Search results for: language teaching competence

Authors: Pouya Vakili

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The aim of present paper is to have a rough comparison between language proficiency and communicative competence, moreover, how different scholars in the field of second language acquisition/assessment have defined competence in different paradigms. Researchers differ, however, in how they view 'competence'. Those who are dealing with generative tradition associated with Chomsky have defined it as linguistic competence (knowledge of the grammar of L2). Other researchers have adopted a broader perspective that is examining how learners acquire communicative competence (knowledge of both the L2 grammar and of how this system is put to use in actual communication).

Keywords: communicative competence, competence, language proficiency, linguistic competence

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Authors: Mutwakel Abdalla Ali Garalzain

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The aim of this study is to develop university EFL students’ communicative competence. The descriptive, analytical method was used in this study. To collect the data, the researcher designed two questionnaires, one for university EFL students and the other for English language teachers. The respondents of the study were eighty-eight; 76 university EFL students, and 12 English language teachers. The data obtained were analyzed by using statistical package for social science (SPSS). The findings of the study have revealed that most of the university EFL students are unable to express their ideas properly, although they have an abundance of vocabulary. The findings of the study have also shown that most of the university EFL students have positive attitudes towards communicative competence. The results of the study also identified the best strategies that can be used to enhance university EFL students’ communicative competence in English language teaching. The study recommends that English language textbooks should be compatible with the requirements of the student-centered approach. It also recommends that English language teachers should adopt the communicative approach’s strategies in the EFL classroom.

Keywords: applied linguistics, communicative competence , English language teaching, university EFL students

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Authors: Simin Sasani

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This study will explore a group of English language teachers’ understanding of intercultural competence to find out if they are aware of the concept and how important it is for them. It will investigate how much they are concerned about the challenges that the learners might face in their intercultural communications and to what extent they can help the learners to overcome the barriers to increase students’ insight into cultural differences. In addition, it will explore how a group of non-native English language teachers define culture in relation to their English language teaching practices. More specifically, the research tries to take the how and why of inclusion of intercultural competence into consideration and how non-native teachers think they can improve their learners’ knowledge and skills in this domain. The study will be conducted in the UK and the participants are eight non-native English language teachers who are currently teaching general English language courses for foreigners. A pilot study have been conducted for this research which its results show three non-native English teachers are aware of the notion although they have not had any formal education about intercultural competence. Their challenges and limitation were also highlighted through interviews and observations.

Keywords: English, English language teachers, intercultural communications, intercultural competence, non-natives

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Authors: Hazem Hasan Hushayish

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Motivation and teaching strategies are commonly believed to improve students’ communicative competence in English as a foreign language; still, there is not much empirical evidence to support this claim. The present study is intended to focus on the effects of motivational factors and teaching strategies on the communicative competence among the Palestinian undergraduates. In the first phase, one hundred and eighty participants, who are studying English language in three Palestinian universities, answered a questionnaire. The questionnaire included items derived from Gardner’s 2001, 2004, 2006, 2007 Attitude/Motivation Test Battery AMTB and items from Dörnyei 2007 and Guilloteaux and Dörnyei 2008 teaching strategies framework for foreign language classrooms. In the second phase, 6 participants, from the same universities, were interviewed. The quantitative results indicated that participants’ communicative competence is significantly affected by motivation and teaching strategies. Also, the qualitative results indicated that teaching strategies do not directly affect students’ communicative competence, but rather affect their motivation. Consequently, the current study will add substantively to the literature concerning the effects of motivation and teaching strategies in communicative competencies among EFL learners in the Palestinian context, and some suggested procedures and suggestions that help improve learners’ communicative competences.

