A discourse perspective on multimedia training for EFL teachers: Look beyond the critical thinking in academic settings

Abstract

The development of information and communication technology (ICT) has brought choices of teaching material and delivery techniques. The availability of supporting facilities is a fundamental requirement. The next one deals with the teachers' preparedness related to their attitude toward the technology and the required technical skills to use it. The Foreign Language Training Center of Ahlia University has provided every class with audio-video facilities connected to the Internet; therefore, this study discusses an attempt to facilitate the teachers' familiarity, utilization, and elaboration of multimedia supports in their teaching practices. To begin, a questionnaire was distributed to elicit their attitudes towards video material for teaching English. This could be further categorized into its usefulness, necessities before its application, and potential problems. It was found out that they admitted the positive usefulness of video material and stated some technical problems as potential barriers. A need for training in video material preparation was also identified. A training program was then administered to familiarize the teachers with the hardware and software for video material download, preparation and presentation. As the next step in encouraging the integration of video material in their lessons, Paul Nation's four strands theory (2007) and pre-whilst-post watching stages were adopted to construct classroom activity

plans.