Language Teaching In Bangladesh Research Articles

Datafication, Teachers' Dispositions and English Language Teaching in Bangladesh: A Bourdieuian Analysis

AbstractThe use of (test) performance data for governing school and teachers' work, defined as datafication, has emerged as a global trend in education. However, how this trend plays out in relation to English language education in the local context, particularly in developing societies, has not received notable attention. Taking Bangladesh secondary education as a case, and drawing on Pierre Bourdieu's conceptual resources, this study highlights how datafication unfolds in schooling contexts and examines the “relations” between this trend and English language teachers' dispositions and pedagogical practices. The study employs a qualitative case study and draws on principal and teacher interviews, and classroom observation as data sources. Findings reveal that datafication has emerged as a practical logic of the schooling field, guiding schools and teachers' dispositions in specific ways, which contribute to reductive practices. Data also indicate teachers' capacity to mediate between competing logics and innovate practices, which are situated and “local.” Based on these findings, this article argues that understanding the interplay between the specific logics of schooling, language education policy and teachers' structuring dispositions is key not only to understanding the nature of pedagogical practices, but also to establishing meaningful “relations” between policy and schooling practices amid growing datafication.

TESTING COMMUNICATIVE LANGUAGE TEACHING (CLT) THROUGH ENGLISH FOR TODAY (EFT) IN BANGLADESH: CHALLENGES FACED BY TERTIARY STUDENTS INITIALLY

The idea of using language as a tool of communication is the main principle of the communicative language teaching (CLT) approach. English for today (EFT) as a textbook was designed to develop the overall English language competence at a higher secondary level. This paper aims at justifying the suitability of EFT for implementing communicative language teaching in Bangladesh. This study shows English for today is not effective for creating communicative competence among its learners. Moreover, the tertiary students initially face challenges while enrolling in undergraduate programs under the medium of instruction is English. Data have been collected through classroom observation, interviews with teachers, students, and experts. Structured questionnaires for students, teachers, and experts have been used as tools for data collection. Finally, the paper concludes that revised abbreviations may be suitably adaptable to impose a communicative language teaching approach by overcoming the challenges in the large classrooms in Bangladesh.

Integrating ICT in English Language Teaching in Bangladesh: Teachers’ Perceptions and Challenges

The integration of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in Education especially, in English Language Teaching (ELT) in secondary schools of Bangladesh has been existing for a decade now. However, the status of actual implementation is quite different from the adoption and initiatives taken to integrate ICT in ELT. Therefore, the study aims to investigate the secondary level English language teachers’ attitude towards integration of ICT in Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) and the factors inhibiting the use of it. Further, the paper attempts to examine the challenges faced by the secondary level English teachers of Bangladesh in using ICT in language teaching effectively. In an attempt to examine the attitude of teachers in using ICT in ELT, a quantitative research is designed with a close ended questionnaire to collect the data from a sample of 100 secondary English language teachers of various schools of Bangladesh. The data of the responses is quantified and is analyzed by SPSS 20 program. The obtained data from the questionnaire is examined in order to investigate the perceptions of the secondary level English language teachers towards ICT integrated language teaching and the challenges of the implementation of ICT in ELT. In conclusion, the outcome of the research would provide significant information about the attitude of the teachers towards ICT integration in ELT and the challenges faced by them and hence, the study would help the policy makers and the teachers to enhance the effectiveness of using ICT in ELT.

CONSCIOUS USE OF CODE-SWITCHING TO IMPROVE FLUENCY IN SPOKEN ENGLISH OF BANGLADESHI STUDENTS

Purpose: Present-day English language teaching in Bangladesh, despite adopting Communicative Language Teaching (CLT), focuses more on accuracy (i.e. grammar) than fluency which is proved as a weak strategy. Fluency acquisition in speaking includes pronunciation, but focusing on pronunciation first, slows down the process of becoming a fluent speaker.
 Methodology: As code-switching exists at the tertiary level in Bangladesh and because of the tremendous fascination of Bangladeshi students towards Bengali, code-switching can be utilized as a tool to improve fluency in spoken English. Thus, this research proposes an alternative to existing approaches.
 Result: Once desired fluency is achieved; grammar and pronunciation will be emphasized respectively to attain proper speaking skills. The success of this process can be studied in three phases. In the first phase, it examines whether allowing code-switching while speaking English helps Bengali students achieve fluency or not.
 Applications: This research can be used for universities, teachers, and students.
 Novelty/Originality: In this research, the model of the Conscious Use of Code-Switching to Improve Fluency in Spoken English of Bangladeshi Students is presented in a comprehensive and complete manner.