Keywords: communicative competence, motivation, teaching strategies, Palestinian undergraduates

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Authors: Randa Alahmadi

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Because the world has become a global village, English is not only used by native speakers, but also by non-native speakers from culturally diverse backgrounds. Even though learning a second/foreign language requires development of the four skills: reading, writing, listening, and speaking, there is also an intertwined relationship between language and culture, making it difficult to teach language without knowing the cultural context in which it is to be used. In the past decade, the number of international students enrolled in universities around the world has increased significantly. Having the urge to communicate effectively would serve as a motivation for both international and domestic students. The teaching of culture is important because linguistic competence is not enough for successful communication with speakers of other languages. Therefore, whether teaching natives or non-natives, students need to improve their cross-cultural communication skills and become culturally prepared to communicate successfully with people from other cultures. Teachers can equip their students for this environment by giving them appropriate knowledge and skills for effective intercultural communication. This paper will focus on the importance of intercultural communicative competence and its role in developing students’ understanding of diverse cultures as part of learning foreign/second languages. It will also explain how teachers can decide which culture should be taught: the target culture, the learners’ culture, or both. Moreover, practical and effective techniques that can be used in cultural-based language teaching will be shared.

Keywords: cultural-based language teaching, English as a lingua franca, English language learners, intercultural communicative competence

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Authors: Jana Beresova

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The paper presents a study carried out in 2015-2016 within the national scheme of research - VEGA 1/0106/15 based on theoretical research and empirical verification of the concept of intercultural communicative competence. It focuses on the current conception concerning target languages teaching compatible with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, teaching, assessment. Our research had revealed how the concept of intercultural communicative competence had been perceived by secondary-school teachers of English in Slovakia before they were intensively trained. Intensive workshops were based on the use of both authentic and instructional materials with the goal to support interculturally oriented language teaching aimed at challenging thinking. The former concept that supported the development of the students´ linguistic knowledge and the use of a target language to obtain information about the culture of the country whose language learners were learning was expanded by the meaning-making framework which views language as a typical means by which culture is mediated. The goal of the workshop was to influence English teachers to better understand the concept of intercultural communicative competence, combining theory and practice optimally. The results of the study will be presented and analysed, providing particular recommendations for language teachers and suggesting some changes in the National Educational Programme from which English learners should benefit in their future studies or professional careers.

Keywords: authentic materials, English language teaching, instructional materials, intercultural communicative competence

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Authors: Ororho Maureen Ekpelezie

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This study investigates language educators' perceptions and experiences regarding AI-driven personalized teacher training modules in Awka South, Anambra State, Nigeria. Utilizing a stratified random sampling technique, 25 schools across various educational levels were selected to ensure a representative sample. A total of 1000 questionnaires were distributed among language teachers in these schools, focusing on assessing their perceptions and experiences related to AI-driven personalized teacher training. With an impressive response rate of 99.1%, the study garnered valuable insights into language teachers' attitudes towards AI-driven personalized teacher training and its effectiveness in enhancing language teaching competence. The quantitative analysis revealed predominantly positive perceptions towards AI-driven personalized training modules, indicating their efficacy in addressing individual learning needs. However, challenges were identified in the long-term retention and transfer of AI-enhanced skills, underscoring the necessity for further refinement of personalized training approaches. Recommendations stemming from these findings emphasize the need for continued refinement of training methodologies and the development of tailored professional development programs to alleviate educators' concerns. Overall, this research enriches discussions on the integration of AI technology in teacher training and professional development, with the aim of bolstering language teaching competence and effectiveness in educational settings.

Keywords: language teacher training, AI-driven personalized learning, professional development, language teaching competence, personalized teacher training

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Authors: Sanjeeb Kumar Mohanty

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Content Based Instruction (CBI) in English Language Teaching (ELT) basically helps English as Second Language (ESL) learners of English. At the same time, it fosters multidisciplinary style of learning by promoting collaborative learning style. It is an approach to teaching ESL that attempts to combine language with interdisciplinary learning for bettering language proficiency and facilitating content learning. Hence, the basic purpose of CBI is that language should be taught in conjunction with academic subject matter. It helps in establishing the content as well as developing language competency. This study aims at supporting the potential values of interdisciplinary approach in promoting English Language Learning (ELL) by teaching writing skills to a small group of learners and discussing the findings with the teachers from various disciplines in a workshop. The teachers who are oriented, they use the same approach in their classes collaboratively. The inputs from the learners as well as the teachers hopefully raise positive consciousness with regard to the vast benefits that Content Based Instruction can offer in advancing the language competence of the learners.

