Ipad role in teaching and learning english as a foreign language in Madinah schools

Abstract EN

Technological advancements appear to have revolutionized e-learning worldwide.

Saudi experts are interested in exploiting such developments as part of an educational program for the betterment of Saudi curricula in general and TEFL in particular.

This paper was conducted to address perceived shortcomings in teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL).

It investigates Saudi teachers’ and learners' perceptions vis-à-vis iPad educational applications and their efficacy in facilitating TEFL.

Two online questionnaires (for teachers and learners) were administered to the study sample of English language teachers (n = 107) and students (n = 120) spanning all stages from primary school to higher education in Madinah.

iPad seems to be widely used amongst Saudis, yet findings of the study revealed scarce use of its applications for educational purposes.

When used for educational purposes, respondents seem to mainly refer to iPad for listening and translation.

Apparently, this rare use of iPad applications can be attributed to schools’ poor infrastructure as well as the absence of tailor-made applications in their curricula.

The paper offers a number of recommendations to exploit iPad applications.