A Qualitative Analysis of Students’ Reflections on the Current Use of Digital Media in Foreign Language Classes
Teaching and learning have radically changed in the COVID-19 era and highlighted many novel aspects of online teaching and learning. Based on a qualitative content analysis of central European university students’ responses, the aim of this study is to discuss their reflections on the use of digital...
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doaj-60fcd35565024f80bd68010ee8170ec62021-08-26T14:21:59ZengMDPI AGSustainability2071-10502021-08-01139082908210.3390/su13169082A Qualitative Analysis of Students’ Reflections on the Current Use of Digital Media in Foreign Language ClassesBlanka Klimova0Marcel Pikhart1Anna Cierniak-Emerych2Szymon Dziuba3Department of Applied Linguistics, Faculty of Informatics and Management, University of Hradec Kralove, 500 03 Hradec Kralove, Czech RepublicDepartment of Applied Linguistics, Faculty of Informatics and Management, University of Hradec Kralove, 500 03 Hradec Kralove, Czech RepublicDepartment of Labour, Capital and Innovation, Faculty of Business and Management, Wroclaw University of Economics and Business, 53-345 Wrocław, PolandDepartment of Labour, Capital and Innovation, Faculty of Business and Management, Wroclaw University of Economics and Business, 53-345 Wrocław, PolandTeaching and learning have radically changed in the COVID-19 era and highlighted many novel aspects of online teaching and learning. Based on a qualitative content analysis of central European university students’ responses, the aim of this study is to discuss their reflections on the use of digital media in foreign language classes during the COVID-19 pandemic. The key method of this qualitative study includes focus group interviews. The results reveal both advantages and disadvantages of online foreign language teaching and their impact on students’ second language (L2) acquisition. The positive aspects involve satisfaction with being able to study a foreign language from the comfort from their homes, avoidance of commuting to school, ample opportunities to review the learning material, or improvement of listening skills. On the contrary, the negative aspects included a striking lack of social contact in the form of face-to-face classes, absence of collaboration between the teacher and students and between the students themselves in order to share and build on their knowledge and experience, health issues associated with a frequent exposure to technologies, or a lack of possibility to develop speaking skills. In conclusion, the authors of this study provide several implications for teaching practice, technology experts, and other stakeholders, which must be considered very seriously, as they represent the opinion of the users of online learning.https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/16/9082second language acquisitionL2 acquisitiononline learninghigher educationlanguage educationapplied linguistics |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Blanka Klimova Marcel Pikhart Anna Cierniak-Emerych Szymon Dziuba |
spellingShingle |
Blanka Klimova Marcel Pikhart Anna Cierniak-Emerych Szymon Dziuba A Qualitative Analysis of Students’ Reflections on the Current Use of Digital Media in Foreign Language Classes Sustainability second language acquisition L2 acquisition online learning higher education language education applied linguistics |
author_facet |
Blanka Klimova Marcel Pikhart Anna Cierniak-Emerych Szymon Dziuba |
author_sort |
Blanka Klimova |
title |
A Qualitative Analysis of Students’ Reflections on the Current Use of Digital Media in Foreign Language Classes |
title_short |
A Qualitative Analysis of Students’ Reflections on the Current Use of Digital Media in Foreign Language Classes |
title_full |
A Qualitative Analysis of Students’ Reflections on the Current Use of Digital Media in Foreign Language Classes |
title_fullStr |
A Qualitative Analysis of Students’ Reflections on the Current Use of Digital Media in Foreign Language Classes |
title_full_unstemmed |
A Qualitative Analysis of Students’ Reflections on the Current Use of Digital Media in Foreign Language Classes |
title_sort |
qualitative analysis of students’ reflections on the current use of digital media in foreign language classes |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
series |
Sustainability |
issn |
2071-1050 |
publishDate |
2021-08-01 |
description |
Teaching and learning have radically changed in the COVID-19 era and highlighted many novel aspects of online teaching and learning. Based on a qualitative content analysis of central European university students’ responses, the aim of this study is to discuss their reflections on the use of digital media in foreign language classes during the COVID-19 pandemic. The key method of this qualitative study includes focus group interviews. The results reveal both advantages and disadvantages of online foreign language teaching and their impact on students’ second language (L2) acquisition. The positive aspects involve satisfaction with being able to study a foreign language from the comfort from their homes, avoidance of commuting to school, ample opportunities to review the learning material, or improvement of listening skills. On the contrary, the negative aspects included a striking lack of social contact in the form of face-to-face classes, absence of collaboration between the teacher and students and between the students themselves in order to share and build on their knowledge and experience, health issues associated with a frequent exposure to technologies, or a lack of possibility to develop speaking skills. In conclusion, the authors of this study provide several implications for teaching practice, technology experts, and other stakeholders, which must be considered very seriously, as they represent the opinion of the users of online learning. |
topic |
second language acquisition L2 acquisition online learning higher education language education applied linguistics |
url |
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/16/9082 |
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