Using the Mobile Phone in Teaching English Language in Nigeria Secondary School

Abstract

As technology becomes a greater part of everyday life, it is natural that is becomes a central and essential part of learning. The reasons for the use of technology in language learning are diverse and multifaceted: the main purpose is obviously the the enhancement of a specific learning situation. As many educational institutions today suffer from cuts in contact hours and large class sizes, technology offers a way of counteracting these constraints by taking part of the language learning process out of class and making it more student- centered. The evolution of the handheld portable devices, such as mobile phone, and wireless technology has resulted in radical changes in the people's lifestyles around the world, including for learning. This paper takes a look at the mobile phone and different ways by which mobile phones could be used to teach English as a second language in Nigeria secondary schools. Some of the ways include using it in note- taking, for recording conversations ouside the classroom, to keep a blog, among others. Anticipated problems in language teaching through the mobile phone such as accessibility of the device, additioal workload on the teacher were also highlighted and recommendations such as providing environment for the use of affordable technologies in the curriculum and English language text books were offered.