Language Learning Histories Research Articles

Teachers' perceptions and implementations of global Englishes and Frenches in language classrooms

AbstractAn important first step to globalizing and decentralizing foreign language education is to clarify current language teachers' perceptions of language varieties and how these perceptions influence their pedagogy. The present study looked at English and French language classrooms in K‐12 and university settings in the United States to compare attitudes around varieties of two dominant global languages with colonial legacies through an anonymous questionnaire completed by 36 language teachers. The study aimed to understand to what extent English and French language teachers drew on the linguistic diversity of the respective languages and if there was a connection between received ideas and attitudes around varieties and approaches taken in language classrooms. Findings suggest that language teachers were influenced by their own language learning histories, leading to a misalignment between teaching beliefs and pedagogical practices. Additionally, language teachers were subject to curricular constraints that influenced their teaching practices around language varieties. Implications for teacher education are discussed.

Role of translation in teaching foreign lan-guages

Problem. Since people started communicating in different languages the various approaches and methods have been used throughout the history of language learning. During this time, there were and still are disputes regarding the most effective methods of teaching foreign languages. Such discussions include the choice between the classical grammar-translation method, which once prevailed in the methodology of teaching foreign languages, especially "dead" languages, the so-called "direct" method, which rejects the use of the native language, and the mediation method, which arose as the result of rethinking the formal and cultural goals of language learning. Mediation is analyzed as one of the most up-to-date method as it is not only a translation, but also a new formulation and summarization, which further emphasizes the ubiquitous nature of mediation in foreign language communication. In the perspective of multilingualism, mediation is considered as natural inter- and intra-lingual communication. Using the term mediation, the specific forms of which are translation and interpretation, the fact is emphasized that translation is a part of everyday, natural and spontaneous communication and corresponds to the desire for mutual understanding. Goal. The purpose of this article is to consider the evolution of the role of translation in the process of learning foreign languages since the beginning of this subject. Methodology. The purpose and specificity of the study determined the use of the method of description with elements of comparative analysis for a comprehensive coverage of the issue. Results. The article showed the stages of evolution in teaching translation which still have more than one approach and requires deep study. Originality. The is an analysis of the translation science development. Those whom this subject concerns may find it interesting to go deep into the history and follow the analysis of old and new practices in the subject. Practical value. Certain issues in the article can help the teachers organize the process of translation teaching in the class and as an individual students’ work.

Assessment in Farsi–English Emerging Bilingual Children: A Tutorial

Purpose: Emerging bilingual children represent a diverse population with regard to their language learning histories and individual factors. When assessing a bilingual child, it is important to accurately differentiate typical second-language learning characteristics from differences that indicate a disorder. The Iranian scholarly and clinical communities have established essential linguistic norms and identified linguistic and nonlinguistic indicators of speech and language disorder in Farsi-speaking children. The community has also developed assessment tools that are useful when evaluating the language skills of bilingual Farsi-English–speaking children. Method: We present some relevant characteristics of the Farsi-speaking community and summarize the literature related to linguistic norms and the characteristics of the Farsi language, particularly related to the phonological and morphosyntactic structure of Farsi. To illustrate the diversity in bilingual children's profiles and the need for individualized assessment, we present two case studies of sequential emerging Farsi–English bilingual children. Results: We present the children's assessment results and report clinical indicators of a language disorder. The case examples are used to highlight several recommendations for conducting individualized and culturally sensitive assessments. Conclusions: This tutorial highlights the need for a comprehensive and individualized assessment of a bilingual child. Specific assessment tools and procedures are outlined to support clinicians in completing accurate and sensitive evaluations of Farsi–English bilingual children.

