English Language Standards Research Articles

PELATIHAN PUBLIC SPEAKING DAN LITERASI HUKUM KOMUNIKASI DALAM MEMBANGUN SELF CONFIDENCE PELAJAR EFL DALAM INTERAKSI SEHARI-HARI

The ability to speak English is one of the skills that students must have as a skill that can be used in the workforce. In the world of work, students who have graduated are required to have skills in communicating in English, and discussing communication, students are also expected to understand communication literacy. Many are good at speaking English but sometimes lack direction and lack knowledge about communication literacy. On this occasion, Putera Batam University lecturers held training for Putra Jaya Vocational School students. This training uses a lecture method combined with a question and answer session. This training is delivered directly by lecturers who are experts in their fields, namely English Literature and Legal Studies. This training is very important because some companies set English language standards because the ability to communicate using English is important for students' careers and students must have this ability to be able to survive in the midst of competition. Apart from that, you must be wise and clever in communication literacy. The results obtained from this service found that many students lacked confidence when asked to speak in front and did not understand legal literacy. After the service was carried out, it could be seen that students showed the need for practice in building self-confidence and students' understanding of legal literacy.

FACTORS INFLUENCING VIETNAMESE STUDENTS’ CHOICES TO ATTAIN ENGLISH PROFICIENCY STANDARDS IN A UNIVERSITY IN VIETNAM

<p>In the current era of globalization, English is considered a necessary skill for education and work and a criterion for evaluation in recruitment and graduation assessments in many places in Vietnam. According to the project entitled <em>"Teaching and Learning Foreign Languages in the National Education System Phase 2008 - 2020"</em>, non-English majored university students must achieve a minimum of Level 3 according to the 6-level Foreign Language Proficiency Framework used in Vietnam. Several universities have diversified their ways to meet these standards to facilitate students in meeting the English language outcomes, allowing students more opportunities to choose ways that are suitable for them. However, this also indicates that various influencing factors will impact students' selection of ways to meet these standards. This research explores the primary ways students choose to fulfill English language standards as stipulated and analyzes the factors influencing the choices of non-English major students in universities in Vietnam.</p><p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/soc/0019/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>

THE CHALLENGES OF TRAINING FUTURE ENGLISH TACHERS

The article deals with topical challenging issues that are related to the training of future teachers of the English language. The first of which is the absence of any Standards of English itself. The definitions of the term ‘Standard’ from the Cambridge and Oxford dictionaries are given. The paper also insists that neither the European Framework nor the English language proficiency exams (IELTS та TOEFL) are English language standards for their native speakers and that this type of standardization exists only for those for who English is a second language. The next problem that university teachers face in teaching correct pronunciation and vocabulary to future English teachers is that English is a large and flexible language, with a huge number of words, abbreviations and a large number of different accents. The article describes the three main London accents that exist today: RP, Cockney and EE. The latter is seen as a derivative version of the new modern accent from the mixing of RP and Cockney. At the end of the article, the author comes to the conclusion that first-year students should be introduced to the peculiarities of the English language (a variety of accents, vocabulary, teaching English to schoolchildren and future British English teachers), and Oxford and Cambridge English should be taken as the standard.

Teeth of the hydra: the policies and practices of English language teaching in Japan

ABSTRACT The English language can be compared to the hydra from ancient mythology as it is an unstoppable force throughout the world. Using this comparison, this study examines the history of English in Japan, English linguistic imperialism, and its impact on contemporary Japan. Five myths of English language teaching are used as a framework, referred to as the teeth of the hydra, are considered: English should be taught monolingually; The ideal teacher of English is a native speaker; The earlier English is taught, the better the results; The more English is taught, the better the results; Standards of English will decline if languages other than English are used in the classroom. Upon investigating relevant literature, it was found that although some progress being made, some myths not only endure in higher education but are actively promoted by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. These enduring myths prevent Japan from improving English language standards within the country. Japan has long resisted accepting English as an official second language, considering it a threat to the Japanese language and culture. Japan could overcome its concern about the English language by creating a distinct Japanese English dialect and improving English language teaching standards.

Construction and Computation of the College English Teaching Path in the Artificial Intelligence Teaching Environment.

