Educational practices have become more diverse after the COVID-19 pandemic. As universities were faced with the challenge of adapting their courses to the distance education modality, English professors needed to understand which strategies could be more effective to improve students’ listening, speaking, writing, and reading skills in the second language.

1. Challenges of teaching English to adults: How
educators can improve students’ learning in
post-COVID times
Dr. Johanna Vivoni Suárez

2. During and after COVID-19, many adults decided to go back to school in an online modality
to fit their lifestyles and other responsibilities. As a result, online enrollment increased 93%
from 2019-2021 making it evident that educators would need to quickly adapt to an
increasing number of adult learners in all academic levels.
Adults are different from young students in that they:
● are more autonomous learners.
● are self-directed.
● are intrinsically motivated.
● can spend more time on learning tasks, so they can engage more deeply with the
learning materials.
● generally, feel more nervous in the classroom.
● need the lessons to be tailored to their interests and needs (relevant to their lives).
● can contribute to the lesson with their life experiences.
Introduction

3. The goal of the research study was to examine and analyze the perspectives and
challenges of adult university students (21+) during their English language learning process
in online courses. The data obtained from the adult students may potentially guide
professors to make decisions about their plans, activities and strategies as they teach their
English online courses in the future.
PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Historical challenges
with teaching English
as a second language
in Puerto Rico
Adapting to remote
teaching strategies as
part of the post-
COVID reality
Challenges faced by adult
university students and
faculty once the online
modality was implemented

4. 1. What are adult students’ perceptions on the use of technology in online classes to learn
English as a second language?
2. Which interaction teaching strategies do students perceive to be effective and
ineffective to help them improve their English in online classes?
3. What are students’ perceptions about which teaching strategies help develop the four
language skills of listening, reading, writing and speaking English?
4. Are there any differences in students’ perceptions due to their background variables?
Research Questions

5. Methodology
Research
Design
Quantitative, descriptive, survey-based
design using an adaptedsurvey to
inquire about students’ perceptionsof
their onlineEnglish learning experience.
Instrument
Self-administeredonline survey using
GoogleForm and adapted from a UPRRP
Academic Senate survey. It consisted of
26 items written in Spanish that
includedquestions about demographics,
perceptionsof technology for learning
and teaching strategy effectiveness.

6. Procedure
Instrument validation, pilot
study, IRB approval,
administration of questionnaire,
data collection and statistical
analysis.
Methodology
Sample
Consisted of 284 university students that
took an English course during the August-
December 2020 semester at a higher
education institution in Puerto Rico. This non-
probabilistic random sampling, recruited
students via social media and via the
University of Puerto Rico’s institutional email.

7. DEMOGRAPHICS
INSTITUTIONS AGE RANGE GEOGRAPHY
35%
65%
Private
Public
76%
PREVIOUS ONLINE
EXPERIENCE
34%
79%
11%
4% 6%
59 out of the 78 municipalities
Aligned to Research Question #4
17-21 22-30 31-40 41 or over

8. USE OF TECHNOLOGY
Synchronous: 50%
Asynchronous: 6%
Both, mostly
synchronous: 34%
Both, mostly
asynchronous: 8%
Did not answer: 2%
Devices used for class Style of communication
Aligned to Research Question #1

9. Do you think you have learned more English taking the course online
than what you would have learned if it was face-to-face?
75%
MARS
Public
institutions
Private
institutions
Aligned to Research Question #4

10. 37%
29%
100%
56%
63%
71%
44%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
120%
17-21 22-30 31-40 41 or over
Perceptions by Age Group
Yes No
Do you think you have learned more English taking the
course online than what you would have learned if it was
face-to-face?
Aligned to Research Question #4

11. STRATEGIES THAT DEVELOP
LANGUAGE SKILLS
1 2
3
STRATEGIES THAT
DEVELOPED THE MOST
ENGLISH LANGUAGE
SKILLS
STRATEGIES FOR
WRITING SKILLS
• chat
• asynchronous assignments
• discussion boards
STRATEGIES FOR
LISTENING SKILLS
STRATEGIES FOR
SPEAKING SKILLS
STRATEGIES FOR
READING SKILLS
• asynchronous assignments
• chat
• discussion boards
• professors asking questions
• oral reports
• oral discussion
• synchronous class meetings
• professor reads text aloud
• videos in class
PROFESSOR’S QUESTIONS
SYNCHRONOUS CLASS
ORAL DISCUSSION IN
SYNCHRONOUS CLASS
Aligned to Research Question #3

