Learning Beyond the Walls: Mobile Classrooms for Disadvantaged ELLs

Abstract

Although technology-based language instruction has come to be seen as a panacea for all learning-related issues, technology-based language instruction offers a solution to the unsymmetrical entrance to learning resources and shifting to modern teacher-dominated learning approaches. Teachers' expectations for new technologies to arbitrate unchanging teaching approaches have inhibited the most effective use of technology apps like instant messaging.  Significant changes in teaching designs are required to integrate mobile instant messaging and deliver distributed cooperative/synergetic learning for students; this study chose a mobile converted classroom to restructure language training. At the same time, when compared to their peers, the difficulties faced by underprivileged English learners are numerous. By ‘disadvantaged,’ we mean learners who have not had optimum linguistic, academic, social, and economic opportunities until they entered Majmaah University. The mobile converted classroom incorporated mobile platforms (such as WhatsApp) by physically scattered learners to collectively deal with content after illustrating IT notions and processes by the teacher. It turns out that mobile converted classrooms allowed English language learners to study at their own pace, increased their entry into distributed learning, boosted their cognitive processes, encouraged on-task activities, and encouraged informal replay of educational videos via WhatsApp (teacher-student and student-student). According to the findings, successful adoption and adaptation of new technologies necessitate consideration of students' disciplinary knowledge, ability to collaborate, and continual commitment to participate in academically related tasks.