English Language Teaching Contexts Research Articles

Incorporating AI into English Language Learning: An Experimental Study Focusing on Autonomous Learning

This study investigates the impact of integrating AI-powered tool, Plang, on English language learning among Korean EFL learners. Specifically, the study aims to examine the overall experiences of using the AI app in language learning and the impact of using the AI app on learners’ autonomous learning. The two-month study employed a qualitative data approach derived from a mixed-method study involving pre- and post-survey, reflective journals, and in-depth individual interviews. Overall, the findings have shown that the integration of the AI-powered tool into the English language learning helped learners: (i) to enhance language skills, particularly speaking proficiency; (ii) to foster learner autonomy through a personalized feedback system; and (iii) to establish a new goal that facilitates active learner engagement. The analysis also points out some challenges learners faced in the learning process. Some important implications of this study are discussed for teachers who consider integrating AI-powered tools into English language teaching. Considering that there has been little research on incorporating AI tools into classrooms, it is recommended that further research should highlight more dynamic classroom cases by developing a flipped classroom model utilizing AI tools in English language teaching contexts.

Consumerist discourses on social media and language teacher educator identity tensions

AbstractThis study investigates the impact of social media discourses, espoused by neoliberal and consumerist ideologies, on a language teacher educator's (LTE) identity negotiation. Through a collaborative case study, it examines Hassan's (the second author) experiences with social media in the Iranian English language teaching (ELT) context over three years. The data consist of extensive email discussions and four online meetings between the authors over one year. The analysis of Hassan's narratives reveals dominant social media discourses emphasizing sameness, omniscience, and commercialized luxurious lifestyles. These discourses often equate social media visibility with professional qualifications, pressuring Hassan to conform to trends that conflict with his sense of professionalism and authenticity. Hassan's emotional struggles and identity tensions led to critical reflection and ongoing negotiation of his professional identity. The findings underscore the need for professional development programs that support LTEs in navigating the pressures of self‐branding while maintaining their professionalism. Additionally, the study calls for further research into the long‐term effects of social media on professional identity and well‐being across diverse cultural and institutional contexts.

Embracing Global Voices: An Exploration of Thai Teachers’ Attitudes and Practices on Culturally Diverse ELT Materials in a Northern Thai University

In recent times, the advancement of technology and globalization has significantly impacted educational practices worldwide, making teaching and learning increasingly complex and interconnected. In the field of English Language Teaching (ELT), these changes have challenged traditional approaches and necessitated the integration of more culturally diverse materials to reflect the global usage of English. Against this backdrop, this study aims to investigate teachers’ attitudes toward cultural diversity and their representation of cultures in ELT materials at a Thai university. Situated in Thailand’s diverse cultural landscape, the research explores how teachers’ cultural backgrounds, institutional policies, and student feedback influence the selection and depiction of cultural content. Utilizing a qualitative approach that employs semi-structured interviews, document analysis, and classroom observations, the study seeks to uncover the extent to which global cultures are represented in their ELT materials. In addition, it aims to identify trends in teachers’ practices and perceptions, highlighting a potential shift towards a more inclusive curriculum that mirrors the global context of English language teaching and learning. Consequently, this study contributes to the broader discourse on the importance of cultural diversity in education, offering practical recommendations for educators and policymakers in globalized educational environments.

Evaluating English Teachers’ Artificial Intelligence Readiness and Training Needs with a TPACK-Based Model

With the rapid development and widespread adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) tools, the implementation of instructional pedagogy has transformed significantly. English teachers need to understand how AI tools can improve their teaching and must acquire the necessary technical and pedagogical knowledge to effectively utilize AI technology. Although the integration of AI into language teaching shows potential benefits, there remains a dearth of comprehensive research on English teachers’ perceptions, readiness, and professional development requirements in relation to AI.To address these knowledge research gaps, our study aims to evaluate English teachers’ current understanding of AI tools and their training needs for integrating AI into the English language classroom. Our proposed model uses the technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) framework, which incorporates English language teaching and information literacy contexts. This framework allows for a holistic assessment of teachers’ readiness for integrating AI within English language teaching practices.A study was conducted with a class of preservice English teachers in Hong Kong. An online survey was designed to assess the readiness of English teachers for applying AI tools in the classroom as well as their understanding and level of information literacy. This study helped identify and address potential issues with the survey before launching it to a wider audience. Our findings confirmed the validity and reliability of the instrument and indicated that preservice English teacher participants are generally prepared to integrate AI tools into the English classroom. Corelation analysis was also conducted to assess the relationships among the constructs and showed that technological pedagogical knowledge (TPK) and instructional literacy (IL) were significant predictors of the overall TPACK construct. The study suggested professional training in the selection, implementation and progress monitoring of specific AI tools for English Language teaching; pedagogy design; and the ability to search for appropriate resources for the English classroom. The framework can be enhanced by using a mixed-method approach and incorporating a qualitative study to triangulate the findings. An explanatory sequential design will be recommended to collect quantitative data first, then qualitative data will be collected for further analysis.

