English Language Competence Research Articles

INTEGRATIVE SEMANTIC MAP AS AN ILLUSTRATIVE AND SCHEMATIC BASIS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF A PROFESSIONALLY SIGNIFICANT ENGLISH-LANGUAGE THESAURUS OF THE THEMATIC FIELD “LAW”

The authors of the article consider integrative semantic mapping as an illustrative and schematic basis for the law students’ development of a professionally oriented English-language thesaurus of the topical field “Law”. The aim of the research is to study further development of professional and communicative English-language competence which allows ensuring the implementation of pragmatic and professional communicative tasks in simulated situations of entering into legal relationship by the students.
 Methodology. The methodological framework for the research is the cognitive and generalizing methods, such as the theoretical analysis of research works in linguodidactics, pedagogy, cognitive linguistics, and the prognostic methods. The research material was an educational and methodological complex on the discipline “Legal English”, used as part of the Bachelor’s degree program 40.03.01 “Jurisprudence”.
 Results. The paper analyzes an algorithm for the development of abilities and skills of linguo-cognitive processing of professionally significative highly legal English texts of a static nature (for intermediate and upper-intermediate students), and English-language videos of a dynamic nature of the genre “courtroom drama” (for advanced and proficient students) using integrative semantic maps. Analyzing their application features allows us to emphasize their main function, which consists in optimizing the development of information about the law enforcement and legal proceedings in English-speaking countries, necessary for the effective intercultural communication of future practitioners in various branches of law.
 Conclusion. Forming and developing the English-language thesaurus of a professional lawyer is one of important areas of modern linguodidactics. It has been proved that the optimization of this process has become possible thanks to the use of new learning technologies, in particular, integrative semantic mapping as a tool for verbalization of acquired knowledge, which allows consciously applying cognitively mastered information, competently verbalizing it in intercultural professional communication, preventing and eliminating possible communication failures.

Relationship of business students’ information-seeking anxiety with socio-academic variables in the digital environment

PurposeThis paper aims to investigate the relationship of information-seeking anxiety (ISA) with socio-academic variables of business students in the digital environment.Design/methodology/approachA cross-sectional survey using a questionnaire was conducted. The questionnaire, composed of 47 items of Information Seeking Anxiety Scale along with certain socio-academic variables, was administered personally among business students by visiting their classrooms at the Lahore School of Economics, Pakistan. The received 283 responses were analyzed by applying descriptive and inferential statistics such as mean, standard deviation, t-test and one-way analysis of variance.FindingsThe results revealed that a large majority of business students were less comfortable in information seeking and experienced anxiety from mild to moderate levels. There were only a few respondents who faced either low or severe levels of ISA. In relationship testing, the students’ socio-academic variables such as program type, gender, school background, geographical background, information communication technology skills and English language competence did not appear to be the predictors of their ISA.Research limitations/implicationsThe results of this study should carefully be used while making generalizations for all the business students in Pakistan and abroad as this research collected data from the business students of a single university in Pakistan.Practical implicationsThese results have greater implications for the future directions of information literacy as creating awareness and building capacity for skills about the information search process will help in reducing ISA. These findings provided a pragmatic insight that can be used as a guide by information professionals, especially those engaged in information services, to develop a need-based curriculum of information literacy which would ultimately help in the alleviation of anxiety and combating its effects on students’ academic performance.Originality/valueThis study address specifically ISA of business students that would make a worthy contribution to the existing research on ISA as, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, no such study has appeared so far.

Use of Communication Strategies in Oral Interactions: (In)effectiveness of CLT Approach in L2 Teaching

