EFL Teachers’ Experiences Teaching Online using ICT : A Case Study of the Transition from Classroom Teaching to Online Teaching during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract: The aim of this research project was to contribute to the knowledge about the teaching practices taking place during the COVID-19 pandemic, by investigating the use of information and communication technology (ICT) in online teaching by five EFL (English as a foreign language) teachers and their experiences of transforming from classroom teaching to online teaching during the pandemic. Furthermore, this study has also investigated how these teachers believe online teaching has affected their students’ English learning. The data was collected by using semi-structured interviews. The data were later analyzed by thematic analyses, and divided into themes, sub-themes and codes. It was concluded that teachers had both positive and negative experiences from teaching online. The fact that the education could be continued from home and that the teachers had improved their teaching practices was frequently expressed in positive opinions. However, the results from the study also revealed that the teachers had mostly negative experiences in terms of the actual process of teaching online, personal feelings, and the effects on students’ English learning. Issues such as technical difficulties, teaching online being time consuming and inhibited interactions are among the negative experiences regarding online teaching. In addition, suggestions have been made on how to improve distance education and how teaching online in the future requires teachers to be educated in how to implement effective ICT tools in their online teaching.