Researching Technology in TESOL

One of my specializations is English as a Second Language (ESL) so when I was deciding what kind of research article to read I thought it would be interesting to see how the use of technology has affected English language learners. I read an article by Mark Warschauer that described some different approaches to how people view technology in education.

One approach is called the determinist approach. This approach says that computers are an all powerful machine that creates the needed results all by itself. In most ESL environments the main technology used is the computer. Professionals in the ESL field call this computer assisted language learning activities or CALL activities. Warschauer says, in the article, that since a computer is not a method, using the determinist approach to evaluate the effectiveness of computers in TESOL is not accurate or a good measure of how technology is helpful.

Another approach mentioned is the instrumental approach. This approach states that technology is merely a tool used to serve the purpose of their users. This view of technology removes the emphasis put of the computer that the previous approach had but it also minimizes the affect new technology has on the broader aspect of language learning; the approach basically says that "language, learning, and the learner are all seen unchanged by the introduction of new technologies." Warschauer says that if we look at language learning through this approach we are ignoring the growing impact technology is having in our world. We would still evaluate a learner based on oral and written language but now we need to add the electronic environment these forms of communicating are used. For example, language learners will most likely need to learn how to write an email, us the internet to search for things, access online libraries. Most of the CALL research done evaluates the old oral and written skills of the past.

So, if both of these aged approaches don't apply anymore, how should we effectively determine if technology is helping to teach English?

Warschauer introduces a theory that Feenberg calls a critical theory of technology. This approach is more of an understanding that the world changes as technology changes and these forces are always intertwined. With this approach Warschauer brought up some great questions to consider when researching technology's affect on a second language learner:

1. What new literacies does multimedia computer technology demand, both inside and outside the    
     classroom?
2. How does the development of these new literacies intersect with issues of class, race, gender and
    identity?
3. How does the sociocultural context of particular educational institutions or communities affect the
    learning and practice of electronic literacies?

To conclude, Warschauer did a good job of bringing up the fact that as technology changes the way we educate learners, our evaluation and research methods need to change as well.