Keywords: content based instruction, interdisciplinary approach, writing skills, collaborative approach

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Authors: Duisenova Marzhan

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This paper considers the looking from a philosophical point of view the interactive technology and tiered developing Kazakh language teaching primary school pupils through the method of linguistic communication, content and teaching methods formed in the education system. The values determined by the formation of new practical ways that could lead to a novel qualitative level and solving the problem. In the formation of the communicative competence of elementary school students would be to pay attention to other competencies. It helps to understand the motives and needs socialization of students, the development of their cognitive abilities and participate in language relations arising from different situations. Communicative competence is the potential of its own in pupils creative language activity. In this article, the Kazakh language teaching in primary school communicative method is presented. The purpose of learning communicative method, personal development, effective psychological development of the child, himself-education, expansion and growth of language skills and vocabulary, socialization of children, the adoption of the laws of life in the social environment, analyzed the development of vocabulary richness of the language that forms the erudition to ensure continued improvement of education of the child.

Keywords: communicative, culture, training, process, method, primary, competence

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Authors: Chong Ling Ling

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In the Malaysian polytechnic, there are concerns about language proficiency, communicative competence, and employability among Malaysian polytechnic ESL engineering students. This study examined the relationships between communicative competence, language proficiency, and employability using descriptive analysis and inferential statistics. Next, Pearson’s Correlation determines the correlation between communication competence, language proficiency, and employability skills of Malaysian Polytechnic ESL engineering students. The total number of participants was 81 final-year engineering students. The findings revealed high positive correlations between the communicative competence -'I can talk with a friend in English.' and employability skill (r = 0.854, p = .031), also, language proficiency -'I can understand the English songs I listen to' and employability skill (r = 0.887, p = .038). The result is consistent with the theories. The result revealed that for the 81 students, communication competence and language proficiency, and employability skills are firmly and significantly correlated. Thus, it concluded that both communicative competence and language proficiency equally essential to ensure a higher employability rate among Malaysian polytechnic ESL engineering students.

Keywords: communicative competence, employability, language proficiency, Malaysian polytechnic

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Authors: Smriti Mary Gupta

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This article intends to show how literature may be used in language classes to develop student’s knowledge of English. First, we examine the evolution of literature in the language classroom, then we give account of some reasons that justify its use in language classes, of the role of reading in language development, and of the way poetry is treated in the ESL classroom. This paper aims to emphasize the use of literature as a popular tool to teach language skills (i.e. reading, writing, listening and speaking), language areas (i.e. vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation) as well as moral teachings, which is the necessity in present time. Reason for using religious literary texts in foreign language classroom and main criteria for selecting suitable religious literary texts in foreign language classes are stressed so as to make the reader familiar with the underlying reasons and criteria for language teachers, using and selecting religious literary texts. Moreover, religious literature and teaching of language skills, benefits the different genres of religious literature (i.e. poetry, fiction and drama), and also gaining knowledge of a particular religion through language teaching but some problems had been observed by language teachers within the area of English through religious literature (i.e. lack of preparation in the area of literature teaching in TESL/TEFL programs, absence of clarity in objectives defining the role of literature in ESL/EFL), language teachers not having the background, training and appropriate knowledge in religious literature, lack of pedagogically-designed teaching material that can be used by language teachers in a classroom.

Keywords: religious literature, teaching literature, teaching of language skills, foreign language teaching, literary competence

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Authors: Ikechi Gilbert

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Oral communication is the transmission of ideas or messages through the speech process. Acquiring competence in this area which, by its volatile nature, is prone to errors and inaccuracies would require the adoption of a well-suited teaching methodology. Efficient oral communication facilitates exchange of ideas and easy accomplishment of day-to-day tasks, by means of a demonstrated mastery of oral expression and the making of fine presentations to audiences or individuals while recognizing verbal signals and body language of others and interpreting them correctly. In Anglophone states such as Nigeria, Ghana, etc., the French language, for instance, is studied as a foreign language, being used majorly in teaching learners who have their own mother tongue different from French. The same applies to Francophone states where English is studied as a foreign language by people whose official language or mother tongue is different from English. The ideal approach would be to teach these languages in these environments through a pedagogical approach that properly takes care of the oral perspective for effective understanding and application by the learners. In this article, we are examining the communicative approach as a methodology for teaching oral communication in a foreign language. This method is a direct response to the communicative needs of the learner involving the use of appropriate materials and teaching techniques that meet those needs. It is also a vivid improvement to the traditional grammatical and audio-visual adaptations. Our contribution will focus on the pedagogical component of oral communication improvement, highlighting its merits and also proposing diverse techniques including aspects of information and communication technology that would assist the second language learner communicate better orally.