Communication strategies (CS) have been generally used to overcome oral communication problems in delivering the intended messages. While studies on CS mostly involved simulated communication contexts, the current study deviates from the past studies on CS by identifying the types of CS employed by candidates of real job interviews and examining the effectiveness of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) approach adopted in Malaysian schools in English language teaching. The data were collected from observations made on oral interactions between candidates and the panelists of academic staff recruitment interviews at one public university in the east coast of Malaysia. The recorded oral data were imported into NVivo software (version 12) before the use of CS by the candidates were categorised based on CS taxonomies proposed by Dörnyei and Scott, and Clennell. The results revealed that the candidates employed various types of CS with fillers and self-repetitions being the most frequently employed strategies while the two least employed strategies were asking for clarification and guessing. While the results showed extensive use of CS in the interactions, the high frequency use of fillers as a time-gaining strategy might reflect that the speakers lacked competency in conveying their messages. Additionally, too much use of fillers might not be favoured by the interlocutors since the strategy could occur unpredictably. The findings indicate that CLT approach has not been effective in enhancing English language competency among L2 learners. Considering this, intervention measures to improve the current situation by looking at the root problems in the implementation of CLT are needed if the government decides to retain this teaching approach in Malaysian schools.

A Case Study on the Present State of English Language Education in the Rural Schools during Pandemic: Accounts of Teachers and Education Leaders

This study aimed to understand the present state of English Language Education in rural schools during the pandemic. This study was seen through mainly on the concept of the Principle of Language Acquisition of Threshold Hypothesis of Cummins(2001) and the Time-on-Task Hypothesis of Rossell and Baker (1986), which are: grammatical, sociolinguistic, discourse, and strategic competence. The study participants were teachers and education leaders who were teaching English Language Education in rural schools during the pandemic. Twelve teachers participated in an in-depth interview. They were selected using the purposive sampling method. Some challenges emerged, namely: constrained in giving immediate feedback limited self-assessment limited teacher participation in crafting interventions limited learning resources an unstable internet connection limited teacher training lack of knowledge and motivation in learning the English language distance from home to school lack of communication between teachers and students and limited parent literacy. The results also implied that teachers should be equipped with sufficient training in learning the English language competencies despite the pandemic. Also, teachers must consider devising new interventions to provide appropriate activities that will benefit each student. Moreover, language teachers must design various teaching strategies and creative innovations to aid every rural school student during the pandemic. It should also be combined with the habit of reading, as it has been discovered that it aids in learning English.

Academic Self-Efficacy of College Freshmen in Relation to English Language Competency

This study is conducted to determine if academic self-efficacy and English language competency are correlated. Survey instruments on academic self-efficacy and English language competencies were administered to 221 college freshmen. Academic self-efficacy and English language competencies composed of vocabulary, grammar, and comprehension were determined using the mean, while the Kruskal Wallis test was used for differences and the Chi-square Test for relationships. Significant differences were evident in the level of academic self-efficacy and the level of English language competencies when grouped according to program enrolled and academic self-efficacy is significantly related to the English language competency of college freshmen. Future research will be conducted.

The “language” of career success: The effects of English language competence on local employees’ career outcomes in foreign subsidiaries

The “language” of career success: The effects of English language competence on local employees’ career outcomes in foreign subsidiaries

A Gender-Sensitive Analysis of Social Integration Challenges. Evidence from the Pakistani Diaspora in Germany

European Union (EU) countries are confronted with the integration challenges of an increasing number of immigrants from non-EU states who intend to stay because they find better economic conditions and quality of life. Poor integration creates problems for both, immigrants and the host society, policymakers are committed to fostering appropriate conditions. This requires sound databases to explore the situation. Our article contributes to that by considering the integration challenges of the Pakistani diaspora in Germany. It applies a gender-sensitive analysis as males and females face different forms of integration challenges. Our survey among 264 Pakistani immigrants revealed that English language competencies; interaction with other nationals; and the welcoming attitude of the host society are the most significant determinants of integration. The results are relevant beyond the narrow empirical context of the country focus considered here.

