Websites for English language teaching

The internet is being used more frequently as a learning tool to help people learn English in the twenty-first century. In that sense, teachers or learners could make use of different types of websites depending on their objectives. Moreover, research has shown how Web 2.0 can contribute to a positive experience when studying the lingua franca. Now, online news, English learning internet sites, and other platforms may be taken advantage of for such purposes (^{Chang-Chávez, 2017}; ^{Maridueña-Macancela, 2019}; ^{Nasution, 2019}).

^{Muta & Dennis (2016)} carried out research to discover the grammatical tenses used in online news. The experts recommend using news on the internet to expose learners to the target language which will, in turn, help them improve their reading and listening skills, also found as a positive aspect in other studies (^{Syakur, Fanani & Ahmadi, 2020}). This authentic resource may be handy for educators attempting to meet learning objectives; however, the use of strategies such as exposure to stories, songs, and various types of text is strongly advised.

Moreover, some inquiries have demonstrated how online websites strictly focused on academic English can also contribute to language learning in action research studies like this one (^{Amalia, 2020}; ^{Ekaningsih, 2017}). A website has the advantage of being able to display information available to users at any time and from any place. Additionally, investigations show how motivation is strongly improved when assessment activities are included since learners become aware of their weaknesses and strengths, but more than that, professors could come up with a strategy to mend such needs (^{Maridueña-Macancela, 2019}; ^{Seifert & Feliks, 2018}).

As it is stated by ^{Abe (2020)}, pupils are more actively involved in their educational process when using websites. Furthermore, this kind of learning promotes independency for individuals as they seek to resolve cognitive challenges through a wide variety of academic tasks by themselves or in a cooperative-collaborative fashion. Concurrently, it is indicated by researchers like ^{Amalia (2020)} that online evaluation tools can spark learners’ interest in language learning. However, dynamics must be designed according to the students’ profile, and this is even greatly enhanced if a gamification factor is included in the assessment activities in a competitive, fun, and rewarding atmosphere without a possibility of cheating; some examples of platforms which allow such interaction are Kahoot!, LearnEnglish kids (British Council), Quizizz, among others.

English learning website’s interface

The platform https://Wix.com, a free website creator, was employed to build the site for this intervention. In that sense, ^{Oliver & Herrington (2001)} suggest learning resources, learning tasks, and learning support as elements to consider when a website is used in education. According to the authors, these are essentials now of using Web 2.0 as an educational resource for students to be actively mobilizing their skills and knowledge. Nonetheless, there is no consensus on the way a cyberspace should be created or operated; still, certain design fundamentals were considered for the current investigation such as navigation, graphical representation, organization, content utility, purpose, simplicity, and readability (^{Garett et al., 2016}; ^{García-García, Carrillo-Durán & Tato-Jimenez, 2017}).

With the purpose of meeting optimal navigation criteria, the orientations made by ^{Garett et al. (2016)} were followed. Thus, a homepage was designed containing all the elements organized in a way for visitors to rapidly identify their interests. The first part presents a brief description of the website and contents of each page, every section including access buttons, giving users control manageability. Also, a menu and a search option were incorporated in case visitors wish to take a shortcut when looking for specific content.

Following ^{Garett et al. (2016)}, graphical representation was met through the inclusion of images of a reasonable size. In addition, audiovisual content was integrated for high school learners, employing appealing and colorful PowerPoint presentations. Plus, the text and colors were combined in an attractive fashion for the human eye. Likewise, a logo was created with the use of Microsoft Word, parting from the website’s name.

In terms of organization, simple architecture for the building of the website was carried out by fostering a logical structure and organizing content, as suggested by ^{García-García, Carrillo-Durán & Tato-Jimenez (2017)}. Therefore, the headings and keywords were thought of carefully to label each item or topic to be presented to visitors. Like in navigation, the online page strives to give an easy and understandable view of the information which is offered to learners of English who are Spanish speakers.

Likewise, the orientations provided by ^{Garett et al. (2016)} were procured to meet content utility. For this aspect, sufficient information was presented to make sure that learnability could be fostered through the educational videos posted on the website. Consistently, quality was also achieved by using materials ad hoc for teenagers, conforming to the online page’s purpose.

On the other hand, in accordance with the orientations given by ^{Garett et al. (2016)}, the website’s simplicity was met by using simple subject headings. In addition, https://wix.com offered an option to see how the internet site looks both on desktop screens or laptops and on portable devices, which allowed an arrangement of the different elements to achieve an easy-to-navigate and friendly interface. Additionally, the purpose of the cyberspace and the target visitors were clearly and explicitly announced on the homepage. Moreover, an “about” section was included, providing a more detailed description of the site as well as contact information to get in touch with the teacher-researcher.

Finally, readability was another aspect that was carefully worked out as the website was thought to be for educational purposes (^{Garett et al., 2016}). For this reason, the text was proofread to make sure syntactic issues were not present. Likewise, grammar and appropriate use of register were checked, as was the coherence of the messages in each of the internet site sections.

