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In the current transformative era, the educational landscape, including the field of English as a foreign language (EFL), has been significantly impacted by the rapid advancements in technology. As noted by Rahim (2019), the integration of technology in foreign language instruction has garnered considerable attention from both language educators and learners. To meet the global demand for technology integration in classrooms, EFL teachers have been transitioning from traditional teacher-centered pedagogies to embracing e-learning approaches that foster student-centered learning, as observed by Aboud (2020) and El Khairat (2021). In the meantime, contemporary EFL learners, who are often digital natives (Şahin Kızıl, 2017), are proficient in navigating web-based learning environments (Çam et al., 2021) and possess independent and interactive learning skills (Daulay & Anwar, 2022; Yumnam, 2021). Given the vital role of e-learning in enhancing EFL teachers’ student-centered pedagogical approaches and improving EFL learners’ language proficiency and autonomous learning abilities, it becomes crucial to gain a comprehensive understanding of the research landscape in e-learning within EFL teaching and learning contexts.
The concept of e-learning has been a subject of extensive discussion and exploration in academic discourse (Rodrigues et al., 2019). The Commission of the European Communities (2001) defines e-learning as the utilization of internet-based technologies to enhance the quality of learning by enabling access to remote resources and facilitating collaboration. Similarly, Wang et al. (2010) characterize e-learning as the delivery of knowledge and instructional materials to learners through computer network technology via the internet. Taking a broader perspective, Khan (2005) describes e-learning as an innovative approach that provides well-designed, learner-centered, interactive, and facilitated learning environments accessible to anyone, anywhere, and anytime. In general, e-learning transcends temporal and geographic constraints (Alqudah et al., 2020; Ja'ashan, 2020), enabling learners to accumulate technology-driven learning experiences, as noted by Horton (2006).
It is noteworthy that technical terms such as e-learning, online learning, web-based learning, virtual learning, digital learning, and distance education are commonly used interchangeably within the literature (Gurcan et al., 2021; Reis & Gulsecen, 2014). However, it is important to highlight that e-learning and distance learning are not synonymous terms, as underscored by Rodrigues et al. (2019), since the physical distance between the learner and teacher is not a distinguishing feature of e-learning (Ali et al., 2018). Furthermore, the aforementioned concepts, e-learning, online learning, web-based learning, and virtual learning, are derived from the broader notion of distance learning, as posited by Moore et al. (2011). Notably, the emerging trend of mobile learning (m-learning) is often considered a subset of e-learning (Kumar Basak et al., 2018). Due to the ever-changing nature of emerging technologies, a consensus has not been made on specifying a widely accepted and clear-cut interpretation of the term e-learning (Rodrigues et al., 2019). Nonetheless, it is widely recognized that e-learning involves the utilization of computers to facilitate learning (Shahi, 2016).