Voice-based computer-mediated communication (VCMC): An exploratory study on EFL students' perceptions and the first language use for oral practice

A consideration to gradually boost students' willingness to communicate in the target language (L2) within the EFL instruction is seen to be an important preliminary to encourage EFL students to be able to have more English oral practice and product. While EFL students are in sharing and discussion in pairs or in groups, the intervention of the mother tongue (L1) use, as well as their background information in terms of confidence in English use and challenge in English use, might affect students' perceptions for English oral practice. In order to provide an efficient English speaking setting, a means of integrating synchronous computer-mediated communication in the instructional setting is employed to facilitate pairs and groups sharing. To this end, the aim of the study is to examine the relations of students' perceptions on oral practice within their background and the intervention of L1 use in the integrated EFL learning setting. 195 senior high school students were recruited after engaging in the semester-long English speaking class. Based on a prior study qualitatively conducting students' feedback in this learning process, a questionnaire, Perception for Synchronous Oral Computer-mediated Communication Questionnaire (PSOCMC) is developed. The findings demonstrate six factors revealed in terms of interactiveness, autonomy in English use, clarity of audio processing, intermediary of technology, instant support, and efficiency are analyzed and adopted for investigation. It shows the L1 use in students' sharing would affect them being autonomous in English use, and an indispensable role of confidence in English use in the EFL in-class environment.