Empowering with Digital Intelligence and Material Reconstruction: A Study on the Application of AI Tools in the Development of EFL Teaching Materials

in cross-cultural communication teaching process, professional development of Chinese foreign language teachers seems especially important. This paper first presents basic connotation of professional development of foreign language teachers, then carefully analyzes current situation and various problems of professional development of Chinese foreign language teachers and finally proposes some effective approaches to promote professional development of foreign language teachers in combination of actual situations of Chinese foreign language teachers in cross-cultural communication teaching so as to make foreign language teachers really own, coordinate and share precious professional development experience.

Introduction: Students of English as a foreign language must possess intercultural communicative skills in order to be able to interpret and discuss the cultural diversity that surrounds them when they use English for communicational purposes. This paper claims, and is based on the conviction, that the development of these skills takes place primarily through teaching English as a foreign language (EFL) in most educational contexts. This approach is facilitated by the fact that the English language functions as the most widely used foreign language in the context of culture teaching. Methods: Based on these considerations and with a view to theoretical and practical aspects concerning teaching material development, the presented study discusses some fundamental concepts associated with the relationship between teaching EFL, teaching cultural information and developing students’ intercultural skills. After reviewing potential theories, it adopts Byram’s (1997, 2008) Intercultural Communicative Competence model as a theoretical foundation for creating teaching materials for the purpose of developing students’ intercultural communicative skills. Results: The study presents the results of this endeavour through the example of author-designed worksheets focusing on Canadian content, and analyses a worksheet that covers Korean immigrant culture in Canada in order to demonstrate, with the help of this example, how theoretical considerations can be put into practice in the scope of developing teaching materials with Canadian content focusing on the development of intercultural communicative skills. Discussion: Within the scope of English as a foreign language, Byram’s (1997, 2008) Intercultural Communicative Competence model proves a very practical model to be used for the purpose of designing worksheets that develop students’ intercultural communicative skills: this is proved on the basis of the analysis of the above-mentioned worksheet. It is also demonstrated that teaching intercultural communicative skills through Canadian contents is a feasible and practicable way of introducing students to the concept of interculturality through the cultural heritage of an English-speaking country. Limitations: The theoretical background and the teaching material development project described below can serve as a potential model for designing similar worksheets, but the actual use and efficiency of this and similar worksheets depends on the applicable national curriculum and the specificities (primarily the language and motivational levels) of the class where such materials are intended for use. This also means that some aspects of the project are worth reconsidering when one intends to design their own teaching materials. Conclusion: For the design of worksheets developing intercultural communicative skills, this study provides a tried and tested methodological model to follow and presents a worksheet that can function as a potential model. In addition, this paper hopes to generate further research in the field of developing teaching materials focusing either on the development of intercultural communicative skills or on Canadian culture, and, through setting an example, it encourages the creation of worksheets of a comparable design or topic.

When the literature on the professional development of English asa foreign language (EFL) teachers is examined, professionaldevelopment predominantly encompasses institutional activities.This study critically examines conventional definitions andpractices related to the professional development of EFL teachers,arguing that in line with the demands of the era, teachers'professional development should also include self-directedindividual activities. However, for professional developmentactivities to contribute to the ultimate goal of student learning, it isimportant for the organizational culture in which teachers aresituated to be supportive of their professional development. Toseek answers to research questions about how the institutional andself-directed activities carried out by EFL teachers in Türkiye andthe organizational culture influence these activities, an exploratorysequential strategy was employed in the research. First, qualitativedata were collected, and then quantitative data were collectedthrough a survey tool developed based on the qualitative data.Comprehensive individual interviews were conducted with a totalof 28 teachers across Türkiye, and survey data were collected from819 teachers. The findings are presented as self-directed(unstructured) professional development activities (e.g., use ofsearch engines, reading news websites, watching videos/series,etc.) and institutional (structured) professional developmentactivities (participation in national and international conferences,etc.). The necessity of foreign language teachers being involved inmany individual activities through self-direction, beyond theirparticipation in activities planned by institutions, for theprofessional development of a foreign language teacher isdiscussed. The study proposes a comprehensive perspective on theconcept of professional development related to EFL teachers andoffers recommendations for the field of foreign language teachereducation.

