Language Classroom Research Articles

Validating the Chinese version of short‐form foreign language classroom anxiety scale

AbstractThis three‐phase study utilized item response theory (IRT) and both exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis (EFA and CFA) approaches to validate the short‐form foreign language classroom anxiety scale (S‐FLCAS) for measuring Chinese college students' foreign language classroom anxiety (FLCA). The sample consisted of 855 Chinese college students. Phase 1 was conducted within the EFA and CFA frameworks to investigate the construct validity of the S‐FLCAS. Phase 2 was conducted within IRT frameworks to assess the reliability of this scale. Lastly, Phase 3 adopted multi‐group confirmatory factor analysis (MGCFA) to explore the measurement invariance across gender and second language (L2) learner groups. The findings revealed that the Chinese version of S‐FLCAS is a reliable and valid instrument, exhibiting unidimensional characteristics. Configural, metric, and scalar invariance were identified across gender groups, while configural, partial metric, and partial scalar invariance were observed across L2 groups. This study further discussed the reasons for some suboptimal performance of the S‐FLCAS and practical implications for researchers and university educators.

Co-teaching literacy strategies for the inclusion of second-language learners: possibilities for professional development

This narrative study, set in lower-secondary school (grades 7–9) in Finland, explores a co-teaching initiative aimed at developing inclusive education for second-language students by integrating literacy strategies in content-area teaching. The co-teaching was realized by three experienced content-area teachers working in dyads with a resource teacher with competence in literacy strategies. Co-teaching among experienced teachers at higher grade-levels and with the purpose of including second-language students is a relatively under-researched field. Data was collected through seven teacher–researcher conversations over two school-years. Word images were constructed from the field texts to represent four narrative themes, depicting the teachers’ narration of their knowledge construction and role formation: daring to share, extended expertise, fine-tuning roles and increased well-being. Results suggest benefits such as well-being through shared responsibilities along with increased expertise to support all students’ learning of both language and content in the co-taught classroom and beyond. Trust, being open to change and daring to share one’s knowledge landscapes and classroom space were seen as crucial in the negotiation of educational priorities and teacher roles. Co-teaching is suggested to be a viable option for the professional development of inclusive practices in the form of integration of literacy strategies across the curriculum.

The effectiveness of using technology in english language classroom among secondary level of students in nukus, Uzbekistan

This article examines the effectiveness of integrating technology into English language classrooms for secondary-level students in Nukus. Through a synthesis of research findings, practical insights, and case studies, it explores the benefits, challenges, and best practices associated with using technology to enhance language learning in this context. The study emphasizes the importance of technology in fostering engagement, personalization, and authentic language experiences, while also addressing issues such as access, digital literacy, and teacher training. By illuminating the transformative potential of technology-enhanced language instruction, this article aims to inform educators, policymakers, and stakeholders about the opportunities and considerations inherent in leveraging technology to promote English language proficiency among secondary-level students in Uzbekistan.

Transnational Black feminism: L.O.V.E. as a practice of freedom, equity, and justice in English language teaching

AbstractThis article contributes to the TESOL paradigm by highlighting ways in which bodies of Black feminist thought, transnational feminism, and transnational Black feminism endeavors antiracist practices and support students via English language teaching (ELT). The author utilizes the Transnational Black feminist (TBF) framework—intersectionality, scholar activism, solidarity building, and attention to borders and boundaries—to guide the article. The author provides definitions for racial equity and racial justice and explains what these terms mean in practice when adopting the TBF lens in the English language classroom. The article shows how racial equity and racial justice can be effectively incorporated with a method of L.O.V.E. (Lifting others, Offering support, Valuing others, and Evolving self) that embodies the work of TBF.

Insights into Second-grade Students’ English Vocabulary Learning Anxiety Differences

With the development of humanistic psychology as well as modern English education, the emotional factors in the fundamental stage of English learning have been emphasized by scholars at home and abroad Since the early 20th century, which contributes a large number of exceptional research about the correlation between strategies of male and female English learning and academic performance. What stand out is English words that exert an essential impact on English study process and strongly associated with the comprehensive outcomes. However, studies focus on two sexes’ English learning anxiety differences and senior high school English vocabulary learning are still relatively rare, especially for the combination of which two aspects. Thus, this work is devoted to make further understanding of the English vocabulary learning anxiety differences between two genders and possible factors involved. 64 second-grade students were selected and surveyed through a questionnaire adapted from Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale by Horwitz and Likert to analyze relative anxiety feelings and attitudes towards domestic senior high school English vocabulary learning courses. The experimental results showed that: The English vocabulary learning anxiety of both male and female belongs to upper middle state while that of female students is slightly higher than the rest. External forces, students’ self-recognition and consciousness towards English learning are the main resources of anxiety.

