Abstract
Online education is not an innovative product nowadays but when COVID-19 pandemic resulted in total lockdowns, many teachers and students registered numerous challenges in virtual classrooms among which the level of a teacher-student interaction is a focus of this paper. The research shows that isolation, distraction, and lack of immediate connection can actually pose a big problem. As a result, many students lose interest and become passive learners with poor performance. To revive scholars’ involvement research was conducted integrating authentic materials in online classes. A quasi-experimental method was used to collect data. A questionnaire among the students allowed to consider their attitude to studying online while semi-structured interviews and self-written reflections provided rich material for analysis. On the whole, the study revealed positive gains. Being a natural source of practical English, authentic materials bring meaning back into the classrooms and offer teachers an inexhaustible source of relevant language. They help regain students’ engagement if applied thoughtfully. Though there are certain difficulties, with due experience and practice they can be overcome. The results of this study contribute to providing useful guidelines for English teachers and students to enhance the efficacy of teaching and learning activities, particularly in virtual ELT (English Language Teaching) classrooms.
Highlights
The introduction of digital technologies into teaching began almost half a century ago, but till lately teachers around the world had a choice whether to apply them and to what extent
The results of the investigation into the reasons of loss of learners’ motivation give further insights into restoring students’ involvement as lack of real engagement in virtual classrooms disrupts ELT classes [2, 3] and turns students into automated gap fillers and routine text-translators which does not contribute to the main aim in TESOL (Teaching English to Students of Other Languages)
It may seem that the most important element in the course is mastering a set of language items arranged in a certain sequence, real success in English language teaching and learning is when learners can use the language meaningfully inside and outside classrooms [4]
Summary
The introduction of digital technologies into teaching began almost half a century ago, but till lately teachers around the world had a choice whether to apply them and to what extent. In the new pandemic reality educational environment had to digitalise to survive. This move was not unanimously advantageous and many teachers and students are still struggling to find their way in the tech world. The results of the investigation into the reasons of loss of learners’ motivation give further insights into restoring students’ involvement as lack of real engagement in virtual classrooms disrupts ELT classes [2, 3] and turns students into automated gap fillers and routine text-translators which does not contribute to the main aim in TESOL (Teaching English to Students of Other Languages). It may seem that the most important element in the course is mastering a set of language items arranged in a certain sequence, real success in English language teaching and learning is when learners can use the language meaningfully inside and outside classrooms [4]
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