49th IATEFL CONFERENCE AND EXHIBITION Plenary 12/04/2015 by Joy Egbert “Engagement and Practice in Classroom learning, Language and Technology

Joy Egbert, Professor at the department of Teaching and Learning in Washington State University, opened the second day of the conference with a plenary that managed to have some workshop-like features. The speaker managed to establish rapport with the audience and despite the huge space of the auditorium and the large audience, she engaged participants in meaningful tasks. Then again, that was the main point of her talk.

From life experience to theory and …back

Professor Egbert started her talk by referring to her personal experience of trying to learn Spanish and Russian at different points in her life and in different educational contexts and getting frustrated because she couldn’t actually speak the language. The speaker singled out the following three reasons as the main ones which led her to frustration and eventually to lack of engagement. 

• lack of social interaction
• lack of feedback and / or support 
• the greatness of the challenge

Is it CALL or should we call it something else? 

Professor Egbert was quick to show her disagreement with the term CALL (Computer Assisted Language Learning), saying that it puts forward an idea of computers coming first, not learning. On the contrary in our context, language learning ought to come first. 

The speaker went on to present the following diagram which represents the way different aspects of teaching interconnect and influence each other. 

 

Interestingly enough, the teacher can be seen ‘’floating’’ somewhere, in the background, taking care of things and setting the chessboard (as Professor Freeman might put it) but is not directly involved in the mix. If we take a closer look at the design, we will notice that technology is one of the factors and its use does not guarantee instant engagement. Engaging our learners is something we need to consider separately whether or not we use technology.

 

Why engagement matters

The point made last led us to the following one regarding the importance of engagement.  The speaker touched a sensitive spot for all participants when she mentioned that poor learning experiences, either because of lack of progress or feedback, lead to frustration which can easily turn motivation into demotivation. As teachers we should aim to provide the kind of encouragement that will maximize our learner’s potential for success. In this context we hope to create a learning environment in which learners can learn effectively and efficiently, which means they learn as best they can.  In this framework we have the chance not only to teach language but also critical thinking and Higher Order Thinking Skills. The only meaningful way in which this can be accomplished is by engaging our learners.  

It was really interesting that the speaker had actually found an almost mathematical formula in which to explain the learners Knowledge and Skills in the Future (Kf).  The formula is the following (Spolsky 1989)

Professor Egbert pointed out that our learners present knowledge, their abilities and their motivation are not aspects which we can affect. They are not really related with us. What we can really affect is opportunity. As teachers we need to provide opportunities for learning and make them engaging. The more engaging the learning opportunities are, the greater the language achievement of the learners. 

Very often we find that our learners are unengaged because they do tasks which useless and / or meaningless to the learners, such as getting learners to memorise random lists of words.

Engaging learners in the classroom

 According to Professor Egbert, engagement describes the relationship between the learner and the task which the teacher has set up. After the teacher gives instructions and any needed support, the learners take care of the task. They are deeply focused which leads them to greater learning success. Professor Egbert hastened to point out that the teacher’s part is a crucial one as teachers provide the resources, the support, the instructions and the tools for the task. Once the task is truly engaging learners will ‘’dig’’ into it by themselves. This ties in nicely with the graphic design presented at the beginning where the teacher was floating in the background but not actually ‘’running’’ the show.

Teachers can notice the engagement of students during the lesson by:

the posture of their body (learners tend to lean in when they are eagerly paying attention)

•  their responsiveness
•  the fact that they focus and ask questions
• their participation. 

Five engagement principles.

1 Authenticity

This does not mean that we should find authentic material, created for native speakers. It means that we should use topics which interest our learners.  The speaker mentioned that very often learners and parents wonder why students have to learn a particular set of things and even the teacher does not have a convincing answer. This fragments the process of learning for the learner. Therefore teachers need to explain how each learning unit fits into the learners’ academic programming by explaining to the learners: 

1.  what they did the previous day and the relationship between yesterday’s  and today’s lesson
2. why the need to know this particular thing and how it is going to help them in real life
3. the choices they have to work in their preferred ways of learning

 2 Create connections with their lives.  

In order to do so and in order to meet the authenticity principle teachers need to know the learners they want to engage, their learning goals and their preferred ways of learning.   Once we have collected enough data about our learners, we might have to design differentiated tasks for different learners. The tasks might bear similarities to each other or might complement each other, but they will be tailor-made to fit the interests of particular learners. Interestingly enough, the speaker pointed out that it is not only the input that will be different but also the learners’ output.  The in-class use of technological tools (such as e-mail or Youtube) which learners use in their real life also builds connections between classroom learning and real life and makes learning meaningful.

3 Provide social interaction (or as the speaker said: deep personal focus)

Engaging tasks are considered those in which learners collaborate. Unfortunately, getting learners to work in pairs or groups is not necessarily engaging for all, as some want to dominate (so they get to do everything themselves), whereas others are happy to do nothing. For this reason, when learners work in groups it is a good idea to give them roles so that are each responsible for an area.  The speaker also pointed out that as teachers we need to give learners valid reasons for listening.

4 Offer practice and feedback

Without feedback learners are lost. Therefore, feedback needs to be timely and relevant. One problem most teachers face is that they have not yet found ways to get learners to engage with the feedback they are given. Most learners look at the mark, perhaps read the comments (if there are any) but spend little time using the comments creatively and constructively.

5 Have a challenge / skills balance

Engaging tasks are the ones which are neither too easy nor too difficult. Teachers need to work with the strengths of the students but also help them with their weaknesses. In order to keep it realistic, the speaker urged participants, to consider that it is not possible to keep all learners engaged for the entire lesson. A rule of the thumb for a successful lesson is to keep most of the students engaged for about 80% of the lesson.

Engaging learners through technology.

In recent years we have come to think of technology as panacea which can solve the issue of engaging learners just because it is used in class. Professor Egbert disillusioned the audience by saying that technology is just a tool like any other and it doesn’t do anything by itself. It can help teachers to meet the engagement principle by

•       Facilitating needs and other authentic assessments

•       Providing resources at the right level

•       Supporting accessibility

•       Presenting opportunities to interact

•       Offering connections to authentic audiences and materials

The problem with the use of technology in class are manifold. To sum them up the speaker pointed out the following:

·         Teachers and Institutions do not use technology at all

·         No changes have been made in the pedagogy

·         The use of technology is unprincipled. 

As teachers we need to pose the following questions, summarized by the speaker and her partners in that particular research:

Conclusions

Professor Egbert made it absolutely clear that the use of technology does not guarantee that the tasks are engaging. As teachers we should see which technological tools and when, cater for the needs of our learners. Technology should be used when it helps us meet goals and it should be used when it is appropriate. Technology is not the be all, end all. Teachers are! 

 http://iatefl.britishcouncil.org/2015/session/plenary-joy-egbert