ChatGPT Integrated Grammar Teaching and Learning in EFL Classes: A Study on Tishk International University Students in Erbil, Iraq

This study aims to investigate and analyze the benefits and concerns that ChatGPT offers to EFL students’ grammar learning and teaching in foreign language classrooms. There have been many studies on the advantages and disadvantages of ChatGPT in education, but there are almost no studies on the benefits and harms of this platform in grammar learning and teaching. This study will be an important resource for scholars who will investigate the importance and impact of ChatGPT in language learning and teaching. Simultaneously, it will serve as a valuable tool for examining the benefits and concerns that ChatGPT presents to students in the realm of grammar acquisition. In this context, control and experimental groups were created at Tishk International University using the random sampling method. The control group received teacher and book-centered grammar education, and the experimental group received ChatGPT-cantered grammar education. When the post-test results applied to the students at the end of seven weeks were analysed using the SPSS-27 t statistic, there was a significant difference of .001 between the two groups. Control group 8.86%. While showing success, the experimental group showed a success of 26.53%. In addition, in the focus group interview analysis applied to the students at the end of the study, it was revealed that the majority of the students were satisfied with the integration of ChatGPT into their grammar lessons. Although some students expressed their concerns, when we look at the overall study, the benefits that ChatGPT offers to grammar learning are greater than the concerns it brings.

Multimodality in third turn repetitions: Evaluation, mitigation, and the pursuit of responses in a Korean-as-foreign-language classroom

This conversation analysis (CA) study extends our understanding of the complexity of three turn instructional sequences by investigating the multimodal turn design of a teacher’s third turn repetitions (TTRs) and the actions accomplished in the third turn position as well as subsequent post-expansions. The videorecorded data are from an undergraduate Korean as a foreign language classroom at a large US university. The analysis reveals how a teacher coordinates resources such as language, prosody, gaze, gesture, body movements, and objects during and immediately following TTRs to mitigate negative evaluation, direct student attention to trouble sources, and intimate answers. The findings show that actions accomplished by talk, i.e. negative evaluation, and actions accomplished by multimodal resources like gaze, i.e. directing attention, may be undertaken simultaneously. The article contributes to understandings of teaching as complex and contingent interactional work by unpacking in fine-grained detail the moment-by-moment multimodal unfolding of pedagogical practice. We conclude by discussing implications for teacher preparation, namely the central role microanalysis of videorecorded classroom interaction should play.

A Comparative Meta-Analysis on the Effectiveness of Three Types of Instructional Methods on Language Success

This study aims to examine the effectiveness of collaborative learning, augmented reality, and learning cycle models on students’ language success. This study employed meta-analysis methodologies to examine data derived from 54 studies with a sample size of 2,837 participants in Turkey. The data sources were obtained from online database searches on national and international databases from 2008 to 2022, published in Turkey. Through the random effects model, data analysis was done by Stata software to determine the overall effect size and the heterogeneity of the studies. The findings showed that all instructional methods were positively effective, including collaborative learning (g= 0.895) and augmented reality (g= 0.856), which had a high effect, while the overall effect of learning cycle models (1.485) had an excellent effect on the language success of students. Additionally, in the moderator analysis, there were no significant differences according to the type of publication, target class, sample sizes, or practice time. The investigators found that the significant positive effects were present for all three contemporary instructional methods. Therefore, these findings highlight that the use of the three examined instructional methods has the potential to improve student language achievement, and suggest that teachers should strongly consider implementing collaborative, augmented reality, and learning cycle activities within their language classrooms.

An Investigation into the Beliefs of Primary School Teachers in Bhutan on Written Corrective Feedback

For ESL students in English language classrooms, writing poses a challenge, where studentscommit numerous errors, however effective corrective feedback from teachers can aidimprovement. Consequently, teachers must recognize their viewpoints on the best methods forproviding written feedback. In light of this, this study intended to ascertain the opinions ofBhutanese primary school teachers, specifically those who teach students in grades PP to VI,regarding written corrective feedback (WCF). The interaction hypothesis, which serves as thetheoretical basis for this study, contends that classroom interaction, essential to languageacquisition includes teachers’ corrective feedback. A questionnaire was distributed to tenEnglish teachers to get more insight into their perspectives on WCF. The Likert Scale wasemployed to measure teacher’s responses to the closed-ended questionnaire. The resultsdemonstrated that nearly everyone had favorable opinions about written corrective feedback onstudents' work. The results implied that to give teachers and students more knowledge andawareness of WCF, they should both have the chance to participate in training related tofeedback. Hence, language teachers would be able to provide students with a suitable WCF tohelp students enhance their writing skills.

