SLA, New Technologies and EAP (2)

Hiya,hope you're all well .... here's the second installment of SLA, EAP and New technologies.

In the introduction I asked ...

'Why do you think CALL and new technologies are subject to extra or special arguments and justifications before these technologies are used in teaching?'

Some of the reasons for this extra scrutiny might include:

Expense
Often integrating technology requires (scarce) resources to be allocated to buying software, hardware, training, materials development and teaching. There is sometimes a reticence to allocate these resources as the ‘gain’ for the students using technologies might not be perceived to be enough in relation to the cost involved.

Transient nature of technology
Many technological innovations appear to become obsolete quickly. One university language centre invested heavily in video discs (predating DVDs) in the 80s-90s and now they are more or less forgotten. Because no-one is able to predict with an certainty technological innovations there is a fear of buying heavily into a ‘system’, hardware or technology which might have a very short shelf-life.

Disruption to the curriculum
Technology is not always seen as a tool which should blend into the everyday teaching experience. Often technology (as with self-access) is viewed as an addition or add-on to the range of activities. If this is so, then it is hard to justify the inclusion of technology.

Lack of awareness/skills
Many teachers are only vaguely aware of the potential of technology to enhance teaching and learning and, therefore, there is not always grassroots pressure to innovate with technology.

Dehumanises teaching
Technology is often perceived to be the ‘poor’ relation of the classroom. Technology implies a lack of ‘warm bodies’, human interaction, and, importantly, takes away control from the teacher. Often teachers perceive technology to be in control of the teaching and learning, relegating the teacher to the role of supervisor/monitor.

Innovation
Fear of innovation may be the real cause of concern for teachers. Any change to a system (technology or any other) is not always met with enthusiasm. Technological innovations might be perceived as a means of reducing teaching costs (or jobs!). It could be that technology unsettles teachers: a new set of skills are required, a different (more transparent) classroom is implied by the use of technology, or even, the ability of students to orientate their learning themselves may be disconcerting.

‘Drill and Kill’/’Old wines in new bottles'
Many teachers point to the pedagogically unsophisticated use of new technologies to provide endless drills, multiple choice exercises, gap-fils, and other (decontextualised) exercises as reasons not to innovate with technology. Look at the VSAC for examples of this! There are, of course, many other reasons why technology is viewed with such reticence or even hostility. The one requirement for technological innovation/use that is (often) voiced by both technophiles and technophobes is that language learning potential should be the central criterion in evaluation of CALL.

Any other suggestions??