Ict in English Classroom

Almost everything we do nowadays is somehow connected with technology and it is harder to think of things we do that do not make use of technology. That is how pervasive technology has seeped its way into our daily routines. Without technology, life would be more difficult than it already is, knowledge would be limited and more difficult to achieve. This paper will focus on the issue of integrating ICT into the English language classroom.

Although some English language teachers have turned to blogging, podcasting and vodcasting, many others are still lagging behind when it comes to integrating ICT into the English language classroom.

Integrating ICT into the curriculum means more than teaching basic computer skills and using software programs. To be effective, ICT integration must deepen and enhance the learning process. In a nutshell, it must support four key components of learning which are active engagement, participation in groups, frequent interaction and feedback, and connection to real-world experts.

Penning situational essays and dissecting comprehension passages do not seem to be authentic learning experiences, given how our children today are immersed in rich and complex digital worlds, characterized by image and multimodality. And indeed, MOE’s Infocomm masterplan should be extended to the teaching of the English language because literacy is now understood as being far more complex than coding and decoding written texts. Its definition has expanded from just reading and writing to include the ability to read and write multimodal texts and to understand what is entailed in their operation, reception and production. Thus, the techniques of acquiring, evaluating, and using multimodal information creatively should become an increasingly important component of the English language classroom and due to its interactive and dynamic nature, ICT is seen as the tool to produce multimodal literacy.

Effective use of ICT opens up a wider array of learning resources for students to access and there can be no doubt as to the importance of ICT to English. Its integration into the English language classroom brings about a paradigm shift to acknowledge the importance of the emerging technological learning style which is increasingly becoming the fourth learning modality for students of the click and go generation. Nonetheless, whatever the learning style maybe in future, learning has to be meaningful and of relevance to the learner as said by Mrs Susan Chan, Deputy Director of Schools West who also believes that only when the learning is authentic, can the learner be truly enthusiastic in his or her learning.