Digital Writing Practices in the Information Age: Possibilities and Implications for English Language Teachers and Learners

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this chapter is to review a selection of recent studies of writing practices and research in order to synthesise and discuss the growing importance of technology orientation and digital literacy in English language learning and teaching. For this purpose, adopting a top-down framework, the chapter touches upon the issues of learning management systems (LMSs), personal learning environments (PLEs) and learning on language learning and teaching with examples of Symbaloo, writing correction, similarity and word-formation tools and feedback in digital classrooms. Finally, the chapter also provides an insight into and some examples of the current implementations in writing practices in online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this chapter, we explore current practices and research in the field of English language teaching and seek to shed light on this issue by overviewing the writing practices and online digital writing tools applied on a global scale in order to enhance interaction. More specifically, this chapter covers LMSs and PLEs, digital writing tools, content similarity detection tools, and student/teacher interaction and feedback in virtual classrooms with a special emphasis on learner autonomy. The results of this study have some far-reaching implications for language teachers, learners, language planners and curriculum developers. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.