Teaching Practicum with Mobile-Assisted Language Learning (MALL): Pre-Service EFL Teachers’ Perceptions

¹ English Language Education Department, Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta, Indonesia
² SMP Muhammadiyah 2 Wates, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
³ Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia, Malaysia

^* Corresponding author: evipuspitasari@fpb.umy.ac.id

Abstract

This study was to explore pre-service English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers’ perceptions toward the use of MALL in teaching practicums and to discuss the difference in the perception across genders. A quantitative approach and a cross-sectional survey design were adopted by involving 150 pre-service English teachers, consisting of 36 males and 114 females. The setting is the School of Sun (pseudonym), a teaching training program of a university in Indonesia where MALL was implemented for teaching practicum. Technically, an online MALL questionnaire adapted from Uzunboylu and Ozdamli [1] with 26 items was distributed to the respondents. After that, the data were analyzed through descriptive and inferential statistics with a statistical program. The findings revealed positive perceptions of pre-service EFL teachers on using MALL in teaching practicum (M = 3 and above). The capacity of mobile learning apps to enhance traditional education and facilitate teacher-student collaboration through mobile learning tools received the highest praise. On the contrary, the t-test results presented no significant differences between males’ and females’ perceptions of the use of MALL during teaching practicum (ρ = 0.050 = 0.05). Hence, both male and female pre-service EFL teachers agreed that MALL is suitable for language teaching, and both groups also perceived that MALL could accommodate their teaching practice.