The purpose of this study was to analyze the development of English teaching materials at the vocational high school (SMK) Mohammad Toha in Cimahi, the availability and suitability of English teaching materials to the needs of students, especially teaching materials / materials that students learn according to their level of needs in the world of work especially for SMK students. The research problem formulation is; 1) how is the development of English teaching materials used in vocational high school (SMK) Mohammad Toha Cimahi especially in computer and network engineering (TKJ) majors? 2) what difficulties did the teachers get in developing specific English language teaching materials ?. And the purpose of the study was to develop more specific English Language Teaching Materials in accordance with the field of vocational students at Mohammad Toha Cimahi Vocational School (SMK) especially in the Department of Computer and Network Engineering (TKJ). 2) To find solutions to the obstacles faced by teachers in developing specific English Language teaching materials. This research method uses descriptive qualitative method which aims to describe the development of English Language Teaching Materials in Vocational High Schools (SMK). The results and findings in the field that students have high motivation to learn English, but there are obstacles they face including; 1) The material presented still does not meet the target needs of students for their career world, 2) Authentic material is not yet available, 3) The absence of developers / innovations in the development of teaching environments conducted by schools and teachers so that the material presented still does not answer the needs of students in SMK, innovation has not been made in developing teaching materials at school so the material presented is still textual. Teachers experience difficulties in developing teaching materials because of the lack of knowledge, the absence of experts in the development of teaching materials and the lack of training and reference in the development of teaching materials.

The learning process requires teaching materials that are useful for making it easier for educators to convey information on teaching materials in the form of materials. The development of teaching materials is needed in order to support learning needs. This study describes the development of spiritual backpacker-based teaching materials as an effort to inculcate the value of religious moderation. The research process is field research using a phenomenological approach. MI Alam Alfa Kids was used as the research location to collect concrete data. sources of data in the form of interviews, observations, and documentation as the main data. The analysis was carried out by presenting data, reducing it, and concluding. The results of this study are: 1) the development of spiritual backpacker-based teaching materials is the development of teaching materials that are adapted to the learning designs at MI Alam Alfa Kids, namely spiritual backpacker-based learning as an effort to instill the value of religious moderation; 2) Spiritual backpacker teaching materials give participants firsthand experiences of being directly connected to the community environment, giving them open insight into how to be moderate. 3) Teaching materials have advantages, including an integrated learning process with the environment, fostering student inquiry, and training students to live tolerantly in community. The drawbacks of this model are that not all subjects can be developed using it; it requires special time; not all ages can apply spiritual backpacker-based teaching materials; and the implementation of teaching materials must be accompanied by more than one teacher.

This study analyses how culture is covered in English as a Foreign Language classes but also in the teaching materials. There is also a continuous parallelism regarding the aspects of cultural relativism in English language teaching. The study analyses cases from the publisher of English language teaching materials (EFL) and reflects on how this concept is this perceived among scholars in England, Japan and North Macedonia.A list of precautions are suggested which aim to serve as an example of the need that native cultures have to protect themselves from global (or sometimes the popular) culture. It is realistic to expect that globalization can and will impact even the most isolated culture, but it also becomes the responsibility of the popular or global culture (in this case, the English Language) and the designers of the Teaching Materials(TM) in the Foreign Language to take into consideration local/native cultural specifics. This alertness would not only protect the native or L1 language, but it would add more value to the teaching materials since it is not as superficial as are present materials. The incorporation of many national and even local elements increases the effectiveness of the teaching materials and, through the methodological approaches, bridges the gaps between L1 (Native culture) and L2 (Target Culture).In order to conceptualize the impact that global/popular culture has on a native language, researchers have offered a number of frameworks. These frameworks analyse the root that the Foreign language uses to impact the native language. In one of the studies from prof. Michel Byram in his research on Culture studies in foreign language education (1989) elevates the phenomena to a different level by speaking about the “hidden” curriculum in second and foreign language teaching. In this context he indicates that language teaching can rarely be purposeful without implicitly teaching the culture of its speaker. There are a number of frameworks that have been offered as analyses of Culture teaching in teaching English as a Foreign Language. One of the frameworks, which was conducted through analyses of the Japanese market in English as a foreign language (EFL) publications, is offered by Ito Horumi in his article “A New Framework of Culture Teaching for Teaching English as a Global Language.” He depicts the impact that Globalization and English as a global language have to the Japanese Culture. The impact is evident in the (as he calls them) “Changes in Cultural Orientation of English Textbooks”.The study also suggests educational frameworks that could be implemented in a local context and use English as common ground but also neutral territory for students of different ethnic or cultural groups.

