English abstract
The spread of the CoVid-19 pandemic around the world has significantly
altered almost all aspects of life, including education, and Oman has not been an
exception to these changes. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the teaching
experience of English language teachers of Blended Learning (BL) and investigate
the challenges of implementing BL in teaching English as a Foreign Language
(EFL) at cycle two schools during the CoVid-19 pandemic in Oman. The researcher
relied on the descriptive approach to provide data analysis and present the results
that were reached from the statistical analysis. The researcher also used the
questionnaires and the interviews as a tool for data collection; these tools were
developed based on previous studies to answer the study questions targeting
English language teachers at cycle two schools. The study sample consisted of
(250) male and female teachers and this study was implemented in the academic
year 2020/2021.
The study's results showed that EFL teachers were experienced in utilizing
BL in teaching EFL and showed a great deal in teaching English content to the
students through online learning. In addition, EFL teachers were willing to
participate in training programs in order to enhance their experience in utilizing BL
in teaching EFL as a modern strategy for teaching in times of crisis, such as the
CoVid-19 pandemic. EFL teachers were also able to enrich their digital and
teaching skills, using several BL practices in teaching EFL, in order to face the
hazardous threats instigated by crises such as the CoVid-19 pandemic. Teachers
reported the effectiveness of using BL in EFL teaching as it enhanced the levels of
their social interaction with students. Some of the challenges teachers encountered
were their failure to use digital and software applications efficiently and fix several
hardware-related bugs during their various BL teaching sessions. Teachers' lack of
technical skills and competencies in software and hardware and their inability to
use BL tools and online platforms to assess student achievement were also some of
the challenges they faced during BL implementation. Nor did teachers know how
to increase student' participation and motivation in BL environment.
In the light of the results, the study reached several recommendations and
implications, including training teachers on essential skills related to information
technology and developing online learning skills. In addition, some
recommendations for future studies on communication between teachers and
learners in BL environment in light of CoVid-19 were proposed.
