An English Literature Professor Applies CALL PD in Her Classroom and Outreach Programs: Reflections and Implications

Abstract

Most computer-assisted language learning professional development (CALL PD) in Romania is self-driven. At the university level, PD happens in an even less structured way than in K-12 environments, because Romanian universities benefit from “academic autonomy.” The COVID-19 pandemic brought about a flurry of CALL PD opportunities, which emerged as a stringent need. Our chapter describes PD experienced by an English literature professor from Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania. Funded by the European Commission or the local government and initiated before the pandemic, these programs were addressed to faculty across disciplines and aimed to disseminate modern teaching methods and applications for higher education. While one program focused on supplying digital resources to be used in the teaching of the Humanities, the other proposed to promote excellence in digital pedagogy and research and increase student participation. After describing the programs, we illustrate the application of the newly acquired CALL knowledge in an English literature workshop for high school students from underprivileged areas. We reflect on the potential of the tools for long-term use in online and face-to-face courses, regardless of COVID-19. This discussion places PD opportunities within the context of a patchily implemented Bologna Process and the impending redefinition of the mission of Erasmus+.