EFL Female Emirati Students’ Perception of the Use of an Interactive Mathematics Software Program in a CLIL Class at the Tertiary Level

Abstract

The use of an interactive mathematics software program was applied to first-year Foundations-level female students in a CLIL classroom in the United Arab Emirates, utilizing PC tablets. The learning experience was made to be enjoyable as well as meaningful, all while utilizing technology in the hopes of creating more autonomous students who would benefit from the change in pedagogy as they embarked on their tertiary learning experience.

Their textbooks were integrated into an interactive program using Blackboard (Bb) to include video clips, authentic applications, and interactive applications in order to present the curriculum. Formative assessments were included throughout the process, all aimed specifically at second-language (L2) students with a minimum band of 2.5 level of English, in an attempt to give them immediate feedback on the learning process.

The students‘ perspective for this particular medium of delivery shall be discussed and compared with traditional teacher-centered teaching, using the textbook, via observation data, questionnaires, and focus group data analysis. It is hoped that the data accumulated will contribute significantly to the usefulness (or lack of) technology-based instruction and best practices in mathematical interactive software development, specifically for Foundations-level L2 students in the UAE.