Content and Language Integrated Scientific Modelling: A Novel Approach to Model Learning

The relevance of English language competencies in authentic, discipline-specific contexts at school is increasingly acknowledged outside of English-speaking countries. Since any understanding of complex scientific problems requires the combination of scientific literacy with other competencies, such as scientific modelling, the appropriate application of Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) is of great importance. The present study focuses on an established, hands-on outreach genetic education module on DNA structure, which it extends with a bilingual adaption to examine the influence of non-CLIL and CLIL learning on students’ scientific modelling skills and model understanding. When comparing non-CLIL learners (n = 149) and CLIL learners (n = 316), the former received higher scores in the assessment of model-related self-evaluation sheets and built better models. We also found that non-CLIL learners achieved better temporary knowledge of “DNA as a model” scores and, for model evaluation, were more reflective in determining similarities and differences between their hand-crafted model and a commercial DNA school model. However, CLIL learners performed better in comparing their model sketches with their hand-crafted models. They also used different approaches to develop models and conceptualize integral components of models, as reflected in their advanced model understanding. We conclude that CLIL influences modelling qualities on different levels, by fostering modelling practice, and in particular, model understanding.

Promoting a Multidimensional Literacy Framework through Texts and Tasks for EFL Reading Class

Generally, the teaching of reading for English as a foreign language (EFL) learner is only focused on developing learners’ English language competence. Little had been done to stimulate learners to develop Kucer’s (2014) multidimensional literacy that consists of four stages: linguistic, cognitive, sociocultural, and developmental. The teaching of reading should be aimed beyond the classroom context. It should not only evoke learners’ linguistic and cognitive ability, but should also elicit them to go further into sociocultural and developmental aspects. Thus, this study is aimed at proposing a multidimensional framework of literacy through texts and tasks so that they will be beneficial for learners’ actual use of literacy in their everyday life. This paper proposes a modified model of Kucer’s multidimensional literacy which is combined with principles in reading texts selection and reading tasks. The framework suggests that the degree of text difficulty and unfamiliarity should be gradually increased as well as the level of tasks challenge and variety.

Negative Evaluations of Communication in Tourism Service Encounters as a Basis of Developing Communicative Activities for English for Tourism

Good interpersonal communication between tourists and tourism service providers contributes to positive word-of-mouth among tourists. If this basic need is not fulfilled by tourism service providers, disappointed tourists will not hesitate to share their negative experience and express their negative feelings with others either face-to-face or in virtual communities via travel websites. The present study examined tourists’ online reviews by focusing on 275 negative evaluations of interpersonal communication with tourism service providers. The study found that issues related to interpersonal communication in service encounters could be categorized in three major categories of synchronous communication, asynchronous communication and non-verbal communication. Based on these findings, the study proposed four communicative activities i.e. role-play, problem solving, story-telling and group project activities to be conducted in English for tourism classes to help consolidate students’ English language competency and better prepare them for their careers in tourism.

EMI for Universities: How to Benefit from Embodying It into Educational Process

The article considers the role of the English language in global tertiary education (ESP/EAP, Adjunct ESP, EMI and ICLHE) and use a critical approach to analyze the current state of EMI integration into the educational process and tensions that arise due to conceptual gap in its adaptation to existing education policy. Applying a critical theory framework, the authors study the differences between EMI and internationalization that both instructors and university management adopt to curriculum design and pedagogy development. The research examines the ways internationalization and the EMI strategy affect curriculum design in universities; the ways university management incorporates global trends into curriculum design; the impediments that discourage the implementation of these programs identified by both educators and students. The researchers examine the EMI implementation under three dimensions: epistemology, teaching praxis, and ontological elements of students’ development and use document analysis related to the administration, curriculum, and course syllabi of EMI programs, followed by interviews with actors of the international classroom to outline the most challenging issues tertiary teachers, students, and university management face in EMI programs implementation. Moreover, the article examines evolving EMI perspectives as a means to boost internationalization and to improve teaching quality via integrating the best practices into the local context, including the expansion of teaching competence in both English language and pedagogy, introduction of language prerequisites for applicants, a constant adaptation of the curriculum to meet competence requirements.

Factors that Influence the Teaching-Learning Process in English Language Classes in Government High Schools of Tiruvallur District: An Exploratory Study

There has been growing discontent over the English language competency of graduates in the past few years. Many surveys conducted by various agencies have reaffirmed the fact that Indian graduates lack good communication skills in English. In a globalized tech-dependent world today, English language proficiency has become mandatory to attain success in any field. There were questions about the reasons for the lack of English proficiency of Indian graduates inspite of their English education both in school and college. This research study attempted to explore how English is taught in schools and the various factors that impact the teaching-learning process in schools.

