University Language Courses Research Articles

A Qualitative Approach to Educational Research: Language Courses in English Studies

This paper reports on a qualitative study focusing on the role of language awareness in university language courses that form part of English Studies (ES). Language constitutes the subject matter of students’ discipline and the ES degree is the initial training for future language teachers and other language-related professionals. Therefore, the models and views of language presented at university will influence graduates’ future professional practice. This study focuses on how language awareness is approached in language classes and on lecturers’ and students’ views of language and learning. This article will discuss how a qualitative methodology was used to find out about participants’ practices and views on language and learning, through immersion in a university language course over a term. Using a descriptive-interpretive paradigm, data were gathered from classroom observations and interviews, and analysed through the combination of ethnography and discourse analysis. This paper presents the methodological underpinnings of this research, decisions on the selection of data, interaction with participants, researcher’s stance, and warranting. Through the understanding of participants’ practices and views, this study provides a picture of how language awareness is approached in a university language course.

English

There are numerous ways available for lecturers to assess their students’ learning progress and one practical way is through self-assessment. Instructors should not under-estimate their students’ capability and interest in assessing themselves. Instead they should be given the opportunity to be involved in the assessment process. One salient advantage of this practice is to enable students to identify their own strengths and weaknesses in order improve themselves. The main purpose of this article is to investigate the implementation of self-assessment as a classroom assessment tool among engineering students in Universiti Kuala Lumpur British Malaysian Institute. Specifically, this study intends to investigate the accuracy of engineering students when assessing their own writing skill and the students’ and lecturers’ reactions with regard to the use of self-assessment as one of the classroom tools for assessment in a university language course. The subjects of this study were 137 diploma students from several engineering courses. Data in the form of written assignments were collected throughout the study and analysed via students’ own analyses and lecturers’ evaluation. The findings revealed that majority of the students, most of whom were Malays, would under-rate themselves. With regard to the use of self-assessment in the classroom, most of the students remarked that self-assessment is something positive and most of them viewed the procedure as a meaningful assessing experience. Keywords: Interview; metacognitive; self-assessment; self-efficacy; students’ feedback. ABSTRAK Terdapat banyak kaedah yang disediakan untuk para pensyarah menilai kemajuan pembelajaran para pelajar dan salah satu kaedah yang praktikal adalah melalui penilaian kendiri. Sehubungan dengan itu, para pensyarah sepatutnya mempertimbangkan kebolehan serta minat pelajar untuk menilai kebolehan sendiri. Mereka perlu diberi peluang untuk melibatkan diri dalam proses penilaian. Antara kelebihan penilaian kendiri adalah kebolehan pelajar untuk mengenal pasti kekuatan serta kelemahan mereka, seterusnya memperbaiki kelemahan tersebut. Tujuan utama kajian ini adalah untuk menyiasat pelaksanaan penilaian kendiri sebagai alat penilaian dalam kelas di kalangan pelajar kejuruteraan di Universiti Kuala Lumpur British Malaysian Institute. Secara khusus, kajian ini bertujuan untuk menyiasat ketepatan pelajar fakulti kejuruteraan apabila menilai kemahiran penulisan mereka dan mengetahui reaksi pelajar dan pensyarah berhubung penggunaan penilaian kendiri sebagai salah satu kaedah penilaian di dalam bilik darjah untuk kursus bahasa Inggeris di universiti ini. Subjek kajian ini terdiri daripada 137 pelajar diploma yang dipilih daripada beberapa kursus kejuruteraan. Data dalam bentuk tugasan bertulis yang dikumpul sepanjang kajian dan dianalisis melalui penilaian kendiri di kalangan pelajar dan juga penilaian pensyarah. Hasil kajian telah menunjukkan bahawa majoriti pelajar, yang kebanyakannya terdiri daripada pelajar Melayu, didapati kurang berkeyakinan dalam proses penilaian kendiri. Untuk penggunaan sebagai penilaian kendiri di dalam bilik darjah secara menyeluruh, sebahagian besar daripada mereka berpendapat penilaian kendiri itu sendiri adalah sesuatu yang positif dan kebanyakan mereka melihat prosedur ini sebagai pengalaman yang bernilai serta bermakna. Kata kunci: Temubual; metakognitif; penilaian kendiri; efikasi kendiri; maklum balas pelajar