How Do We Flip Our Language Classroom? Reassessing the Flipped Method

This study has a twofold purpose. First, from an action research approach, the study re-visits how the flipped method is implemented in a Spanish Second Language program at a United States university, and contributes to the literature on the potential benefits and challenges when adopting the flipped method in Second Language programs. Through the analysis of data obtained from a questionnaire, which consists of an agreement-based survey and open-ended questions, we report on how participants and co-researchers—261 Spanish language students and 11 teachers—are affected by the outcomes of this pedagogical implementation. Participants report three benefits and three areas for improvement. Second, based on students and teachers’ experiences, we conclude with a re-assessment of the method and a set of recommendations for language educators interested in integrating the flipped method in their teaching. This study contributes to the ongoing debate about the effects of a flipped classroom in language learning, and proposes a reevaluation of the most common applications of the flipped method.

Embodying Learners’ Semasiological Disparateness in an English First Additional Language Classroom

Language-in-education policy in the apartheid era in South Africa reflected a divide-and-rule strategy, which stipulated that each ethnic group was to be taught in its language. Thus, the post-1994 period in South Africa involved a dramatic re-imagination of the country from a racially divided nation to a diverse but united, non-racial nation. This is pertinent to South Africa, a linguistically diverse country whose history of language in education has been shaped by political interests, as well as pedagogical considerations. Against this background, since the impact of cultural diversity on education policy and reforms is a strategically significant issue for us all, this study sought to explore how Grade 4 English First Additional Language (EFAL) teachers incorporate Grade 4 EFAL learners’ linguistic diversity in teaching and learning. For this qualitative study, 10 Grade 4 teachers in 5 primary schools in one district in South Africa were used as respondents. The researcher used one-on-one telephonic interviews to collect data. The results revealed that teachers acknowledge the need to use some approaches to support oral language development. Besides, teachers use a range of strategies, from translanguaging, and code-switching to translation, to encourage learners to use their home languages to develop proficiency in the EFAL. Also, the study has shown that cooperative language learning, which shares some characteristics with communicative language teaching helps learners develop a great liking of EFAL.

The Relationship Between Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety, Motivation and their Predictive Effects on Chinese University Students’ English Learning Achievement

The Relationship Between Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety, Motivation and their Predictive Effects on Chinese University Students’ English Learning Achievement

Implementation of Learning Management Systems (Moodle): Effects on Students’ Language Acquisition and Attitudes towards Learning English as a Foreign Language

Among the most popular learning management systems (LMS) available worldwide is Moodle. This current study examines how learners’ attitudes toward English as a foreign language (EFL) and their language proficiency are affected by Moodle’s interactive language-learning activities. Thirty-three undergraduate students participated in this study. We investigated the effects of engaging language-learning exercises that were practiced on Moodle using an experimental research design. To find out if the experimental and control groups differed significantly from one another on pre- and post-measures regarding the development of language skills and attitudes toward language classrooms, a number of statistical tests were employed. We conducted a data analysis using SPSS software. The results demonstrated that there were differences favoring the experimental group in the development of language skills and the attitudes of learners toward the language classroom. There were no apparent differences in forming structures, speaking, or listening compared to the control group’s learners. On the other hand, there were notable differences in the overall score, writing and reading skills, and lexical item mastery. Additionally, significant differences in the language acquisition growth of the experimental and control groups were found using an independent-sample t-test in the post-test, with the experimental group benefiting.

Synchronous and Asynchronous Digital Tools for Real Life Support and Skills- Lessons Learnt from Covid 19

The current pandemic has surprised language educators. Globally, educators have been forced to implement online platforms and remote pedagogies. Online or virtual situations are challenging for students and teachers. Distance learning has become the norm. They must deal with a situation for which they never had any formal training or orientation. Although language learners have weathered this new crisis well, language instructors remain challenged with remote teaching's complexities. In this research proposal, the researcher examines how language educators have adapted to remote learning and discusses how they have implemented synchronous and asynchronous digital tools like OneNote in their language classrooms.

