Pedagogical Use Research Articles

Translanguaging for learning in selected English First Additional Language secondary school classrooms

Background: The unequal learning outcomes and achievement gaps in language and literacy, particularly affecting poor and working-class children in South African schools, are longstanding issues. These disparities were highlighted once again in the poor literacy results of PIRLS 2021, indicating systemic challenges within the education system.Objectives: This article emanates from a Languaging-for-Learning (L4L) project, which holistically used approaches to integrate isiXhosa home language and English to validate and engage with the learners’ linguistic repertoires to open more opportunities to learn and read multilingually.Method: The research was conducted in two Western Cape township high schools with bilingual isiXhosa and English-speaking teachers and emergent bilingual learners. Five Grade 9 teachers’ English First Additional Language (EFAL) lessons were observed and recorded in 2023. The case study focused on shifts in teachers’ take-up of translanguaging strategies in EFAL lessons and their effective pedagogical use, especially in written form.Results: The findings revealed that bilingual teachers creatively incorporated teaching practices that allowed learners to transition between languages while learning EFAL. The study further indicates that bilingual education has the potential to be a valuable pedagogical strategy in contexts where exclusive use of English impedes effective learning.Conclusion: Yet again, the findings of this study accentuate the importance of incorporating and utilising learners’ home languages into the education process. A bilingual or multilingual pedagogical approach not only enriches the learning experiences but also acknowledges the linguistic diversity within the classroom, thereby making way for more effective and inclusive education practices.Contribution: This study contributes to the understanding of how a bilingual or multilingual teacher intervention can impact English teachers’ classroom practices positively. It emphasises the importance of recognising and embracing the language resources that learners bring to the classroom, highlighting the value of a bilingual pedagogical approach in promoting effective learning outcomes.

Mastering the digital frontier: Development of pedagogical use of ICT competences among student-teachers in Tanzania

This study investigated the factors influencing student-teachers’ development and use of pedagogical ICT competences in teaching and learning process. The study was guided by the Theory of Planned Behavior and the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge model. A descriptive research method was employed to gather quantitative data from a purposive sample of 187 third-year student-teachers from three universities in Tanzania. Data analysis included descriptive statistics and correlation analysis. The results indicated a significant positive correlation between variables related to facilitative condition factors for the development of pedagogical ICT competences. Other factors such as attitudes and expectations, operational usefulness, and social influences had positive corrections; although, they were statistically insignificant. Regarding perceived pedagogical ICT competences related to content delivery, about 74% of the respondents perceived themselves as very skilled and 25.67% as fairly skilled. In addition, competences related to incorporating ICT in instructional strategies, 58.82% of the respondents reported that they were very skilled and 34.22% said they were fairly skilled. These findings highlight the need for targeted interventions to strengthen the training on pedagogical ICT competences and promote effective technology integration in content delivery and instructional strategies.

Exploring the functions of lexical bundles in undergraduate opinion paragraphs for pedagogical use

Abstract Corpus-based studies of lexical bundles have opened new avenues for language teaching research. The fact that naturally occurring language consists of patterns of lexical repetition and multi-word units has given rise to the question of chunkiness in learner language. This study was designed to examine lexical bundles and their functions in a small, specialized learner corpus of opinion paragraphs written by Saudi English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students at the University of Jeddah. The study takes a frequency-driven approach to identify common lexical bundles. A learner corpus of 237 writing tasks produced by Saudi undergraduate students from 11 different sections is compiled and explored. The primary aim was to identify high-frequency five-word lexical bundles and explore their functions in the learner corpus, as well as investigate any distributional differences in bundle use across the various student sections. The findings revealed that learners utilized lexical bundles primarily to serve four key functions: expressing stance, supporting a point, introducing an item, and making recommendations. Notably, variations were observed in the distribution of these functional categories among the different student groups. The study concludes by outlining some pedagogical applications for educators and language practitioners, highlighting the value of learner corpus-informed approaches to enhancing learners’ awareness and mastery of lexical patterning in academic writing. By better understanding the role of formulaic language in learner production, instructors can tailor their teaching to more effectively support students’ linguistic development.