Understanding of indonesian student behavior and character in english language teaching contexts: a qualitative ethnographic investigation

Understanding of indonesian student behavior and character in english language teaching contexts: a qualitative ethnographic investigation

“I know how much he cares for our learning”: Moral Life in University ELT Classrooms

In Iran’s higher education English language teaching (ELT) context, we explored the moral nuances embedded in two conversation courses offered to undergraduate students majoring in English Literature at one of the branches of the Islamic Azad University (IAU) in Tehran. We collected data through classroom observations, field notes, and semi-structured individual and focus group interviews. Our content analysis revealed a range of moral values embedded in significant incidents, which we categorized into five themes: (a) relations, (b) rules and regulations, (c) assessment, (d) curricular substructure, and (I) culture. These themes were further subcategorized into more specific concepts that emerged from our data. We selectively focused on two subthemes, Class Initiation and Turn Taking, as well as the main theme of Assessment, as these were the most morally loaded, with a higher frequency of moral values extracted from related class episodes compared to other categories. This selection allowed for a deeper exploration of the complexities and nuances within these themes, providing further support on the role of ELT teachers as moral exemplars for their students.

Toward a tool for evaluating corpus-based word lists for use in english language teaching contexts

With the proliferation of large corpora and the availability of sophisticated corpus-analysis tools, the number of corpus-based word lists targeting different types of vocabulary has rapidly increased during the last 20 years. This wide variety of lists has caused problems for practitioners, for whom it is not always easy to decide which list is most useful for their purpose and context. Given the paucity of systematic guidance on how to evaluate word lists, this study aimed to construct an evaluation tool that is based on Nation's (2016) framework of critiquing word lists, but is reformulated for a different purpose and for different target users, in order to increase the applicability of information derived from corpus analysis (the word lists). Constructed based on a thorough literature review, and informed by practitioners’ views and uses of word lists, along with consultations with ELT practitioners and word list experts, the tool targets ELT practitioners such as teachers, curriculum and assessment coordinators, and materials developers involved in directing vocabulary acquisition. The tool caters to practitioners with different levels of expertise and knowledge—especially those who are unfamiliar with the intricacies of developing corpus-based word lists. This paper documents the development of the initial version of the evaluation tool, as well as its first iteration, drawing upon the insights of both word list experts and practitioners in ELT.

In Quest for Reliable English Language Testing Practices in Secondary Education

This paper reports on the current English language teaching context and reformed foreign language policies in the Republic of Serbia. Although the objectives, contents and outcomes formulated in national curricula for all educational levels have been designed in compliance with the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment, there is not much evidence on the learning outcomes achieved by students at the end of secondary education. In other words, there are no standardized testing practices present in the secondary education system that would, on the one hand, objectively show to which extent the prescribed outcomes have been achieved, and, on the other, serve as a diagnostic tool that pinpoints which aspects in teaching, learning and assessment practices should be improved. This paper focuses on the issue of assessment and draws attention to the need to introduce reliable testing practices of foreign languages that would serve as the objective indicators of the outcomes achieved, which would, in turn, provide feedback on teaching and learning practices. Through the analysis of the results obtained from grammar, vocabulary and reading tests taken by a group of secondary school graduates, the most common errors have been detected and explained. The results show that the commonest errors result from the lack of understanding of the use of English in a context that demands more than just a straightforward application of rules as used in isolated sentences, and the most demanding reading tasks comprised inference and implication questions. This study aims to research the errors and, subsequently, to investigate the implications relevant in English language teaching and testing and point at the segments that need to be worked on more in English language classes.

