DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION AND PRACTICES IN THE TEACHING OF ENGLISH AS A SECONDARY LANGUAGE (ESL) AMIDST COVID-19 PANDEMIC: THE CHINESE CONTEXT

The study reviews the practices and integration of digital technology (DT) in the teaching and learning of English as a Second Language (ESL) in China by ESL teachers. The review examines the forms of the various types of digital technology that are utilized in the classroom, the role that digital technology plays in the instruction of English as a Second Language (ESL), the potential advantages of utilizing DTs in ESL education, and the challenges that prevent the integration of DTs in ESL education. It was determined, based on qualitative analyses of the reviewed literature, that DT was highly utilized, that schools provided support and venues to strongly encourage the use of supplementary educational platforms, that digital-based technologies have had both positive and negative effects on student learning, and that digital-based technologies have affected teachers’ instructional pedagogy. Furthermore, it was determined that schools provided support and venues to strongly encourage the use of supplementary educational platforms during the pandemic. Although technological constraints associated with digital technologies were revealed, the COVID-19 pandemic increased the adoption of digital-based technology in the ESL classroom.