Students’ Communicative Competence and Language Program Evaluation

There is no dilemma at present times that language learning means learning how to use the language and not learning to know about the language. Exactly for this purpose, in today’s global world characterized by massification and mobility in the field of education, the Council of Europe - Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR), as a universal instrument allowing individuals to have a record of the different elements of their language learning achievement, begins its treatment of language use through the context of communication.Language programs at different institutions organize their work in the way that learners use the general competencies they bring with them, but also develop them further. Nonetheless, successful completion of university language courses does not always mean that the student has mastered the language and can use it for communication. This mostly refers to the cases where the language courses are treated as part of the curricula while the other instruction is in the L1. The fact that students at such institutions are not required to take any standardized English proficiency test put the effectiveness of the complete language program under a question mark. In order to provide evidence that its quality language provisionresulted in improved communicative competencefor students, the Language Center (LC) of the South East European University (SEEU) in Tetovo, Macedonia, introduced final oral examination as a part of the course grading criteria. The aim of this paper is to determine whether the introduction of the oral examination as a part of the final achievement exam hashelped raise student’s awareness of the need to improve their communication skills and thus attain better performance. Participants of the study are 114 students from eight sections, two per level, starting from beginner to upper intermediate, whose final scores will be followed in the last three exam sessions. In addition, individual students will be chosen and their progress followed during three academic terms in order to show the development of their communication skills. The results are expected to be used as an indicator for program evaluation by the University management and external evaluation. Keywords: communicative competence, children, English language

The Effects of Digital Game Play on Second Language Interaction

This paper reports on a study into the effects of digital game play on learners' interaction in English as a foreign language. 30 Thai learners of English enrolled in a 15-week University language course completed 18 face-to-face classroom lessons, as well as six sessions playing Ragnarok Online, a popular online role-playing game. The game had been altered to include a number of quests for learners to complete. To gauge the effects of playing the games, participants' language use in both text and voice chats was recorded and analysed. Game play resulted in a large and significant increase in English interaction that used a wider range of discourse functions, and also resulted in significantly more frequent contributions compared with English interaction in class. We discuss some of the theoretical and pedagogical implications of these findings.

Drama in Project-Based Learning

This paper describes a student-centered project-based language learning approach currently practiced at an English language school in Japan. The approach focuses on the creation and performance of original dramas as part of a school festival held every six months. These dramas are written and staged entirely by students. Instructors are responsible for providing language support and content feedback. Assessments are handled through peer and self-assessment based on criteria developed in consultation with instructors. While there are a number of important empirical questions about both project-based learning generally and this learning approach specifically that need to be addressed, the learning approach outlined here provides a good organizing frame for incorporating drama into more rigorous, student-centered project-based language courses in a variety of contexts, e.g., elementary, high school, or university English language courses.

Heritage Spanish Speakers in University Language Courses: A Decade of Difference

Heritage Spanish Speakers in University Language Courses: A Decade of Difference

Sprachenübergreifende Vergleichbarkeit herstellen – aber wie? Ein qualitatives Projekt zur Harmonisierung der Niveaustufe UNIcert® I (B1)

AbstractOne of the central challenges faced by UNIcert®, a system of certification for university language courses, is the establishment of comparability across languages and institutions at each proficiency level. But how is this to be achieved in practice? One possible approach is the one adopted by the project “Qualitative calibration of UNIcert®

The Impact of Learning Style Dimensions on Computer-based Key Language Competences Testing

Computer-Based key language testing is a method of administering tests in which the responses are electronically recorded, assessed, or both. There exist general advantages of Computer- Based Assessment systems over traditional Pen-and-Paper Testing such as, for example: increased delivery, administration and scoring efficiency; improved test security; consistency and reliability; faster and more controlled test revision process with shorter response time; faster decision-making as the result of immediate scoring and reporting; fewer response entry and recognition errors; fewer comprehension errors caused by the testing process; new advanced and flexible item types. When considering how to improve university students’ CB language test performance, we have decided to implement the Felder's Learning Styles into the university language courses. In the paper there are presented the most used foreign languages assessments and a learning style classification scheme used in digital environment at university language courses.

