It was very interesting to read The Landscape of Merging Modalities (Irvine, 2020) and I am glad to learn that I am not alone in my confusion with all the terminology surrounding the various combinations of online, correspondence, and face to face classes available in our ever-changing technology-driven world.

I have had some experience, as both a learner and teacher, with a few of the different modalities, though not always sure of how to label them.

As a Learner

In the student seat, I have had the chance to take asynchronous classes completely done online with the only instructor interaction being through email. I’ve used LMSs, had tests and exams online. I’ve also had an entire course online but then had to go to the institution for the final. These courses were convenient, but even considering my introverted nature, I did feel something was missing. It’s nice to put a face to the instructor, for example, and it’s also nice to be able to discuss learning with other classmates.  

I don’t think these classes I have experienced as a student are the ideal type of class for the students I teach – adult newcomer EAL learners. Again, these course styles may offer convenience, but students learning to speak a language need interaction with other learners – especially with speaking and listening skills. Newcomers also need peer interaction not only for practicing their language, but for connections and friendships – the social aspect of their settlement is so important for many of them.

As a Teacher

In the instructor seat, my first online class was labeled ‘blended’. It was a combination of two days per week face to face in the classroom, and the other three days asynchronous. I put material online for the students – sometimes it was homework from the synchronous lesson, sometimes a preview task for the next face to face meeting, sometimes an assessment, etc. This style suited many of the students as they were higher level EALs who many times had a part-time job they were working around. There was still the community building that happened when we were face-to-face, in person.

When the pandemic forced everyone home and online, the class changed to a fully online synchronous and asynchronous combination, and because we knew each other already, it worked well. But the next year, when we were still completely online – synchronous and asynchronous components again – and I had a new class, the community building took longer. One thing that was a definite bonus though was the attendance rate. The number of students who otherwise wouldn’t have been able to attend was clear – students with small children or elderly parents to take care of were able to attend because the synchronous time was shorter, and they could tune in from their homes.

Now that we are back in person, face-to-face again, our department has changed our class hours to take advantage of the asynchronous learning that we worked so hard to make meaningful during the pandemic. For my fulltime class, 45 minutes of in class time has been shaved off and designated to what is being called an ‘online-blended’ component where we are to implement a flipped classroom.

Once I learned what a flipped classroom was, I realized that I had already been doing it in some ways. I think it works well with language teaching because learners can pre-read or pre-view and then use the in-class time to do as much speaking as possible – the skill that many of them find the most challenging to practice on their own.

The Future?

So, what is the future of classroom modalities for the adult EAL learner? Ultimately, I think it depends on the learner themselves and a mix of factors. Their goals, strengths and weaknesses, motivation, and life circumstances all come into play.  I have met many EAL students with good English fluency who told me they learned through videos and online practice alone. They were able to improve because they were determined. But how fluent can they actually get without face-to-face practice with others? Can practicing English with AI prepare them for higher level education or the workforce? Others may crave social classroom interaction in order to do their best learning, but depending on their life situations may need to study from home while balancing survival jobs or children.

In the end, I think the language learner, English or otherwise, needs to know themselves and be willing to try new things. Likely the modalities they are able to use in their language journeys will change as they progress, and being open to new and emerging technology can only help to improve chances of language learning success.