Procedure

In order to start off this intervention, group leaders were included as main stakeholders to represent the voices of their classmates in interviews. Nevertheless, the rest of the adolescents were also integrated into the process to analyze the overall impact with research techniques such as documentary analysis and participant observation, which allowed the researcher to capture everybody’s experience. Participants were organized on the social network WhatsApp to foster an easier medium of communication between stakeholders.

In the first stage, areas of opportunities related to English language teaching were reflected upon by means of introspection through reflection on the present teacherresearcher’s own performance. Introspective inquiries provide an insider perspective that allows researchers to report on what educational actors do and why they do it, similar to a self-evaluation; it also answers questions linked to beliefs, putting into reflection the teacher’s role and way of thinking (^{Dikilitaş & Griffiths, 2017}). Such a technique is contemplated as a unique design since it is based on an in-depth study of a single individual (^{Arnal, del Rincón & Latorre, 1992}). Hence, the process of data analysis gave place to the identification of the main field of interest for improving practice in this Mexican high school setting, which justified the use of the action research methodology.

The second research phase required the elaboration and implementation of an action plan. Therefore, the orientations provided by ^{Stringer (2007)} and ^{Kemmis, McTaggart & Nixon (2014)} were considered to conduct a pertinent investigation. Thus, with the intention of involving stakeholders, a meeting was organized to reach an agreement on the different actions to be executed. Here, observations were recorded based on the experience that learners and the professor-researcher were having throughout the intervention, providing an account of those difficulties encountered.

During the last phase of this action research, in-depth interviews, and documentary analysis were conducted to evaluate the overall intervention. Hence, the analysis techniques appealed to the constructivist grounded theory by using open, focus, and axial coding, as well as the constant comparative method (^{Bryant, 2017}; ^{Charmaz, 2006}). Furthermore, computer text processing programs that facilitate the organization of the information were utilized to analyze the data, which is considered valid in qualitative investigations (^{Cisneros-Puebla, 2003}; ^{Watkins, 2017}).

Identification of issues

To identify areas of opportunity, the present researcher conducted a documentary analysis appealing to documents of the daily educational practice. In this sense, records in attendance lists of learners’ performance, and reports of academic tutoring were the main initial sources since they show evidence of the adolescents’ daily behavior. In addition, participant observation was carried out through in-depth introspection or autoethnography, which is ideal for qualitative studies of this division (^{Cohen, Manion & Morrison, 2018}; ^{Hayler, 2011}; ^{Yin, 2016}). As a result, two categories were identified: students’ short attention span and a need for innovation.

Students’ short attention span. Even when many learners are fond of the teacher researcher’s style in relation to language instruction, it was observed how others tend to get distracted very easily from classes. In addition, it was noticed that this diversion has been caused by technological tools such as cell phones and social networks, videogames on the same mobile devices, or friends. Additionally, a feeling of boredom and disinterest towards the English class was identified.

A need for innovation. Staying in a traditional old school model of education cannot continue in a digital age where Web 2.0 takes part in almost any human activity. For such a reason, it is fundamental to carry out educational processes that involve the use of technological devices in an ambience that incorporates all the facilities to have access to knowledge, in this case, to language instruction. Thus, because teenagers have a common interest in looking for information on the internet, the present researcher embarked on an enterprise of abandoning routine practices by creating and launching a website to support English language learning, as it would be a resource of permanent benefit not only for these communities but also for the worldwide Spanish speakers.

Planning and acting

In terms of planning, an action plan was devised in consonance with the orientations made by ^{Stringer (2007)} and ^{Kemmis, McTaggart & Nixon (2014)}. The planned activities involved organizing the educational interaction and consolidating the website LEK from February to July of 2020; nonetheless, the online site’s interface and content kept on being updated throughout the implementation of the project (Figure 2).

Note: This is a screenshot retrieved from the https://wix.com platform.

Figure 2 Screenshot of the interphase of one of the website’s sections. 

Throughout the first period of the intervention, from August to December 2020, high schoolers were mainly asked to use the website to consult the provided resources for them to do the integrative activities and online quizzes designed by the teacher-researcher (Figure 3). Also, learners were invited to voluntarily visit the internet site whenever they needed to review a specific topic; additionally, classes were imparted by projecting the created videos synchronously. Until then, the multimedia material proved to be helpful; nevertheless, notwithstanding students had this support, many required additional assistance on behalf of the professor to improve on their English productive skills: writing and speaking.

Note: This is a screenshot retrieved from the https://wix.com platform.

Figure 3 Screenshot of integrative activities fostered through the website. 

During the second moment of the intervention, from January to June of 2021, students had acquired an English coursebook provided by the institution, which meant that it had to be incorporated into the teaching process in addition to other learning activities. Many applied linguistic experts offer arguments for and against the use of coursebooks (^{Travé-González et al., 2017}); however, in this case, it was necessary to include it in the pedagogical practice because juveniles were required to purchase it by the high school system. Therefore, adolescents had to be given homework in the book, and the greatest asset to aid them was the created website, since they had the opportunity to access the content at any time and place, ubiquitously. Still, like in the first period, some teenagers needed academic tutoring to complete their assignments.