Developing the Ecosystem to Enhance Engineering Students’ English Language Abilities

English language teaching in higher education has become more challenging with the growing needs to address English language abilities of students of various fields of study. In Malaysia, English language practitioners at higher institutions hold the responsibilities of addressing the needs of English language competencies of engineering students to prepare these students for the language competency needs of working engineers in the real world. However, there may be limitations in developing these English language competencies within the walls of English language classrooms as English language practitioners may not have sufficient knowledge to contextualise English language teaching into engineering. Thus, an ecosystem is required within the engineering curriculum to provide opportunities for students to develop and apply their English language abilities within engineering contexts. One of the stakeholders that need to play a role in supporting the development of English language competencies in engineering is the engineering lecturers. This paper explores ways in which engineering lecturers perceive English language teaching and support the development of English language competencies in engineering education. Semi-structured interview sessions were conducted on three engineering lecturers from one public university in Malaysia. The data were transcribed, and thematic analysis was employed. The findings provide insights into the roles that engineering lecturers play in supporting the development of English language abilities of engineering students.

Reviewing ESL Roles in STEM Education: Scaffolding STEM Learners’ English Language Competency

The number of Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) graduates has been increasing for years, yet the employment rate is still at a worrying level. The main reason for the unemployment rate among the graduates is a lack of English communication proficiency. Therefore, this paper discusses how far English language proficiency is essential for STEM learning and how to scaffold the learners’ English competency in STEM. Document analysis was conducted to identify themes related to the aim. Based on the findings, vocabulary is an essential component for language learners. Some ways to scaffold English proficiency and competency in STEM are through relational thinking and straightforward methods, which are discussed in detail in this paper. This paper contributed to the field of STEM and ESL as an added value, whereby interdisciplinary research is possible. This paper enlightens the possibility of English for STEM as an important subject that could help graduates' future employability. Future research can look into creating modules integrating English with STEM as the first step in bridging the gap between the two disciplines. Researchers in both fields can look into the unexplored issues of STEM learners in preparing them for the future world.

The Implementation Hybrid Learning Method for English Language Learning at AMA Yogyakarta

The current technological development has entered the 4.0 industrial revolutions. This revolution encouraged automation systems in almost all activities and processes . The time constraint for face-to-face interactions in the classroom often makes English learning becomes less effective, especially for classes with diverse levels of English proficiency. In a higher education system which demands active learning, English teachers often find it difficult to help students whose English language competence is below average . In fact , the target of learning English on campus is generally quite high. One of the solutions is that the teaching and learning process uses hybrid method- a learning system that complements face-to-face interactions in the classroom along with distant learning using the internet. Hybrid learning is able to complement the lack of time for face-to-face interactions in the classroom in the form of distance learning with the medium of internet. This paper is the result of the writer’s observations in applying this method when teaching the first semester of the 2021/2022 study period AMA Yogyakarta. This research is a descriptive quantitative research using questionnaires as the data retrieval technique. This research concludes that hybrid learning method can be used in English learning classes with 61,26% of students agree to the method, and 38,7% do not agree even though in general, they prefer face to face interaction. However, it can be a solution for distant learning since it is accessible anytime and anywhere although it requires stable internet connection as its basic requirements.
 Keywords : Hybrid learning , English learning , Descriptive.

The Alignment of Interpersonal Text Language Functions in Podcasts with the Standard Competence of English Language for Junior High School

This study aims to analyze the alignment of the interpersonal text language functions that occurred in podcasts with the standard competence of the 2013 curriculum to teach interpersonal texts for Junior High School. This research is a descriptive qualitative study using the content analysis method. The study is based on KI (Kompetensi Inti)/KD (Kompetensi Dasar) in Kurikulum 2013 proposed by the Indonesian Ministry of Education and Culture (2018) as the analysis framework to analyze the type of language function and expressions of interpersonal text used in the 15 podcasts. The result shows that all 15 podcasts provide 18 out of 21 language functions required in the standard competence of Interpersonal texts at the Junior High level. The language functions occurring in all podcasts cover Greeting, Leavetaking, Extending Invitations, Expressing Gratitude, Complimenting, Asking for Attention, Asking for Opinions, Expressing Opinions, and so on. It means the podcasts fulfilled 85,7% of the standard competence and can be used as teaching materials to teach interpersonal text for Junior High School students.

