Internet in Teaching English as a Foreign Language

Internet for English Teaching is an excellent resource book for the EFL teachers who are interested in using the Internet in their classroom or people who are enthusiastic about conducting research in this regard especially in Indonesian with big population. It describes different aspects of the use of the Internet in teaching English and analyzes model programs across the world where the Internet is successfully employed to facilitate the improvement of the learner's English proficiency.

On a general scale, to better prepare prospective teachers for literacy and the new literal forms and dimensions emerging in the wider social context, their undergraduate programmers, hosted by universities and teacher education institutions in higher education, need to include literacy and technology concepts and address new ICTs (Information and Communication Technologies), especially the Internet. More specifically, there is a growing and persistent need to address the Internet as a dominant innovation, and how it can be employed adequately to improve students’ learning and help them master the lifelong learning skills and competencies required in this information age.

This is particularly relevant to EFL student teachers and all language teachers, who are burdened with the double tasks of mastering both the academic and lifelong learning skills that they need as adult learners as well as the teaching competencies and skills that they need as prospective teachers of English. There are some reasons why in English teaching EFL should be appropriate using Internet:

1.      Provides access to authentic language material;

2.      Enables communication in English to take place, and thus, language practice is fostered;

3.      Caters for students’ personal needs and individual differences; and

4.      Can be able to create a rich context for using some effective language teaching/learning approaches and methods, such as: reflective learning, cooperative learning, problem-based learning, enquiry-based learning, and self-paced learning.

With the dominance of the Internet in all fields and walks of life, Is it possible to integrate the Internet for academic purposes in formal teaching/learning contexts, especially in English Language Teaching (ELT) and English Language Learning (ELL).

References;

 Mahmoud M. S. A. (2011) student (TESOL) at the Graduate School of Education, University of Exeter, UK & Assistant Lecturer of Curriculum, Literacy & TEFL/TESOL Methodology at Assiut University College of Education, Egypt. Sino-US English Teaching, , Vol.8, No.1 (Serial No.85).