EFL teachers' and students' perspectives on the use of electronic dictionaries for learning English

Abstract

Despite the abundance of research conducted to investigate English as a foreign language (EFL) students’ or teachers’ perspectives on the use of electronic dictionaries (e.g., Bower & McMillan, 2007; Issac & Jamil, 2011; Nesi, 2002; Wang, 2012), limited research has been undertaken to compare both EFL teachers’ and students’ perspectives on the use of electronic dictionaries for learning English. Therefore, the current study was carried out to contribute to this area of research. Participants of the study were 126 EFL students and 73 EFL teachers and were invited to respond to questionnaires. Among them, 81 students and 66 teachers participated in follow-up interviews. The results of the study suggest that both EFL teachers and students held moderately positive attitudes toward the use of electronic dictionaries for learning EFL. They also indicate that there are several obstacles and challenges, including lack of training on the use of electronic dictionaries, students’ use of unsuitable versions of electronic dictionaries, lack of facilities to use electronic dictionaries in EFL classrooms, and distraction from learning caused by using electronic dictionaries in the classroom. The analysis of data further revealed that the majority of Iranian EFL students use electronic dictionaries installed on their cellphones. The students showed a preference for using electronic dictionaries over paper dictionaries. The Iranian EFL students reported that they need to receive training on how to select a suitable electronic dictionary and use its services for learning EFL. Considering the fact that the use of electronic dictionaries will be indispensable in the near future, the study would have direct implications for the successful implementation of computer assisted language learning (CALL) and effective use of electronic dictionaries in EFL contexts.