English as a Foreign Language (EFL) has constituted a major part of the curriculum in private and public institutions in Saudi Arabia for over eight decades. More recently, the emergence of English as a global language has made it a socially desirable language in Saudi society, as elsewhere in the world. However, despite the long history of English teaching in Saudi Arabia and the growth of the profession over the years, the overall English proficiency level of the majority of students is low and unsatisfactory. Saudi researchers have reported many reasons for the ineffectiveness of English Language Teaching (ELT) including, but not limited to, low levels of student motivation, negative attitudes toward English, a substandard English as a Foreign Language (EFL) curriculum, and inefficient teacher pedagogical practices. These problems fall into two major categories: problems related to the lwhyr of teaching and learning of EFL, and problems related to the lhowr of teaching and learning EFL. In investigating these issues, much of this research has been carried out within individual/psychological/structuralist/positivist frameworks, which has failed not only to problematize the complexity of such constructs but also to appreciate the fact that all realities are produced/(re)produced via ldiscourser. Hence, the present study investigated EFL teaching and learning practices by employing Foucauldian and poststructuralist frameworks. This study used poststructuralism not only as a theoretical lens per se, but also established it through the implemented analytical tools and textual representations of the collected data. Employing a poststructuralist discursive perspective made it possible to view EFL teaching and learning as complex social practices, interacting with the discourses of English and ELT practices available in the global as well as the local context(s). These discourses create the nexus between power and knowledge and impact on what an EFL teacher/ learner does within a classroom setting by constructing perspectives of reality through which he or she comes to understand the EFL teaching and learning process in certain ways which constitute epistemological spaces and generate particular practices. Drawing on policy documents, EFL textbooks, classroom observations, interviews with two Saudi EFL teachers, and focus group discussions with Saudi EFL students in two rural areas, the study identified seven discourses circulating within and competing across the examined discursive spaces. The first three discourses are related to English and its values, including: English as a universal language; English as the language for better employment opportunities; and English as the language for spreading religion. The remaining four discourses centred around ELT with exams as an important aspect of EFL learning and ELT; CLT as the key to success in ELT; L1 as a barrier to successful EFL learning; and EFL textbooks as an essential aspect of the processes of EFL learning and ELT. In exploring the production and (re)production of these discourses through the examination of how visibilization, normalisation, exclusionary/inclusionary acts, classification, and subject positioning as discursive strategies are employed, it was found that whether a particular discourse was made visible or invisible depended on other discourses operating across the examined discursive spaces: the social context, the policy, the textbook, the classroom, and the teachers and students. The analysis of the connection(s) and misconnection(s) between these discursive spaces demonstrated that the interplay between the different discourses constructed discursive battlegrounds, which impacted the processes of EFL teaching and learning. Through the investigation of this interplay, it was found that there was a disconnect and an ambivalent relationship between the study participantsr espoused discourses of English and their EFL teaching and learning practices, suggesting that EFL teachers and learners should not be considered lstabler figures, but rather as social agents with discursively constructed ever changing subjectivities. Furthermore, the analyses of the constructions of the discourses operating within the examined policy texts demonstrate an intra disparity and fragmentation. This was manifested in the difference between the ideals of the EFL curriculum and the institutionally imposed regulating techniques, that is, examinations and teachersr assessment practices which had negative effects on EFL teaching and learning dynamics. Additionally, as a consequence of the competition between the different sources of discursive constructions, I found that there was a gulf between the EFL policies and the enactment of these policies in EFL teaching and learning dynamics in the observed EFL classrooms. The findings of this study also indicate that if a discourse promoted through the policy is mediated by discourses operating in the larger societal context, it became more visible in teaching and learning practices as compared to other discourses that did not have social moorings. This suggests that taking the prevailing social expectations into account at the stage of developing any policy is of paramount importance.nThe study concludes with a discussion of the implications of the interplay of connections and misconnections between competing discourses across different spaces in Saudi educational settings for improving the EFL teaching/learning environments in Saudi Arabia and other similar contexts.n