Translanguaging and emotionality of English as a second language (ESL) teachers

Abstract Teaching is by no means ‘an emotion-free zone’, and teachers are often emotionally challenged in front of their students. When teaching and learning takes place via a second language, the emotional landscape of the classroom becomes especially charged. Often there is a notable gap between expected emotions or ‘emotional rules’ in English as a Second Language (ESL) classrooms and genuine emotions which results in ‘emotional labour’ for ESL teachers. Especially, ‘English only’ language policies and monolingual ideologies can lead ESL teachers and students to experience a range of emotions around authentic language use in the form of translanguaging. While research on students’ attitudes toward translanguaging has mushroomed in recent years, fewer studies have concentrated on the emotions of teachers in relation to translanguaging in the ESL classroom. To bridge this research gap, this study investigates six university teachers’ emotions related to translanguaging via semi-structured interviews in ESL classroom settings across three Asian countries (Mongolia, Japan, and the United Arab Emirates). The study revealed complex and conflicting teacher emotions around translanguaging including pride, comfort (related to feelings of safety), shame (related to linguistic inferiority complexes), guilt, and frustration. Based on the findings, practical recommendations are provided on the need for greater awareness and open dialogue on emotions in ESL classrooms for improved teacher and student wellness.

COMMON PRONUNCIATION PROBLEMS IN INCLUSIVE EDUCATIONAL SETTINGS

This study focuses on pronunciation difficulties of certain segmental features related to Oman’s local English language teaching environment that includes language learners of different ethnic and linguistic backgrounds. The paper draws its conclusions from research findings, looks into some commonly mispronounced words, in and outside English language classrooms, explains the reasons behind such challenges and suggests some practical ideas to avoid common pronunciation problems in the context of the inclusive English language classroom.

Multimodal input in the foreign language classroom: the use of hand gesture to teach morphology in L2 Spanish

Multimodal input in the foreign language classroom: the use of hand gesture to teach morphology in L2 Spanish

INCLUSION IN THE CONTEXT OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE CLASSROOM: TEACHERS’ CURRENT BELIEFS AND PRACTICES

As the perspectives of English language teaching pedagogy change globally, new trends and issues emerge, and achieving effective inclusive language education is one of them. But what are teachers’ current beliefs and practices of inclusion? This paper explores the beliefs that English language teachers in the Sultanate of Oman have confidence in and feel about inclusion giving most of the attention to integration of visually impaired students into the mainstream classroom. Based on the findings of a year-long research project conducted at the Centre for Preparatory Studies of Sultan Qaboos University, these cover such mostly cited and supported by research components, or factors and conditions of inclusive education (Bricker, 2000), as classroom practices, including teaching strategies, classroom environment, classroom management, collaboration and teaming, including special needs students’ interaction with regular students in the mainstream English language classroom, participation in group activities, and teacher attitude, including teachers assumptions regarding inclusion, in general, and in the context tertiary education English language teaching and learning, and teacher professional development. Shared experiences and beliefs, as well as the components of inclusion, may lead to stronger culture of inclusion within the researched institution and a broader context of Oman’s tertiary education.

Early foreign language education: play as a site for child agency

ABSTRACT Understanding the role of play in early childhood education is crucial. Current research suggests that play is increasingly seen as a vehicle for achieving pre-established curricular aims that prioritise school readiness, often reducing opportunities for stimulating child agency. This paper reports on a study conducted within the context of foreign language education in the early years (English as a foreign language in the Catalan context), which aimed to address the following questions: To what extent do pre-primary EFL teachers (1) recognise child agency and take it into account in foreign language education; (2) recognise the affordances play scenarios offer for children to enact their agency? A small-scale qualitative study was designed which included self-reporting questionnaires, an elicitation technique in the form of a Play Scenario Evaluation Activity, and online interviews with teachers to reflect on the Evaluation Activity and their own practice. Findings raise concerns about the ever-widening gap between understandings and implementations of play in general early childhood education and the foreign language classroom. Prevailing assumptions regarding best practice in early years ELT (teacher-centred practice, target language only policies, emphasis on fun) limit children’s opportunities for enacting agency and taking an active role in their own development.

Navigating linguistic diversity toward ELF-informed pedagogy: Filipino teachers’ perceptions of their accent

ABSTRACT Teachers’ accents have become important in World Englishes (WE) and English as a lingua franca (ELF) studies. However, limited studies investigate how English teachers view their accents and how such perceptions affect their teaching practice. This study uses narrative inquiry to explore two Filipino English language teachers’ perceptions and practices of their English accents in multilingual and multicultural classrooms. The findings highlight their cultural, social, professional, and pedagogical orientations, which shaped their personal perceptions and pedagogical practices relating to their English language teaching with their English accent. While teachers recognised the cultural identity of their accents, their professional and social networks prescribed them to adopt a different accent. However, by consistently engaging with their language classroom pedagogies, they could adapt and reshape their teaching methods and their beliefs and perceptions, emphasising the importance of incorporating the need to introduce other Englishes. The findings have significant implications for policy and practice in an ELF-informed pedagogy, especially in a multicultural and multilingual classroom.