Rethinking Digital Learning in Early ESL Education : A Sociocultural Analysis of Learner Participation and Interaction in a Cambridge Pre-A1 Classroom in Vietnam

Sammanfattning

Digital technologies are increasingly integrated into young learner English as a Second Language (ESL) classrooms and are often assumed to promote participation and engagement. However, participation during digital activities does not automatically result in meaningful interaction or language learning. This study explores how learner participation and interaction are constructed during digital activities in a Cambridge PreA1 classroom in Vietnam. It examines the role of teacher mediation, classroom interaction and digital activity design in shaping learner engagement and participation. Despite increasing use of digital tools in young learner ESL education, limited research has examined how participation and interaction are constructed during digitally supported classroom activities. This study addresses that gap by focusing on participation in a Cambridge Pre-A1 classroom in Vietnam. A qualitative case study design was employed involving fourteen seven-year-old Cambridge Pre-A1 Starters learners. Data were collected through classroom observations, field notes, participation tracking, lesson recordings and observer triangulation across eight digitally supported lessons using tools such as interactive videos, Canva presentations, Wordwall and Baamboozle. The data were analysed thematically through a sociocultural lens informed by Vygotskian perspectives on learning, participation and interaction. The findings revealed that digital tools alone did not automatically generate meaningful participation. Instead, participation increased when teachers actively mediated learning through guided questioning, interactive routines and collaborative activities. Learners demonstrated higher levels of engagement during peer-supported tasks and became increasingly confident in volunteering responses and interacting with classmates over time. The study suggests that the educational value of digital tools depends less on the technology itself and more on how digital activities are pedagogically designed and socially mediated within the classroom. These findings contribute to sociocultural understandings of digitally supported language learning and provide practical insights for teachers seeking to promote meaningful participation and interaction in young learner ESL classrooms.