Tracking motivational changes in self-initiated professional development in ELT: a single-case analysis

ABSTRACT While motivation has been recognized as a key catalyst for the uptake of self-initiated professional development (PD), motivational changes that occur in the course of self-initiated PD practices remain unexplored in English Language Teaching (ELT) contexts and beyond. Yet this research area warrants closer attention since motivation is a dynamic construct displaying nonlinear trajectories over multiple timescales. The exploratory single-case study reported here aims to tackle changes in motivation and the sources of these changes as reported by an English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) teacher trainee who engaged in ELT assistantship in a real classroom as a self-driven PD activity over four months in Turkey. Drawing on data from self-ratings of perceived motivational intensity, journal entries, and semi-structured interviews, the analyses showed that the focal participant’s motivational development manifested a constantly evolving pattern with temporal ups and downs, fluctuating in response to a complex array of individual and contextual factors such as shifting self-efficacy beliefs, display of coping efforts, perceived success/failure of the lessons, and group dynamics in the classroom. Implications for facilitating (trainee) teachers’ sustainable engagement in self-directed learning are discussed.

Impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on Lecturers’ Proficiency Levels in English Teaching and Library Practice in Nigerian Universities

This paper presents a literature on the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in English language teaching and library practice and its impact on library operations. This study aims to provide researchers with a comprehensive understanding of AI in the English language teaching and library context. This paper aims at analyzing an artificial intelligence platform that can be used in examining lecturers’ proficiency levels in English teaching and library practice in Nigerian universities. It draws attention to how AI facilitates personalized learning experiences by adapting to individual teachers’ teaching style, pace, and proficiency levels. The paper examines the proficiency levels of lecturers in Nigerian universities regarding the utilization of AI features in three innovative presentation software tools: MS PowerPoint, Canva, and Gamma. Through the application of AI playing as a pivotal tool in enhancing research, teaching and learning experiences, the study explores the significance of PowerPoint literacy in modern English teaching and learning settings. The method of research design is descriptive. The population of the study consists of the entire academic staff in Nigerian universities. The sample size used is made up of 600 lecturers. Data are analyzed using descriptive statistics of mean, standard deviation on a 4-point Likert Scale. The findings of this study serve as a base for developing training programs and interventions to enhance PowerPoint literacy skills in the teaching of English Language and library practice in Nigerian universities. The findings also illustrate that Artificial Intelligence technology is useful for developing teaching of English Language and library practice. The major limitation of this study is that it does not examine the extent of AI role in teachers’ teaching and students’ English learning. The information presented in this paper serves as a valuable resource for researchers interested in exploring the use of AI in English language teaching and library practice.

The Role of Culture Awareness in Teaching English as a Foreign Language

Many modern researchers have explained the need and rationale for a wide range of cultural studies in combination with foreign language teaching. However, questions remain as to the content selection, forms of work and technologies that provide students with active interactions, and complete immersion. The paper focuses on the research questions: How can cultural knowledge and understanding be incorporated into the context of English language teaching? Findings indicates that including a culturally appropriate approach to foreign language instruction into professional training improves the art and cultural awareness of aspiring English teachers by allowing them to apply their acquired cultural knowledge in cross-cultural communication scenarios. It helps people become more focused on their jobs. Their motivation is increased, and an environment of openness and inquiry is fostered via cultural studies. The questionnaire was completed by 24 respondents.Keywords : pedagogic competence, teachers, cooperative learning

Disparity, Empowerment and Female English Language Teacher in Higher Education Context in Bangladesh: A Narrative Inquiry

The existing literature while highlighting learner empowerment, carefully gives less attention to the fact of empowering female teachers in adult English language teaching context. In most contexts worldwide teaching foreign languages is a feminine job (Ortiz &Serrano, 2020; Bashiruddin, 2018; Kollmayer et.al., 2020; Tindowen, 2019), and that mostly remains at a disadvantaged position as she works ‘within a network of power relations’. Hence it is very essential to scrutinize and understand the micro-dynamics of the female teacher’s journey of sense-making and her employment of coping strategies at the time and point of professional disempowerment. This in-depth narrative inquiry tries to investigate the issues that support a female teacher in empowering herself in professional landscapes. In this regard, I used the narrative inquiry research design and exploited semi-structured interviews with six female teachers to generate data to show how female teachers struggle(d) to achieve parity to empower themselves and their learners. Fraser’s (2008; 2009; 2012) notion of ‘participatory parity’ was used here as the theoretical ground to analyze the findings that empowerment is a theory of social change. The result has come out with the view that any attempt at school reform should be synonymous with the most active models of female teacher empowerment to advance student achievement, collegiality, and professional learning. This study thus contributes to the empowerment literature of female English language teachers in the higher education context.

