The perceptions and practices of second language teachers regarding digital technologies for communicative competence : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Education, Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand

Abstract

This study investigated how secondary school language teachers in Aotearoa New Zealand perceive and integrate digital technologies to support students’ Communicative Competence development in pre-NCEA language classrooms. Employing an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design, it involved a survey of 89 teachers from diverse languages and three case studies across New Zealand Sign Language, Chinese, and te reo Māori classes. Student perspectives were incorporated to complement the teacher-focused analysis. Findings show the uneven development of Communicative Competence components in beginner-level classrooms. Linguistic competence was consistently perceived as important, with digital technologies primarily used to support vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation. While Intercultural Communicative Competence (ICC) was conceptually valued, it was typically addressed through static cultural content rather than authentic interaction. Although most teachers expressed positive perceptions of digital technologies, their integration remained cautious and selective, influenced by teacher, student, and technology-related challenges. Students’ views on technology integration generally aligned with teachers’ established classroom practices, though differing interpretations of specific digital tools were noted. The study contributes to understanding how the Communicative Competence framework operates in Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL), particularly within the linguistically and culturally distinctive language classrooms of Aotearoa New Zealand. It also offers a contextually grounded and methodologically layered understanding of digital language teaching, having examined how teachers of diverse languages interpreted and implemented digital integration, supported by student perspectives to illuminate the classroom experience. In addition, it presents a more dynamic view of the relationship between teacher perceptions and practice, showing that in some cases, digital classroom practice preceded teachers’ stated perceptions.