The Expert, The Novice, and The Skeptic: Game Literacy and Pedagogical Practice

This qualitative case study explores how teachers' video game literacy impacts their pedagogical use of the digital game The Walking Dead in an ethics education course at a Norwegian high school. The research question addressed is: how is teachers' pedagogical use of a digital game impacted by their levels of video game literacy? The study followed seven teachers, varying in teaching and gaming experience, over two semesters. Observations and semi-structured interviews were conducted to gather data on the teachers' experience and pedagogical practice using The Walking Dead in their classes. Three teachers were selected for deeper analysis based them showing differences in attitudes and practices, while having similar teaching experience. These teachers were labeled "the expert," "the novice," and "the skeptic" based on their gaming literacy and attitudes. The analysis was based on a two-dimensional approach to video game literacy, emphasizing operational and cultural literacy. The results show that operational literacy impacted how teachers perceived and used various game elements, especially how they identified and framed the game’s dilemmas. The expert and novice saw the game's narrative as an important contextual resource for engaging with the dilemmas, while the skeptic saw it as merely a backdrop. The skeptic also had difficulties distinguishing between relevant and less relevant aspects of the game relative to the learning goal. Cultural literacy mainly impacted the teachers' ability to differentiate between students' perceptions and experiences of the game and different modes of playing. The expert had a more nuanced approach to how students perceived the game's motivational power, emphasizing the story's importance. The novice and expert explicitly instructed students to distinguish between playing for fun and playing to learn, while the skeptic made less of a distinction and saw playing the game more as a standalone learning activity. The findings suggest that teachers' video game literacy can significantly influence pedagogical use of digital games. Higher levels of operational and cultural literacy enable teachers to better navigate the game's elements, guide students' engagement, and facilitate connections between gameplay and learning objectives.

Undergraduate students’ voices on the role of tutorial-based dialogic feedback in developing academic writing skills

This study explores undergraduate students’ perspectives of experiencing tutorial-based dialogic feedback (DF) aimed at enhancing their academic writing skills required for successful completion of English for Academic Purposes (EAP) writing courses. To achieve this aim, an interview-based qualitative study was conducted in a renowned institution of higher education in Bangladesh. The generated data were analysed using an inductive thematic analysis approach, which yielded the findings of this study. The key findings suggest that DF has possible significant prospects to be employed in EAP writing courses working alongside written corrective feedback (WCF). DF helps students better comprehend and effectively apply WCF in both the revised and final drafts of their assignments, potentially resulting in enhanced academic writing. The successful implementation of the DF framework, as proposed by Yang and Carless (2013), may ultimately lead to improvements in academic writing skills. Consequently, this study contributes South Asian evidence-based research to the existing body of knowledge on the pedagogical use of DF.

A Study on the Pedagogical Use of Contemporary Poetry in Korean Language Education : Focusing on the Possibility of Generative Poesie Construction by Foreign Poetry Readers

A Study on the Pedagogical Use of Contemporary Poetry in Korean Language Education : Focusing on the Possibility of Generative Poesie Construction by Foreign Poetry Readers

Integrating "Talking Images" in Education: A Case Study

The era of innovation in education is well underway. Effective practices demonstrate the power of technology in motivating students and improving learning outcomes. This paper examines the integration of the talking image, a new and innovative technology, into the educational process. It also sets out the methodology and the educational benefits resulting from its use. This technology combines visual and auditory elements and is an effective tool for language education, suitable for students with learning difficulties. It can be applied in various educational contexts, from science and mathematics to art, and can enrich a simple narrative or provide personalized content. This paper is a significant contribution to the field, serving as a valuable resource for educators interested in integrating cutting-edge technologies into their pedagogical practices. New research in this direction should be done on the pedagogical use of talking pictures in education and the new frameworks for their integration.

