Self-evaluation using iPads in EFL teaching practice

Abstract

Abstract. The relentlessly accelerating global educational demands for teaching English as a Second or Foreign Language (ESL/EFL) in multiple, diverse, and often remote geographic locations constitute new challenges for academic institutions, teacher training and preparation programs, and teachers themselves. This study describes a novel approach where five elementary school preservice teachers teaching ESL/EFL borrowed an iPad mini from their teacher training institution customized with specific apps to record a series of five teaching sequences during their teaching practice placement in elementary schools in Tanzania and Kenya. All recorded sessions were uploaded to a Moodle Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) site specially constructed for the purpose of the teaching practice course. Results indicate that, apart from their experienced instructors' feedback on their teaching practice, the recorded sessions formed constructive tools for self-reflection, selfevaluation and the pursuit of possible paths for improvement.Keywords: iPads, ESL, EFL, pre-service teachers, teaching practice, self-evaluation. IntroductionMobile devices, which fuse technology, culture, communication, learning and gaming, challenge some of the most salient social and cultural boundaries while at the same time inviting a discussion into their role in molding cultural expectations for teaching, learning, communication, and socialization. In ESL/EFL pedagogy and teacher preparation, scholarly research on mobile-based learning has delved into the pedagogical and learning implications of mobile devices (Goodwin-Jones, 2011;Hockly & Dudeney, 2014;Kinash, Brand, & Mathew, 2012; KukulskaHulme, 2009 (2015) have demonstrated that smartphones could form effective tools for assessing EFL student teachers' teaching practices in Ecuador. However, limited attention has been paid to the use of iPads as tools to record and facilitate self-evaluation among pre-service teachers on teaching practice in geographically remote locations. MethodThis study aimed to investigate the role of iPads as tools to evaluate pre-service teachers' teaching practice and their perception on the integration of iPads in the selfconfrontation of the teachers with video recordings of their performance. In adopting a qualitative approach, this study offered preservice teachers a level of autonomy in selecting specific parts from their practical teaching experience and the opportunity to record sessions in specific pupil age range and cultural/institutional settings. It also gave 'a voice' to preservice teachers to share their experiences throughout this process (Levy, 2015). The study was conducted during the fall of 2015. Five female primary preservice teachers enrolled in a teaching practice course at a Swedish academic institution were provided with an iPad mini for their five-week practicum. The preservice course aimed to offer preservice teachers practical teaching opportunities to teach English to primary school children in diverse locations, such as Kenya and Tanzania. All...