The Pedagogical Applications of Mobile-Assisted Language Learning in Improving the Iranian EFL Learners’ Oral Performance

The Pedagogical Applications of Mobile-Assisted Language Learning in Improving the Iranian EFL Learners’ Oral Performance

Bahram Moghaddas and Hassan Bashirnezhad

Given the importance of speaking skill, it’s not surprising that it has been taught and studied around the world for thousands of years. Ladouse (1991) said that speaking is described as the activity as the ability to express oneself in the situation, or the activity to report acts, or situation in precise words or the ability to converse or to express a sequence of ideas fluently (p. 23).

Mobile devices have become “pivotal in students’ everyday life and mobile technologies are expected to be an innovative pedagogical practices in higher education. The concept of MALL (Mobile Assisted Language Learning) has come into existence. MALL is a branch of technology-enhanced learning which can be implemented in classroom. Ally (2009) enumerates that mobile learning as the delivery of learning content to mobile devices which is getting hold any knowledge and skill to provide the different learning materials on hand. Moreover, it is convenient from anyplace, provides access to the classroom activity contents and helps learners communicate with their teachers and peers at any time.

MALL encourages and facilitates peer interaction, integrate real life into learning, and are potential for learner autonomy. Kloper, et al (2002) mention five properties of mobile devices can result pedagogical affordances:

1.        Portability: the small size and weight of mobile devices eases the relocation of these technologies within different sites.

2.        Social interactivity: mobile devices can help the face-to-face data exchange and collaboration among the language learners.

3.        Connectivity-connecting: the ability to gather and respond to the real or stimulated data via the current location, environment and time.

4.        Individuality: the various tasks and activities can be customized for the individual and time

There are some implications that should be doing in the future such as: awareness should be created and cross-cultural communication strategies should be studied, collaborate with other teachers in all three circles, teachers need to prepare learners for future international English encounters by exposing them to other varieties of English and by teaching them strategic competence when interacting with speakers who speak other varieties of English, consider the teaching context and always monitoring ourselves.