Study of Humanistic Education: A solution to Language Teaching in Bangladesh

Study of Humanistic Education: A solution to Language Teaching in Bangladesh

English Language Teaching Through YouTube :

The study attempts to explore the present scenario of YouTube language teaching in Bangladesh and to define how the Tubers select material and conduct classes on YouTube. This study explored ten renowned YouTube language channels in terms of some variables like video characteristics, attractiveness, clarity reaction. content. skills and teaching methodology. For this purpose. a questionnaire survey is conducted and naturalistic observation is carried out. In addition, a Focus Group Discussion (FGD) was made to get learners' opinions. The findings show that except for three channels most of them are following the traditional approach of language teaching. The findings also indicate that most of the facilitators belong to nonlinguistic backgrounds and do not have any teacher training experience. Again. inadequate focus is given in developing individual language skills. Therefore, YouTube language teaching needs modification.

Conversation Analysis of Chinese Language Teachers in Bangladeshi University Classroom

This paper analyses the condition of teaching and learning Chinese in Bangladeshi university classroom. Analysis of classroom conversation and interactions between teacher and student has been done to demonstrate the nature of interactions. The different subjects of interactive discussion were coded in order to determine how the approach of teaching impacted upon discourse. For this analysis, author used both qualitative and quantitative model to analyze the data and tried to figure out the nature of classroom interaction and compare between native and nonnative teacher’s classroom interaction. From this research, we have found that the nature and amount of classroom interaction between native and non-native teachers with their students is not the same. Our result will help the organization to make a decision whether a native or a non-native teacher will be more appropriate for Chinese language teaching in Bangladesh.

A Critical Investigation of English Language Teaching in Bangladesh

The 2016 World Bank report on worldwide per capita Gross Domestic Product (GDP) identified Bangladesh as a lower middle-income country based on its consistent GDP growth throughout last decade (World Bank, 2016). To maintain this growth rate and meet the radical demand for human resources in increasingly globalised world markets, the country needs to communicate more effectively with the outside world. Inevitably, this means improving the quality of English teaching and learning. The significance of English, as the globallingua franca, to Bangladeshi learners is at its zenith. In this developing country, however, economic constraints mean that funds allocated to education are limited compared to many other Southeast Asian countries (Habib & Adhikary, 2016). Even given the generally low level of educational standards in Bangladesh (Islam, 2015), the standard of English language teaching and learning has decreased alarmingly in recent years (Hamid, 2011). English language education in Bangladesh has always been problematic, despite various attempts to initiate curriculum reform. As Hamid & Baldauf (2008) point out, the first of these major shifts in the ELT curriculum took place in the mid-1990s, when the traditional Grammar-Translation Method (GTM) was replaced with a curriculum based on a Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) model. The principal objective of this article is to review the major problems associated with ELT in Bangladesh that have hindered the implementation of the new CLT curriculum from the perspective of teachers, and eventually to make recommendations for more effective ELT curriculum reform.

Revisiting the orality-literacy relationship and its implications for English language teaching in Bangladesh

This paper focuses on different concepts of literacy and their implications for TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages). Taking a critical perspective, the study examines the traditional concept of literacy and illuminates how a narrow approach to literacy may lead to a conflict between national policy text and the actual pedagogic practices. Therefore, the author advocates for situating contemporary TESOL pedagogy within a broader concept. In addition, the study examines how literacy is embedded with orality, and whether the link between them has any implications for English language education in Bangladesh. It is argued here that since different cultures and societies do not adhere to a single set of literacy practices, an awareness of learners’ and other stakeholders’ socio-cultural concepts of literacy in a society is essential for TESOL practitioners in order for their materials and methods to be socio-culturally responsive. The study has implications for policy makers, materials writers and TESOL practitioners.
 IIUC Studies Vol.14(2) December 2017: 99-110

Difficulties of English Language Teaching in Bangladesh

<p>Identifying the difficulties of English Language Teaching at English Medium Schools’ Primary levels are essential in Bangladesh to achieve to set English language competencies in the educational institutions. The main purpose of this study was to discover the specific problems of English Language Teaching at English Medium Schools’ Primary levels. The current study was a qualitative research technique by nature. One set of closed-ended questionnaires were used to collect data from the teachers who live within three cities to understand the views and situation of the difficulties of English Language teaching. The study indicates that teachers, students and school administration encounter several problems due to lack of skilled teachers, proper teacher training, using proper teaching methods and materials, physical facilities and so on. As a result, English curriculum implementation at the primary level in Bangladesh is becoming unsuccessful in most of the schools; however there are several adequately designed buildings with well trained teachers along with proper educational materials. Given that the number of schools is in the thousands, we shall draw comparisons between respective educational institutions.</p>

A Comparative Study between Secondary Level and Tertiary Level Communicative English Language Teaching in Bangladesh

Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) is the most recent development in Language Teaching which has been termed effective for communication skills needed to meet the demands of today's fast-paced global world. The principles of CLT have been tried and compared with other methods and particularly adopted in Bangladesh to credit its success worldwide. When compared with traditional methods of teaching such as Grammar Translation we have identified CLT as the most effective method in Second or Foreign Language Teaching. We carried out a comparative study between the Secondary and Tertiary Level English Language Teaching in Bangladesh to determine whether CLT is being implemented in actuality in either of the levels, to what extent and with what outcomes. The findings will try to give a clear indication of English Language Teaching in urban Bangladesh and the expected success of this methodology. While researching, a qualitative approach had been taken and a careful literature review was done to construct a theoretical framework.