Developing student teachers’ critical awareness of information and communications technology in primary teacher education

ABSTRACT This article focuses on Swedish primary teacher education and the conditions for student teachers’ development of digital competence. Previous research has pointed to the importance of preparing teachers to use digital technology to support pupils’ learning. The aim of this study is to examine the development of course content to enhancing student teachers’ critical awareness of information and communications technology in primary teacher education. Data was collected from groups of primary student teachers consisting of anonymised course materials, a survey and course assignments. The results show that primary student teachers experience that digital technology facilitates the planning and organising of their teaching, digital technology can support the children’s learning and critical pedagogical reasoning is important when using digital technology in the teaching situation. The results have relevance internationally for teacher educators and highlight the importance of promoting a critical awareness of the pedagogical use of digital technology in the classroom.

A methodological exploration of the P-frame approach: Implications for developing phrase lists

The widespread availability of corpora and corpus tools has led to considerable advances in our understanding of phraseology and how it can be investigated. An increasingly influential approach to investigating phraseology is the retrieval and analysis of phrase frames (p-frames), recurrent word sequences with a variable slot. Although the p-frame approach is quite well-established, pedagogically oriented research in this area is still quite new, in particular the application of phrase frames to generate useful lists of phrases. This paper aims to contribute to methodological efforts in this direction by presenting a case study to illustrate decision-making throughout the process from corpus compilation to the generation of a final pedagogical list of phrases. Using a corpus of research article (RA) introductions in Health Sciences, this study shows how key decisions including p-frame length, frequency and range thresholds were arrived at. It also discusses exclusion criteria focusing on variability and predictability of p-frame fillers, and the fine-tuning of the resulting list, focusing on semantic coherence and pedagogical usefulness. Finally, we present the results of an initial evaluation of the list by stakeholders. The main contributions of the study to p-frame research methodology lie in the clarification of threshold settings, the potential contribution of variability and predictability to decision-making and the proposal of more in-depth concordance analysis of co-text to aid in the identification of phrases.

Parent and Educator Concerns on the Pedagogical Use of AI-Equipped Social Robots

Social robots equipped with conversational artificial intelligence are becoming increasingly common in educational settings. However, the long-term consequences of such uses remain relatively unknown due to their novelty. To ensure children's safe use of social robots, and proper adoption of the technology, it is crucial to scrutinize potential concerns regarding their usage. This exploration will provide insights to inform the design and development of this technology. Thus, this study investigated parents' and educators' perceptions of social robot use by children in the home and school settings. Our main objectives are to; 1) explore whether the types and/or levels of concern are tied to the role that individuals take (i.e., parents vs. educators); 2) explore if the levels of concern vary based on the gender and age of the potential child user; and 3) compile a catalogue of parents' and educators' concerns, both from the literature and those that are overlooked, surrounding children's use of SRs for learning. To address those inquiries, a cross-national online survey study was conducted with parents and educator participants (N = 396). Overall, participants indicated high levels of concern but recognized the potential in responsibly applying such technology for educational purposes.

Enhancing the integration of information and communication technologies in preschool education: Pedagogical training for future teachers

This research addresses the critical challenge of integrating information and communication technologies into the educational process, aiming to enhance the practical application of these technologies in preschool education. The article's aim is to develop a model for the pedagogical use of ICT with older preschool children, focusing on the professional development of teachers. The study employs A. Mehrabyan and N. Epstein's “Emotional Response Scale” to measure the responsiveness and sensitivity of future preschool educators. The article presents a comprehensive model for incorporating information and communication technologies in pedagogical activities with older preschool children. This model emphasizes creating a friendly atmosphere that fosters cognitive interest and development. Key components include natural video installations with corresponding sounds, cognitive and gaming activities displayed on screens to encourage collective problem-solving, viewing master classes and educational programs, and organizing literary hours with engaging visual and auditory elements. The proposed model aims to harmonize the psycho-emotional well-being of children and create optimal conditions for their cultural and cognitive development during their preschool years. This approach holds significant practical importance for the education system and overall societal well-being.

Tipping the canoe: What can be learned from a postdigital analysis of augmented and virtual reality in networked learning?

