Postsecondary Instructors’ Perspectives on Teaching English as a Foreign Language by Means of a Multimodal Digital Literacy Approach

Authors

  • Norah Almusharraf An assistant professor in the Applied Linguistics Department
  • Joseph Engemann Adjunct Professor

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3991/ijet.v15i18.15451

Abstract


It can be argued that multimodal digital literacy practices promote the development of literacy skills needed for today’s world without being constrained to one mode of learning. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the employment of multimodal practices during instruction within EFL classrooms in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) is minimal and fraught with obstacles to its effective utilization. It is, therefore, essential to determine whether this is the case and, if so, to develop strategies that would ameliorate this situation. This study, therefore, sought to identify KSA postsecondary EFL instructors’ self-reporting of their use of various types of technology, computer software, and online software; the different teaching/learning and assessment strategies that they employ; the obstacles they face with the use of technology in their classrooms; and their beliefs about the use of multimodal digital literacy practices for teaching and learning. The study, which was based on the premises of social semiotic theory, utilized a mixed-methods design from which survey and focus group interview data were triangulated. The findings demonstrated that while most postsecondary EFL instructors have a strong positive attitude towards multimodal digital literacy practices and make robust use of specific types of technology and software programs, obstacles prevent these practices from being more widely and frequently deployed in the KSA. Suggestions for how to make a transformation to a more pronounced use of multimodal practices happen, and the limitations to the study are also presented.

Author Biographies

Norah Almusharraf, An assistant professor in the Applied Linguistics Department

Norah Mansour Almusharraf is an assistant professor in the Applied Linguistics Department, College of Humanities at Prince Sultan University, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh. Her professional and research interests focus on English as a foreign language (EFL) learning pedagogics, inquiry-based teaching and learning, cultural magnitudes of foreign/second language teaching and learning classroom, multimodal assessment and teaching strategies, technology implantation in the EFL English classrooms.

Joseph Engemann, Adjunct Professor

is an adjunct professor in the Graduate School of Education, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, U.S.A. His research interests include technology education, STEM education, assessment and evaluation, and mentoring and professional development.

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Published

2020-09-25

How to Cite

Almusharraf, N., & Engemann, J. (2020). Postsecondary Instructors’ Perspectives on Teaching English as a Foreign Language by Means of a Multimodal Digital Literacy Approach. International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning (iJET), 15(18), pp. 86–107. https://doi.org/10.3991/ijet.v15i18.15451

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Papers