Keywords: communication, competence, methodology, pedagogical component

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Authors: Natarajan Hema, Tamilarasan Karunakaran

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Technology is remodeling the process of teaching and learning. An inflection point is faced where technological interventions are rewiring learning process in formal classrooms. Employment depends on dynamic learning capability. Transforming the functionalities of teaching-learning-assessment through innovation is needed to modify the roles of teacher to enabler and learner to the dynamic learner. This makeover is vital for English language teaching where English is acquired as a skill, exercised as ability and get stabilized as a competence. This reshaping could be achieved through providing autonomy to participants of learning. This paper explores parameters and components aiding such a transformation. The differentiated responsibilities and other critical learning support systems are projected as viable options. New age teaching practices are studied for feasibilities to aid transformation and being put forth an inter-operable teaching-learning system for a learner-centric ELT classrooms. LOTUS model developed by the authors is also studied for its inclusiveness to promote skill acquisition.

Keywords: ELT methodology, communicative competence, skill acquisition , new age teaching

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Authors: Dorsaf Ben Malek

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The function of culture in language teaching changed because of globalization and the latest technologies. English became a lingua franca which resulted in altering the teaching objectives. The re-evaluation of cultural awareness is one of them. Business English teaching has also been subject to all these changes. It is therefore a wrong idea if we try to consider it as a diffusion of unlimited listing of lexis, diagrams, charts, and statistics. In fact, business students’ future career will require business terminology together with intercultural communicative competence (ICC) to handle different multicultural encounters and contribute to the international community. The first part of this paper is dedicated to the necessity of empowering business students with intercultural communicative competence and the second turns around the potential of multicultural literature in implementing ICC in business English teaching. This was proved through a qualitative action research done on a group of Tunisian MA business students. It was an opportunity to discover the potential of multicultural literature together with inquiry-based learning in enhancing business students’ intercultural communicative competence. Data were collected through classroom observations, journals and semi-structured interviews. Results were in favour of using multicultural literature to enhance business students’ ICC. In addition, the short story may be a motivating tool to read literature, and inquiry-based learning can be an effective approach to teaching literature.

Keywords: intercultural communicative competence, multicultural literature, short stories, inquiry-based learning

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Authors: Peter Mayeso Jiyajiya

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This paper discusses how the teaching of English as a foreign language in Malawi can enhance intercultural communication competence in a multicultural society. It argues that incorporation of intercultural communication in the teaching of English as a foreign language would improve cultural awareness in communication in the multicultural Malawi. The teaching of English in Malawi is geared towards producing students who would communicate in the global world. This entails the use of proper pedagogical approaches and instructional materials that prepare the students toward intercultural awareness. In view of this, the language teachers were interviewed in order to determine their instructional approaches to intercultural communication. Instructional materials were further evaluated to assess how interculturality is incorporated. The study found out that teachers face perceptual and technical challenges that hinder them from exercising creativity to incorporate interculturality in their lessons. This is also compounded by lack of clear direction in the teaching materials on cultural elements. The paper, therefore, suggests a holistic approach to the teaching of English language in Malawian school in which the diversity of culture in classrooms must be considered an opportunity for addressing students’ cultural needs that may be lacking in the instructional materials.

Keywords: cultural awareness, grammar, foreign language, intercultural communication, language teaching

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Authors: Gloria Chen

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In the past, when we complimented someone who had a good command of English, we would say ‘She/He speaks/writes standard English,’ or ‘His/Her English is standard.’ However, with English has becoming a ‘global language,’ many scholars and English users even create a plural form for English as ‘world Englishes,’ which indicates that national/racial varieties of English not only exist, but also are accepted to a certain degree. Now, a question will be raised when it comes to English teaching and learning: ‘What variety/varieties of English should be taught?’ This presentation will first explore Braj Kachru’s well-known categorization of the inner circle, the outer circle, and the expanding circle of English users, as well as inner circle varieties such as ‘Ebonics’ and ‘cockney’. The presentation then will discuss the purposes and contexts of English learning, and apply different approaches to different purposes and contexts. Three major purposes of English teaching/learning will be emphasized and considered: (1) communicative competence, (2) academic competence, and (3) intercultural competence. This presentation will complete with the strategies of ‘code switch’ and ‘register switch’ in teaching English to non-standard English speakers in both speaking and writing.

