FL Classes Research Articles

In-service and Pre-service Perspectives: Cultivating Plurilingual Awareness in Multicultural Classrooms

Recent years have seen a growing interest in fostering inclusivity and interaction among individuals from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds in FL or L2 classes, which has led to the proliferation of intercomprehension practices in language teacher education, facilitating teachers' identity development, intercultural sensitivity, and plurilingual awareness. Using plurilingualism as a conceptual framework, the data of this qualitative study is collected from a pre-service teacher education program and an intensive language education program at two state universities. Building on the previous research and challenges reported by in-service teachers in multicultural and multilingual classrooms, some scenarios are formed with prompts to reveal metaphors, followed by semi-structured interviews to elaborate on the participants' perspectives. In light of the findings, some suggestions and implications are provided with pedagogical purposes to soften the bonds among different cultures in language classrooms and foster interaction among members of different societies and awareness of plurilingual competences. Acknowledging the substantial impact of English language teachers' intercultural sensitivity, diversity, and inclusion, and an emerging need for enhanced educational equality and social justice in teacher training, this study contributes to the existing research by providing implications for teacher identity development.

Does multilingualism affect foreign language classroom anxiety and foreign language enjoyment?

Multilingual foreign language learners have been found to typically experience less Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety (FLCA) and more Foreign Language Enjoyment (FLE) than their less multilingual peers. Since most existing research was based on single databases, authors had to be careful to avoid sweeping generalisations about the positive effect of multilingualism. In order to increase validity, the current paper will investigate the link between the degree of multilingualism and two learner emotions using three different existing databases that contained relevant data but where multilingualism was not part of the research questions in the subsequent papers. Participants who contributed to the first database were 360 FL learners in a Kuwaiti university, the second database included data from 502 English Foreign Language (EFL) learners in secondary schools and universities in Morocco, and the third database included data from 181 pre-teen EFL learners in secondary schools in France. Separate statistical analyses of the three databases confirmed that multilingualism was linked to significantly higher FLE in all three databases and to lower FLCA in two out of the three databases. This suggests that knowing more languages contributes to more positive and fewer negative emotions in the FL class.

ПОВЫШЕНИЕ МЕДИЙНО-ИНФОРМАЦИОННОЙ ГРАМОТНОСТИ СТУДЕНТОВ В ПРОЦЕССЕ ИЗУЧЕНИЯ ИНОСТРАННОГО ЯЗЫКА В ВЫСШЕЙ ШКОЛЕ

The article addresses the issue of the need to increase media and information literacy of students in the era of digital transformation in all spheres of activity in modern society. The relevance of the topic is underpinned by the increase in the number and availability of information resources, the increase in multi modality required from students in modern conditions of the educational process, as well as the need to teach students social practices that involve the interpretation and development of understanding and creating meanings based on cultural and civic identity. The article defines the goals of teaching students media and information literacy: the formation of active citizenship, increasing professional competitiveness, life-long learning, creating conditions for the formation of a culture of self-expression, and self-realization. The authors consider the development of media and information skills as a condition for further socialization, during which the formation of a linguistic personality occurs. The article explores the possibilities of learning a foreign language (hereinafter referred to as FL) as a tool of developing intercultural communication skills on the basis of cultural values and civic principles in a digital educational environment. The authors present the results of a survey of students, which presents students’ evaluative reflection regarding their mastery of media and information skills used in FL classes. Based on the survey, the authors come to the conclusion that media and information literacy contributes to the development of critical thinking skills and emotional competence which form the student’s civic position, and as result, contribute to the formation of an informed, creative and highly moral society. Thus, the task of FL teachers is to create an educational environment that would strengthen the cultural and civic identity of students and avoid uncertainty in the multicultural context of the digital environment.

Othering in EFL Hybrid Learning in the Algerian Higher Education Context

Abstract: This paper seeks to examine deeply Algerian students’ othering in online learning. The study is carried out using phenomenological design. The data are collected using a semi-structured interview from 10 students who have been enrolled in hybrid learning at Algerian universities in the academic year 2020-2021 selected through convenience sampling, a purposeful sampling method. Students’ opinions were taken regarding how they described othering, their experience in online classes, disconnectedness from peers and instructors, and the challenges faced while going back to mandatory classes at the end of the semesters. The results will contribute in understanding how ‘’otherness’’ is newly perceived in 21st century, and thus, setting adjustments of the notion in online discourse. Key words: face-to-face FL classes, otherness, disconnectedness, hybrid learning.