Today, English is the world's main international language and is widely spoken. In this context, the learning of English has long been valued by all countries. In addition, English plays an essential role in the process of economic globalization, specifically in the majority of countries where English is not the native language. At the same time, as China's integration into the world grows, the importance of English has become more pronounced, and the demand for English language skills has increased. At present, China's ever-expanding opening to the outside world, its developing science and technology, and its rising international status have created an urgent need for English-speaking professionals. This will lay the foundation for China's economic and social development and enable China to play a greater and more active role in international affairs, which has great practical and far-reaching historical significance. At present, the traditional English teaching mode has been criticized due to a great number of issues. At the same time, the new English language standards and the change of evaluation methods have created new demands on English teaching methods. As a result, with the development of artificial intelligence technology, the application of artificial intelligence technology in the field of education has brought new directions for the optimization of English classroom. In addition, diversified network technologies also provide new support for the realization of intelligent and collaborative English classroom teaching. To be specific, the maturity of English intelligent speech synthesis and intelligent speech evaluation technologies has enabled intelligent technologies to reach or even surpass the level of human teachers in certain areas. However, due to the limitations of the market environment and evaluation methods, the products that can focus on English classroom teaching are not highly intelligent and less collaborative. What is more, the process of English classroom intelligence has stagnated compared to other subjects. Obviously, from the perspective of integrating artificial intelligence technology with English classroom, it is quite necessary and feasible to design and develop an intelligent teaching assistant that can be applied to college English teaching. As information technology continues to evolve, both national and teacher levels are beginning to focus on how it can be better used in the teaching of subjects. Therefore, the use of online information technology in teaching and learning presents a great opportunity for research and practice in English language learning at the university level.

The Design Model of English Graded Teaching Assistant Expert System Based on Improved B/S Three-Tier Structure System

With the continuous development of Internet technology, the modern education system is becoming increasingly intelligent. The integration of information technology with the traditional curriculum can unlock the potential of modern education, which is essentially a change from the traditional teacher-centered classroom teaching structure. The disadvantage of the traditional education system is that it is difficult to teach students according to their abilities because of the differences in English language standards caused by differences in their knowledge and learning potential. Although tiered teaching is one way of addressing this difference, it can have a negative impact in some ways, and implicit tiered teaching is a great solution to this problem. In addition, artificial intelligence is a science that studies the laws of human intelligence. The application of artificial intelligence technology to develop an expert system for teaching English can effectively solve the issues of insufficient teachers and a single teaching mode in the current education system. This will enable the sharing of teaching resources to effectively improve teaching quality, reduce the burden on teachers, and strengthen student’ ability to learn on their own. This paper introduces the principles of artificial intelligence and the B/S three-tier structure system, analyses the current problems faced by English teaching, and proposes a solution for the implementation of a university English teaching aid system based on the B/S three-tier structure system. This system is based on the teacher English language teaching assistant expert system module, which uses a combination of generative and framework-based knowledge representations of the domain knowledge of English language experts to better enable teachers to understand their students’ mastery of knowledge points. The results of this research show that the system can be used to help teachers understand students’ learning through reasoning and analysis, and to improve students’ interest, learning strategies and learning abilities in English.

Medium of Instruction Policy Change in Sudan: its Impact on the English Language Proficiency of Sudanese Medical Students

The decline of English language standards among Sudanese university students and graduates has become one of the issues preoccupying public opinion in Sudan. Media, employers, parents, and school and university teachers are concerned about the falling standards of English language among Sudanese students and graduates. The present study investigated the impact of the medium of instruction on the English language proficiency of Sudanese medical students. An English language-writing test was employed to assess the English language proficiency of two groups of students; namely, a group that studied through the medium of English, and a group that studied through the medium of Arabic. The English-medium students were second-year medical students at Khartoum University, Sudan, while the Arabic-medium students were second-year medical students at Gezira University, Sudan. A sample of 151 students was chosen from the former group, and a sample of 155 students was chosen from the latter group. An independent samples t-test was conducted. The findings indicate that there is a statistically significant difference in the English language proficiency of English-medium students and Arabic-medium students (t =12.369, p =.000). Thus, English-medium students performed significantly better than Arabic-medium students in the English proficiency test.

