Teachers’ Readiness to Adopt Smartphone-Based Teaching Methods: Evidence from China

Abstract

Teachers’ perspectives are critical to the implementation of mobile-assisted language learning, particularly smartphone-assisted English language learning (SAELL), but have received scant scholarly attention. This study focuses on teachers’ perspectives, examining their changing perceptions of and readiness for SAELL in the context of post-COVID higher education. A questionnaire, based on the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology framework, was 8distributed to 218 English language teachers in China. In general, the teachers had positive perceptions of smartphone learning, and their adoption of mobile technology-based teaching techniques was influenced by performance expectancy, effort expectancy, subjective norms, facilitating conditions, the technological pedagogical content knowledge framework, and their self-efficacy. Conversely, traditional societal and pedagogical cultures, information technology anxiety, lack of technological knowledge and teaching experience, and technical weaknesses were barriers to the teachers’ implementation of smartphone technology both inside and outside the classroom. Practical implications for teachers adopting SAELL are discussed.