An analysis of efficacy of web-based teleconferencing English teaching methods

Abstract

The ever-increasing demand for English communication skills has required implementation of the method of Teaching English in English in every English classroom setting in Korea. This has necessitated recruitment and employment of large numbers of native English speaking teachers (NEST), which has proven difficult due to the scarcity of competent NESTs. With the advent of state-of-the-art technology designed for teleconferencing, however, e-Learning has the potential to provide a viable approach to tackling this problem. The present study investigated the efficacy of a web-based teleconferencing English teaching program in which native English teachers taught English to about 9,000 elementary and secondary students on-line with the help of Korean co-teachers during the spring semester of 2009. The study explored the extent to which students improved their English oral communication skills through a web-based oral proficiency test, and the degree to which students and teachers were satisfied with the e-Learning system based on a survey. The research findings revealed that the teleconferencing-based English teaching program enabled students to improve their English communication skills and was endorsed by the majority of elementary students.