English Language Standards in California, China and Mexico: History, Comparison, and Analysis

Learning standards have become a prominent feature for schools and school systems worldwide. Our paper describes the development of recent English teaching standards in California, China, and Mexico, as well as analyzing them for their theoretical orientations. We begin with an overview and critique of the standards movement. Our analysis of the standards in California, China, and Mexico reveals a substantial shift from a grammatical accuracy focused approach towards a communicative approach to language instruction. While this turn may be welcomed by professional educators, there are practical policy questions to be answered. We end our paper by noting additional challenges to implementing the new standards. Our general assessment is that the authors of the standards firmly believe that the new guidelines will improve instruction.

Towards A Model to Improve English Language Standards in Schools: Impact of Socio-Economic Factors of Stakeholders

There is a dire need to enhance the English language standards in schools of developing countries using English as a second or Foreign language, due to its importance in employability and high-earning ability in the job market. Enhancing English language standards in schools is vital to improving the English language competence of school leavers and undergraduates to achieve an English language quality level as a nation, to produce diversified graduates of global quality, to address the unemployability problem in developing countries. Sri Lanka, with a rich history of a colonial era, is no exception. Studies on the influence of Socio-Economic factors of stakeholders on improving the English language standards in schools had received poor attention from past researchers, especially in the Sri Lankan education context. Hence, the overall purpose of this study is to develop a theoretical model, to explore the impact of socio-economic factors of stakeholders on English Language Standards in Sri Lankan schools. The study reviewed reliable secondary data published in scholarly extant literature, government Policy Documents, Research Reports of reputed institutions, etc., relevant to the above primary relationship and key concepts of the study. Six main stakeholders in the socio-economic context of the school English Language education were identified: (i) Education Policy Makers, (ii) School Management, (iii) School Principals, (iv) English Language Teachers, (v) Students, and (vi) Parents. An integrated, seven-construct conceptual model, labeled ‘ELS Model’ (English Language Standard Model), was developed, to examine the impact of socio-economic factors of the six stakeholders on improving English Language Standards in schools. This ELS Model presents original insights and future directions to scholars/researchers and significant implications for policymakers.

Standards of English in academic writing: The authors respond

The response to our recent article on journal submission guidelines (McKinley & Rose, 2018) facilitates an opportunity to engage in further discussion on English language standards in published academic writing. We are grateful to Paul Stapleton for his response, and to the editors of the Journal of Second Language Writing for this further occasion to clarify our position. The main concerns raised by Stapleton (2019) are as follows: 1. That we fail to fully consider the importance of a standard for conveying scientific findings; 2. Disagreement with our suggestion that terms such ‘good’ and ‘error-free’ should be avoided in author guidelines, as it risks eroding academic standards that have been painstakingly established over time; 3. A belief that the introduction of non-standard, but globally-used, forms of language are a ‘slippery slope’ to the degradation of academic writing.

English in the OECD: transcultural tool or embodiment of symbolic power?

ABSTRACT The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) contributes increasingly to the generation and dissemination of public knowledge. Its publishing division and the OECD iLibrary provide access to around 219,700 publications. While the OECD offers translated summaries of some of its key titles in up to 25 languages, the majority of publications are authored in English, and are stylistically regulated in accordance with Anglo-Saxon writing standards, as set out in the OECD Style Guide. This article discusses the language effects (Pennycook 1994) – that is, the worldmaking implications – of the OECD’s predominant use of English in processes of knowledge production. It presents two contrasting perspectives: 1. (the OECD’s own view) that the English language standards imposed by the organisation mean that the knowledge generated becomes widely accessible, which in turn contributes to a transcultural knowledge world; 2. (an external critique) that the dominance of English language publications embodies the OECD’s symbolic power, so that knowledge can only be generated and accessed by accepting English as the legitimate language of authority (Bourdieu 1977). Attention will be drawn to the diverging role of translation in both scenarios, and to the concept of institutional translation (Koskinen 2008).

Unscrambling jumbled sentences: An authentic task for English language assessment?

