Language teacher beliefs about technology: Expanding the ecology

Much of the work done on language teacher beliefs about technology remains limited to the individual or institutional scales. This study responds to calls to reinsert language teaching and learning into a larger ecosystem by examining language teacher beliefs and uses of technology from an ecological theoretical perspective. Using a case study research design comprised of interviews and participant observations, the study analyzed two language teachers’ beliefs and uses of technology in terms of beliefs (language, learning, technology) and scales (temporal, spatial). Analysis revealed multiple beliefs, such as language for cultural understanding and technology as a threat, that were produced at multiple scale levels. Analysis also revealed layered interactions between beliefs and scales that has led to tensions in both beliefs and uses of technology, such as the societal pressure to include technology that clashed with personal and institutional understandings of learning. Implications for how to address this complexity are discussed.