In a context in which opportunities for oral interaction are limited (English as a foreign language courses at a Saudi tertiary institution), we carried out an action research project evaluating the introduction of computer-mediated spoken language tasks with a group of intermediate learners. Although the students were confronted with multiple challenges ranging from unfamiliarity with educational technology, through recurrent bandwidth issues, to their own limited linguistic repertoires, they showed themselves able to participate in discussion with increasing facility and levels of responsibility for conversation management. In this paper, we focus on the communication strategies (CS) which they deployed to achieve this. While CSs were not the subject of explicit instruction, the students showed themselves able to draw on their repertoires and on the strategies implicitly modelled by their instructor over the six weeks of speaking activities using the SpeakApps platform. We examine what these strategies were: change in CSs over time; CS use in different conversational configurations (teacher-led group discussion; student-led group discussion and peer-peer pair discussion); impacts of the audio-only nature of discussion on CS choice. The paper points to promising directions for future practice and research.

Since 2020, Saudi administrations have provisionally closed educational institutions to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. At the time, employing technology was imperative to accelerate learning efforts and offer methods of enhancing interactions between learners and among learners and tutors. In this review, I first describe the e-learning systems that were used in higher education before the pandemic. Then, I investigate the impact of COVID-19 on Saudi higher education and how universities and public educational institutions responded to the pandemic. In the conclusion, I argue that policymakers, university sectors, and syllabi developers should unify national e-learning strategies, integrate technology in a systematic way, and design e-learning curricula to meet the needs of an ever-advancing world and revolutionise the learning process.

In response to the new policy of English department, the internship program has been shifted to virtual programmes. As part of this initiative, the university has collaborated with other educational sectors to offer a virtual English as a Foreign Language (EFL) internship programme aimed at training individuals as EFL teachers. The aim of the study was to investigate student perceptions of dynamic social structures and communities of practice in technologically mediated environments, particularly in relation to virtual internships. The authors recognised a gap in research regarding how EFL students create meaningful learning experiences and how they build their practical knowledge in mediated communication environments. Quantitative and qualitative research methods were used. 50 students comprised the study subjects. The data were collected from multiple sources: interviews, students’ reflections, and community of inquiry and practice survey instruments. The findings revealed that an unprepared virtual environment led to social anxiety and challenges related to real-world work experience. The study suggests that evidence-based interventions in technologically mediated, virtual learning environments can help to resolve study findings with this goal: fostering a sense of belongingness and community that can promote effective remote interactions between learners and their teachers to ensure that internships serve students best.

The rapid adoption of ChatGPT in second language learning has revolutionized the ways learners acquire and practice new languages. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of instructional assistance (IA) formative feedback provided by ChatGPT in enhancing learners' writing skills, addressing the limited research available on the impact of AI tools on writing development. The participants included 50 undergraduate students enrolled in English language courses and 5 experienced English language teachers who served as essay raters. A mixed-methodology approach was employed, combining quantitative data from students' essays and Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) surveys with qualitative insights gathered through the think-aloud technique. The results indicated that positive responses to IA formative feedback significantly boosted the quality of students' writing, with notable improvements in coherence, grammar, and overall engagement with the writing process. Furthermore, the findings revealed that such feedback fostered greater independence among students, empowering them to take ownership of their writing and engage in self-directed learning. Participants reported increased confidence in their writing abilities, correlating with their positive experiences using ChatGPT as a formative feedback tool. This study contributes to the growing body of literature on the role of AI in education, particularly in language acquisition. By demonstrating the potential of ChatGPT as a supportive tool in writing instruction, this research highlights its effectiveness while encouraging further exploration into the integration of AI technologies in language learning environments. Ultimately, the findings aim to enhance educational outcomes for learners across diverse settings and promote innovative pedagogical practices that leverage the capabilities of AI in fostering effective language learning experiences.