Conceptions of Literature in University Language Courses

In this article we set out to explore and discuss reasons for reading literary texts in university curricula of foreign languages. Our analysis is based on 2 sources of information: 16 syllabi of Spanish as a foreign language and a questionnaire in which 11 university instructors teaching these syllabi express their intentions. We point to a number of risks when emphasis is predominantly placed on instrumental goals such as acquisition of vocabulary and grammar or cultural knowledge. We suggest, instead, that the literary modules within language curricula should formulate their own specific goals. Rather than privileging linguistic and cultural competences to be trained, the literary modules could, for example, raise students' awareness of the facts that there are many ways of reading a text but that interpretation nevertheless remains a historically situated and constrained activity.

Material matters: The case for English for Academic Purposes as subject matter of university language courses

This study investigated undergraduate preparation of English as a Second Language (ESL) students through English for Academic Purposes courses, in relation to recipient subject lecturers’ expectations. Qualitative data were gathered from 36 faculty teaching ESL undergraduates in nine countries. A two-phase approach included seeking discursive responses to questionnaires from faculty and information about curricula. Outcomes highlighted difficulties with material selection for EAP tutors. Tutors chose between ‘general interest’ or ‘discipline-specific’ material, but reported that the former could lead to oversimplification or discipline irrelevance, while the latter usually requires some specialized subject knowledge which may be beyond tutors’ remit. Addressing this, it is suggested that articles about EAP-related topics can form the subject matter of EAP courses with significant benefits. In particular, they can simultaneously provide students with models of academic writing, while the content reinforces skills needed for successful study.

INVESTIGATIONS IN INSTRUCTED SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION

INVESTIGATIONS IN INSTRUCTED SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION. Alex Housen and Michel Pierrard (Eds.). Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter, 2005. Pp. ix + 568. $165.20 cloth.This volume is a compilation of revised and expanded papers from the 2004 Colloquium on “Instructed Second Language Learning/L'appropriation d'une langue second en milieu guide.” Nearly all of the assembled papers report on empirical studies that investigate second language (L2) production or acquisition by language learners in a range of formal instructional contexts, from elementary school immersion classes to adult and university foreign language courses. Following the editors' introduction, the 17 subsequent chapters are organized into four sections: (a) investigating cognitive and processing mechanisms in instructed SLA, (b) investigating the role and effects of form-focused instruction, (c) investigating the role and effects of interaction and communication-focused instruction, and (d) comparing the effects of instructed and naturalistic SLA contexts. Space constraints limit a thorough discussion of each of the papers, but a few noteworthy examples from each section will be discussed here.

The Predominance Of Integrative Tests Over Discrete Point Tests In Evaluating The Medical Students' General English Knowledge

Background and purpose: Multiple choice tests are the most common type of tests used in evaluating the general English knowledge of the students in most medical universities, however the efficacy of these tests are not examined precisely. We compare and examine the integrative tests and discrete point tests as measures of the English language knowledge of medical students. Methods: Three tests were given to 60 undergraduate physiotherapy and Audiology students in their second year of study (after passing their general English course). They were divided into 2 groups. The first test for both groups was an integrative test, writing. The second test was a multiple – choice test of prepositions for group one and a multiple – choice test of tenses for group two. The same items which were most frequently used wrongly in the first test were used in the items of the second test. A third test, a TOEFL, was given to the subjects in order to estimate the correlation between this test and tests one and two. Results: The students performed better in the second test, discrete point test rather than the first which was an integrative test. The same grammatical mistakes in the composition were used correctly in the multiple choice tests by the students. Conclusion: Our findings show that student perform better in non-productive rather than productive test. Since being competent English language user is an expected outcome of university language courses it seems warranted to switch to integrative tests as a measure of English language competency. Keywords: Integrative tests, english language for medicine, Academic English