<p>In 2008, Vietnam introduced a new English language policy based on the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR), and subsequently in 2014 adopted a Vietnamese version of this, referred to as CEFR-V. In adopting the CEFR-V, English language education in Vietnam has taken on a conception of English language proficiency in which intercultural competence (IC) is thoroughly integrated. Nevertheless, despite the emphasis of IC in national language policy, little research has dealt with how teachers can adopt interculturally informed pedagogy in their daily classroom practice, and specifically professional development and learning can be harnessed to increase teachers’ capacity to adopt an intercultural stance in their teaching. This study aimed to redress this gap by investigating the process of adopting Intercultural Communicative Language Teaching (iCLT) practice in an English as a foreign language (EFL) course at a Vietnamese university. The research deployed an interpretive, qualitative, case study approach and Participatory Action Research (PAR) to explore the nature of the teaching of culture by three tertiary EFL teachers at a Vietnamese university, and by the students in their classes. The data were collected from classroom observations, teacher interviews, and pre-workshop-one and post-workshop-two focus groups with students. The research included two phases. The first phase of the study investigated the orientation to the teaching of culture in teaching materials and lessons taught by the teachers, and in their stated beliefs. Analysis of the three case study teachers showed that each of the teachers demonstrated both strengths and limitations regarding the teaching of culture in his/her stated perceptions and classroom practices. Cross-case analysis showed that the teaching of culture was intermittent and unplanned, and that the teachers held a static view of culture with little awareness of intercultural language teaching. Drawing on these findings, the second phase of the research sought to develop a more principled engagement with culture by involving the case study teachers in two workshop cycles in which the teachers were introduced to principles and practical examples of intercultural language teaching and then implemented the redesigned intercultural-oriented lessons in the classroom teaching. The results drawn from classroom observation and interview data showed a positive impact of the workshops on the teachers’ teaching practices, perceptions, and understanding of intercultural language teaching. The study contributes to the growing body of scholarship on intercultural language teaching by showing how Vietnamese EFL tertiary teachers shifted from a cultural to an intercultural orientation through participating in an action research project. Accordingly, this study confirms the value of in-situ professional development for teachers. The study also shows how teachers, working from a set of intercultural teaching principles, can adopt an intercultural stance in their teaching even while working with existing teaching materials that contain little in the way of intercultural teaching affordances.</p>

<p>In 2008, Vietnam introduced a new English language policy based on the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR), and subsequently in 2014 adopted a Vietnamese version of this, referred to as CEFR-V. In adopting the CEFR-V, English language education in Vietnam has taken on a conception of English language proficiency in which intercultural competence (IC) is thoroughly integrated. Nevertheless, despite the emphasis of IC in national language policy, little research has dealt with how teachers can adopt interculturally informed pedagogy in their daily classroom practice, and specifically professional development and learning can be harnessed to increase teachers’ capacity to adopt an intercultural stance in their teaching. This study aimed to redress this gap by investigating the process of adopting Intercultural Communicative Language Teaching (iCLT) practice in an English as a foreign language (EFL) course at a Vietnamese university. The research deployed an interpretive, qualitative, case study approach and Participatory Action Research (PAR) to explore the nature of the teaching of culture by three tertiary EFL teachers at a Vietnamese university, and by the students in their classes. The data were collected from classroom observations, teacher interviews, and pre-workshop-one and post-workshop-two focus groups with students. The research included two phases. The first phase of the study investigated the orientation to the teaching of culture in teaching materials and lessons taught by the teachers, and in their stated beliefs. Analysis of the three case study teachers showed that each of the teachers demonstrated both strengths and limitations regarding the teaching of culture in his/her stated perceptions and classroom practices. Cross-case analysis showed that the teaching of culture was intermittent and unplanned, and that the teachers held a static view of culture with little awareness of intercultural language teaching. Drawing on these findings, the second phase of the research sought to develop a more principled engagement with culture by involving the case study teachers in two workshop cycles in which the teachers were introduced to principles and practical examples of intercultural language teaching and then implemented the redesigned intercultural-oriented lessons in the classroom teaching. The results drawn from classroom observation and interview data showed a positive impact of the workshops on the teachers’ teaching practices, perceptions, and understanding of intercultural language teaching. The study contributes to the growing body of scholarship on intercultural language teaching by showing how Vietnamese EFL tertiary teachers shifted from a cultural to an intercultural orientation through participating in an action research project. Accordingly, this study confirms the value of in-situ professional development for teachers. The study also shows how teachers, working from a set of intercultural teaching principles, can adopt an intercultural stance in their teaching even while working with existing teaching materials that contain little in the way of intercultural teaching affordances.</p>

