Lessons Learnt From ERT: An EAP Case Study at a Japanese University

Online Learning versus Emergency Remote Teaching

Although EAP courses have been conducted online prior to the pandemic, Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT) has been distinguished from other forms of online learning primarily in terms of preparedness and choice. Hockly (2015) has divided online language learning into categories such as formal courses offered by universities and schools, or informal modes of learning such as virtual worlds, Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), online language learning communities or mobile apps. Students, teachers and administrators who have been involved with such online learning courses have typically been able to tailor their expectations to the mode of learning whereas ERT takes place due to external factors beyond the control of the stakeholders. Hodges et. al (2020) observe that “well-planned online learning experiences are meaningfully different from courses offered in response to a crisis or a disaster” (paragraph 1). They point out that whereas online courses typically require six to nine months of planning and preparation, ERT typically occurs without the time for instructors to be trained in the new teaching medium, and often without the infrastructure and careful administrative planning of an online course. This also means that institutional memory is lacking as instructors are unable to share tried and tested methods, and students may begin courses without the requisite computer skills or equipment. In addition, online learning can benefit from institutional budgeting in ways that ERT often cannot. An overview of the differences between online learning and emergency remote teaching is provided in Table 1.

(Reproduced from Lafleur et al, 2021)