Target Strength Measurements of Free-Swimming Sandeel Species, Ammodytes spp., in a Large Indoor Experimental Aquarium

The sandeel species (Ammodytes spp.) occupy a critical ecological position in connecting lower trophic levels to higher ones. However, they are strongly affected by the marine environment and their catch rates are trending downward. In this study, the target strength (TS) of sandeel species was measured in free-swimming specimens using a split-beam quantitative echo sounder with 38 and 120 kHz frequencies in a physically controlled environment. Parameters a and b used in the estimated TSmean–fork length (FL: 13.5–21.5 cm) equation were 53.7 and −124.3 dB at 38 kHz, and 71.3 and −153.2 dB at 120 kHz, respectively. The TS of the sandeel species were not proportional to the square of the FL but increased relatively rapidly with increasing body size. In addition, the mean and standard deviation of the swimming angle for the sandeel species from the acoustic data at 120 kHz were −2.2° and 7.7°, respectively, and most were in the −30° to 30°, range. Furthermore, TS was stronger at 38 kHz than at 120 kHz for all FL classes. The use of such frequency characteristics could facilitate the discrimination of fish species in the field and the sustainable assessment of sandeel species stocks.

STRATEGIES AND CRITERIA FOR FOREIGN LANGUAGE READING MATERIALS SELECTION

Reading is of great importance for the modern educational process, as it opens access to leading sources of information, expands people’s outlook, etc. Naturally, reading as a communicative skill and a means of communication is always used at the FL classes. However, the foreign language competence of most Ukrainian teachers remains insufficient. The purpose of the article is to single out the strategies and criteria for selecting the educational material to improve the level of teachers’ foreign language competence in reading. Thus, the current study presents the criteria for selecting the foreign language texts for reading in a due regard to educational, psycholinguistic, linguistic, technical, socio-cultural aspects, with an appropriate set of options for each of them. The strategies of selecting foreign language texts, offered in this research, are relevant to the current tendencies prevailing in the formation of foreign language competence in reading. They include focusing on the topic envisaged by the curriculum and the objectives of the FL class; fixing linguistic, speech, sociocultural aspects that are necessary for the class; applying different ways of highlighting / marking the lexical units and grammar structures; enlarging fonts; providing audio support for students with special educational needs (visually impaired students). The developed strategies and criteria suggest that students with special educational needs should also be able to use the texts. With the aim of determining the level of Ukrainian teachers’ foreign language competence in reading, a survey was conducted, which has enabled the authors to вуеукьштуt the peculiarities of teachers’ work with foreign texts, the lack of foreign texts that contain topics on various literary genres and reveal a sociocultural component. Eventually, the article offers certain approaches to the adaptation of foreign texts in terms of the learning objectives and students’ communicative needs. The srrategies and criteria, developed and proposed in this study, are a significant extension of the already existing tools that take into account new challenges in modern methods of foreign languages teaching. The prospective areas of further research are the study of the reading materials search engines and their effect on teachers’ foreign language competence in reading.

Learner emotions, autonomy and trait emotional intelligence in ‘in-person’ versus emergency remote English foreign language teaching in Europe

Abstract Due to the spread of Covid-19, universities had to move their courses online abruptly. This paper explores its impact on 510 European tertiary-level English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners’ classroom emotions and analyses possible links to their trait emotional intelligence (TEI) and learner autonomy. Statistical analyses of data gathered with a web survey revealed that students rated their ‘in-person’ classes as significantly more enjoyable and also more anxiety-provoking. Overall, levels of foreign language enjoyment (FLE) and foreign language classroom anxiety (FLCA) were positively correlated between both contexts. The moderate negative correlation between FLE and FLCA in ‘in-person’ classes disappeared in emergency remotely taught classes. TEI and learner autonomy were positively correlated, and both were positively linked to FLE and negatively to FLCA in both contexts. This means that more autonomous, emotionally intelligent students tend to be able to enjoy the FL class more – even more so under particularly challenging circumstances. Overall, it seems that learners not being physically present in classrooms weakens all emotions, and breaks the relationship between them. One possible explanation is that disembodied classes have less emotional resonance.