Develop3ing autonomy in a distance language learning context: issues and dilemmas for course writers

The relationship between autonomy and the teaching and learning of languages at a distance is complex. On the one hand, in order to complete successfully a distance learning programme, learners need to develop a series of strategies and skills that will enable them to work individually. At the same time, distance learning programmes have a clear structure in which the amount, rate and content of the learning programme is determined by the course writers, and not by the student. If autonomy is about the learner being ‘able to make significant decisions about what is to be learned, as well as how and when to do it’ (Van Lier, L., 1996. Interaction in the Language Curriculum, Awareness, Autonomy and Authenticity. Longman, London and New York, pp. 12–13), then it would seem to be incompatible with distance learning. This paper investigates the notion of autonomy in relation to distance language learning, and examines the skills and strategies needed by those learning at a distance in order to achieve successful outcomes. It explores in particular the dilemma posed by the highly structured nature of Open University language courses and the need for learners to develop autonomous approaches. Using examples from the Spanish Diploma, it outlines ways in which autonomy can nevertheless be effectively promoted through careful attention to materials design.

Creating a Character as a Writing Exercise

During more than thirty years of teaching German, I always taught the equivalent of a second-year university language course. Most of the were actually first-year students, having taken 2-4 years of high-school German; the remainder were at a similar level, with either one year of Beginners' German at university, or with some exposure to the language through family or time spent in a German-speaking country. In all cases, we assumed an active vocabulary of about 600 words and phrases, plus an acquaintance with most of German grammar. Our goal was to increase the active vocabulary to approximately 2000 words and phrases and review the entirety of German grammar. We employed all four skills in the process: reading, writing, speaking, and aural comprehension. Writing practice soon became a particular challenge for me, since the tendency in the late '60s and early '70s was to assign essay topics such as kanadische Verfassung, Abtreibung: Fur und Wider, or Sollte die Todesstrafe wieder eingefiihrt werden? Students were rarely happy about such assignments. Many were simply not interested in the problems, and fewer still had the appropriate specialized vocabulary; thus I was constantly looking for new ideas. As it happened, I came across a book in 1975: A Practical Guide to the Teaching of German, by Rivers, Dell'Orto, and Dell'Orto. I found it very useful in general. However one suggestion in particular caught my attention. In chapter 9, the authors suggest that students invent a family and keep a copy of all the data: number of children and their names, ages, and interests, cousins, aunts, and uncles, where they live, what they do for a living and what they enjoy doing in their leisure, their friends, neighbors, and pets, some of their well-remembered joys and misfortunes, and their hopes and plans for the future.... (276). This suggestion struck me as having possibilities, since it might interest the students, and it could involve more basic vocabulary. I tried it out on my 1975-76 class, and it was such a success that I continued to use it every year thereafter. In all, my created 22 families, or rather, after the first two years, characters, with or without families. After two years of experimentation, I settled on a standard procedure. Early in the fall, I would announce the project, which was inevitably greeted by initial puzzlement on the part of the students, followed by suspicion, and then-as the possibilities dawned-by considerable glee and merriment. I followed a set pattern of alternation over the years, specifying whether the character for the current year-always a resident of a German-speaking country-would be male or female, and over or under 30 years of age. After that, I asked for 3-4 suggestions from the for a family name, and then they voted. In the same fashion, we determined the first name, exact age, place of residence, how the character earned a living, his or her height and weight, hair and eye color, marital status, parents, children, and siblings. The process (always done entirely auf Deutsch) usually required a few i utes out of 4-6 class sessions, and by the end of it, the were quite enthusiastic. They would then go on to write a series of, not essays, but stories, with the created character as the protagonist. I assigned the story topic and the minimum length. The first was always (Name) stellt sich vor, 75 words minimum. Over the course of the year, the assi nments became longer and more complex: 'Was machen deine Eltern?', Jan Walter: ein Tag an der Uni, Fritz hat eine neue Freundin, Frau