In this paper, the authors use a postdigital lens to examine augmented (AR) and virtual reality (VR) as potentially effective tools for networked learning. The postdigital perspective suggests that the ‘digital’ is so pervasive that it is no longer considered novel or noteworthy; rather, it is so embedded in our day-to-day lives that it now evades notice. This examination draws upon the concepts of analogue and digital to explore ontological and epistemological characteristics of AR and VR as well as how media and materials may shift on a continuum or manifest both characteristics concurrently. Two vignettes are used to create a shared context and atmosphere from which to consider the pedagogical use of these technologies. One vignette describes a VR app that invites the learners into a canoe where they are immersed into a lesson about Indigenous constellations; the second describes an AR app in which the learners direct their smartphones up at the sky also to learn about constellations. While the learning goals are similar, the experiences are differently nuanced. The paper offers a discussion of considerations that may be useful in designing learning experiences with these technologies. The authors discuss the analogue and digital characteristics as well as the freedoms and constraints relative to sites of learning, activities, learner configurations, and representations of learning. A postdigital analysis benefits from ‘shifting work’; that is, much can be learned from shifting between analogue and digital. Such shifting may surface failures, depletion of resources, and the emergence of new entities. The value of examining the digital, analogue, ontology, and epistemology of AR and VR is that it helps to make the human-technology relationship more perceptible. In becoming more aware of the taken-for-granted aspects of learning technologies, it is possible to more effectively design for learning.

University teachers at the crossroads: unpacking their intentions toward ChatGPT's instructional use

PurposeThe objective of this study was to elucidate the intentions of university teachers regarding the utilization of ChatGPT for instructional purposes.Design/methodology/approachIn this cross-sectional quantitative research, data were collected through an online survey tool from 493 university teachers across Pakistan.FindingsThe findings revealed that positive attitudes and a sense of perceived behavioral control had a positive impact on teachers' adoption of ChatGPT for instructional purposes. Conversely, subjective norms exhibited a significant negative influence. The results underscore that teachers are inclined to embrace ChatGPT for instructional cause due to their recognition of its educational utility. However, it does not appear that their social environment, which includes their coworkers and managers, has a significant impact on how they decide what to do.Research limitations/implicationsThe findings bear implications for devising relevant policies that support AI integration in curricula and assessments and teachers’ professional development (PD) programs. There is a need for formulating guidelines at the universities and the policy tiers to make the ChatGPT use more relevant. Future research should strive to generate insights toward AI use in the areas of curriculum, assessment and teachers’ PD.Originality/valueThe study adds to the relatively new literature on the integration of ChatGPT in higher education. This study’s findings contribute to the body of knowledge related to AI’s pedagogical use and set future directions to consider factors influencing meaningful and responsible use of AI in teaching and learning.

Judgment in the News: The Bolsonaro Government

An analysis is presented of news articles from HuffPost and Fox News of instances of judgment towards different Brazilian social actors during the presidency of Jair Messias Bolsonaro (from 2018 to 2021). The news sources were chosen to contemplate different sides of the political spectrum: HuffPost representing left-leaning views and Fox News representing right-leaning ones. Instances of judgment were classified as positive and negative. The results are interpreted in comparison to each news outlet’s alleged political slant, and a pedagogical use of this framework for the EAL classroom is proposed.

Διερεύνηση απόψεων ξενόγλωσσων εκπαιδευτικών Α΄ θμιας Εκπαίδευσης για τον ρόλο των ψηφιακών τεχνολογιών στη διδασκαλία της ξένης γλώσσας

In recent years, digital technologies have penetrated all areas of human activity. The foreign language teacher has access to multimodal, multimedia texts that contribute to the development of language and communication skills, while using tools that provide the opportunity for interaction in authentic learning environments. This quantitative research aims to explore the views of foreign language teachers serving in public and private sector primary schools on the role of digital technologies in foreign language teaching. 80 foreign language teachers participated in the survey and an electronic questionnaire was used as a research tool. The main aspects of the survey are related to the extent to which digital tools are used in foreign language teaching and assessment, the technical equipment of classrooms, the identification of obstacles in the pedagogical use of digital media and, finally, the development of specific language skills in foreign language teaching. It emerged that issues of technical support and lack of equipment are of concern to teachers, the need for continuous training was highlighted and difficulties related to classroom management and the formation of a digital culture for students were recorded.

