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Computers
and the EFL Class: Their Advantages and a Possible Outcome, the Autonomous Learner
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There has been a lot of talk about the use of
computers for EFL/ESL teaching and learning recently. On the one hand, we often hear or
read on the pages of EFL/ESL teaching journals statements and questions like: EFL teachers
are not always compatible with computers. Teachers and students alike suffer computer
phobia. Should we have a computer per classroom or a computer lab? Are computers
effective? On the other hand, some authors (Davidson and Tomic 1994; Reis 1995; Sivert and
Egbert 1995) have already reported satisfaction of their teaching needs by using
computers, computer networks, the Internet, computer software, and multimedia computers or
systems.
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The objective of this article is to report the
gains that may be obtained from the use of computers to develop language skills in
students of English as a foreign language. First, presented are some of the advantages and
disadvantages of the use of computers in EFL/ESL. A set of guidelines for the use of
computers in the teaching and learning of English is also suggested. Finally, two related
issues which are an almost natural outcome of the use of computers in EFL/ESL are
discussed: the role of the teacher in a computer enhanced class and autonomous learners.
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The computer: A useful tool
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Reports in journals (Sivert and Egbert 1995;
Taylor 1995) show that computers, multimedia systems, and even multimedia labs for the
teaching and learning of English are already being used throughout the world. Venezuela is
not an exception. There are several of these centers here in Caracas, and I have had the
opportunity of observing and contributing, as a teacher and researcher, to one center's
functionality. This is a very modern multimedia language center where high-tech resources
are available for students. It represents the backbone of an English program whose main
goal is to teach and encourage participants to become autonomous learners. Students, or
participants as we like to call them, have a modern, well equipped center where they can
go and use VCRs, cable TV, and computers equipped with CD-ROM, and e-mail and Internet
access. Participants spend a reasonable amount of time working on listening comprehension
with videos and cable TV, and executing writing, grammar, and pronunciation exercises with
the computers. They also have a weekly two-hour session with a teacher. This program
requires a teacher who is more a guide than a lecturer; it requires a teacher who gives
students the strategies they need for working on their own. I have had the opportunity of
observing some of the issues that arise when working with this kind of program and with
these technological resources.
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The Multimedia System used for the program makes
use of video, pictures, sound, and the possibility of recording and reproducing learners'
voices. The various components in this system may be attached to each other to produce,
enhance, or extend their interactivity. It may sound as if there is overwhelming high-tech
equipment that not everybody knows how to use, or has, but the truth is that most of the
equipment mentioned above is really very common in everyday life. Just like TV, the
readily observable peculiarity of the use of multimedia systems is that they
"attack" two senses at the same time: sight and hearing . This
characteristic makes multimedia systems a crucial resource when working with autonomous
learners. The use of all or part of this equipment may represent an advantage for the
improvement of the teaching- learning environment. Some of the advantages and
disadvantages are presented in the following table.
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As well as there are advantages, disadvantages
may also be found, and they have to be taken into account when we plan to work with
computer or technology enhanced environments. Some of the disadvantages observed when
working with computers in EFL are presented above. Some students and teachers are
discouraged by computers.
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In order to really understand what computers can
do for our EFL/ESL contexts and take advantage of the benefits they may bring, we have to
actually use them and view them from an insightful, creative, and innovative angle. First,
we have to ask ourselves a series of questions that will help us visualize our
"technologically enhanced" work environment and procedures. Some of the
questions we should ask ourselves are the following:
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- What and how will we design, implement and teach in a course using multimedia systems?
- When will we use the system? Everyday? Throughout a whole class? With a fixed or
flexible schedule?
- Where will we have such a system? In a lab? In a special place different from a lab?
What will this place be like?
- Who will attend the classes or sessions with this system? Will they be young learners,
adult learners, autonomous learners assisted by an instructor, beginners, intermediate or
advanced students?
- What learning context will the system be used for? An EFL context? ESL context? ESP?
EAP?
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The answers to these questions may help us
decide whether or not the use of computers for our needs or resources is practical and
feasible. Answers to the questions may be the basis for deciding the adequate or
appropriate use of the system for our program. The answers may even lead to a novel idea
of how to use this kind of system to effectively enhance the teaching-learning process and
environment we have been working with for a long time.
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Guidelines for the use of computers in the EFL/ESL contexts
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The following is a set of guidelines to help you
through the process of getting used to computer enhanced classes, in case you decide to
use computers for your EFL/ESL needs.
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- Remember that computers and other equipment are just tools, and you have to make them
work for you, not against you.
- Do not feel satisfied with the materials that commercial software may provide; create
your own materials. These can be based on the software.
- Motivate students by using computer games for which you have prepared classwork
materials.
- Create materials for work with the computer which are also related to the teacher-led
sessions.
- Make schedules flexible enough as to accommodate individual or small group sessions with
the computer.
- Think of the combination of teacher-led classes and computer sessions that best suit
your needs.
- Design your own computer oriented tasks for the development of language skills.
- Direct students to the objectives you want them to achieve (these may not necessarily be
the same objectives of the software program).
- Use Internet accessibility and create writing and speaking tasks for your students using
this computer resource.
- The World Wide Web contains millions of pages you can use to produce reading tasks. Use
it to help encourage your EFL students to learn about a wide variety of cultures and
topics.