Keywords: world Englishes, standard and non-standard English, inner, outer, expanded circle communicative, academic, intercultural competence

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Authors: Yasir Naseem

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In this fast-growing and evolving world, usage and adoption of technology have displayed an essential component of the learning process, both in and out of the class, which converges and incorporates every domain of the learning aspects. It aids in learning distinct entities irrespective of their levels of challenge. It also incorporates both viewpoints of learning, i.e., competence as well as the performances of the learner. In today's learning scenario, nearly every language class ordinarily uses some form of technology. It integrates with various teaching methodologies and transforms in a way that now it grew as an integral part of the language learning courses. It has been employed to facilitate, promote, and enhances language learning. It facilitates educators in numerous ways and enhances their methodologies by equipping them to modify classroom activities, which covers every aspect of language learning.

Keywords: communication, methodology, technology, skills

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Authors: Mahrukh Baig

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This research paper, sets out to draw some traditional english language teaching practices and to suggest ways for their improvement under the light of humanistic and socio-cultural psychology. This is going to aid language teachers by applying principled psychological methods on the field of education in order to introduce a reciprocal mode of teaching where teacher and learner begin with a mutual effort. However the teacher, after initiating most of the work, gradually passes on more and more responsibility to the learners resulting in their independent endeavors.

Keywords: English Language Teaching (ELT), Second Language Acquisition (SLA), teaching english as second/foreign language, humanistic psychology, socio-cultural psychology, application of psychology to language teaching

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Authors: B. I. Zhumagaliyev, L. Sh. Balgabayeva, G. S. Nabiyeva, B. A. Tulegenova, P. Oralkhan, B. S. Kalenova, S. S. Akhmetov

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The article describes an approach to build competence in research of Bachelor and Master, which is now an important feature of modern specialist in the field of engineering. Provides an example of methodical teaching methods with the research aspect, is including the formulation of the problem, the method of conducting experiments, analysis of the results. Implementation of methods allows the student to better consolidate their knowledge and skills at the same time to get research. Knowledge on the part of the media requires some training in the subject area and teaching methods.

Keywords: professional competence, model of it-specialties, teaching methods, educational technology, decision making

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Authors: Theophilus Adedokun, Sylvia Zulu, Felix Awung, Sam Usadolo

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The proliferation of technology into teaching process has brought about transformation into the field of education. Language teaching is not left behind from this tremendous transformation which has drastically altered the teaching of language. It is, however, appalling that some language instructors seem to possess negative attitudes toward the use of technology in language teaching, which in this study is referred to as Computer Assisted Language Teaching (CALT). The purpose of this study, therefore, is to explore sustainable lesson that can be learnt from the attitudes of language instructors towards language teaching in some public universities. The knowledge gained from this study could inform and advance the use of Computer Assisted Language Teaching. This study considers the historical progression of CALT and recommends that a fundamental approach is required for institutions to develop and advance the use of CALT for teaching. A review of sustainable lessons learnt from the attitudes of language instructors towards CALT are provided, and the CALT experience of 3 institutions are described. Drawing from this succinct description, this study makes recommendations on how operative CALT could be executed on a personal and institutional basis.

Keywords: attitudes, language instructors, sustainable lessons, computer assisted language teaching

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Authors: Wajiha Fatima

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Various approaches and methods for second language classroom teaching have been proposed since the nineteenth century. Task Based Language Teaching has been prevailing approach in a second language classroom context. It is an approach which immerses students in a naturalistic setting. Tasks are the core unit of planning and instruction. This paper aims at expounding the concept of Task Based Language Teaching and how it has been evolved. In this study, researcher will highlight the usefulness of TBLT and the role it played as a powerful tool for learning and teaching in a second language setting. The article will reflect the implementation of various tasks based activities as well as the roles played by learners and teachers and the problems faced by them. In the end, researcher will discuss how TBLT can be implemented in second language classroom pedagogy.

