Videoconferencing Improves Students' Language Learning in the EFL Classroom

The aim of this study is to analyze a videoconferencing class for English as a foreign language (EFL), and to investigate how learners can develop their linguistic competence via videoconferencing. It examines the benefits and drawbacks of using videoconferencing systems in class. Forty-five students (19 graduates and 26 undergraduates) in a university in Seoul, Korea, were put in contact with Asian students from seven countries (Korea, Japan, Singapore, The Philippines, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Malaysia) via a videoconferencing class. Many students perceived the videoconferencing class as effective in developing their second or foreign language (L2) skills. More importantly, integrating videoconferencing into the EFL classroom provided students with more opportunities to develop language competence, as they gained an understanding of cross-cultural communication by participating in two-way communication with learners from other cultures.