Jumbled sentence items in language assessment have been criticized by some authors as inauthentic. However, unscrambling jumbled sentences is a common occurrence in real-world communication in English as a lingua franca. Naturalistic inquiry identified 54 instances of jumbled sentence use in daily life in Dubai/Sharjah, where English is widely used as a lingua franca. Thus it is seen that jumbled sentence test items can reflect real-world language use. To evaluate scrambled sentence test items, eight test item types developed from one jumbled sentence instance (“Want taxi Dubai you?”) were analyzed in terms of interactivity and authenticity. Items ranged from being completely decontextualized, non-interactive, and inauthentic to being fully contextualized, interactive, and authentic. To determine appropriate assessment standards for English tests in schools in this region, the English language standards for schools and English language requirements for university admission in the UAE were analyzed. Schools in Dubai/Sharjah use Inner Circle English varieties of English (e.g., British or American English) as the standard for evaluation, as well as non-native-English-speaker varieties (e.g., Indian English(es)). Also, students applying to English-medium universities in the UAE must meet the required scores on standardized English tests including the IELTS and TOEFL. Standards for evaluation of communication in English involving tasks of jumbled sentences in classroom tests must reflect the language learning goals of the school and community. Thus standards for classroom assessment of English in Dubai/Sharjah are determined by local schools’ and universities’ policies.

English with Flying Colors: The Aviation English and the International Civil Aviation Organization

Abstract There are several reasons for the English language to become lingua franca of aviation including some historical turning points for the world aviation and some specific linguistic features of the language itself. This paper aims to firstly present a short, yet interesting history of implementation of English as standardized language for aviation. It will provide introductory historical background, establishment of arguments necessary for standardization and leading to the implementation of the Language Proficiency Requirements (LPRs) within the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). It will then provide an overview of the ICAO’s actions to support its members states in implementation of the English language standards for aviation and try to evaluate the effects based on the powers granted to the Organization. Such evaluation will be presented in the comparative perspective with the powers and instruments used within the European Union to achieve the same goal - standardization of the aviation English.

Re-integrating academic development and academic language and learning: a call to reason

This paper argues for the re-integration of academic development (AD) and a academic language and learning (ALL) practitioners in Australian higher education. This argument is made as universities aim to develop internationally recognised, inter-disciplinary and standards-based curricula against the backdrop of international comparative education (e.g., Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development), the Australian Qualifications Framework and a quality emphasis on English language standards (e.g., Tertiary Education Quality and Assessment Agency). Drawing on Rowland's argument that professional life in the academy has become fragmented across five fault lines ([2002]. Overcoming fragmentation in professional life: The challenge for academic development. Higher Education Quarterly, 56(1), 52–64), I propose a sixth: the pedagogical fault line between language and learning which I argue is institutionally manifest in the historical bifurcation of AD and ALL practitioners in the academy. This paper traces the historical separation of these two fields of practice in Australian higher education in order to disturb the present distinction and show how it is more an accident of history than the result of sound pedagogical decision-making. The paper argues that in the current educational context, it is timely to consider a re-integration of these two aspects of the academic field. It is suggested that such a move will create research and teaching connections that develop synergies in educational development that are able to work with language and learning simultaneously.

SAGE directory of cancer guidelines.

306 Background: The Standards and Guidelines Evidence (SAGE) directory of cancer guidelines is a resource designed to facilitate evidence-based clinical practice, policy formation, and guideline adaptation, and reduce duplication in guideline development. Methods: Developed in 2008, SAGE is a publically available (www.cancerview.ca/sage), searchable database of English language cancer control guidelines and standards released since 2003. Qualifying guidelines in SAGE are rated using the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation II (AGREE II) tool. These ratings can be used to measure trends in guideline quality. SAGE also documents guideline development status, including current guidelines, guidelines in progress, those in need of an update and guidelines undergoing updates. Results: SAGE contains over 1,900 indexed records from 271 developer organizations spanning 27 countries and international jurisdictions. There is considerable variability in guideline quality both within and across guideline developers, and AGREE II quality domains of applicability and editorial independence are the poorest performing. SAGE has the ability to provide information on guideline topic gaps and overlap, demonstrating that the majority of guidelines target breast, lung, colorectal and prostate cancers, and focus on the treatment stage of the cancer control continuum. This provides a channel of communication amongst organizational groups and facilitates guideline development partnerships. Conclusions: The value-add of SAGE to mitigate inconsistencies in guideline quality is the appraisal component of its records. It is the ultimate goal that SAGE will continue to assist efforts to leverage positive change in the field of practice guidelines, patient care and system performance in cancer control.

