ABSTRACT
The irruption of new technologies in teaching in general, and in the second language classroom in particular, has had a great impact on didactic and pedagogical methods in recent years. This has led teachers to have to update and adapt the tools and dynamics with which they work in the classroom. The COVID-19 pandemic has meant a forced transformation without the possibility of choice, which may have been traumatic for some sectors of the world of education. The aim of this article is to contextualise the history of virtual and distance didactics, expose its virtues and shortcomings and analyse two of the areas that, in the Author's opinion, experienced a greater impact in this new scenario: non-verbal communication and the affective dimension. © 2022 Edizioni Ca' Foscari. All Rights Reserved.