CHOICE OF EMERGENCY DISTANCE EDUCATION TOOLS: THE CASE OF AN ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION PROGRAM

Abstract

Unexpected events like the Covid 19 pandemic emphasize the growing importance of Distance Education (DE) as an alternative to face-to-face education. While studies have explored emergency DE, user perceptions and comparisons of its tools remain underexplored. This study investigated users’ tool choices (specifically, Zoom, Perculus, instructor-recorded-videos, and YouTube-videos) after two semesters of DE, along with their reasons. Data collected through a questionnaire from 123 preservice teachers (PSTs) and 15 teacher trainers (TTs) of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teacher education program in a Turkish university revealed that participants mostly preferred Zoom, followed by Perculus, further followed by Youtube-videos, and instructor-made-videos. The study also revealed differences among trainees across years of study. Reasons identified via thematic analysis revolved around ease of participation and interaction for Zoom, rewatching and storage for Perculus, and autonomy and self-pacing for instructor-recordings and YouTube-videos. The study bears implications for educational institutions to better tailor their DE for distinct needs and expectations, and thus enhance the effectiveness of DE.

Keywords

• Distance education
• ELT
• teacher trainers
• technological tools
• pandemic
• pre-service teachers

Uzaktan eğitim araçlarına ilişkin tercihlerin incelenmesi: Bir İngilizce öğretmen eğitimi programı örneği

Abstract

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