Week 4: Reading/Writing/Vocabulary Skill-Building

Krajka’s article Using the Internet in ESL Writing Instruction (2000) gives detailed descriptions on how to teach writing in secondary schools, with emphasis on different writing genres. This article is also an excellent resource of links to web-based materials necessary for teaching writing.

However, there are certain points that I disagree with. Krajka argues that “the teacher's wide computer expertise and his active role both before and during the on-line lesson are the most crucial keys to the success of such a lesson”. While the teacher’s deep involvement in all aspects of a CALL lesson is undeniable, I strongly disagree with Krajka’s argument that teachers should be computer experts if they want to integrate technology in their classroom, because such a notion is likely to influence the majority of un-tech-savvy teachers to refrain from using Interent based resources in their calssrooms. I believe that they must be encouraged to make use of the available on-line materials. Besides becoming aware of a number of advantages of on-line instruction, such as contemporary content, possibility of collaborative activites, no cost (mostly) or the authenticity of web based content, not tech-savvy teachers should be informed about possible technology mulfunctions, which are quite common so that it definitely can’t be their fault if something goes wrong; neither should they feel embarrassed if they encounter a problem that is outside their domain to repair. These are the reasons why they should prepare a “contigency” lesson plan so that they are ready for any uncalled for situation.

Krajka also argues that CALL should be employed in a class with at least four and preferably six hours of English per week. Would this mean that technology can’t be integrated in “general track” secondary schools in Croatia, with only three 45-minute lessons of English a week? I strongly oppose this view. In my opinion, the number of weekly EFL lessons is not an obstacle and it can’t be an excuse for not using computers in the classroom. I would suggest teachers rather skip certain units from the coursebook in exchange for web-based materials, because of the abovementioned advantages for technology-enhanced teaching.

I used to be a teacher who strictly followed the coursebook, only rarely venturing on topics not covered by the textbook. Probably because as a Non-Native English Speaker, the coursebook always seemed to offer a “safe haven”. However, research has shown that computer technologies can enhance vocabulary building and reading proficiency (Constantinescu, 2007). To this I would also add our last weeks’ readings and discussions, in which we emphasized the importance of technology in the acuqisition of speaking and listening skills, along with pronunciation teaching.

Another important point is that coursebook nowadays are accompanied not only by
CDRom-s, but also by the IWB materials and webpages for each of the units. This and the available web-based resources allow the teachers to tailor the required coursebook to the needs of the 21st century learners.