The strategy of teaching the culture of debating in FL to non-linguist students

The article considers some contextual, interdisciplinary and linguistic aspects of developing non-linguistic students’ speaking skills necessary for cross-cultural academic communication, with special attention being paid to the their abilities to master the culture of debating, acquiring specific features of their future profession through learning specialized vocabulary and using a foreign language as an effective tool to reach the professional goals. The proposed strategy of FL communication teaching is rooted in the basics of D. Dorner’s situation integrity’ theory, on the one hand, taking into account discovery patterns of science undergraduates’ educational activity, on the other, and cognitive aspects of academic discourse as well with an emphasis on acquiring professional interlanguage dialogic skills. The proposed course of study is meant to master the professional speaking skills of science undergraduates. The algorithm of teaching has been tested in FL classes with Maths and Physics students of MGOU (Moscow Region State University) during 2019/2020 academic year and obtained the positive approval of FL teaching staff.

Motivation Strategies in FL classes Review and Comparison of Empirical Researchs on Learners

Motivation is considered as a pivotal component in successful foreign language learning, and has been the subject of increasing research attention in recent decades. This paper collected and reviewed the literature on motivational strategies in the language classroom. The review focusses on studies that investigate the importance student attached to strategies and juxtaposes the findings. The results confirm that motivation is context-dependent, however some strategies – especially those related to teacher behaviour, creating a positive classroom climate, and recognizing students’ efforts – can transfer across contexts, and therefore should be emphasized in future teacher training.

Flipped Learning in Information Technology Courses: Effectiveness and Impact

This study’s purpose is to investigate the implication of the use of flipped learning on students’ performance and perception. Participants are the second-year and third-year undergraduate students enrolled in the Information Technology courses. One hundred and twenty-five students were the participants associate with an experimental group and a control group. The experimental group consisted of the students of the ISD class A and BI courses. Meanwhile, the students of ISD class D and MIT were the control group. The experiments employed two instruments: (1) students’ final score, and (2) questionnaire. This study used the independent sample t-test and two-proportion z-test to analyze the collected data. The result showed that the students’ performance in the FL classes was superior to a traditional learning setting. Students’ perception of both courses is higher than the experimental group. Besides, we observed that studying in an FL model had a positive impact on students’ motivation. These findings suggest that the FL could be a promising way of enhancing students’ learning outcomes.

Modeling Dialogues in FL Class

The article gives a brief review on how to improve students’ speaking skills via modeling dialogues in FL class. This study can be considered the continuation of the research undertaken by the authors in2018, inwhich the authors put forward the hypothesis that students’ speaking skills improve provided their ability to match speech patterns to behavioral patterns is developed. An aggressive behavioral pattern was researched. In this study the authors evolve that idea and analyze two more behavioral patterns: friendly and neutral. The researchers claim that the better students know different behavioral patterns, the more effectively they model dialogues. Watching videos and commenting on the conversation strategies, and modeling dialogues are chosen to be the leading teaching methods approbated in the multi-stage experiment to favor the researchers’ idea. The obtained results indicate the high potential of the chosen teaching methods for the improvement of students’ speaking skills in FL class and can substantially help FL teachers to adopt the most effective teaching styles, based on their course learning objectives.

Questions about CLIL which are unfortunately still not outdated: A reply to Pérez-Cañado

AbstractThis response to Pérez-Cañado’s (2017) disappointing defence of CLIL interests insists on the need for a clear definition of CLIL not only so that it can be characterised for comparative purposes, but also so that the fundamentals underlying it can be scrutinised, instead of the continued hedging of bets on a moving target, justified for its contextual flexibility. As an example, whether CLIL classes are accompanied by FL classes on the curriculum or not is not a minor issue, both practically and theoretically. In addition other questions are reconsidered such as the communicative nature of CLIL, especially when it comes to whether the content is likely to be more motivating, and the supposed egalitarianism of CLIL initiatives. Finally, two research issues are discussed. Firstly, an example demonstrates how it is perfectly legitimate to critique empirical CLIL research which argues apparently beneficial results from a ‘due to’ stance by countering it with ‘despite’ arguments, while leaving much of the flawed CLIL research aside. Secondly, there is a reiterated demand that disinterested research at a curricular level confront outcomes in both the FLs and the content covered in CLIL programmes for all the state-school students affected both directly or indirectly, and in comparable terms.

