The Impact Created by the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Teaching of English Language to Undergraduates in Sri Lanka

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic, which has paralyzed the world for nearly two years, has wreaked havoc on a variety of social sectors. The global educational system has suffered as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. In Sri Lanka, a substantial population of school-aged children and university undergraduates are experiencing disruptions in their studies as a result of the pandemic's severe effects on education systems. The temporary closure of educational institutions during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has abruptly transformed the global education landscape in favor of distance learning. The hurried move from traditional face-to-face classroom methodology to online and blended learning modes in the teaching of English to undergraduates has resulted in a slew of concerns ranging from internet connectivity issues to a lack of learning gadgets due to economic troubles. Undergraduates are taught English by developing the four language abilities of reading, writing, listening, and speaking. However, the online teaching method has limited the freedom that a face-to-face language classroom offers to some extent. This paper seeks to briefly examine the influence of the present COVID-19 epidemic, as well as the issues it poses, on undergraduate English teaching in Sri Lanka.