Outdoor STEAM Education: Opportunities and Challenges

There is a consensus that students should be involved in interdisciplinary activities that promote a solid education in STEAM subjects from an early age. The outdoor settings of schools present an advantageous context for STEAM education, allowing for a myriad of learning experiences. To understand how teachers perceive the pedagogical use of the school’s outdoor space, a study was carried out in a cluster of schools in a Portuguese city, including one middle school and 10 kindergarten and elementary schools. A mixed methods approach was used, combining a questionnaire for teachers (N = 49) with interviews (N = 8). The results indicate that teachers’ perceptions of the characteristics of their school’s outdoor spaces either facilitate or hinder the implementation of outdoor pedagogical activities. Most teachers concur that the outdoors provides contact with nature and encourages interdisciplinary and collaborative activities. However, the teachers surveyed admit to using the school’s outdoor spaces only occasionally, and this use decreases as the educational level at which they teach increases. The most common use of outdoor spaces is for physical and motor activities, promoting the well-being of children and youth. Although interdisciplinary activities in outdoor spaces are recognised, their implementation is limited and hampered by factors such as the length of curricula and the lack of training for teachers in these approaches. In this sense, there is an urgent need to train teachers in the interdisciplinary use of outdoor spaces to promote a solid education in STEAM subjects.

20,000 Species of Bees: Fictional film as a tool for queer pedagogies

Films on trans children often portray transgenderism as a disorder with a tragic ending for the protagonists, thereby ignoring the existing research on children being capable of expressing their own gender. In this article, we perform a close reading of the feature film 20,000 Species of Bees from a queer and feminist perspective. We focus on the potential of the film as a tool for educational practice as part of queer pedagogies. This coming-of-age movie portrays a family in which both daughter and mother undergo an identity crisis, challenging the traditional (gender) norms in the Basque society in which they are embedded. We argue that, unlike some of the recent films featuring trans children, 20,000 Species of Bees breaks with the conventional structures of mediated trans identities as problematic and opens a new perspective on the pedagogical use of the media, particularly cinema, as a space for imagining a ‘future to become’.

An exploratory study into the perceived benefits of, and barriers to, the pedagogical use of puppet play in the early years

This paper explores the perceived benefits of and barriers to, using puppets in early years classrooms and childcare settings. An online survey of 121 early years educators revealed that puppets are widely, but infrequently, used in the early years, and are largely found to be valuable pedagogical tools by those that use them. Puppets were reported to benefit play, teaching, wellbeing and the communication of behaviour requirements, as well as positively impacting engagement with learning and behaviour mediation. Frequent users were more positive than infrequent users. Barriers to usage included a lack of confidence or awareness of how to use puppets pedagogically (23%, n = 19), a lack of puppet resources (23%, n = 19) and a series of ‘sub-conscious’ decisions not to use puppets based more on apathy than dislike (49%, n = 40). A small minority (10%, n = 8) made a conscious decision not to use puppets because they were negative about puppets. Training and information are required to encourage more puppet use and raise awareness of the benefits; there is also a need for the provision of puppet resources to realise the pedagogical potential of puppet play in the early years.

The Pedagogical Use of Didactic Classes for Teaching Cognitive Psychology

The Pedagogical Use of Didactic Classes for Teaching Cognitive Psychology

Me, us and IT

The adoption and pedagogical use of technologies such as virtual worlds to support teaching and learning, and research in higher education involves a complex interplay of technical, organisational and personal factors. In this paper, eighteen educators and researchers provide an overview of how they perceive a virtual world can be used in education from the perspective of themselves as individuals ‘me’, their educational organisations and as members of the Australian and New Zealand Virtual Worlds Working Group (VWWG) community of practice ‘us’, as well as the complex technology that underpins this learning environment ‘IT’. Drawing on Linstone’s (1981, 1984) Technical, Organisational and Personal (TOP) multiple perspective concept as the framework for analysis, the authors discuss their perspectives of how the personal, organisational and technical aspects of teaching through the use of virtual worlds have impacted on their teaching and research in higher education. The potential of employing the TOP framework to inform future research into the use of technologies such as virtual worlds in teaching and learning is explored.