Project evaluation

Twenty in-depth interviews, participant observation, and documentary analysis were conducted in the evaluation phase. Along with the inquiry, data analysis techniques borrowed from the grounded theory methodology gave place to postulate a theoretical hypothesis that demonstrates the understanding of the impact of Web 2.0 on the students’ educational experience in English language learning.

Substantive theory. The creation and use of websites for English language learning fosters a positive educational experience in high schoolers as they tackle the learners’ interests and needs, especially when the creator is the students’ teacher. Furthermore, created multimedia material can explain grammatical items clearly as it could include the teacher’s personal touch, but in a digital dimension. Additionally, learning activities designed by the educator may promote a good experience since the resources would be intended to support the learning of content not only in academic but in authentic situations.

Three main categories were identified during the analysis of the in-depth interviews: support, easy navigation, and good learning experience.

Support. The website LEK served as a support for learners to do integrative activities and other homework assignments in the book. According to the responses in the in-depth interviews, quite a few teenagers frequently consulted the videos available on the online site. This was a great advantage for them, seeing that they could go over the English class or explanations as many times as they wanted. Therefore, learning vocabulary and other linguistic items was perceived to be easier. Next, a comment made by an adolescent demonstrates such an aspect: “… you explain very well in your videos. What I like about them is that I can play them repeatedly. Another thing is that you managed to organize the videos according to the subject’s blocks, which makes them easy for us to find on the website” (student 19).

Easy navigation. According to the analyzed answers, the organization of the resources allowed learners to navigate easily on the website LEK. This was perceived to be the result of the management of the different sections and the access options found on the homepage and menu. Next, an adolescent expressed such an aspect in a contribution made in an interview: “… there are many shortcuts to get to the videos I feel like watching or the activities I need to do. For example, I can just use the homepage buttons to find my class, or I can use the search bar and type in the name of the topic I want to learn about” (student 4).

Good learning experience. Most learners highlighted the fact that the multimedia material clearly explained linguistic items of the English subject, which facilitated learning. According to the adolescents, the teaching methodology applied by the teacher played a major role in the foregoing since the examples and language used were appropriate for them. A student reported this as follows: “… the examples you provide are attractive and simple for us to understand. Another important element here is how you teach your class, as you first present the topic, then give examples, and finally, you employ a dynamic way to practice the learnt content” (student 18).

On the other hand, the integrative activities were ideal since they required learners to incorporate the knowledge acquired in each block, promoting the use of the foreign language in real-life communicative situations. Also, the evaluation instruments were clear and facilitated the elaboration of every activity. A juvenile expressed the following on this matter: “… I think that those integrative activities are interesting. Sometimes I feel that the rubrics are complicated but, at the same time, necessary because we can use them to see how we did on the homework; plus, we can have an idea of what grade we could get” (student 5).

Furthermore, with the intention of including the contributions made by all learners, answers in all in-depth interviews were coded and grouped into the following categories: support, easy navigation, and good learning experience. Now, qualitative research is considered to be of narrative or dialectical nature, striving to understand the feelings of individuals and problematics; however, this investigation is circumscribed in the critical educational science where other methods of analysis can be used (^{Stringer, 2007}). Therefore, percentages were calculated according to the number of concurrences for each category. Such information has the sole purpose of including the responses of the 20 students (Figure 4), and in no way has the objective of measuring variables like in an experimental design.

Note: The figure represents responses’ concurrences of the 20 interviewed students.

Figure 4 Impact on English language learning with the use of the created website. 

As it can be seen, most learners found the website easy to navigate. Also, many expressed that it offered support to learning activities. Finally, it can be appreciated how quite a few lived a positive educational experience in the learning of English as a foreign language with the use of this technological resource created by the teacher-researcher.

Parallel to the prior, information from participant observation and documentary analysis was put together by appealing to records of attendance lists of adolescents’ performance and academic tutoring reports, together with the data analyzed in interviews. During observation, oral or written participation was registered as usual, but a slight increase in participation was noticed; also, students turned in more assignments that required the use of the website. In the case of academic tutoring, apart from the assessment given face to face, the website was employed as a support for them to review the topic covered and accomplish pending tasks. Therefore, for both types of documents, the coded units of analysis were integrated into the main categories, which was useful to evaluate the impact of the strategy on the 408 students in both high school settings. In total, it was interpreted that 325 learners found the website’s interface easy to navigate, 306 were observed to have had a good learning experience, and 276 used the online site to support their study of English (Figure 5).

Note: The figure embodies answers’ concurrences of the 408 students.

Figure 5 Impact on English language learning with the use of the created website. 

The overall qualitative and numerical data gives rise to an interpretation of a positive impact caused on high schoolers on the learning experience of English as a foreign language. At the same time, it can be said that the research process does not end here, but it is fundamental to disseminate the findings made up to this point for other educators to consider the importance of innovation through Web 2.0.