The ‘trainer in your pocket’: mobile phones within a teacher continuing professional development program in Bangladesh

Examples of mobile phones being used with teachers to provide continuing professional development (CPD) in emerging economies at scale are largely absent from the research literature. We outline English in Action’s (EIA) model for providing 80,000 teachers with CPD to improve their communicative language teaching in Bangladesh over nine years. EIA’s CPD program is delivered face to face and supported through open distance learning (ODL). This innovative model of teacher CPD is supported through peer learning and self-study using a variety of print, audio and video resources. Drawing on the success of EIA’s pilot studies, where internal and external evaluation reported significant improvement in teachers’ and students’ English-language competence after one year, the current phase is using low-cost mobile phones, or the ‘trainer in your pocket’ to deliver CPD to 12,500 teachers through 2015. We believe EIA’s teacher CDP model is best suited to assist the project in achieving one of its primary goals: to increase the English-language proficiency of 12 million students, allowing them to access greater social and economic opportunities in the future. We argue EIA’s use of mobile phones for the provision of teacher CPD – at scale – is timely and replicable in both developed and developing contexts.

Higher Secondary Level Students’ Evaluation of Communicative Language Teaching in Bangladesh

The aim of the present research was to investigate the evaluation of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) by Higher Secondary (college) level students of Bangladesh. When EFL teachers adapt the CLT method to teach their students (especially college level education) according to their own way without perfect needs of the students, a gap has been arisen between the EFL teachers and the students for their perceptions and practice of new teaching methodology like CLT. Therefore, exploring how Higher Secondary level students’ evaluation of CLT interacts with their learning process could shed more light for learners’ development. This paper reports Higher Secondary level students’ evaluation of CLT method by which they would be able to communicate with their teachers for learning English language very spontaneously in Bangladesh. To achieve this purpose, out of 83 participants, intermediate (Both first year and second year) language learners were selected randomly. Data were collected from semi-structured interviews and belief-inventory questionnaires in the program. It gives an interpretive account of the participant’s reactions to CLT and the impact of it for learning process. This is followed by a discussion on several structured questions that students hold a favorable attitude towards CLT method which has been expressed through their positive statement that by mastering the rules of grammar, students become fully capable of communicating with a non-native speaker where CLT learners are to take responsibility for their own learning and they have to perform group work activities which are essential for communication and in promoting genuine interaction among students. Side by side they have to acquire their English knowledge for communication with others effectively when CLT method is used in their classes through text books.

Globalization and the Growth of International Educational Testing and National Assessment

Education has long been characterized as a central requirement for national economic development and political democratization in the contemporary world. Moreover, international benchmarking has been identified as the “basis for improvement. . . . It is only through such benchmarking that countries can understand relative strengths and weaknesses of their education systems and identify best practices and ways forward” (OECD 2006, 18). Statements such as this example signal an international consensus that has emerged— at least among “developed” countries—about the legitimacy and, even more so, the necessity of international testing and national assessment. As David P. Baker and Gerald K. LeTendre (2005) observe, both international testing and national assessment are linked to efforts to reform educational systems and are often themselves stimuli for further cycles of reform. The results of international testing, they note, will fuel further interest in national assessment. Here we develop an argument about the global forces that have led to the explosive growth of national educational assessment and international testing. In particular, we argue that the international acceptance of testing comes from key ideological forces in the world polity that are associated with the accelerating globalization of national and international cultural, economic, and political structures. As we develop and warrant this argument, we also qualify it by pointing out that national adaptations to this larger world culture may vary depending on the presence and capacities of international organizations and regional associations that act to mediate and adapt these changes to conditions in individual countries. In addition, we consider the effects of subnational movements in introducing pressures for change that may favor more national assessment.

How much reliable are our language tests?

In this paper we will first attempt to familiarize the paradigm shifting in language teaching in Bangladesh. Then, the umbrella term reliability is discussed with references to the literature. Subsequently, four different data instruments have been analysed in order to investigate how far reliability is maintained in testing Reading and Writing by taking HSC (Higher Secondary Certificate) English testing as sample. The study found that reliability at HSC English Testing is not maintained, as item setting. marking, test administration etc. are problematic. Finally, this study recommends some pragmatic measures like providing rater’s training, introducing rating scale, establishing fair and impartial test administration, etc. to achieve the desired goal.