Distance learning and formation of professionally-oriented English-language competence in monologue-presentation of footwear students

Distance learning and formation of professionally-oriented English-language competence in monologue-presentation of footwear students

“They’re coming into school hungry, they’re not ready to learn”. Scottish teachers’ perceptions of marginalization in school mathematics

In recent years, many studies have highlighted significant differences between the mathematical performances of white middle-class boys and several other groups of children with other demographic characteristics. The ways teachers perceive marginalization influence how they make sense of diverse classrooms and how they can actively support pupils from marginalized backgrounds. Discussions about who is marginalized in school mathematics vary across different countries. In Scotland, not least at the level of policymaking, marginalization is typically associated with social class and children’s socioeconomic backgrounds. The main aim of this paper is to explore Scottish teachers’ perceptions of the roots of marginalization in school mathematics. Participants were 29 teachers from different school levels (eight early-years, 11 primary, and 10 secondary teachers). Drawing on data from individual semi-structured interviews, our thematic analysis indicated that teachers’ responses mainly reflected the social-class/poverty discourse of policymakers, while very few recognized other marginalizing variables (for example, gender, English language competence). Yet, none of the teachers talked about how such variables may be interlinked. In conclusion, the intersectional character of marginalization (structural interplay of variables such as race, class gender, sexuality, disability etc.) needs to be promoted more explicitly in initial teacher education and continuous professional development programs.

New Qualitative Perspective in Human-Computer Interaction: Designing Mobile English for STEM.

The emerging field of human–computer interaction (HCI) opens up more opportunities for technology integration in language learning. Technology creates more workforces in the Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) field, yet the number of STEM pursuers is declining due to poor command of the English language. There is a gap in English vocabulary for STEM, which needs a novel solution from the perspective of HCI. This study aims to explore the needs of STEM learners in creating an English language competency mobile module. The methodology used is through a qualitative study. Seven STEM learners, 17 years old, participated in semi-structured interviews. The results from the interview are divided into four main themes: (1) the importance of learning English, (2) problems of learners, (3) strategies of English language learning, and (4) learners' readiness in using a mobile app. This study is significant for mobile app designers, English language teachers, and course designers as the input will provide an overview of the STEM learners' needs in the English language. Plus, designing a mobile app from the learners' perspectives gives more effectiveness to HCI, rendering success to second language acquisition. Future work can design and develop a mobile app to enhance STEM learners' English language competency based on the learners' perspectives.

IMPACT OF EXTENSIVE READING ON ENGLISH LANGUAGE COMPETENCE: A CASE STUDY OF JUKWAA SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

The study sought to assess the impact of extensive reading on English language competence. The study focused on Jukwaa Senior High School. The primary objective of this study is to assess the impact of extensive reading on English language competence in Jukwaa Senior High. A descriptive design was employed for this study and a quantitative methodology was used. Data collection tools employed in this study was questionnaire. Data was sorted and analyzed using IBM SPSS version 23.0. Descriptive statistics like percentages and frequency were used to develop tables and graphs to explain the findings. Correlation and Regression Analysis were used to study the strength of a relationship between the extensive reading and then the English language competence. The study revealed a strong significant and positive relationship between extensive reading and English language competence. The study also shows that extensive reading predicts 79.3% variance in explaining English language competence. Finally, the study also revealed a linear relationship between age, extensive reading and English language competence. The study recommends that extensive reading should be a compulsory reading activity at all levels of Senior High schools in Ghana in order to improve their vocabulary knowledge. This should be done by providing students with texts on African and non-African fictions and making it compulsory for student to read at least one text in a week. Secondly, Students’ reading progress should be monitored by keeping reading diaries indicating varieties of registers or vocabularies encountered and summaries of books read. They should also be reinforced by awarding them stars for books read.