The Use of ICT for Teaching English for Business to Promote Students’ Learning Autonomy

Abstract

Teaching using ICT is challenging. It’s difficult to bring an ICT into a classroom of non-English native speakers. We need to know what the differences are between technology literacy, information literacy, computer literacy, internet literacy, digital literacy, and other meaning of literacy as defined by linguists. In my teaching, I have found many authentic materials as resources, from the easiest or more common topics, to more difficult ones in the internet. The problem is, not all students are competent in finding the materials on the internet. Moreover, there is a lack of computers in the classrooms. Teaching Business English across the curriculum (in an  Accounting program of study), requires teachers to be active and creative in running the teaching and learning process. Students worked in a group of four, they did exercises by using authentic materials which had been downloaded from internet or copied. Problem-based learning is assumed to overcome students’ obstacles. In promoting the speaking skills, students had to present their tasks in front of their classmates, and they were sometimes allowed to use their L1 to assess how well their reading comprehension of the passages

Keywords : Teaching Business English using ICT, Problem-based learning, Learning Autonomy.