In learning Indonesian language, the existence of innovative teaching materials in line with technological developments is one of the right efforts in improving student learning outcomes. Listening material is one of the achievements per element that students must learn in learning Indonesian high school grade X according to the Merdeka Curriculum. This research focuses on the development of teaching materials and knowing the feasibility of web-based teaching materials on listening materials. The purpose of this research is to find out the analysis of teaching material needs, the development of teaching materials, and the feasibility test of web-based teaching materials on listening materials. This research uses the development method or Research and Development (R&D) with the ADDIE model approach. Data collection is carried out by observation, interviews, filling out questionnaires. The needs analysis sample was conducted on 2 Indonesian language teachers and 20 grade X students at SMAN 4 Bekasi City, SMAN 12 Bekasi City, and SMA Strada Bekasi City. Meanwhile, product trial samples were carried out on 2 Indonesian teachers and 36 grade X students at SMAN 12 Bekasi City. The results of the needs analysis are (1) teachers and students need teaching materials on listening materials that can display audio or audio visual that can be accessed through devices anywhere and anytime; (2) web-based teaching materials are developed through three steps, namely from starting to create designs, registering domains, to developing teaching materials using WordPress media; and (3) The results of the teaching material validation test by linguists were declared very feasible with a percentage of 88%, material expert validation was declared very feasible with a percentage of 92%, and media expert validation was declared feasible with a percentage of 80%, while the results of teaching material trials by teachers were declared feasible with a percentage of 80% and teaching material trials by students were declared very feasible with a percentage of 82%. The conclusion of the research is web-based teaching materials Indonesian listening materials that can be accessed through https://bahanajarkelas10.site/ link suitable for use by teachers and grade X high school students.

The aims of this study were to: ( 1) find out the substance of local history material in Indonesian history teaching materials used in SMA Surakarta; ( 2) Constructing the development of Indonesian history teaching materials based on local content; and ( 3) Testing the effectiveness of local content-based Indonesian history teaching materials using the Selecting, Organizing and Integrating (SOI) approach in history learning at class XI Surakarta Senior High School in increasing understanding of local history. To achieve these goals in this study used research and development methods or Research and Development (R&D). The R & D method is a research method used to produce certain products, and test the effectiveness of products. The R & D method is considered the most appropriate for this research problem. This research seeks to make products in the form of local content-based history teaching materials, as well as to test the effectiveness of using these teaching materials in learning Indonesian history according to the specified targets and criteria. This research was carried out in 4 stages , namely: (1) Exploration; (2) Model development; ( 3) Model testing; and (4) Dissemination . The results of the study show that : ( 1) The quality of Indonesian history teaching materials in high schools that have been used so far only includes material substance from basic competencies in the national curriculum. The existing teaching materials are based on a grid that has been developed in BSNP which emphasizes national political events, while local history materials have not been accommodated in teaching materials. Based on the KTSP rules, teachers can develop teaching materials according to the potential of their region. ( 2) Development of teaching materials by combining local history in the Surakarta area with existing materials and teaching materials based on the national curriculum starting from: (a) Preliminary study to determine needs; (b) Development of prototypes using the SOI. Local history material is selected from oral sources and artefact sources and integrated with national curriculum material so that teaching materials based on local content are structured; (c) An expert assessment is carried out on prototypes of teaching materials and other products developed including the instruments used to measure the effectiveness of teaching materials; (d) Limited tests and broad tests were carried out on instruments and products with a larger number of schools; and (e) Finalization. ( 3) From the results of the effectiveness test it is known that the use of local content-based history teaching materials can improve students' understanding of history in high school as evidenced by the results of the one-way ANOVA test between the experimental class and the control class . It is hoped that research will contribute to the development of history learning, especially in local history learning through the development of teaching materials. Teachers can use this research product as a reference in developing history teaching materials based on local content.

