Short communications. eLearning in EFL: Problems and Solutions

This paper investigates certain problems encountered when technology-based instruction is employed in teaching English as a foreign language. Three EFL specialists from Saudi Arabia are interviewed and their insights on solving those problems are presented. Many academics feel ill-equipped to utilize new technologies in teaching because they are technophobes who fear or dislike technology or do not have sufficient experience in employing computer applications. Other academics found technology-based teaching time-consuming, leading to increased workload, and demanding high levels of technical support. Solutions to face the reluctance to engage in electronic forms of teaching include the provision of instructional support to provide faculty with the necessary technical skills, changing college policies to consider teaching with technology an activity for which faculty receive credit, improving the reward system to motivate faculty to better productivity and higher performance, and addressing critical work-related issues, such as workload.