- You may also design reading tasks using any CD-ROM encyclopedia or program that contains
hypertext.
- Encourage your students to use their intellectual potential by assigning them computer
tasks such as looking for information in databases, that will make them think and use
English.
- Encourage them to use word processors and their applications such as spelling and
grammar checkers.
- In order to give a sense of purpose to what your students are going to write, have them
write and send real e-mail and faxes: this will provide them with a real sense of
communication.
- Make use of web pages or CD interactive programs to generate discussions. Topics can be
as varied as your and your students' imagination can get, and as interesting as your
searches through the Internet are.
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What are the gains teachers may glean from the use of computers?
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Good as all this sounds, accessibility may be a
major problem with the use of this kind of system. Unless we have a complete lab with
several computers, only a small group of maybe three or four students can work with a
computer at the same time. This is more often than not less than ideal. If we have large
groups of students, at least three or four computers will be needed. If the budget is
limited and there are too many students for four computers, what can you do? Design
courses that are flexible enough to accommodate students' schedules to a part-time
autonomous-learner framework.
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Without eliminating or reducing teacher's
classes drastically, students can be scheduled to attend individual work sessions with the
multimedia system throughout the week. This may require designing tasks that can be
carried out by students without much assistance from the teacher. The student worksheets
have to be designed in a way that will allow students to work individually and monitor
themselves. Answers to questions or corrections to exercises can be made readily available
so that students check their own production easily.
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One possible schedule for this autonomous work
on the computer can be summarized this way: a) students attend multimedia sessions outside
classroom hours, b) they work on their own, c) they monitor and evaluate themselves, d)
they check their production with an answer key or with the teacher. These steps obviously
require a learner who is disciplined and who will take complete advantage of the learning
process by combining what has been taught in classroom sessions with the multimedia-system
sessions.
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When a motivating resource such as a multimedia
system is used, the benefit of autonomous work may be magnified. The role of the teacher
will be different from that of a simple holder and provider of knowledge; the teacher will
become the students' guide. Will computers take over the teacher's role? No. In fact, once
teachers stop seeing computers as a threat and their uneasiness ceases (and Reis, 1995,
reports that it actually does) they will be able to use their creativity to produce new
materials. They will also be able to redirect their efforts to weak areas. Teachers will
continue to develop the real life communication which computers can- not provide. If
teachers get to understand computers and really become computer literate, they will gain
instead of lose and they will become more efficient and productive teachers.
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One of the objectives of this article was to
show some of the benefits of using computers in EFL/ESL. The benefits are better perceived
when you actually use computers than when you read about them. The list of benefits, the
guidelines, and the experience reported here are meant to encourage you to use computers
for your EFL/ ESL classes or programs. The worst disadvantage does not come from using
computers, but from not trying to incorporate them into our programs. The media have
assisted self-access learning to grow faster than our traditional classroom methods, but
self-access alone fails to achieve all the goals. By incorporating technology in your
programs, you will see many more benefits than the few mentioned in this article. The
disadvantages listed here and the ones you may find when working with computers will never
outweigh the improvement you will notice in your English programs. One of the greatest
improvements is that you can produce autonomous learners who are able to control at least
part of their learning process. You will find more time with new resources to create new
ideas, procedures, and materials for your classes.
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Advantages of the use of computers
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| The used computers motivate students to learn. |
| Videos, pictures, and sound presented by computers stimulate
sight and hearing simultaneously in a way traditional resources do not. |
| Computers can help train students to become more independent
learners. |
| Using computers to learn English can help learners to become
more disciplined. |
| The computer can bring support to the learning strategies
acquired by students. |
| Teachers’ responsibilities include giving students the
strategies they need for working on their own. |
| Computers with CD-ROM may provide considerable input and a
wide variety of registers and accents. |
| The input computers can provide may facilitate the
formulation of ideas. |
| Computers provide access to authentic materials and audiences
around the world through the Internet. |
| A computer enhanced environment may encourage language
acquisition. |
Disadvantages of the use of computers
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| Some students and teachers are discouraged by computers. |
| Many students and teachers reject a change from the
traditional classes. |
| It is very difficult for some students to get used to being
independent learners. |
| Undisciplined students have problems working with computers. |
| Computers do not provide some important features of real
communicative exchanges. |
| Computers are machines and they need maintenance, something
which may require interruptions to class or study time. |
| Computers do not provide the sense of cooperation that can be found in a
class with a teacher. |
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- Davidson, C. and A. Tomic. 1994. Removing computer phobia from the writing classroom.
ELT Journal, 48, 3, pp. 205-214.
- Joram, E., E. Woodruff, M. Bryson, and P. Lindsay. 1992. The effects of revising with
word processor on written composition. Research in the Teaching of English, 26, 2, pp.
167-193
- Taylor, R. 1995. Revisiting McLuhan's thesis. English Teaching Forum, 33, 4, pp. 10-15.
- Reis, L. 1995. Putting the computer in its proper place-inside the classroom. English
Teaching Forum, 33, 4, pp. 28-29
- Sivert, S. and J. Egbert. 1995. Using a language learning environment framework to build
a computer- enhanced classroom. College ESL 5, 2, pp. 53-66.
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Benicio
Galavis is an Associate professor at Universidad Simón Bolívar in Caracas,
Venezuela where he teaches EFL reading. |
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