12. TOP REPORTED DIFFICULTIES OF
STUDYING ONLINE
70%
Unstable
internet
48%
Slow
internet
speed
38%
Distractions
and
excessive
noises
47%
Unstable
electric
power
Aligned to Research Question #1

13. ● Be prepared for anything
○ Power outage…………………………….have battery backup
○ Internet limitations……………………have hot spot available
○ No students show up…………………be ready to teach a fun class by yourself
● Always record the class for the benefit of those who had difficulties connecting
● Know how to manage the technological platform
● Keep students alert by involving them in the class
What does this mean for a teacher?

14. Responses
Frequency
(f)
Percent
(%)
Highly beneficial 87 31%
Beneficial 89 31%
Neutral 85 30%
A little beneficial 15 5%
Not beneficial 8 3%
How beneficial can
technology be for
learning ESL?
Responses
Frequency
(f)
Percent
(%)
Yes 111 39%
No 170 60%
Did not answer 3 1%
Do you think that you have
learned more English in the
online course than you would
have if the course had been
face-to-face?
62% 60%
The majority of the
participants think that
technology can be
beneficial to learn English.
The majority of the participants think
that they did not learn more English
in an online course.
Aligned to Research Question #1
This Photo by Unknown
Author is licensed under CC

17. Factors that are affecting how students are
learning English online
Distractors
or
interruptions
Bored in
lectures
Lack of
engagement

18. ● Challenges include:
○ Technology
○ Adapting activities
○ Competing for students’ attention
○ Promoting students’ interaction
From a teacher’s perspective

19. Online INTERACTIONS
82%
YES
Do you think interaction can help
you to learn English?
183
193
80
38
42
105
62
48
97
0 50 100 150 200 250
With professors
With other students
With content
Comparison of Interactions
Basically the same Online Face-to-face
Aligned to Research Question #2

20. ● Class interactionand collaborationis crucial for learning English and developing
language skills.
● It is necessarythatstudentsbe engagedduringthe synchronousmeetingswhich
shouldnotbe substituted.
● It is important for professors to foster a balance between their speaking and the
students’ speaking , in order to promote the interaction that is needed for
learning.
● Asynchronousstrategies help students become independentlearners, allowing
students to work at their own pace, thus addressing differentiation.
Why is this important?

21. Effectiveness
of teaching
strategies
to learn
English
55
73
115
116
119
122
130
131
132
141
142
154
163
168
192
192
205
218
0 50 100 150 200 250
Role play
Kahoot
Watch synchronous recordings
Surveys
Group work
Group exercises (worksheets)
Problem-solving exercises
Students read texts aloud
Debates
Discussion Board
Asynchronous class
Oral reports
Watch YouTube videos
Professor reads texts aloud
Synchronous chat
Oral discussion
Synchronous class
Professor asks questions
Aligned to Research Question #2

22. ● Use icebreaking activities (breakout groups with
sentence starters)
● Present short videosduring class (1-2 minutes)
to provide examples or additionalexplanations
● Promote student interaction by allowingthem to
share screens to present oral reports
● Use breakout groups to complete assignments in
pairs
● Pair English proficient students with those less
proficient
● Visit breakout groups to facilitate learning
Ideas for your online classroom

23. ● Teach vocabulary by asking them to find items
in their home
● Teach them to use technology (PowerPoint
voice/video recordings)
● Ask them to take turns reading fromthe screen
● Constantly ask them questions fromthe topics
being discussed
● Use the whiteboard to shareimages or to write
ideas being discussed
● Use games such as Kahoot
● Assess their learning (written, orally, small
groups)
More ideas for
your online
classroom

24. ● Trained for online teaching and managing technology
● Willing to constantly upgrade your technological knowledge
● Flexible and prepared for technical problems
● Accessible
● Be welcoming, inspiring and motivating
● Be patient
● Be fun and creative in your lessons
● Allow the classrooms to be student-centered
● Facilitate student collaboration with an engaging tone
● Provide timely and proactive feedback
● Be open to feedback from students and parents
● Be a good communicator and time manager
Qualities of a good online teacher

25. Selected References
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26. Selected References
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27. Dr. Johanna Vivoni Suárez
jvivoni@agmu.edu