Foreign Language Teaching to Adults: Implicit and explicit political education

Political education may occur within skills-based subjects such as foreign languages. However, this may be problematic in that learners wish to develop linguistic rather than political skills, and teachers are unprepared political educators. A language course is also about the cultures of the peoples who speak the language, including political institutions. Politics has a logical place within a language course but the word culture does not inevitably evoke political institutions. Within Europe, language education is part of the political project of creating a more integrated market and transnational political entity. Political education is an implicit part of the study of a foreign language. This article examines some of the materials provided to adult, part-time students of the British Open University's language courses. It highlights some elements of the courses that are quite explicitly political education. It also draws on interviews with some of those involved in making the courses to explore the debates and decisions concerning the cultural content and particularly the representations of the target culture. It attempts to make explicit some of the implicit assumptions behind the making of a language course.

A Systematic Instructional Project Utilizing German Newspaper Articles

Although instructors of university intermediate and senior-level language and conversation courses frequently employ items from magazines and newspapers, particularly for general interest and discussion purposes, few proceed from that base to develop complete projects which involve the students in the actual teaching of the class itself. This article briefly delineates such a project for those who wish to utilize comprehensive newspaper and other journalistic pieces on an intensive basis. The project is described here in the form in which it is used in small and medium-sized classes with definite course-related goals. It may, however, be altered or adapted and employed in whole or in part by teachers with larger classes, and by those who have slightly different aims or who wish to concentrate upon individual aspects. For those instructors, the final section of the article contains suggestions for alternate and varied applications. These are followed by three sample handouts illustrating, respectively, the project rationale, requirements and progression; the scheduling procedure; and possible discussion topics. In the interest of brevity, frequent reference is made to the handouts, which are intended to be read in concert with the text of the article.

A Communicative Approach to Foreign Language Instruction: The UMBC Project

ABSTRACT The structure of university language courses at the elementary level tends to be governed by the chapters of textbooks which, in turn, have been determined by the presentation of grammar items. The authors have developed a thematic, communication‐oriented approach to the first‐year sequence in French and Spanish, under a larger developmental NEH grant for the restructuring of the elementary and intermediate curriculum in French, German, and Spanish. This article discusses the design of the syllabus and the materials and teaching techniques that were employed.

Le Devoir, Its Value in Language Teaching

Perhaps the most interesting and at the same time most frustrating challenge in language teaching comes when a student has achieved a reasonably firm grasp of basic structures, has acquired a vocabulary adequate for expressing basic needs, and yet is demonstrably in need of more guidance before he gains any real mastery of a second language. One does not have to have taught for many years to be familiar with the problem. Its manifestation is accompanied by outcries against more of whatever approach the student has followed to date - at this stage pattern drills, audio-visual materials, traditional grammar, all suffer the same fate; there is much lamenting of inadequacy and considerable impatience with any course which does not impart instant fluency. The student's distress is very real. So many years invested in the study of a language, so much more to know before he can express himself in a way commensurate with his intellectual maturity. No less real is the dilemma confronting the language teacher. What material at this point will stimulate the student, challenge him and be of sufficient variety to show him how the language works in a diversity of situations? To set the case for Le Devoir in its proper context it should be stated that all observations arise out of having used a newspaper in its weekly edition for two years as an integral part of a second-year university language course. It is assumed that, whereas study of 'le franc;ais litteraire' is both fascinating and necessary, French in its daily non-literary manifestations is of equal importance for today's student. It is also assumed that there comes a point when there is a clear correlation between the progress a student makes in a language and the distance put between him and a textbook. The further away from that textbook, the more he learns.