The Tatars of Siberia learning the Russian language in the late 19<sup>th</sup> – early 20<sup>th</sup> centuries

This article is devoted to the history of Russian language learning by the Tatars of Siberia in the late 19th–early 20th centuries. In accordance with the Rules on Measures for the Education of the Inorodets (national minority) Inhabiting Russia, Approved by His Majesty on March 26, 1870, schools were established where Muslims learned Russian and other secular disciplines as part of the primary school curriculum. The Tomsk Russian-Tatar School was the first to be established. It was opened in the 1875-1876 academic year. With the development of Jadid education in Siberia, from the end of the 19th century and especially after the Russian Revolution of 1905-1907, the Russian language was introduced in madrasahsand maktabs. The most important phenomenon was the creation of women’s maktabs, where, along with religious subjects, girls began to study secular disciplines. At the same time, Russian-Tatar schools were created in accordance with the education reform carried out by P. Stolypin, the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Russian Empire, and the introduction of a number of new Rules of the Ministry of Public Education (MNE) on the education of non-Russian peoples. In Siberia, the most significant examples were the Russian-Tatar school in Tyumen, opened in 1913, and the Tomsk two-class Russian-Tatar school, opened in 1913 in memory of the centenary of the Patriotic War of 1812. Along with education for Tatar children in Tomsk, courses for adults were run in Tomsk from 1909. In 1916, training courses were organized in Tomsk, where Muslim youths (primarily Tatars and Kazakhs) could prepare for a teacher’s certificate and a certificate of maturity exams. Russian Muslim libraries played an important role in familiarizing the Tatar population with Russian culture. Along with the periodicals and books in Tatar, other Turkic languages of the peoples of Russia and Arabic, there were periodicals and books in Russian. Thus, by the revolution of 1917, a whole set of Tatar Muslim educational and cultural-educational institutions had emerged in Siberia, which made it possible to study and further improve the level of proficiency in the Russian language and literature.

Sociolinguistic awareness in L2 Arabic: A study of learners' code use repertoires

AbstractCode use, including codeswitching and/or style‐shifting, is an important but undertaught aspect of L2 sociolinguistic competence, and an important aspect of L2 learners' translanguaging repertoires. This study examines code use in Arabic—a diglossic language with distinct social uses for the prestige variety (Modern Standard Arabic, MSA) and Colloquial Arabic (CA). The study involved 10 participants who were third‐year, L2 learners of Arabic in a multidialectal program, and focused on the questions: (1) What types of metasociolinguistic awareness are evident among advanced learners of Arabic who have had multidialectal training? (2) To what extent is this awareness reflected in their productions? Data collection included a language learning history survey, spoken and written productions in Arabic, and an English interview. Findings show that participants had a complex awareness of MSA‐CA use that could be further expanded through instruction, suggesting that the trajectory of sociolinguistic competence development is complex, nonlinear, and influenced by instructional, social, and idiolectal factors. This study has important scholarly and pedagogical implications, and is linked to the rapidly growing body of scholarship on translanguaging practices and pedagogies.

How frequency and intensity of exposure to a foreign language boosts its emotional resonance

ABSTRACT This cross-sectional study seeks to compare levels of emotional resonance in Arabic and English and identify the effects of sociobiographical factors, the history of English language learning and the current use of English on the development of emotional resonance of English among 141 bi- and multilingual Arab pupils and students in Saudi Arabia. Arabic was found to have a significantly stronger emotional resonance than English. Higher scores on emotional resonance in English were found among female participants, participants who had attended English-speaking primary (but not secondary schools), and participants who were using English intensely and frequently at the time of the data collection. We argue that all these factors contribute directly and indirectly to higher proficiency and increased embodiment of English.

Language Learning Autobiographies, Identity Texts, and Critical Teacher Education

This paper explores possibilities of using language learning autobiographies as a form of identity texts in order to produce suggestions for critical teacher education. Specifically, we examined what insights we might gain by reframing Korean pre-service teachers’ autobiographies as a form of identity texts to develop reflective teachers, who affirm their identities and language learning histories. We thematically analyzed autobiographical reflection papers on English learning experiences of 73 undergraduate students enrolled in a compulsory elementary English education course at a public university in South Korea. The analysis revealed the predominance of referral to English private education experiences and a sense of linguistic insecurity felt by these pre-service teachers, who would later teach in public schools. Based on these findings, we provide suggestions for critical teacher education to foster critical language awareness and identity investment for the students. We conclude that language learning autobiographies, while incorporating characteristics of identity texts, might be a useful tool for critical pedagogies.

