This study aims to explore experiences of English teachers' with their online classes in Korea. These teachers faced difficulties as they were forced to open online classes due to the epidemic (covid-19) in 2020. To do this, journal writing and in-dep...
This study aims to explore experiences of English teachers' with their online classes in Korea. These teachers faced difficulties as they were forced to open online classes due to the epidemic (covid-19) in 2020. To do this, journal writing and in-depth interviews were conducted with 20 participants from April to May in 2020. The collected data were analyzed through repeated comparative analysis categorizing participants’ experiences of online class. The results shows that English teachers' experiences were divided into three categories: 1) Teachers' perceptions and attitudes toward online classes 2) Participating teachers' online teaching methods and reasons for decisions 3) Teachers' difficulties and coping in online classes.
First, the teachers showed a lot of uneasy reactions in the early stages of online classes due to the new lecture environment and the shrinking use of the system. However, as they gained confidence and became accustomed to the new environment through teacher training or collaboration between teachers, the teachers adapted to the system and found stability relatively quickly. While online classes are viewed as an inevitable trend, teachers were skeptical of the belief that online classes were superior to offline classes because of the lack of direct interaction between people. Overall, in the course of experiencing online classes, teachers have identified the potential for future use of online classes and the online classroom experience seems to have changed the perception of many English teachers.
Second, in the big framework of online classes proposed by the Ministry of Education (content utilization type, real-time interactive type, task-oriented performance type), teachers participating in research mainly chose the content utilization type, and among them, many utilized EBS online lectures. The reason why many used EBS lectures was because of the convenience of using existing contents, lack of conditions to try other methods, and the urgency of time. In addition, it showed a difference in the teacher's experience of the content utilization type or the real-time interactive type.
Third, teachers had a lot of difficulties in the course of online classes, and they showed an active and flexible response. Teachers have used strategies to effectively manage online classes to solve problems such as the limitation of interaction, difficulties in grasping students' academic status, and deterioration of students' interests. In addition, teachers have found a site that can enhance students' communication skills for foreign language education and applied it to classes.
However, it was recognized that in order for the ‘frame of online teaching method’ to be maintained and well utilized, it is necessary to resolve the weighted work burden for teachers, to build consensus among teachers, and to provide support on the school level.
This study was able to deeply explore the experience of these teachers by directly conducting full-scale online classes in regular subjects, and through the difficulties and solutions of teachers, it was possible to examine the potential of online classes and what should be supported in future online classes. Also, to overcome the limitations of this study, the researcher of this study suggests a study that explores the experiences of students and parents in online classes. It also suggests the need for follow-up studies on the experiences of teachers in blended learning that can be observed at the present time when online and offline classes are being conducted at the same time.