Main Article Content
Abstract
The COVID-19 outbreak caused mass school closure, pushing teachers and students into online remote education and forcing them to adapt to unfamiliar pedagogical norms. Drawing on Koole’s (2009) Framework for the Rational Analysis of Mobile Education (FRAME) model, this study explored the challenges and opportunities of online remote ESL learning as experienced by four selected high school students from urban and rural Sarawak, Malaysia. It also explored the extent of their readiness for online remote ESL education one year into school closure. This study employed a multiple case study approach which included observations, document analysis and in-depth interviews of participants from multiple demographic categories. Findings discovered challenges that affected the students’ online remote ESL learning experience included the teacher’s physical absence, lack of engagement during lessons and unfavourable learning conditions. Online remote ESL learning also presented students with educational opportunities, particularly independent learning, online social learning and skills development. Findings suggested that urban students were ready, capable and equipped for online remote ESL learning whereas rural students were not as urban students had better digital resources, higher digital competency, sturdier support system, robust modes of instruction for online remote English lessons and higher language proficiency. This study concluded that individual characteristics of students, digital resources, language proficiency and appropriate learning environments play essential roles in supporting online remote ESL learning. Therefore, this study holds a significant theoretical implication for ESL education and the construct of Koole’s FRAME as it validates that when aspects related to the learner, device and social interactions in online remote learning are fulfilled, it can result in an ideal online remote learning experience.
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Copyright (c) 2023 Lois Gwyn Peter, Adelina Asmawi

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References
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- Elly, O., & Abd Karim, R. (2022). The Students’ Perception of Whatsapp Application in English Language Learning during Movement Control Order (MCO). International Journal of Education, Psychology and Counseling, 7(45), 478-491.
- Ferri, F., Grifoni, P., & Guzzo, T. (2020). Online learning and emergency remote teaching: Opportunities and challenges in emergency situations. Societies, 10(4), 86.
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- Koole, M.L., Buck, R., Anderson, K. & Laj, D. (2018). A Comparison of the Uptake of Two Research Models in Mobile Learning: The FRAME Model and the 3-Level Evaluation Framework. Education Sciences, 8(3), 114.
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- Rahman, K. (2020). Learning Amid Crisis: EFL Students’ Perception on Online Learning during COVID-19 Outbreak. English, Teaching, Learning, and Research Journal (ETERNAL), 6(2), 179-194.
- Rouadi, N. E., & Anouti, M. F. (2020). The online learning experiment in the intermediate and secondary schools in Lebanon during the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis. Online learning, 7(7), 14466-14485.
- Shrestha, S., Haque, S., Dawadi, S., & Giri, R. A. (2021). Preparations for and practices of online education during the Covid-19 pandemic: A study of Bangladesh and Nepal. Education and information technologies, 1-23.
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References
Bai, B., Wang, J., & Nie, Y. (2021). Self-efficacy, task values and growth mindset: What has the most predictive power for primary school students’ self-regulated learning in English writing and writing competence in an Asian Confucian cultural context? Cambridge Journal of Education, 51(1), 65-84.
Chand, P., Bano, R., & Kaur, M. (2021). Parental involvement in English language education of Secondary School students-A case study of Korovuto settlement, Ba, Fiji. Integrated Journal of Social Sciences, 8(1), 9-17.
Elly, O., & Abd Karim, R. (2022). The Students’ Perception of Whatsapp Application in English Language Learning during Movement Control Order (MCO). International Journal of Education, Psychology and Counseling, 7(45), 478-491.
Ferri, F., Grifoni, P., & Guzzo, T. (2020). Online learning and emergency remote teaching: Opportunities and challenges in emergency situations. Societies, 10(4), 86.
Firdoussi, S.E., Lachgar, M., Kabaili, H., Rochdi, A., Goujdami, D. & Firdoussi, L.E. (2020). Assessing Distance Learning in Higher Education during the COVID-19 Pandemic, Education Research International, (2020), 1-13.
Griffee, D.T. (2012). An introduction to second language research methods. New York: TESL-EJ Publications.
Gurung, S. (2021). Challenges faced by teachers in online teaching during Covid-19 pandemic. The Online Journal of Distance Education and e-Learning, 9(1), 8-18.
Hassan, I., Gamji, M. B., Nasidi, Q. Y., & Azmi, M. N. L. (2021). Challenges and Benefits of Web 2.0-based Learning among International Students of English during the Covid-19 Pandemic in Cyprus. Arab World English Journal, 295-306.
