Language learning and activation in and beyond the classroom

Abstract

In contemporary educational contexts, technology, globalization, and mobility have brought about a blurring of the boundary between language learning and activation in and beyond the classroom. This contrasts with the past when, in many EFL (and even ESL) settings, opportunities for language use outside the classroom were either limited or non-existent. These days, regardless of the physical context in which learners are living, there are limitless opportunities for language use outside the classroom. Additionally, the traditional distinction between classrooms, as places where language is learned, and the world beyond the classroom, as environments where classroom-acquired language and skills are activated, is problematic. Beyond the classroom, learners are not only activating their language in authentic contexts, they are also developing their communicative repertoires and acquiring new language skills that are not readily acquitted in the classroom. Accepting this assertion, which will be expanded on and exemplified in the body of the paper, leads to the following question: Within the context of a negotiated curriculum, how can teachers motivate students to engage in out-of-class projects, and what in-class support can teachers provide to students as they plan, enact and reflect on their projects? In this paper, we seek to provide teachers with responses to these questions drawing on practical illustrations from the literature.