Exploring classroom interaction in online education

Abstract

This present study explores the nature and extent of classroom interaction in online English as a foreign language (EFL) classes at the university level. Based on an exploratory research design, the study involved the analysis of recordings of seven visits to online EFL classes given by different instructors with approximately 30 language learners in each class. The data were analyzed by using the Communicative Oriented Language Teaching (COLT) observation sheets. Findings provided an understanding of the interaction patterns in the online classes, by showing that there was more teacher-student interaction in online classes compared to student-student interaction, and the classes involved more sustained teacher speech, whereas the students' speech mostly encompassed ultra-minimal utterance patterns. Also, the findings showed that group work activities fell behind individual activities in online classes. In addition, the online classes observed in the present study were found to be instruction-focused, and discipline issues reflected on the language used by the teachers were found to be at a minimum level. Besides, the study presented a detailed analysis of teacher and student verbal interaction by unveiling that rather than form-related incorporations, message-related incorporations were common in the observed classes and the teachers commented on the students' utterances and expanded what they said mostly. The study brings some implications for teachers, curriculum planners, and administrators by providing insights regarding classroom interaction in online EFL classes.