Teacher-Student Role Redefinition During a Computer-Based Second Language Project: Are Computers Catalysts for Empowering Change?

This paper reports on a case study examining changes in teacher and student roles in a computer-based project conducted in a university-level Spanish foreign language class. Through classroom observations, student focus groups, student and teacher questionnaires, and teacher interviews, the shift in classroom roles was not as significant as expected and was largely reminiscent of more traditional teacher-student roles observed in a communicative classroom. While learners remained largely recipients of the learning process, they did adopt increasing autonomy for managing and directing their own learning, while the teacher remained the expert and general authority figure. This preservation of more traditional roles was not due to a rejection of more transformative roles, but likely a result of external factors dictated by the logistics and nature of the computer-based activity, including the time constraints and student unfamiliarity with software used in a foreign language. In spite of these constraints, both students and the teacher exhibited an increased awareness of the fluidity of their classroom roles. The teacher reported an increased recognition of the importance of individualizing his teaching practice, while students appreciated their new managerial roles, giving them increased freedom and the power to direct their own learning. These small but dramatic changes suggest that computer-based second and foreign language projects have the potential to empower both learners and teachers in the second and foreign language learning process.