Awareness, proficiency and challenges in the use of emerging technologies by ESL university lecturers in the post COVID-19 ERA

Abstract

The breakout of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has resulted in the shutting down of schools globally, has made a virtual classroom urgently imperative to support the physical classroom. This move cannot be realistic if the level of awareness and proficiency of the stakeholders, as well as challenges faced, are not noted. Hence, this study examined the awareness, proficiency, and challenges of English as a second language (ESL) lecturers in the use of emerging technologies in the post-Covid-19 era as well as the availability of the emerging technologies. The study adopted a survey research design. Three purposes of the study, three research questions, and four hypotheses were formulated to guide the study. The participants of the study comprised all ESL lecturers at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka and its affiliate, Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education, Owerri. A 37-item structured questionnaire and a structured interview were used for data collection. The data collected were analyzed using mean, standard deviation, t-test and content analysis. The study found, among other things, that there is a significant difference between male and female English language lecturers’ proficiency level in the use of emerging technologies for teaching in the post-Covid-19 era. The study makes a significant contribution to other studies on the use of emerging technologies with respect to gender and age.