Following a mixed-methods approach, 20 English as foreign language (EFL) teachers at a Saudi University completed questionnaires and five participated in semi-structured interviews. Findings indicated that the webcam was the least used VCS functionality to facilitate interaction. Teachers thought that they created learning opportunities in SOLs but not as much/well as in F2FLs. Insufficient technological and pedagogical knowledge and skills were identified as main challenges which impeded interaction in SOLs.

Keywords

Emergency Remote Teaching, Classroom Interaction, EFL, Synchronous Online Lessons

COVID-19 Sürecinde Acil Uzaktan Eğitim: Suudi Arabistan Öğretim Üyelerinin Eşzamanlı Çevirimiçi Yabancı Dil Olarak İngilizce Derslerinde Sınıfiçi Etkileşim Hakkındaki Görüşleri

Abstract

COVID-19 pandemisi nedeniyle yabancı dil eğitiminde yüz-yüze derslerden videokonferans sistemleri (VKS) üzerinden eşzamanlı çevirimiçi derslere (EÇD) hızlı bir geçiş gerçekleşti. Bu çalışma, öğretim üyelerinin sınıfiçi etkileşim açısından VKS'nin sunduğu olanaklar, bu ortamlarda öğrenme fırsatları yaratabilme becelerileri ve karşılaştıkları güçlükler ile bu güçlüklerin üzerinde gelinmesi hakkındaki görüşlerini incelemektedir. Karma araştırma yöntemi kullanılan bu çalışmaya Suudi Aarabistan'daki bir üniversitede çalışan ve Yabancı Dil Olarak İngilizce öğretmekte olan 20 öğretim üyesi katılmıştır. Tüm katılımcılar geliştirilen anketi yanıtlamış, beş öğretim üyesi ile de yarı yapılandırılmış görüşmeler gerçekleştirilmiştir. Araştırma sonuçlarına göre etkileşimi desteklemek için en az kullanılan VKS olanağı kameradır. Öğretim üyeleri EÇD'lerde yüz-yüze eğitimde olduğu kadar olmasa da öğrenme fırsatları yaratabildiklerini düşünmektedir. EÇD'lerde etkileşimi engelleyen temel sebepler arasında yetersiz teknolojik ve pedagojik bilgi ve beceriler yer almaktadır.

Keywords

Acil Uzaktan Eğitim, Sınıfiçi Etkileşim, Yabancı Dil Olarak İngilizce, Eşzamanlı Çevirimiçi Dersler

