Developing students’ communication in the context of online ESL lessons

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Authors

Alikulova, Xeniya
Saparbayeva, Zamira

Issue Date

2024

Educational Level

ISCED Level 2 Lower secondary education

Curriculum Area

Geographical Setting

Kazakhstan

Abstract

Background: The global pandemic introduced considerable challenges to both teachers and students. In the context of online learning students tend to be less enthusiastic and communicate mostly with a teacher only compared to a traditional classroom. Trying to support students’ communication, we decided to organise a lesson study project which would shed light on how teachers can encourage students’ communication and interaction during online ESL lessons.

Aims: We aimed to improve students’ communication in online ESL lessons and explore what approaches can support students’ communication in their in-class and out-of-class learning.

Study design or methodology: We developed a sequence of three research lessons aimed to develop students’ communication. A lesson study group planned, observed, and analysed these lessons. The research participants were 9th grade students who learned ESL online. The data were collected through observation, interview, and survey.

Findings: The use of group chats, role plays, and project work helped boost students’ confidence to communicate more with each other in their in-class and out-of-class learning. Group chats and role plays provided students with the opportunity to practise the target language authentically. Project work sparked students’ motivation and promoted active discussions.

Conclusions and implications: The current lesson study project made our online ESL lessons more engaging and enjoyable for students, supporting them in overcoming barriers in communicating online. Shy and quiet students claimed that the activities introduced in the lessons helped them to become more confident in their language abilities. Lesson study approach gave us useful insights into the ways we can analyse the effectiveness of our approaches to planning and teaching.

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Keywords (free text)

teaching online , communication , role play , English as a second language

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