Towards a new classification of galaxies: principal component analysis of CALIFA circular velocity curves

We present a galaxy classification system for 238 (E1-Sdm) CALIFA (Calar Alto Legacy Integral Field Area) galaxies based on the shapes and amplitudes of their circular velocity curves (CVCs). We infer the CVCs from the de-projected surface brightness of the galaxies, after scaling by a constant mass-to-light ratio based on stellar dynamics - solving axisymmetric Jeans equations via fitting the second velocity moment $V_{\mathrm{rms}}=\sqrt{V^2+\sigma^2}$ of the stellar kinematics. We use principal component analysis (PCA) applied to the CVC shapes to find characteristic features and use a $k$-means classifier to separate circular curves into classes. This objective classification method identifies four different classes, which we name slow-rising (SR), flat (FL), round-peaked (RP) and sharp-peaked (SP) circular curves. SR are typical for low-mass, late-type (Sb-Sdm), young, faint, metal-poor and disc-dominated galaxies. SP are typical for high-mass, early-type (E1-E7), old, bright, metal-rich and bulge-dominated galaxies. FL and RP appear presented by galaxies with intermediate mass, age, luminosity, metallicity, bulge-to-disk ratio and morphologies (E4-S0a, Sa-Sbc). The discrepancy mass factor, $f_d=1-M_{*}/M_{dyn}$, have the largest value for SR and SP classes ($\sim$ 74 per cent and $\sim$ 71 per cent, respectively) in contrast to the FL and RP classes (with $\sim$ 59 per cent and $\sim$ 61 per cent, respectively). Circular curve classification presents an alternative to typical morphological classification and appears more tightly linked to galaxy evolution.

Should FL teachers stop young learners’ initiations?

Abstract: Although most researchers and practitioners agree on the limitations teacherfronted classes put on the learners’ contribution to classroom interaction, we coincide with those who believe that, in spite of this more rigid form of interaction, students are able to take the initiative. Given the relevance such initiatives may have, especially in FL classes, we still consider it necessary to examine them in detail. Based on the standard model of discourse analysis (Sinclair and Coulthard, 1975; Tsui, 1994) we focused on how learners and teachers co-build the communicative discourse generated in class. This empirical study made on data obtained from 12 classes of English as a foreign language in Spanish Primary Schools aims to show how the teacher-fronted class is not an obstacle for students to make initiative turns. It provides a taxonomy of acts according to the illocutionary force that prompt them and a typology of ‘incises’ derived from them. Titulo en español: ¿Deberían detenerse las iniciaciones de los niños en clase? Resumen: Aunque la mayoría de investigadores y docentes coinciden en las limitaciones que las clases tradicionales presentan para la contribución del alumnado a la interacción verbal de clase, coincidimos con los que opinan que, a pesar de su rigidez, los estudiantes son capaces de tomar la iniciativa. Dada la importancia que tales iniciaciones pueden tener, especialmente en las clases de Lengua Extranjera, creemos que es preciso estudiarlas en profundidad. Por ello, tomando como base el modelo tradicional de análisis del discurso (Sinclair and Coulthard, 1975; Tsui, 1994), nos hemos centrado en analizar de qué forma los aprendices junto con el docente generan el discurso comunicativo del aula. El estudio empírico, realizado con datos obtenidos de 12 clases de inglés como Lengua Extranjera en colegios españoles de Enseñanza Primaria, pretende mostrar cómo las clases tradicionales no suponen realmente un impedimento para que los discentes realicen turnos iniciadores. En este artículo, se proporciona una taxonomía de actos verbales de iniciación según la fuerza ilocutiva que los promueve así como una tipología de ‘incisos’ derivados de los mismos.