Using multimodal language learning histories to understand learning experiences and beliefs of second language learners in Japan

AbstractThis study explores the possibilities of using digitally produced multimodal language learning histories (MLLHs) to understand the experiences of learning a second language (L2) of a group of university students in Japan (N = 21). The study observes that learners’ MLLHs are texts in which the visual elements of language, place, person, learning resource, and self‐analysis of learning process are represented visually. It also identifies 4 patterns in the ways the MLLHs are constructed by focusing on a certain type of visual element. Person‐oriented MLLHs focus on L2 learning as emotional experience. In resource‐oriented MLLHs, learning is perceived to occur because of engaging with language via favorite media. In analysis‐oriented MLLHs, learning is regarded as a matter of going up and down the scale of linguistic measures. Place‐oriented MLLHs emphasize being on site at an L2‐speaking region as being the key in the era of globalization and mobility. These patterns reflect learners’ beliefs on L2 learning as viewed from a contextual perspective. This study further argues that a multimodal approach can have a significant influence on making visible learners’ subjective perspectives and beliefs as lenses through which they frame their learning experiences, as well as visualizing the dynamics and individualities of learning.

Pre-Service Teachers’ Narratives: Why Did I Decide to Become an English Language Teacher?

Choosing a major is one of the most important decisions in one’s life. Understanding the aspects that intervene in this decision contribute to a better understanding of main motivational forces of English as a Foreign Language pre-service teachers. This qualitative descriptive study examined the personal, professional, and social motivations and experiences of 40 English as a Foreign Language pre-service teachers in the Mexican context that affected their decision to become English language teachers. Using an open written narrative (Language Learning History) instrument, participants wrote stories that showed the main reasons for choosing English teaching as a major. The results showed that personal and professional aspects including biographical experiences, a perceived ability to learn and teach English as well as teacher preparation program experiences are the most influential in this decision along with altruistic and intrinsic motives.

In-depth Study of How Rahim Shah Learned to Speak English and Persian Better Than His Native Language: An Explanatory Case Study

This mixed-methods case study explores how Rahim Shah learned to speak English and Persian much more fluently than his native language (Pashto). In this study, different aspects of the subject- including his personality, language learning style, language learning history, oral and written language skills- are analyzed to seek patterns and causes of behavior. Accordingly, attempts have been made in this paper to enlighten his exposure to three languages, Pashto (native), Persian (second) and English (foreign). The results drew that he speaks Persian much more confident than his native language mainly because his parents moved to a Persian-speaking community when he was a child of three years old. This makes it clear that non-native speakers use their knowledge of the new language through interaction with others. The results also recovered that he learned how to speak English better than his native language mainly because he was intrinsically motivated, knowing the positive consequences of learning English. In addition to his high motivation, he consistently listened to native speakers as he spent three years with Americans. Therefore, this case study embraces nearly all the aspects of how Rahim Shah managed to speak English and Persian, and how he failed to speak his native language.

Developing Students' Intercultural Communication Competence by Supplementing Local Culture Contents into English Lessons

The ultimate goal of language learning is to communicate effectively and sensibly in that language, yet during the history of language teaching and learning, a focus on linguistic competence has remained dominant, which has undoubtedly resulted in language learners’ lack of sociolinguistic competence or ―intercultural competence allowing them to be a successful speaker of the language. This study aims to increase students' intercultural awareness and strengthen their understanding of their home culture by integrating local culture contents into English lessons for 9th graders. The intervention lasted 10 weeks in the second semester of the academic year 2021-2022, and 40 students in 9th grade at a junior high school in Thai Nguyen city, Vietnam, were engaged in the study as participants. The study utilized tests and questionnaires as the fundamental research instruments to gather data on augmenting local culture contents into English teaching in order to increase students' intercultural awareness of their surroundings. SPSS version 26.0 was used to process and analyze the results of the pre and post-tests as well as the pre and post-questionnaires. The results showed that the supplementation of local culture contents into English lessons has a positive effect on the participants’ intercultural communication competence. It is therefore proposed that local culture contents should be more regularly integrated into English lessons to develop students’ knowledge of local culture.

SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION: RECONCILING THEORIES

This article makes the case that earlier explanations of SLA shouldn't be discounted. Instead, when combined, they offer a more comprehensive and in-depth understanding of the acquisition process. The ability of second language acquisition (SLA) to naturally adjust to various situations present in both internal and external settings provides evidence in favor of the assertion that SLA is a sophisticated adaptive system. On the basis of this comprehension, frequently debated second language theories, such as behaviorism, will be viewed as explanations for individual components of SLA. Excerpts from a few English language learning histories are given as examples of how students explain their learning processes in order to support this idea. The last assertion is that SLA should be seen as a chaotic/complex system. Keywords: Second Language Acquisition; Language Learning Histories

A poetic inquiry into a Japanese pre-service teacher’s English language learning trajectory: Pedagogical and methodological implications for teacher education

This qualitative, case-study research explores the English language learning history of a Japanese pre-service teacher by analysing five English-language poems and a self-reflective essay regarding her experiences of learning the target language. The methodology chosen in this study was a poetic inquiry through which the investigator reconstructed and analysed the writer’s subject position expressed in the actual descriptions of each poem. The self-reflection essay was also thematically analysed to examine how the participant saw and understood her learning experiences. Research findings showed that the poems illustrated here expressed both positive and negative emotions concerning her personally meaningful experiences of learning English as well as presented her identities as a second language (L2) learner and an L2 user. This study also revealed that, from a future English teacher’s viewpoint, she described in the essay some potential problems of teaching English in the classroom in response to her L2 learning experiences. Overall, the task of poetry writing was a meaningful literacy and reflective practice through which the participant was able to reconsider her L2 learning experiences and explore more effective ways to learn English as a life-long learner. In addition, she could benefit from these experiences in her role as a future language teacher.

Book Review: The Handbook of Informal Language Learning Edited by Mark Dressman and Randall William Sadler, Wiley-Blackwell 2020

The informal language learning environment has been noted as one of the requirements of foreign/ second language learning success. Based on the current theory and empirical studies addressed in this book, this review provides a brief history and position of informal language learning within the field of EFL/ ESL. The review also examines the strength and limitations of this volume.

Comparing Omani Student-teachers’ Expressions of Identities in Traditional EFL Classrooms and Digital Contexts

Abstract: This paper aims to investigate how virtual social spaces facilitate the expression of female and male Omani student-teachers’ identities, as compared to classroom contexts. The study follows a qualitative research design that is grounded in an interpretivist/constructivist paradigm. Focus group discussions and Language Learning Histories were used for data collection. Fourteen Omani EFL student-teachers participated in this study. The findings are discussed in relation to Dörnyei’s L2 Motivational Self System (2009), the Self-Determination Theory (2002), and Yashima’s International Posture (2009). The research data support the tripartite motivational model, with the expression of Omani-Islamic identity as a powerful motivation for Omani learners to participate in social media. Significantly, the findings reveal that participants’ online identity relates to their actual identity and, thus, bringing their offline identity to the digital context. In a sense, what they consumed offline fed into their online identity. Their online identity was filtered through the lens of English which facilitated their participation in virtual social spaces. The paper argues that social and cultural platforms afford wealthy exposure to and participatory involvement in multicultural-oriented spaces, promoting extensive research of the digital context. The findings of the research are topical as they resonate with the current thinking in the realm of motivation.