Keywords: implementation, second language classroom, tasks, task based language teaching

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Authors: Wei Hing Rosenkvist

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In the past few decades, concerns and demands of promoting student intercultural communicative competence in foreign language education have been increasing along with the rapid growth of information technologies and globalization in the 21st century. In Sweden, related concepts such as internationalization, global citizenship, multiculturalism, and intercultural communication, are also keywords that would be found in the written learning objectives of foreign language education at all levels. Being one of the leading higher institutes in distance education in Europe, Dalarna University clearly states that after completion of the teacher education program, students shall understand the needs for integrating internationalization, intercultural and global perspective in teaching and learning in Swedish schools and implement their studies to promote education in an international and global context. Even though many teachers and educators agree with the institutes’ mission and vision about the importance of internationalization and the need to increase student understanding of intercultural and global perspectives, they might find this objective unattainable and restricted due to the nature of the subject and their knowledge of intercultural competence. When conducting a comprehensive Chinese language course for the students who are going to become Chinese foreign language teachers, the researcher found that all the learning objectives are linguistic oriented while grammatical components dominate the entire course. Apparently, there is a gap between the learning objectives of the course and the DU’s mission of fostering an international learner with intercultural and globalized perspectives. How to include this macro-learning objective in a foreign language course is a great challenge to the educator. Although scholars from different academic domains have provided different theoretical frameworks and approaches for developing student intercultural competence, research that focuses on the didactic perspectives of developing student intercultural competence in teaching Chinese as a foreign language education (CFL) is limited, and practical examples are rare. This challenge has motivated the researcher to conduct an action research study that aims at integrating DU’s macro-learning objective in a current CFL course through different didactic practices to develop the student's intercultural competence. This research study aims to, firstly, illustrate the cross-cultural knowledge integrated into the present Chinese language course for developing intercultural competence. Secondly, it investigates different didactic means that can be utilized to deliver cross-cultural knowledge to student teachers in the present course without generating dramatic disturbance of the syllabus. Thirdly, it examines the effectiveness of these didactic means in enhancing student-teacher intercultural competence regarding the need for integrating and implementing internationalization, intercultural and global perspectives in teaching and learning in Swedish schools. Last but not least, it intends to serve as a practical example for developing the student teachers’ intercultural competence in foreign language education in DU and fill in the research gap of this academic domain worldwide.

Keywords: action research, intercultural competence, Chinese as a foreign language education, teacher education

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Authors: Wei Hing Rosenkvist

Abstract:

In the past few decades, concerns and demands of promoting student intercultural communicative competence in foreign language education have been increasing along with the rapid growth of information technologies and globalization in the 21st century. In Sweden, related concepts such as internationalization, global citizenship, multiculturalism, and intercultural communication etc., are also keywords that would be found in the written learning objectives of the foreign language education in all levels. Being one of the leading higher institutes in distance education in Europe, Dalarna University clearly states that after completion of the teacher education program, students shall understand the needs for integrating internationalization, intercultural and global perspective in teaching and learning in Swedish schools and implement their own studies to promote education in an international and global context. Despite the fact that many teachers and educators agree with the institutes’ mission and vision about the importance of internationalization and the need of increasing student understanding of intercultural and global perspective, they might find this objective unattainable and restricted due to the nature of the subject and their personal knowledge of intercultural competence. When conducting a comprehensive Chinese language course for the students who are going to become Chinese foreign language teachers, the researcher found that all the learning objectives are linguistic oriented while grammatical components dominate the entire course. Apparently, there is a gap between the learning objectives of the course and the DU’s mission of fostering an international learner with intercultural and globalized perspectives. How to include this macro-learning objective in a foreign language course is a great challenge to the educator. Although scholars from different academic domains have provided different theoretical frameworks and approaches for developing student intercultural competence, research that focuses on the didactic perspectives of developing student intercultural competence in teaching Chinese as a foreign language education (CFL) is limited and practical examples are rare. This has motivated the researcher to conduct an action research study that aims at integrating DU’s macro-learning objective in a current CFL course through different didactic practices with a purpose of developing the teacher student intercultural competence. This research study aims to, firstly, illustrate the cross-cultural knowledge integrated into the present Chinese language course for developing intercultural competence. Secondly, it investigates different didactic means that can be utilized to deliver cross-cultural knowledge to student teachers in the present course without generating dramatic disturbance of the syllabus. Thirdly, it examines the effectiveness of these didactic means in enhancing teacher student intercultural competence regarding the need for integrating and implementing internationalization, intercultural and global perspectives in teaching and learning in Swedish schools. Last but not least, it intends to serve as a practical example for developing the student teachers’ intercultural competence in foreign language education in DU and fill in the research gap of this academic domain worldwide.

