The use of mobile phones in teaching English as a foreign language
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32782/2617-3921.2023.24.270-282Keywords:
English as a foreign language, mobile-assisted language learning, EFL teaching, technology, smartphone, tablet PC.Abstract
English is considered as the most important foreign language to be taught worldwide. In school, English is taught to children as a foreign language in nearly every foreign country. Because of this matter, English language teaching is of crucial importance nowadays. During different times, different teaching methods were used in language teaching. In recent years, there has been an increasing interest in using mobile phones for teaching English as a foreign language (EFL). Because of the rapid development of technology in recent years, a new era of mobile devices has become popular. These new devices, including smartphones, tablet PCs and MP3 players, are very practical and convenient to use thanks to their wireless nature and easy usage. The mentioned devices are widely used, especially by the younger generation, especially after COVID-19. Mobile-assisted language learning is considered as the new method of language acquisition and teaching. However, teachers and researchers are having an argument about the importance of using mobile technology in language teaching instead of the conventional ways. Mobile technology has many advantages that can be used in a classroom or outside of it. Students can learn anywhere and anytime by using their mobile phones or other devices. Still, many teachers do not pay attention to this fact and they tend to say that technology is only good for entertainment and it does not contribute to the learning process. Many recent studies have been made in the field of using technology in education. The conservative ways of teaching are not necessarily the best ways of helping students acquire a language. They have different needs in the era of portable devices that have to be acknowledged by the teachers too. The purpose of this paper is to review recent research about the importance of mobile-assisted language learning, and to justify the educational benefits of such technologies in language teaching.
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