EFL teachers’ perceptions of online community projects in secondary school education

Abstract

English as a Foreign Language (EFL) is crucial in most secondary schools within the EU and many other schools worldwide. Some teachers are integrating Online Community Projects (OCPs) into their curricula to provide a means of communication that motivates learning and incites learner-centred methods. This collaborative Action Research study reports on the perspectives and experiences of EFL teachers teaching in secondary schools in three European countries: the north and south of Italy, the east of Norway and the west of Sweden. Data were collected from six EFL teachers: four were users of OCPs, while the other two had chosen not to use them. Methods used to gather data were individual faceto-face interviews and open-question questionnaires. The results showed that all teachers perceived that working on OCPs could benefit professional development and their students’ language skills. The choice not to use OCPs was related to the lack of time and difficulties in assessment. This research provides a lens through which to examine the advantages and disadvantages of integrating OCPs into the EFL curricula. It has implications for teachers wishing to include OCPs in their curriculum.