Hossein-Mohand, H., Gomez-Garcia, M., Trujillo-Torres, J.M., Hossein-Mohand, H. & Boumadan-Hamed, M. (2021). Uses and Resources of Technologies by Mathematics Students Prior to COVID-19. Sustainability, 13(4), 1630.
Jin, Y.Q., Lin, C.L., Zhao, Q., Yu, S.W. & Su, Y.S. (2021). A Study on Traditional Teaching Method Transferring to E-Learning Under the COVID-19 Pandemic: From Chinese Students’ Perspectives. Frontiers in Psychology, 12.
Joshi, O., Chapagain, B., Kharel, G., Poudyal, N. C., Murray, B. D., & Mehmood, S. R. (2020). Benefits and challenges of online instruction in agriculture and natural resource education. Interactive Learning Environments, 1–12.
Koole, M. L. (2009). A model for framing mobile learning. Mobile learning: Transforming the delivery of education and training, 1(2), 25-47.
Koole, M.L., McQuilkin, J.L. & Ally, M. (2010). Mobile Learning in Distance Education: Utility or Futility? Journal of Distance Education, 24(2), 59-82.
Koole, M.L., Buck, R., Anderson, K. & Laj, D. (2018). A Comparison of the Uptake of Two Research Models in Mobile Learning: The FRAME Model and the 3-Level Evaluation Framework. Education Sciences, 8(3), 114.
Lai, J., & Widmar, N. O. (2021). Revisiting the Digital Divide in the COVID‐19 Era. Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, 43(1), 458-464.
Lau, E.Y.H. & Lee, K. (2020). Parents’ Views on Young Children’s Distance Learning and Screen Time During COVID-19 Class Suspension in Hong Kong. Early Education and Development, 1-18.
Mahapatra, S. K. (2021). Online Formative Assessment and Feedback Practices of ESL Teachers in India, Bangladesh and Nepal: A Multiple Case Study. The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 1-12.
Manolescu, D. (2021). The magic and mysteries of teaching ESL. Middle Eastern Journal of Research in Education and Social Sciences, 2(3), 122-128.
Marín-Hernández, D., Hupert, N., & Nixon, D. F. (2021). The Immunologists’ Guide to Pandemic Preparedness. Trends in Immunology, 42(2), 91-93.
Morganstein, J. C., Fullerton, C. S., Ursano, R. J., Donato, D., & Holloway, H. C. (2017). Pandemics: health care emergencies. Textbook of disaster psychiatry, 270-284.
Mulyano, H., Suryoputro, G., & Jamil, S. R. (2021). The application of WhatsApp to support online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia. Heliyon, 7(8), 07853.
Nomura, K., Minamizono, S., Maeda, E., Kim, R., Iwaya, T., Hirayama, J., … & Yamamoto, F. (2021). Cross-Sectional survey of depressive symptoms and suicide-related ideation at a Japanese national university during the COVID-19 stay-home order. Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine, 26(1), 1-9.
Ozdamli, F., & Cavus, N. (2011). Basic elements and characteristics of mobile learning. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 28, 937-942.
Ozmaden, M. & Yildiz, Y. (2020). The Relationship of COVID-19 Phoby and Distance Education. Ambient Science, 7(1), 92-96.
Polit, D. F., & Beck, C. T. (2010). Generalization in quantitative and qualitative research: Myths and strategies. International journal of nursing studies, 47(11), 1451-1458.
Rahman, K. (2020). Learning Amid Crisis: EFL Students’ Perception on Online Learning during COVID-19 Outbreak. English, Teaching, Learning, and Research Journal (ETERNAL), 6(2), 179-194.
Rouadi, N. E., & Anouti, M. F. (2020). The online learning experiment in the intermediate and secondary schools in Lebanon during the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis. Online learning, 7(7), 14466-14485.
Shrestha, S., Haque, S., Dawadi, S., & Giri, R. A. (2021). Preparations for and practices of online education during the Covid-19 pandemic: A study of Bangladesh and Nepal. Education and information technologies, 1-23.
Suri, H. (2011). Purposeful sampling in qualitative research synthesis. Qualitative Research Journal, 11(2), 63-75.
Teymori, A.N. & Fardin, M.A. (2020). COVID-19 and Educational Challenges: A Review of the Benefits of Online Education. Annals of Military and Health Sciences Research, 18(3).
Verleye, K. (2019). Designing, writing-up and reviewing case study research: an equifinality perspective. Journal of Service Management, 30(5), 549-576.