The resurgence of eibungaku in Japanese ELT: A critical reflection on whitewashing in recently published eibumpō textbooks

ABSTRACT Recently, a number of eibungaku [English and American literature]-based eibumpō [English grammar] textbooks have been published in Japan. Historically, teaching English by using eibungaku materials at university level was mainstream or at least common in Japanese English language teaching (ELT) up to the 1990s. However, the government-led educational reforms over the past couple of decades shifted the focus from eibungaku to practical English. Against the grain of this shift, scholars of eibungaku are now trying to reintroduce English and American literary texts as ELT materials. While following the historical trajectory of English education in Japan, this article attempts to make sense of this resurgence of eibungaku in Japanese ELT. Findings reveal that these textbooks canonize whitewashed English. The article points to the importance of rethinking eibungaku in the ELT context from the perspectives of World Englishes to bring out the potentiality of literature as an ELT material.

The Integration of Islamic Values in English Language Teaching Context: Practices and Challenges

Studies on the integration of moral, cultural, and religious values in the non-religion subject have been greatly raised in these recent years. This research aims to find out the teachers’ strategy and challenges encountered in integrating Islamic values in English language teaching. The descriptive method with a qualitative approach is employed in this research. The subject of this research consists of three English teachers who teach in different grades from seventh to ninth at SMP Pesantren Modern IMMIM Putra Makassar. The data of this research are obtained from the observation sheet and interview guide. The data analysis technique in this research uses three steps, namely identification, classification, and explanation. The result of this research shows that there are four strategies employed by English teachers in integrating Islamic values in ELT. First, the teachers give direct advice to the students. Second, the teachers associate the lesson topic with pertinent Islamic teaching by quoting verses from the Qur’an and/or Hadith. Third, the teachers get the students used to worship through the habituation of religious activities. Fourth, the teachers refer to someone, or themselves to introduce some Islamic values to the students. The teachers also encounter several challenges in integrating Islamic values in ELT. First, the limited availability of English textbooks integrated to Islamic values. Second, the teachers have limited knowledge of how to optimally integrate Islamic values into the teaching and learning process. Third, the teachers have a limited time to provide and prepare the English learning materials associated to Islamic values. Further studies such as research and development of English textbooks that integrated to Islamic values for high school students are expected to be conducted in an attempt to solve the teachers’ challenges revealed in this research.

A professional development course to face the current challenges

The context of English language teaching has undergone significant changes in recent years, impacting all elements involved, including students, teachers, materials, methodologies, challenges, and outcomes. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, everyone was forced to continue teaching and learning to the best of their abilities. Although classes have largely returned to their pre-pandemic format, the lessons learned from remote and online teaching cannot be disregarded as the experience also revealed the futility of some former live classroom activities. To address this issue, a teacher development course has been created to assist educators in evaluating their current practices and enhancing them by drawing on the knowledge gained and resources employed during the pandemic. This online and asynchronous course provides educators with an opportunity to embrace change to better learning outcomes for students.

Introducing Culture in EFL Class: The Junior High School Teachers’ Awareness

The integration of culture into language teaching, particularly in the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) class, is widely regarded as an essential aspect of English teaching. The objective of this study is to explore the 7th-grade teachers’ awareness of Junior High school on introducing culture in EFL class. The research employed a quantitative survey in 26 junior high schools located in Palembang, South Sumatra. The data were collected from 115 English teachers who responded to a set of questionnaire items. Subsequently, the data underwent analysis by the use of descriptive statistics. The findings revealed that English teachers at the seventh-grade level are aware of incorporating cultural components within the context of English language teaching. To begin with, it is evident that the teachers possess a comprehensive understanding of the significance of culture and context in interpreting meaning. Furthermore, the teachers have a fundamental experience of the significance of being able to analyze and contrast cultures concerning their shared characteristics and distinctions. Thirdly, the teachers widely acknowledge that cultural learning has a predominantly positive influence within the English classroom. In the realm of English teaching, the teachers have a consensus regarding the significance of incorporating cultural learning activities into the classroom setting. Ultimately, junior high school English teachers exhibit a predominantly favorable disposition towards the significance of including cultural learning activities inside the English instructional setting

The Conundrum of Identity in the Omani Higher Education: A Case Study of an English Language Teaching (ELT) Context

The developing status of the Omani higher education has made this sector subject to both national and global influences. Such influences created inconsistencies between the demands of the local context and those of the increasingly globalizing context, which resulted in a nationally diverse faculty body. This paper draws on the Social Identity Approach (SIA) and the intersectionality theory to argue that identity in the workplace could be understood better through focusing on processes rather than individual narratives since processes reveal much of the complexity of prototypes especially when applied to workgroups. The paper reports the findings of a qualitative case study conducted in an English language-teaching department in Oman. The study explored identity intersectionalities within a workgroup by analyzing the data generated through 16 interviews, eight meeting observations and document analysis. The thematic analysis reveals that identities are constructed based on intersections of language, nationality, contract and professional identity. Such intersections were evident in relation to the process of recruitment, employment security and retention, staff inclusion, and professional identity enactment. These findings demonstrate that analyzing identity at the intra-categorical level sheds light on its effects at the individual level. The paper concludes by highlighting theoretical and practical implications that are relevant to ELT contexts internationally.