Keywords: intercultural competence, foreign language education, action research, teacher education

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Authors: Yiwen Jin, Jing Xiao, Pinfang Su

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The idea of adapting authentic materials in language teaching is from the communicative method in the 1970s. Different from the language in language textbooks, authentic materials is not deliberately written, it is from the native speaker’s real life and contains real information, which can meet social needs. It could improve learners ' interest, create authentic context and improve learners ' communicative competence. Authentic materials play an important role in CFL（Chinese as a foreign language） classroom. Different types of authentic materials can be used in different ways during learning and teaching. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic，a lot of Chinese learners are learning Chinese without the real language environment. Although there are some well-written textbooks, there is a certain distance between textbook language materials and daily life. Learners cannot automatically fill this gap. That is why it is necessary to apply authentic materials as a supplement to the language textbook to create the real context. Chinese teachers around the world are working together, trying to integrate the resources and apply authentic materials through different approach. They apply authentic materials in the form of new textbooks, manuals, apps and short videos they collect and create to help Chinese learning and teaching. A review of previous research on authentic materials and the Chinese teachers’ attempt to adapt it in the classroom are offered in this manuscript.

Keywords: authentic materials, Chinese as a second language, developmental use of digital resources, materials development for language teaching

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Authors: Ida Fatimawati Adi Badiozaman, Augustus Raymond Segar

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The Covid-19 pandemic transformed teaching contexts at an unprecedented level. Although studies have focused mainly on its impact on students, little is known about how emergency online teaching affects faculty members in higher education. Given that the pandemic has robbed teachers of opportunities for adequate preparation, it is vital to understand how teaching competencies were perceived in the crisis-response transition to online teaching and learning (OTL). Therefore, the study explores how academics perceive their readiness for OTL and what competencies were perceived to be central. Therefore, through a mixed-methods design, the study first explores through a survey how academics perceive their readiness for OTL and what competencies were perceived to be central. Emerging trends from the quantitative data of 330 academics (three public and three private Higher learning institutions) led to the formulation of interview guides for the subsequent qualitative phase. The authors use critical sensemaking (CSM) to analyse interviews with twenty-two teachers (n = 22) (three public; three private HEs) toward understanding the interconnected layers of influences they draw from as they make sense of their teaching competence. The sensemaking process reframed competence and readiness in that agentic competency emerged as crucial in shaping resilience and adaptability during the transition to OTL. The findings also highlight professional learningcriticalto teacher competence: course design, communication, time management, technological competence, and identity (re)construction. The findings highlight opportunities for strategic orientation to change during crisis. Implications for pedagogy and policy are discussed.

Keywords: online teaching, pedagogical competence, agentic competence, agency, technological competence

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Authors: Ghazala Kausar

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This study investigates Pakistani first year university students’ perception of the role of pragmatics in their general approach to learning English. The research is triggered by National Curriculum’s initiative to provide holistic opportunities to the students for language development and to equip them with competencies to use English language in academic and social contexts (New English National Curriculum for I-XII). The traditional grammar translation and examination oriented method is believed to reduce learners to silent listener (Zhang, 2008: Zhao 2009). This lead to the inability of the students to interpret discourse by relating utterances to their meaning, understanding the intentions of the users and how language is used in specific setting (Bachman & Palmer, 1996, 2010). Pragmatic competence is a neglected area as far as teaching and learning English in Pakistan is concerned. This study focuses on the different types of pragmatic knowledge, learners perception of such knowledge and learning strategies employed by different learners to process the learning in general and pragmatic in particular. This study employed three data collecting tools; a questionnaire, discourse completion task and interviews to elicit data from first year university students regarding their perception of pragmatic competence. Results showed that Pakistani first year university learners have limited pragmatic knowledge. Although they acknowledged the importance of linguistic knowledge for linguistic competence in the students but argued that insufficient English proficiency, limited knowledge of pragmatics, insufficient language material and tasks were major reasons of pragmatic failure.