The aims of this study were to: ( 1) find out the substance of local history material in Indonesian history teaching materials used in SMA Surakarta; ( 2) Constructing the development of Indonesian history teaching materials based on local content; and ( 3) Testing the effectiveness of local content-based Indonesian history teaching materials using the Selecting, Organizing and Integrating (SOI) approach in history learning at class XI Surakarta Senior High School in increasing understanding of local history. To achieve these goals in this study used research and development methods or Research and Development (R&D). The R & D method is a research method used to produce certain products, and test the effectiveness of products. The R & D method is considered the most appropriate for this research problem. This research seeks to make products in the form of local content-based history teaching materials, as well as to test the effectiveness of using these teaching materials in learning Indonesian history according to the specified targets and criteria. This research was carried out in 4 stages , namely: (1) Exploration; (2) Model development; ( 3) Model testing; and (4) Dissemination . The results of the study show that : ( 1) The quality of Indonesian history teaching materials in high schools that have been used so far only includes material substance from basic competencies in the national curriculum. The existing teaching materials are based on a grid that has been developed in BSNP which emphasizes national political events, while local history materials have not been accommodated in teaching materials. Based on the KTSP rules, teachers can develop teaching materials according to the potential of their region. ( 2) Development of teaching materials by combining local history in the Surakarta area with existing materials and teaching materials based on the national curriculum starting from: (a) Preliminary study to determine needs; (b) Development of prototypes using the SOI. Local history material is selected from oral sources and artefact sources and integrated with national curriculum material so that teaching materials based on local content are structured; (c) An expert assessment is carried out on prototypes of teaching materials and other products developed including the instruments used to measure the effectiveness of teaching materials; (d) Limited tests and broad tests were carried out on instruments and products with a larger number of schools; and (e) Finalization. ( 3) From the results of the effectiveness test it is known that the use of local content-based history teaching materials can improve students' understanding of history in high school as evidenced by the results of the one-way ANOVA test between the experimental class and the control class . It is hoped that research will contribute to the development of history learning, especially in local history learning through the development of teaching materials. Teachers can use this research product as a reference in developing history teaching materials based on local content.

Natural Language Processing (NLP) platforms have recently reported a higher adoption rate of Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications. The purpose of this research is to examine the relationship between NLP and AI in the application of linguistic tasks related to morphology, parsing, and semantics. To achieve this objective, a theoretical framework was designed to investigate the direct and indirect impact of the relationship between NLP platforms and AI applications, such as machine learning and deep learning. Theoretically, this study contributes to examining the relationship between NLP platforms and AI applications through selected linguistic models from the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) perspective. Practical implications are derived from syntactic and semantic variables when AI applications are used. The results of this study suggest that AI applications can use to support NLP tasks, particularly the adaptation of deep learning applications that can prove useful in extracting analytical inferences and enhancing NLP approaches applied to EFL texts. The conclusion drawn of this study is that if NLP caters to knowledge-rich AI techniques, it can make significant advances in the linguistics disciplines of morphology, parsing, and semantics.

Understanding EFL Linguistic Models through Relationship between Natural Language Processing and Artificial Intelligence Applications

This paper adopts a case study approach to explore the professional development of two foreign language teachers in a primary school English teaching materials writing project and their influencing factors. The data was collected through semi-structured interviews and coded and analyzed using Nvivo software. It was found that the professional development of foreign language teachers was reflected in the four main dimensions of professional knowledge, professional competence, ethical values, and teacher community. The influencing factors include individual, community and macro factors at three levels. This study sheds new light on teachers’ professional development pathways.