CONVERGENCE OF MEDIA: A CASE STUDY OF MALL AND ATTITUDE OF EFL TEACHERS AND LEARNERS IN SIALKOT, PAKISTAN

Abstract

Mobile Assisted Language Learning MALL is an emerging area of study in the field of Applied Linguistics and English Language Teaching ELT. Latest mobile technologies are being exploited in English as a foreign language (EFL) pedagogy and learning at various levels. The said phenomenon made a strong case for the present case study to scrutinize the attitude of the modern day EFL learners and teachers in Sialkot, Pakistan. The study investigates their acceptance or rejection for the selected MALL technologies in EFL learning and teaching. For the said purpose Sixty EFL undergraduate and nine EFL teachers were randomly selected from three renowned institutes of the city for data collection. A three sectioned questionnaire was developed for EFL learners on Likert scale with a special reference to perceived usefulness PU and perceived ease of use PEOU of Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) prescribed by Davis (1989) as data collection tool. TAM measures the attitude of users for their acceptance or rejection for any new technology or system. For EFL teachers an interview questionnaire was developed comprising eight open ended questions to record (in audio) their spontaneous responses for the phenomenon. The results reflect that EFL learners show a positive attitude towards perceived usefulness (PU) and perceived ease of use (PEOU) for the use of smart phones than laptop computers for different EFL learning purposes.  On the other hand, EFL teachers show their strong inclination towards the use of laptop computers rather than smart phones for EFL teaching and learning.