Oral skills versus structural knowledge: the Reform Movement and the Grammar-Translation Method

ABSTRACT Considering the most significant international historical research on the history of language learning and teaching since the 1850s as a starting point, this paper builds on the four contributions to this special issue of Language & History to situate the two historical language teaching methods known as the Reform Method and the Grammar-Translation Method in more detail. Before introducing the origins of the Reform Method, the aims and approaches of these two methods are first considered. Then, based on the secondary literature, a brief investigation is made into the possible origins of the German term ‘Grammatik-Übersetzungsmethode’ and the English equivalent ’Grammar-TranslationMethod’, respectively. Finally, the question of whether the Reform Movement can be considered a success or a failure with respect to the dissemination of oral competencies is addressed.

“It’s impossible that there’s no connection”

Despite the growing interest in language learning histories, autobiographical reasoning, a central concept in narrative psychology, has rarely appeared in second language acquisition research, despite the fact that autobiographical reasoning has been found to be central to identity formation, correlating with resilience, motivation, and well-being. This article conducts a narrative analysis of the language learning histories of two English as a foreign language (EFL) student teachers, focusing on three qualities of their autobiographical reasoning: integration, valence, and vividness. It shows how differences in their autobiographical reasoning correlate with differences in their motivation and confidence. It also argues that production of language learning histories can contribute to the development of more confident and motivated learners and teachers.

Transcribing in ESL: An Investigation into Role, Accuracy, and Skills

The role, accuracy, and skills of a team of ESL researchers who transcribed more than 3,000 English language learning histories (LLH) from university students in Hong Kong is examined in this paper. The paper provides an insight into the role of transcribers, how they approach their work, the problems they face, and how they overcome them including the conflict of their prior English language learning. A self-administered semi-structured interview and thematic analysis were used in this qualitative study. The findings show that transcribers learned experientially as they combined project guidelines and prior experience to achieve accuracy Transcribers feel more comfortable working on data that is closer to their English as a second language (ESL) background; however, this also contributed to personal conflict such as correcting grammatical errors. The outcomes suggest training, clear guidelines from supervisors, and incorporating feedback from transcribers can improve the richness and accuracy of data which is of great importance to second language data collection.

‘Trusting the Process’: Part Three of My Autoethnography as a Self-Directed Learner of French

This is the third part of an autoethnography about trying to enrich my vocabulary and improve my listening skills as a self-directed learner through French language songs. I followed the same Study Use Review Evaluate (SURE) learning cycle as my students in a self-directed English class at a university in Japan, and my work occurred at the same time as theirs, over a period of six weeks. Throughout the project and in the course of writing it up, I have been making comparisons and identifying connections between my learning and that of my students. This installment covers the final three weeks of the project. First, in continuing my language learning history, I discuss authentic language and the discrepancies between my classroom language learning and real-life experiences, especially with regard to understanding spoken language while in France. Next, the paper details how I evaluated my learning both during the project and months after it finished. After that, I describe my longtime interest in accents and dialects and how I chose my third song partly to study Nouchi, a French-based dialect spoken in Ivory Coast. The paper concludes with a description of how I felt my goals shifting at different points in the project and reasons I considered changing my focus from listening to reading. I also describe a way I have been able to continue practicing reading French on a daily basis and how students can benefit from this method too.

Modes of Identification Within a Language Learner-Led Community of Practice

Although the importance of communities for social learning within self-access centers has been recognized over the last decade, there has yet been little research exploring student-managed communities in a self-access learning center (SALC). This short pilot study investigates the ways in which members identify with the community of practice (Wenger, 1998) of a student-led learning community within a university SALC. Five members of the Learning Community (LC), an English conversation community, were interviewed three times over the course of one semester about their language learning histories and their experiences in the LC. This data was analyzed inductively and subsequently categorized according to Wenger’s (2010) modes of identification – engagement, imagination, and alignment. The findings of the study indicated that members’ identification with the practice of the LC was connected to a desire for an accessible learning environment, attaining membership in an international imagined community of English users, and the ability to negotiate sociocultural norms for their own purposes. This study highlights a bidirectional relationship between the “baggage” that members bring with them and the everyday practice developed over the course of the LC’s two-year history. Additionally, the insights gained from this exploration of the LC CoP have practical implications for SALC staff aiming to cultivate and support student-led learning communities.