References

• Alahmadi, N., & Alraddadi, B. (2020). The impact of virtual classes on second language interaction in the Saudi EFL context: A case study of Saudi undergraduate students. Arab World English Journal, 11(3), 56-72.
• Allwright, R. L. (1984). The importance of interaction in classroom language learning. Applied Linguistics, 5(2), 156-171.
• Al-Nuaim, H. A. (2012). The use of virtual classrooms in e-learning: A case study in King Abdulaziz University, Saudi Arabia. E-Learning and Digital Media, 9(2), 211-222.
• Al-Samiri, R. A. (2021). English language teaching in Saudi Arabia in response to the COVID-19 pandemic: Challenges and positive outcomes. Arab World English Journal (AWEJ) Special Issue on Covid 19 Challenges, (1), 147-159.
• Alvi, A. H., Bilal, S. M., & Alvi, A. A. (2021). Technology, pedagogy & assessment: Challenges of COVID19-imposed e-teaching of ESP to Saudi female PY students. Arab World English Journal (AWEJ) Special Issue on Covid 19 Challenges, (1), 334-353.
• Attride-Stirling, J. (2001). Thematic networks: An analytic tool for qualitative research. Qualitative Research, 1(3), 385-405.
• Barley, N. (2021). Audio vs. video conferencing for language learning: Choosing the right tool for the right job. In M. Montebello (Ed.), Digital Pedagogies and the Transformation of Language Education (pp. 97-121). IGI Global.
• Bozkurt, A., Jung, I., Xiao, J. et al. (2020). A global outlook to the interruption of education due to COVID-19 pandemic: Navigating in a time of uncertainty and crisis. Asian Journal of Distance Education, 15(1), 1-126.
• Castelli, F. R., & Sarvary, M. A. (2021). Why students do not turn on their video cameras during online classes and an equitable and inclusive plan to encourage them to do so. Ecology and Evolution, 11(8), 3565-3576.
• ‏Cohen, C. (2015). Developing teachers’ semio-pedagogical competence for webconference-supported teaching through teacher training [PowerPoint slides]. https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-01188670
• Develotte, C., Guichon, N., & Vincent, C. (2010). The use of the webcam for teaching a foreign language in a desktop videoconferencing environment. ReCALL, 22(3), 293-312.
• Dey-Plissonneau, A. (2019). Designed and emerging affordances in tutor-learner multimodal interactions via videoconferencing for second language learning and teaching: An activity theoretical approach. [Unpublished PhD thesis]. Dublin City University
• Dörnyei, Z. (2007). Research methods in applied linguistics: Quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methodologies. Oxford University Press.
• Dörnyei, Z., & Taguchi, T. (2009). Questionnaires in second language research: Construction, administration, and processing (2nd ed.). Taylor & Francis Group.
• Ellis, R. (1990). Instructed second language acquisition. Blackwell.
• Frechette, C. (2020). Supporting sociocultural learning in online and blended learning environments. In M. J. Bishop, E. Boling, J. Elen & V. Svihla (Eds.), Handbook of Research in Educational Communications and Technology (pp. 363-374). Cham: Springer.
• Gao, L. X., & Zhang, L. J. (2020). Teacher learning in difficult times: Examining foreign language teachers’ cognitions about online teaching to tide over COVID-19. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 1-14.
• Guichon, N. (2009). Training future language teachers to develop online tutors' competence through reflective analysis. ReCALL, 21(2), 166-185.
• Guichon, N., & Cohen, C. (2014). The impact of the webcam on an online L2 interaction. Canadian Modern Language Review, 70(3), 331-354.
• Guichon, N., & Wigham, C. R. (2015). A semiotic perspective on webconferencing-supported language teaching. ReCALL, 28(1), 62-82.
• Hashmi, U. M., Rajab, H., & Shah, S. R. A. (2021). ELT during lockdown: A new frontier in online learning in the Saudi context. International Journal of English Linguistics, 11(1), 44-53.
• Hazaea, A. N., Bin-Hady, W. R., & Toujani, M. M. (2021). Emergency remote English language teaching in the Arab league countries: Challenges and remedies. Computer-Assisted Language Learning, 22(1), 201-222.
• Hinds, P. J. (1999). The cognitive and interpersonal costs of video. Media Psychology, 1(4), 283-311.
• Hodges, C., Moore, S., Lockee, B., Trust, T., & Bond, A. (2020). The difference between emergency remote teaching and online learning. Educause Review. (August 11, 2021) https://er.educause.edu/articles/2020/3/the-difference-between-emergency-remote-teaching-and-online-learning.
• Karpov, Y. V. (2014). Vygotsky for educators. Cambridge University Press.
• Khafaga, A. F. (2021). The perception of blackboard collaborate-based instruction by EFL majors/teachers amid COVID-19: A case study of Saudi universities. Journal of Language and Linguistic Studies, 17(2), 1160-1173.
• Khalawi, A., & Halabi, M. (2020). An inquiry into Saudi EFL teachers and students’ perceptions of EFL virtual classes and its relation to learner autonomy. International Journal of English Language Education, 8(2), 57-76.
• Kozar, O. (2016). Perceptions of webcam use by experienced online teachers and learners: A seeming disconnect between research and practice. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 29(4), 779-789.
• Lantolf, J. P. (2000). Sociocultural theory and second language learning. Oxford University Press.
• Li, L. (2017). New technologies and language learning. Palgrave.
• Mackey, A., & Goo, J. (2007). Interaction research in SLA: A meta-analysis and research synthesis. In A. Mackey (Ed.), Conversational Interaction in Second Language Acquisition (pp. 407-453). Oxford University Press.
• Moorhouse, B., Li, Y., & Walsh, S. (2021). E-classroom interactional competencies: mediating and assisting language learning during synchronous online lessons. RELC Journal, 1-15.
• O’Dowd, R. (2006). The use of videoconferencing and e-mail as mediators of intercultural student ethnography. In J. A. Belz, & S. L. Thorne (Eds.), Computer-mediated Intercultural Foreign Language Education (pp. 86-120). Heinle and Heinle.
• Pallant, J. (2020). SPSS Survival Manual: A Step-by-Step Guide to Data Analysis Using IBM SPSS (7th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.
• Peterson, M. (2009). Learner interaction in synchronous CMC: A sociocultural perspective. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 22(4), 303-321.‏
• Rahman, M. M. (2020). Challenges and solutions of teaching English as a foreign language online during a global pandemic like COVID-19: Saudi EFL teachers’ perspectives. Journal of Southwest Jiaotong University, 55(6), 1-9.
• Satar, M. (2013). Multimodal language learner interactions via desktop videoconferencing within a framework of social presence: Gaze. ReCALL: The Journal of the European Association for Computer Assisted Language Learning, 25(1), 122-142.
• Satar, M. (2015). Sustaining multimodal language learner interactions online. CALICO Journal, 32(3), 480-507.
• Satar, M. (2016). Meaning-making in online language learner interactions via desktop videoconferencing. ReCALL, The Journal of the European Association for Computer Assisted Language Learning, 28(3), 305-325.
• Satar, M. (2020). L1 for social presence in videoconferencing: A social semiotic account. Language Learning and Technology, 24(1), 129-153.
• Satar, M., & Akcan, S. (2014). Pre-service language teachers’ reflections on the implementation of a blended-learning environment. Turkish Online Journal of Qualitative Inquiry, 5(3), 42-61.
• Satar, M., & Wigham, C. R. (2017). Multimodal instruction-giving practices in webconferencing-supported language teaching. System, 70, 63-80.
• Satar, M., & Wigham, C.R. (2020). Delivering task instructions in multimodal synchronous online language teaching. Alsic, 23(1), 1-29.
• Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological process. Harvard University Press.
• Walsh, S. (2002). Construction or obstruction: Teacher talk and learner involvement in the EFL classroom. Language Teaching Research, 6(1), 3-23.‏
• Walsh, S. (2013). Classroom discourse and teacher development. Edinburgh University Press.
• Walsh, S., & Sert, O. (2019). Mediating L2 Learning Through Classroom Interaction. In X. Gao (Ed.), Second Handbook of English Language Teaching (pp. 737-755). Cham, Switzerland: Springer.
• Wigham, C. R., & Satar, M. (2021). Multimodal (inter)action analysis of task instructions in language teaching via videoconferencing: A case study. ReCALL FirstView, 1-19.‏
• Yamada, M., & Akahori, K. (2007). Social presence in synchronous CMC-based language learning: How does it affect the productive performance and consciousness of learning objectives?. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 20(1), 37-65.
• Yamada, M., & Akahori, K. (2009). Awareness and performance through self-and partner's image in videoconferencing. Calico Journal, 27(1), 1-25.
• Zolghadri, M., Atai, M. R., & Babaii, E. (2019). Classroom interactional teacher language awareness: Expert talk contextualizing pedagogical content knowledge. Journal of Modern Research in English Language Studies, 6(4), 29-1.‏