Cambio de código y uso de otras lenguas por parte de los alumnos en clase de español L2

The paper discusses the results of observations centered on students’ code-switching in Spanish classes. Concerning the definition of a bilingual and the multilingual person, we consider it should be based on a broad perspective, defined by sociolinguistics. The observations took place in a public center for adult education in Spain, in November 2016.The effectiveness of the use of L1 in L2 or FL classes is a subject extensively discussed among researchers and teachers. Here we present some of the work centered on this subject in the context of teaching different languages, Spanish in particular.We consider that this use can be effective both in teaching and learning the TL, but we are also aware of its potential inconvenience in case it is not developed in a strategic manner. Research is needed in order to define which strategies of use of L1, and other languages, are appropriate and beneficial for teaching and learning L2 and FL.Key words: teaching Spanish, code-switching, bilingualism, multilingualism.

The effects of teaching songs during foreign language classes on students’ foreign language anxiety

Foreign language classroom anxiety (FLCA) has been the subject of several studies aimed to optimize learning of a foreign language in the classroom. However, few studies provide specific curriculum-based methodological strategies to be used in the classroom in order to lower the anxiety level. In this article, two experimental classes of 8th-grade students participated in a 5-week intervention program aimed to teach French as a foreign language through music during the regular French classes. One class had a higher anxiety average (ExpHi) compared with the other (ExpLo). The self-reported level of anxiety of the two experimental classes was compared after the intervention program with the self-reported level of anxiety of two control classes with similar levels of anxiety (CtrHi and CtrLo). The study also compared the opinions of students from the experimental classes regarding their overall experience of the foreign language classes. Findings indicated that teaching songs during FL classes was perceived as an enjoyable experience by students from classes with both high and low anxiety; however, this teaching method decreased the FLCA average of classes of students with rather high anxiety, but not of the ones with a rather low anxiety.

Fillers and the Development of Oral Strategic Competence in Foreign Language Learning

A lot of research has been carried out on how students go about developing communicative competence when learning foreign languages. However, little do we know about how foreign language teachers help their learners to develop oral strategies that will enable them to cope with speaking problems on the fly and beyond the FL classroom. In this article we focused on a single oral communicative strategy that, we argue, has been neglected, in general, in foreign language classrooms. We present the findings of a research that focused on teaching fillers in FL classrooms in different teaching contexts and various FL classes.

Creativity in Teaching Different Subjects in English through Drama Techniques

This action research examines the basic concept of creativity, theoretical and practical foundations and implications of drama and theatre as a method for creative foreign language teaching, especially for teaching English as a foreign language to Albanian students at Tirana University and other district Universities. Current research has found that participation in meaningful conversations in the drama classroom helps students develop their conceptual understandings of the subject matter and further develop their creative thinking and learning. Learning outcomes and findings are often shown through descriptions of design interventions that have taken place in ordinary classrooms. In this research, attention has been paid to the use of new creative methods, diverse experiences of individual students within FL classes and what they take away from participation in such discourses. DOI: 10.5901/jesr.2014.v4n2p438

Investigating participation level in foreign language classrooms through the analysis of communicative discourse

Foreign Language classes have not been sufficiently investigated probably due to the difficulty of finding a successful method of analysis. We propose a model of Communicative Discourse Analysis (CODAM) with a taxonomy of Verbal and Non Verbal acts in Initiation, Response and Follow Up moves (I, R, F) according to the intention of each speaker's contribution to communicative discourse. By applying CODAM to the corpus obtained from actual classes in Andalusia, we have been able to compare not only the extension of communicative discourse but also speakers' participation level and learners' use of English in the classroom. Keywords: FL classes, discourse analysis, students' L2 oral output, communicative acts, L2 teaching. Investigacion del nivel de participacion de los hablantes en la clase de lengua extranjera a traves del analisis del discurso comunicativo

The Contributions of Talker Familiarity and Individual Talker Characteristics

The article details a two‐phase study investigating the relative contributions of talker‐familiarity and talker‐intelligibility to L2 listening comprehension by learners in a classroom setting. Students from beginning to low‐intermediate German FL classes participated in German language listening tasks, being exposed to speech by their German teacher (familiar talker) and other, unfamiliar talkers. Findings were consistent in both phases of the study: the relative intelligibility of particular talkers was more predictive to L2 listening accuracy than familiarity with the talker. Follow‐up investigations revealed a relationship between speech rate and listening comprehension accuracy.