Keywords: pragmatic competence, Pakistani college learners, linguistic competence

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Authors: Adrian Florin Busu

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The communicative approach, or communicative language teaching, used for enhancing communicative skills in students in automatics is a modern teaching approach based on the concept of learning a language through having to communicate real meaning. In the communicative approach, real communication is both the objective of learning and the means through which it takes place. This approach was initiated during the 1970’s and quickly became prominent, as it proposed an alternative to the previous systems-oriented approaches. In other words, instead of focusing on the acquisition of grammar and vocabulary, the communicative approach aims at developing students’ competence to communicate in the target language with an enhanced focus on real-life situations. To put it in an nutshell, CLT considers using the language to be just as important as actually learning the language.

Keywords: communication, approach, objective, learning

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Authors: Hélène Knoerr

Abstract:

This paper examines the impact of teaching in one’s second language on a faculty's sense of self-efficacy. With the increasing internationalization of universities, teaching in a foreign language, mainly in English, has been extensively studied. However, only a few studies have focused on teaching in one’s second language. In Canada, international faculty members have reported adverse effects on their academic careers due to unrealistic linguistic expectations. The aim of our study was to investigate the perceived impacts of teaching in one’s second language on professors in a bilingual university in Canada. It seeks to explore how faculty perceive their ability to teach effectively in their L2 and what personal and professional impacts they feel as a result of teaching in their second language. The study found that teaching in one's second language has a significant impact on faculty's sense of self-efficacy, including anxiety, frustration, and a sense of inadequacy. However, it was also noted that some instructors felt that teaching in their second language had a positive impact on their teaching practices and personal growth. This study highlights the importance of understanding the impact of teaching in one's second language on faculty's sense of self-efficacy in a bilingual university context. It also indicates the need to provide support programs.

Keywords: teacher sense of efficacy, bilingual education, teaching in one’s L2, narrative inquiry

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Authors: Lee Bih Ni, Kiu Su Na

Abstract:

This paper discusses the Chinese Language Teaching as a Second Language by focusing on Immersion Teaching. Researchers used narrative literature review to describe the current states of both art and science in focused areas of inquiry. Immersion teaching comes with a standard that teachers must reliably meet. Chinese language-immersion instruction consists of language and content lessons, including functional usage of the language, academic language, authentic language, and correct Chinese sociocultural language. Researchers used narrative literature reviews to build a scientific knowledge base. Researchers collected all the important points of discussion, and put them here with reference to the specific field where this paper is originally based on. The findings show that Chinese Language in immersion teaching is not like standard foreign language classroom; immersion setting provides more opportunities to teach students colloquial language than academic. Immersion techniques also introduce a language’s cultural and social contexts in a meaningful and memorable way. It is particularly important that immersion teachers connect classwork with real-life experiences. Immersion also includes more elements of discovery and inquiry based learning than do other kinds of instructional practices. Students are always and consistently interpreted the conclusions and context clues.

Keywords: a second language, Chinese language teaching, immersion teaching, instructional strategies

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Authors: Chinfen Chen

Abstract:

This paper aims to focus on the challenges and doubts encountered in the implementation of ‘bilingual teaching in some fields of courses’, and propose implementation principles and strategies from the four areas of curriculum design, teaching strategies, teaching language application, and bilingual teaching implementation and operation, as a school The administrative team considers when planning bilingual teaching and also clarifies teachers' doubts about the implementation of bilingual teaching to enhance their willingness and confidence to participate in bilingual teaching.

Keywords: bilingual education policy, language immersion, partial bilingual education, content knowledge and target language acquisition, inquiry-based teaching.

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