The Perceptions of the Use of Translanguaging as a Form of Oral Feedback in Indonesian Tertiary English Language Teaching Context

As the practice of using different languages to extend the process of knowledge construction, translanguaging is often performed in teachers’ corrective feedback in foreign language classrooms. The research aimed to analyze students’ perception of the implementation of translanguaging as a form of oral corrective feedback in an EFL-speaking context at a private university in Indonesia. This study used a mixed-methods sequential explanatory design through two phases of data collection: a questionnaire (N=60) and semi-structured interviews (N=8). The findings of this study indicate that students perceive translanguaging as a beneficial practice in implementing oral corrective feedback in the EFL-speaking classroom, such as increasing the chances for language acquisition, empowering students to take educational risks, creating a more welcoming and socially inclusive learning environment due to students’ diverse language proficiency, and increasing in-classroom participation and engagement. However, it is also perceived that translanguaging should not be used too excessively to avoid confusion amongst students with lower target language proficiency. It is recommended that teachers give students a fair chance to interact meaningfully with more than one language by including translanguaging oral feedback as a pedagogical strategy, to help students reach their academic goals, notice differences in language, and promote bilingualism and biliteracy. The students' positive opinions of translanguaging highlighted its potential as an effective pedagogical technique. It is also hoped that this research becomes a basis for establishing English language teaching policies that are appropriate to the multilingual pedagogical context in Indonesia.

The Challenge EFL Teachers Face in Turkey: Burnout

Burnout is quite common in educational settings for a variety of reasons and may specifically affect the lives of teachers, especially English language teachers. Therefore, it needs to be analyzed in detail and resolved by policymakers in education. To reveal this significant drawback, this research aims to examine the research studies on the issue of burnout among English as foreign language teachers from primary schools to higher education that were carried out in the English language teaching context in Turkey between 2012 and 2022 through a systematic review. 19 research studies done in Turkey were obtained and the findings of the studies related to the burnout challenge of Turkish English language teachers were scrutinized. Based on the findings of the study, English teachers are the most prevalent demographic to have a variety of ailments due to burnout, which is caused by extended exposure to high levels of stress, chronic fatigue, unhappiness, and feelings of inefficacy. The unique finding of this study is that English teachers are mainly faced with challenging and stressful conditions in their daily teaching life as they are forced to adapt to changing student profiles and technological advancements as well as rising demands of society and as a result, they struggle with burnout even if they are still in their early years of teaching English. In the meanwhile, their commitment to in-service training and the support of their superiors are crucial and maintaining a healthy lifestyle is also important. Besides, a comprehensive strategy that includes regulatory modifications, encouraging work conditions, and professional development opportunities is required to address English teacher burnout in Turkish society and thus, by prioritizing teacher well-being, education policies can have a positive influence on the education sector by ensuring the availability of motivated and effective English instructors who can provide high-quality education to students and these policies could eradicate negative views and provide the respect for the teaching profession by fostering a resilient English teaching workforce while mitigating the risks of burnout.

Feminist Academic Activism in English Language Teaching: The Need to Study Discourses on Femininities Critically

Social research into English Language Teaching (ELT) has a long history. Within it, gender studies have gained ground in recent decades, with special focus on materials and resources. However, a proper integration of the category of femininity has not yet been achieved. The article offers an ample, argumentative, narrative literature review of the main realizations of femininity, as theorized in recent years, such as emphasized femininity or entitled femininity, as well as some other concepts like ambivalent sexism and postfeminism. It is written as the second item within a series of papers that aims to theoretically support the assumption of Feminist Critical Discourse Analysis as a suitable method to discover how all these social phenomena interact in ELT contexts, helping to shape its (gender’s) hidden curriculum. The paper concludes the necessity of integrating the issue of femininities in teacher training programs and in social research in ELT, for the sake of making this field more a liberating practice and less a means of (re)production of (gender) inequalities. To do so, it offers areas of interest for critical researchers and ELT practitioners to carry out such empirical investigation, which is the upcoming stage in this sequence of publications.