6.2.7 Summary

In this section on beliefs related to the category of advantages of the use of OLEs, teachers refer to the ways in which the new environments for learning are influencing their beliefs. Many of the beliefs in this section suggest that teachers are rethinking the ways in which they have done things in the past, that they are exploring new practices, new roles and new beliefs about learning and teaching.

Many of the beliefs in this section reflect aspects of the vision of learning for the 21^st century. They are beliefs, in many cases, which suggest that teachers are using technology to transform their practices. Along with this transformation comes a certain disenchantment with current practices, a suspicion that what these teachers have done in the past was ineffective and that what others are doing presently needs to change. The transformation appears to be from the teacher as transmitter of knowledge and controller of the learning process to teacher as facilitator or guide. The role of the student emphasizes greater levels of engagement and is reconceptualized to the student as active researcher, problem-solver, communicator, collaborator. The role of the computer is valued as a generator of reality and not as tutor or pedagogue which were common metaphors with earlier approaches to use of technology in language teaching. The beliefs value patterns of classroom interaction that are de-centered and varied and include student-to-student, one-to-many, teacher-to-student, etc. The textbook is challenged as the primary tool for learning and the curriculum is reconceptualized and scrutinized to allow for more active, richer learning situations. The process of language learning is no longer focused on form and structure. Instead, real-world, holistic content and contexts that allow for input and output are believed to be necessary to allow for social interaction, individualized, meaningful and purposeful communication. The teacher’s motivation is less didactic with a shift towards concerns about learning and less about instruction. Technology is viewed as a facilitating tool and one that enhances the curriculum. Teachers’ beliefs reflect a high comfort level with the new technologies and their impact on teaching and learning.

Not all beliefs in this category of advantages pointed towards a shift in thinking or a transformation of practices. As was mentioned earlier, in some cases, the beliefs simply pointed to a means for teachers to do the same things but in a better way. So, while some beliefs portrayed OLEs positively as a means to access resources or as a means to motivate, they nonetheless suggested that the computer was little more than a teaching machine or add-on, a tool for making learning more interesting or more efficient. Beliefs of this type are not part of a larger system of beliefs that reconceptualizes roles of the major players as well as the entire learning process. In terms of the evolution of approaches and of technology use, they reflect a perspective on use of technology more reminiscent of Behavioristic CALL.

While this section has focused on beliefs that emphasize the advantages of use of OLEs, the following section presents a discussion of beliefs related to the challenges of using OLEs. This discussion once again aims to interpret the beliefs in relation to the evolution of approaches and technology use as outlined in Chapter 2.