Engaging international students

PurposeAustralia has enjoyed two decades of growth in international student enrolments. This phenomenon, combined with the evolution of quality assurance policy frameworks, has stimulated interest in the social and academic experiences of international students and their educational outcomes. The Australian Universities Quality Agency's (AUQA) second round of quality audits assessed and reported on the performance of Australian universities in the area of “internationalisation”. AUQA findings and recommendations for required action send powerful messages to guide university priorities, practices and strategies in pursuit of quality enhancement in relation to student engagement. This paper seeks to address these issues.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses a thematic analysis approach to explore “internationalisation” in 14 AUQA audit reports published between 2006 and 2010.FindingsThis paper identifies three key areas arising from AUQA audit reports that form a basis for discussion in this paper. These areas are: the social and academic engagement of both international and local students, and matters relating to English language standards and support. Observations arising from AUQA university reports direct attention to examples of initiatives that appear to be enriching the quality of the student engagement and indicate where further development may be required.Practical implicationsIn seeking strategies for enhanced student experience, AUQA supports collaboration across universities in devising models for identifying student needs and creating mechanisms that bring about quality student experience, engagement and language outcomes. This analysis of the reports will likely assist those stakeholders working in universities who wish to identify successful approaches to promote the engagement of international students and refine existing useful and positive strategies in implementing and developing ideas in their own individual university contexts.Originality/valueAnalysis of the substantial text of AUQA reports have been underexploited by researchers to date. This paper is likely to be of interest to those stakeholders of international education in universities, not only in Australia but in other national contexts where international students are significantly represented.

An Exploration of Teachers’ Integration of Visual Literacy in the Egyptian Secondary English Language Classrooms

Recognizing the need for students to be literate in the more traditional areas of reading and writing, professional organizations such as the NCTE, IRA, and NCATE as well as NAQAAE, The National Authority for Quality Assurance and Accreditation of Education in Egypt, have put in place English language standards that address other literacies, including visual literacy. Yet, it has been unclear how secondary English language teachers feel about and understand what is expected of them in teaching non-print literacy, and if they indeed are teaching concepts related to comprehension and production of information in non-text format. This study attempts to discover teachers' attitudes toward, understanding of, and use of visual literacy concepts through a survey of the secondary English language teachers in Egypt. Based on the information from the responses to the survey, secondary English language teachers have received no formal training in teaching visual literacy and that their informal training consists mainly of discussions with colleagues and independent study; among others.

Good practices in team teaching in Japan, South Korea and Hong Kong

Team teaching between native English speaking teachers and local L2 English teachers has become an increasingly common phenomenon in schooling in the East Asia region. The relevant literature reports some positive impacts of team teaching and also highlights some of the challenges or conflicts which arise. The aim of this paper is to focus on reporting and analysing good practices in intercultural team teaching. I draw on interviews and classroom observations from three schemes in which native and non-native speaking English teachers have worked together as part of efforts to improve English language standards of school children. The three initiatives from which qualitative data are drawn are: the Japan Exchange and Teaching programme (JET); the English Program in Korea (EPIK); and the Primary NET scheme in Hong Kong (PNET). The paper concludes by summarising some of the good practices discussed and proposing some characteristics of successful team teaching.

Language teaching

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Raising English Language Standards in Hong Kong

Despite the return of sovereignty to China in 1997, the Hong Kong government acknowledges that a high level of English language ability is still required among the workforce in order to maintain Hong Kong’s position as an international commercial centre. Although there is no shortage of willingness on the part of the government to introduce measures to improve worrying English language standards, implementing such innovations has proved difficult. After briefly outlining several measures introduced over the past 20 years, we examine two specific language policy innovations: the introduction of a public examination format designed to have a beneficial washback effect on teaching and the employment of hundreds of native English speakers to teach English in the primary and secondary sectors. We conclude that although both measures are potentially valuable means of bringing about improvements in language learning, they need to be handled with caution if they are to form part of strategic language policy.