Digital Self-Efficacy and Language Learning Enhancement in an Online Setting

Forschungsarbeit aus dem Jahr 2013 im Fachbereich Pädagogik - Medienpädagogik, Islamic Azad University, Sprache: Deutsch, Abstract: The importance of personal factors such as personality traits, learning strategies, self-esteem, and self-efficacy in the complicated task of language learning has been established for years. However, the introduction of computers, networks and their wide communication affordances, seem to impact many aspects of learning and teaching and particularly language learning and teaching. The storage place, manner, and magnitude of learning materials for example, have shifted from the human mind to portable digital storage places that consequently require different types of aggregation, retrieval, and usage of information. Noting the rapid communication of today through networking, ICT competency plays important roles with all its related applications and software that turn the talented user into an enhanced player in the wired world. It was the underlying premise of this research study to identify how freshman Iranian language students view their technology competencies and command to impact their socialization and web-assisted language learning process in the connected world of today. It was found that most of the Kazerun Islamic Azad university students of English (34 freshman )show positive attitudes toward the adoption of online learning materials and web-based socialization applications such as facebook's group tool and online forums as their preferred tool for discussion and interaction in the language learning course. At the end of semester the higher digital self -efficacy students scored higher in their conversation test compared to the lower digital self -efficacy students. Users with high computer self-efficacy not only benefit from their capability to use computer in their language learning activities, they would also benefit from group self-efficacy in their web-based language learning tasks and interactions.