Beyond Physical Realm: Unveiling English Language Educators' Acceptance and Readiness for Virtual Reality Integration

Virtual reality (VR) as one of the metaverse is viewed as a novel approach in teaching and learning of the English language in the Malaysian education landscape. However, due to its novelty and controversial issues (cyber sickness, deviation from learning, time-constraint, cost-constraint), a debate has ensued as to whether VR is effective and practical to be incorporated in primary ESL education. Moreover, there is an apparent dearth of research on teachers’ perceptions of VR in ESL classrooms. Hence, this study aims to determine ESL teachers’ acceptance and readiness to use virtual reality in teaching and learning. Cross-sectional survey design was employed with the incorporation of UTAUT and TAM models as conceptual framework. Through a purposive sampling method, 189 English primary school teachers from Kuching district in Sarawak responded to an online questionnaire. The descriptive analysis of the collected data unveiled a moderate inclination towards acceptance and readiness to integrate VR into ESL classrooms. Although the respondents displayed the highest levels of performance expectancy and effort expectancy, there was a notable deficiency in the facilitating conditions, indicating a significant barrier in this crucial aspect. This study provides the Ministry of Education (MOE) with a nuanced understanding of teachers' levels of acceptance and readiness to integrate VR into the ESL classroom setting. Future research should center on gauging teachers’ acceptance and readiness following practical implementation of VR-based instructions within the ESL classroom.